"These guys...... Completely different from the mercenaries before them, the word timid as a mouse is almost tailor-made for them. Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 info "William looked at these and dropped the extra-long spear, the arquebus. The soldier, who didn't look like a soldier at all, sighed in his heart - if all the enemies he dealt with were this kind of garbage, then the Hereford family would probably have won the final victory and successfully unified the whole world, right?

William then questioned his intelligence officers, and sure enough, they were mercenaries from the Lombardy region - Lombard mercenaries had become known for their weakness hundreds of years ago. The trash qualities they displayed in battle did not surprise William.

"So, what should I do next?" William pondered.

It would be nice to say that the other party is all this kind of garbage, but unfortunately it is not. The main force of the opposing forces is still elite mercenaries from the Imperial region. Including mountain infantry from Great Moravia, as well as elite mercenaries from the mountain swamps of Bern. The combat effectiveness of these units is slightly stronger than that of the Hereford family, not counting weapons and equipment. After all, people are elite.

"So, in this way, the rhythm of the battle is disrupted. William didn't know if his enemy would force the soldiers to attack him, or whether he would stop, trim up, and plan the next round of attacks.

There are pros and cons to both - both for the Hereford family and for the Imperial Army. So whether it is William, General Franz, or Archduke Charles, they are not clear about the direction of the next battle.

"Perhaps, I can try to counterattack?" William thought, and then made a quick decision. After a round of artillery bombardment, an infantry regiment, the new army of the Hereford family, charged towards the enemy. The soldiers, bayonets and roaring loudly, charged at the fleeing Lombards, followed them, caught up with them, and then stabbed them in the back of the heart, knocking them to the ground.

There was little resistance, and in many arrays behind, the company was also crushed by the panicked Lombards. The tide of collapse affected not only the Lombards, but also the strong and brave Goths around them.

William was so surprised that the situation suddenly became very favorable to the Herefords, and he began to calculate what effect it would be if two more regiments of infantry were to be thrown in, and then ordered to fire more from the artillery—perhaps in this way, he would win the war.

After all, wars in this era still carry a lot of uncertainty and contingency. It's perfectly acceptable to start a war because of some accident, or to win or lose because of some accident.

Who made these scum too weak in combat? However, the gentle people of the Lombardy Peninsula are understandably weak. Well, yes, understandable.

-- However, just as William was about to give the order to pursue the enemy, a change occurred - and the infantry units on the opposite side ceased to collapse. A large number of soldiers, those panicked guys as if they had hit a wall, and then, there were heavy casualties.

It was a group of soldiers armed with flintlock muskets and bayonets similar to those of the Hereford family army. These soldiers were like a dike, holding back the surging rout.

Then, without hesitation, like the Hereford family soldiers who were pursuing them, they were stabbed to the ground.

"Calm down, calm down! Don't storm the central array! Spread out on both sides!" the soldiers shouted at the hapless ones as they slaughtered mercilessly.

"These guys ......" William was slightly surprised, and slightly surprised. But soon, he could see who these guys were, or what they were-

This is the Ostrogothic Emperor, the head of the Swabian family, the Praetorian Brigade of Khalmann IV! a total of three infantry regiments equipped with flintlock pistols and bayonets!

These guys, who have infiltrated the bone marrow of obedience, killed mercilessly, and quickly controlled the scene. At the same time, on both flanks of the battlefield, two cuirassier regiments were accompanied by a cloud, smoke and dust that shook the sky. The sab-wielding cuirassiers stormed into the infantry regiments sent out by the Hereford family and the rout, completely ignoring the difference between the two, brandishing their sabers and slashing wildly.

With a three-pronged approach, it only took a short moment for those chaotic routs to basically calm down, or simply be killed. A crisis that could lead to a total rout of the entire war was brutally suppressed and even resolved.

“......”

Opposite, William looked at the Imperial Army with a gloomy face.

It's simple, it's clear, and at the same time it's taken for granted. Whether it was the most elite Janissary Infantry Brigade or two cuirassier regiments, there was only one person in the Imperial Army who could drive these elites, and that was Kalman IV.

His Majesty the Emperor didn't know if he couldn't bear the loneliness, or if he had other plans...... All in all, on the eve of William's imminent victory in a battle, he suddenly appeared with an army that could turn the tide of the battle.

"Damn it, what the hell is he trying to do?!" William thought to himself. At the same time, a thought suddenly arose in his heart—

Charge, attack, and send all the main forces under his command here, and then have a good fight with the emperor's soldiers. After a magnificent battle, stepping on tens of thousands of corpses, facing the Emperor Majesty, and then defeating the Emperor Majesty in a dignified manner, allowing himself to gain enough prestige and glory to lay the foundation for his rule over the entire Hereford family, millions of square kilometers of territory, and tens of millions of people.

“...... No, it's not the right time for me to do that. But then, William forced himself to calm down. Don't do it - because it will disrupt his whole plan. And in this way, the transfer of personnel, the rearrangement of the army, the arrangement of technical weapons, all kinds of artillery, organ cannons will take a lot of time, and it will cause violent chaos. With the enemy's forces on guard and on their own, this could easily lead to defeat.

Even if it doesn't lead to failure, it will definitely cause the Hereford family to suffer more losses.

And these losses, if according to William's previous plan, could have been completely avoided.

"Abandon the preset position, change your tactics because of a momentary emotional turmoil. That's not a good thing. William said to himself, "I shouldn't have done this, not even for myself." ”

After reminding himself like this, William completely calmed down. At the same time, the fighting situation on the front line has basically stabilized. Under the attack of two cuirassier regiments on the left and right, an infantry regiment sent out by the Hereford family suffered heavy losses, several companies were completely wiped out, several companies suffered more than half of the casualties, and less than 500 soldiers returned from escape, which was completely incapacitated.

"In this way, the second line of defense will not be able to hold on. William thought to himself - after he had regained his composure, he also began to recalculate the next battle. Unable to increase his troops, unable to mobilize his troops, he had only three infantry regiments, a light cavalry regiment and an artillery regiment at his disposal. That adds up to only five or six thousand. Even if you add the defeated First Array, and the remnants of the Third Regiment of the Second Array. It will not add up to more than eight thousand.

On the opposite side of William, a steady stream of enemies was coming, Emperor Khalman IV's Praetorian Guard, cuirassiers, and a large number of Gothic mercenaries, including several elite mercenary infantry regiments. It adds up to an army of 30,000 men. They are rushing towards the battlefield as fast as they can. In this case, William was by no means his opponent.

"Damn, I have to retreat! Preserve my strength!" William thought to himself. Then, as fast as possible, the artillery unit was ordered to raise the gun mount, put on the horses, and then retreat back.

"Look, the other party is scared, like yesterday. ”

At the same time, after seeing how the Hereford family's army responded, Emperor Kalman IV showed a disdainful smile: "We can attack, my friend." "At his side was General Franz, who was his confidant and at the same time the supreme commander of this army.

After hearing the order of Kalman IV, the general opened his mouth and stopped talking. His appearance made Kalman IV frown: "My friend, is there any problem?"

Although it sounded calm, there was nothing wrong with the expression. But General Franz's understanding of Kalman IV, he knew, Kalman IV was already impatient. If he said anything more now, nothing would be useful, but would make Kalman IV dissatisfied, and he would be angrily reprimanded, and even punished severely.

So, in this case, he can only bite the bullet and accept the order......

"Yes, Your Majesty. General Franz responded, and then gave the order to attack, as Kallman IV had said.

Immediately afterwards, two infantry regiments charged against the Hereford family army under the strict orders of the military judge and the warlord. Seeing this scene, Kalman IV smiled:

"Yes, that's it, my friend, to crush our enemies with a continuous, overwhelming attack. They are by no means the opponents of the great Imperial Army, the great Swabian family!" After saying these words, he looked to the other side, his son, Archduke Charles: "Learn a little, young man, and see how your elders actually command the battle. He said this to his son, not harshly, but with absolutely no kindness.

After being said by Kalman IV, Archduke Charles couldn't help but shudder like a mouse seeing a cat, and then replied stubbornly: "Yes, Father." ”

"Well, that's it. Kalman IV nodded in satisfaction. He was very pleased with the respect of his son, of his ministers, of his concessions and compromises of power. And under the pressure of this emperor, the quarrel between Archduke Charles and General Franz also came to an end...... Such a forcible press, such arbitrariness and such an order will not solve the problem. It can only be made to press down on the problem, to become bigger and more terrible.