Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 170 Shadow Commander

Fate tormented both of them in a comical way.

Once upon a time, city walls were the only way for agrarian civilizations to defend against barbarians, but now they have become a refuge for nomadic tribes hiding behind high walls.

The Paratites fought a tough battle, and it wasn't until the fourth day of the siege that they managed to fill in the double-layered moat outside the south wall.

On the fifth day of the battle, a battalion broke through to the foot of the south wall bastion. Under the cover of shield wagons, engineers began digging into the wall in preparation for the demolition.

The most brutal battle to date in the siege has now begun.

The Heds on the bastion were frantically pouring boiling water and scalding oil over the walls without stopping for a moment.

The main city gate and three side gates burst open, and a steady stream of Hart's elite armored soldiers launched a counterattack. Some fearless warriors even leaped off the city walls and plunged into the crowd, hacking and slashing wildly.

Arrows rained down from above, and boiling oil poured down. Just a few steps away were comrades and barbarian soldiers locked in fierce combat. Screams, wails, and the sounds of weapons piercing flesh filled the air. It was in this environment that the Paratul engineers gritted their teeth and began digging into the wall.

In the context of Venetta and the United Provinces, the "border people"—the Monta and Paratul—are synonymous with rudeness and barbarity.

But the bravery and ferocity displayed by the Plato soldiers and their enemies still deeply moved Winters.

The bloody battle also made Winters' auxiliary soldiers and laborers shudder, to the point that they complained much less while working.

Although the siege was not going well, Winters' tunneling project was progressing well.

He has successfully advanced the trenches to within 200 meters of the city wall. Some trenches are even less than 50 meters from the city wall, and the voices of the Harts on the city wall can be heard in the trenches.

These trenches greatly shortened the attack distance for the troops, allowing Palatine soldiers to safely reach the vicinity of the city walls before launching an assault.

During the retreat, one can retreat to the nearest trench and then move to the rear.

Winters originally estimated that the Heds would launch an attack when the trenches crossed the center line.

Therefore, Winters carefully prepared countermeasures. He had his five most elite ten-man squads fully equipped and on guard, arranged sentries, and set up assault posts and evacuation routes throughout the trenches.

But the flirtation was directed at the blind man, and the Heds' counterattack never materialized.

This made Winters even more convinced that although the Hurds had a well-planned city defense and a strong will, they lacked practical experience in siege warfare.

Bianli City is first-class in both location and design, clearly the work of the master. However, the garrison in the city is currently fighting on instinct.

Their attention was focused on the struggle below the city walls, and it was likely that even if the Hurds discovered that the trenches were gradually approaching, they would not have the energy to deal with it.

Or perhaps the defenders considered the battle along the wall more important, and therefore neglected the trenches for the time being.

Regardless of the Hurds' intentions, one side's mistake is the other's opportunity. Since the Hurds underestimated the trenches, Winters accelerated his digging.

On the afternoon of the fifth day of the siege, the engineers of Palatine finally finished setting up the explosives, and Captain Andreio, covered in mud, personally lit the fuse.

Seeing the Paratul people scatter, the Hed people realized that something was wrong and launched another attack, but were desperately blocked by Captain Andreo and his men.

The fuse hissed as it burned into the ground, and the people by the wall involuntarily held their breath, waiting for the earth-shattering explosion.

Andreo even closed his eyes because he was too close to the explosion and believed he had no chance of survival.

However, no one heard the deafening noise; the explosion sounded like a muffled fart.

As the smoke cleared, a large hole appeared in the wall. The city wall stood silently in place, as if nothing had happened.

The Platu people's high hopes for their wall-breaking and blasting tactics were dashed from the start, and hundreds of kilograms of black powder were wasted.

……

On the fifth day of the siege, night fell.

When Lieutenant Colonel Jessica lifted the curtain of Lieutenant Montagne's tent, the lieutenant was writing something on a piece of parchment.

Upon seeing the lieutenant colonel enter, Winters instinctively used the map to cover the parchment and stood up to salute.

Jessica had seen everything. He stood at the tent entrance, his tone as cold as ever: "Sackler wants to see you."

“General Sackler?” Winters was taken aback.

Jessica nodded slightly.

“I’ll pack up and go right away.” Winters pulled out a piece of parchment covered in writing from under the map, folded it twice, and put it into a small square wooden box.

When the lieutenant opened the wooden box, Jessica saw that it contained stacks of folded parchment, neatly packed inside.

Winters followed the lieutenant colonel as they headed toward the headquarters in the center of the military camp.

“The Sacklers are fine, no need to be nervous,” Lieutenant Colonel Jessica said.

Winters nodded in agreement.

"He might want to ask you about tactics. Just answer whatever he asks. Sackler likes people who can get to the point. It's best to be concise and avoid unnecessary words."

"Thank you, sir."

The lieutenant colonel gave a soft hum, seemingly unmoved by the "thank you."

After walking in silence for a while, Jessica suddenly asked, "What were you writing just now? Of course... you don't have to say if you don't want to."

Write a letter to your family.

"Family." The one-eyed lieutenant colonel chewed on the word: "In this godforsaken place, even if I write something, I can't send it out."

"I can't send it out, but I'll still write."

The lieutenant colonel let out another soft snort.

In a spacious tent, Winters met Brigadier General Seckler.

Compared to the size of the tent itself, the interior was rather shabby. There was a bed, a desk, and a clothes rack—that was all.

General Sackler was sitting on a small stool with a bench in front of him. It seemed he was using the bench as a dining table and was having dinner.

There was a plate on the bench containing some porridge.

When Winters entered the tent, Brigadier General Seckler was holding a pickled cucumber in his left hand and eating bread dipped in paste in his right.

Judging from his appearance, he doesn't look like a general with a large army at his disposal at all; he looks more like a farmer who has just finished working in the fields and is returning home.

Plato officers were generally extravagant and pursued luxury: gold-embroidered sashes, silk riding coats, bejeweled swords, complete sets of ceramic tableware...

Cavalry officers, in particular, always dressed impeccably, sometimes even excessively so.

Regarding this tendency, the cynical commentator Venetta summarized it this way: "The Paratists always live in scarcity, so for the Paratists who rarely have enough of anything, 'enough' means more than anyone else."

In just a second, Winters formed an emotional judgment about Sackler: if he wasn't a saint, he was a hypocrite; in short, he was no ordinary person.

The brigadier general was quite easygoing: "Gentlemen, please find a place to sit."

They said they were looking for a place to sit, but there wasn't even a spare stool in the tent.

Lieutenant Colonel Jessica sat down on the brigadier general's bed without any hesitation. The second lieutenant, unsure whether to stand or sit, eventually settled down to stand properly.

“I brought him.” Jessica gestured with her chin: “He is Winters Montagne, and he led the men to dig those trenches.”

Winters had assumed that the lieutenant colonel was only indifferent to his subordinates, but he was surprised to find that he spoke to the brigadier general in the same tone.

Sackler took a bite of his bread and looked at Winters: "Lieutenant Montagne?"

“Yes.” Winters brought his boot heels together.

“I know you’re wronged. We’re sorry that you can’t go home,” Brigadier General Seckler said sincerely. “I promise you, once this battle is over, I will arrange for you to return to Veneta immediately.”

Winters had a bad feeling: "Thank you, General."

What are your thoughts on this siege?

"Our army will win!"

"So how long do you think it will take to take down the Hed's city?"

Winters was puzzled. He wanted to reason with the general, since there was no certainty in war.
But when asked, he could only give a simple answer: "I don't know!"

Sackler and Lieutenant Colonel Jessica exchanged a glance and gave each other a wry smile: "Go ahead and say it, even if you think it's just a guess."

"It could take two or three days, or longer, depending on the Hud people's reserves."

"Two or three days?"

"Maybe we can get to the city walls tomorrow."

“But today our army suffered a crushing defeat.” “The victory or defeat in a siege is not determined by a single day’s outcome.” Winters couldn’t help but say, “Today has proven that the wall-breaking and demolition tactics are feasible. The Hurd’s artillery has been firing less and less these past few days, and their gunpowder must be running out. Without artillery, the Hurd have no way to deal with the shield wagons.”

After speaking, Winters paused for a moment and added, "Of course, we also need to improve the demolition method."

How can it be improved?

"Strengthen the seal. The best approach would be tunnel blasting, but aren't we still digging tunnels?"

"We haven't even dug down to the city wall yet."

"The key is to demoralize the Hurds. If the Hurds' morale doesn't drop, even if we break through the outer wall, there's still the inner wall behind. Once we break through the inner wall, we'll have to fight for the houses."

Seckler smiled and shook his head: "Do you know who the Hedman who is guarding the city? He is a member of the tribe of the barbarian chieftain Yasin, his relatives, his direct subordinates, and his guards. As long as Yasin is alive, the Hedman in the city will not give up the resistance."

Winters suddenly realized that given the hatred between the Paratul and the Hed, it would be difficult to demoralize the enemy using ordinary methods.

Sackler continued, "You must have encountered those Hard raiders who crossed the River Styx to the east, right?"

"Yes."

"Do you know who those Hed people are?"

"I don't know." To those who don't understand the wasteland, the Hud people are just Hud people, and Winters is no exception.

"Those are the Naiman, a cobbled-together group of more than twenty tribes, but not a single one from the Chihe tribe is among them," Sekler said with a sigh. "Don't underestimate this barbarian, Yasin! He led his own people to lure us in, while letting other tribes raid Palatu and feast on the fat. He gnaws on the bones while giving the meat to others. With such a magnanimous attitude, if we don't crush him to death in this earthen city today, the borderlands of Palatu will not be peaceful for the next twenty years."

Winters listened intently. At first, this battle was nothing more than "Paratulans fighting Hiddenmen" to him.

But the more deeply he got involved, the more he realized that the underlying logic of this war was far more complex than simply "border people fighting against barbarians."

This was a thorough and decisive operation.

While Winters was still lost in thought, Brigadier General Seckler pondered for a moment and then said, "Lieutenant Montagne."

"Yes"

The brigadier general made a startling remark: "If you were given full authority to coordinate the operation, how long would it take you to take over Bianli?"

Winters didn't react for a moment.

Brigadier General Sackler repeated himself.

“Next year,” Winters replied.

Winters sensed something was amiss: the brigadier general was acting rashly and desperately.

In this siege, Winters actually commanded nearly 1,200 auxiliary soldiers and laborers.

This was the first time he had been responsible for so many people, and it had already given him quite a headache.

Moreover, Winters knew very well that he could command thousands of men because the commander of the auxiliary troops was his contemporaries from Vineta. Lieutenant Vineta and his men were of one mind and did not object to listening to him.

The civilians naturally obeyed the authority of the officers, so there was little need to worry about them.

“If I were to take charge,” Winters repeated earnestly, “next year, nobody would listen to me; we’d just have to wait for the Heds to starve.”

Brigadier General Seckler understood the lieutenant's meaning and explained, "Of course, you don't need to be in the public eye. You can take up a position at Legion Headquarters. The orders will be issued in my name and Arpad's name, so you won't become a target."

"Why are you in such a hurry?" Winters retorted. "Even if I were to lead the charge, it would only be the same old three things—drilling, blasting, and shelling. We can already see the signs of victory today. With patience, Bianli City will be Palatour's sooner or later."

"No!" Sackler's eyes gleamed, his expression serious. "It has to be fast! The faster the better!"

……

……

That night, Palatine's army entered the trench positions and advanced overnight.

The following day, Platu's army once again breached the southern fortress walls.

This time, the engineers used a new digging method, instead of digging straight ahead, they dug a folded hole. Although it was more labor-intensive, the sealing effect was better.

The skilled engineers in the army also improved the containers for storing gunpowder. Previously, for ease of transport, gunpowder in separate barrels was fed into the gun ports. The gunpowder barrels detonated sequentially, dispersing the explosive force.

This time, only one "coffin" filled with gunpowder was used. The coffin was secured with iron rings and sealed inside and out with asphalt.

The second explosion was no longer a muffled fart.

A corner of the southern fortress was directly blown up, and the explosion even startled the warhorses in the main camp. Dirt and wood fragments flew dozens of meters into the air, making it look like a mud rain had fallen inside and outside the fortress.

As soon as the southern fortress was breached, the newly formed grenadier battalion of Plato's army rushed into the gap.

Following Winters's advice, Sackler selected tall, strong, and exceptionally brave soldiers from the Fifth and Sixth Legions, equipping them with half-body armor, full-face helmets, melee weapons, and iron bombs, specifically for breaking through breaches.

Although heavy, iron bombs are surprisingly effective in siege warfare.

The Heds fought back desperately, and the Platt army advanced and retreated three times, finally securing a corner of the bastion.

At this point, it was impossible for the Heds to drive back the Paratuls, because while the two sides were still locked in a stalemate at the breach, Winters had already led his men to break through the last section between the breach and the trench.

Paratu's army could continuously reinforce the gap through the trenches.

As darkness fell, the exhausted Paratul and Hed people were unable to gain the upper hand. Both sides ceased fighting, licked their wounds, and the battle came to an end.

However, in the dead of night, people, livestock, and poultry within a radius of more than ten kilometers were awakened by another loud noise.

This time, it was a tunnel blasting with almost no limit on the amount of explosives, and the entire northern bastion of Bianlixiwei City was sent flying into the sky.

The people of Hed in the city even thought it was an earthquake and fled in panic.

Two infantry battalions of Plato's army, who were well-prepared, seized the opportunity to attack the breach in the northern bastion.

The battle raged from late at night until dawn, and the city of Bianlixi was captured. The Hed people fled into the main city for refuge.

Palatine's detachment on the south and north banks also took the opportunity to cross the river and set up siege ladders to attack Dongwei City.

As the sun rose above the horizon, Winters stood atop the watchtower gazing out over Bianli, where Palatine's four-quadrant flags were already planted throughout the western part of the city.

Andre, standing next to Winters, was beaming with joy.

Lieutenant Vineta and his men had already heard that they could go home after the battle, and that victory was within reach.

"Vulnerable, utterly vulnerable!" Andrei laughed heartily, patting Winters hard on the shoulder.

“The battle isn’t won yet, don’t rush to celebrate.” Winters also smiled slightly, and he beckoned to a messenger: “Go find Brigadier General Sackler. Lieutenant Mason has collected some of the Hurd’s cannonballs. Have Lieutenant Mason take the cannonballs to the front, turn the Hurd’s cannons around, and blast open the main city gates.”

The messenger climbed down the watchtower and ran quickly towards the legion headquarters.

Winters felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction. The army was like chess pieces at his disposal. He could make plans without restrictions and then watch them be implemented. Nothing excited him more than this.

Even though he was just an advisor, he found that it still gave him a sense of omnipotence, and he couldn't help but ask himself: "Is this power? Dangerous yet intoxicating."

At dawn, squads of soldiers left their positions and headed towards Bianli City.

Winters reached for the locket: "The morale of the Hedren army has wavered; perhaps we can really win in one battle."

Unseen by him, a rider charged straight into the camp gate. The guards immediately stopped him, and the rider fell from his horse, screaming as he scrambled towards the legion headquarters.

Five minutes later, Winters received a note.

The joy on his face gradually faded, and wrinkles began to appear on his forehead.

"What's wrong?" Andrei noticed something was amiss.

One by one, the Palatine contingent, marching in orderly formation toward Bianli, turned around, and messengers in green-feathered helmets rode their horses toward Xiwei City.

Winters waved the note in his hand, his expression unusually calm: "The Heds' reinforcements have arrived."

[Winters's illusion was actually the illusion of the military staff, the illusion of the graduates of the old Japanese Army Academy. Winters and other lieutenants like Vineta did the work of a staff officer. They formulated the plans, and Sackler and Alpard made the decisions. However, the military rank of staff officer did not exist at this time, so this chapter is called "The Shadow Commander."]
Sorry I'm late. The main problem was that the beginning was incomplete, so I'm finishing the last part before posting it.

There might be a little bit of angst for the protagonist, but I only realized that after I finished writing it. There are a lot of cliffhangers... but Winters will definitely return to Veneta, tomorrow or in the future.

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(End of this chapter)