Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 313 Ending
On the western side of the battlefield, the left flank of the Tiefeng County army.

The dying warhorse neighed mournfully, its warm blood even making the ground somewhat muddy.

The heavily armored Teldun guards were extremely difficult to kill; even when dragged off their saddles, they continued to brandish their scimitars and roar as they fought.

In the chaos of battle, no one had time to look for gaps in the armor plates.

The militiamen swung their maces and flails, wildly striking the fallen barbarian until he was beaten to death.

Therefore, the vast majority of Teldun soldiers died from blunt force trauma.

Although their skin was bluish-purple, it was intact, with almost no sharp-force injuries. The underlying cause of death was massive bleeding in the subcutaneous tissue and organs.

It's a painful and slow way to die, but the problem is that it's too inefficient.

The Telden's blades, when they struck the militiamen who lacked armor, could incapacitate them with a single blow.

The monkey and two other militiamen were pinning down a strong barbarian like drunkards fighting, completely clueless about how to kill him.

They were already using all their strength just to hold down the barbarian. The barbarian struggled desperately, so they dared not loosen their grip.

A soldier named Lu Xirong roared in his ear, "Get out of the way!"

Immediately afterwards, the monkey riding on the barbarian was kicked over by a soldier.

Lu Xirong swung a blunt wood-chopping axe and brought it down hard on the barbarian's head.

The axe failed to pierce the helmet, but blood oozed from the barbarian's nose and eyes, and he immediately stopped struggling.

Lu Xirong swung his axe again and chopped the barbarian in the neck, making sure the latter would not come back to life.

The Teldun cavalry attacking the left flank have been divided into two parts:
Most of them were trapped between the two trenches; a small number were blocked outside the first trench.

It was Anglu's cavalry that cut Teldun in half.

Anglu had long since discarded his saber—the curved blade saber was good for slashing, but it was not as effective against armored warriors as a straight-bladed sword.

A gleaming scimitar slashed diagonally, but Anglu, now wielding a mace, retaliated against the opponent's weapon.

The moment the weapons clashed, the scimitar was knocked out of its place.

Anglu then struck the opponent's arm with his mace, and the armored soldier, Teldun, screamed and fled on horseback.

With no time to pursue the enemy, Anglu gently pulled on the reins, and the red-maned horse charged toward another barbarian rider.

The situation is not good; the Iron Peak Cavalry is gradually losing ground.

In mounted combat, the Iron Peak riders were no match for the skilled Hurd riders. However, the timing of their charge was perfect, startling many Teldun men into a hasty retreat.

The psychological advantage gained from the surprise attack is now rapidly diminishing.

Many of the fleeing Teldun cavalrymen, seeing that the battle was not one-sided, turned back and fought their way back.

"Aim at their horses!" At the edge of the battlefield, an Iron Peak County rider waved his flag and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Fire!"

"Dong dong dong dong."

A series of muffled gunshots rang out, but it was impossible to tell how many Teldun cavalrymen had been hit.

"Load!" The squad leader, holding a small flag, shouted, his voice nearly cracking. "What are you looking at? Load now!"

The riders, who were still eagerly searching for their spoils, were startled awake and hurriedly pulled out their ammunition, frantically reloading it.

Some of the Iron Peak County men were such poor horsemen that Anglu made them carry muskets and fight on foot.

As soon as the gunshot rang out, the Teldun cavalry immediately noticed a small group of people on the edge of the battlefield.

A red-feathered rider shouted loudly and charged out of the melee zone, followed by a dozen Teldun cavalrymen.

Before the mounted musketeers of Iron Peak County could remount, they were scattered by the Teldun cavalry.

Seeing this, Anglu immediately broke away from the melee and led his nearby subordinates around the battlefield to provide assistance.

……

On the east side of the battlefield, the right flank of the Tiefeng County army.

"Everyone! Attention!" A hoarse shout rang out from all sides of the second line of defense: "About—turn!"

The militia of Tiefeng County faithfully carried out the command. Although some turned counterclockwise and some clockwise, they turned around in any case.

Thus, to the astonishment of the Teldun light cavalry, the second line of the Iron Peak County Right Wing Army completed a standard tactical maneuver—[about-turn].

Contrary to the chaotic scene the Teldenans had anticipated, each company and battalion handled the situation cleanly and efficiently.

In an instant, the flanking maneuver turned into a head-on collision, and this time it was the Telden men, who were accelerating their charge, who hesitated.

Teldun leader [White Bull] gritted his teeth and spurred his horse forward: "[Herd] Charge! Break through their ranks!"

What's the point of turning around? Aren't we still being attacked from both sides?
The white bull led his people on an unknown detour, wearing out countless horses in the process. How could he allow himself to be so easily frightened?

The white bull desperately raised its banner high, roaring at the top of its lungs: "[Herd] The gods are watching over us!"

The thunderous hoofbeats made it impossible for the troops to hear their leader's shouts; the only guide they had was the banner.

Then, the white bull's warhorse stepped into the pit.

To be precise, it is a series of horse-trapping pits stretching behind the army formation of Tiefeng County.

As a substitute for barbed wire, Winters strictly followed the manual to set up the traps: each pit was one foot in diameter and two feet deep, with sharpened wooden stakes at the bottom; the distance between adjacent pits was one meter; and the overall pits were arranged in a checkerboard pattern.

The depth of the horse-trapping pit complex is currently fifty meters, and it will continue to intensify if the fire-makers remain inactive.

The horse suddenly lurched off, throwing the white ox from the saddle. He instinctively clutched his neck and curled up to avoid breaking his spine, but he was still thrown and suffered a head injury, losing his grip on the banner.

The Telden men following closely behind their leader also stepped into the pit one after another, and the horses with broken hooves neighed mournfully one after another.

A few lucky Teldun cavalrymen who managed to cross the pitfalls looked back and were shocked to find that their tribesmen had not followed. They all reined in their horses and dared not move forward.

"[Herd's words] Don't stop!" The white bull grabbed the banner, struggled to its feet against the flagpole, and shouted desperately, "[Herd's words] Charge! Kill!"

What happened next, in a sense, fulfilled the white bull's wish.

Although his men dared not charge into the two-legged men's army, the two-legged men's army charged toward them.

The battle flag was lowered three times, and the small military drum sounded like hail.

The battalions of the second line of the right flank fully deployed, shouting as they charged toward the outflanking Teldun light cavalry, regardless of the ongoing fighting ahead.

……

In the center of the battlefield, the central army of Tiefeng County.

The man riding the black horse finally spoke: "It's time."

A real melee combat will not last long and is extremely unpredictable.

The fall of a flag, the desertion of a soldier, a strange silence... any tiny sign could trigger a chain reaction of collapse.

Once the battle enters this stage, what sustains both sides on the battlefield is not their killing skills, but their unwavering will.

But willpower is intangible, and no one can say for sure when it will crumble—perhaps never, perhaps in the next second. At present, the left wing of the Iron Peak County army has not achieved an overwhelming victory.

Although the Teldun cavalry were divided and surrounded, they continued to fight tenaciously. The two sides were locked in a stalemate, and no one dared to predict who would collapse first.

The right wing of the Tiefeng County Army exhibited two trends simultaneously.

The heavily armored cavalry, dispatched by the fire-bringer at the last minute, swept across the first line of the right flank with overwhelming force.

The heavy cavalry, with their riders and horses clad in armor, were practically invulnerable monsters. As soon as these cavalrymen broke through the trenches, they immediately shattered the "youth soldiers'" formation.

Faced with armored cavalry, the militia were helpless. Every time a palisade was breached, a battalion and a half would be completely routed.

On the second front of the right flank, battalions of able-bodied soldiers were also massacring Tertons who had fallen from their horses.

Knowing there was a trap ahead made the outflanking Teldun light cavalry hesitant to act rashly.

The Teldenans, who were left behind, tried to bypass the pitfall zone, only to find that the numerous pitfalls stretched all the way into the forest.

The Teldens, having lost their horses, were forced to fight on foot against the Iron Peak militia, who, with overwhelming numerical superiority, quickly drove them back.

The strongest central army of Tiefeng County was entangled by more than a thousand Teldun light cavalry.

What the person warming themselves by the fire is thinking is obvious to anyone with eyes.

[Inferior horse against superior horse, superior horse against medium horse], the fire-gatherer used a portion of his main force to pin down the left flank of the Iron Peak County army, used his weakest troops to hold back the central army of the Iron Peak County army, and finally used his strongest troops to destroy the right flank of the Iron Peak County army.

Once the first front on the right wing collapses completely, the able-bodied soldiers on the second front will also be unable to hold the line alone.

Once the right flank of the Iron Peak County army is defeated, there is essentially no difference between [attacking the left flank from both sides] and [flanking the central army from the side]; it's just a different way of slaughtering them.

The tide of battle is irreversibly turning in Teldun's favor, unless... another fresh force emerges.

"What are you waiting for?" the man on the black horse asked again, his tone becoming stern. "Your right wing is about to completely collapse!"

Winters stared intently ahead, to the far north, at that small hill.

Several riders were galloping along the ridge when they finally stopped and took out a yellow flag, waving it vigorously.

“The Teldens have used up their reserves.” Winters finally confirmed this fact, and he looked at the black horse rider: “If there is a final moment that will decide the outcome of this battle, it seems to be now… Colonel Gaisa.”

Colonel Gaisa Adonis lifted his visor, revealing a face covered in horrific scars, and laughed gleefully: "That's what I came here for."

Good luck Gold brought Winters good luck, except this time the "good luck" was bald.

The military tents at the rear of the central army were dragged down one after another, and cavalrymen in splendid uniforms led their horses out in single file.

From their ridiculously large bearskin hats, brightly colored blouses embroidered with horizontal stripes, and their unruly expressions, you could tell they were hussars—not some knock-off like Andrei, but the real Plattite hussars.

In addition to hussars, there were also a small number of lancers wearing half-armor.

This cavalry force was a stroke of good luck brought by Gold, reinforcements sent by Colonel Bode, a force that shouldn't have been there, and the fundamental reason why Winters dared to take the initiative to engage Teldun's troops in open battle.

"Tell your men to make way." Gaisa pulled down his visor again. "I'm going to meet the enemy chieftain."

“No.” Winters shook his head slightly: “You should go to the left wing—leave me fifty more good men.”

Gaisa's face was hidden beneath his helmet, so his eyes could not be seen; only his resounding reply could be heard: "Okay."

The two battalions positioned on the left flank of the central army quickly moved in, creating an opening.

The soldiers jumped into the trenches with planks in their arms, using their bodies as piers to build several bridges that allowed cavalry to cross.

Without another word, Gaisa raised his sword and rode to the front of the cavalry: "Follow me!"

“Uukhai!”

“Uukhai!!”

“Uukhai!!!”

The Paratul hussars responded with three deafening war cries.

Gaisa took the lead and leaped out of the trench, followed closely by warriors from Leiqun County, Bianjiang County, Baishan County, and even further administrative districts.

The overall formation of the Tiefeng County army allowed cavalry attacking from the center to launch a charge from the flanks and rear of the enemy forces attacking on both sides.

The gleaming sabers were like a storm of steel; wherever the sabers pointed, the Telden men crumbled in terror; wherever the warhorses passed, only the mutilated corpses of the Telden men remained.

The right wing of Teldun's forces—the same forces attacking the left wing of Iron Peak County—finally pushed them beyond their limits.

Like a broken string, or like the collapse of dominoes, the right wing of Teldun's forces suffered a total collapse.

"Ha, so that's how it is." The old interpreter on the hilltop was neither angry nor surprised. Instead, he clapped his hands and laughed, bending forward and backward: "This is not an arrow formation at all. This is clearly two diagonal formations placed together!"

In the center of the Iron Peak County army, Winters asked softly, "Could you teach me that battle cry the Teldens shouted earlier, 'Break through the enemy lines'?"

The old merchant, who had been traveling the wilderness for many years, dared not be negligent and hurriedly repeated word by word: "[Herd words] Break the formation... Break the formation."

Winters chewed a few times, nodded, and put on his helmet.

Seeing this, Charles immediately grabbed Winters' reins, his face flushed with anxiety: "No! Lieutenant Bard said! You can't go into battle! The outcome no longer depends on you..."

Winters gave Charles a deep look, and Charles fell silent.

“I have a personal grudge with the enemy chieftain that I want to settle,” Winters asked the fifty skilled men left behind by Gaesar. “Are you willing to come with me?”

The lead cavalryman arrogantly replied, "We can't let you kill all the enemies."

"Then follow me." Winters drew his lance, his voice, imbued with magical power, echoing throughout the central army: "All battalions! Make way!"

The central army's arrowhead formation parted to make way for the source of the sound, and the crimson battle flags fluttered in the wind as a troop of cavalry broke through the formation and charged straight toward the location of the fire-gatherer's banner.

The lead cavalryman roared the Hed's battle cry: "[Hed] Break the formation! Break the formation!! Break the formation!!!"

Its sound split rocks and pierced the clouds; the battle cries that were clearly from their own side were heard as the Teldun people were being torn apart like the Red Sea.

Meanwhile, Mason finally arrived at the battlefield.

The Ghevordan cavalry and the mounted infantry followed Mason up the hill, and the sight that greeted them made their chests tremble involuntarily.

Tens of thousands of humans and warhorses have fully engaged in a fierce battle at the foot of the mountain, a spectacle resembling an unprecedented, massive oil painting.

The left flank of the Tiefeng County army was turning around, with a group of brightly dressed cavalry acting as the spearhead, charging wildly towards the two sides fighting on the right flank in a wide U-turn.

The central army's formation had completely disintegrated, and tiny, ant-like figures rushed out of the trenches, charging towards the equally ant-sized barbarian light cavalry.

"Where...where is the Tribunal of Montagne?" The demon Ons also lost his composure: "And where should we go?"

Enemies were everywhere, and allies were everywhere. The four hundred cavalrymen that Mason brought were thrown into the battlefield like a cup of water poured into a vat. For a while, no one knew what to do.

Mason squinted, scrutinized the view for a long time, then suddenly slapped his thigh hard: "Damn it! Too late! The battle is over!"

"What? It's over?"

"Never mind that!" Mason picked up a hand mortar, turned around and shouted to his men, "Shoot any barbarians you see!"

After saying that, he spurred his horse and charged down the hill.

[A T-shaped trench with a passageway, two diagonal formations, with the central cavalry as the decisive assault force, attacking from the left and right flanks...]
[Some readers may have noticed that the underlying concept of this battle was inspired by "The Battle of Dara".]
The Battle of Dara was Belisarius's first major victory, as he, known as the "King of Incompetent Soldiers," routed a Persian army of approximately 50000 with only about 25000 infantry and cavalry.
[Belisarius's grand strategy was to "leave the flanks empty, allowing them to engage the enemy first. Then, when the Persian cavalry crossed the trenches to pursue the fleeing enemy, the central army would launch a flanking attack."]
[In the Battle of Dara, the Persians launched two charges against the left flank and one against the right flank, both of which were defeated by Belisarius in the same manner.]
Belisarius's tactical thinking is somewhat similar to the oblique formation, that is, by changing the order of engagement with the enemy, he sought to concentrate his forces to take advantage of the "time difference" in battle.
[This book's accounts of the Battle of Iron Peak County and the Battle of Dara differ in many ways. For example, Winters did not fight with his back to the city, and he had more troops—albeit worse ones.]
[Therefore, Winters' formation was not the T-formation of the Battle of Dara, but an inverted T-formation: that is, the flanks retreated and the center advanced.]
[However, from a fundamental perspective, the strategy is still to change the order of engagement in order to seek an opportunity to annihilate one flank of the enemy.]
[That's all I can think of for now; we'll add more later.]
[Thank you to all the readers for your collections, reading, subscriptions, recommendations, monthly tickets, donations, and comments. Thank you everyone!]
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(End of this chapter)