Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 450 The Great Alliance Marches Forward (Part 23)
As the sun dipped westward and dust filled the air, the battle situation in the distance was barely visible; only tattered military flags could be seen appearing and disappearing amidst the smoke.

Bart Sharing rushed down the high slope on the south side of the valley.

The soldiers of Tiefeng County advanced simultaneously on the south and north banks, their marching columns stretching deep into the valley.

Bart Sharing rudely broke through the marching column as he ran down the hillside, jumped into the raging torrent, and struggled toward the opposite bank. The messenger and his entourage, who were waiting at the bottom of the hill, were puzzled and hesitated for a moment before following him.

The water in the valley was swift and the riverbed was carved deep and steep. Bart Sharing, who had climbed up the north bank, had no time to rest and ran again until he caught up with the true commander of the troops—Tamas.

"Wait a minute." Bart Sharing grabbed Tamas's arm and warned anxiously, "You, me, we only have two battalions!"

Tamas, who was fastening his breastplate belt, replied without looking up, "In less than two battalions, many men have fallen behind."

“Then let’s wait for them to catch up,” Bart Sharing tried to persuade Tamas. “Let’s wait for the tribunes’ vanguard to catch up!”

Tamas, having tightened all four leather straps, tugged at his throat guard to make sure the armor plates were securely fastened: "The people of White Mountain County don't have time to wait."

Bart Sharling was speechless for a moment. He lowered his voice and pleaded in a subordinate's tone, "At least... at least let everyone catch their breath."

“No, even less.” Tamas, who was fastening his breastplate strap, shook his head. He pursed his dry lips, glanced sadly at his subordinates beside him, and refused Bart Sharing’s request in a low but firm voice: “If we rest now, as soon as we sit down… we’ll never be able to stand up again.”

Around Tamas and Bart Sharing, soldiers from Iron Peak County were preparing their weapons and donning their armor on a small flat area at the valley's exit. Musketeers were untying matchlocks from their wrists, passing the tinder and distributing ammunition as if sharing fine wine.

Every soldier's face showed an undeniable weariness, but their movements remained swift and efficient.

Compared to the chaotic noise coming from afar, the valley exit was unusually quiet, with only occasional brief questions and answers and rustling sounds.

The presence of Tamas and Bart Sharing's troops in this area was both a coincidence and an inevitability.

The coincidence is that they arrived at the battlefield with the "Sixth Army's" outflanking forces.

Winters Montagne planned the assembly point for the various units of the Iron Peak County Army at the Snake Marsh, because the Iron Peak County Army command unanimously agreed that the Bode and Sanel units would meet in the Snake Marsh—both marching capabilities, road conditions, and information about the direction of Bazenauer pointed to that as the battle location.

However, after the Iron Peak County infantry crossed the eastern section of Silver Sparrow Mountain overnight, the advance scouts brought back a revolutionary story: Sanel's troops passed through the Serpent Marsh but did not enter, and were heading straight for Long Lake Town, and their size was even larger than the most irresponsible prior guesses.

In the early hours of that night, Tamas and Bart Sharing received urgent orders delivered with great difficulty: the entire army was to turn around and rush to the aid of Long Lake.

Therefore, the Tiefeng County army, which was advancing towards Sheze along the watershed, changed direction, and the First and Second Battalions, which were originally the rearguard, instantly became the vanguard of the entire army.

While searching for a route out of the mountains, Tamas and Bart Sharing discovered the "Sixth Legion," which was flanking behind the village of River Valley.

The two made a quick decision: to follow the enemy.

Because the Sixth Army Corps took a long detour, while the Tiefeng County Army went straight out of the valley to Yinqueshan, the latter was not left far behind, and the two forces arrived at the battlefield of Hegu Village almost one after the other.

This is the inevitability within the accident: wherever the enemy is, that's where the Tiefeng County Army goes.

However, they only had two battalions—or, to be precise, less than two battalions.

Bart Sharing understood this better than Tamas. He had run out of patience with the stubborn, inflexible battalion commander who held a higher command rank than him.

Bart Sharling pointed at the valley and growled at the highest-ranking commander present: "Your men! My men! At least a third of them are lost, separated from their units, or missing! And who knows how many more can't find their own companies or tents, just gritting their teeth and following along!"

“So we don’t need to use a square formation, nor can we.” Tamas was not annoyed by the second battalion commander’s offense. He picked up a stick, squatted down and drew a formation, looked up at his old comrade-in-arms, and tried to explain: “We need to use a horizontal formation to meet the enemy, one in front and one behind.”

"The enemy also has cavalry!"

"Repel them with a volley, just like in the drill."

"It's just a drill! We've never actually fought one!"

Tamas stood up, paused for a moment, and slowly said, "Then we'll give it a try today."

Bart Sharing was driven crazy by the battalion commander. He didn't care about anything else anymore and dragged Tamas to a secluded spot, revealing the real reason hidden beneath all sorts of plausible excuses: "I just went up the mountain to check the battle situation! Let's wait a bit longer!"

Tamas was puzzled: "The troops in White Mountain County can't wait."

“They can still hold on,” Bart Sharing said, his face ashen. “That’s why I want you to wait! A little longer!”

Tamas's expression turned serious, and he asked bluntly, "You want to wait for them to bleed more?"

"The more blood they shed, the less blood we shed, now and in the future."

Tamas lowered his eyes: "But the centurion's orders to us were 'fight whenever the enemy is at hand'."

"Why don't you understand? Sooner or later, Baishan County, Leiqun County, and Bianjiang County will also become the centurion's enemies!" Bart Xialing said, emphasizing each word: "Sooner or later!"

Tamas kept his head down and remained silent.

Bart Sharing's voice also turned low: "The centurion is a hero, you are a good man, making a decision against your conscience will cause you pain, so let me do it. You can put all the blame on me..."

Bart Sharing was interrupted when Tamas put his hand on his old comrade's shoulder, preventing him from continuing.

When he raised his head, Tamas's eyes were as firm as ever. He said calmly, "Even if we become enemies, that's a matter for the future. Today we are comrades-in-arms with them. The centurion's orders to me are 'rush to the aid of our allies and fight the enemy whenever they appear,' and I will carry them out."

After saying that, Tamas nudged Bart Sharing on the shoulder and turned to walk toward the valley exit.

Bart Sharling clenched his fist, stomped his foot hard, and followed.

……

Monkey and Paco were at the very back of the marching column. When they emerged from the valley, their comrades who had come out first were already lined up, ready to attack.

Although the orders were given to pack as lightly as possible before departure, everyone still brought some food, drink, and miscellaneous items.

When it comes time to actually go into battle, these things can no longer be carried. So at this moment, the equipment that the soldiers of Tiefeng County had abandoned was piled up in a small heap at the valley exit, and was guarded by a special person.

The monkey, dragging Paco along, stumbled to the pile of luggage. He tried to throw away the backpack but found it was tied in a knot he couldn't untie. Frustrated, he cursed, "Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

Monkey and Paco were originally at the front of the marching column, but on the way down the mountain, the green recruit Paco slipped and fell into the ditch on the hunter's trail.

By the time the monkey finally managed to get Paco up, the group had already traveled quite a distance, and the monkey had become separated from Lu Xirong's soldiers and his men.

So the monkey and Paco had no choice but to blend into the group and continue on their way.

The monkey tried to untie the knot, but found it was tied too tightly. He tried to bite it, but couldn't reach it. Frustrated, he stretched out his hand to Paco: "Knife! Knife! Give me a knife!"

Paco quickly pulled out a small knife and handed it over.

The monkey cut the ropes, threw its backpack into the pile of luggage, grabbed its sword sheath, put on its helmet, and ran towards the attack position with its aching legs.

Paco, carrying his short spear, hurriedly followed behind.

The comrades had already formed two horizontal lines at the valley exit, about thirty paces apart, with three rows in each line.

The monkey ran between the two lines and saw familiar faces and unfamiliar faces in each line, making it impossible for him to tell which line was the first battalion and which line was the second battalion.

A commissioned officer wearing a feathered helmet, leaning on his sword, strode towards the two men and sternly demanded, "Which company are you from?"

"They're my men, sir." A familiar voice rang out. "They got separated earlier, I'll bring them back to the unit right away." Upon hearing this voice, Monkey felt incredibly at ease, and the rookie recruit Paco almost burst into tears.

Old Sergeant Lu Xirong squeezed through the wall of people and strode towards Monkey and Paco.

The monkey was about to speak when he saw the old soldier glare at him fiercely, so he swallowed his words back.

Lu Xirong pulled the monkey and Paco to the back of the line before leading the two south.

At the southernmost end of the second line, Monkey met his comrades and the rest of the company. Although they were on the battlefield, he inexplicably felt a sense of returning home.

Lu Xirong turned around and looked at the monkey. With a major battle imminent, the old soldier became very quiet, only sighing, "You still caught up, silly boy."

The monkey rubbed his eyes, completely oblivious to the disappointment in the old soldier's tone, still immersed in his excitement. He laughed and said, "Of course! You think you can shake me off so easily?"

"Return to the team." Lu Xirong waved his hand.

"Yes, sir!" The monkey saluted with a grin, then pulled the new recruit Paco into the human wall.

Their comrades made way for them, and the line of the first company rippled with waves before quickly returning to its sharp, straight state.

As soon as I stopped, fatigue rushed into my body.

The monkey had been chasing the group all along, and although he was drenched in sweat, he still had the energy to keep going. Now that he was back with the group, he felt his arms and legs were as heavy as lead. His eyelids were also heavy, and all he wanted to do was lie down and have a good sleep.

Not to mention, the monkey was now completely naked, with only a helmet and a sword besides his clothes and shoes, which made him somewhat uncomfortable.

Because carrying extra-long rifles over mountains and through forests was extremely inconvenient, the rifles of each company were collected in advance and handed over to the supply team to take away first.

Not only were there extra-long spears used for forming ranks, but because packhorses couldn't travel on hunter's trails, the spearmen also had to hand over their armor to the supply train.

However, the marching route was changed at the last minute, and now no one knows where the supply train has gone.

Most of the monkey's comrades now only have a helmet and a short weapon they carry. The few who have short spears and halberds are positioned at the ends of the line.

The monkey nervously tugged at his collar. To hide his tension, he glanced casually at his comrades on either side, only to find that their eyes also held unease, anxiety, and exhaustion.

But for some reason, seeing the faces of his comrades whom he had spent every day with, the monkey was no longer as afraid as before.

At that moment, someone nudged the monkey from behind.

The monkey turned its head and saw that it was Paco.

Paco, holding a large package, said timidly, "Captain, your plate armor."

"Hey!" The monkey slapped his forehead and grinned. "I almost forgot."

The armor of the common soldiers was handed over to the supply train for transport, but the armor of the officers and sergeants was left behind because the common soldiers carried it.

Although the monkey was only a pot-keeper, he found a loophole and begged Sergeant Lu Xirong to leave his armor behind, promising that he wouldn't lose it halfway.

But the one carrying the armor wasn't the monkey himself—he couldn't carry it. Silly Paco had plenty of strength; he was the one who carried the monkey's armor over mountains last night.

The monkey opened the package, picked up the plate armor, and put it on. Paco helped him fasten the belt and button it.

But soon, the monkey stopped moving. He glanced at Paco, looked at the short spearmen at the end of the line, and finally his gaze settled on the breastplate that gleamed with a dim light.

After a brief internal struggle, the monkey took off its breastplate, pushed it onto Paco, and grinned: "You wear it!"

"Me, wear it?" Paco's eyes widened. "But this is your plate armor."

"Didn't you carry it over?" the monkey said casually. "Then you can wear it."

"But...but you're the head cook..."

The monkey glared at him, adopting the air of a veteran, and shut Parker down immediately: "Are you going to wear it or not?"

Paco lowered his head.

Seeing this, the monkey immediately put the breastplate on Paco, fastened the buttons, and kept muttering, "Hey, this is a little small for you... You're a spearman, you need this more..."

Just then, a deep trombone sound rang out.

All the soldiers of Tiefeng County felt a chill run down their spines and immediately straightened up.

It's time to strike.

……

The enemy in the distance had recovered from the initial panic upon discovering the Iron Peak County army, and more than one military flag began to slowly move towards the valley exit, indicating that the enemy commander was adjusting his deployment.

“That’s enough.” Tamas took one last count of the troops and said to Bart Sharing, “No need to wait any longer.”

With things having come to this, Bart Sharling said nothing more. He fastened his helmet and said, "Okay, I'll lead the front, and you lead the rear."

“No,” Tamas said softly, “you are more useful than me. I will lead the vanguard.”

Having said that, without waiting for any further opinions from the Second Battalion Commander, Tamas drew his sword and strode toward the Iron Peak County army formation.

Standing at the front of the army formation, looking at the faces of his subordinates, Tamas was momentarily at a loss for words.

Last-minute rallies were not his forte. After a moment of silence, he asked slowly but firmly in a loud voice:
"Have you ever suffered a defeat under the command of the Montagne tribunal?"

His reply was a thunderous roar:

"no!"

The reply was so loud that it drowned out the noise of the battlefield.

Many of the former prisoners of war who had just joined the Iron Peak County Army dared not speak. But every "veteran" was shouting from the bottom of their hearts. Monkey, standing in the second row, shouted especially loudly.

“Today,” Tamas said, his tone unwavering, “we will not lose the battle either.”

After saying that, he turned around, but after a moment's pause, he turned back around.

This time, the battalion commander's eyes were filled with tears: "If you don't know why you're fighting, then tell yourselves that you're fighting for Winters Montagne!"

"Victory!" someone whispered.

"Victory!!" someone shouted.

"Victory!!!" Every soldier of Iron Peak County shouted with all their might.

Tamas drew his sword, discarded its scabbard, and instead of joining the ranks or retreating to the rear, he stood at the very front of the formation, facing the enemy, and was the first to step onto the battlefield.
"go ahead!"

The thunderous war drums sounded, and the infantry of Tiefeng County began their attack.

[I'm late... Orz]
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(End of this chapter)