I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 275 Misfortune is Coming (Part Two)

On the smoke-filled plain, the sound of hooves approached like rolling thunder as hundreds of Bohemian light cavalry charged across the artillery zone at top speed.

They were so close that Aku could see the sabers and scimitars in their hands reflecting a blinding cold light under the blazing sun.

"Hurry up, brothers, hollow square formation!"

Aku jumped up and took a cannonball, but the carriage, which was not yet completely broken, roared and waved its flintlock pistol to attract the attention of other players.

At this critical moment, no matter who it is, as long as someone dares to step forward and issue an order, the players will basically obey.

Besides Aku, several other players with some reputation gathered nearby groups and set up formations in other places.

Aku's hollow square formation assembled incredibly quickly. The scattered players seemed to be pulled by invisible threads, moving at an astonishing speed. Centered on Aku, by the time the Bohemian light cavalry had charged a hundred meters away, the prototype of a hollow square formation had already been formed.

Hundreds of players lined up in front of Aku. The front row crouched and loaded their weapons, the second row held their guns and were ready to fire, the third row drew their bayonets, and the fourth row served as reserves, holding the left and right sides. Only the rear was empty... There weren't enough people, and time was too short.

There are also quite a few silly players running around nearby, or foolishly firing indiscriminately.

However, you can't deny that these players who fired weren't wasting their time; at least during their shooting, quite a few Bohemian light cavalrymen suddenly fell from their horses at a distance of more than 200 meters.

That's because of the shooting by these players. Even if it's beyond the effective range, it doesn't mean that the lead bullets that fly far away are harmless.

If you hit a Bohemian cavalryman, his leather armor will be pierced, but if you hit his horse, these big animals will continue to leap and bound forward.

As the ground trembled more violently, more and more players gathered around Aku, and they could all see the ferocious face of the fastest Bohemian cavalryman.

"Fire! First platoon, volley!"

"Bang bang bang..."

Amid the gunfire, more than ten warhorses rolled over in unison, throwing their riders off and crashing heavily to the ground, their fates unknown.

However, the Bohemian light cavalry's charge was not deterred; on the contrary, it seemed to have aroused their fighting spirit even more. Amidst the deafening sound of hooves, the cavalrymen raised their sabers and shouted as they charged toward the hollow square formation where Aku was located.

"Second platoon, fire!"

Aku quickly gave the order, and then the second rank of gunfire rang out. Several more warhorses reared up and fell to the ground, but the cavalrymen remained brave. Their warhorses leaped over the bodies of their comrades and continued to charge toward the square formation.

Then, these light cavalry suddenly split up a dozen meters away, flanking from both sides like snakes spitting their tongues, surrounding the players gathered there. Immediately afterwards, they pulled out flintlock pistols and opened fire on the group of players.

Amidst the indistinct roar, smoke and lead bullets enveloped the players gathered there. At such close range, over thirty unlucky ones immediately fell with cries of agony. Then, nearly a hundred Bohemian cavalrymen charging from the front raised their sabers and charged straight into the enemy lines.

This is a Bohemian light cavalry tactic. At any time, it's foolish for cavalry to directly charge a line of infantry, even if the enemy is just a group of light infantry armed with muskets and bayonets. Therefore, the Bohemians equipped their light cavalry with a flintlock/matchlock pistol, allowing the vanguard to split to the left and right before charging, and then fire from the pistol.

The purpose of this was twofold: to inflict casualties and to intimidate and distract the enemy, allowing the light cavalry behind to take the opportunity to charge and reduce the resistance to the charge.

And so, the players at the very front of the hollow square formation were hit by the first wave of Bohemian cavalry.

Some cavalrymen reared up two meters away from the players, fearing the players' sharp bayonets, while others charged headlong into the fray, letting the bayonets pierce their chests and heads, determined to send the players flying.

There were over a hundred players in the first row. In the blink of an eye, forty or fifty of them and the players in the second row were killed or wounded. However, because of their sacrifice, the Bohemian light cavalry slowed down, allowing the players in the third and fourth rows to shout and charge forward to fight the stopped cavalry.

The dull thud of a bayonet piercing a horse's belly, the crisp sound of a scimitar cleaving through chainmail, and the hysterical shouts of the players quickly blended into a chaotic cacophony.

"Quickly, come here, form ranks, and fill the gaps!"

Aku shouted at the skirmishers on either side of the hollow square formation. He didn't know what these guys were thinking. Maybe they thought they were smart enough, or maybe they thought freedom was more important than victory.

They refused to join the hollow square formation, nor were they willing to participate in the horizontal or small circular formations formed by other players, and always remained on the outside.

Ah Ku is calling these casual players over not to make them cannon fodder, but because he wants to have more people to hold off the enemy's advance and help everyone survive a little longer... In fact, which player here isn't cannon fodder?

Some listened to the advice and quickly ran over, while others remained unmoved, standing there busy loading ammunition and firing at the cavalry on both sides.

When the battle reached its most intense point, with several cavalrymen charging into the hollow square formation and brandishing their swords at Aku, the Bohemian light cavalrymen flanking the two sides could no longer contain themselves. They felt they had a chance to win and charged forward with a shout.

Players familiar with the Mount & Blade series should know that in the most difficult mode, when an infantry player is fighting against multiple cavalrymen on flat ground, even if they are wearing full plate armor, it is very difficult for them to survive the latter's mass charge, especially if the enemy is just a group of bandits riding inferior horses and wearing nothing.

Players can succeed countless times, but if they make even one mistake, they're doomed.

All the lone soldiers who remained outside the formation were the first to suffer, because they were alone and faced with the charge of the cavalry. They were knocked away or hacked to death without even uttering a sound.

Next came the smaller, skirmisher players, who were also teetering on the brink of defeat in the cavalry onslaught.

Only the hollow square formation of the Aku organization continued to fire outwards, as unbreakable as a rock in the ocean waves. The Bohemian cavalry charging the hollow formation instead took the initiative to retreat, leaving the brutal meat grinder behind, and joined up with other Bohemian cavalry to prepare for the next wave of attack.

"Assemble! Assemble before me and form a large square formation!"

Ah Ku shouted again, and this time, the other players dared not be "free" and all moved closer to him.

(End of this chapter)