I'm not a lord

Chapter 375 Defeat in One Battle
Opportunities in war are fleeting, and every second counts on the battlefield.

The third brother, Yang, was commanding the front-line battle from the warship. When he saw that his own reinforcements had landed, he immediately gave the order to storm the city wall.

The messenger on the warship's lookout tower quickly waved the command flag, and the resounding bugle call echoed across the battlefield.

"First Company, follow me!"

Lucas's roar pierced the clamor of the battlefield. With a longsword in his right hand and a shield in his left, he charged across the blood-soaked, muddy battlefield toward the breach in the western wall of River Bend.

Around him, soldiers of the First Battalion of the First Army Corps formed a tight wedge formation, their shields stacked on top of each other, like a moving, solid barrier, steadily advancing towards the breach that was nearly ten meters wide.

Meanwhile, a rhythmic symphony of gunfire was playing on the ships behind them.

One after another, long-barreled bronze cannons fired, accurately targeting the enemy troops above the city walls.

Thousands of archers from the wilderness successfully landed and stood on the mudflats, continuously firing arrows to suppress the crossbowmen on the city walls.

Generally speaking, playing from a lower position to a higher position will always put you at a disadvantage.

However, the longbows used by the barbarians had a slightly better range than the crossbows used by the defenders, and the archers were numerous and powerful, with artillery supporting them, so they were able to completely suppress the defenders on the city walls.

Besides the First Battalion of the First Legion under Lucas's command, Karula was also leading the Second Battalion of the Wilderness Legion in a fierce charge toward the breach.

These two units were like two sharp swords, cutting down enemy soldiers who stood in their way, one after another, like wheat in late autumn.

On the city wall, Count Schulz watched as two 'longswords' rapidly advanced towards the breach in the wall. He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white from the force.

Damn Lynn, not only does he have artillery that's ridiculously powerful, but he also has a large number of fearless warriors. How can anyone possibly defeat such an opponent?
Count Schulz had fought many battles, but he had never fought such a one-sided and humiliating war.

Moreover, he was on the defending side, so shouldn't the defending side have the advantage?

Why did his side suffer more casualties?
Although his mind was in turmoil, Count Schulz had not completely lost his composure. He leaned over the battlements, turned to look at the city gate on his right, and shouted:
"Close the city gates! Close the city gates now!"

Just half an hour after the start of the battle, Lynn's army had already firmly established itself on the mudflats outside the west gate.

Count Schulz had previously opened the city gates and sent out 600 soldiers to try to snipe the landing force. Now he had to close the gates as soon as possible, otherwise enemy soldiers could drive straight in through the gate opening and not even need the breach in the city wall.

The general in charge of controlling the city gates replied, "Sir, there are still quite a few soldiers outside the city, aren't there?"

Normally, this general from the southern border would never ask such a naive question.

However, the current battle situation was so bad that even the key generals who should have been stabilizing morale were thrown into disarray.

Count Schulz's face instantly turned red, and he roared, "Close the city gates! Do you want to kill everyone?"

His shout snapped the general out of his daze, and he quickly ordered his soldiers to release the winch.

Castles on the continent of Dievas typically have two gates: a double wooden door on the outer side and a hinged iron door on the inner side.

This type of iron gate is controlled by an iron chain, opening and closing slowly when pulled up but extremely fast when closed.

The next second, the heavy iron gate slammed down, completely isolating the castle from the outside world, and even killing a garrison soldier who couldn't get into the city in time.

The retreating soldiers were stunned when they heard the commotion behind them.

No, we haven't even entered the city yet.

But Count Schulz could no longer hear the wails and screams from inside the city gate. He immediately gave orders to his adjutant:
"Move all the reserves to the west city wall, leave only two hundred men on the other three city walls, and move all the rest of the soldiers here as well!"

After half an hour of observation, Count Schulz finally understood.

Lynn had no intention of launching a multi-pronged attack today; he seemed determined to fight to the death against the western city wall, deploying cannons and longbows, with most of his ships concentrated on the western side of the island in the middle of the lake.

This doesn't actually make sense in a siege, but if Count Schultz put himself in Lynn's shoes, he would definitely do the same.

If they can breach the city walls, then they must seize a weakness and launch a fierce attack!

With the advent of artillery, the old siege tactics should be swept into the dustbin of history!

Before Count Schulz could finish speaking, a fierce hand-to-hand battle broke out at the breach in the west city wall.

A Lynn's squad leader took the lead, climbing the rubble-paved ramp. He first used his shield to deflect the spears thrusting at him, then swung his battle axe and felled a Southern Swordsman and Shieldman.

The squad leader immediately let out a long howl and tried to advance, but soon two spears shot out from the side and pierced him through. Two stones also fell from the city wall above the breach, smashing his head flat.

However, the defending soldier who threw stones did not fare well either. Just as he was about to continue throwing stones, several arrows flying from outside the city wall pierced his neck. He felt a sweet taste in his throat, then clutched his neck and fell off the city wall, landing straight on the jagged breach.

In the struggle for control of this breach, which was more than ten meters wide, the soldiers of the two armies engaged in an extremely fierce hand-to-hand battle.

Whenever a soldier falls, someone else immediately fills the gap in the formation. The bravest warriors continue to fight a tug-of-war at the breach, while to their left, right, front, back, and above them, the ranged units of both sides are engaged in a battle.

At this moment, the advantage of the city walls held by the city's defenders has been completely negated. The walls can no longer help them resist the enemy, and the battlements can hardly stop the enemy's ranged weapons.

On Lynn's side, both longbows and cannons can bypass or even destroy the battlements, killing the soldiers hiding behind them.

After several rows of soldiers in the front ranks fell, Lucas's dozens of elite soldiers finally reached the top of the breach.

He leaped onto the ruins, swung his sword and felled an enemy general wearing a cloak, shouting, "Brothers, hold your ground, the title is within reach!"

In close-quarters combat, armor often plays a decisive role.

After several rounds of fighting, the defending soldiers suddenly realized that these enemy soldiers, dressed in shiny armor, seemed to be very resilient to being cut down.

Indeed, the entire battalion led by Lucas is equipped with plate armor.

Compared to ordinary chainmail, plate armor offers significantly enhanced defense. Longswords either slide off the smooth armor or leave only a shallow white mark.

Plate armor is not uncommon in the southern border regions, but due to its high cost, not every soldier is qualified to wear it.

Of the 20,000 new soldiers recruited by Otto from the North, all the soldiers could only get a helmet and chainmail. If they wanted to wear better plate armor...
Sorry, but you'll have to pay extra!

This is the norm in the Southern Territory. Even in the king's direct forces, most soldiers can only afford chainmail. Those who have spare money to buy plate armor usually come from wealthy and influential families. This results in only a few people being able to afford plate armor, and these people are mostly officers.

Lynn was well aware of the role of the spearhead troops in attacking fortified positions, so he specially concentrated the plate armor, which had limited production capacity, and equipped it to the bravest infantry battalions.

This kind of clever idea can play a decisive role at crucial moments.

On the flagship White River, Lynn stood on the stern deck, squinting as he observed the battle.

Victor shouted from beside him, "Your Majesty, the enemy's formation seems to be retreating! The First Battalion is about to charge into River Bend Fortress!"

Lynn looked up at the sky and decisively gave the order: "I see it. Notify Yang and order him to send all five thousand men of the First Legion to the battlefield. I will have lunch in the main building of River Bend Fortress at noon today!"

It was just past 10 a.m., less than an hour before the siege began, and the battle was progressing smoothly as Lynn had anticipated.

The old castle of River Bend Fort was no match for the repeated bombardment of artillery. With breaches appearing in the walls, the defenders inside could not withstand the continuous onslaught of elite troops.

Victory is a foregone conclusion!

Lynn then gave instructions to Leon on the other side: "Leon, order all warships to cease fire and proceed with the original plan to surround River Bend Castle from the left and right sides. Pay special attention to the northern water gate and do not let a single enemy ship escape!"

There is a small water gate in the north wall of River Bend Fort, which connects to the waterway during the flood season. If the garrison hides a few small boats inside the fort, they may be able to escape through the water gate.

Lynn, a perfectionist, would never overlook this possible escape route.

Even before the official start of the war, he had already dispatched three medium-sized warships to monitor the water gate.

As for why the shelling should be stopped, the reason is simple: our vanguard troops are about to enter the castle, and firing more shells would greatly increase the chance of friendly fire.

Moreover, the continuous firing over the past few days has already consumed nearly 80% of the stockpile of gunpowder and shells. If the bombardment continues, Lynn's cannons will become nothing more than firewood.

Before setting off, Lynn had brought all the cannonballs from the foundry department, as he needed to keep some for future battles.

Even before his orders reached the front lines, Lao Sanyang had already landed on the shallows outside Hewanbao.

The white bear flag, symbolizing the First Army Corps, also landed on the shallows, leading the entire army to advance in tandem.

Yang had a very precise grasp of the situation. As soon as he landed on the shallows, he quickly deployed all the reserve troops to cooperate with the First Battalion in continuously attacking the breach in the city wall.

Soon, Lucas led the First Battalion to break through the enemy lines and stormed into River Bend Castle through the breach.

"No need to pursue, capture the city walls immediately!"

Despite his fierce charge, Lucas remained clear-headed. Instead of pursuing the fleeing enemy, he led his soldiers to attack the left flank of the city wall.

Once you capture the city walls, sweep away the enemy troops along them, and then control all the city gates, the other garrison soldiers inside the castle will naturally fall into your hands, so there's no need to rush to chase them.

Carla followed closely behind Lucas, leading the second battalion of the Wildling Legion into the castle.

“Let’s go to the right!” Karula’s ability to read the battlefield was equally outstanding. Without Lucas saying anything more, she led the barbarian warriors to attack the right side of the breach in the city wall.

Before long, a new round of fighting broke out on the stairs leading to the city wall.

Carla, wielding the Bone Greatsword, danced gracefully across the chaotic battlefield like an elegant yet deadly cheetah.

As her sword-wielding hand moved up and down, enemy soldiers fell one by one.

If she were fighting alone, she certainly wouldn't be able to move so nimbly among the vast enemy forces.

But she was not fighting alone; behind her were a large number of spirited and courageous barbarian warriors.

"Follow the God of War, slaughter the enemy, and capture the city walls!"

The barbarian warriors let out their distinctive war cries, and they moved with equal swiftness, their battle axes and short swords whistling through the air as they slashed, instantly tearing a gap in the defenders' line on the stairs.

Count Schulz lay prone on this section of the city wall, looking down at the blue-haired barbarian warriors and the fierce woman leading them. He exclaimed in fear, "How could those damned barbarians fight for Lynn?"

Not far from him, a general shouted, "Sir, the crossbowmen on the right are almost all dead! We urgently need reinforcements!"

In reality, not all of them died; rather, many of the defending soldiers secretly deserted.

With the battle at this point, anyone with eyes could see that this river bend fort was no longer defensible.

The officer corps, led by Earl Schulz, all came from the South. They had followed Otto for many years, and their families were all in the South. They had reasons not to surrender or flee.

However, the soldiers at the lower levels were all recruited by Otto from the North. Since the soldiers were originally from the North, they had no obligation to fight to the death for Otto.

Although he received a wage from Otto, it was not valuable enough to buy the lives of five thousand people.

Human hearts are like smoke; when the wind changes, the direction in which the smoke drifts will also change.

In fact, a few days earlier, the North Bank Castle, north of River Bend Castle, had already set an example. That small castle only resisted for a few hours before the garrison inside lost all morale and surrendered.

The soldiers inside the main castle were merely following suit.

Count Schulz naturally understood the reasoning behind this, and he also spotted many soldiers secretly fleeing along the city walls with his own eyes.

But he no longer had the ability or the inclination to bother with it.

The count of the Kingdom of Rui drew his longsword with a silver guard and replied resolutely, "Where are the reinforcements? If the soldiers all die, the officers will take their place. Even if they die, they'll die on the city walls!"

At the last moment, Count Schulz did consider escaping, but he quickly abandoned the idea.

River Bend Fort is surrounded by water on all sides, and the area outside the city is full of enemy warships. Even if you really want to escape, where can you go?
It would be better to die a glorious death here, which would be a way to repay the king's kindness and leave a pension for his wife, children, and elderly parents who stayed in Rui.

Thinking of this, Earl Schultz couldn't help but chuckle to himself: his head should be worth quite a bit in Lynn's hands, right? At least more than an ordinary soldier or a court baron.

(End of this chapter)