Chapter 269 This is war [3 updates]
When Wesasin put on his armor and rushed out of the castle, his eyes were still red with dryness.
Wailing could be heard everywhere in the town, some houses were smashed by stones, and broken arms and limbs could occasionally be seen.
Some people were holding their dead relatives and wailing, and the displaced residents were shivering. Some were squatting by the wall, and some were running around on the ground, trying to knock on the door on the street, but no one would pay attention to them.
When Knight Fick, who was in charge of defending the city, saw Wessassin arriving, he immediately saluted and reported the current situation: "Lord Baron, Broca has assembled a trebuchet, and it has been used for 2 rounds so far. It looks like It's being calibrated slowly, and I'm afraid it won't be long before we can hit the city wall accurately."
Versasin climbed up the city tower without saying a word. From a distance, he could see the trebuchet firmly protected by Broca's army. It was about 300 meters away from the city wall. The towering wooden frame was clearly visible, like a large sticky mouse board. , the wood junctions are also reinforced with animal hides and steel.
The trebuchet is not a new gadget, but it is notoriously bloated and difficult to maintain. It will slump when exposed to wind and rain, so it is usually used to source local materials before the war and let the craftsmen accompanying the army Manufacturing, some will be built in advance and then assembled after they arrive at the location.
After a long absence from the war, Wessassin had never seen this thing in his life, so he never thought that Broca would use this move.
"Put it down -"
The slogan pierced the sky. The pole of a trebuchet on the far left was raised high. When it reached the top, it was stopped by the horizontal bar. With a sound, it was stopped. The boulder in the soft leather net bag was thrown high.
The boulder whistled past the tower, smashed a corner of the tower, and then crashed into the city, causing a burst of screams and howls.
"Lord Baron, what should we do?" Fike's face turned pale. Even if he was a first-order knight, he could not withstand the power of the trebuchet. Once he was hit, he would die.
“Why are you panicking!” Vesasin said with a cold face and a calm voice: “It’s just a few trebuchets.”
“Where is the bed crossbow? Why not organize a bed crossbow counterattack?”
Fick lowered his head with a complicated expression and did not respond.
"I'm asking you about the bed crossbow, you..." Vesazin pointed at Fike's nose and was about to scold him, but suddenly he thought that the person responsible for maintaining the bed crossbow was his wife's brother.
The first time bed crossbows were used to defend against enemies in Kejia Town dates back to 170 years ago.
Now that the matter has come to this, Wesasin cannot offend anyone. In fact, even he himself has never thought that there will be a day when he will need a bed crossbow to defend against the enemy.
The whistles sounded one after another, and the remaining five trebuchets began to operate in sequence.
As Fick said, including this round, the trebuchets are just testing and calibrating. The stones are like sheep dung eggs thrown out by the shepherd boys when they are playing, and they are thrown irregularly. Pieces of smoke and dust were splashed in the city, and the ground was trembling slightly.
But judging from the distribution range of the stones, it won't take long before the city wall becomes the real target.
"Don't panic, it's just a few broken stones. Even if it hits, it won't be that easy to break through the city wall." Wesasin acted very calmly, and he had to show calmness: "Continue to strengthen the city wall. , defend firmly, I will find the masons and carpenters in the city——
He builds trebuchets, so can I!"
As he spoke, Vesassin patted Fick on the shoulder: "The city wall will be left to you. Don't forget, you, my wife and our children are all here. In the city!"
Fike accepted the order with dignity, but when Wessassin left, his face fell.
Keep it, it’s easy to say, but how to keep it?
The trebuchet can't touch the city wall for a while, but the flesh and blood body will be gone after just wiping it!
Weissasin's calmness only remained on the surface. When he returned to the castle and saw the body of the housekeeper on the ground that had not been cleaned up, and smelled the nauseating smell of blood, he immediately became furious. He stood up, drew out the sword from his waist and cursed into the air.
Critical Broca, Doreen, Raven, Sereva, and the Slater family.
This behavior frightened everyone in the castle. The maid went to the madam, but the madam could not do anything about it.
A clerk boldly approached to give him advice, but before he could speak, a cold and sharp blade cut off half of his shoulder.
As the warm blood flowed to the ground, it splashed onto Wesasin's face and mouth, making him gradually calm down.
Wiping the blood on his face into a deep red, Wessasin ordered: "Put away all the corpses, go to the blacksmith and carpenter, repair the crossbow, and build a trebuchet. I will have a trebuchet within one day. Preliminary conclusion, otherwise the outcome will be like this Just like human beings!"
After saying that, Wesasin ordered people to get pen and paper, locked himself in the dungeon, and began to write frantically, asking for help from everyone he could think of, even writing to him. The mercenary guild that I have always looked down upon.
The words used are cowardly, as if a subordinate is writing a letter to a superior.
Wessazin's state was close to collapse, because the appearance of the trebuchet made him realize one thing -
Broca really wanted to destroy the Kovoga family!
This is simply unreasonable.
Even if Broca kills him, he will not be able to annex his territory. Instead, he will be punished and seize the title, which is of no benefit at all.
But the trebuchet does not have eyes. Even Wessassin will be seriously injured by it if he is not prepared, and it is even possible to die on the spot!
The letter was taken out of the city wall by the dead soldiers, and Vesassin began to look forward anxiously to the reply.
Bad news comes one after another.
First of all, in the afternoon of the second day, a servant reported that the carpenters and blacksmiths in the city did not know how to build a trebuchet, and the drawings stored in the warehouse had long been rotten, and many key designs were missing.
Under such circumstances, it would take at least 20 days to build the first trebuchet from scratch, and its reliability could not be guaranteed.
It will take at least half a year to figure it out enough to use it.
The core mechanism of the bed crossbow has been damaged, and rebuilding it requires level 2 material star iron, which is still in stock in this blacksmith shop; however, the level 3 magic beast tendon that serves as the string of the crossbow cannot be found at all.
According to Wesasin's brother-in-law's confession, that thing has been replaced by the Angel's Glory on his sister's dressing table.
I thought the situation would not get worse.
But on the morning of the third day, Fick's subordinates came to report that Fick himself led 50 people out of the city last night and wanted to attack Broca's army at night and burn the crossbows, but he was ambushed. ,completely annihilated.
At the same time, a reply was sent from the nearby mercenary guild. They made it clear that they would not be enemies of the imperial army. They also sent a reply from their neighbor, Baron Sereva.
The content of the reply was just like ordinary greetings. It seemed enthusiastic, but there was no substantive content, and it also contained a subtle reminder to Vesassin to bow his head and surrender.
Vessasin looked at the letter and smiled.
That night, the city wall was hit 7 times by trebuchets, 2 of which hit the same section, causing a certain degree of collapse. However, the soldiers pushed back, but the defense line was also in danger.
On the morning of the 4th day, Wesasin, who had not slept all night, summoned his elite "Night Horse Legion" and two small groups of light cavalry.
The wind was strong, and the big red cloak was flapping in the wind. Vesassin was sitting high on his horse in armor, his eyes swept over the soldiers under his command, and his voice was as hoarse as steel:
"The walls are about to break and we have no reinforcements."
"We are told to surrender. By doing so, I can survive, but the town of Koca will fall into Broca's hands."
>"Your wives will become someone else's plaything, your The child will become someone else's slave."
"If you can accept this fate, then put down your arms now, I will not blame anyone."
A brief silence, no one left the team. , the soldiers silently raised their weapons.
Weisazin took a deep breath: "Very good, if that's the case, then come and kill the enemy with me!!"
The city gate creaked open, and the first to rush out were two small teams with a total of 200 people. Light cavalry.
Broca's soldiers who were attacking the city were caught off guard and were scattered and divided by the hooves of horses.
The light cavalrymen held their scimitars horizontally.
In front of the sharp blade powered by horsepower, there is no difference between leather armor and skin, and they will be sliced open easily. Broca's light infantry sprayed blood fountains, then fell to the ground wailing, and were beaten again Horse hooves trample them, crushing bones and squeezing out internal organs.
The cavalry marched out of the city, their blood-stained hooves creating a scarlet path.
Howell was very nervous, with a hint of excitement in his nervousness, and kept licking his lips. This was the first war he had faced in his life, and the shouting of kill was so exciting.
Looking back at his father, and receiving a positive nod, Howell raised his command flag and loudly ordered: "Prepare - shoot!"
Viscount Broca's army was strict The Imperial infantry drill was carried out, and the sword and shield soldiers in the front crouched, providing the crossbowmen with a good shooting field of view.
The enchanted crossbow arrows flew out like a curtain, roaring through the air, and then disappeared into the light cavalry formation with a muffled sound, like a sickle cutting through wheat, and dozens of cavalry fell down in an instant.
The screams and the sound of bones breaking spread out along with the blood, and were covered up by the messy sound of horse hooves.
Just as they were halfway through the charge, the two cavalry groups drew a beautiful arc, made a large circle to the left, and headed straight for the right wing of Broca's army and the direction of the trebuchet.
Howell had an "unsurprising" smile on his face, and immediately ordered his left-wing infantry to throw a "big pendulum" and rush to his right wing to eat up both groups of cavalry.
Excluding the 300 soldiers who were originally attacking the city and the battle losses during this period, there are still about 1,400 soldiers in Broka's main formation, 200 in the center and 600 on the left and right wings.
The 600 men on the right wing are enough to block the hooves of the light cavalry, while the left wing outflanking from behind can block the retreat of these light cavalry.
If he had more combat experience, or if there had been no previous night attack by Fick, Howell might have judged that this was a feint, intended to spread his forces.
But Howell didn't, and neither did his father Broca.
Two small groups of light cavalry rushed into the right wing of Broca's army, and their speed inevitably slowed down. At this time, Broca's left wing also attacked from the rear, encircling the two groups of light cavalry. .
The combat effectiveness of light cavalry that has lost its speed is not even as good as that of infantry with intact formation. It is only a matter of time before they are completely wiped out.
At this moment, the ground began to shake!
Amidst the thunderous sound of horse hooves, Vesasin held a spear and led 100 elite heavy cavalry under his command to rush out of the city gate!
When the heavy cavalry appeared in front of him, Howell finally understood why the heavy cavalry was called the king of the battlefield!
There were only 100 people, but they rushed out with a terrifying momentum like a flood breaking the embankment.
Howell was about to order the crossbowmen to fire, but at this time his formation was in chaos due to the encirclement and suppression of the light cavalry, and he could not give up enough space at all.
His face was pale and he could hardly think.
At this time, Broca stood up and shouted loudly: "Silver Yak Legion, raise your shields, stop the enemy!!"
The horn sounded long, the Silver Yak Legion moved, and the soldiers in the front row raised their shields He picked up a huge shield that was as tall as a man and held it against his shoulders.
Under the sunlight, the smooth shield reflected the snow on the battlefield, like a city wall made of steel, and the spears and halberds and axes drilled out of the gaps in the shield added a bloodthirsty look to the city wall. of thorns.
Heavy cavalry attacking the heavy infantry phalanx is an extremely stupid tactic, but at this moment Wessassin has no choice. If he cannot take this opportunity to defeat Broca, then what awaits him will be A slow death!
Broca also knew this. The reason why he used the trebuchet was because he did not want to give Wessassin a chance to fight him, but unexpectedly, the flaw was still seen. The distance between the two sides is getting closer and closer, and both the warhorses Wessassin and Broca can clearly see each other.
But immediately, Wesasin looked away because he had already rushed to the thick shield wall!
The long spear in his hand was wrapped in chaotic-colored fighting spirit. With a horizontal swing, the void fighting spirit turned into ripples. The sharp fighting spirit of the third level cut open the shield, as well as the arms and body behind the shield.
There was not even a scream, blood and internal organs were splashed out almost like an explosion, steaming in the cold winter wind, and hanging on the heads and faces of every soldier around. .
Behind Weisazin, the Yeju Legion smashed into the formation along the torn gap.
Some of the knights in the front row were pierced by spears, and the inertia caused them to crash forward along the barrel of the spear, rolling together with the person who killed him.
Some escaped the gun point, but were brought to the ground by their dead horses and their legs were broken. Then the cans were opened by spears and axes coming from all directions.
Some used their lances to blast the enemy, but they themselves stopped in place because they lost momentum, and were squeezed into the enemy's formation by their colleagues running behind them.
Although they suffered heavy losses, with Vesassin as the forward, this team still smashed into the Yin Ya Army, and even had a faint tendency to penetrate it.
Broca raised the spear in his hand high, and the light of bright fighting spirit flowed on it. The shadow of the huge bear's head flashed on the gun, and then with a terrifying roar, the spear came out and roared. Then it hit the handle of Wesasin's spear!
Light and chaos surged and intertwined, just like thick smoke in the fire, and a sonorous fire exploded between the tip and the barrel of the gun.
With a click, the spear in Wesasin's hand broke, but the flying spear tip was exhausted.
Weissasin reached out to pick it up, raised it high and pointed it at Broca, with the joy in his eyes that he was about to get his revenge!
His fighting spirit may not be as deep as Broca's, but when it comes to combat experience, Vesassin, who has experienced the Death Hand battle and has experience in the arena, is more than one step ahead!
Once the two of them face each other, Wessassin is confident that he will capture Broca!
He brandished his spear, forced back Howell who wanted to stop him, and urged his horse to move forward.
But Broca was also very aware of the gap in strength between the two, so he waved his hand calmly.
Behind him, a small group of crossbowmen suddenly stood up. They were wearing snow-white cloaks and blended in with the silver makeup on the ground, making them almost indistinguishable.
Everyone’s crossbow is filled with enchanted crossbow arrows.
Without any concern that there were his own soldiers in front of him, Broca gave the order: "Shoot!"
The crossbow arrows were almost like a nail board and hit Wessasin. Fighting energy surged through his body, and he waved the spear in his hand. Amidst a burst of metal explosions, many enchanted crossbow arrows broke into two, three, or shattered and fell to the ground.
But there were too many of them. Even though Wessaxin tried his best, he still couldn't protect himself fully. He suddenly fell into the sound of flesh, and the horse under his crotch wailed and slowly fell to the ground. He himself was also hit by three crossbow arrows. One shot was in the lower abdomen, one in the right thigh, and one in the shoulder.
The first thing I felt was not pain, but numbness and itching.
“Shameless——!!!”
The crossbow arrows are actually poisoned!
Broca waved his hand expressionlessly, and the Silver Yak Legion began to rush towards Wesasin regardless of the cost, and a group of crossbowmen behind them started to reload again.
Looking at the surging enemy troops, Weisazin's heart suddenly froze - he wasn't going to capture me alive?
He really wants to kill me! ?
The shadow of death hung over Wessazin's heart. He roared and pulled out the crossbow bolt on his thigh, with a bit of sadness and anger in his voice.
At this moment, a Night Horse cavalry rushed to his side and stretched out his arm: "Lord Baron, let's go!"
Seeing that more and more enemies were gathering around him, and his Yeju Legion was locked in a deadly battle, Wessasin took a look at Broca sitting on the horse, feeling full of reluctance.
But suddenly, he saw Broca take another spear from the hands of his soldiers, and the bright fighting spirit began to pour into it.
Fear suddenly exploded in his chest. Wessasin grabbed the arm of the cavalryman who came to his aid and jumped on the horse.
The cavalryman said: "My lord, where are we going?"
"I will remember you." Wesasin said.
"What?"
Before the cavalryman could react, Wessassin grabbed his neck and raised him high, slammed him at Broca, then turned the horse's head, turned around and ran away!
"Abu, Abu——"
This is a dialect in the Nord province, which means, "escape"!
As the commander fled, the battle soon came to an end. A few of the remaining cavalrymen ran away, but most of them surrendered on the spot.
Broca led his army into the city and took over this prosperous town, while Howell was responsible for managing the battlefield, treating the wounded, and taking in prisoners from the rear.
Howell learned a lot from this battle. There were some things that he still couldn't fully understand, but there was only one thing that he kept in mind.
That is calmness. Only calmness can make the most accurate decisions in the ever-changing battlefield.
He was busy outside until the evening. Although the trivial matters were complicated, Howell was still very excited about this victory.
But this excitement gradually disappeared after entering the city.
Fire and thick smoke could be seen everywhere. Howell thought it was an army bonfire, but it was clearly civilian houses that were lit.
The corpses of civilians lay staggered on the ground, naked, and the coagulated blood under their bodies reflected the light of the fire.
The burned beams collapsed in the flames, but they could not cover up the cries and screams everywhere.
Some soldiers snatched money bags and iron pots from civilian houses. If anyone tried to stop them, they would immediately draw their swords on them.
“Ah, ah...ah!!!!!!”
A beast-like roar came, and Howell followed the sound and came to the door of a house.
It can be seen that this family is not wealthy, and the clothes on the clothesline are covered with patches.
In the yard, there was the body of an old man lying, his head missing, and his blood had solidified in the cold temperature.
Joyful teasing and girlish wails filled Howell’s ears.
This made his sense of justice swell. He rushed into the house in two steps and saw the still burning stove and the wheat porridge in the pot. The family was obviously preparing to have dinner.
On the only table in the house, a girl with disheveled hair was lying there. Her body was shaking, her mouth was full of blood, her fair skin was covered with purple fingerprints, and there was no look in her empty eyes. .
There is a man lying on the fire bed. His legs have been cut off and blood is flowing everywhere. A soldier is laughing and stepping on his back to keep him from moving, while the other is breaking off his legs. His chin supported his eyes, allowing him to look at the tragic scene in front of him.
"Who told you to do this?" Howell shouted: "Stop!"
"Master, it's not that we won't leave you a mouthful of soup!" The girl was saying The soldier who was struggling under him raised his head and said with a flattering smile: "It's true that this family is dishonest and actually wants to poison the porridge. We just want to teach them a lesson!"
This sentence immediately attracted people's attention. The soldiers laughed.
A sense of absurdity arose in Howell's mind.
Howell knew this soldier. He was the son of a blacksmith. He was usually a very honest man. Why did he become like this now?
With a sound, Howell pulled out the sword from his waist: "I order you, stop!"
The soldiers saw that Howell was really angry, look at me, me Looking at you, I suppressed my smile, put on my clothes with annoyance on my face, and walked away dejectedly.
Howell walked to the kang, looked at the man and asked with concern: "What is going on, tell me, and I will definitely seek justice for you!"
The man pursed his lips.
Howell put his ear up.
The man suddenly roared: "Damn it!"
He opened his mouth full of broken teeth, as if he wanted to eat Howell alive, but Howell After all, he was a first-level transcendent, so he almost reflexively sent the sword into his mouth.
An innocent life died in his own hands. Howell couldn't bear to draw his sword, but the blood he was used to was now so slippery that it felt disgusting.
He moved his gaze to the girl on the table.
Her eyes were still open, but she had stopped breathing.
Howell gasped violently. He strode out the door and went directly to the castle to find Broca: "Father, please restrain the military discipline. This is really outrageous!"< br>
Broca looked calm: "Oh, why?"
Thinking that his father didn't know what happened, Howell raised his tone and almost accused him of what he saw. everything.
At the end of the sentence, Howell blushed: "We are nobles. Do our soldiers have to be as vulgar and cruel as the orcs and barbarians? This is not in line with the creed of the nobles, father!"
"Please Immediately ordered a clean-up of military discipline. Deal with those troublemaking soldiers seriously!"
Looking at the hair on Howell's lips, Broca looked a little complicated and sighed softly: "I acquiesced in the massacre of the city."
Howell's eyes were wide open, full of confusion.
"It's a good thing that you don't understand. You will understand gradually in the future." Broca said lightly: "Go down, take a good bath and have a rest."
"Yes...Father..." Howell walked out in despair, the luster in his eyes gradually disappeared. The concepts he had formed since childhood had been shattered, and he didn't know when it would be possible to rebuild them again.
At the door, he stopped but did not look back. There was a hint of crying in his voice: "But...father, why on earth!?"
Broca took a deep breath. , put the pipe in his mouth and took a sip.
Looking at the gradually rising flames, Broca said calmly:
“Child, this is war.”
……
(End of this chapter)