Chapter 278 - 46: The Next Plan
Chapter 278: Chapter 46: The Next Plan
"Damn it, that guy was a fucking lunatic, fighting like he had a death wish."
Tec had finally managed to shake off the human Knight who had been relentlessly attacking him.
Even though his clan’s inherited Cultivation Technique gave him powerful self-healing abilities, he had still been beaten by that suicidal Knight to the point he nearly went to meet the Beast God.
"L-Lord! It’s bad! We’re surrounded!"
Just as Tec was panting for breath, trying to catch a moment’s rest, one of his personal guards suddenly rushed back to his side, his face etched with anxiety.
"My lord, it’s bad! This is a human trap! The east is completely filled with human soldiers! We can’t break through!" the guard said, his face a mask of panic.
"Human soldiers! Cavalry?" Tec was thunderstruck by the news.
"There’s both Cavalry and Infantry, and many Archers too! Their archery is superb—they never miss!" the guard replied.
"There’s Infantry too?!"
Hearing this, Tec was truly dumbfounded. Or rather, Tec had been in a state of utter confusion all night.
Tec could still understand the Cavalry. Given the strength of that Knight Order from earlier, it wasn’t impossible for them to crush the Beastman Army in Ancient Dumu Town. The only surprising thing was how quickly the Beastmen in Ancient Dumu Town had been routed.
But the Infantry was something Tec truly couldn’t wrap his head around. How could human Infantry possibly appear here? Did they fly? Even if they had that many griffins, they wouldn’t have enough people who could ride them!
"My lord, what do we do now?" the guard asked, looking at Tec nervously.
Tec was a veteran of many battles; he knew that he was the one person who absolutely could not panic at a time like this.
If he lost his composure, this remaining kernel of his army would be completely destroyed.
"How many men do we have left?" Tec asked his guard, then glanced around.
"It’s not clear. Around two hundred, maybe. These men are still under our command," the guard said.
Two hundred... Tec’s heart ached just hearing the number.
From two thousand men down to just two hundred. Tec couldn’t even imagine how he was going to explain this to Prince Odoruo.
"Two hundred men. Not bad, that’s still within my expectations.
So, that means only the north is clear of enemy forces, right?" Tec asked. Though he was panicking internally, he couldn’t let any of it show.
The guard nodded.
"Hmph. In that case, it seems the human general isn’t all that capable after all.
Tonight, they had every advantage—the time, the terrain, and I estimate their numbers are several times our own. They even have the humans’ most elite Knight Order, yet they still couldn’t completely surround us.
This is an opportunity given to us by the Beast God! What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.
Castro’s army is to the northeast. Once our two forces join up and they lose their numerical advantage, won’t it be easy to wipe them out?" Tec said.
After being dazed all night, Tec had finally accepted the current situation.
’First, Ancient Dumu Town must be gone. If it were still standing, it’s impossible that so many human troops could have poured in. Unless those humans have lost their minds and charged straight for me without any regard for their supply lines, which would be far too risky.’
’Second, Ror Town is most likely gone too. My army was sent to defend Ror Town, and right now there are only a few hundred goblins there. Against this human army, that’s as good as being undefended.’
’The enemy has clearly blocked all the roads, leaving only the path to Wisley Path open. Whether they did it intentionally or not, I have no other choice now.’
After listening, Tec’s personal guard scratched his head. He didn’t know why, but after his general’s explanation, he felt like the humans were about to fall into *their* encirclement.
Tec glanced around and said no more.
"Since the enemy can’t surround us yet, let’s hurry and retreat north. As long as we reach Wisley Path before them, we’ll be fighting from high ground. That will be our path to survival."
.....
Knight Commander Elon led the Fengman Knight Order as they charged out of the Beastman formation. Covered in blood and filth, the golden aura of his battle energy had become faint and indistinct. It was clear that Knight Commander Elon had just been through a bloody battle.
"He actually got away. If only I could have..."
Just as Elon was speaking with the Fengman Knights around him, Robson arrived before them with his soldiers.
"Lord Viscount, you’ve arrived. As you requested, we have driven the enemy to the north." Knight Commander Elon greeted Robson as he approached and reported on the current situation.
Although Knight Commander Elon didn’t understand why Robson wouldn’t let them ’wrap the enemy up like a dumpling’ and swallow them whole when they were right there, the orders had come from Robson, so Elon didn’t question them.
This was a testament to a commander’s control over his army. For any army, the Commander-in-Chief is one of the most crucial components.
Only a commander who inspires confidence can ensure his subordinates carry out his orders to the letter.
"My lord, what are our next orders?" Knight Commander Elon asked, looking at Robson.
Hearing Knight Commander Elon’s question, the other officers also turned their gaze toward Robson. Although the Fengman Knight Order belonged to the Fengman Clan, Robson had clearly become the backbone of their operation.
Robson didn’t waste time. He had his personal guard quickly bring out a map.
The state of the war could be described as steadily improving. Everything was developing in the direction Robson had most hoped for.
"The enemy has now been herded toward Wisley Path. Our Cavalry is still out there harassing them. In the short term, the enemy won’t be able to gather their forces into a cohesive unit."
"Therefore, in my opinion, we should not halt our attack. We’ve broken through two defensive lines in one night—Ancient Dumu Town and Ror Town—and I haven’t seen any sign of the Thunderhawks tonight."
"This means the enemy at Wisley Path most likely has no idea how far we’ve advanced."
"We now have the intelligence advantage. According to the report brought back by the Griffin Knight, the enemy forces are waiting right here: Wayne Mountain. Behind the mountain is a lake.
And our man, Earl Uman, is currently behind Wayne Mountain. Coincidentally, that Griffin Knight is still with us. We can have him tell Earl Uman to lead his army to attack their camp at dawn. Then, we will strike the enemy from behind Wayne Mountain," Robson explained, pointing at the map.
Robson’s entire strategy was about speed—a speed so great that no one could react. Using carriages and the old roads, he would sweep the board in one go, completely turning the tide of the entire war.
After his prior assessment, Robson no longer held any expectations for Claude. He was mainly explaining this for Ais’s benefit.
"My lord, what if—and I’m just saying what if—what if Earl Uman doesn’t want to cooperate? Or what if he can barely protect himself right now? Even if he did cooperate, what kind of decent result could they possibly achieve?" Ais asked.
Robson nodded. This was a sign of Ais’s limitations; he hadn’t experienced the circles of high nobility and didn’t know the rules of the game.
’In reality, the situation has reached a point where Earl Uman simply isn’t allowed to refuse.’
’Both militarily and politically, the consequences of Earl Uman’s actions have been disastrous. And now that he, Lord Robson, has personally entered the fray with his own men to rescue him, if Earl Uman still dares not to cooperate... it would be hard to say if there will be a place for him beyond the pass in the future.’
"You’ll understand these things in the future."
"As for whether Earl Uman can be effective... even if he isn’t, so what? Even if they don’t attack, our army can still defeat the enemy.
Oh, and add a line to the letter we send out: it is not recommended that Earl Uman personally go to the front lines," Robson added.
Robson didn’t care in the slightest whether Earl Uman would follow his orders. It would be best if he did, but if he couldn’t, it wasn’t as if Robson couldn’t accomplish this on his own.
The most important part was the line Robson added at the end: that it was not recommended Earl Uman personally go to the front lines.
Although it sounded a bit insulting, Robson actually had no such intention.
This was another one of the unwritten rules among the great nobles. Even if Earl Uman had made a grave mistake, he couldn’t die because of Lord Robson without any official proceedings or approval.
This was the game the great nobles played. The only ones who could force a great noble to his death were those of an even higher tier, like George, Oscillate, and Louis III.
Why was Marshal Grantham so hated? Because other people only paid lip service to the phrase ’nobles share the same duties on the battlefield,’ whereas Marshal Grantham actually put it into practice.
On the central front commanded by Grantham, the death rates for Counts, Viscounts, and Barons were all roughly the same.
"My lord, can the soldiers still hold up? We’ve been on a forced march for almost the entire night..." Knight Commander Elon said, looking at the troops behind Robson.
Robson looked back as well. The soldiers were gathered in groups, chatting about something.
"Don’t worry. This is nothing."
The only reason Robson was able to execute tonight’s plan was, in the end, because he could rely on the army behind him.
A product of Mount & Blade, its quality was absolutely guaranteed.
Although their stamina was certainly not what it was at the start, compared to an ordinary army, they could still crush the competition.
"In that case, please give the order, my lord." Knight Commander Elon nodded. He had just glanced at the soldiers behind Robson and saw that they were all still talking and laughing.
’I have no idea how this group was trained...’ Knight Commander Elon was quite shocked internally.
"Alright. Then please have the Fengman Knight Order dispatch two hundred men to pursue the routed enemy.
It’s about four in the morning now. At our pace, we should be able to reach the battlefield around ten o’clock this morning," Robson said.