Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Subjugation of the Thurner Tribe (9)
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As soon as the order was given, the soldiers of the 1st and 2nd Battalions shouted at the top of their lungs, as if they had been waiting desperately for this very moment.
"We've been waiting for this order! Kill them all!"
"Don't hold back on the arrows—fire away! We can just pull them out of the enemy corpses and reuse them!"
"Pay them back with interest. Kill those barbarians and civilize them for good."
With shields and armor, we could protect ourselves to some extent from the arrows they were firing, so our side's casualties probably weren't that high.
But on the flanks, our cavalry archers were buzzing around like flies at a tantalizing distance, just out of reach, unleashing volley after volley.
Not long ago, these were the comrades we'd promised to trample every last barbarian so we could gorge on meat and booze together, lamenting only that we couldn't share a drink while feasting.
Watching them die right beside us must have been maddeningly anxious and terrifying—hard to endure with a clear head.
That's why the twangs of crossbows firing and the chants of mages casting spells repeated faster than usual as they struck back at the enemy.
"You pig bastards hiding in the castle—you're all dead!"
"The Khan will not forgive you scum!"
"Gaaah..."
With limited visibility, I couldn't see with my own eyes how many enemy cavalry archers the battalions fighting on either side had taken down or how the battle was unfolding.
But by my estimate, our troops—protected by solid armor that offered some defense against arrows—had suffered less than the fragile barbarian cavalry archers.
Besides, there were at most 400 of their cavalry archers, while we had 600 mages and crossbowmen deployed on both flanks of our regiment.
Now that their barbarian cavalry archer numbers had thinned out significantly from the losses, their combat effectiveness must have weakened considerably.
"Order the knights to pretend to chase the left-flank cavalry archers, then swing around behind the enemy center. And absolutely do not pursue the cavalry archers, Your Excellency. Unless we're riding legendary pegasi, knights can't catch barbarian cavalry."
The reason I emphasized this was simple.
The real reason Europe's knights suffered such humiliating defeats against Mongol horsemen was that they treated them like fellow cavalrymen.
They were idiots who chased after them on horses bulked up like pro wrestlers—great for power, but unable to run fast or far.
If Knight Battalion Commander Werner made that mistake, we wouldn't be able to pin down and smash the enemy center.
In the end, our regiment would be annihilated right here.
About five minutes after issuing the order, I could see the 24th Regiment's knight battalion kicking up clouds of dust as they charged toward the enemy on our left flank.
At the same time, the distance between our infantry and the enemy center—judging by eye—had closed to arrow range.
"Regiment, all hands—hold your long spears at a 45-degree slant! Cover your faces with your left arms!"
"Anyone in armor who died to arrows did it because they didn't cover their faces! Don't worry if you can't see—just endure!"
"Just stare at the backs of the bastards in front of you! Their spears won't reach anyway!"
NCOs and officers swung their swords wildly while spreading the word to cover faces.
Right now, we were in a '⌜⌝' formation—taking arrow fire from the front and both flanks.
We had no choice but to adopt this tactic to claim victory, but being surrounded from three sides...
The soldiers, officers, and even I felt a terror beyond what we'd imagined.
"Arrows incoming! Everyone, cover your faces and duck!"
"Ugh!"
Then, the death rattles of our men—which had come only from the flanks—now echoed from the front, left, and right.
Even the face of the veteran beside me, who'd rolled around the north for two years with more combat experience than most rear-echelon NCOs, was pale with fear.
If the unit I commanded weren't the 24th Regiment's northern hardened troops but the soldiers from my Rhineland Front days...
By the time we'd reached this point, idiots whose reason crumbled under terror would have tried to desert en masse.
The unit would be chaos: men dying to arrows, officers yelling to hold, NCOs butchering deserters with spears or swords.
But the crisis wasn't over yet.
"Regiment commander, sir! The enemy... they're pulling back. Their center infantry is slowly retreating while their archers cover them with arrow fire."
It was incredibly dangerous, but to catch these wolf cub barbarians, we had to risk our lives diving into their den.
Right now, we had to march straight into their jaws.
If we panicked midway, froze up like "Mommy, I wanna go home," or turned tail, the 24th Regiment would be wiped out.
If we hadn't foreseen this and come prepared, it would have been a nightmare with no idea what to do.
But the predicted scenario was unfolding exactly, and we had countermeasures ready—so if we just pushed through, victory was all but guaranteed.
"This is the situation the regiment commander already predicted. Hold just a little longer, and we'll smash their center without mercy. So grit your teeth and press on."
Saying that, I looked ahead and saw idiots among their serf-like rabble in ragged clothes, clutching pitchforks and farm tools.
Despite the hail of arrows, some were trying to desert, terrified of our unshakable advance—like a mountain marching toward them.
The enemy infantry might be barbarians forged in the wild north, but facing our silent approach under hundreds or thousands of arrows, they had to tremble in fear.
No matter how wild they'd been, they'd only faced beasts like bears—and even bears hesitate against spear-wielding or fire-bearing men.
No mad beast would charge through dozens of arrows to kill a man.
And while one arrow downed them, we kept advancing unscathed under a storm of shafts?
Humans feel profound terror against superiors they can't comprehend, so it was only natural.
"The infantry bastards—still suckling at mama's teat—are so scared of our 24th Regiment they're pissing themselves and trying to flee. We've taken thousands of arrows already, but our armored troops have few casualties. They look scary, but they're paper tigers, not frightening at all. Pass it down to the whole regiment."
At my order, each unit's officers relayed it in their own style.
"The regiment commander says the barbarian infantry are just plotting to piss themselves and run!"
"Are we going to cower at this from those dog-like scum? I trust no soldier here will break."
"The scariest thing is their arrows—and hardly anyone's died to them! Turn tail now, and we're all dead."
The refined, weighty tones came from academy-trained noble officers; the cadre school grads laced theirs with vulgar curses.
But all of it gave the soldiers some courage.
"Long live the Reich Empire! Long live the 24th Regiment! Long live the regiment commander!"
"Kill the barbarians and avenge our brothers! You filthy bastards, we're coming for you!"
"Charging to repay our fallen comrades—go go gooo!"
The men roared as one, and since our forward push outpaced their backward shuffle...
We weren't close enough for spear tips to clash yet.
But the untrained enemy infantry's faces, morale, and state were plain as day.
Some were pale with deathly terror, weeping and sniveling pathetically.
Behind them, what looked like NCOs or officers menaced with swords and weapons.
Probably saying something like:
'You have two choices: fight and die here, or run and die to my blade. The first way, your family gets compensation—but cowards get sliced by me, and their kin enslaved!'
And now it was about time for Knight Battalion Commander Werner to smack the soft back of their heads.
"Redirect Marco Battalion's crossbowmen and mages to support my direct command battalion up front. The rest—crossbowmen and mages—to rear support. Their cavalry will target our rear soon."
As soon as I spoke, a fireball launched skyward from the enemy center's rear—clearly visible from my position.
And that signal meant...
Werner's knights had successfully charged and pierced the enemy rear.
Victory was now sealed.