I will be crowned king

"So, why am I always the unlucky one?!"

Accompanied by the earth-shattering shouts of killing around him, Carl Bain, who was about to cry without tears, looked up to the sky and sighed, feeling quite confused about being entangled in bad luck and unable to escape:

"It was like this in Thunder Castle, it was like this in Clovis City, it was like this in Hantu Iron Bell Castle, and the Royal Court of Yser... Why is it still like this in the new world? What kind of ring of order am I? Abandoned son?!"

"My chief of staff, is now the time to complain?!"

The crying Karl was pushed back by Alexei next to him, but the "Commander of the First Infantry Regiment" also had a pale face: "Can it be effective? If you complain a few more times, we will all be finished!"

With panic on their faces, the two men turned their heads. The forwards of the Imperial Army had already broken through the central forward position of Huangcao Forest. And by coincidence, the first to break through the front line were four commando-type cavalry companies. They had defeated Huangcao with the Storm Division before. It was exactly the same at Lin Base Camp.

In the thick smoke, hundreds of imperial line soldiers with rifles held high were vague, maintaining a neat square formation and slowly advancing; the chaotic footsteps were like disturbing war drums, constantly approaching the inside of the defense line.

In contrast, the blue background star ring flag on the position has been divided into pieces by the cavalry. Almost all the troops stationed on the position are fighting separately in battalions, companies, and even ranked units; trying to counterattack. The warriors could not wait to counterattack, and had already ushered in the bayonet charge of the imperial line.

Looking at the battle situation that seemed to have settled in front of him, Karl once again let out a long lament.

The origin of the matter must be pushed back to almost six days ago...

Because the raid on Huangcaolin went too smoothly, a certain commander-in-chief who was originally extremely cautious suddenly felt that he was able to do it again, and made some "small" fine-tuning to the strategic deployment: he personally led the storm division to bypass the main road and launch the raid. The city besieged the position, leaving one regiment to assist the Confederate army in garrisoning the vital outpost of Wild Grass Forest.

And the unlucky man responsible for the "resistance of staying behind" somehow naturally fell on the head of Carl Bain... and the head of the garrison, Lieutenant Colonel Alexey Dukasky.

The two sporadically gathered the Confederate troops coming from the rear, built a defensive line along the road, and prepared to face Bernard Molwes, who was about to come for revenge.

Although it is known as the "Free Corps" and is organized specifically according to the Clovis military system; in fact, except for the cavalry and the "Grand Pigeon General Reserve" that can never be moved, the Confederate army is still in disarray, and they still follow the rules when they act. The "territory principle" does not regard the armies of other colonies as one's own.

The direct consequence of the scattered arrival of the troops was that the efficiency of the construction of fortifications was greatly delayed, which can only be described as a snail's pace; in order to meet the construction deadline, they even had to give up less important parts and focus on building small-scale buildings that could control the roads and connect each other. fortress.

Even so, the two of them were not very worried at first; after all, the most important strategic target of the imperial army at the moment was Sailing City. Even if the rear base camp was raided, at most they could only send a small force to counterattack and try to recapture it for a short period of time. Time is not a problem.

But they never expected that the news Bernard Morweis received was not about an "enemy forward" or a "small force"... He really thought that 30,000 Confederates were coming to kill them!

So when the eight thousand imperial army appeared, the "Freedom Legion" who were still building positions immediately became confused; as for Alexey's infantry regiment, they all withdrew into the grass forest stronghold as soon as the enemy situation appeared.

This is not entirely because of subconscious betrayal of friendly forces, but because the imperial supplies in the grassy forest are crucial to the army; the storm divisions who have experience in raids will certainly not make the same mistakes as the previous imperial defenders.

However, without the Storm Division to assist in the defense, the first line of defense organized in a hurry by the Free Corps was quickly broken through by the cuirassiers.

Although it was a running battle, the imperial army still showed their usual style - almost at the same time that the cavalry opened the gap, three six-pound cavalry cannons quickly appeared behind the cavalry line and fired cross-fire on both sides of the gap.

More than 200 Winter Torch City skirmishers armed with rifles and machetes were killed in strings by whizzing solid bullets before they even touched the cavalry's hooves, leaving bloody flesh everywhere... They successfully scared off the people from behind. Also tried the brave Red Hand Bay Rifleman.

Under the cover of artillery fire, the battalion-based infantry phalanx on the rear line moved forward unhurriedly, preparing to "take over" the fragmented first defensive position.

The cavalry broke through, the artillery shocked, and the infantry drew a line... Under the rigid and classic three-axe tactic of the empire, the "elite division" that the Confederate Legion finally organized seemed to have no possibility of fighting back; the outcome of the battle seemed to have been decided. It was decided at the beginning of the war.

Although he felt that his fate really didn't give him any sweetness, Karl was not completely discouraged, and it was not like he had never seen similar scenes before.

Now, in addition to an infantry regiment of the Storm Division, he also has an artillery company, a reconnaissance cavalry company, a Winter Torch City skirmisher regiment and two Red Hand Bay infantry regiments. At the same time, he also has at least one Changhu Town Line Regiment and Dongchang City Line Regiment. The Jucheng Skirmishers are on their way!

The chief of staff made a prompt decision and sent out a signal to order the Confederate troops on the front line to retreat and enter the area where the Wild Grass Forest stronghold could cover.

"Let the artillery be ready. Once the line begins to waver, immediately shell the front and gaps of the second line of defense to cover the retreat of the Confederate army!"

Karl, who was struggling to keep himself up, said in a deep voice, his hands behind his back were trembling, and the sweat dripping out made a large area wet on the hem of his clothes:

"Send out reconnaissance cavalry to tell them that there is an enemy situation ahead, but the situation is still under control. Don't worry too much. Reorganize your troops and advance in an orderly manner from the north toward the grass forest."

"Why do you say that?" Alexei looked very surprised: "Given the current situation, shouldn't they be allowed to march over as quickly as possible?"

"Nonsense, let them march in a hurry and disrupt their formation, or know that the battle situation is dangerous and flee most of them. What combat effectiveness do the remaining stragglers who come here in scattered pieces have?"

Karl rolled his eyes at him: "Aren't you asking questions knowingly?"

Alexei: "...that makes sense."

Soon, the Confederate troops on the position proved that Carl's worries were justified - after receiving the order to retreat, they who were still subconsciously brave quickly showed their instinct to survive, and the defense line shocked the enemy. It quickly disintegrated and fled in a panic.

By the time the dumbfounded cuirassiers reacted, the defenders in front of them had long since fled without even a single figure left.

When the troops fled to the defense line outside the stronghold, Alexey suddenly realized that Karl was not doing this to shrink his troops, but only under the supervision of the Storm Division's guns, could the entire front be prevented from completely collapsing thousands of miles away!

Almost at the same time, the artillery company that wasted no time in completing preparations was also ready; without waiting for confirmation that the troops had completely withdrawn from the artillery range, Karl directly issued the firing order.

"The gunners are in position!"

"Shell load—six pounds of solid shot, single charge!"

"The gunner is ready, calibrated and on standby!"

“All preparations—three, two, one…fire!”

"Fire!"

"boom--!!!!"

Balls of thick smoke and fireballs soared into the sky above the forward position, exploding into dust and gravel... But because the imperial soldiers on the opposite side hid in the trenches in time, they did not cause too many casualties.

But it was enough - Karl didn't expect that a few rounds of artillery fire would be able to repel Bernard. It was an unexpected surprise to slightly hinder the opponent's offensive and kill dozens of unlucky guys at the same time.

"Very good. It seems that the commander on the other side is quite cautious and not a pure idiot."

Looking at the artillery flames lighting up in the direction of the stronghold, Bernard Morweis, who was riding on horseback, showed some appreciation: "It's so decisive to use precious artillery fire to interrupt the enemy's attack rhythm. I'm so scared." It’s really rare among the Clovis people.”

In his memory, Clovis's army basically had an average of two thousand soldiers per artillery. In most cases, it was useless except for the courage to listen to the sound. The killings almost all relied on infantry--except of course during the Hantu period.

When he thought that the Clovis army on the opposite side was Han Tu Shi's opponent, Bernard's good mood that had just surged was instantly shattered.

After the brief bombardment, the Imperial line did not continue to move forward, but waited for ten minutes before the two infantry regiments in the center slowly unfolded the line; under the cover of cuirassiers and cavalry artillery, they retreated towards the Confederate army. The stronghold slowly advanced.

Carl Bain's face turned cold... The other party had obviously realized the weakness on his side by doing this, and was preparing to open a battle line and outflank him from the left and right.

Once surrounded, or even cut off the connection between the stronghold and the road, the grass forest that completely became an isolated island could not hold on for long. It was natural for it to be defeated or even surrendered when surrounded by enemies on all sides.

As for the Confederate reinforcements that arrived later... he really didn't expect it at all, so full of exciting surprises.

Carl even regretted letting all the Confederate troops retreat around the stronghold. Once one of the troops was defeated, it was likely to trigger a chain reaction and lead to the loss of the stronghold; but if they were not withdrawn, the Storm Division alone would not be able to defend such a large stronghold. .

No matter which outcome, it will be over, the difference is just sooner or later and the result.

Facing the imperial lines pressing up in droves, the panicked Confederate soldiers barely stood firm under the threat of the guns and cannons behind them. Relying on the undulating low walls and trenches, they moved sporadically toward the enemy. Fire on the opposite side.

On the battlefield where gunpowder smoke began to fill the air, unhurried imperial soldiers lined up in dense formations, advancing calmly and calmly amidst the hail of bullets; at the same time, the two infantry regiments on the right wing hidden in the trenches also began to take action, outflanking them in an orderly manner. Prepare to cut off the road connection between the east and north sides of the stronghold.

Once the road is really cut off, they really can't even escape!

In desperation, Karl could only hope for a breakout battle; let a battalion of the Storm Division Infantry Regiment serve as the leader, lead the Winter Torch City skirmishers to raid eastward, and stand firm on the previous position before the opponent reacted. The heel forms a protrusion to attract fire, and then fires artillery fire from within the stronghold to share the pressure on the protrusion.

This plan seemed to be very reliable, but Alexei always felt that it was a bit hard to explain, but it just felt very strange.

Then he suddenly remembered - wasn't this the trick the Commander-in-Chief used in the attack and defense of Black Reef Port? !

Although he was a little worried, Alexey, who couldn't think of any good solution for a while, had to do as he was told and personally served as the commander-in-chief of the assault force.

A quarter of an hour later, under the leadership of the Infantry Battalion of the Storm Division, with the Winter Torch City skirmishers as the main force, they took advantage of the opportunity before the Imperial line had completed the encirclement and launched a surprise attack on the right position.

The cuirassiers who sensed the abnormality in front immediately wanted to intercept, but were subsequently bombarded by a short artillery attack from the direction of the stronghold and were forced to give up. Compared with the infantry line, the solid shells of the infantry cannon at the mid-range position were enough to attack the enemy who had not launched yet. Charging cavalry posed a deadly threat.

"They actually want to break out?"

Looking at the Clovis King's flag that suddenly rushed out of the stronghold, the cautious Bernard narrowed his eyes and was silent for a minute before slowly saying in a deep voice:

"Don't be nervous, our goal is to conquer the Wild Grass Forest stronghold, and destroying the enemy is the second best. Let the enemies run away if they want to. As long as we ensure that they are completely separated from the stronghold, and continue to harass and attack so that they cannot gain a foothold, we will enough!"

"As you command!"

As the order was issued, the imperial line ignored Alexei and concentrated on besieging the already isolated grassland stronghold and surrounding defense lines; at the same time, the cavalry troops spread out their formations to avoid the artillery bombardment, while constantly using short-range assaults and semi-circling fire, Harassing them who had just "successfully broken through".

Imperial phalanxes followed quickly one after another. They avoided the front and "stuffed" the gap between the breakout troops and the stronghold like stacked blocks, blocking the connection between the two; many stragglers had not yet caught up with the team. , was smashed into a sieve by concentrated fire volleys coming from multiple directions.

The two sides were almost completely locked together. Karl, who was in the stronghold, did not dare to order the fire. He could only watch Alexey, who was harassed by the cuirassiers, getting farther and farther away from him. He was gradually surrounded by the empire's right-wing troops.

As for Alexei... he had just stabilized his team when he was harassed by cavalry and could not stop at all. Although the skirmishers of Winter Torch City, who were not afraid of death, launched several successful counterattacks, they were soon attacked again. The Imperial lines were driven back by volleys of fire, with heavy casualties.

"We can't sit still and wait for death, Chief of Staff!"

Inside the stronghold, the dark-faced artillery company commander grabbed Karl and said, "Order the artillery fire. If we keep waiting like this, if Commander Alexei is eliminated, we will be the ones who are finished!"

"Do you think I don't know such a simple truth?!" Karl, who was being pushed left and right, also looked broken:

"The problem is that the distance is too close. We don't have explosive shells, and the shotgun shells will damage the Confederate troops on the outer defense line. As for the solid shells...are you going to blow them up into the sky?!"

"Then what should we do? We can't just watch them get killed, right?!"

"You ask me? I still want to know!"

The two people with broken faces screamed with their eyes wide open, and the soldiers behind them were also in panic.

At this moment, a loud bugle sound suddenly sounded from the far north side of the imperial encirclement net.

The entangled desperate duo turned back sharply and stared at the end of the horizon. The star-ringed flag with a blue background suddenly appeared, and they quickly captured each other's figure from the memory in their minds.

"Changhu Town Infantry Regiment?"

Karl, who saw the other party clearly, froze on the spot and muttered to himself:

"How come they...came so fast?!"