Iron Powder and Spellcaster

[Suburban Shovel Harbor]

"Click."

"Click."

Accompanied by the crisp sound of the machine, the hands of the Newlon clock faithfully jumped forward.

In Andre's world, however, the luminous-stoned hand was unbearably slow—especially when Andre was staring at it.

As luck would have it, there was an ignorant guy who came to poke his sore spot.

"Tribune, what kind of good thing is it?" Tulin led his beloved horse Mo Lanhei to Andre's side, stretched his neck, and looked curiously at the Nurem Bell in Andre's hand: "You all I've been staring at it all morning!"

Andre snorted coldly, handed the Newlon Bell to Turin, and asked angrily: "Do you know what this is?"

"No... I don't know." Tulin scratched his head awkwardly and said flatteringly, "But it must be very valuable."

"It doesn't matter if you don't know." Without saying a word, Andre put the Newlon Clock into Turin's hand: "From now on, you stand here for me! Stare at it! Until the needle reaches Until the cross is made! You are not allowed to move a step until the needle reaches the mark! Start now!"

Tulin did not understand the situation for a while. When he came to his senses and wanted to beg for mercy with a mournful face, he found that Cellini, the tribune, had already laid down in the shade of the cypress tree where the horse was tied, and covered his face with his hat.

Unknown birds were chirping, and several Dusak cubs whose forehead hair had not even grown back were holding back laughter.

Tulin stood frozen on the spot, unable to walk or sit. He could only stare at the silver box and pray that the infantry regiment would move faster.

…

[Inside Shovel Harbor Town]

The capture of Shovel Harbor went extremely smoothly.

Eight companies of the First and Second Battalions of the Tiefeng County Infantry Regiment sailed down the river on twelve barges and captured the dock without encountering any resistance.

The barge they were traveling on was secretly renovated in Niutu Valley using building materials left over from the battlefield. The order to build the barges came directly from Tribune Winters Montagne, after the Battle of Blood Mud.

The focus of the defense of Shovel Port is in the inland direction. The commander responsible for deploying the defenders tried his best to build the land passage into an iron wall. However, he did not expect that the rebels entrenched in Jevaudan would not only dare to take the initiative to attack, but even specially prepared for Shovel Port. A set of coordinated tactics on land and water.

Caught off guard, important locations such as the town hall, church, barracks, and arsenal were all easily occupied by the new troops of Tiefeng County. Many garrison militiamen were still sound asleep and became prisoners of the "rebels" without realizing it.

Peter Burnier carried his halberd and held his helmet, and ran back to the dock from the Shovel Harbor Barracks. A suit of ill-fitting armor made a clanging sound.

He ran to a few officers who were directing the unloading of ships on the pier at the pier, and asked in a panic: "Battalion Commander! The enemy has surrendered! What should we do?"

After asking, he remembered that he hadn't saluted yet, so he quickly raised his hand and saluted.

"Surrendered?" The man wearing an iron mask among the officers asked suspiciously, "No resistance?"

"No blood was seen." Peter Bunier said drowsily: "As soon as we rushed into the barracks gate, they surrendered, and some people offered to tie ropes for us..."

"Cotton." The masked man sneered and said nothing.

"Shovel Port has recently recruited a lot of robbers and bandits who were driven away by us." Bart Xialing, acting commander of the Second Battalion, said with a chuckle: "Those guys are used to doing whatever the wind brings, and they are very afraid of death. "

Another unsmiling officer, Tamas, the acting commander of the 1st Battalion, nodded and simply encouraged his subordinates: "You did a good job, Sergeant Peter."

Upon hearing Tamas's praise, Peter Bunier was like a praised puppy, standing upright happily and saluting again.

With his achievements during the Blood Mud War, Peter Bunir has been promoted to the first batch of formal sergeants of the new army and has been assigned to command two soldiers.

Even the most jealous people can't deny that Peter's gains are real. At most, they secretly scolded him as "a lucky guy."

No one ever called Peter "dwarf" disdainfully anymore. When the recruits see him, they immediately raise their hands and salute, respectfully calling him "Sergeant Bunir"; the veterans will put their arms around his shoulders and affectionately call him "Brother Peter" - in fact, Peter Bunir is I am only in my early twenties.

Although Peter Burnier was a little unprepared for the changes in the world, he still kind of liked the feeling of being respected.

…

[Shovel Harbor Military Camp]

"Kneel down! Hold your head with your hands!" The monkey walked back and forth with a spear in hand, shouting arrogantly: "That bald head! Why are you moving? Kneel down!"

A group of surrendered Shovel Harbor militiamen knelt in a row facing the wall. No one dared to complain, and no one dared to look back at the skinny soldiers who scolded them.

This made Monkey even more proud. After all, this was his first "real" victory - the blood-mud battle certainly didn't count, because he was so scared that he pissed his pants in that battle and he didn't gain anything.

Veteran Lu Xirong walked out of the barracks warehouse with a roll of hemp rope, ready to tie up the prisoners.

Seeing this, the monkey quickly ran to Lu Xirong and wanted to take the hemp rope from Lu Xirong's hand: "Sergeant! I'll come!"

"Don't call me sergeant. The volunteer force has been disbanded." Lu Xirong said with a dark face, "I am not a sergeant now, just a top soldier. Sergeant Peter Bunier is the sergeant."

"You served as my sergeant for a day." The monkey shamelessly snatched the hemp rope from Lu Xirong's hand: "You will be my sergeant for life! Don't move! I'll do it!"

After that, the monkey picked up the hemp rope and quickly tied the hands of the prisoners one by one from behind.

Lu Xirong looked at the back of the recruit he brought out for a long time, and finally said helplessly: "Monkey, you are a good young man...but you are too talkative and too high-spirited! If you were half as stable as your fellow countrymen, how could you compare to He’s developed.”

Unlike the monkey who had not made any achievements, his friend Daoge Zhen killed a Qing Lingyu. After the two were recruited into the Progressive Corps, Doug was directly transferred to the battalion commander's side and became a guard.

Hearing Lu Xirong's words, the monkey's movements stopped for a moment, and soon resumed action. He chuckled and said: "Everyone has his own destiny. The dog has a future, and I am happy for him... He is better than me."

Lu Xirong smacked his lips and said nothing, just patted the monkey on the shoulder.

…

[Shovel Harbor Pier]

"What are you doing standing still?" Seeing the happy giggle on the face of the short sergeant in front of him, Moreau felt an inexplicable anger in his heart: "You have nothing to do?"

"Oh... oh oh oh." Peter came back to his senses, hurriedly straightened his helmet, and asked in a low voice: "Batalion Commander, what should we do with the surrendered enemies? Do we want to escort them over?"

"No need. Disarm them and lock them in the barracks first. We don't have time to deal with them now..." Tamas' gaze extended along the road from the dock to the outside of the town: "The real opponent has not come yet. "

Upon hearing this, Moreau let out another disdainful snort. He looked at the soldiers who were unloading the ship and ordered loudly: "Put down everything else first - push down the cannon!"

…

…

The garrison of Shovel Harbor is divided into two parts: the smaller part is stationed in the center of the town, and the larger part is stationed at Portal Manor outside the town.

As a veteran of the war, Mayor Potal does not understand the principle that "dispersed troops will be defeated individually".

So...he originally wanted to put all the troops and supplies in his own manor.

It was because of "Mr. Alpha's" insistence that Mayor Portal reluctantly dispatched a hundred militiamen to the center of the town and mobilized the townspeople to build a wooden wall surrounding the center of the town as a fortification.

The development of events proved the "foresight" of Mayor Portal, but he was not in a complacent mood.

The defeated soldiers who fled back to the manor brought very bad news: a "big army" raided Shovel Harbor by boat, and more than a hundred militiamen stationed in the town were defeated in an instant. They fought desperately to break through and rushed over as soon as possible. Report to the mayor...

Portal used a few silver coins to send away the deserters who "desperately broke out of the encirclement and rushed to return the message" - he could tell at a glance that those guys were covered in sacrifice blood, but he just didn't want to expose it.

After driving away the others, the worried Portal looked at the handsome young man beside him: "Mr. Alpha, what do you think we should do now?"

"There is no way. The town has been lost, and now we can only defend the manor." Alpha replied decisively: "Your manor is backed by a river and adjacent to a swamp. It is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Coupled with the preparations and renovations during this period, Even if the rebels come out in full force, they can't easily take over your manor. We can defend here."

"How long can we keep it?" Potal asked anxiously.

"Taking into account the reserve situation." Alpha wanted to say an optimistic number to boost the opponent's will, but his rigorous character still made him give the most conservative number: "At least half a month."

Alpha's answer obviously did not satisfy Portal. He asked disappointedly: "What about half a month later?"

"Half a month is enough time for a lot of things to happen." Alpha explained: "The rebels may not be able to bear the losses of the siege and retreat voluntarily; after receiving the news, Maplestone City will send reinforcements and work with us to defeat the rebels - it is also possible."

"But as far as I know." Botar frowned even more tightly: "Maplestone City probably doesn't have the power to take care of us now."

Alpha's tone was calm: "That's why I said it's possible."

Portal was silent for a moment and asked: "What if the reinforcements don't come and the rebels don't retreat?"

"Mayor Portal." Alpha tried his best to slow down his tone and replied seriously: "From a small manor to a large fortress, there is no fortress that will never fall. However, as long as the fortress causes the enemy to suffer more losses before it is breached, The fortress accomplished its mission.”

Portal lowered his head and thought for a while, then suddenly raised his head and said incoherently: "Mr. Alpha, I have an idea..."

Alpha pursed his lips.

"You know, Portal Manor cannot be defended forever." Portal gestured with his hands: "She is not next to the lake. As long as she is surrounded by rebels, it will be useless even if we have a boat... You understand me Do you mean it?"

"Yes." Alpha thought: "That's why I suggest you move all the people and materials to the town and set up defenses in the center of the town. Backed by Shovel Lake, you can attack when you advance and defend when you retreat. But you can't bear to part with your bottle After a lot of effort, only a pitifully small number of troops were sent to the town."

Although he was unhappy, Alpha retained the last courtesy and did not express his feelings.

Potal said in a deep voice: "The rebels sneak attack on Shovel Port caught us by surprise, but it also gave us a chance..."

"No!" Alpha flatly refused: "With our strength and the rebels fighting in the field, there is absolutely no possibility of victory."

"Mr. Alpha." Portal looked at the young man in front of him and suddenly laughed: "You must think I was frightened? Right?"

Alpha didn't respond.

"Listen, young sir. You are learned, you know how to fight. In terms of book knowledge, you are this -" Portal said, giving a thumbs up, and then changed the subject: "But you don't Understand people’s hearts.”

This time it was Alpha's turn to frown.

"How many more people do we have available now?" Portal asked.

"Two brigades and one unsatisfied brigade, 1,400 militiamen." Alpha gave the answer without thinking: "And half a squadron of riders."

"Militia?" Potal sneered: "How many of them are real militia? How many are bandits, habitual bandits, and murderers who have no choice but to defect to us?"

Alpha's frown deepened.

"I know you don't want them, and you blame me for taking them in." Potal asked miserably: "But if we don't take them in, where can we recruit troops? Can't we arrest every farmer in Shovel Harbor?"

Alpha was silent.

"Mr. Alpha, you are very brave." Portal patted the young man on the shoulder: "If everyone is as brave as you, if everyone has the consciousness to sacrifice themselves and consume the enemy, Guanting will definitely win the final victory. victory."

Then Portal pointed out the window: "But they are not, they are scum and criminals. They will only kneel at the feet of the winner. When they find that we cannot win, they will turn their knives on you and me without hesitation." , use our heads to ask for reward from the blood wolf."

Alpha was speechless because he knew that this time Portal was right.

"Those deserters said that the rebels have thousands of people - they're lying! The rebels only have a thousand people in total. If there really were thousands of people, the blood wolves would have attacked them long ago." Portal tried his best to convince Alpha : "And the ship won't be transformed out of thin air. It's great if it can transport five hundred people! Eight hundred at most! Don't forget, they also have to leave people to defend Gevaudan! So our number is twice theirs! They are Coming by boat means that they have no backup and no way to retreat. If they can eat this rebel army, Gévaudin will also be able to get it at their fingertips..."

"No." Alpha continued to insist: "Defense is a more powerful form of combat and more suitable for our militia - attacking rashly is tantamount to gambling! We cannot pin our hopes of victory on dice!"

"Whether you agree or not! I have to make a bet this time!" Potal roared, took off his saber from the wall, and issued an ultimatum: "If you are not willing to command them, then I will!"

…

[Inside Shovel Harbor Town]

There was not a single passerby on the street, and the doors and windows on both sides of the street were closed. The townspeople already know that Shovel Harbor has a new owner, but they don't yet know how the new owner will treat them.

Tamas, who was posting the notice by hand, received the news brought back by the scout cavalry: A large group of enemy troops were heading towards Shovel Harbor from Portal Manor. The number of people was estimated to be more than a thousand, and they were also accompanied by cavalry.

Bart Xialing, the second battalion commander who came over after hearing the news, couldn't help but smile: "The bandits in Shovel Harbor are quite brave... It's good, it saves us having to fight them. How about it? Is there any chance to ambush them?"

"Hmm." Tamas simply compared on the pocket map in his hand and estimated the enemy's current location: "Judging from the location where the scouts discovered them... I'm afraid it's too late."

After speaking, he tentatively asked the man in the iron mask beside him: "Captain, what do you think?"

"You are the chief officer, what do you ask me to do?" Moreau's expression was hidden under a cold iron mask. He patted the barrel of the long gun beside him: "Captain Mason entrusted this to me, I only care about this."

"Tamas." Bart Shilling urged: "Just give the order, it's just a few thieves!"

"Then..." Tamas made up his mind: "Then we will meet the enemy at Shovel Harbor—form up outside the town!"

"Wait!" Bart Xialing was a little confused. He hurriedly took Tamas's arm: "Why don't you defend the wall? Why do you form an array outside the town?"

"Because they are just a few thieves, if we defend against the wall, they will probably collapse at the first touch. Then it will be difficult to catch them all." Tamas looked at Captain Moreau with some unconfidence: "Captain, what do you think?"

An emotionless voice came from behind the mask: "That makes sense."

Although Bart Xialing was a little reluctant, he still nodded.

"Then form a formation outside the town to meet the enemy." Tamas thought of something and hurriedly asked: "Should we inform Lieutenant Cellini and ask him to attack in advance?"

"You decide."

…

[Suburban Shovel Harbor]

Just when Turin was already standing until his legs were numb, a thin snore came from under Andrea Cellini's hat.

[But there will be an update on May 8th]

[37244/100000]

[Thanks to book friends for their collection, reading, subscription, recommendation votes, monthly votes, rewards and comments, thank you all]

[Today is too late, typos and illustrations will be corrected tomorrow]