Realm of Power

In the Istan Empire, Luwu Province, it is raining in the gray sky.

The 8,000 Highlander infantrymen of the Fourth Infantry Regiment of the Eastern Province of the Empire were marching towards the center of the province thirty miles away. The infantry commander Lemuel looked at the marching queue with great satisfaction. Every soldier wore a The iron armor in his hands, the cold light flashing in his hands, the sound of neat footsteps, the shaking ground with water splashing, and the majestic army in front of him made Lemuel not even dare to think about it before.

In terms of weapons and equipment, Lemuel is confident that he has reached the level of the regular army of the Istan Empire. If the highlanders had such equipment eighty years ago, they would not have been ruled by the Istan Empire. The empire expanded the Eastern Province. It also specially accepted the wilderness tribes in the highlands and allocated a large number of weapons and armor. The number of highland warriors in the Eastern Province now exceeds 40,000. With the support of the empire, the highlanders' devouring of the borders of the Istan Empire is greatly accelerating. One winter, already Swallowing nearly an area of ​​​​a province, the highland tribes achieved their first major victory over the Istan people. In April, the army of the Eastern Province had already attacked the Luwu Province, which was located on the second line of the Istan Empire. It was progressing rapidly. To the joy of all the highlanders, decades of slavery and massacres, and the highlanders' deep-seated hatred for the Istani people, all broke out at this moment. Blood for blood, tooth for tooth, Istani cities were destroyed one after another, and large numbers of people were destroyed. of Istani were massacred by the Highlanders,

"Sir, fifteen miles ahead is Leonard, the capital of Luwu Province."

︽∞长︽∞风︽∞文︽︽

The guide on the way forward pointed to the distance with a flattering look on his face and said, this is an Istani man with a bald head and a pot-bellied appearance. He looks like he is afraid of death. Under the high-pressure and violent policies of the highlanders, there are always Some Istan nobles chose to surrender, and this was the guide in front of them. He gave all his possessions to the Highlanders and led them to conquer towns one after another.

There was a bay in front of the lake, with ripples formed by rain on the lake. Lemuel was riding a horse and looked across the lake. It was foggy and not very clear, but it didn't matter. The Istan Empire had been defeated since Feishan. The strength was sharply reduced, and central government orders could not be conveyed to the local areas for a long time, so that even the military power of the region was lost. Facing the attack of the highlanders, they were beaten to pieces.

"Keep going, I'm going to take down Leonard tonight!"

Lemuel raised his hand and frowned in disgust at the guide's flattery. He didn't know why. Governor Hayera will agree to the surrender of these maggot-like Istanis. According to this guide, Luwu Province is only a remote second-tier province of the Istan Empire, and most of the land is a saline wilderness that cannot be cultivated. Therefore, it has never been the focus of the Istan Empire's defense. The eight thousand troops can be said to be overwhelming for this area. The weak resistance encountered in front proves this. The regional garrison of dozens of people and the town garrison of hundreds of people were the most encountered. There were only 300 Istani troops. The Istani people who gritted their teeth and shouted and charged at their own army had their limbs cut off and nailed to wooden stakes. Who could stand in front of them? This is the mission of the Fourth Infantry Regiment to open up the Tongwu Province, encircle the most important Fortress of Cholenado in the second line with the Governor's main force, and open the door to the hinterland of Istanbul.

"Forward!" The cavalry was ordered to fly past the infantry marching queue, and the infantry queue began to speed up. At this moment, the queue in front seemed to feel something. An officer raised his head, glanced at the horizon in front, and frowned slightly. I paused and saw a large shadow appear on the horizon ahead in the white raindrops flying all over the sky.

"Attention!" The advancing officer raised his hand cautiously.

"What's going on? The highland warriors stopped hesitantly. "Is it the Istanbul Army? "

"What are you afraid of? The Istani people are just a bunch of rabble." The officer rode on his horse and shouted to the commotion of the soldiers around him. A thunderous sound came from the opposite side. The black shadow was rapidly expanding, the earth was shaking slightly, and a black cloud layer appeared. The front was covered with bedding, and a dazzling cold light of weapons began to flash in the distance, and the coldness directly penetrated people's hearts.

"Oh my God!"

The highland officer looked ahead and shuddered. He was still shouting about the formation. He couldn't see it anymore. He saw a huge iron cavalry formation. Just like this, the fog was broken, and from the white Rows of majestic war horses emerged from the rain. The knights on them were wearing heavy armor, and in their hands was a sword like a thorn wall. The cavalry lances were quickly covered in black. As the distance got closer, the image of the knight above became clearer and clearer. The dignified and cold metal light, the lances raised forward in a uniform manner, and the thousands of The mud splashed by the horses' hooves flew all over the sky, and the huge and neat steel formation instantly revealed its ferocious, blood-eating sharp teeth.

"Attention, it's heavy cavalry!"

The highland officer's face was extremely panicked, and he yelled with all his strength. His eyes looked at the cold flash of steel, as if a dazzling light belt was rapidly pressing in his direction. In the rain, the long white ribbon of the enemy's cavalry helmet was visible. , like a high-speed moving cloud, so fast that it gets closer every blink of an eye. You can see the neatly lined up cavalry spears and the white air spraying from the horses' nostrils.

"Asshole, didn't you say that Luwu Province doesn't have any troops? So what is the heavy cavalry in front of you?" Lemuel's eyes bulged. The heavy cavalry is not infantry. It can go to the battlefield with just one weapon. The heavy cavalry needs to know how to do it. Long-term training requires very tacit cooperation. The queue advancing on the opposite side requires a whole team. In unison, this could not be the miscellaneous cavalry that could be put together in a short time. He was ambushed. This was Lemuel's first thought. Although the highland wilderness people were tough, they were also frightened by the sight in front of them. Well, in the highland wilderness, the most you can see is the Istan Assault Cavalry wearing light armor. Soldiers, where could I see such a ferocious battlefield weapon? The queue suddenly became chaotic, and everyone turned pale with fright. "Run quickly, we will die!" The highland soldiers dropped their weapons one by one and ran from the queue. When they came out, they were soldiers pulled out of temporary training. They were just small soldiers in front of them. Even in a small fight, they can always gain an advantage by relying on their numbers. Now when they encounter this kind of battlefield crusher, their momentum alone has already caused them to collapse. The officers stopped them by shouting: "Don't run! Whoever runs can get away with it." Kill who! Stop! I order you to stop!" But more and more soldiers are running away!

"Ulasdu! There was an incomprehensible shout from the opposite side. The front of the entire cavalry team slammed into the chaotic queue of the Highlanders like a sharp sword. The huge impact force immediately shattered the Highlanders, like A ball of spinning flails with spikes hit the thin armor hard, causing fragments to fly. The hundreds of highland warriors who first came into contact were directly involved in the galloping horses and turned into a ball of flesh on the ground," Ula said. Sidu! "Thousands of cavalry rushed forward neatly, like a river of light rolling up in the white rain. The horses' hooves rumbled and the ground trembled. The highlanders were completely overwhelmed by the cavalry. These heavy cavalry who didn't know where they came from, were in the highlands. The chaotic queue of people slashed and slashed wildly, passing by like a hurricane, bringing up streaks of blood in the sky, huge heavy flails exploded in one blow, and thousands of flying horse hooves came rolling in from the corpses of the highlanders. stepping on Suddenly, a cloud of blood exploded like mist, and the highland soldiers collapsed completely. They cried and wailed, watching the corpses of their companions being trampled again and again by the galloping horses like leaves blown up in the storm. Shredded. The battle force disappeared, and the queue immediately fell apart. The soldiers ignored the orders and rushed to throw down their weapons. They collapsed like water and there was a roar of people everywhere: "Escape!" Run away! Dead! "The Highland soldiers fled in all directions, trampling and colliding with each other. Their weapons were scattered all over the floor, and discarded infantry squadron flags were everywhere.

"What on earth is going on? What happened to me?" Lemuel turned pale and stopped shouting in vain. At this time, there was no more power to save the defeat, and groups of defeated soldiers ran away from him. However, the opponent's heavy cavalry charge was simply unstoppable, and it only took half an hour! Lemuel's eyes were dull, and he didn't even offer the expected resistance. It was a completely one-sided massacre.

The distant mountains are winding, and the confused drizzle adds to the hazy summer. Hayela, the Eastern Governor of the Empire, walked up the slope surrounded by several generals, looking at the familiar castle in front of him, the Fortress of Joe Leonardo, which was built in The huge fortress 150 years ago was the largest military node in northern Istanbul. Although it has not experienced war for a hundred years, After the baptism, the fortress is still strong and formidable. The five-mile long and thick city wall is strong enough to garrison 30,000 troops. The fortress stretches along the central mountain range, winding and rising with the terrain, like a tiger sitting on a dragon's plate. Huge beasts, looking at the vast plains below, where the Istan Empire once set up a legion headquarters

"Mr. Governor!" An officer on the slope was looking in the direction of the fortress. When he saw Hayera, he quickly stood up and saluted.

"How is the situation at the fortress?"

Hayela waved his hand, and the dark shadow of the castle in the distance was vaguely visible. A rising main castle, with city walls spreading to the mountains on both sides outside, formed the most important defense core. The huge city walls were gray-white, completely made of It is built of solid granite from the nearby mountains and is twenty meters high. The outer ring is filled with water from nearby mountain springs. There are many sentries on the city wall, wearing red uniforms. His robes, weapons and shields were neatly placed on the edge of the city wall. Although Istanbul and Kyoto's control over the local area was reduced, the invasion of the mountain people still put several nearby provinces on a state of war readiness. Cholena As a barrier to ensure their own safety, each province did not dare to have a place to hide their secrets, and assembled an army of 40,000 to defend the fortress.

"The assault troops are already in place!" the officer said with a respectful look. As the military god of the former Istan Empire, he had participated in the revision of the military defense of the Istan Empire many times. Hayera knew that there was a small road in this fortress that could be accessed. But it didn't work during the day, so Hayera set the time of attack at night. At night, there was no starlight after it rained.

"Pa" In a woodland below the fortress, the branches were broken by iron boots. A trivial trampling of leaves came from behind, breaking the calmness on the surface of the forest. A highland warrior wearing black armor stepped on the not yet dry flesh. The muddy and wet soil emerged from the nearby bushes. Above his head, the moonlight was blocked by the dense leaves above his head. A few white afterglows fell on the shoulders of the highland soldier.

"Be careful!" Behind the highland soldier, more soldiers were revealed. Among the rows of black spots, thousands of highland archers lined up in four teams and raised their weapons in the direction of the fortress from the dense woods. bend bow,

"Let's start!" Hayela nodded,

The archer captain standing first on the left side of the team was the first to let go of the bow string. The specially made armor-piercing arrow tore through the air and flew out with a white cold light.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!" As the first sound sounded, the dense sound of bowstrings continued to sound, and countless arrow clusters were like swarms of locusts that suddenly burst out from the edge of the forest, drawing rapid and beautiful white lines. . Quickly flying to the heights of the fortress, at five o'clock in the morning, several sentries squatting by the fire were yawning, and there were other soldiers sitting opposite them. The blazing fire shone on their tired faces. A sentry tightened his linen collar with an ugly expression and threw a piece of firewood into the fire. "What sound?" A sentry vaguely heard something, Standing up curiously, he raised his head and looked towards the sky. A ray of white light came towards him, like sentinels. He flew backwards as if he had been hit. A thick cluster of arrows shot through his chest. He flew out with the castrate and was firmly nailed to the wooden pillar behind him. The sentry was covered in blood and his hands struggled. He held the arrow tail that had penetrated his throat and wanted to pull it out, his face turned red with pain. The chest that was shot through made an unpleasant gurgling sound, like a pile of rubble rubbing against each other, and the white arrow tail trembled in his throat. His last effort came to an abrupt end, his hands and feet hanging down weakly, and his feet hanging there off the ground. "Enemy...enemy..." Several other sentries were stunned by the unexpected situation, and their voices had not yet been fully uttered. , like a sharp blade in the void that strikes in the cold night, countless arrows cluster at the same time For a moment, it fell rapidly from the sky, and the shouts of the Istani people suddenly stopped. Everyone only felt a dense cold star shining on their eyes. The stunning star points were like starlight suddenly bursting out from the darkness, bringing With a deadly breath, it shot through the body with unbelievable speed,

"Start, attack!" Hayela's voice rang through the night sky, "Enemy attack!" At the same time, sad and tragic shouts also sounded from the fortress walls. On the frontal attack line, the steel shields shone silver in the night, like A layer of sparkling river surface. The densely packed heads of people squirmed like a swarm of ants. The Istanbul army on the city wall blew the bugle in a panic and ran out in a hurry, "Dang! Dang! Dang!" The alarm bell rang through the early morning like a frightened woman. , coming from the watchtower on the city wall.

There was a golden sunset outside the carriage. On the road south from the Imperial Capital, Tiernalant looked away from a group of caravan carriages that had just passed by, and looked solemnly at someone who had just woken up from sleep. , asked in a solemn voice, "Isn't the southern negotiation in two months? Isn't it too early for you to go to the south? If the other party knows that the Emperor of the Falcon Empire is so impatient, it will not be a good thing for the negotiations!"

"You also know about the negotiations in the South?"

The fat man grinned slightly, adjusted his clothes, and looked at the scenery outside. It was already the moment when the sun was setting. The Wheel Palace he was riding in was a black double-decker carriage, made of shiny oak and metal with rolled gold edges. It is built and pulled by four horses. Its spacious appearance makes it easy to walk on the road. The passing caravans frequently looked sideways, but when they saw the mark of the Imperial Ministry of Internal Affairs on the carriage door, most of them shrugged their shoulders. This should be a certain Imperial administrative officer who had just been ordered to go south. Judging from the grade of the carriage, his status was not very high. High, because there are no cavalry escorts, and not low, because there must be a The coat of arms of the Ministry of Internal Affairs also requires at least a regional administrative officer." I heard a little bit." Tiernarant nodded and snorted with a heavy nose. "If I guessed correctly, I will be transferred to Lisbon, which should be the same." It has something to do with negotiation! Let me explain in advance that active trade is not my specialty. , when something goes wrong with Lisbon Trust, I can’t be considered derelict in my duty, otherwise, you can order me to be revoked now! ""Negotiation has always been a game where both parties seize chips. Whoever holds more chips will naturally be the winner, and the other party will win. The time is set two months later because the other party has already chosen the chips! "

The fat man looked at the land illuminated by the golden sunset outside the window, yawned widely, leaned on the leather sofa, and said in a solemn voice, "I hurriedly went south quietly because I didn't know where the other party was placing their chips." ! But I believe that the other party has already started to take action" (To be continued...)