After camping at Bellstone, Griffith took Sonia, who injured her arm, and a group of light cavalry to the prince's headquarters to report on the recent battles and receive new battle arrangements.
Part of Beyeland's army was trapped in the Teutoburg, and the rest was either destroyed or in retreat. They abandoned almost all their baggage, trebuchets and cannons and continued to retreat south along the road.
When Griffith arrived at the base camp, he thought he was in the wrong place. Thousands of troops and countless ordinary people crowded around a town, tents filled the roads and fields, and abandoned carriages and equipment were everywhere. It was a mess like a refugee camp.
Tired armies and residents gathered in groups to pray under the leadership of the clergy of the Church of the Gods. Pious calls and prayers are heard like waves.
Griffith couldn't help but feel glad that he held Krista captive and didn't let her come here. In such a critical moment, people who originally did not believe in God also want to grasp at the last straw and desperately pray for protection.
They walked through the crowded military camp and came to the headquarters. There the prince looked at the map, watched the staff move the troop cards, and listened to their reports on casualties and supplies. Sonya greets him. The prince's first words were: "The battle situation is too unfavorable for our soldiers. The soldiers can't hold on any longer."
His second sentence was: "My Beyelan brothers have suffered heavy losses and I have to regroup my troops."
With the last words, he turned around and said to the officers, large and small: "If you can't launch a counterattack to buy time, I will go find the girl of Anjou and her hundreds of thousands of brothers and sisters."
The prince's expression was very serious when he said this. Griffith's heart tightened and he subconsciously tightened his grip on Han Guang.
Could this be a conspiracy from outside gods?
Griffith's eyes swept over the command post. Among these people, most of the generals in Beyelan would not support the merger of royal power and religious power. If Prince Commodus really wanted to leave, he could only take away a few of his most trusted subordinates. General Maximus, the Divine Punishment Knight of Sequence 5, is his teacher, but he is the commander-in-chief first and cannot abandon the army with the prince.
If the prince leaves the military camp and takes Krista away, the matter will be irreversible and the girl's fate will inevitably slide towards tragedy.
Don't even think about it... Griffith rubbed the bone ring and his teeth chattered.
The road was filled with rivers, forests, and chaos. There were only a few extraordinary beings and some imperial guards around the prince. There are my acquaintances Midianmaia and Ophelia in the Praetorian Guard. I can get the travel plan and route...
There are a lot of corpses around here, and I can ask Mr. Hermit for help.
Griffith had thoughts he had never had before. At this time, Ophelia pulled her good friend over. The assault scout lady with different eyes held a pencil between her ears and a thick stack of reports and documents in her hand. The same goes for Midian Maier beside him.
"Hey, Griffith, why are you here? There is an orc wolf cavalry force that is detouring from your position. It wants to pass through the forest and river from the west and outflank the rear of the army. Warlord Manggulus personally led a group of troops. An army followed, and reached the ford at the foot of Mount Berimion.”
"Hiss—!" Upon hearing this name, everyone in the headquarters took a breath of cold air.
Sonia became nervous upon hearing this and subconsciously grabbed Griffith's hand.
Griffith asked, "So, what's General Maximus' plan?"
Maximus is a steady veteran, and Griffith's war in the east was under his command. He is very strong and experienced, and his grasp and application of the battle situation and terrain are perfect. He attaches great importance to protecting supply lines. There must be broad avenues or convenient waterways behind the legion. Whether attacking or encamped, he could keep his army's flanks under the cover of rivers, castles, or forest heights.
Generals are particularly good at commanding cavalry. Not only is it used to isolate enemy reconnaissance, but it can also become the core of the army and make the final decision at critical moments.
However, the Manggulus Warlord on the opposite side kept moving his left wing to become the new right wing during the attack, like two entangled snakes, forcibly cutting into the gaps between Bayeran's troops and attacking the weak edges and supply lines. .
After several days of mobile warfare and pursuit, the orc warlords advanced all the way south, constantly threatening the retreating main force of Beyelan, without giving them any time to establish a solid defense line or breathe.
The defeated remnants of the three legions tried many times to establish defense lines based on the towns and rivers along the way, but not long after each time they established a foothold, Manggulus's Tierne Front Army would immediately appear on their left. No defensive lines, mountains, or rapids could stop his outflanking.
After entering densely populated areas, a large number of refugees joined in fighting for roads. No one expected failure to come so quickly. On the wide avenue, the refugee convoy could not see the end of the road, which further restricted the speed of the army in establishing a defensive line.
"Maximus is already exhausted. He originally wanted to rely on the Loire River to the west to stabilize the defense line, but the enemy can bypass us from the ferry under Mount Berrimion." Ophelia whispered to him: "Thanks You defeated an enemy army and delayed their outflanking, otherwise we would have fled by now."
Midianmaiya also felt the same way: "This high-intensity mobile warfare has overwhelmed the command center. When we were in the East, just over a year ago, it was unimaginable for the two armies to fight in the field for more than three consecutive days. . But now, tactical maneuvers, blocking and counter-assaults have been carried out for a whole week. During this period, there was a heavy rain, and there is no sign of stopping on the front. Such fighting intensity and tactical mode have never been seen before. Clan The organization and spirit of the Union forces exceeded our expectations."
Griffith looked at them and then at the crumbling headquarters, convinced that he had no hope of getting reinforcements and supplies. Milemeier and Ophelia were the only staff members who were still energetic. Other staff officers were either wounded or had fevers, or were exhausted from the continuous transfers and battles. Although the three main armies still had some strength, the collapse of the command system and defense lines made the counterattack come to nothing.
Prince Commodus returned to the table with a gloomy face and said nothing. After a while, he suddenly said in a loud voice:
"Tomorrow, tomorrow the Clan Alliance's maneuverability will reach its limit!"
"He said the same yesterday!" Ophelia whispered, "But my reconnaissance believes that the orcs still have some remaining strength. Their supply lines and military camps are not crowded with refugees and debris, and the burden is lighter than ours. As long as we keep If we make detours and continue to outflank our army, our army will definitely be brought down.
"Once we lose our mobility, the town stronghold will become a battlefield for siege warfare, with tens of thousands of people crowded inside, no supplies, and no escape route. We are doomed!"
indeed so. Griffith thought about it carefully and found that the strategy Manggulus was executing was something that humans had never seen before.
The Beyeland Army was tenacious and had high morale. Even after several days of arduous and non-stop marching and fighting, the troops still did not completely disintegrate. However, the shortcomings are also obvious. The Bayerland Corps specializes in positional warfare and engineering operations. If enemies appear on both wings, the army from top to bottom will immediately think of retreating to protect their supply lines.
The enemy we faced this time was very different. Manggrusi didn't give the Byelan Army a chance to deploy its entire army. Every time the princes and generals wanted to rely on rivers and mountains to stabilize the front, he would immediately send out elite troops to make a detour. After breaking through the supporting points, he would lead the army to perform a rolling maneuver from left to right, threatening the left rear of Beyeland's army. He does not care about his rear, uses mobile warfare to launch attacks, and uses mobile warfare to choose his own battlefield.
From the perspective of Beyeland, who is accustomed to positional warfare, it seems quite shameless for your troops to launch an attack without waiting for our troops to deploy.
"Griffith, Level 3 Assault Squadron Leader, come here."
While they were talking, several officers suddenly greeted Griffith. They wore medals and ribbons, held velvet red wooden boxes in their hands, and formed a guard of honor with several gendarmes.
"Leader 3 Assault Squadron Leader Griffith, in recognition of your extraordinary bravery in the Battle of Pierrefonds, the Battle of Teutonic-Roum and the Battle of Ferry, you are promoted to Commander 2 Assault Squadron and awarded the Double Sword Silver Knight's Order of the Eagle with Oak Leaves."
Sonia applauded together with the nobles present.
Griffith knew that he would be promoted for his military exploits, but he did not expect to be promoted to a first-class military rank and awarded a higher medal at this time.
The army headquarters was in chaos. The senior officers hurriedly issued promotion and commendation orders to Griffith, and asked him to take Sonia back to stabilize the left wing. Bonuses, awards, merit points, and even medals will have to be awarded after returning to the rear.
Sonia was also promoted to major. As one of the commanders of the Grand Nobles and Auxiliary Officers, Griffith's merit is hers. The countess expressed her gratitude and then asked:
"Are there reinforcements? Or are there any higher-ranking officers to lead us?"
As an agent of the High Lord, she had the military rank of major and battlefield command authority. After this promotion, she will be the highest-ranking noble in the army in Bellstone. But after all, she was only a school officer. Like other nobles, she could not command thousands of troops. There were usually dedicated senior officers responsible for command and coordination on the battlefield.
"The headquarters has decided, Countess, you will be in charge. Just establish a line of defense to hold back the enemy and prevent them from continuing to penetrate deeply." General Modres of the Ninth Army came over and pointed out the map to them. "Bertier has returned from Pierrefonds with his squadron. He will join you today. You must defeat the enemy in the hills and river areas from Bellstone to Kazika Village and Mount Berimion."
Sonia was in a dilemma. She was not sure at all, so she looked at the would-be knight beside her for help.
Count Chalon's ally, General Modres, the veteran and veteran of Beyeland, looked at the countess, and then at the newly promoted second-level assault squadron leader, with a faint smile on his firm and serious face.
He looked at Griffith and said:
"Our situation is very bad. The defeat has lasted for several days. If we continue to retreat, the only remaining regular army will collapse. Do you know what will happen at that time?
“Our dying legion will collapse before reinforcements arrive, and the prince will leave here, find the maiden of Anjou, and together with her assemble a huge church force of tens of thousands of Odessa people.
"With this power, we will probably be able to defeat the orc army that is at the end of its battle. Then, well, he will ask - how many legions does the Senate have?"
…
The troops gathered near Bearstone and the reinforcements arriving one after another were organized into a unified combat unit called the Berrimion Battle Group, with a number of nearly 5,000 people, to assist the defeated armies of the legion and some religious orders. For the Lord, face the coming attack of the orc warlords. Senior officers concentrated on the central front or the rear to reorganize the army. Many nobles in the auxiliary legions also claimed that they were injured or sick, leaving some vassals and knights as agents and hiding in the rear.
On the way back from the headquarters, Griffiths had already made a rough plan for the battle and informed the troops to move towards the village of Kazika east of Bellstone. After everyone was reunited, he summoned all the officers and nobles in Sonia's name.
"First, we have to defeat the enemy approaching Kazika Village. According to reconnaissance, they have about two squadrons of enemy wolf cavalry and an unknown number of light infantry. They have just conducted a long-distance attack and are in poor condition. I will lead this mission All cavalry units and ranger squadrons completed;
"After severely injuring or destroying this group of enemies, plus the army that was destroyed by us at the river crossing, the intersecting actions of the Mangurus Governor will be blocked. Their troops are insufficient and they have to gather at Berimi Waiting for reinforcements in the Loire crossing area under Mount Ong. After that, they have two options. First, immediately launch a new attack on us, outflank us to the west, and cut off the roads to the northwest and southwest of Odessa. Block the reinforcements and outflank the Teutonic cluster. The clan alliance does not have enough troops to implement this plan. If they come to attack us by force, that would be the best thing;
"The second plan is to hold the ferry at the foot of Berrymion Mountain and wait for the main force of infantry to arrive later, and then launch an attack to seize the village of Kazika. Repeat the actions he has done many times before and attack the prince's location from west to east. The Central Army. The chaos there has reached the extreme. If the flank is attacked, a collapse more serious than the Teutonic-Roum Battle will occur. After defeating the Central Army, the enemy's units of the Rum Front and Tierne Front can continue to move south. , threatening Odessa.
"Therefore, after we defeat the Wolf Cavalry, Governor Manggulus will definitely stick to the very important ferry at the foot of Berimion Mountain. There are good roads and stone bridges there. No matter which plan he adopts, this is where he will attack. Starting point. That’s where we beat him.”
At this point, Griffith paused. He deliberately withheld some information to see how everyone would react.
As a result, there was no response...
Galadia looked at him with shining eyes. Krista thought for a moment and understood something immediately. She hesitated a little, but lowered her head and remained silent. Sonia looked confused and looked at the map in her hand upside down.
Nona poked Berthier with her elbow, trying to get him to say something, but Berthier didn't speak; Harlandier nodded repeatedly and just clapped his hands, so there was no problem at all. When the other nobles and officers, large and small, saw this scene, they thought that they were not the main force in the battle, so they stopped talking.
Since everyone has no objections, the battle plan is decided. Everyone left one after another and went to prepare themselves.
After a while, Griffith, who was writing down the order, looked up and found Lieutenant Lean still standing in the room. The lieutenant took out a small iron pot from his pocket, smelled it, and took two sips.
Finding that the girls were not the ones left behind, Griffith couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief: "Lieutenant, where did you get the wine?"
"I bought it from the town before departure, and the brothers all got some of it." Lien raised the small iron pot and took another sip. "The girls in Bellstone are good, the brothers said so."
"Don't you have a family background?" The would-be knight looked at him and tried hard to recall the personnel file but couldn't remember anything.
"I have a wife and two children. The eldest son died on the Eastern Front," Lean said. "I mean, the brothers think the girls are good, and I, as long as I have this, it will be fine."
"I'm sorry," Griffith said.
"Well, during the early stage of the pincer offensive in the Battle of Atana, he and I were in the same unit, and it happened very suddenly," Lien said. "Your Majesty, Commander of the Second-level Assault Squadron, do we really need to launch this campaign? ?
"What I mean is that the clan alliance's army is also very tired, and their strength has been stretched to the limit. Even the warlords have to go to the front line in person to maintain the offensive. We just need to stay where we are and let them turn around and attack the center."
