29 Battle in the Forest 2 (1/2)

”What did you say!?” Luther grabbed the soldier by the collar.

”Centurion Mark is dead sir!” The soldier's eyes were filled with dread as he looked at Luther. His body was shaking ”Dead! Along with the rest of the Century. I was there. The Castonians ambushed us. Only the fifteen of us survived” The soldier looked down. His eyes were wide open, but trembling. Luther could see that he was still in shock.

Luther let go of the Soldier's collar. Mark's Century had been annihilated. A hundred men, gone. ”Dammit!” he cursed loudly. He then looked at the soldier. ”How many Castonians?”

”Nearly five hundred sir” the soldier answered

Luther was shocked. Five hundred! How were they able to get so many cavalry? Castonians were crazy about their infantry and only used cavalry to scout and send messages. How come a significant portion of their forces were composed of cavalry?

The enemy commander was a tough opponent. Luther had already lost nearly two Centuries worth of men but the enemies were yet to suffer casualties. If he can't destroy them, then his military career would be over. His uncle would surely castigate him. He would send him back to Tulosa. Luther needs to achieve something in order to have a reason for his cohort's casualties. But he can't afford to be careless. His opponent was cunning.

”If I'm not mistaken, a century of knights will catch up to us soon” he looked at his squire ”How long until they arrive?”

”The century of Knights under Centurion Stan?” The squire asked him to confirm. Luther nodded ”About an hour sir. The rest of the cavalry cohorts will arrive a few hours after that. The infantry are still a day behind.”

Luther pondered for a while. He should wait for Centurion Stan. Stan's century will be useful. He's a Prefect so Centurion Stan would follow his orders. The Tulosans had 600 cavalry and who knows how many were still hiding. With the Knights' help, he should be able to defeat the Castonians. But he must strike before the rest of the Cavalry arrives or else the other Prefects would snatch away his victory.

”Recall Centurion Lyn.” He commanded one of the soldiers. ”Also send a messenger to Centurion Stan and tell him to hurry”

The messengers rode away to deliver Luther's orders. After about an hour, Centurion Lyn and Centurion Stan arrived almost simultaneously.

”Your messenger told me of what happened” Stan went closer to Luther ”You should have known that it was a trap”

”Are you forgetting something, Centurion?” Luther emphasized the word 'Centurion'. Centurion Stan needs to know the difference between their ranks.

”Sir” Stan gritted his teeth, clearly annoyed. But Luther doesn't mind. He can't control other people's feelings, only their actions.

”That's better Centurion” Luther mocked. ”And don't you dare question my actions. The destruction of Centurion Mark's Century wasn't my fault. It was his foolishness that killed him.”

”And now you want to attack again. The enemy commander would again trick you. It's better to wait for the rest of the cavalry detachment. You have no talent in leading. ” Stan sneered. This time, Luther was not able to hold his temper. He slapped Centurion Stan in the face. Since the Centurion was wearing a mail coif, Luther's hand hit the metal. The slap did more damage to his hand compared to the Centurion's face.

Luther retracted his hand and bit his lips. His hand was in pain. Despite this, he tried to act tough and reprimanded the Centurion. ”I told you Centurion, don't mock me. Prepare your men. We will attack soon”

He turned and mounted his horse. Below him, the Centurion was still glaring. Luther felt victorious.

The Whistler Cohort and Stan's Century, a total of about nine hundred men, rode towards the shallow down south. It took them less than an hour to reach the shallow. On the other side, the Castonians were waiting. There were about three hundred of them. That meant, the other three hundred were still hiding somewhere.

They intend to use the same trick, Luther thought. The Castonians would again lure them into the trees and ambush them from behind. But Luther was not afraid. The Whistlers were fast and would just chase the Castonians if they dared to flank them. The Castonian plan was to use hit-and-run tactics. While they might succeed in the 'hit' part, they can't run. The Whistlers were faster. Their trick worked on Centurion Mark because the fool was outnumbered and was not able to give chase. Now, he outnumbered his enemy. Many of the Whistlers will die today, but the reward would surely be worth their sacrifices. Furthermore, the presence of the Knights gave him assurance.

They completed their crossing without difficulties. Just as Luther thought, the Castonians don't have enough caltrops. After they finished their crossing, Luther immediately ordered a chase.

After the Tulosans charged, the Castonians retreated. Luther doesn't care whether this retreat was fake or real. They will catch them anyway. Nine hundred Tulosans chased the Castonians.

Chasing was actually a little hard because of the trees. If one was not careful, he could hit his head on a tree. Despite this, the Tulosans endured. They can almost grab the Castonians. But Luther now felt a little worried. He was wrong.