Chapter 68 Kekkan part 2 (2/2)
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Kevin and Butler finally brought their men out of the lowlands, and after exiting the valley, the area finally widened. Both were wounded everywhere on their bodies, and Kevin’s claw hammer had been long been lost on the battlefield. Now, he was wielding a standard issue cavalry longsword. However, Butler was leaning against horse, as he was already unable to support himself. His back was slashed up by a Rider, and his armor was cracked. This cut almost cost his life.
Once they broke through the valley, Kevin immediately felt excited. There was no Odin infantry blocking them in the front, and the Byzantine Cavalry was much faster than the Odin Riders. Therefore, they could rely on their speed to throw off their pursuers, and after reorganizing their formation, they could organize a counter-attack! This would allow them to let those Odin caribou riders taste the might of the Byzantine Cavalry!
The Cavalry had always been Byzantine’s strongest force!!
Kevin, who was beaten with his hands and feet tied together, was full of anger. However, what made him even angrier was that once they ran out of this canyon, the caribou rider unit following them immediately stopped their chase, before quickly retreating. They actually turned around and retreated back in the canyon!
These, these bastards! When did the Odins became so cunning?!
Just when they were finally able to stop and reorganize their formation, after making a head count both Butler and Kevin almost coughed blood at the scene!
The thirst legion and Kevin’s reinforcement with everyone put together there were barely 600 people who had made it out alive!
In other words, the hit and run tactic that their opponent used was sly and annoying but it was very effective! This kind of entanglement tactic, cost Byzantine over half of their men!
The third legion was completely crippled after this battle! They were unable to create a formation and display the combat strength of a legion for all the following battles, and could only wait for their reconstruction again after the war.
Butler was bleeding in his heart. As the commander of third legion, all these cavalrymen were personally recruited and trained by him. After losing more than 70% of their military strength, how could he not be overcome by grief?
It could said that if the Odin’s plan was to swallow the third legion, then their goal was mostly achieved. Out of the 2000 cavalrymen from the third legion, only less than 500 were able to make it out alive. They lost 70% of their forces, and those who managed to come out alive were all wounded. Only around 300 people were still capable of fighting.
In this war, although the third legion wasn’t annihilated, they were effectively crippled.
Butler’s face was now devoid of any trace of heroism. It was as if he aged 20 years while leaning against his horse’s back. Blood dribbled out of the corner of his mouth as he stubbornly clenched his teeth.
Kevin’s heart was also full of sorrow while looking at the remnant of this force……
(It was too bizarre. The Odins’ fighting style was completely different compared to the past. Previously, the Odins were the symbol of barbaric and courageous people. They excelled at frontal attacks in battle, and wouldn’t lure the enemy into traps nor besiege them while overwhelming them with reinforcements. Moreover, they certainly haven’t ever used such sly tactics as stubbornly entangling themselves with the enemy!)
Apart from that, the most important thing which didn’t give Kevin and Butler peace in their minds was that:
The army in front of them, although they were 20,000 men strong however, from the quality point of view they weren’t Odin’s elite troops and were just an ordinary second tier army. Regardless of battle efficiency or each individual fighting abilities they were far below the standard of Odin’s elite!
It wasn’t as if the 13th Cavalry Army never suffered heavy defeat in the hand of the Odins, but that was only to the Hasting’s elite army. However, this time, they unexpectedly suffered such a heavy blow from a single ordinary army of Odin Odin army……
Both of them had been in the army for a long time and were war veteran. They could approximately estimate that the losses of the Odins this time was about 3000 to 4000 men.
In proportion to their losses, it wasn’t too grim.
However, let’s not forget that they were one of Byzantine Empire’s most elite armies!! Furthermore, they were the most-powerful unit, the cavalry!!
“Fuck, the Odins actually learned how to use the terrain and even strategies ……Was the general of the opposite force Hasting?” Kevin fiercely spat a mouthful blood on the ground.
“It’s not.” Butler’s face was full of grief, “It’s not like we never saw Hasting’s black flag Army. If they changed the commanding generals, then with Hasting’s prestige in Odin Empire, it should be absolutely impossible for him to be downgraded enough to command a regular army. The only explanation is, another powerful military general appeared in Odin!”
Pausing for a moment, although this veteran was beaten half dead, he still clenched his teeth to issue an order.
Since those Odin didn’t continue their pursuit, then they had not need to immediately retreat. They fortified themselves in this position while sending out a messenger and waiting for the main force to catch up before joining them.
“Wait until the general arrives with our men. We’ll hit them with everything we got!”
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Shaar didn’t dare to walk on the main road, and seemed to have returned to his days of hunting and surviving in the wild of the mountain’s forest. Cautiously sneaking around on the complex hillside, he deliberately made big circles, careful to not leave any tracks. He made a roundabout for more than ten miles, and quietly closed in the prior predetermined location.
Around noon, Shaar finally arrived at this valley and because he skilfully avoided the main road he didn’t encounter Kevin’s force which was fortified south of the valley, waiting for reinforcements. He closed in from the right side and quickly approached the right side of the mountain slope.
When he approached the forest, Shaar heard faint voices behind him. From his experience, the dull, messy hoof beats the resounded clearly did not belong the Byzantines. Like a monkey, he immediately fled up into a tree before seeing a squad caribou riders slowly passing.
After seeing the opposite party’s number, Shaar didn’t dare to breathe, with the fear of revealing his location.
Afterwards, he curled up on the trunk and quietly shrunk his body. Hearing a loud voice coming from the forest, he saw one squad after another of Odin’s army emerging from the forest and lining up just outside of the woods…..
(Shit!)
Shaar, who was still hiding in the trees, suddenly had his retreat cut off.