Chapter 185: Twenty-first Episode: Chapter 4 (2/2)

Fire Eyes Arthur's eyes and ears were the skills he stayed alive in a battlefield. After hearing the fortress cannons firing shots once again, he rushed towards the riverside. However, there was not even a shadow of a boat coming from the river downstream until this round of cannon shots finished.

Right when Arthur was getting impatient, the boats which carried the Special Combat soldiers visited this river once again. At the same time, the front line battlefield of the Special Combat Brigade fell into a dead silence.

Brigadier General Luke Citel rushed to the front line. Two commanders stationed at the front line were still there. Alligator Macier smiled bitterly at the Brigade Commander and pointed to the enemy not far away from them.

”Head, did you see that? Another infantry corps.”

Luke Citel turned around and looked at the boat that came from downstream. His aid consisted the most of one division.

”I don't get it!” the Brigade Commander scratched his head, ”The young masters of the Second Assault Army Group are on time, but why haven't our Red Tiger appeared yet?”

The enemy arranged three 1000-men formations in front of the front line. Bison Bill swung the ax in his hands, ”Head, get all our men up here. Leave the back to the young masters,” Luke Citel looked at the highlands at the southwest direction of the jetty. That was supposed to be the attack position of the Red Tiger, but the time had been delayed for an hour. Yet, no one was there on the hill.

”I believe His Highness will not disappoint us!” the Brigade Commander pulled out his sword. Bison Bill turned around and joined the heavy armor soldiers, but he suddenly turned back and said, ”We won't disappoint His Highness as well!”

The cannon shots rumbled and killing sounds roared! Up to thousands of dead bodies were floating on the river near the jetty.

Fresh blood stained the river red. That heavy brush of red floated to a few miles down the river.

The units of the Second Assault Army Group that aided the jetty put down the plank in front of their boats but the warriors on the boat were shocked by the scene they saw. Dead bodies in flame floated on the river and broken limbs were all over the place. The cannon's roar frightened the soldiers. Even if the officer was scolding at them at the back, these warriors who had never seen such scenery did not dare to get off the boat easily.

Fire Eyes Arthur was angered by the supplementary soldiers' cowardly acts. He crossed the river which reached his waist and pulled at the helpless soldiers.

Without choice, the soldiers on the boat moved slowly. They were in chaos like headless flies. Fire Eyes Arthur scanned once. At last, he could only curse in a low voice. There were only around 10 captains amongst the 3000 soldiers. Not even a division commander or group commander could be found.

”Those sons of b*tches didn't even board the ship!” Fire Eyes Arthur had no choice but to take on the role of a nanny. He divided these soldiers into two groups. One was to spread over the two wings of the front line, another was responsible to strengthen the riverside and eliminate the Alliance Army who dared to come on shore.

Torry took a glance at the battlefield once again when he was waiting to get his wound treated. At the opposite side of the Shawob River, many sons of b*tches had gathered, but these men were not as organized as before. This could only mean that they were the useless bunch who ran away from the central battlefield.

At the side of the Buzaberg Jetty, Torry wiped his cold sweat away. The flag of the Heavy Armor Division was already drowned in the sea of humans. The Major General of the Cannon apologized in his heart. He pulled at the wounds on his body whenever he moved, but he still successfully caught a messenger who simply passed by him.

”Order for the fortress cannon to change its aim. Shoot at the dense part of the enemy's infantry unit along the front line.”

Soon, the front line that was engaged in chaotic fights was devoured by the dispersive cannon of the fortress cannon! Bison Bill saw with his eyes that his soldiers turned into a pile of bloody mud along with the enemy they were fighting with.

The shots exploded among the people continuously. Some Titan warriors were blasted to the air by the shots, but more, in comparison, were the broken limbs of the enemy.

The roars of nine fortress cannons only lasted for 15 minutes. Following that was the resting time of the d*mned cannons.

Commander Bill did not have the time to complain about Torry's ”brainless decision”. He reorganized his group when the cannons rested. That scenario made his throat sore and eyes dizzy. His 1000-men unit only had a few hundred soldiers left.

After the smoke had evaporated, they faced their enemy once again. Brigadier General Luke Citel wiped at the dust and sweat on his face. All his warriors of the Special Combat Brigade and he stood determinedly on the front line.

The enemy gathered five 1000-men unit again and the shouting at the riverside had become more urgent and frequent behind them.

”Glad to fight alongside you all!” the Brigade Commander saluted the soldiers in front of him. Without much-unexpected incident, this would be their last time clashing with the enemy.

The warriors said no word. Their faces were as mediocre as any pedestrian who passed you by, only that the spirit and soundless stability they oozed when they gathered together made you suffocate.

”Head, who do you think that is?” Fire Eyes Arthur suddenly pointed to the small hill at the southwest.

All soldiers looked over at the same time. They were told that it was the attack position of the Red Tiger, but the Red Tiger had not appeared for a while.

Now, a black gleaming horse stood alone at the hill. The knight on the horse held a Fierce Tiger Narcissus Flag which was painted in red.

”Is he alone?” the warriors murmured.

Luke Citel smiled, ”No! They have arrived!”

The dust was rolling swiftly at the hill. The warriors doubted their eyes. They saw numerous knights jumped over the hill as if they were doing high jumps. Then, the knights flew pass the two sides of that flag.

”Guards...”

The Brigade Commander raised his sword and his flag-holder raised the tattered Cloud-stepping Pegasus Flag.

”Forward...”

The Red Tiger knights were coming down row after row. The steps of the warriors were as anxious as the wheels of the war chariots.

The base of the invaders turned their direction, facing the enemy in panic but the fierce tiger had arrived. The horses' hooves were the claws and the swords its teeth. The Red Tiger stepped on the chest of its enemy and tore their flesh away crazily. They were a bunch of unreasonable beasts, taking away the lives of their enemy calmly.

The soldiers of the Special Combat Brigade already knew that the Red Tiger would defeat the enemy when they arrived, but the people did not expect the enemy to fall as easily as chocolate melts! When the soldiers rushed into the battlefield, the Red Tiger knights had already passed by them in a hurry and left dead bodies with weird deaths behind them.

Luke Citel stopped in the dust kicked up by the horses. His soldiers stopped as well. The soldiers who just planned to sacrifice themselves minutes ago were already all smiles. Their topic was none other than complaining about the God-chosen warriors launching an utmost crazy yet efficient surprise attack. In the end, the people who wanted to sacrifice themselves could not even find a target to do so. This was truly unacceptable for the defense unit who had fought in difficulty this whole afternoon, but the happiness of victory came over each and every one of them. No one would truly blame the tardiness of the Red Tiger or the speed of the surprise attack.

O'Neil Andrew Morisette held his flag with Snowstorm and Black Devil along his side. Then, there was the team of Persian warriors who always stayed with the Titan Prince.

Oscar had a dark expression on him. There was not a single joy of attaining victory.

Luke Citel pulled at the rein of Oslu, then saluted to his marshal who was on the horse.

”Report, Your Highness. This action...”

”Enough!” Oscar waved his hands impatiently. Everyone could see how foul the Prince's emotion must be at this moment.

”Move your people. Follow the Red Tiger and gather more war slaves!” Oscar issued an order to the Special Combat Brigade directly under his command.

Luke Citel was a little confused, ”Is it war trophy?”

Oscar hummed coldly, ”I don't need that! I only want to know who amongst these sons of b*tches who have gone to Saint Hailey.”

”Saint Hailey?” the Brigade Commander became even more confused, ”What is that place?”

Oscar turned his rein away. His voice lowered to a soft whisper, ”That is the place where Massimi fought hard and was skinned! I buried him, his warhorse and all citizens of that town there!”

The warriors of the Special Combat Brigade widened their eyes in horror. They gathered around the Prince and stared blankly, ”Massimi was skinned? Their hero Captain Massimi was skinned?”

Luke Citel spat out blood and shouted at the soldiers around him.

”You bunch! Didn't you hear the order of the Marshal? Search for war slaves! I won't ask how you do it but find the sons of b*tches who went to Saint Hailey! Remember that place. Saint Hailey!”

”Have you been to Saint Hailey?” a warrior caught hold of a man kneeling on the ground.

This man shouted loudly in Faran language and even took a few gold coins out from his pocket. The warrior became impatient and stepped on the Faran soldiers. Then, he stabbed into the guy's neck using his sword.

Retrieving his sword, the warrior did not even care about the gold coins on the ground. He turned to his comrade, ”This guy must be saying he has been to Saint Hailey.”

His comrade frowned, ”Are you an idiot or what? Marshal wants a living one! His Highness wants to know which one of them issued the order.”

The warrior knocked on his helmet impatiently, ”I will remember...” Then, he rushed to another Faran soldier who was alone.

The war at the jetty had taken a rest. The Alliance Army at the other side of the river was getting shot by the cannons without pause.

Torry was very smart. His cannon ships stopped near the jetty and around thirty boats were right in front of the ships.

The enemy who was defeated at the Hetto Plains had filled the narrow river completely. Humans were all over the place. The smart ones would swim downstream while the opposite ones were still trying to get a spot on the wooden boat.

The pushing and shoveling of people and the continuous cannon shots had turned the area one kilometer in diameter of that side into a horrible living hell. The Anti-Titan Alliance Army died in cannon shots, while the soldiers of the Guards at the jetty glanced at the true hell with a stoic gaze. The warriors gathered in groups, folded cigarettes and discussed the other side of the river.

Major General Tove Van Sukhoi was not as relaxed as the men at the jetty. He knew his old friend had arrived at the battlefield, but he did not dare to go over there. Bison Bill, with his cruel look, was guarding at the place closest to the cannon ships. If he knew it was Major General of Cannon who had issued the order to attack the front line, Torry believed that Bill would tear him into pieces and fed him to the fish in the river.

”How many cannons have we left?” Torry shook his dizzy head. The smoke and smell of gunpowder in the cabin made him sick.

”Two six-pound cannons and more for the eight-pound ones!”

The major general nodded. He did not plan to care about the matter outside the window any longer. It was already a massacre, not defense tactic.

”What about the other ships?”

A messenger came forward, ”Around the same as ours!”

Torry only opened the window and observed for a while. Then, he said to the messenger, ”I don't mind it being slower. Every cannon must hit the place where most people gather at until we run out of cannons!”

The messenger accepted the order and went away. Not long after, six cannon ships and sailboats that carried the fortress cannons had completed their arrangement. Each cannon was carefully aimed, and the Alliance Army was eliminated once again. These foreign soldiers who thought that staying away from the central battlefield would get them a chance to live died unworthily. The cannons only took an instant to tear their bodies apart or take a part of their bodies away.

The bloody mist and smoke spread slowly along the riverside. It was a cacophony of human shouts and horse shrieks. However, this chaotic drama broke apart under the cannon shots. When the explosive light shone, the people who intended to run for their lives turned into few black layers until the people who reached the riverside realized that the wooden boats used to cross the river had turned into debris. There were dead bodies floated in the water.

Despaired screams only received the mock of the cannons. The begging and kneeling were only returned by the stepping of their comrades! The people who witnessed the ”deathly shots of Shawob River” would never forget the scenario on this day. Even if the soldiers of the Guards still guarded at the jetty, their feelings of laughing at other's disaster had all disappeared. Instead, it was a deep sympathy and intense clash of spirits.

At 6.53pm on the 15th day of the 7th month in Church Calendar Year 800, a prideful group of knights appeared at the opposite side of the river. This team of knights quickly eliminated the despaired people staying at the shore.

The major general's ships stopped their shooting respectively. This made Torry extremely frustrated. He rushed to the ruined deck and shouted at his fleet.

”Why did you stop? Why? We can still fire a few shots!”

A captain of the cannon ship rushed to the deck. He was trying to explain to the furious general, but Torry could not hear it clearly. At this time, the lookout on the mass suddenly shouted in excitement, ”That team of knights…that team of knights holds the Empire's Golden Lion Flag! I definitely did not see wrongly! They hold the Golden Lion!”

Torry widened his eyes. It seemed that he had not registered the meaning of that Golden Lion Flag at that riverside.

Just when the Major General of Cannons was scratching his head, a boat had carried Marshal of the Guards, Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette away from the jetty. When passing by Torry's ships, Oscar waved at his old friend. The young marshal only showed a happy smiling face at this moment.

There were many spear-holding warriors on the deck of the ships. They were pushing the bodies which stuck in their way away. After 15 minutes, the marshal's boat reached the opposite shore. Prince O'Neil stepped across the ”river of blood” and welcomed the spirited knights.

The Prince saluted properly to the officer holding the flag. Even though he did not have to due to his identity, but he still chose this humble greeting.

”I am the Chief Commander of the Second Assault Army Group! What about you, soldier?”

The soldier did not reply. He stood quietly on the ground. There were three broken hands tied tightly around the flagpole. The knight was motionless like a statue.

Oscar glanced at the comrade standing by the knight weirdly. No one spoke. They did not want to say that this soldier had left the world for some time.

”Alright!” Oscar gave up, ”Congratulations, soldier! The meeting of the First Army Group and the Second Army Group marks our victory in this defense war!”

The knight on the horse remained without a sound, but his body suddenly shook as if he finally relaxed after realizing his wish. Then, he fell to one side of the saddle. Oscar quickly held onto him and only realized that the person was simply a cold body at this moment.

The marshal used all his strength to place this knight in his embrace. He moved the arm of this knight and waved. The flag which was marked with the result shook swiftly as if it could cover the sky and sun above!

The last line on the last page of the first volume of ”The History of Titan's Defending War” wrote that the First Assault Army Group and the Second Assault Army Group met at the Shawob River at 7.24pm on the 15th day of 7th month in Church Calendar Year 800. This marked the glorious victory of the great holy Titan with its citizens in this defending war after days and nights of relentless fighting.