Chapter 67, Battle of Miljorden Haven
"Champions duel..." Hearing this word, Albert fell into deep thought, the Earl was silent, and Ryan did not speak.
Champion duel, the oldest and most sacred rule of the northern barbarians.
After believing in chaos, the northern barbarians who used to pursue power and glory have gradually degenerated into a chaotic race that thirsts for all blood and killing by any means. In order to win and gain the attention of evil gods, they will do whatever they can, regardless of shame or price.
Only the champion duel is a sacred ceremony recognized by all the barbarians in the north.
Two champions of equal racial identities will face off in a holy duel, the outcome of which will determine the outcome of the war.
Win or lose a battle.
The Holy Grail Knight under the command of the great first knight King Arthur, the first Duke of Boldro, Marcus, once defeated the chaotic champion Gavinlie in a champion duel, and repelled thousands of barbarian troops by himself. This great story is still being sung today. .
However, the barbarians are not so easy to deal with. Countless stupid nobles and knights have given away their heads because of the championship duel, because the strength of the barbarian lords is too strong. These lords can become lords regardless of their blood, relying on the survival of the fittest And bloody conquest, in this case, few nobles who rely on blood and entrustment can defeat the barbarians with roughly equal strength and status, and countless heroes have failed.
"But... Bireg is a legendary high-ranking barbarian chief..." Albert walked in front of Ryan, the earl's eyes were full of shock, and he even couldn't bear it: "You really?"
"Besides that, we have no other way." Ryan shook his head, he walked behind Albert, and pointed to the large map on the table: "Most of the plains near Mijodenhaven, there is no danger Guards, we have no cavalry, nor any mobile force at my disposal, and... I heard that the only fifty muskets your Excellency has..."
"I have taken them all to the northern front. I have a lot of crossbows and weapons in my arsenal, but I don't have many muskets." The earl smiled wryly: "At this critical moment, I don't need to lie to you, because I really didn't expect The barbarians will come to my city."
"Without the musket, which is a sharp weapon for defending the city, there are only two cannons left on the east gate." Ryan kept shaking his head: "I really can't think of any strategy to outwit it. The strength gap between the enemy and us is too big. The favorable barrier of the city wall is also lost, so the only way is to fight the champions." Ryan said with a kind of indifference in his tone: "This is the only chance."
"I admire your noble character, I recognize you, Albert Baker hereby swears to the God of Justice, Ryan will always be a friend of our Baker family! If the war is over, I will give you half of your savings and My family heirloom." The earl reached out and squeezed Ryan's shoulder hard, and then stretched out his hand: "Tomorrow, let us fight side by side, and my guards and I will charge together to create this opportunity for you."
The White Wolf Knight and the earl shook hands: "For Nord! For your people."
"For Nord!!!"
The next day, when the noon sun was high in the sky, the black barbarian army finally appeared at the end of the horizon.
Despite the loss in the Battle of Aarhus Bridge the day before, the number of the bear tribe's army still makes people feel hopeless. Nearly 4,000 barbarian troops marched towards the collapsed east gate of Mijoden Haven. .
The Nord's army lined up near the gates to meet the enemy, carefully forming an impregnable line of defense, and crossbowmen stood on the nearby walls, bows drawn and ready to meet the enemy.
"Barbarian raiders, barbarian berserkers, barbarian hunters, and barbarian riders. The only good news is that I didn't see any trolls or Norscan giants." Estelle stood on the city wall, and the half-elf behind him The quiver is already full of feathered arrows: "Rost? Do you think we can hold this place?"
The barbarian Rost was examining his weapon,
Hearing what the half-elf said, the barbarian laughed loudly: "Of course I can't keep it."
"But we still have to fight." Estelle complained in a low voice.
"I have experienced more desperate wars than this one. What's the point? The clansmen in the past have become the playthings of evil gods. Now when we meet, we can only fight to the death." Rost said loudly: "We still have to fight!"
On the other side, on the high city wall, a large group of Nord soldiers are defending Teresa. The magic power hovering around the sorceress has become their only reliance. Feeling very pleasantly surprised, the Walnut Knight Nikolai told these soldiers that if the battle situation was unfavorable, they must send her away safely.
"Really? Banda is dead?" Teresa learned from Emilia beside her that the little mercenaries who surrounded her all day died in the terrible explosion, and the mercenaries only found his body. one hand.
"Yes..." Emilia replied in a low voice. The girl didn't say what happened afterwards. After losing his apprentice, Wilt was very sad. She caused it.
"I'm sorry about that," Teresa expressed. Then he said, "Emilia?"
"Huh?" The female mercenary was stunned. She was surprised that the sorceress in front of her would say that she was sad?
"If this city can't be defended, you can follow me and Ryan to teleport back to Sky Dome." The sorceress looked at the slim female mercenary standing beside her, and suddenly reached out and touched her face with her fingertips: "Beauty is not a sin."
"...Thank you, but I will stay." Emilia stepped back a little to avoid Teresa's movements: "Thank you for your kindness, but I am a mercenary of the Bloodaxe Mercenary Corps."
"Forget it, whatever you want." Seeing that the barbarian army was gradually approaching, the sorceress stopped being reluctant, and began to prepare spells under the protection of the soldiers.
The barbarian plunderers approached the city gate, and they were very pleasantly surprised to find that the city gate had collapsed, and now there was only a piece of ruins and the Nord army guarding in front of the ruins, so everyone fought bravely, holding their shields high, bowing The body and pace range from walking slowly, to fast walking, and then running wildly. The white bear flag on the black background is erected high and fluttering in the cold weather.
The defenders on the city wall shot arrows desperately, and the militiamen also threw javelins, stones and even all kinds of strange things vigorously. The barbarian looters raised their shields one after another to resist the rain of arrows. The engineer nervously loaded and commanded the only two remaining cannons, trying to shoot towards the densely populated barbarian army.
The barbarians are not stupid. Under the command of the barbarian champion warriors, the barbarian marauders immediately dispersed and rushed towards Nord's army in twos and threes.
In the face-to-face distance, the fighting styles of the barbarians and the southerners are vividly reflected. The front of the Nord army stands like steel in front of the ruins of the city gate. With the close cooperation of the pikemen and the great swordsmen, the first wave rushed up. The barbarians fell in pieces, but soon more barbarians poured in.
The attackers were constantly warmly welcomed by the crossbowmen on the city wall. Under the command of Nikolai, the crossbowmen fired in great order and on target, and the weak barbarian retainers were frightened by the rain of arrows. , but this does not apply to those strong barbarian plunderers. These warriors who believe in evil gods are even more difficult to stop. After only ten minutes, they rushed into the vital point of the army formation. The Nord army Had to face these powerful barbarians.
Fighting one-on-one, ordinary soldiers are no match for barbarian marauders at all, but excellent tactics can make up for the weakness of the Nord army. Pikemen and great swordsmen form a tight formation to bear the brunt of the charge, and then the halberds Outflanking the rear of the barbarians, with the sincere cooperation of the Nord army, the second wave of barbarian troops was repelled again.
The barbarian chief Bireg was riding on a huge white bear. Seeing that his two waves of attacks were repelled, he waved his hand. After giving instructions, he raised the black banner.
Go on the offensive.
Blizzards and frost raged in the air. With the help of the powerful spells of the sorceress, the army of the Nords and the barbarians continued to clash. Teresa had exerted all her strength. Her siege vehicles and siege towers were smashed into pieces by ice guns and blizzards, and each one of the ice bolts was shot out under her will, and every place meant that the councilor Garland had wiped out another barbarian warrior, There is always a burst of cheers from the defenders.
The war began to enter a protracted war, and the Nord army repelled the barbarian attacks again and again. At this moment, whether it was the standing army, conscripts or temporarily recruited mercenaries, the barbarians were beaten again and again with their efforts. Retreating, dropping a large number of corpses again and again and fleeing in a hurry.
However, the number of barbarians is too large. After each attack, the originally thick front line gradually becomes thinner. The army of hundreds of people gradually cannot withstand this consumption. More militiamen join the battlefield in a hurry. The well-trained and resilient militia began to retreat steadily in the barbarian attack. Seeing this, the walnut knight Nikolai rushed into the battlefield with his attendants, and managed to stabilize the situation.
The balance of victory and defeat is constantly swaying. The defense line of the Nord army seems to be crumbling, but it is standing still. The crossbowmen on the city wall have exhausted the feathers and arrows in the quiver. Take out your weapons and fight down the city.
"Ah!" The mace slammed down and knocked down another barbarian warrior. Nikolay wiped the blood from his face. The battle had lasted for two hours. Still tenaciously sticking to it with a strong will, after all, they understand that they are fighting for the lives of their family members.
Under the insistence of the army, the barbarian's offensive momentum began to slow down. These barbarians seemed to be less confident. In front of the neat shield wall and dense spear line, there were dense corpses, piled high into mountains.
On the streets of the city.
"The barbarians can't hold on any longer, Your Excellency the Earl!" The captain of the guard, Emir, nodded towards Albert, who was fully armed, wearing ancestral armor, and holding a lance: "It's not that easy, get ready, let us kill them!" One hit! Give Ryan a chance!"
The earl's bodyguard has nearly thirty people, all wearing full plate armor and holding lances. As the paladins from the Church of Justice and the Church of Life came to join them, this fifty-man cavalry army has assembled forming.
Ryan was also among them holding a warhammer. At this moment, his heart was filled with peace.
Just when he decided to stay and meet the enemy, he really understood one of the most difficult of the eight virtues of knighthood-sacrifice.
"Knight, do you have such courage? When you need to pay a price to fulfill the interests of the majority, do you dare to sacrifice? Maybe sacrifice material benefits, maybe sacrifice life?"
——The Fairy of the Lake
Sometimes, knights are pitiful and pathetic, because the gods they believe in enjoy the sacrifice of their knights. Knights are called to face a hopeless battle, but they must sacrifice.
Sometimes in order to protect their homes and treasures, the sacrifices of the knights regardless of the cost became the beginning of countless epic stories. In the great holy war 150 years ago, many knights fought to the end. In the bloody battle of the Imperial Sun Knights, there was only one person left. Even after 150 years of recuperation, the Sun Knights had only recovered 80% of their size.
But they have no regrets.
Likewise, Ryan has no regrets about his choice.
This is not the materialistic and morally depraved world he lives in. In this world, the threat of chaos threatens mankind forever. If no one stands up and is willing to make sacrifices for this race and this world, the whole world will be destroyed by demons. fell into the clutches of the
Didn't even the father make terrible sacrifices?
For more than 11,000 years of torture with no end in sight, he allowed his soul and will to be broken in countless places throughout the universe, and watched helplessly as the human empire he built gradually changed from scientific and enlightened to decadent and superstitious. Countless foreign enemies and civil strife gradually collapsed.
But my father is still insisting, just for the race he loves, the human beings he loves.
Along the way, the refugees in the city, the old and the weak in the city all looked at this last new force with expectant eyes. They are the last hope of the city. Those pairs of yearning eyes and those immature faces, It evoked countless thoughts of Ryan.
This kind of thinking was quickly broken, and the uproar sounded from the gate of the city. The barbarian chief Birig finally couldn't stand it. After sacrificing more than 2,000 people, his tribe was unable to break through the Nord army. The powerful chaotic champion decided to fight in person .
When the barbarian chief, who was over 2.2 meters tall, rode a giant white bear and rushed into the battle with his champions, it was as if Nord's army had been cut in two by a big axe. Rigg raised his battle ax while roaring, and the bear took the lead. The shields of the spearmen were easily knocked away. Not only could their spears not hurt Bireg himself, even the giant bear he was sitting on could not hurt. Difficult to shake, the barbarian chief swung his axe, and the two soldiers were directly chopped off. The barbarian riders and champion warriors he led smashed into the army formation like a chain hammer, and the Nord army was turned on their backs. Breakthroughs and routs, panic and despair began to spread across the front.
The time has come to decide the fate of the city.