Chapter 83, Harpy and Strange Wind Grassland

After Kil swallowed his saliva, he immediately shouted to Bloodfangster: "We have to go back and help!"

The strong wind blew the young man's words into pieces, but Bloody Fangster understood them clearly.

"It's too late!" He shook his arm: "The harpy has already flown far away. And with this strong wind, the enemy will fly away in the wind. What can you do to chase it?"

Kil stopped tightening the straps of the hard cowhide armor. After being stunned for a moment, he continued to mount his horse and ran towards the army.

A voice came from behind the figure: "Then I have to go too. I can't stop doing it just because I can't do anything."

Shaking his head, Bloody Fangster rode up to catch up.

Young people are like donkeys, never look back until they suffer.

-

When the two of them rushed back from the previous journey, they saw the soldiers of the brigade dispersed into a hollow circle, guarding batches of logistics carriages in the center.

The soldiers in the front row held spears, and the back row had crossbows cocked. Everyone looked at the sky in fear.

Bloody Fangster shook his head and said nothing more.

There was an opening at the back of the circular formation. At this time, Kendall's caravans were entering the circular formation through this opening to take shelter.

As for the local caravans that followed the army further behind, they were still in chaos at this time. The dozens of strong horses pulling the carts were frightened by the monsters. This was the instinct engraved in the blood of their horses. When they heard the strange harpy's cry After the roar and the stench, many horses neighed and became uneasy. Some of the most ill-tempered horses even tore off their leather reins, escaped from the confinement of the carriage, and quickly fled around with their hooves flying.

The caravan guards were unable to catch up, because the horses under them were also disobedient. Not only did they not follow the wishes of their respective owners to recover the escaped horses, they actually gathered around other horses, seeking information brought by the group. sense of security.

Therefore, after a group of horse-riding guards from the Kendal people arrived, they immediately dispersed in twos and twos, took out ropes on their horses, tied them into loops, and ran to chase the escaping horses.

After Kil and Bloodtusk passed by Kendall's army on horseback, they quickly arrived at the local caravan.

Kil saw that it was Knight Rumi who came with the baron's mounted guards to support the local caravan.

The merchants and caravan guys looked frightened. They didn't know whether they were afraid of the monster attack just now or the sudden approach of the cavalry from the Kendall people.

Knight Rumi did not go to catch the horses with the baron's guards, but was talking to the leading stewards of each caravan.

Kil ran directly towards Knight Rumi.

At this time, the strong wind blowing on the grassland gradually weakened, and the disturbing wind noise gradually subsided.

"Please rest assured that we will definitely ensure your safety. The promise made by my family will definitely be fulfilled. In addition, if you have any information about the monster just now, please come up with it, so that you can help us kill those monsters flying in the sky. "

Knight Rumi's words were unusually not supported by these local merchants. Some of the merchants did not take it seriously, and some remained silent.

He was wondering, not knowing what to say.

At this time, Kil happened to run over: "Sir, that monster is called a harpy!"

Turning his head, Knight Rumi recognized who the owner of the voice was: "It's Little Kil. Where did you get the information about that monster?"

Then, the knight saw the middle-aged caravan guard following Kil.

Bloody Fangster forced himself to open the corners of his mouth, revealing half of his rotten teeth, which was extremely embarrassing.

"This is Bloodfangster, an old caravan guard who has been running on the trade routes of the Western Province for ten years. He knows some information about this monster."

Before Bloody Fangster could say anything, the merchants nearby spoke one after another: "Since there is someone who knows, let him tell you to the knight. I have to go back and appease the guys in the team."

"Yes, yes, I know the name of Xueya. He is a reliable old guard. He is more familiar with running this trade route than running a woman. You are right to ask him."

"Farewell, farewell."

After saying that, these merchants turned their horses and left here. Vaguely, Knights Kil and Rumi also heard the fright of these merchants at the Kendall cavalry rushing over. It seemed that the danger of human beings was far greater than the cannibalism in the grassland. monster.

-

Knight Rumi chuckled. He had better ears and listened more carefully than Kil. He understood that compared with the monsters on the trade road, these merchants were more afraid of their Kendall army.

Obviously a large amount of money has been paid, and the two groups have been away for some time, but the other party's vigilance and caution have not disappeared.

"That's right. The monsters only lost a few people and horses, so the losses were limited. But the army and horse bandits suffered total losses."

The knight shook his head and looked at the middle-aged guard sitting awkwardly on the horse.

"Bloodfangster. Hey, you dare to call him Bloodfang if you have rotten teeth. Tell me, how much do you know about this harpy monster? Tell me everything."

Bloody Fangster awkwardly loosened the rope around his neck and tried to relax as much as possible: "Sir Knight, the one just now is called a harpy. I heard that when our fathers settled here decades ago, there was this kind of monster here. .”

The knight nodded: "It can be seen that the local horses are very afraid of the monster. Obviously this has not happened in a short time. And the horses of us Kendal people are all horse breeds introduced from the eastern part of the kingdom, that is, the western part of the empire. So. When the monster appears, there is no reaction.”

At this time, Kil interjected: "Lord Rumi, why are they all horses from the Kingdom, but different breeds?"

"Little Kil, do you still remember the Angry River we passed before? Before the stone bridge over the Angry River was built, communication between the Western Province and the Northwest Province had to go around the swamps of the central province unless they could fly. area."

"As for the dwarves before this area, the dwarves were not good at riding horses, haha, because the horses were too tall for the dwarves! They had to use ladders to climb up the horses."

Having said this, Knight Rumi couldn't help it and laughed.

"I heard this joke in the kingdom's army. The army fought with the dwarves before. Those dwarves only used horses to pull carts and never rode them! Even the best breeds of horses."

Jokes livened up the atmosphere, at least that's what Bloodfang felt.

After calming down, Bloodyaster was no longer so restrained this time: "Sir, the grassland under our feet often blows with strong winds, so we named this grassland that is different from other places after the largest town here. "

"Strange Wind Grassland. Because strong winds blow here for no reason from time to time, we call it Strange Wind Grassland. This place is not big or small. It will take at least five days to cross it along the trade road. The town I am talking about is In the center of the trade road, it’s called Wei Feng Town.”

Knight Rumi muttered: "It's really disrespectful to the wind god. Won't your name here bring disaster?"

But Bloodfangster shrugged: "Sir, a windy, man-eating monster."

"Ah, a disaster has already happened? That's right." Both the knight and Kil reacted.

Xueya explained: "When my father first came here, there were not many harpies in the Strange Wind Grassland. But after we humans settled in the Western Province, those monsters would appear one after another. .You may have heard that there is no Lord Knight in Strange Wind Town."

Knight Rumi did not say anything. Obviously he had not heard of this matter. After all, he had never been to the Western Province before, and this was the first time he heard of Strange Wind Grassland.

"No lord? A town? How is that possible? Who will be responsible for security and taxes?"

Kiel asked the question on behalf of the knight.

The knight also nodded.

"There used to be some, but because the harpies attacked the migrants and caravans, the lord led his troops to conquer them, but unfortunately the whole army was wiped out. The lord himself also died in the deserted depths of the grassland."

"Didn't anyone come here later? After all, according to the map, Strange Wind Town is located on the main trade road leading to the southern part of the Western Province. This road is the closest. If we take another detour, it will take half a month longer. Consumption.”

Knight Rumi touched the beard on his chin and asked hesitantly.

At this time, Bloody Fangster said cautiously: "Yes. But, but."

"Speak quickly and be quick."

Gere bumped into his recent partner, urging him to speak directly.

"However, I heard that the owner of the province, the Earl, sent five knights from the army to take over as lords over a long period of time. However, these brave knights were all killed in the battle against the monsters."

"all?"

Knight Rumi questioned.

Bloody Fangster nodded affirmatively: "Everyone who walks on the trade road has heard of this. I go to the Strange Wind Town four or five times every year. The five knight lords who established the town are still here. It’s their mansion. But now it’s all abandoned.”

Knight Rumi asked impolitely: "In this case, how did the caravans and villages and towns survive in a place where even knights from the army were killed? How could they all be eaten by monsters?"

"Of course not. Caravans usually buy some live sheep from the previous villages and towns and drive the sheep in front of the team. Those monsters will only attack the sheep that will not resist and feed the monsters along the way. They won't attack the caravan."

Hesitantly, Bloody Fangster said these words.

Sure enough, as he thought, after hearing this, Knight Rumi narrowed his eyes dangerously and snorted heavily: "So, if you treat us as a flock of sheep in front of the team, you think we will be attacked by monsters. Or do you want to try our quality?"

But then the corners of his mouth turned up: "But monsters are not stupid. On the contrary, they are extremely cunning."

Kil also grinned and followed the knight's words and mocked: "The merchants were treated as the usual sacrificial flocks by the monsters, but they were at the back of the team!"

"Ha ha ha ha."

"Ha ha ha ha."

Gil and Knight Rumi laughed heartily, while Bloodfangster had no choice but to smile awkwardly.

After waiting for a while, the baron's guards on horseback drove the escaped horses back to the local caravan. At this time, these merchants emerged from nowhere and went to look for the lost horses of their caravan.

After the guards returned, they gathered around Knight Rumi, waiting for orders.

The baron's personal guards were not familiar with Kiel, so they only glanced at Kiel a few times. Only Lubis, who had worked with him before, came up to touch Kiel's arm and joke.

"Okay, let's continue talking about that kind of harpy monster." Knight Rumi said to Bloodfangster.

"Yes, sir. Harpy monster, harpy monster. By the way, this monster is more than two meters tall. It has no arms. Its body is similar to us humans, but its arms are a pair of bird wings. Its feet are not soles. , they don’t walk, even if they are said to be able to walk, they mostly fly. On the soles of their feet are a pair of huge, extremely hard claws. Humans, sheep, horses, and beef cattle are caught by their heads when they fly down from the sky. .”

"He died instantly!"

Speaking of this, Bloody Fangster had a horrified expression on his face, obviously he had experienced this move of the monster before.

"You look like a man, but where is your head and face?"

Knight Rumi asked this question, remembering some bard stories.

"Ah, sir, they look similar to us humans, but their mouths are full of sharp teeth, they can't speak, and their eyes are much larger. They can catch jackrabbits or grass mice on the ground while flying in the sky."

"You know quite clearly."

Bloody Fangster wiped the sweat from his head: "They barely eat this bowl of rice. And many of them were told by the mercenary guards in the taverns on this trade road. I have only seen them at close range once."

Keir became interested: "Really? How strong are they in battle? How many ordinary soldiers can they defeat?"

Unexpectedly, Bloody Fangster waved his hands vigorously: "You can't think like that, it's wrong to think like that. It's a big mistake."

No one around him said anything, obviously wanting to hear him explain why he was so wrong.

"This kind of monster never fights us humans head-on. Or it hides in the grass on the roadside. It will suddenly jump out when you pass by, grab you and fly away. Basically there is no way to survive."

"Boom!" Bloodfangster imitated the method used by the harpy monster when he attacked the caravan.

Obviously, it is impossible for ordinary people to survive in this way.

"Or, those monsters will grab the heavy objects they prepared, throw them down from the sky, and crush all enemies who challenge them to death on the grassland."

After saying this, everyone around them took a breath. Obviously, if they used the previous method, they could still survive or defeat the monster, but with the latter method, this monster would naturally be on the advantageous side. It's basically a no-loss tactic.

Knight Rumi frowned tightly at this time. Only then did he realize how difficult this monster was, and why the five previous knight lords died.

He was probably beaten to death.

He gave a rare shudder.

There is an ominous premonition lingering over me that the next few days may not be so easy.

Thinking of this, Knight Rumi hesitated for a moment and then said the words: "So, where should we get some sheep?"

The surrounding baron guards were a little confused, but Bloody Fangster breathed a sigh of relief: "Sir, if you say so, the sheep can be bought from the next village. Although it is a bit more expensive than other places, but With the army here, those villages will definitely not raise prices much."

But at this time, Keir interjected: "So, how do the local residents survive under the attack of such unsolvable monsters?"

Knight Rumi looked at Bloodfangster.

Bloody Fangster immediately gave a wry smile: "You will definitely understand this when you see the village tonight."

-

Knight Rumi then asked the local caravans to stay close to the Kendall army. Even if these local merchants were not very happy, considering that it would take more than half a day to reach the first village along the trade road on the Strange Wind Grassland, these caravans still insisted. He nodded and admitted.

It's really because, for the caravan, the losses from monster attacks are limited, but the troops from outside are too dangerous.

Bear with it.

After the local caravan approached the foreign army, they were surprised by the Kendall army.

Then they became even more afraid.

Kiel was also shocked for a moment by the army at this time.

Because at this time, when they got closer, they saw that all Kendall's troops were no longer arranged in marching columns, but were surrounding the logistics carriages in the center. These militiamen were in teams of ten, and each team was dispersed into a small circle. .

Small circles form a large ring, wrapping the dense carriage team in the center.

Half of the militiamen were holding spears pointing to the sky, and the other half were holding unstrung crossbows, paying careful attention to the tall grass around them.

On the flat grassland, the entire army is like a huge pixel spider covering an area of ​​tens of thousands of square meters, slowly crawling on the green grass paper in a two-dimensional monster style.

The militiamen walked in large strides. Some groups walked fast and caught up with the front group from outside the circle in a counterclockwise direction. Some groups walked slowly. As soon as the front of the army passed the twelve o'clock position, they turned to the left. Slow down and retreat in the direction of eleven o'clock.

A huge counterclockwise disk, like a thorny clock, or like the giant flat monster spider moving slowly.

The local businessman had never seen this before and was so shocked that he could not speak.

The stewards of each caravan were even more vigilant, fearing that more and more caravans would follow along the road. Sooner or later, this army would take a fancy to the wealth they carried and plunder them all.

Kil was also surprised and speechless. He had never seen militiamen with such ability before. Apart from anything else, at least in this open place, the momentum was displayed first.

If nothing else, it is unlikely that any person or monster with any brain would provoke such a team.

However, how could these militiamen, who only trained for at least half a month every year, accurately set up such a military formation?

After getting closer and taking a closer look, I realized that the militiamen only care about whether their own teams are in order, and how the overall formation operates depends entirely on the presence of one more Kendall Town Guard in each team.

At the same time, Knight Crow also rode his war horse in a large circle without stopping. He kept examining the position and speed of each team around him, and he never stopped shouting for a moment.

Knight Rumi smiled slightly at this. Seeing that Kil next to him was confused and shocked, he proudly said to Kil and Bloodfangster: "This is the response of the kingdom's army against hordes of monsters and powerful warcraft. The formation is also useful against magicians. It's a pity that the Chinese army's carriage has a mobile ballista or an Imperial Type III magic vehicle. This way the formation is basically qualified."

Although Kil really wanted to know what the Empire III Magic Vehicle was, he thought it would be better to ask Knight Crow privately.

But Knight Rumi followed and talked about something else.

"This army formation can continue to grow stronger as the members of the soldiers continue to change, and the number of enemies it can deal with will also continue to grow."

He pointed at the small circle of militiamen on the outside: "It would be better if the soldiers were more elite and all wore armor, or they could be replaced by town guards who are good at long-range and short-range attacks. It would be better to add a knight or combatant to each team. Padres, a team like that is hard to break up.”

"It would be best if we have a few more magicians in the Chinese army who can ride horses or fly. Otherwise, we can provide special reinforced carriages. They will provide long-range attacks."

Then, it was about why it was difficult for the kingdom to produce an army of this level, or about the emergence of an all-knight army, which took up too many resources.

Jean Kil and Bloody Fangster couldn't quite understand.