I will be crowned king

Although Bernard has repeatedly expressed his persistence, and even expressed his willingness to personally serve as the commander-in-chief of the front line - the scapegoat - as long as he holds the Halberd River; but under the instructions of the emperor himself, the imperial army that had just been frustrated on the east coast began to They retreated in an orderly manner and gradually broke away from the approaching Clovis army.

At the same time, the Western Front Army was also stunned. Count Schlieffen and the Commander of the Rising Sun Army scratched their heads and couldn't figure out what the emperor on the opposite side wanted to do. The war situation was obviously still in a stalemate, and they also shouldered the task of commanding the front line. They were still trembling with fear, walking on thin ice and carrying out Anson Bach's almost crazy attack orders, for fear that the entire army would be annihilated accidentally.

As a result, before the expected final counterattack, the enemy's side collapsed first... The two old men who didn't know how to evaluate looked at each other speechlessly. They could only lament that the commander-in-chief was so knowledgeable - if not for General Luther. The bishop personally endorsed it, so they all doubted that Anson was a spell caster, right? !

Fabian, who was also a frontline commander, was very calm about this. He methodically and temporarily took over the infantry regiments that successfully crossed the river, and temporarily organized them and the elite Rangers into two "Grenadier Columns" composed of eight infantry regiments. , with four skirmisher regiments as the lead, began to advance under the cover of artillery fire.

Watching the Clovis troops landing one after another across the Halcyon River, one battalion after another landing on the east bank, Bernard, who actively or passively took on the task of breaking up the rear, sighed heavily.

Although his position in this war was not to help the emperor win, he did not want Joseph III to lose too badly. Even if the Clovis people won a great victory in the end, it would be best to win miserably.

The reason is simple: the Imperial people hate the emperor, but they also dislike, and even hate, the Clovis, especially their barbarism and uniqueness.

The knights of the Northern Alliance and the Grand Duchy of Brahm are willing to remain neutral, but they would rather see the emperor and the Clovis perish together than to personally deliver the Clovis to the position of overlord of the world of order.

Therefore, whenever possible, Bernard will do his best to help the emperor stop the loss in time, but the emperor himself does not think... Whenever he feels that he has made a very outrageous decision that may lead to an imbalance in the battle situation, the wise Joseph The third generation will personally transform into a weight and directly hit one end of the scale heavily.

If his estimate was correct, the emperor probably thought that the knights of the Principality of Xiaolong were willing to sacrifice themselves to fulfill the greater self, but Bernard was far more pessimistic than this; the so-called "big picture view", "noble sacrifice" "Spirit of dedication", as an individual, you may really have it, but it can be said that the nobles of the entire Xiaolong Principality can do it...

Well, regardless of whether others can do it or not, Bernard himself is already ready to run away.

Thinking of this, Bernard even had some schadenfreude: the emperor must have hoped that by shifting the battlefield and delaying the rhythm, the Clovis attack would be disjointed, so as to stabilize the war situation and rectify the lax morale.

I wonder what his expression will be like when he realizes that the Clovis army is not out of touch, but the morale of the imperial army is becoming more and more demoralized the more they reorganize themselves.

With a bit of malicious speculation, Bernard took one last look at the approaching Clovis Unicorn flag, and without any nostalgia gave the order to withdraw from the battlefield.

At 17:15, the last barrier in front of Anson Bach had completely collapsed.

…………………………………………

"Finally...are we going to start?"

Looking at the endless smoke of boiling gunpowder and the flickering light of fire in the distance, Archduke Roland, who was muttering to himself, put down the monocular telescope in his hand with a slight hesitation, his expression was extremely solemn.

This slightly unkempt old man is wearing an exquisite fiery red trench coat with gold trim. The collar and cuffs are completely open. His hat is stuffed into the shoulder straps without being folded. He is sitting on a canvas armrest. Her legs were crossed on the chair, and the boots she was not carrying were deliberately rolled up, revealing the turned-up socks on her calves.

But with such a funny look, the knights in similar clothes around him looked extremely serious, with no smile on their faces, and they surrounded the old man in the armchair like stars holding the moon.

This makes Sir Gloria on the side really don't know what to do... For the famous Archduke Roland, theoretically the richest man in the entire empire and even the entire Order World, the seemingly absurd costume seems to have turned into something terrifying. majesty.

The more you want to laugh in your heart, the more terrified you become. Especially when you realize that the other person can easily kill you at any time, this contradictory fear becomes more and more inflated.

"Okay, my respected Sir Gloria, don't just sit there." The old man, still holding the telescope, said impatiently:

"I'm just an ordinary old man, not some man-eating monster... Someone, yes, bring a chair to Sir, and get him something to drink. It should be stronger. Our Sir has just escaped from a nightmare battlefield. , urgently need to regain some courage."

"As commanded."

Next to him, the middle-aged knight, who was wearing the same coat as the old man but was as clean as new from head to toe, nodded slightly and turned away with a somewhat contemptuous expression.

A few minutes later, the knight returned to the place with three waiters, followed by the same armchair as the old man, plus a large glass full of spirits.

Sir Garland was not polite and sat down on the chair directly, holding the wine glass and drinking it all in one gulp; the ice-cold wine flowed down his throat, but it was as hot as a line of fire.

"Well, it looks much better now." The old man put down the telescope and looked at him:

"Sir Gloria, let me stop talking nonsense - according to your opinion, what are the chances of the Clovis people winning the Battle of the Halberd?"

"The odds of winning are entirely up to you, Grand Duke."

Sir Gloria, who was looking slightly drunk, put down his wine glass and showed a somewhat flattering smile. He certainly knew what the other party wanted to ask: "The Clovis people no longer have a reserve force, and 90% of their troops are stationed on the east coast. "

"If your army can attack decisively at this time, the cavalry will attack the Clovis headquarters as quickly as possible, and send artillery and engineers to rush back to the pontoon... The Battle of the Halberd will be over in one day, and the glorious Roland family , will also become the savior of the entire empire."

Sir Gloria's expression was extremely serious, as if he was sincerely thinking about the future of the Roland family and the empire.

But Archduke Roland obviously didn't believe it.

"Dear Sir Gloria, you seem to be a little dishonest." The old man chuckled twice and turned to look at the knight who had just brought the strong drink: "What did our spies say?"

"His Royal Highness Leon Francois, the crown prince of Hantu, is leading his troops on a rapid march towards the Halberd River."

The knight said expressionlessly: "If nothing unexpected happens, we are expected to arrive at the main battlefield within an hour and a half."

"Very good, how many troops do they have?"

"It's impossible to estimate accurately, but it should be around 40,000 people."

"As for combat effectiveness, are there any disconnections or low morale due to the long journey?"

"I'm afraid not... They just started marching in a hurry a few hours ago. They even spent an hour eating breakfast. They also slowed down their marching speed in the middle and took turns to replace the supplies. They also have plenty of supplies."

"Very good, very good." Archduke Roland turned around and said:

"So Dear Sir Gloria, if my army really listens to your suggestion and launches a surprise attack on the Clovis headquarters on the west coast, it will immediately run into the elite Hantu Army... This seems to be what you just said. It seems different.”

"On the contrary, it is precisely because the Hantu Army may arrive on the battlefield at any time that your army, Grand Duke Roland, must take immediate action to raid the Clovis headquarters in order to reverse the situation of the war." Sir Gloria showed no sign of stage fright. :

"Otherwise, if we wait until the Hantu Army arrives, even an excellent commander like you will be unable to save our lives."

"interesting."

Grand Duke Roland smiled, and the corners of his grin showed uneven teeth: "From what you said, it seems that His Majesty the Emperor has determined that there is 100% certainty that His Majesty cannot win this Battle of the Changji River and will be completely defeated by the opponent. Like the Clovis people.”

"This statement is slightly inappropriate." Sir Garland said expressionlessly:

"At first glance, it sounds as if His Majesty has some chance of winning at first, or at least can survive tonight."

After the words fell, the old man's pupils shrank slightly.

"I understand your confusion, Grand Duke. Anyone who has not had a direct confrontation with Anson Bach cannot believe how crazy this Clovis can be when formulating a battle plan." He chuckled. After two sounds, Sir Gloria shook his head:

"Yes, when you, Grand Duke Lewente, and even the adults of Xiaolong Principality all firmly believe that this war will take a week or ten days at the fastest to see the outcome, the lunatic opposite is going to We decided from the beginning to end this battle in just one day.”

"The emperor's retreat was within his expectations from the beginning. Everyone thought that the position on the west bank was a bait to attract firepower... No, it was the propulsion base he used for the final general offensive, and it was the real forward position headquarters. "

"So please accept my heartfelt suggestion and immediately organize a surprise attack against the Clovis people. Archduke Roland...or the northern nobles of the empire must not remain indifferent in this battle that concerns the fate of the empire. That will be very dangerous to you." A terrible blow to future reputation."

Sir Gloria's tone became more serious: "No matter what your decision is, your knights must take action now!"

Grand Duke Roland remained silent, and the smile gradually disappeared from the corners of his mouth.

at this time……

"The Grand Duke!"

The expressionless knight suddenly stepped forward and held the old man's shoulders: "Cavalry, the emperor's cavalry has begun to move."

Um? !

Not only Archduke Roland, but also Sir Gloria and the knights present also raised their heads and looked at the main battlefield not far away.

At this time, Bernard's army, who was in charge of the rear, had completely evacuated. The red and black military uniforms were everywhere on the west bank positions, and figures with unicorn flags were sweeping in like a dark tide.

And just on the north side of the battlefield, the roaring sound of horse hooves suddenly appeared along with billowing smoke and golden iris flowers, heading straight towards the flank of the Luowei front.

Facing the sudden attack of the elite imperial cavalry, Clovis's front, which had been advancing rapidly just now, suddenly panicked and had to quickly retract and turn its guns to respond to the enemy.

Archduke Roland, holding a monocular, held his breath and stared intently at the movements of the cavalry.

It is not difficult for any commander with a little common sense to realize that the emperor's move was to use the high mobility of the cavalry to attack the offensive momentum of the Clovis people, forcing the Clovis people to enter the defensive phase, thereby buying time for the army to reorganize .

And due to the full-frontal advance, the Clovis line will definitely not be 100% neat, and there must be flaws on the flanks. Taking the opportunity to order the cavalry to attack at this time is what any experienced commander would do...

"Boom!!!! Boom!!!! Boom!!!!"

The deafening loud noise interrupted Archduke Roland's thoughts, and he shifted the telescope in his hand slightly.

To the north of the main battlefield, a Clovis army with a strength of about 5,000 men suddenly came out. Along with the infantry line, there was nearly a regiment of light cavalry artillery advancing.

"Storm Legion, the core elite under Anson Bach!" Sir Gloria suddenly said:

"I see... The Storm Legion was specially arranged to control the ferry from upstream and downstream, not to attract the emperor's attention and share the pressure on the frontal battlefield, but to serve as a flank cover for the army when launching a general attack - no wonder he equipped all cavalry cannons Are the troops given to cross the river just to contain the most powerful cavalry force in the empire?"

No one answered his question... Archduke Roland, who frowned slightly, still held up the monocular, his expression seemed to be hesitant.

Almost at the same time, the Storm Legion, which was firing wildly, had disrupted the offensive rhythm of the Imperial Cavalry; under the command of Norton Crosell, the two cavalry artillery battalions used up their ammunition as quickly as possible, 5,000 The Storm Legion soldiers spread out in groups, forming ten hollow square formations, and slowly moved towards the battlefield.

Obviously, even when covering the flanks, they were always paying attention to Archduke Roland's 30,000 troops behind them; as long as Archduke Roland took action, these hollow square formations could immediately turn their guns and suppress the imperial knights from the north.

"Great, now!"

The old man with his legs crossed on the chair stood up suddenly and threw the telescope to the knight aside: "Organize the army immediately and launch a surprise attack on the Clovis flanks!"

"As ordered." The knight's expressionless monocular was hidden behind his back:

"So...is it the west coast or the east coast?"

"Do you even need to ask?" The old man rolled his eyes:

"Although it is a pity, without the support of the Roland family, the emperor would probably really lose the battle of the Halberd River, so..."

"Of course it's the East Coast!"