Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords

At the Lord's shout, the burly men of Highcliff Castle swarmed over as if they had heard of some rare treasure.

The cold weather was warmed by this group of rough men exuding heat.

The men crossed their arms, watching quietly to see how long the kobold on the ground could last.

Military life was boring, especially in a world where everything was white with snow, adding to the monotony.

Faced with this situation, the idle Lord started a gamble.

Since the brutes under his command were all penniless, the bet was that the loser would be responsible for cleaning the winner's dirty clothes.

"I bet this guy can only last a thousand heartbeats; if he exceeds that, he's probably really dead," the Lord said thoughtfully.

"With so many people around him, he's still like a real corpse. I think he can last more than a thousand heartbeats," Zart said, stroking his chin, looking thoughtful.

"Skye, want to bet?"

Skye, curious as to why everyone at Highcliff Castle was gathered together, walked over, and the Lord asked.

Looking at the kobold on the ground, whose legs were shaking like sieves, Skye didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This Duke Lee was truly perverse.

The poor guy was trembling with fear, and he was acting all serious.

In fact, the kobold only lasted less than two hundred heartbeats before he couldn't stand the scrutiny of the burly men any longer. He knelt on the ground, hugging the Lord's leg and begging, tears streaming down his face.

"Master, please spare me! I'm just a weak, pitiful, and helpless kobold. Those damned lizardmen dragged me here by force."

Looking at the snot on its face, Lee disgustedly pulled his leg back. "Honestly answer some questions, and I might spare your life."

The Lord always kept his word. He generally had great goodwill towards prisoners who betrayed their allies without hesitation.

"Your main force broke through the forest ahead a few days ago?"

"Master, it was just three days ago," the kobold wearing the straw hat replied honestly.

According to calculations, they had just set off not long before the Drow elves broke through Shadow Forest.

"Have there been any large groups coming from the south to join you in the past few days?"

Lee asked again.

If the allied forces led by the minotaurs were withdrawing their main forces, even if they marched quickly, they would only be half a day or a day faster than them, who were traveling day and night.

"Yes, yes, yes, they went straight into Shadow Forest."

"Their leaders are a minotaur and a centaur," the kobold nodded quickly. Then, the wretch actually sighed and said, "They are so tall and strong, like giants in legends. Even looking up, I can't see their full appearance."

Lee glanced at it, scaring the kobold into shutting its mouth and trembling again.

"That's them," Skye said. "Only that centaur leader deserves to be called as strong as a giant."

"I didn't expect them to really be here to meet up. This is troublesome," Skye said, rubbing his hands worriedly.

He said that the centaur was very difficult to deal with. He had only been able to catch the arrows shot by the opponent from a distance with his fighting spirit. He was a top expert.

"A bunch of losers who only know how to run away. When I meet these bastards, I'll show you what one-hit kills are all about."

The Lord always refused to encourage the enemy's ambition.

Unlike before, he was now truly joining the Thorns Legion as an aid, so the overall morale was naturally within his consideration.

He wouldn't just focus on the Highcliff Castle team.

In short, the responsibility was great.

Lee let the kobold go as promised, but it could only go south. Whether it could survive in the snowy weather depended on its luck.

The wilderness guards here didn't keep a single prisoner, and they didn't waste any effort chasing those who fled. They just deliberately drove them all south, forbidding them from entering Shadow Forest.

Afterwards, the largest animal skin tent in the camp was cleaned out to serve as a temporary conference room.

The senior officers of the Thorns Legion and several powerful figures with real decision-making power were sitting on small stools, warming themselves by the stove. Several sweet potatoes were simmering on the stove, their skins baked golden brown, oozing oil, and a slight fragrance wafted out.

Although Forgeiro was born into a merchant family when he was young, his status was not very high. The simple living habits he developed at that time accompanied him throughout his life.

He peeled off the skin of the sweet potato and ate it with relish, smacking his lips from time to time.

Like a peasant who had just returned home from farming, he had no demeanor of the commander of the Thorns Legion.

"Damn it, Forgeiro, if you smack your lips again, I'll punch you," the Lord finally couldn't bear the sound of smacking his lips while eating and raised his fist of justice.

This legion commander had some kind of problem. Can't he eat a sweet potato quietly?

"Sorry, I lost my composure," Forgeiro apologized very sincerely.

He wasn't confident that he could withstand the punch from this Highcliff Castle Lord.

The sound of smacking his lips disappeared immediately.

The officers, who had been looking pained, immediately smiled and secretly gave the Lord a thumbs up.

Forgeiro had a higher status than them, so they could only endure the tormenting sound.

Now they had a much better impression of this Baron who solved the problem.

"Don't blame me, this is everyone's unanimous decision," Lee said with a smile.

He sold everyone out without hesitation.

Forgeiro smiled and looked at the officers of the Thorns Legion before reluctantly taking his eyes off the remaining sweet potatoes.

Only a few officers looked at the Lord resentfully. Lee pretended not to see them.

Ice Snow Priest Foggon watched all this with a smile.

"We suffered losses in reconnaissance several times before, so now this aspect must be the top priority. The outcome of a war depends largely on the information gap," Forgeiro said unhurriedly, getting down to business.

"Especially since Shadow Forest is ahead. According to Knight Skye, the routes inside are extremely complicated and dark. You can easily get lost if you're not careful."

"Now this place has been captured by the army led by the Drow elves. Faced with this natural terrain, I can almost conclude that there must be garrisoned soldiers inside."

A group of subordinate officers listened carefully, occasionally showing thoughtful expressions.

When dealing with the allied forces of minotaurs before, they suffered because the other side had centaurs, a natural scout race. The Thorns Legion's cavalry couldn't fight head-on at all and could only let the other side run around the camp to conduct reconnaissance.

This matter was inherently unsolvable. Unless there was the royal family's griffon cavalry regiment, or profound blessing-type magic, or an ace cavalry regiment with magical beast mounts, they could compete with the centaur scouts who were born for this job.

Unfortunately, the Thorns Legion didn't have any of these three things, so they were completely crushed, leading to a series of seemingly impossible events.

"Regarding this, I think I can provide some help."

Foggon, with his white hair, said at this time.

"My snowbirds can provide reconnaissance, and Haste can be applied to the soldiers to make them as fast as snow leopards. I think that's enough to deal with the reconnaissance matter."

"Master Foggon, thank you for your help," Forgeiro said first, before turning his gaze to the remaining people.

"Skye, you are familiar with the route. You will serve as the deputy commander of the vanguard."

"As for the next vanguard commander..."

"Forgeiro, let me do it," Panda said proactively.

Although pandaren love peace, it doesn't mean they are weak. On the contrary, they are not afraid of war at all.

"This..." Forgeiro hesitated.

The terrain in Shadow Forest is complicated. According to Skye's description, basically there will be garrisoned soldiers to prevent being attacked from behind and to leave a way out for themselves. With Panda warriors as the vanguard, no matter how strong the other party is, they can definitely withstand this pressure.

But there is a problem involved. What if...

What if the other party designed an ambush? If the Panda warriors are consumed in Shadow Forest, it would be a complete loss.

Panda warriors are definitely impeccable in terms of personal bravery, but the issue of tactics and strategies is worth questioning.

As a commander, as long as there is this possibility, it must be kept in mind.

So Forgeiro had doubts about whether Panda, this pandaren, could be competent.

After all, he had only been in contact with this pandaren for a short time and didn't know how intelligent the other party was.

Lee saw Forgeiro's hesitation and took the lead without refusing: "Let me do it. I want to test the strength of these bastards."

"If it's Baron Lee, then I can rest assured," Forgeiro smiled.

In terms of small team operations, the warriors of Highcliff Castle are no worse than the Panda warriors, and this Duke Lee is far-sighted and has considerable military talent.

It's completely okay for him to lead the vanguard.

"Let me be with Duke Lee," Panda mentioned.

Although it didn't become the vanguard commander, it wasn't for this temporary title in the first place.

"Okay," Forgeiro nodded.

If it was just the Panda warriors, he would still be worried, but with the Lord of Highcliff Castle, there would be no problem.

After all, this guy is a true ruthless character who led a dozen warriors to withstand the attack of hundreds of berserk minotaurs.

If you add a hundred Panda warriors, Forgeiro can't imagine how many people you would have to fill in to take down this Duke Lee.

"Everyone!" Forgeiro raised his voice at this time and said in an almost shouting voice: "The previous two mistakes were just due to carelessness. Our strength is stronger than the enemy's, which is beyond doubt. What's more, now we have two advantages!"

"First, Duchess Frilina asked us to come to support through the Shadow Transmission Stone, which means that the army led by this Drow elf doesn't know that a legion of more than 10,000 people has come behind them."

"Second, the enemy doesn't know our strength, but we know their numbers and deployment."

Forgeiro's voice was as loud as thunder, and the confidence contained in it would make even the legendary paladin ashamed: "I have told you many times that temporary success or failure does not determine everything. Only the final victor has the right to revise history. So now, tell me, what should we do?"

"Wash away the shame!" the officers of the Thorns Legion roared.

"Go!"

……

In fact, the entire vanguard, in addition to the three hundred warriors of Highcliff Castle and one hundred Panda warriors, also had nine hundred and sixty soldiers from two brigades under the Thorns Legion.

A total of about one thousand four hundred people formed the vanguard.

The marching speed of the main force of the Thorns Legion in the follow-up cannot be fast, so a vanguard with a small number of people and fast marching is needed to clear the way for the legion.

But in the Lord's opinion, the so-called clearing the way is actually just that.

After all, reality does not stipulate that the enemy must appear from the front.

What's more, Shadow Forest is a place where ambushes can be set up in all directions, and no position is safe in any direction. At most, the central main force will be safer.

Although the vanguard is slightly dangerous, Lee has his own considerations.

In fact, after learning about the magic crystal mine, the heat in his heart could no longer be hidden.

It can be said that 90% of the reason for coming to help this time is for the magic crystal mine.

Therefore, in order to obtain enough magic crystal mines to hatch the stone egg, he has to perform brightly and make a request to Frilina with undeniable merit.

As for whether the stone egg will hatch something unfavorable to Highcliff Castle, the Lord has already considered this.

Whether it's what Foggon said, the number of magicians is increasing, or various monsters and monsters are emerging now.

Undoubtedly, they are telling Lee one thing, that is, this world is changing at an extremely fast rate.

If you don't accept new things and continue to stick to the old ways, Highcliff Castle will eventually suffer the consequences of closing the country.

This stone egg can be related to the Goddess of Nature, so it must be extraordinary.

You can't abandon it because of its hidden risks.

So accepting it is a choice where the benefits far outweigh the risks.

Shadow Forest is indeed a natural advantage for the elves as the first barrier, and the danger inside is three points more terrifying than Skye described.

As soon as you enter, it's like the sun instantly setting. It suddenly darkens, and the visibility is only ten steps.

The surrounding trees are thick and tall, and green vines hang down from the sky, like poisonous snakes that choose people to eat.

There are even various unknown weeds that cover the ankles on the ground, with different colors.

The team had to light torches and continue to move forward.

"This place is very abnormal. It's obviously the cold winter outside, but it's still green and evergreen inside, without any wind or snow."

The Lord was riding on a horse, looking at the green trees and grass around him, feeling inexplicably strange.

It's like suddenly crossing from a world of thousands of miles of ice to a tropical rain forest.