Robbery-The Fuse

To avoid being seen by the Beastfolk, squads of soldiers quietly left Flying Bear Fortress before dawn.

As the head coach, Hudson personally acted as a sentinel, taking Beldens on patrols in the vicinity.

Theory is just theory, and when it comes to making a big splash for the first time, Hudson isn't very confident.

However, having embarked on the path of becoming a general, this step must be taken.

Looking at the high-spirited troops, Hudson knew that his pre-battle pep talk had paid off.

"Baron Keterai, this ambush mission is entrusted to you. Once the operation is successful, send a signal, and I will lead troops to provide backup."

As he spoke, Hudson didn't forget to make a "I'm optimistic" expression.

We must be careful; troops capable of marching at night are all elites carefully selected.

To increase the success rate of the operation, Hudson had to rely heavily on experienced Northern Nobles. Even if they had some unpleasant experiences in the past, that wouldn't affect their current cooperation.

Everything else is manageable, but the most crucial thing is how to avoid enemy detection after daybreak. This is extremely important.

Despite having conducted similar drills, it is still a force of three thousand men. If their whereabouts are exposed, the Beastfolk transport caravan will most likely turn into a siege force.

"Your Excellency, please rest assured! As long as the Beastfolk transport caravan arrives, I will certainly complete the mission."

Baron Kairait said excitedly.

Opportunities to shine are rare, especially now that two legion commander positions are vacant. Whoever can make a great contribution first will gain the upper hand.

It is rare for a baron to serve as a legion commander in the entire history of the Alpha Kingdom. The fact that this opportunity has arisen is entirely due to the special circumstances of the expeditionary force.

It's impossible for the country to send new generals, and the original corps commanders are all under investigation.

The era in which the position of the expeditionary force was determined by status and rank has come to an end. Hudson made it clear that the appointment of the next corps commander would be based solely on military merit.

It's somewhat against the rules, but given the current state of the expeditionary force, it's the best option.

Watching the team depart, Hudson turned his gaze to Beldens, who had just returned from scouting, and asked with concern, "Has anything major happened within the Bearman Imperial Court?"

If you dare to cause trouble, you naturally need to understand the strength of the nearby enemies first. Flying Bear Fortress is within the territory of the Bearman Imperial Court, so Hudson naturally needs to pay close attention to them.

"Don't worry, I know those bear cubs' aura all too well; there's no change."

Oh, and the Beastfolk camp has been expanded, with all sorts of random races added: sly foxes, stinky pig trotters, filthy Goblins... they're all pretty useless, but you should be able to handle them.

"Hudson, if you ask me, you should just take your men and wipe out the Bearman Imperial Court. In terms of numbers, your forces aren't much fewer than theirs."

Beldens' words made Hudson roll his eyes. If war were only about numbers, the Beastfolk army would have been driven back to their homeland long ago.

Since the two main legions were transferred south, apart from one main legion, the remaining cannon fodder legions of the Bearman Imperial Court have been of mediocre Legion War.

The two sides are not far apart in strength, and launching a decisive battle would likely result in mutual destruction, which is why Hudson dares to keep stirring up trouble.

If conditions allowed, Hudson would genuinely not mind taking down the Bearman Imperial Court, adding a historic achievement to his resume.

At worst, we can fight and run, not giving the Beastfolk army a chance to retaliate. With such a distinguished record, losing Flying Bear Fortress is nothing to worry about.

"Mr. Beldens, don't you think there are a few too many experts in the bear camp? Last time a certain bear went there, it almost got tricked."

"If we get stuck in a stalemate and the nearby Beastfolk army comes to our aid, do you think the Moxi Army hiding in the fortress can hold them off?"

Hudson didn't hold back in exposing his shortcomings.

Since its debut, Beldens has had a smooth and successful run, and it seems to be more like the protagonist than its owner.

Although his personality was influenced by Hudson during his growth, becoming more stable, his inherent arrogance and disdain for others still grew along with his strength.

Even the most cautious person will eventually fall into a trap. During a reconnaissance mission to the Bearman Imperial Court camp, he was inadvertently discovered by a skilled Beastfolk.

The two sides clashed fiercely at the Bearman Imperial Court. Beldens initially gained some advantage, but faced with the unsportsmanlike mob tactics of the Beastfolk, he ultimately had no choice but to flee in disgrace.

Bear Beldens' good mood vanished instantly when Bear's embarrassing past was exposed.

The bear's two eyes stared fiercely at Hudson, its paws rubbing against the ground as if warning: This bear is about to lose its temper.

However, he still tried to defend himself, saying, "That's because I wasn't prepared last time, and that's why I fell into the trap of those despicable and shameless people."

"You wait, a hundred years from now, I will definitely settle accounts with them!"

Upon hearing the number "one hundred years," Hudson immediately fell silent. It was truly tragic to be an enemy of a long-lived race.

A gentleman takes revenge even after ten years; Beldens' revenge takes a century.

If the Young Bear continues to grow at its current rate, Hudson has serious doubts that a hundred years from now, it will be able to demolish the Bearman Imperial Court.

Forget it, it's best not to offend a vengeful bear too deeply.

Otherwise, it would be embarrassing if someone defecated or urinated on his grave hundreds of years later.

As dawn broke, Flying Bear Fortress became noisy once again.

The city gates suddenly burst open, Hudson led his cavalry out of the city walls, startling the eagle-men who were watching, who quickly turned and flew away.

They only stopped in the air again when the distance between them had increased to several miles.

Having been "good" neighbors for so long, the name "Divine Bow Knight" had already spread throughout the Beastfolk army.

These are all bloody lessons learned at the cost of their lives.

It is said that once an eagle enters the range of the Divine Bow Knight's arrows, no eagle can return alive.

No one in the Eagle People knows the exact range of this missile. Anyone who dared to attempt it is already buried with weeds growing on their grave.

Even the strongest members of the Eagle People clan, who tried to eliminate this threat, ultimately met their demise.

The repeated losses nearly drove Hudson, the "Divine Bow Knight," to madness by the nearby eagle-men soldiers.

Thanks to the sponsorship of the Moxi Duchy and the gathering of cavalry from the routed troops, Hudson managed to assemble four cavalry regiments.

First the cavalry appeared, then the infantry marched out of the city, as if it were a daily mandatory training exercise.

The training grounds were several miles from the castle, and the land near the castle had been turned into vegetable gardens for the army.

Grain can be stored, but fresh vegetables are difficult to preserve for long periods. Pickled vegetables are fine to eat occasionally, but noblemen couldn't stand eating them every day.

There is also a vegetable garden inside the castle, but it was originally a garden that was converted into a vegetable garden, and the yield is extremely limited.

It was unclear how long they would have to hold out. After the fighting eased slightly, Hudson ordered the planting of some fast-growing vegetables outside the city.

The lush green vegetable garden brings not only vegetables, but also hope.

It's not that no Beastfolk came to cause trouble, but they all ended up as fertilizer.

Perhaps out of fear of the defending forces' strength, after a tentative exchange, the Bearman Imperial Court decisively acknowledged that the area within a radius of several miles belonged to Lord Hudson.

We should thank the Laibolong Family. If they hadn't dealt the Bearmen a severe blow, the Bearman Emperor would never be as docile as he is now.

In the sky, seeing the troops resting on the spot after leaving the city, an eagle-man soldier asked in confusion:

"Hesius, something's not right. Why are the human soldiers all resting and not training?"

Hesius's eagle-man rolled his eyes at his companion and said, "Of course, I saw it too."

But Cummins, what business is it of ours whether the human soldiers are trained or not?

Maybe they'll start training soon.

"Do you really need to go back and report on such a trivial matter?"

Being a reconnaissance soldier is not easy; not only do you need to be able to gather intelligence, but you also need a certain ability to discern information.

If you run back to report every trivial matter, you'll most likely be exhausted on the way.

Cummins shook his head and couldn't help but complain, "Of course not. This is Flying Bear Fortress, and the strength of its garrison is comparable to that of Terence City."

Even if they discover the problem, it's useless. Those cowardly bear-men are already scared out of their wits and don't dare to come and fight them.

"In the Behemoth Emperor territory, what human army would dare to come out for training? Every time the Behemoth Cavalry appears, the human soldiers are terrified..."

"That's not how it works. The garrison of Flying Bear Fortress is no ordinary force. It's said that they are all elite troops from the Alpha Kingdom, far superior to the Moxi people."

I heard that the Behemoth Cavalry suffered losses at their hands last time. The Bearman Imperial Court now has roughly the same strength as them, so a fight might not necessarily end well for them.

The wheels crunched on the fallen leaves, making a continuous "squeak" sound, like a beautiful melody.

As the escort officer for the convoy, Vanrumlov was in exceptionally good spirits. Escorting the spoils of war back to the Imperial Court was a coveted job he had fought countless battles to secure.

The deep ruts on the cart tracks were a testament to the richness of the harvest. Once delivered to the imperial court, a reward would certainly be in order.

The road ahead suddenly became difficult. The uneven surface forced the carriage to slow down.

This caused Vanrumlov was eager to return and claim credit, to change his expression drastically. He roared at the escorting soldiers, "What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and push the cart!"

Don't forget that there are human armies operating in this area. If you run into them, it's uncertain whether you'll even make it back alive.

As he spoke, he brandished his leather whip. If anyone wasn't putting in their best effort, he'd lash them out with it.

For some reason, the road ahead became increasingly difficult to traverse. Horsepower alone was no longer sufficient to move the wagons forward, and more and more soldiers joined the ranks of those pushing the wagons.

Vanrumlov had already traveled this road three times, and this was his fourth. Compared to the previous times, this one was significantly more difficult.

The uneven road surface, with standing water in many areas, is clearly the result of a long period of neglect.

Even if it was vandalism, it wasn't done now. There were no signs of disturbance around, Vanrumlov was reassured.

While pushing the carts, soldiers also had to repair the road ahead. Through patching and repairing, and with the combined efforts of people and animals, they finally made it through the most difficult section of the road.

In Vanrumlov was considering whether to let everyone stop and rest when a voice suddenly came, startling him into a cold sweat.

"Commander, we have spotted a human army on our left flank, and they are approaching us."

"Commander, the right flank has spotted..."

"Commander, we've spotted something ahead..."

In the blink of an eye, enemies came from three sides, putting Vanrumlov under immense pressure.

Running away was impossible; the people could escape, but the convoy couldn't. They were surrounded by enemies on three sides, and the seemingly safe rear was a rough, uneven road.

The enemy's move in this location clearly indicated prior reconnaissance. Just Vanrumlov hesitated, the figures of a human army appeared on the horizon.

"Light the signal fire! Everyone, take up your weapons, surround the carriages, and defend the convoy!"

At the critical moment, Vanrumlov demonstrated the qualities expected of an escort officer and made the most practical decision.

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

A deafening battle cry rang out across the plains as countless crossbow bolts rained down on the Beastfolk soldiers within the encirclement.

The wagon formation provided the Beastfolk soldiers with decent defense, but it also limited their space to maneuver.

Faced with the overwhelming rain of arrows, the Beastfolk soldiers did try to fight back, but unfortunately the enemy was using Magic Crossbow, while they were only carrying the most primitive bows and arrows.

The disparity in weaponry placed the battle on an unequal footing from the very beginning. After cursing his bad luck, Vanrumlov hurriedly gave orders to the panicked soldiers:

"Idiots, stop running around! Get to the carriage and find something to shield yourselves from Arrow Feathers!"

As they spoke, a large shield appeared above Vanrumlov's head. Unfortunately, not all Beastfolk soldiers were qualified to be equipped with this kind of gear.

Due to limitations in productivity, even though they were soldiers in the elite legion of the bear-men, only a small number of them were able to obtain armor and shields.

For most ordinary bear-man soldiers, being able to obtain a leather armor is considered lucky.

If you encounter enemy Arrow Feathers, just use a wooden plank to block them. This thing is much cheaper than an expensive iron shield.

With a brief delay, the human army had already reached the front lines. The bloody scene pushed the chariot-pulling horses to the brink of losing control.

"Slay all the nags and destroy their wheels!"

Vanrumlov gave the order decisively.

While it appeared to be to stabilize the vehicle formation, he had actually prepared for the worst.

The enemy came too fiercely, and they were all elite troops. The chances of saving the convoy by relying solely on the escorting soldiers were extremely slim.

All we can do now is use the vehicle formation to maneuver against the enemy, buy as much time as possible, and wait for reinforcements to arrive.

Even if the resistance fails and the carriages are no longer available, it will be difficult for the enemy to take away the valuables on the carriages in a short period of time.

Seeing the scene before him, Baron Kairait, his face grim, ordered, "Knight Holman, signal the Earl; we need carriage support. The rest of you, follow me and slaughter these scum!"

It's clear that Carey was truly furious. He had anticipated this, but unfortunately, the worst-case scenario still occurred.

The officers escorting the convoy acted too decisively, destroying the wagons as soon as the battle began, giving him no chance to stop them.

Since there were no readily available carriages, the only option was to activate the backup plan and have a pre-prepared carriage team provide assistance.

Undoubtedly, transporting supplies would waste a lot of time, increasing the risk for the team carrying out the robbery plan several times over.

The rising smoke quickly attracted the attention of the eagle-men soldiers patrolling nearby. Upon realizing the fierce battle below, they didn't hesitate and immediately relayed the news to the bear-men camp.

Almost simultaneously, Hudson also received the signal. Although no Eaglemen soldiers relayed the message, he could set up makeshift beacon towers along the way.

All that is needed is to leave a few sentries every ten miles, and when they see their own smoke signals being lit, they can light their specially made magic smoke cakes.

The message can be relayed back with just a few intermediaries. It's even possible to arrange in advance how many smoke signals are used to transmit simple messages.

"Tom, you take the wagon caravan to provide backup; the rest of you, follow me and the entire army into battle!"

As he gave the order, Hudson mounted his warhorse and appeared at the forefront of the column, drawing his knight's sword to show the army the direction of advance.

Four thousand cavalry and twenty thousand infantry, fully armed, embarked on their journey. It can be said that Hudson had given his all for this battle.

In field battles, more troops are never necessarily better. It's more convenient to bring only elite troops than to carry a large number of cannon fodder.

If the battle really reaches a stalemate, they can call on their underlings to come and be the last straw.

The main reason they dared to step forward at this time was that the main force of the Bearman Imperial Court was an infantry legion with a very limited number of cavalry.

Fewer cavalry does not mean weaker combat power.

If the Behemoth Heavy Cavalry is the king of cavalry, then the Bearman Heavy Infantry is the king of infantry, both enjoying the reputation of being the best in the world.

Hudson's decision to confront such an enemy was not out of arrogance, but rather because he had already planned ahead.

Before considering victory, consider defeat.

Heavy Infantry were powerful, but they had a fatal weakness: slow movement. The cumbersome armor was also a considerable burden on the strong bear-men soldiers.

Even if you can't defeat such an enemy, you can still escape.

If the risk of failure is manageable, then only victory remains. War is a gamble; when the odds of winning are high enough, one must place the bet decisively.

The Bearman Imperial Court had just ordered the rescue of the transport convoy when it received news of the army from Flying Bear Fortress emerging, which provoked the Bearman Emperor's temper.

"You bastard, do you really think I'm afraid of him?!"

Commander Bruno, the army of Flying Bear Fortress is now in your hands. Commander Bogus and Commander Nonandes, you are responsible for leading your troops and cooperating with us.

No matter how you arrange things, we must demonstrate the might of our Bear-people race. We must make the humans tremble at the mere mention of our name, and ideally, we should annihilate the elite human force at Flying Bear Fortress.

Everyone should give it a try!

"Commander Raul, take your men and detour to rescue our supply convoy. Whatever you encounter along the way, do not engage the human army."

The moment the Bearman Emperor finished speaking, the legion commanders were dumbfounded.

Commander Bruno hurriedly stepped forward to advise, "Your Majesty, if so many troops are withdrawn at once, the Imperial Court will only have one ordinary legion left."

I think we should leave 2,000 Heavy Infantry, and each of the other three legions should leave half their forces to ensure the safety of the imperial court.

"Don't worry, the only threat to us nearby is the human army in Flying Bear Fortress."

The rest are like frightened birds; they're always hesitant and timid when it comes to causing trouble. How dare they run wild in my imperial court!

Even if they do come, a regular legion's garrison would be enough to hold out until you return.

On the contrary, if your forces are insufficient, you may not be able to defeat the human army at Flying Bear Fortress. According to the intelligence gathered, Count Hudson is a very formidable opponent.

The fact that they dare to step forward now must mean they have something to rely on. If they're not adequately prepared, they could easily suffer a great loss.

"The Bearman Emperor said calmly."

He had the confidence to allocate his troops in this way. Besides the army, the Bearman Imperial Court also had many skilled warriors accompanying the troops.

These were all the hard-earned assets of the Bear-Man race. To guard against decapitation attacks by human experts, he brought along quite a few skilled warriors.

For some reason, the Bearman Emperor felt a pang of heartache at the thought.

First, they lost more than a dozen experts at Bertley Fortress, and not long ago, they were ambushed by a mysterious Earth Bear, which unfortunately cost them several more lives.

If things continue this way, the foundation of the Bearman Imperial Court will likely be completely destroyed before the war even ends.

Suddenly, he felt that the experts the Imperial Court had invested so much in training shouldn't be involved in a war of attrition. But since the words were already out in his mouth, the Bearman Emperor was too embarrassed to take them back.

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