Caught Between Advance and Retreat

As darkness fell, the two armies clashed in a fierce battle.

The last rays of the setting sun illuminated the blood-red earth, immersing the entire world in a crimson hue.

The Heavy Infantry successfully broke into the Beastfolk army's ranks, and their superior equipment became fully apparent at this moment.

The human Heavy Infantry, fully armored, were not on equal footing against the Beastfolk soldiers, who were unarmored.

The army formation was torn apart, Beastfolk soldiers on the front were forced to retreat step by step, while the flanks were exposed.

Realizing the situation was dire, Balats hastily ordered a change in formation. Unfortunately, his plan was ambitious, but reality proved far from ideal.

For multiple races to unite in battle and even manage to form a battle formation is already incredibly difficult. To expect them to freely change formations would be asking too much of the beasts.

The order to "change formation" not only failed to reverse the situation, but also caused chaos in the flanks.

Especially at the points where different races meet, many comical situations arise. At this moment, many Beastfolk soldiers can't even tell which way is which, and they run around aimlessly like headless flies.

Upon witnessing this scene, Balats nearly vomited blood in anger. It was truly a blow; although he knew these Beastfolk armies were of little use, he never imagined they would be this incompetent.

Their weaponry is inferior to that of the Terrans; this is determined by their productivity.

The limited amount of armor is all on the soldiers of the Five Great Royal Families. Even if there is extra armor piled up in the warehouse, it is impossible to equip them with it.

This is a matter of principle. Once a vassal race gains power, it can turn the tables on them in no time.

From the perspective of the Beastfolk royal family, they can lose to humans, but they cannot allow their vassal races to grow too powerful.

Losing to humans means losing the position of continental hegemon, but one can still live in a corner of the world; however, the rise of vassal races undermines the very foundation of their survival.

The long-standing exploitation and oppression have created a deep-seated conflict between the Beastfolk royal family and other races within the country, which is no less intense than the hatred between Beastfolk and humans.

To humans, all Beastfolk are one. But to Beastfolk, only their own kind are considered one of their own; other orc Beastfolk are seen as rivals.

"All troops, attack!"

Balats gave the order with a slight hesitation.

Actively seeking out the expeditionary force for a decisive battle was not originally in his plan.

However, plans can't keep up with changes. If the elite troops of the expeditionary force are allowed to perform at their best, their formation will eventually collapse.

Rather than passively taking a beating, it's better to launch a coordinated attack and drag all the expeditionary soldiers down with us.

His rich life experience told him that the Alpha Kingdom was not generous enough to send tens of thousands of elite troops to reinforce the Moxi Duchy.

Unless they are elite troops, the difference in combat strength among them will not be too great. Only large-scale melee can maximize their numerical advantage.

Since it's almost dark anyway, let's drag it out until nightfall and then start a free-for-all!

"The cavalry legion is poised to strike, targeting the enemy's flanks!"

Hudson gave the order decisively.

By choosing to start the war at this time, he was mentally prepared to fight in the dark.

For ordinary troops, engaging in melee combat in the dead of night would be a disaster.

The expeditionary force was different; although it appeared to be an elite force, in reality, less than 30% of its soldiers were elite troops.

If they directly deploy their formations and clash head-on with the Beastfolk army, the pseudo-elite troops mixed in among them are easily intimidated by the brutal battle.

On the contrary, the cover of darkness, with visibility limited to a narrow range, makes it easier for them to perform.

As long as they can't see the situation of their comrades in the distance, morale won't collapse. After killing a few Beastfolk, morale might even rise higher.

However, this tactic is only suitable for armies with high morale. An army with demoralized soldiers will only collapse faster in the darkness.

After all, fighting a chaotic battle in the dark involves not only a contest of strength between the two sides, but more importantly, a clash of minds.

Hudson was betting that the morale of his expeditionary force would be higher than that of the Beastfolk army.

Both armies chose to attack simultaneously, their battle cries echoing across the heavens and earth. The first thing to happen was a live-fire exercise of mounted archery tactics.

Countless arrows surged towards the Beastfolk army like a tidal wave.

After three rounds of mounted archery, the cavalry did not choose to charge. Instead, they retreated dozens of meters before resuming their previous actions.

There is no best tactic, only the most suitable tactic. An unarmored Beastfolk army is the best sitting duck on the battlefield.

The exact results were impossible to ascertain due to the chaotic scene, but one thing was certain: the morale of the Beastfolk army under the rain of arrows was being steadily eroded.

This persistent, clingy tactic drove Balats to the brink of a mental breakdown. It was utterly shameless; instead of launching a charge, the cavalry resorted to using bows and arrows.

This was the first time I'd encountered such a shameless enemy, and I didn't have time to come up with a solution.

Moreover, the army has already launched its charge and cannot be stopped at will. Any ill-timed order could lead to a major rout.

Even knowing that continuing down this path would come at a high price, Balats could only grit his teeth and endure it.

The Beastfolk soldiers on both flanks were even more distraught, advancing under a hail of enemy arrows; only those with strong willpower could manage.

Unfortunately, they were being pushed forward by the rear guard and couldn't stop at all, so they could only grit their teeth and hold on.

Screams echoed in all directions, and could be heard clearly even on the city walls.

Because of the poor lighting, it was no longer possible to see the entire battlefield from the city walls. Count Martins was commanding his army purely by instinct.

Seeing the magical lighting devices coming one after another, Count Martins knew it was time to strike; any later and the expeditionary force outside would be cursing him out.

Now is not the time to let our teammates down. In the upcoming battles, the Moxi Duchy will still need the expeditionary force to contribute.

"Pass down the order: shine the lights on the Beastfolk army camp ahead. The First, Second, and Third Garrison Legions, together with the Expeditionary Force, will launch a pincer attack on the Beastfolk army!"

The Light Mage accompanied the army, intending to cast Illumination Spell on the Beastfolk camp when the opportunity arose, carrying all the light scrolls and half of the powerful attack scrolls...

With a command given, countless lights instantly illuminated the scene. Someone had inventing this, and they even specially fitted the magic lamps with reflective shells to maximize the beam's forward illumination.

A group of Alchemy, organized by magicians, then took the stage and set up a Magic Array that was incomprehensible to everyone, causing the light from countless lamps to converge directly into one.

The city walls, which had been illuminated by magical lamps, dimmed again, as if all the lights had been moved above the Beastfolk army. It was as if the sun had fallen from the sky, illuminating the camp as if it were daytime.

The sudden turn of events made the Beastfolk soldiers quite uncomfortable. The dazzling lights illuminated their path, but they also revealed their silhouettes.

Having found their target again, the sounds of crossbow bolts and Magic Crystal Cannon rang out once more from the city walls. The defenders who rushed out of the city were met with a barrage of magic.

Countless scrolls flew through the air, instantly tearing open the Beastfolk army's formation. Before the frontline Beastfolk officers could order the breach to be plugged, the army charged in through the opening.

Witnessing the Moxi Army's offensive, Balats was so enraged that he cursed. It was simply too much of a bullying tactic; the expeditionary force relied solely on the advantages of armor and weapons, while the Moxi people were resorting to magic.

No matter how powerful the Beastfolk army is, it cannot withstand such a costless attack.

A shower of magic cleared a space, rendering any resistance futile in the face of supernatural power.

The free-for-all has begun, but the scene of the battle is somewhat beyond Balats's expectations. Past experience has taken a turn for the worse in the face of magical alchemy technology, reaching an extreme he has never heard of before.

At this moment, the cover provided by the darkness belongs only to the enemy, while they continue to enjoy the "daylight" brought by the lights.

"Pass down the order: have the skilled soldiers accompanying the army destroy the magic lamps on the enemy's city walls. They absolutely cannot let them stay lit!"

In the midst of the chaos, Balats hurriedly gave the order.

Countless figures flew out from the army, heading straight for the city wall. Unfortunately, the order came too late; the moment these people emerged, they exposed themselves.

Countless crossbow bolts were fired directly at them. The experts who managed to break through the army's arrow rain were intercepted by Moxi's experts before they could even reach the city wall.

It was destined to be a low-value battle. The magical defenses on the city walls remained intact, while the orcish Beastfolk who charged out suffered heavy losses.

Hudson, who was directing the operation from afar, witnessed the massacre caused by the technological disparity and was deeply shocked.

He'd learned something new about magic – it could be used like this! Indeed, human potential is often unleashed when forced into situations where it's not needed.

The sudden outbreak of the Moxi people made Hudson re-evaluate this not-so-reliable ally.

Hudson originally planned to first demoralize the Beastfolk, and then use the chaos of the night to slowly break the Beastfolk army.

Now it seems there was no need for such trouble. Faced with a pincer attack from both the expeditionary force and the defending forces, the collapse of the Beastfolk army was only a matter of time.

The Beastfolk army, which was cobbled together to begin with, was already in low spirits. Hudson had worn them down for a while, and now they had witnessed their comrades collapse. The blow to their morale was absolutely fatal.

It is unclear who started it, but suddenly some members of the Beastfolk army that had gathered together broke away from the flanks.

In a battle involving hundreds of thousands of people, the appearance of a few deserters is nothing, but the impact of these three or five deserters is enormous.

"Supervision Team, hurry and capture the deserters!"

Balats realized the situation was dire as soon as he gave the order. At this point, the departure of the Supervision Team would easily be mistaken by ordinary soldiers as deserters fleeing the battlefield.

While seemingly hunting down deserters, they unfortunately became the "leader," causing more followers to flee as well.

Killing is meaningless. Infighting is commonplace within the Orc Empire.

Anyone from the same tribe is a competitor; if they are not even from the same race, they are mortal enemies.

In the resource-scarce Orc Empire, the only way for Beastfolk to survive is to fight and plunder.

Since they are enemies, they will naturally take advantage of any opportunity to act ruthlessly. If it weren't for military law, civil war would have broken out between the tribes long ago.

"Send the order to have the besieging soldiers come over and join the battle!"

Balats gave the order again.

In this moment of crisis, he no longer cared about military orders. Disobeying military orders would certainly lead to dire consequences, but one could still hope for the commander-in-chief's "conscience."

Although this thing is a rare item among the upper echelons of the Orc Empire, there may be occasional exceptions.

If you lose a battle, not only will you die, but your entire family and even your tribe will suffer the consequences.

Unfortunately, it was all in vain. When collapse came, no matter how many armies there were, the outcome was the same.

Essentially, war is about strength and morale. Without overwhelming strength to crush the opponent, morale is the key to victory or defeat.

The expeditionary force was in high spirits, and the Moxi people, trapped in the isolated city, were fighting with their backs to the wall. These were factors that the Beastfolk army could not match.

Seeing the Beastfolk army scatter and flee, Hudson not only did not order an interception, but also restrained the cavalry's offensive and deliberately let them leave.

Of the more than 300,000 Beastfolk, less than a tenth were annihilated in the battle just now. Even if the expeditionary force pursued them until dawn, they wouldn't kill many.

The best approach is to incite the enemy to fight amongst themselves. We don't expect many Beastfolk to die in their internal conflict; as long as we ignite hatred between the tribes, this army will be rendered useless.

As for the disasters that would result from allowing the Beastfolk army to collapse, Hudson believed that the local Moshi nobles could handle it.

If they can't even handle scattered defeated soldiers, then they are weak and deserve to be eliminated by this era.

Outside Allentburg, in the Behemoth army camp, Prince Butzwig, who had just received news of the outbreak of the great battle, was startled.

The enemy, contrary to common sense, chose to launch an attack overnight, clearly not giving him a chance to send reinforcements.

Whether or not to rush back to join the battle overnight is a difficult question.

The Behemoth Cavalry legion was indeed elite, but it had already expended a lot of energy in the daytime battles. After marching more than 200 miles, it was likely that by the time it arrived at its destination, it would only have half of its original strength remaining.

Leading exhausted troops into battle is a major taboo in military strategy. A slight misstep could lead to disastrous consequences.

But Prince Butzwig was uneasy about not sending reinforcements. The Beastfolk army besieging Dapes City was a bait, or rather, a pawn, chosen by the Five Great Imperial Courts.

The fighting strength of a unit that can be easily abandoned is self-evident. If they truly had the power, even if they wanted to eliminate dissidents, they would make their deaths more meaningful.

Prince Butzwig vaguely realized that he was in a dilemma, unable to move forward or backward for a time.

"Pass down the order: have the eagle-men scouts immediately dispatched to contact reinforcements from the various imperial courts and urge them to reach the battlefield as soon as possible!"

It's already late tonight; it's better to set off tomorrow morning. After all, there are 300,000 troops; Prince Butzwig doesn't believe they can't hold out for even one night.