Night Raid to Seize the City (End)
Victor was so interested in the structure of the water gate because he had discovered it while scouting the castle in the Woven Fern Territory. The water gate connected to the dry moat.
Following the normal castle structure, advancing along the canal of the water gate would surely lead to the castle's interior, and the wide canal would certainly be passable by warhorses, maximizing the combat effectiveness of their squad.
Victor took out a torch and sprinkled some blue-green powder into it. After a moment, the original yellow flame turned blue-green.
Victor held up the blue-green torch and spun it three times clockwise in the direction he had come from outside the city—a pre-arranged signal between him and Alex.
As for the powder he sprinkled, it was malachite powder that Alex had specially prepared. Fortunately, malachite, as an affordable ornamental gemstone, was still in stock at the trading post. This powder, made from high-purity malachite, contained a large amount of basic copper carbonate, and when burned, it produced a blue-green flame, making it very suitable for signaling.
After Victor performed two sets of actions with the torch, he descended from the watchtower. He assigned two other men to guard the watchtower, while he returned alone to the ramparts. He was to organize the advance team to protect the landing area and draw the attention of the War Department as much as possible.
Outside the city, Alex had been organizing people to kill the packhorses and push their carcasses into the moat. Soon, the carcasses piled up into a small hill, forming a long, gentle slope connecting the bottom of the moat to the ground.
This was also part of Victor's initial plan. He had two plans: one was to use the packhorse carcasses to create a ramp if the water gate was confirmed to be usable for entering the city, making it easier for the Cavalry to enter the moat and follow the water gate channel into the city; the other was to use the packhorse carcasses to fill the moat if the water gate was unusable, allowing the Cavalry to rush to the city and climb over the city wall directly on their warhorses.
Now Alex only needs to wait for Victor's signal to determine which plan to implement.
As for why packhorses were used as temporary building materials, the reason is simple: their team only had a little over a hundred people, and it was simply unrealistic to rely on such a small number of people to do temporary earthwork.
Moreover, these packhorses can go directly to the castle without the need for personnel to carry them, and they can also be used to carry weapons and equipment, which can be described as killing two birds with one stone.
Once the slope of the meat mountain was basically formed, a dozen soldiers used long spikes to fix the remaining planks from the long ladder onto the slope made of horses, making it easier for Cavalry to run on this slope.
During this process, blood kept splattering from the mountain of flesh as the soldiers worked, making the smell of blood very strong. A shallow pool of horse blood had accumulated at the bottom of the moat, which even these battle-hardened soldiers found very uncomfortable.
At this moment, Alex finally saw the signal sent by Victor. He realized that Victor's plan was going well and his prediction had come true. Sure enough, one could enter the castle through the water gate and ride a horse into the city along the canal.
Alex quickly directed the prepared Cavalry to ride along the newly paved ramp into the moat.
Just then, a problem arose. These warhorses were very intelligent animals. They understood that the wooden planks beneath their feet contained the corpses of their own kind, and they all resisted stepping on them.
Alex was furious. He grabbed the lead Cavalry's horse and slashed it across the neck with his sword. Blood splattered everywhere, and the horse neighed and fell to the ground. Fortunately, the Cavalry had already dismounted before falling.
"What are you doing? Where are your swords? These beasts are disobedient, teach them a lesson! What about your usual boasts about horse-training skills and superb horsemanship? Our comrades are fighting in the city, don't hold them back!" Alex shouted sternly.
The Cavalry immediately began to use their whips and spurs to drive their horses down the slope into the bottom of the moat. Perhaps it was the intimidation of Alex's killing of his own kind, or the Cavalry's tough attitude, but the horses began to obey their riders' commands.
Alex led a few soldiers at the front of the Cavalry and soon arrived at the water gate. Three soldiers wielding long-handled heavy axes stepped forward and began hacking at the wooden water gate.
Although the wood used to make the water gate was very strong and thick, it was broken and rotten in just a few minutes when faced with a heavy axe.
Once Alex saw that the water gate was almost completely destroyed and could be used by Cavalry, he had everyone stand close to the edge of the canal.
Immediately afterward, the Cavalry behind him led over an unclaimed warhorse. Alex mounted it and shouted, "Charge with me!"
Alex led the charge, with the Cavalry following closely behind him as they rushed into the city.
Victor on the city wall had already gathered a team of more than 30 men to fight the defenders who were trying to rush up the city wall on the ramp connecting the city wall to the ground.
Under Victor's command, the soldiers in the front row held heavy two-handed shields in front, while the soldiers in the back row used short spears to throw.
Because Victor's troops had a superior position, their simple spear-throwing tactics inflicted heavy casualties on the War Department.
However, the defenders had a significant numerical advantage, and officers from the Woven Fern Territory were also supervising and directing the battle from the rear. The two sides were locked in a stalemate on the slope, with neither the assault troops able to break down the city walls nor the defenders able to advance.
Just then, Victor heard, "Archers, prepare, fire!"
With a series of whooshing sounds, dozens of arrows covered the slope. The heavy shield bearers in the front row were not too badly hit, as the arrows were blocked by their shields. However, the warriors throwing spears in the back suffered heavy losses, with several warriors falling to the ground after being hit by multiple arrows.
Victor knew that the archers of the defending army had joined the battle, and now he and his troops were exposed on the slope with no way to avoid the arrows. Just as Victor was trying to pull his troops back to the top of the city wall and use the parapet to avoid the arrows, he suddenly heard a voice.
The sound grew louder and clearer, and Victor recognized it as the rumbling of horses' hooves. The rear of the War Department below the city wall instantly descended into chaos. Victor then saw a troop of Cavalry into the rear of the War Department from inside the city, crushing the officers and supervisors into dust.
Although the leading knight wore a mask that obscured his face, Victor immediately recognized Alex's identity because of his silver hair.
"Alex, you've finally arrived!"
Under the combined assault of the Cavalry and Victor's assault troops, the defending forces completely collapsed. With their officers also being killed, the soldiers surrendered one after another, and this short but protracted night raid finally came to an end.