Predicament

Upon hearing what the eldest son said, Kadok also gave a wry smile, as he had initially heard the same thing from his subordinates.

"It's like this, young master! Do you remember our crossbowman unit of 200 men?"

Lenster asked somewhat uncertainly, "Are you talking about the unit that was equipped with the new crossbows?"

"Yes, the new crossbows they are equipped with were also purchased by Viscount Ferry from Viscount Golden Sunflower."

This new type of crossbow has an assist mechanism, is lighter, and has a faster firing rate than our original military crossbows.

A total of 1,000 were purchased, most of which were taken away by Lloyd's troops, while a small portion remained in Ironwire City.

This crossbowmen unit was the main consumer of crossbow bolts; they fired at least fifty rounds in today's battle.

Lenster stood up abruptly. "Fifty rounds, which means they fired at least one arrow."

Kadok nodded.

Lenster was somewhat troubled. No wonder the enemy's attacks in the last two rounds hadn't really reached the city walls; it turned out they were relying on the firepower of this crossbowman unit.

"How are these crossbows? With such intensive use, will they malfunction?"

"No, I specifically asked, and there haven't been any problems. The quality is indeed good, it's just that the arrows are being used up too quickly!"

Lenster spun around a few times. As long as it was useful, he didn't care how much it cost him; he couldn't bear to give it up.

"Alright then, Kadok, the other archer units must be heavily depleted. Let them take up arms and participate in the defense of the city walls."

As for that crossbow unit, you should separate them out, ensuring a sufficient supply of arrows. Establish a mobile force centered around them, and send them to suppress the enemy forces at any point on the city wall that is under attack.

"Okay, I'll arrange it right away."

After saying this, Kadok was about to leave, but Lenster quickly stopped him.

"Don't rush off. Can the production of arrows be increased further? I can arrange whatever you need."

"It's just a matter of manpower. We don't have enough craftsmen in the weapons workshop, but we're not short of materials for the time being."

"I will order the recruitment of carpenters and blacksmiths throughout the city and arrange for them to work in the military workshops."

Also, the number of arrows recorded today should be limited; do not use them more than 20 times per round of defense!

"OK!"

Kadok quickly left, as it was still early and the enemy might still attack; these matters couldn't be delayed.

Shortly after Kadok left, the bells on the city wall began to ring again, signaling that the enemy had launched another attack.

Lenster led his Guard Corps up the city wall again, and through the crenellations, he saw the enemy troops below launching another attack.

This time, it was clear that the enemy's attacking force was far larger than the last time. The three-sided attack formation was much denser, and there were more siege weapons. In addition to ladders and siege towers, several siege engines were also discovered.

However, Lenster breathed a slight sigh of relief when he saw the siege engines. The city gates had been reinforced, and he personally sent men to lock them from the inside. He also piled up a large number of stones and bricks to block the entire gate passage. Even if the siege engines were used to break open the gates, they would not be able to enter the city.

If the Sixth Legion wants to break through the city, the best way is to scale the walls and fight; all other methods have been rejected.

Lenster knew the upcoming battle would be simple: to hold off the Sixth Legion's attack.

Just then, Kadok also arrived at the city wall.

He saw Lenster and quickly led his men to squeeze through the crowd. "Young Master, the enemy is getting serious. It's too dangerous on the city wall. You should retreat first, and leave the defense of the city wall to me!"

Lenster shook his head. "The enemy has increased their attacking force again. We are in great danger now. We should do our part to prevent them from getting onto the city walls and establishing a foothold."

Upon hearing this, Kadok understood Lenster's determination. He stopped trying to persuade him, only hoping that Lenster would be careful and that they would meet again after this defensive battle was over.

At this time, the ladders and siege ladders of the Sixth Legion began to approach the city wall, and a large number of soldiers began to climb them. Soldiers inside the siege towers began to shoot arrows at the city wall.

These siege towers are higher than the city walls, making it easy to suppress the defenders on the city walls.

Fortunately, the previously established mobile force came in handy, and the crossbowmen also arrived at the city wall and began firing at the siege towers. Even though the siege towers had protective plates, they were still heavily suppressed by the crossbowmen.

The defending soldiers could concentrate on dealing with the enemy who were scaling the city walls without being disturbed. A large number of logs and stones were thrown down the city walls, and the screams of the attacking soldiers were constantly heard as they were smashed.

This time, the Sixth Legion held out for an exceptionally long time, with the two sides fighting until 4 p. m., during which the main city wall was breached twice.

The second attempt was the most dangerous, with two squads of soldiers scaling the city walls. It was Kadok himself who led Lenster's Guard Corps and his reserve Reserve Force down the walls.

In this battle, not only were half of Lenster's guards lost, but even Kadok himself was slashed twice, and his right hand was almost severed.

Seeing that this round of siege had failed to achieve anything, Turas, who was below the city, had no choice but to sound the retreat.

Because he knew that the troops could not hold out any longer. Even Shanno's cannon fodder had been suppressed twice because they really did not want to continue climbing the city walls to their deaths.

Seeing the Sixth Legion retreat to their camp, Lenster and Kadok both breathed a sigh of relief, though they couldn't really tell how much longer they could hold out.

At this moment, Kadok's right arm was completely wrapped in Bitter Bamboo leaves, and he collapsed to the ground, too weak to stand up.

Seeing this, Lenster knew that Kadok was exhausted, so he called the messenger to summon the three Battalion Commander of the Garrison Regiment.

The reason he bypassed Kadok to give the order was twofold: firstly, Kadok was indeed no longer capable of organizing a defense, but the defensive work could not be relaxed because of this; secondly, Lenster needed to understand the strength of his forces in order to deal with the next round of enemy attacks.

Lenster looked at the three Battalion Commander with a grim expression. "Are you saying that our Garrison Regiment's three battalions have been reduced to just over one battalion?"

The three men looked at each other, and finally one of them stepped forward and said, "Yes, sir, our troops have suffered heavy casualties. In the third round of defense, three of my ten squad Squad Leader were killed, three were seriously wounded, and the remaining four were injured."

Although Lenster had anticipated the dire state of the Garrison Regiment, he hadn't expected it to be this bad. Now, with only this small force left, they could barely defend two sections of the city wall; any more would only lead to them being overwhelmed.

Just then, Kadok, who had been carried away for treatment after exhausting himself, returned and entered the room with the help of Lenster's guards.

"Young Master, don't worry, we still have a fresh force. Have you forgotten the team of young men you organized to repair the city wall before?"

They also participated in the defense today. Although they suffered considerable losses, they still have two battalions of soldiers left. Moreover, after today's bloody battle, their combat strength has been significantly improved.

As for equipment, if time allows, we can repair the armor of the fallen soldiers on both sides; the armories in the weapons city are still safe.

After hearing what Kadok said, Lenster felt less anxious.

"Kadok, how are you feeling?"

"Fortunately, it's holding up."

Lenster felt a pang of sadness; he didn't believe that Kadok, with such severe injuries, could continue to persevere.

Kadok noticed his troubles. "Young Master, we can hold on for two more days at most. Lloyd will definitely be back by then."

The others in the room cheered, saying that everything would be alright once the Count returned.

Lenster gave a wry smile after hearing this, hoping everything would go smoothly.

Inside the Sixth Legion camp, Turas summoned all officers of Battalion Commander and above to a meeting.

After a day of bloody fighting, the Sixth Legion's officer corps also made Turas feel embarrassed.

Of the five Battalion Commander of the First Regiment, two were killed in the battle this afternoon. One was killed by a log thrown from the city wall, and the other died on the city wall.

The other Battalion Commander were all covered in various injuries, and the officers' meeting almost turned into a gathering of disabled people.

Turas looked at his men, unsure who to direct the fire at. He turned to Shanno and asked, "Captain Shanno, what's wrong with your team? Why didn't you even make it in the final attack?"

Shanno said tremblingly, "My lord, it's really not my fault. At the last moment, those laborers refused to go forward no matter what, even when they were pointed at with knives."

Not only did they not want to fight, they all tried to escape. I personally led the troops to surround them, and I killed every deserter I found. In the end, we finally stopped them.

After hearing Shanno's answer, Turas laughed in anger, "You stopped them? How many men do you have under your command now?"

Shanno was sweating profusely at this moment, "500, no, 800 people."

"Alright, for the next round of attack, you will be in charge of these 800 men to take charge of one side of the city wall."

Shanno looked at Turas and knew that if he disagreed, the Captain of the Guard, Sailik, would probably take him down in the next second.

"Yes, Legion Commander, I will do my best."

Upon hearing this, Turas stopped paying attention to him.

"What are the troop losses of the First Regiment and Third Regiment? Just give them a report!"

"The First Regiment has five battalions. Three of them are still relatively intact, while the other two battalions suffered heavy casualties, with no less than 40% casualties, due to the death of their Battalion Commander."

The Battalion Commander of the five battalions of the Third Regiment have not yet suffered any losses, but due to today's three rounds of attacks, casualties are also considerable. The Second, Fourth, and Fifth Battalions have all suffered losses exceeding 30%, and the First and Third Battalions have also suffered at least 20% casualties.

After hearing the report, Turas was very troubled. The two regiments alone had suffered more than 3,000 casualties. Under normal circumstances, he should have stopped the attack and waited for reinforcements.

However, the reality is that he is now deep in enemy territory and has no hope of receiving reinforcements. Fortunately, he has brought ample supplies, and the reduced troop strength can extend the army's self-sufficiency.

Just then, his adjutant continued to report, "Sir, the siege equipment we built has also been almost completely destroyed. Apart from a few siege towers that were pulled back, the ladders and siege engines were all left under the city walls."

The incendiary bombs used by the enemy were extremely powerful; our equipment couldn't withstand them.

After hearing this, Turas slammed his fist on the armrest of the chair, breaking the piece of wood in two.

"Then let's rest for one night. Shanno, have your men help cut down trees and prepare another batch of equipment."

The offensive will continue tomorrow. Units suffering heavy losses can be merged into larger units, and each Regimental Commander can handle the situation independently.

Count Lloyd's forces included a large contingent of Cavalry, which he dispatched to scout the outskirts of Ironwire City, while he led his troops on a rapid march.

However, the Cavalry unit soon discovered that the river crossing had been occupied by an army. They attempted to attack, but were repelled by Gaba, who was guarding the crossing.

The Cavalry immediately returned to Count Lloyd's main camp to report to the Count.

The Count was surprised to receive the news. Although he knew that the enemy's split forces might be aimed at intercepting his troops, he did not expect them to arrive so quickly.

He had already tried his best to speed up, but he was still stopped.

However, after inquiring about some battlefield details, he discovered that the unit was understrength and was likely only a detachment.

"It seems we can't afford to delay any longer; their main force should be behind us."

Count Lloyd dispatched Cavalry directly to several villages and towns downstream of the Green Forest River to collect boats in preparation for attacking the crossing.

He also sent messengers to inform Red Mountain City of the situation at the ferry crossing, and to inform Viscount Ferry that once Baron Eamon arrived, he should take direct command of Eamon's troops and come to the river crossing to meet him.

By evening, Count Lloyd had finally led his troops to the river crossing.

Gaba also spotted the army on the opposite bank of the river and, by recognizing the flags, confirmed that it was Lloyd's main force of the Ironvine.

Seeing that the opposing army had not started to set up camp, but instead a large number of ranged units were forming ranks, it seemed that they were about to launch an attack.

Gaba muttered to himself, "Looks like tonight won't be easy!"

Sure enough, as darkness fell, Count Lloyd's troops launched their attack.

However, instead of crossing the river, they found several high points and began firing volleys at Gaba's troops.

The reason why the ferry crossing in the river was an important transportation hub is because the river channel here is not very wide, only about seventy or eighty steps wide, and the water flow is not fast.

This distance is just within firing range for long-range units.

This tactic of warfare was very difficult for Gaba. Gaba only had his own troops under his command, and his archers and crossbowmen totaled no more than one battalion, while Count Lloyd had sent at least three battalions of ranged troops.

The two sides exchanged shots across the river, and Gaba was no match for him.

Gaba quickly discovered the situation and had to give up several key positions, leading his troops in a voluntary retreat.

Count Lloyd also noticed this situation and, knowing that the enemy had retreated, stopped firing volleys, and the two sides began to stand facing each other across the river.

Lloyd also ordered his men to begin cutting down trees in preparation for crossing the river.