Incomplete Victory Yet
On the morning of September 11, Victor lay in a makeshift tent set up in the middle of the vehicle pile, with the medical team providing him with a separate tent.
"Victor, you're awake, that's great," James said as he walked in. "Thanks to the medical squadron of the logistics detachment, many brothers were saved yesterday thanks to them."
"Yes," Benjamin and Pim followed in. "We used to rely on veterans to treat our wounds. Even with enough Bitter Bamboo leaves, the methods for treating wounds were too crude. Now it seems that many of our brothers died because their wounds worsened, probably because they weren't treated properly. Your medical detachment handles these things in an orderly manner. After the war, you have to send someone to my Golden Pear Territory to help me build one too."
Viscount Benjamin spoke with a strong voice, as if he had never been injured, and moved with ease, which Victor greatly admired. After all, Viscount Benjamin had been injured since the beginning of the battle, but still participated in the entire operation.
"No problem, we have developed a complete set of procedures and plans. However, medical technology is currently limited. At present, the medical team can only treat external injuries caused by knives and swords or falls and injuries. Other illnesses cannot be treated yet."
"That's enough. Mastering these skills can save at least 50% of the wounded, and if half of them can return to their units, it will be a decisive boost to the unit's combat effectiveness." Viscount Benjamin, as an experienced military nobleman, understood all too well the value of these veterans.
"Oh right," Victor suddenly realized, "What happened after I passed out last night? Has the central army of the Barbarian Tribal Alliance been completely wiped out by us?"
The group exchanged glances, and then Benjamin said, "I stayed in the camp yesterday and didn't join the pursuit. James, you can handle this."
James nodded.
"After we rejoined the main force, and with Victor completing the beheading of the Blood Scorpion Chieftain of the Scorpion Tribe, the Barbarian Allied Forces basically lost its will to fight, and the various tribes scattered and fled."
"At the time, Ron stayed by your side to look after you and guard the Barbarians camp. Jack and I, along with the remaining Cavalry of our Second Regiment, followed the Iron Knights to pursue the remnants of the Barbarian Tribes. We chased them until about 10 p. m. Fortunately, the moonlight was very bright last night, and our pursuit went smoothly." James began to recount the battle of the previous night.
Back on the evening of September 10th, the main battlefield had fallen silent, the smoke of battle had cleared, and the Northern Frontier Allied Army was organizing its infantry to clear the battlefield, searching for the wounded and capturing prisoners by the light of the moon and fire.
Leaving the main battlefield and heading north, James and Jack led the remaining 600 Cavalry of the Two Rivers Territory, along with the main force, to pursue the remnants of the Barbarians.
Suddenly James pulled on the reins, and the white mist from the warhorse's breath drifted away in the moonlight.
"Stop!" The sound of a bronze whistle pierced the night sky, and the six hundred light cavalrymen from Lianghe Light Cavalry their horses in unison.
They saw a Cavalry of more than thirty men running toward them from a distance.
"Which unit are you from? Why are you here? What happened?" Jack stepped forward from the group and asked.
The lead one-eyed knight's waist and abdomen wound oozed black blood, and fragments of his Fire Fox emblem banner fluttered in the cold wind. "We belong to the First Legion, the Cavalry of Crimson Maple Territory, the Iron Bones... They are in the western valley..."
James and Jack acted decisively, leading their men toward the Iron Knight Regiment of Iron Birch Territory.
After they joined up with the Iron Knight Regiment, the captain of the Iron Birch Territory's Regimental Commander Rune rode forward, saying, "Two quarters of an hour ago, the messenger from Crimson Maple Territory said they encountered..." They had also received a message from Crimson Maple Territory.
"I have already informed the other units of this news and asked them to move closer to us. If it really is the Iron Bone Tribe, we are in big trouble." Just then, a battle flag bearing the image of a wolf skull suddenly appeared on a hill a mile away.
The moonlight, like silver mercury spilled onto the ground, illuminated the imposing array of soldiers in the valley. Tens of thousands of iron-clad Cavalry stood silently as mountains, their bronze horse armor reflecting the stars, their scimitars uniformly pointing southwest. Their warhorses wore iron masks, so silent that not even a snort could be heard, only the ghostly whistling of the night wind as it swept through the thicket of blades.
"Tortoise Shell Formation." Rune's voice was like a rusty winch. The Iron Knights of Iron Birch Territory immediately dismounted, their shields overlapping to form a mobile wall, the spears protruding from the gaps like a poisonous forest. James noticed that these shields were coated with plaster—specifically to defend against the Iron Bone Tribe's rocket attacks.
Rune's eyes suddenly narrowed. "Messenger! Immediately report to Count Colt that the Ironbone Main Force is here!"
At midnight, seven green-flame Kongming lanterns rose from the Ironbone Formation—a signal for assembly. James licked his chapped lips and noticed a subtle shift in the opposing formation: the reflection in the horse armor of the Heavy Cavalry on the left flank had dimmed, indicating they had quietly removed their armor and lightened their load.
"Flank behind." Rune drew three lines on the ground with his greatsword. "Be vigilant to the sides and rear."
The Iron Bone Tribe's horn horns suddenly changed tone, sharp as an owl's. The central army slowly parted, and a Barbarians knight wearing a bronze wolf-head mask rode out into the fray. His mount was two hands taller than an ordinary warhorse, and the human teeth embedded in its armor clanged with each step.
"That's enough for tonight!" he Common Tongue, his voice sizzling with metallic scraping. "We don't want to fight, as long as you stop pursuing us."
What followed was a long standoff. After a day of fighting, all the commanders of the Northern Alliance Army were extremely cautious. After all, the Iron Bone Tribe had been the greatest enemy of the Northern Frontier nobles decades ago, and now that they had reappeared, no one dared to underestimate them.
As dawn broke, the Iron Bone Tribe's wolf banners began to slowly retreat. Their formation remained impeccable, their bronze armor forming a moving sea of metal in the rising sun.
"Should we pursue them or not?" a Noble Army asked.
"Let them go." Rune stroked the sword mark. "Most of the Barbarians central army has been annihilated by us. They can only take away a maximum of 20,000."
As the last wolf banner disappeared on the horizon, all troops, led by the Iron Knight Regiment, began their return journey.
After James finished recounting his experience from the previous night, Victor also fell into deep thought.
The Iron Bone Tribe, which originally led the left flank of the Barbarian Tribal Alliance, is now here. It is unknown what the situation is with the Third Legion of the Allied Army. Has it been defeated or failed to contain the Ironbone Tribe?
However, in general, the Northern Alliance Army has already completed 80% of its objectives, inflicting heavy losses on the Barbarians of the Northlands Wasteland and eliminating 100,000 Barbarians troops. These 100,000 troops cannot be replenished in just a few years. Even if the Iron Bone Tribe integrates the more than 20,000 people they took away, it will still take several years.
For at least three years, the northern defenses of the Northlands counties will be secure, and territorial expansion can proceed as normal. With this in mind, Victor put his worries to rest.
Now it all depends on Count Colt's methods.