Pursuit
Meanwhile, Carnford City.
Karl personally led a mixed formation, which had already formed a well-organized assault formation below the city gate and began to advance steadily.
Instead of drawing from the entire combat company, he carefully selected two of the most experienced and best-equipped combat platoons as the backbone, and paired them with two militia platoons that had undergone basic training and were waiting for real combat testing.
A total of one hundred and twenty soldiers, their armor and gun tips reflecting a cold light in the moonlight.
Karl's sharp gaze swept across the chaotic battlefield ahead. Just moments ago, he had clearly seen the cavalry led by Lyon and Thorsten ruthlessly break through the enemy's seemingly solid flank formation like a hot knife through butter.
At this moment, they are launching a fierce counterattack, further dispersing and cutting off the routed enemy forces.
Although it is unknown where the key fireball that exploded violently in the center of the enemy formation and completely disrupted their command center came from, this unexpected turn of events instantly transformed what could have been a failed or even disastrous night raid into a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for victory!
Without hesitation, Karl immediately ordered his cavalry to continue the pursuit, while he also organized his troops to leave the city to fight in coordination with the cavalry and expand their gains.
Given that the enemy's main force has already retreated, the intensity of resistance they encounter is expected to be greatly reduced. This presents an excellent opportunity for practical training, allowing the militia members, who have had relatively short training periods but are in high spirits, to personally experience the rhythm and atmosphere of the battlefield under relatively controllable risks.
"Blow the horn! Forward!" Karl decisively gave the order.
The trombone player beside him immediately puffed out his cheeks and blew a deep, rhythmic marching horn.
"Waaaaah--"
Accompanied by the sound of bugles, the entire infantry formation began to advance with steady steps.
Within the formation, the experienced soldiers' platoon displayed a high degree of discipline.
Each squad leader kept pace with the soldiers, using short, forceful whistles and concise commands to adjust the spacing and speed of their squad, ensuring a tight and orderly formation.
The heavy footsteps and the scraping of armor combined to create a chilling, murderous aura.
In contrast, the two militia platoons appeared somewhat flustered.
They were not quick enough to respond to complex whistle commands, sometimes needing whispered reminders from veterans to understand the intentions, and their pace was sometimes hurried and sometimes slow, causing slight fluctuations in the local formation.
Fortunately, they were positioned on the flanks and rear of the fighting ranks, in a relatively protected position.
Inspired and subtly influenced by the veterans around them, whose expressions were stern and whose movements were perfectly synchronized, these militiamen, who were stepping onto a real battlefield for the first time, also tried to suppress their nervousness and excitement, imitating the veterans' postures and adjusting their breathing and pace.
Gradually, the initial chaos subsided, and their steps began to catch up with the overall rhythm. Although they were still not as precise as the soldiers, the overall cohesion of the formation was rapidly improving, and a youthful vigor began to gather.
While keeping an eye on the battlefield ahead, Karl calmly observed the advance of the entire team.
He was not surprised by the militiamen's temporary awkwardness, nor did he criticize them. As long as they could maintain their formation and follow orders, it would be a success.
Lyon had long since abandoned his lance, and the scimitar in his hand was dulled. His armor was covered in a mixture of dark red and dirty green filth.
He hacked and slashed, cutting the last few goblins blocking his way in two. Finally, with the momentum of his warhorse, he managed to tear a gap in the encirclement of monsters and break free.
He reined in his panting warhorse, breathing heavily, and looked around.
What lay before me was an even more chaotic and chilling scene.
Amidst the flickering firelight and dense darkness, the originally orderly pursuit had devolved into a quagmire of individual battles.
At least a dozen of his cavalrymen, who had been chasing the fleeing Sauron soldiers too aggressively or had been deliberately led astray by the cunning fleeing soldiers, were now deeply surrounded by the monsters!
The goblins and ghouls, driven mad by their own rage, paid no heed to casualties. They lunged at the horses' legs, tearing at the riders' armor with their claws and teeth, trying to drag them off their horses.
Screams filled the air. Lyon even witnessed a cavalryman being grabbed by several monsters at the same time, dragged into the monster horde amidst desperate cries, and disappearing instantly!
"Damn it!" Lyon's heart skipped a beat, and he broke out in a cold sweat.
The threat from the Sauron has been temporarily averted, but these out-of-control monsters have become an even bigger problem!
He immediately shouted at the top of his lungs, "Don't linger! Move closer to me! Break out of the encirclement!"
At the same time, without hesitation, he spurred his horse and charged at the nearest group of his men who were surrounded, attempting to relieve their siege.
Just then, the sounds of slashing came from the other side. Thorsten, leading his Sauron Cavalry, also charged out of the monster horde in a rather disheveled state and rode closer to Lyon.
Thorsten's face also showed fatigue and solemnity. He quickly scanned the battlefield and immediately understood the current crisis.
Upon seeing Thorsten, Lyon disregarded everything else and hurriedly pointed to the figures of the fleeing Sauron soldiers desperately fleeing into the darkness in the distance, urgently saying, "Thorsten! Look around us! The main force of Sauron has indeed collapsed, but they've only been stunned, not annihilated!"
"If we waste our precious troops and time on these mindless monsters now, and those fleeing soldiers come to their senses and realize we didn't give them a fatal chase, they might just regroup under the leadership of some officer!"
"If they launch a well-rested counterattack while we are exhausted and bogged down in monsters, the consequences will be unimaginable! We can't afford to waste our time here fighting these endless monsters!"
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, and his words became clear and organized. "The most urgent task is to immediately gather all our troops, concentrate our remaining strength, and break through the relatively weak link in the monster encirclement!"
"We must break free from this chaotic cycle and shake off these monsters! Then, we must chase after them! Like shadows, we must relentlessly pursue the routed soldiers, giving them no chance to breathe or regroup!"
While parrying a ghoul that lunged at him with his sword, Thorsten quickly considered the situation. He fully agreed with Lyon's assessment that they must break out and pursue immediately, but added his own tactical advice as an experienced rider.
"Your Lord Lyon, your judgment is absolutely correct! We must pursue them! But I suggest that we don't rush in for close combat immediately. We are outnumbered, and a forced engagement might force these routed soldiers into a desperate fight, increasing our casualties unnecessarily."
His eyes gleamed with the light of a steppe hunter. "We can try a different approach. Like herding a flock of frightened sheep, we can keep a distance of 100 to 150 paces behind them and harass them with our bows and arrows. At the same time, we can have our soldiers shout and create a commotion, keeping them in a state of constant panic, making them think that they can survive as long as they run for their lives."
"In this way, they will constantly expend their energy while running away, and their minds will remain tense. When they are exhausted, their formation is completely broken, and their morale has completely collapsed, we can then charge in like thunder and achieve the greatest results with the least cost!"