Cavalry Clash

Derek's judgment had not been wrong. The barbarians had crossed Ironwall City for more than simple military reasons.

Although the barbarians had carried out a series of military and political reforms over the past thirty years, some things were difficult to eradicate completely.

For example, the chieftain system centered around small tribes, and the conscription system.

Many of the barbarian troops in this invasion were warriors supplied by various tribes.

The barbarian commander inevitably had to consider the demands of those tribal chieftains.

Letting small units cross Ironwall City to raid was one way to win them over.

It could also delay the Locke Kingdom's reinforcements.

The barbarians had merely underestimated the difficulty of taking a city. Ironwall City's main focus over the years had been defending against attacks from the Holy Cross Kingdom.

Thus, as the Northern Province, it valued military considerations over commercial ones.

That guiding principle in city construction had, by sheer luck, saved the Northern Province.

Half a month had passed since the barbarians attacked Ironwall City, yet they had made no progress.

The barbarian raiding parties were also quite alert.

The moment they saw Derek's main force approaching, they gathered together and prepared to withdraw.

Only after assembling enough men would they dare test themselves against the Locke Kingdom's main force.

Half a month was enough for the barbarians to recognize the Locke Kingdom's combat strength.

At the very least, the Northern Province's nobles had not fallen so low that they could no longer lift a blade. On the contrary... every noble in the Northern Province was fiercer than a wolf.

Several small barbarian forces quickly converged and withdrew according to plan.

Though they carried some loot, they were not especially worried that the Locke Kingdom's army would catch up.

A large force was bound to move sluggishly. They had equipped themselves with plenty of mules and horses precisely for this moment.

If a small force pursued them, it was anyone's guess who would kill whom.

The Locke Kingdom's army were wolves, while the barbarians were lions.

When Derek gave chase at speed, he encountered barbarian scouts more than ten li away.

Simon led three to five cavalrymen after them, and the two sides began a pursuit.

Standing on high ground and looking into the distance, Derek saw barbarian soldiers for the first time. He could tell many things from them.

"The barbarian scouts are deployed this far out, which means they already have a complete military organization. They aren't a rabble.

"And that scout is an excellent rider. The barbarians are also a full size larger than us. It seems everyone has been far too optimistic."

Derek's heart sank. He had thought this would be a weak opponent to grind for experience, only for a major boss to emerge. The feeling was terrible.

But no matter how capable the barbarian scout was, elite knights were pursuing him. Before long, Simon knocked him from his horse.

"Keep them pinned down and rotate your rests. I want every barbarian scout too scared to come out. Turn them blind."

Derek gave the order.

The cavalry was fast, but the elite infantry behind them still lagged far behind. Including the time needed to rest, they had to hold the enemy back for at least a day.

With just over twenty riders, that would be difficult.

The barbarians merely had to keep their heads down and travel to widen the distance as quickly as possible.

But Derek split the knights into two teams, taking turns shadowing the barbarian convoy.

Every so often, they flaunted their strength and made as if they were about to charge the barbarian convoy.

If the barbarian cavalry pursued, they retreated.

If the barbarians wanted to leave, they continued provoking them.

After several rounds, the barbarians could no longer contain their emotions.

"Let me teach them a lesson! Give me all the cavalry, and I'll wipe out those damned Locke people!"

A burly barbarian roared. As a low-ranking barbarian leader, his martial prowess was far from weak.

Moreover, once the cavalry from several units had been gathered, they had at least forty or fifty riders—nearly twice as many as the pursuing Locke Cavalry.

They had seen the Locke Kingdom's cavalry over the past few days. They were no stronger than themselves, and their individual combat strength was even slightly inferior.

The other minor leaders considered it. They could not keep enduring this harassment.

So they agreed to hand their cavalry over to him.

Aside from several leaders, they gathered a total of fifty-two riders.

When Simon led the cavalry in to harass them again, the barbarian cavalry swarmed out.

This time, they were not content merely to drive away the irritating Locke people.

Even though Simon disengaged immediately, the barbarian cavalry pursued relentlessly, clearly intending to swallow Simon's entire unit in one go.

Derek was resting with the other cavalry team. The moment Simon fled back in disarray, he swung onto his horse.

"Brothers, the chance to win glory is here."

It was better that the barbarians had come out than continued hiding like turtles.

They could strike with a small elite force and cripple the barbarian cavalry.

Otherwise, if they became locked in battle with the barbarian main force, whether they assembled the cavalry for a charge or fled in a final countercharge, they would suffer considerable losses.

It was better to deal with them beforehand and reduce infantry casualties.

They had trained for so long for one purpose: to give the barbarians hell.

Now that the opportunity had come, every knight mounted up, yet they were unexpectedly calm.

"Go around them! Go around!"

Derek shouted.

Seeing this, Simon led his cavalry in an arc before finally circling back behind Derek.

Derek had already taken up a high slope. Guided by Simon, the barbarian cavalry's formation tilted slightly, exposing a small section of its flank before Derek.

Perhaps they did not believe that a mere ten riders would dare launch a countercharge. Then they learned otherwise.

As the Northern Lands Warhorses accelerated, their heavy hooves thundered.

Chainmail rang with crisp collisions. In just a few seconds, the cavalry completed the entire transition from a standstill to full acceleration.

The barbarian cavalry noticed this brazen group of enemies, and their formation fell into some disorder.

The barbarian cavalry's quality was clearly decent. Even though they were unfamiliar with one another, they barely managed to turn around.

But Derek was faster, driving viciously into the only gap.

He pierced through the barbarian horsemen from their rear flank.

The armored cavalry, once they had built up momentum, swiftly completed a single devastating penetration.

The barbarians' losses were unexpectedly severe. More than a dozen riders fell in a short time.

Even if their formation had been somewhat chaotic, such casualties should not have happened.

They even noticed that this cavalry unit differed from the ones that had been harassing them. Even their warhorses wore armor.

Derek and Simon had divided into two teams. Whichever team harassed the enemy rode lightly equipped.

Whichever team rested waited in full armor, guarding against precisely this situation.

Their preparations had now paid off. Combined with the strength of elite cavalry, they shattered the barbarian cavalry's morale in a single blow.

Simon also circled around and immediately launched a charge.

The barbarians had not yet recovered from the chaos. Some were even facing Derek's side, preparing to fight.

Unable to attend to both sides, they were pierced straight through once more.

Derek and Simon joined up. Most of their twenty-odd riders were unharmed.

"Charge!"

The barbarian cavalry barely managed one countercharge before finally collapsing.

When the remaining dozen or so riders returned to the convoy, the barbarian soldiers could not believe their eyes.

"Did you run into an ambush?"

That was the only explanation they could think of.

But the barbarian cavalry shamefully revealed the truth.

The remaining barbarian minor leaders immediately realized they might be in serious trouble.

Judging by the Locke Kingdom cavalry's performance and their bold raids and harassment, they were certainly no ordinary force.

Should they abandon their supplies and flee, or camp in place and wait for reinforcements?

The barbarians descended into chaos, and as night fell, they had no choice but to make camp.