With the collapse of the mountain defenses on the right flank, the Ottomans' main position along the Strymon River also became precarious.
The Ottoman troops offered no resistance when the airship force attacked, while the British Army, far less afraid, continued holding its positions.
It had to be said that the airship force's killing efficiency and accuracy were both deeply worrying. Even though airships had been around for nearly ten years and undergone numerous iterations, their inherent problems remained impossible to solve.
A joke had always circulated among the airship forces: they scared more people to death than they bombed to death.
Yet statistically speaking, this was no joke. The number of enemy troops directly hit and killed by airships was far lower than the enemy's natural attrition.
Still, the destructive effect of airships was undeniably explosive. A single heavy bomb could instantly blast whatever it struck into pieces, not to mention that the Austrian Empire possessed such ultimate weapons as white phosphorus bombs.
And the Ottomans' level of education meant that, compared to science, they were more inclined to believe in the mystical.
"What is that?! Is that an airship? It's like a gigantic black cloud!"
An Ottoman soldier on the banks of the Strymon River shouted, immediately drawing everyone else's attention.
"How can it fly without wings? Could it really be a demon?"
As those colossal objects slowly approached while they themselves were helpless to do anything, someone finally cried out.
"Run!"
The others seemed to awaken abruptly from a dream. Even many officers wavered, instinctively following the crowd as it began to retreat.
As commander, Ahmed Yilmaz had seen this sort of thing far too many times. He drew his sword and shouted.
"Supervisory troops, forward! Kill without mercy anyone who retreats! Hold the position!"
Only then