Blood tax

Chapter 311 There is nothing to be afraid of anymore!
It was five o'clock in the morning and it was still dark.The army, reserves, and ecclesiastical forces in the central position were defeated, and some infantry, cavalry, and artillery columns that remained organized broke through the blockade, passed near Teutoburg, and retreated to the town to the south.They threw all kinds of unnecessary things into the fire to form roadblocks, and the thick smoke irritated people's eyes and caused great trouble for the enemy's pursuit.

It was very cold at this time, and it was dark all around.The officers hurriedly drank tea and had breakfast, and the soldiers chewed dry bread and stomped their feet hastily. They gathered opposite the campfire to keep warm, and then put away the remaining documents, sheds, tables and chairs, wheels, and barrels. Throw all the unnecessary things you take with you into the firewood pile and burn them together.

Around Griffith gathered more than 100 people from more than 3000 different units. There were almost no serious wounded, and there were no senior officers and troops of the regiment.After repelling Beamon, the orc army who blocked them was stunned and could not stop them from retreating south.They retreated along the road to the west, and the main force led by the prince and several other defeated troops retreated to the south by different roads.

Ace and Desai, who were sent to reconnaissance earlier, also came back to join them in full.Together with a large group of retreating religious orders, they were attracted by the faint signs, and then found their way back.

The two front armies of the clan alliance have converged, and all available troops are used to chase and defeat the retreating Bayeran army.

Several small enemy troops continued to intersperse and roundabout, outflanking the rear of Bayeran's army, preparing to block the retreat.For a while, Griffith saw an enemy army marching parallel to them hundreds of meters away, but the two sides did not attack each other, moving south in strange silence.

Griffith led the cavalry squadron to the rear and ordered everyone to march quickly, preparing to cross the river before the enemy, find a favorable terrain to set up a camp, or retreat to Odessa.

On the second day, that is, at dusk on October 10, some scattered people escaped and joined.The nearby towns also received news of the defeat, and there were many refugees on the already chaotic roads.

Everyone couldn't find anything to eat.The military supplies have been lost, and they are only supported by the remaining biscuits and dried fruits.Food was supposed to be available in nearby towns, but most of it had been taken away or buried by refugees, and a hasty search turned up only a few rations.

There were also rows of large vehicles stuck on the road, and the wealthy local gentry wanted to escape with their property, but the road was completely blocked.

……

On the third day of the retreat, the entire northern part of Odessa has been eroded.According to some soldiers who escaped from the central front, the situation there was even worse. The main force of the clan alliance was chasing the prince and General Maximus closely, without giving them any time to establish a position.

Under such circumstances, the defeated army on each road did not dare to stop, for fear that if they stopped, nearby friendly troops would retreat, and then their flanks would be exposed and surrounded by the enemy.

The correct solution should be to order part of the army to counterattack, regardless of the cost, to buy time for the army to regroup and for reinforcements to arrive.But the question is, who will do it?Anyway, I'm not going.

Griffith walked to Krista's tent with a small bowl of oatmeal that he had managed to find.He has won a chance to break through for everyone, there is no need to push himself up every time.

He poked his head into the tent.Christa was much more fortunate than him in the rear. She was not marching, but she was praying for everyone and listening to stories.

Thanks to her, although the defeated army lacked food, lost a lot of weapons, and was on the verge of collapse at any time, their mood stabilized little by little.

"I confess, I..." There was a low sobbing sound from the tent.

Gilles de Ace, who was on the battlefield for the first time, was confessing his sins: "I can save him. There are not many orcs chasing nearby, so I can. But, I... I have no face under the command of the captain fight."

Christa listened to the confession of the young third-level squad leader, comforted him and encouraged him gently.After the penitent little sergeant left, Griffith entered the tent and patted the girl on the shoulder.

The holy and solemn gesture returned to Krista again, she sat there quietly, nodding to the reunion who crossed life and death, pearly tears hung on her cheeks.

"Eat a little." Seeing her appearance, Griffith felt a burst of heartache.

"En," the girl responded softly, took a small bite, and stopped eating, "Leave it to the wounded."

In everyone's fear and expectation, she became the girl of Anjou again, and became an idol in the sense of mysticism.

Griffith's heart ached as if it was about to tear apart.

The arrangement on the battlefield has been activated, and Bayeran has been defeated.Of course, it doesn't matter if you fail once, and Byyelan lost a lot of battles.On the bright side, Odessa suffered a greater loss in this defeat.The believers of the Holy Light were the first to bear the brunt of the raid, and they did not have a strong core leader when they were defeated, and the losses of the two auxiliary legions were not small.

From the perspective of mysticism, this defeat had a greater impact on the prince, Holy Light and Odessa.Their sanity and faith inevitably began to disintegrate and collapse after witnessing Beamon and experiencing the tragic loss.

The real conspiracy has not yet been launched...

Griffith came to the temporary headquarters side by side with Christa full of dignity.Sonia and the nobles and officers, big and small, gathered together, waiting for him to come back to make up their minds.

The atmosphere here is so solemn that water is dripping down, the map is full of enemy movements and outflanking arrows, and anxiety is written on everyone's face.Sonia looked left and right, wanted to do something, but didn't know how to do it.

Really, isn't it just a losing battle? It's nothing compared to the spiraling vortex of conspiracy around Krista!Seeing how nervous everyone was, Griffith couldn't help but laughed again.

"Ha ha ha ha."

Everyone raised their heads together and looked at him in surprise.Kulala made a grimace: "Griffith, what are you laughing at?"

"I laugh at that orc's lack of resourcefulness and wisdom. If we send a light army, travel day and night, cross the river in front of us, and wait for work to intercept us, it will be really difficult. Everyone, we will build a bridge and cross the river tomorrow morning, so we can rest easy!"

Before the words fell, a scout rushed in:
"It's bad! The orcs have occupied the ferry on the other side of the river twenty miles ahead, we, we can't get through!"

Cold sweat dripping could be heard in the quiet headquarters.

Did this group of green skins fly over?Griffith felt a tightness in his chest and almost spit out a mouthful of blood.Kulala quietly raised two fingers for Dedius.

There is no choice now.

The pursuers behind may arrive at any time, and the river must be crossed as soon as possible.

Griffith organized the Storm Squadron and the few combat-capable troops to advance overnight, preparing to seize a ferry.But the orc army has held the other side of the river, making it impossible for them to rebuild the bridge over the river.

He could only stop the exhausted army, and led a group of light cavalry to advance upstream. He found an area with a narrow river and slow water flow, where a temporary bridge could be erected.

In the reddened east, fragments of thick bluish-purple clouds were blown away by the wind, and the sky grew brighter.The curly grass growing on the road in the forest looks brighter due to the wetness of the night rain; the low-hanging birch branches are wet, swaying in the breeze, and slantingly sprinkle crystal drops of water .

Griffith and the cavalry who followed him rode along the roadside between two rows of birch trees.Everyone's faces were getting thinner from exhaustion and hunger.

The forest here is very quiet, and shadowy phantoms haunt the woods, watching over here in the darkness.

Enemy, is it an enemy?Griffith gripped his lance tightly. In order to avoid being spotted by the enemy, he only brought a small group of light cavalry for this reconnaissance. If he encountered a large group of enemies, the current state of the troops might not be able to resist.

The shadow is getting closer and closer, ready to attack at any time.

"You retreat, I will come to the rear." Griffith rode his horse to the end, instructing the cavalry to leave quickly.

The thorns and vegetation on the ground suddenly grew wildly at a speed visible to the naked eye, ignoring the obstacles of the blood, and catching the horse's hooves like ropes.The light cavalry were taken aback, and the team suddenly became chaotic.They were anxious to break free, but the big tree around them came to life, whipping them with huge trunks and branches.

Elf?This is a common ability of elves, shouldn't it! ?Griffith almost rolled off the saddle in shock.

A vigorous black panther suddenly appeared from the shadows.Every movement of it is elegant and deadly, as if it is a natural shadow hunter.The panther slowly approached Griffith, and suddenly disappeared out of thin air.

Extraordinary creatures!Just as Griffith was about to meet the enemy, another huge beast rushed out of the woods and pounced on him.

This is a giant brown bear, unimaginably stout, with a light blue light flowing from its sharp front paws, its huge body and strong bristles are extremely powerful.

Griffith clashed with the giant bear, and the blow came from the blood thorn, which almost sent his lance flying.The brown bear roared, its giant claws swiped faster and faster, and the howling wind seemed to cause serious injuries if it brushed against the edge.

At the same moment, the panther reappeared from the shadows and lunged at the horse's leg.

Griffith pulled out Hanguang and waved his hand, the electric current repelled the giant bear, and the black panther retreated under the light.However, they immediately adjusted their posture and attacked again.

Griffith pulled the horse away, but the horse's hooves seemed to be rooted to the ground, and they were entangled in thorns and could not be pulled out.He jumped off his horse and fought on foot, swept the bear with his gun in his right hand, and fended off the panther with his sword in his left hand.

Immediately, new energy surged in the forest, and a group of thorns quickly grew and bundled towards Griffith's feet.

No, it shouldn't be, well, this is the front line, impossible, impossible!Looking at this force from nature, Griffith couldn't stop his eyelids from twitching.He spread his blood and swept away, and the thorns that rolled in immediately lost their vitality.He pulled out a smoke bomb made of gunpowder and dust crystals and threw it on the ground. His figure flashed out of the smoke and threw a blood thorn at the giant bear, piercing its hind leg and nailing it to the ground.

The panther roared and bit Griffith's neck, but the quasi-knight was as dry as mud and wood.

The real Griffith flashed out of the smoke, grabbed the panther by the nape of the neck, and raised his knee to its belly.The big cat flew out with a whimper, rolled on the ground and couldn't get up.

Meteor-like light roared through the forest, hitting Griffith's shield into pieces of light.

The quasi-knight rushed into the woods like a shell exploded.There was a tall female elf hidden there, and when she saw him rushing to her face, she screamed in panic.

Griffith gave her a kick, and the elf immediately flew out and hit a tree, fainting outright.

Griffith stepped forward slowly, picked up the elf mage and looked it over.She has a very handsome appearance, a slender figure, a little thin, and her face is pale from the pain.He hurriedly looked left and right vigilantly, and was relieved to find that there was no one else.

"Hahahahaha, scare me!"

Looking at the ability of this thorny entanglement, I thought it was Galadia who came... Whether it is Beamon or ambushes, in front of me, Griffith, they are all chickens and dogs, not worth mentioning.As long as Galadia doesn't come, I have nothing to fear between heaven and earth!There is nothing to be afraid of at all!
He was laughing and twitching all over his face, and a silver sharp blade patted his shoulder.

"Griffith, what are you laughing at?" Galadia appeared out of the forest in a uniform, and tilted her head towards him.

"Of course, of course it's because I knew you were here," Griffith almost knelt down on the ground, "I, I'm happy, I'm so happy!"

(End of this chapter)