our family is gone

Lance's idea is very simple, that is to send a small group of elites to occupy these places, first control the entrances and exits, and at the same time, large forces will sweep them away and force out all the cultists hiding in the wilderness, leaving them with nowhere to escape. .

But actual operation is a bit more complicated.

Because there were not so many troops to control, Lance decided to keep only three key targets as targets after comparing the map, and the rest were all destroyed.

Target No. [-] is the closest to the outpost, Target No. [-] is the farthest to the north, and No. [-] is in the middle as the name suggests. This was chosen because although the route is dilapidated, it can be barely used with simple repairs.

As for the other few, since they had no ability to utilize them, they would all explode.

I can't get it, and neither can you.

This task is very difficult and requires going deep into the wilderness in a short period of time, and it has to be carried out in the dark late at night. The number of people cannot be too large, otherwise it will easily alarm the cultists.

To complete this task, the Guards are undoubtedly the most suitable.

"Leave this task to the Guards. Five teams of five people will set off late at night, complete the blasting mission in the early morning, and then gather to hold on to the northernmost target."

The person in charge of the Guards is Lance himself, and it is impossible for Lance to let anyone else get involved. Geralt and the others are just instructors.

Therefore, this order is given to himself, and he will arrange the personal guards in detail when the time comes.

But that's just the beginning.

"Barlistan, I need you to lead the second team from here and jump right in!" As he spoke, Lance raised his hand to draw a route, staggering the target No. [-] and going directly to No. [-]. If the army enters, it will really be a disaster. It's like inserting it.

"Along this route, leave thirty people on Target No. [-] to build simple fortifications to block the cultists and guard against enemy counterattacks. Then you lead the remaining people to support Target No. [-] in the north, and cooperate with the pro- The Guards held their ground.”

With that said, Lance looked at Barton again.

"If you want men, I will give you men. If you want horses, I will give you horses. I don't care what happens to you. Just get to target No. [-] as soon as possible when the war starts.

Bring the artillery to the position and set it up for me. We must take over target No. [-] before the cultists react. I will blast whoever shows up and completely block it. "

After Lance inspected the artillery last time, Patton paid close attention to it. After a lot of consumption, he piled up skilled gunners. Now Hamlet can only operate twenty guns.

During this period of preparation, Patton also went out to investigate. The roads in these wilderness are definitely not easy to walk, but the six-pounder cannon is a small cannon, and a horse can barely pull it. As for ammunition and other supplies, a There are seven people in the artillery unit, and they can carry it even on their backs.

"Don't worry, sir, I promise to complete the mission!" Barton also looked solemn. This is his first battle to prove himself, and he must do it well.

"We have already figured out the old roads built in the past. There is no problem in route planning. It can be used as long as it is simply cleared."

Lance raised his hand and pointed to a line on the map.

"This time I have recruited five hundred reform-through-labor prisoners and thirty carriages. I must clear this road for me. It won't take long. I just need the carriages to be able to go and the cavalry to be able to run."

This road is related to our logistics and troop projection. Whether it is support or retreat, it is very critical. It can even be said to be our lifeline. "

This is basically the infantry sweeping up the front and then starting to build roads behind them, building roads wherever they hit.

If Gene hadn't contributed a group of reform-through-labor prisoners and carriages, it would still be very difficult for Lance to raise them all.

Thank you for the gift of nature...

"To complete the blockade of them, the northern part of the wilderness is very critical. The first wave of impact here will be borne by the Guards, and Barristan's support will be very critical.

I want the cavalry to start fighting directly from the northwest to cut off their westward escape route, and then send a hundred infantry to go over and cooperate with them to kill as many cultists as possible and drive them back.

The remaining people attacked directly, pulling a net to conduct an investigation and shrink the encirclement. Either they jumped into the sea from the east, or they were surrounded to death. "

After laying out the battle plan, Lance warned in a deep voice.

"Martial law will begin from now on. No one can leave the outpost without my order. Now go back and prepare for tomorrow's battle."

"Yes! Guaranteed to complete the mission."

Lance asked some people to go back to prepare, and also left some behind.

"Those cultists will definitely not be willing to be besieged by us, so they will definitely counterattack to seize these passages that have not been blown down."

Leonard, Barristan, and Barton all had to be with the army, so there weren't many people on site who could move.

"Geralt, Alhazred, and Tardif, you three go to Target [-] to help Barristan defend. Although there are personal guards, there may not be extraordinary people among these cultists, so I need you to take action.

What's more important is that it's not just the encirclement that needs to be watched out for, but also the direction of the ruins further north. Cultist support is likely to come from that direction and must be defended. "

"Lord, please rest assured, those cultists cannot cross target three." Barristan chose the most dangerous one.

"The location of target No. [-] in the middle is also critical, because once the army crosses target No. [-], there will be only one escape exit left in the encirclement. The cultists will definitely attack crazily, so they will bear a lot of pressure. Boudica , Disma, Junia, you go assist Barton."

Lance fell into silence when he said this, and everyone who was waiting for him to speak couldn't help but feel a little strange.

Because these entrances and exits were guarded and bombed, but this one lord did not make clear the arrangements.

"Sir, what about target No. [-]?"

"Do not care."

Everyone had a strange reaction when he said this. You must know that once the frontline troops cross over, then No. [-] is equivalent to being behind them, threatening their backs, as well as their logistics security, and also threatening the outpost.

"How about blowing it up?"

Someone made a suggestion, but Lance smiled and explained.

"There will definitely be cultists in the cave. If we don't leave a hole, how can they dare to come out on their own?
  Once we take action, the cult will know that the outpost is empty, and I will see if they dare to come. "

Wars have a purpose, they are not fought just for the sake of fighting.

Lance's battle is not only to regain the wilderness, but also to kill the enemy's effective forces as much as possible and weaken their strength.

Because he knew that once the Ascension Sect retreated to the ruins of the old city, the huge group of ruins would plunge Hamlet's army into a terrifying situation of street fighting.

What the three left behind were all decoys. No. [-] said they were intercepting, but in fact they were luring reinforcements from the ruins. They were encircling the site for reinforcements.

Number two is to lure the cultists in the encirclement and let them gather on their own.

And the one closest to the outpost directly placed an "empty city" in front of them to see if they dared to come up.

After all, as long as the outpost is captured, the original siege will turn into a counter-siege, and the cut off Hamlet's army will be the ancestor's midnight snack.

Cultists are not afraid of death, but the old ancestor will not blindly die, so if he wants to lure them out, Lance doesn't believe that the old guy can bear it...

"Okay, there will be no problem. Now let's go down and prepare. This battle will decide whether Hamlet will open up the situation, or whether he can only continue to be trapped in such a small place." There was no more nonsense at all, and they all left and got busy preparing for the coming war.

I have to say that they are also crazy, knowing that this operation will mobilize almost all of Hamlet's troops, once the operation begins. All that was left at the outpost was the logistics, and they didn't have much combat effectiveness at all.

In other words, the lord defends the city alone.

You must know that this is their escape route. Once attacked by the cultists, they will be alone without any supplies.

If you can agree to go crazy with him, how much trust do you have to have in Lance, the lord?

No, they should all be crazy.

At least that's what Margaret thought.

I originally thought that Lance would have some good way to deal with the No. [-] target who stayed behind on purpose, but didn't expect this?

But even those who have never participated in the war know that this is unreliable.

But looking at the expressions of those leaving, they were even a little dazed, and I couldn't help but wonder, are these guys really reliable?
  Margaret had just stood aside like a follower, but now she hurriedly approached Lance when the show was over, eager to persuade him to calm down.

"I'm not afraid, so what are you afraid of?" Lance looked at her with a smile, "If you are afraid, you can go back with the logistics vehicle early tomorrow morning."

"Who's scared?" Margaret wanted to defend herself, but she instantly realized that she didn't get sucked in and instead grasped the problem.

"What if the cultists really attack? Can we defend with this few people? At least leave some people to defend."

As she said this, she wanted to win over her teammates to increase their persuasiveness. The one she was more familiar with here was Laura, who was also leaning against the wall just now without saying a word.

"Right Laura."

"I think it's okay." Laura didn't mean to talk nonsense, and the cold voice came from under the hood.

What a joke, this man feels like he could kill a knight, and nothing feels safer than being by his side.

He alone is an army!
  Margaret couldn't help but be stunned by Laura's words, and her originally serious aura couldn't help but shrink.

At this time, I couldn’t help but doubt myself: Why doesn’t everyone have an opinion? Is it really my problem?
  "Don't be nervous. You and Laura don't have to go directly to the battlefield. They are just defending the city. It's not difficult."

Lance did not continue to hit her, but comforted her.

"Ah? Aren't I working with the Guards?"

"I'm the commander, and whatever I say is what I say." Lance didn't mean to give her any nonsense at all, and he fooled her back in a few moments.

When everyone left, Lance looked at the map alone and fell into deep thought.

This battle was very costly, and he had staked everything on it. It was even difficult to organize a second battle in a short period of time. Even Tiffany did not hesitate to force him to ask for money to remind him that Hamlet's economy could not survive.

Not only is the preparation for the war costly in the early stages, but also how many casualties will there be afterward?

Pensions, injuries, rewards... all of these were placed on Lance's head, and that kind of pressure might have collapsed on another person.

Do you really think that the confidence and ease he showed when talking and laughing in front of those people meant that there was no pressure at all?
  Just because he can bear it doesn't mean he doesn't feel pain.

But this battle must be fought again. What happened one after another shows that the ancestor's power is constantly increasing.

Whether it is Bastia or the Imperial Civil War, once the war affects Hamlet, all his efforts will be in vain.

He must try his best to solve the problem of his ancestor before chaos comes to Hamlet. Even if he cannot solve it, he should try his best to weaken him.

"Fuck!" Lance didn't know what he thought of, and suddenly he gritted his teeth and whispered into the air, his slightly ferocious face like that of a gambler.

I must win this battle!
  …………

Hamlet.

Lance has mobilized almost all the soldiers, and now the security of those farms and towns is provided by militiamen and sheriffs.

A group of militiamen were convened in the name of exercise training, and disabled veterans were used as commanders to deploy the defense. They even recruited some trained reserve youths such as Joan of Arc to assist in the defense.

This configuration is definitely useful, but how useful it is depends on the situation.

There are bound to be many people who cannot sleep tonight, and Greendale is one of them.

After dark, I personally patrol to check whether the measures are effective to ensure that even if there is a problem, I can respond immediately.

Lance handed Hamlet to her, and she also understood the importance of this battle, and she knew that problems in the town must not delay it.

Fortunately, Hamlet has just started, everyone is full of enthusiasm, even the "temporary workers" are not lazy, everything is running normally.

After going around in a circle, Greendale found Amanda. Lance did not let her participate in the war, but stayed in Hamlet.

"You haven't slept yet?"

"Aren't you the same~" Amanda agreed with a smile.

"I want to divine whether there will be any problems in the town."

"Oh~ Miss Dale also believes this?" Amanda laughed and complained, "To be honest, I don't really believe this myself after meeting him."

Amanda talked a lot, but the steps of divination did not stop.

This was a bit of a joke, but it was also how she felt.

Before coming to Hamlet, she was used to doing everything first, and if the results were not good, she would postpone or leave.

There has been no problem for so many years, and it has even avoided a lot of trouble for her.

You must know that the results of divination before coming to Hamlet were very good. It would not be a problem to catch Tamara, get a promotion and a salary to reach the peak of life.

But when he arrived, he was not caught, and was even beaten. He was imprisoned for a few days, and then inexplicably he became what he is now.

But I took this opportunity to see clearly the teacher and the organization. I wonder if this is good luck as a result of divination?
  Sometimes she really wonders if Lance has any magic power, and what he says is like a spell that makes people uncontrollable.

Just as Amanda was teasing, she turned over the drawn card. When she saw the card, she paused for a moment, then slowly raised her head to meet Greendale's eyes.

Although he didn't speak, he...

"Actually, I don't believe it either." Greendale's expression was a little solemn, but in an instant she smiled and raised her hand to press the card.