Quit being a knight and become a mercenary

145 – Battle of the Abe River (3)

Forest near the Abe River.

I, Martin Mayer, am in ambush in the forest near the river with Unit Commander Heinz and half of the Whitebeard mercenaries.

“I’m dying to stab those idiots in the back right now, it’s driving me crazy.”

Outside the forest, Baron Maurer’s soldiers are preparing to cross the river…

That scene looks so pathetic that it’s hard to stop laughing.

Guys who take on the role of commanders, such as knights, mercenary leaders, or mercenary executives, give orders while wielding a sword as a baton.

“Be vigilant around your surroundings! “You never know when and where the enemy might jump out and ambush you!”

It is a natural thing for a commander to be on guard against surprise attacks in a ‘river crossing situation’, which is one of the moments when the army is weakest.

I am absolutely not saying that giving orders like this is funny.

Rather, I would like to at least clap my hands and praise him for not letting down his guard while continuing to give instructions.

But why am I laughing at this…

‘But aren’t the soldiers carrying out orders in good condition?’

I don’t know if there are dark circles on my face because I’m looking at it from a distance, or if my cheeks have become saggy and haggard.

However, the marching soldiers are dragging their long spears on the ground, unable to maintain even the ‘minimum angle’.

“It’s so heavy I’m going crazy, please help me…”

Although that long spear is 4 to 5 meters long, it only weighs 1.5 Kg. If it is difficult to carry it with one arm, then all is said and done.

Commander Heinz came next to me and chuckled in a low voice.

“Those idiots. “The knights were all wearing armor, but the soldiers were all worn out, so they didn’t even wear quilted armor, let alone armor.”

“The quilted armor is thick cotton clothing, but it’s so heavy that I can’t wear it, so I guess I’m pretty tired.”

“I guess they treated the kids like dogs just because they got hit by surprise. He’s like a stupid baron. “He is someone who tells us to be on high alert because he might be attacked at any moment, but he is unable to prepare for the really important time.”

Boss Commander Heinz and I know him very well.

Baron Maurer deployed soldiers and did his best on guard and reconnaissance, which made those guys so tired, but it was for the best.

That’s because a single surprise attack caused enormous damage and all the soldiers became anxious, so they had no choice but to strengthen their ‘vigilance’.

In addition, if you invest a lot of manpower in reconnaissance, you can catch the hint of the ‘large group of soldiers who surprised them’ at least an hour before they attack Baron Maurer’s army…

‘You would have thought that you would have enough time to put on armor and prepare for battle.’

I clicked my tongue and muttered.

“If you’re going to do it, you have to do it right. “Those who use their brains clumsily end up like dogs.”

As I waited with bated breath along with Unit Commander Heinz, they finally started to move.

“The river is quite deep! So be very careful when driving a horse or carriage.”

“If the horse starts running wild, there is no answer, so bring several people together just in case!”

“You must cross the river carefully and quickly.”

When Baron Maurer’s army’s crossing operation began in earnest, everyone around me, including me, gulped.

Then, I watched them cross the river, holding my breath as much as possible.

‘The dam has to be broken down when about half of the river has crossed.’

My heart was pounding, and cold sweat began to flow all over my body.

“It may be 5km away, but there is no way we wouldn’t see an army of that size, so we wouldn’t miss the timing, right?”

In the meantime, the vanguard of the enemy army crossed the river and stepped on the ground.

“f*ck, I crossed safely!”

“I was worried that an arrow might fly while crossing the river.”

“For the past few days, we haven’t even seen the enemy lift his nose, so don’t worry about anything.”

The army under Baron Maurer continued to cross the river little by little, and when about 1/3 of the soldiers crossed to the other side.

“The sound of rustling leaves? “Are you a scout?”

It seems like they are enemy scouts who have discovered us, as they do not step carefully, one or two steps, but rather take frequent steps.

‘f*ck, if the ambush is discovered here, I’m going to collapse?’

Then, when I looked in the direction where the sound came from, I saw someone who looked like an enemy and not one of our mercenaries running away.

Instead of shouting something with words, he tried to blow by holding a whistle to his mouth.

Karin aimed the bow in the guy’s direction and shot straight away.

“It’s already too late.”

Before he could make a sound, his throat was pierced and he died.

Even though Karin was in the middle of an operation, she came next to me, smiled, and whispered in my ear.

“Did I do well?”

“Yes, thanks to my senior, we escaped the risk of the operation failing.”

If the enemy scouts had blown their whistles and let it be known that we were in ambush, the entire operation would have been ruined.

At this time, one of the knights under Baron Maurer laughed loudly.

“It looks like there is no ambush since our troops have already crossed half the river and there is not even a shadow of the enemy yet. Everyone, hurry up and cross the river!”

In games and dramas, the kid who says things like that usually dies first, but…

In reality, ‘I will get married when this war is over.’ ‘My wife is pregnant. Saying things like ‘Is it a son or a daughter?’ Does not increase the chance of death.

However, there is a magic formula that works everywhere, whether in reality, games, novels, or dramas.

‘There is no ambush or surprise attack!’

In the same way, when a high-ranking person boasts and shows off, something bad is bound to happen.

“Why is that bastard digging his own grave with his own mouth?”

As I muttered, Commander Heinz tapped my shoulder.

“Martin, look at that. “Water is coming in.”

At the place Heinz pointed to, a huge amount of water was pouring down towards Baron Maurer’s army at a very high speed.

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Everyone, regardless of whether they were knights, mercenary leaders, mercenary officers, or ordinary soldiers, all screamed at the sight.

“Save the people, Deus!”

“I decided to get married if I win this war!”

“Mom! Help me!”

When a thunderstorm of water fell at a level that could not be resisted by human power, the group that had maintained the appearance of an ‘army’ disappeared in an instant.

One soldier tried to push his allies and move forward, saying he would survive by any means possible.

“Get out of the way, damn it!”

The other guy was so devastated that he just stood there blankly.

“He just died.”

In addition, the horses pulling the carriage ran wild, turning the river into complete chaos.

Those who had already crossed the river or had not entered the river yet were equally very confused.

“f*ck, it’s an enemy attack! “It’s the enemy!”

The soldiers, not knowing when or where we would appear, pointed their spears at the sky and started looking around wildly.

However, it is not easy to find the enemy who has ambushed us even when we are sane, so how can we find ourselves in a state of panic and confusion?

Guys wearing steel armor that looks like commanders are frozen in place…

Some noblemen began to cry out desperately like parents who lost their children.

“No, no! “Our soldiers and our army cannot suffer like this!”

In the meantime, some high-ranking people got off their horses and gave orders while waving their flags loudly.

“The enemy is nearby! Everyone gather together and prepare for a sudden attack!”

But who can come to their senses when the soldiers in front of them are ‘swept away by the water and turn into water ghosts’?

“Enemy? Whatever the enemy, please save me! “We were all dragged in!”

We who were watching it from the side had to endure it, covering our mouths with our hands and gurgling.

“Those bastards, will it be cool?”

Otto had tears in his eyes as he was holding back laughter.

“Oh my, those poor things.”

There is nothing more enjoyable than watching the water across the river, or even watching the enemy soldiers being swept away by the water and leaving this world.

‘The more unhappy those bastards are, the more profit and fame we get!’

Furthermore, if you were to unilaterally defeat someone when it wasn’t a war, you would naturally feel guilty, but since this is ‘during a war’, it would be a very good thing to beat them up without paying attention to the other side.

Commander Heinz now stopped covering his mouth with his hand and chuckled.

“With guys like that, I’m not scared even if 5,000 people come, not 2,000. Hey guys, what are you doing! “Shoot signal arrows and magic!”

After about thirty seconds, the sound of an arrow cutting through the wind and a fireball were fired from Captain Dalton on the other side.

It is crazy to attack the majority with a minority, but even a minority can be enough to defeat a confused majority.

‘There is no need to kill all 2,000 people anyway, so just kill as many as possible and get out.’

“Commander, let’s go quickly.”

Heinz lowered his helmet’s face shield, pointed forward, and gave an order.

“Shoot arrows and magic! “It’s time to kill those bastards without leaving a single one behind!”