novelhk Chapter 467 Battle of Revenge
Chapter 467 Battle of Revenge
The morning mist rolled through the canyon. Andilo's black battle flag pierced through the mist, and the gilded griffin emblem fluttered in the wind.
This knight general of the Romanian Empire was wearing heavy armor inlaid with rubies. The black warhorse under his crotch pawed the bloody soil restlessly, and every time the horse's hooves landed, it crushed a few pieces of broken chain mail.
"Captain Alpha! Do you know the consequences of attacking the Imperial Knights?" Andilo's roar shook the rubble on the cliff and pointed his sword at the silver-haired figure in the opposite formation. "Put down your weapons and surrender to the Imperial Military Court immediately!"
Alpha leaned against the carved chariot, his scarlet cloak drooping in the mottled bloodstains.
Alpha slowly twirled his sword and asked the question to Mashu beside him.
Mashu, the leader of the shadow elves, stepped forward on the wreckage, her emerald eyes flickering under her hood: "General Andilo, when your army raided the Druid tribe last night and the war spread to our territory, did you ever think that this was the behavior of the Imperial Knights?"
Mashu's voice was as cold as ice, and the poisoned short blade at her waist made light noises with her steps.
"Hand over the druids, and I will ensure that you can escape unscathed." Andilo reined in his restless warhorse, the friction of the armor was harsh, "Otherwise, your camp will become the graveyard of the next druid tribe."
Mashu suddenly laughed sharply, startling a flock of crows in the woods: "Promise? When your army's crossbow arrows pierced our scout's chest, the so-called "promise" was no different from the rotten meat that fed the maggots!"
The elf archers behind Mash drew their bows at the same time, and the magical light flowing on the arrows dyed the morning mist an eerie green.
Andilo's face instantly turned pale, and he ripped open the armor at his collar: "Look at what you are protecting! Those druids drank the poisonous spring of the abyss, and now their bodies are covered with mutant tentacles, and they will tear anyone into pieces when they see them!"
He pointed to the charred woods in the distance, where several twisted corpses were emitting strange purple smoke, "If you keep them, you will all be buried with them!"
"It's not the place for outsiders to comment on the life and death of a druid. Besides, all this was caused by you. Don't play the thief crying thief." Alpha finally spoke, slamming his sword heavily on the ground, and the sparks that flew out illuminated his cold face.
"Want to go to the canyon? Use your horses to exchange for the road. I need to be guaranteed safety." Alpha's eyes swept across the neat array of cavalry of the bandit group. The knights without mounts were nothing more than wild dogs with their teeth pulled out.
"What a wishful thinking!" Andilo's horse suddenly stood up, almost crushing the shield array in front of it with its front hooves, "Let me tell you - the druid's holy relic can control the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, which is enough to subvert the entire continent!"
He ripped open his cloak, revealing the hideous claw marks on his chest, "We fought desperately to get it last night, just to prevent it from falling into the hands of the devil!"
Alpha's pupils shrank slightly, but a mocking smile remained on his face: "If it is so precious, why haven't I seen the druid use it to turn the tide of the battle?"
Alpha stroked the dull gemstone on the sword and said, "You are the one who even went to such lengths to make up a story just to tell a lie."
Andilo suddenly burst into laughter, with a bit of madness in his laughter: "Believe it or not!"
He turned his horse's head sharply, and the battle flag swept across Alpha's nose. "When the mutant druid's poisonous mist engulfs you, you will regret your stupidity today!"
The sound of horse hooves gradually faded away, but left an uneasy suspense in the air.
The sunrise dyed the highlands dark gold. Quintey's knuckles turned slightly white as he gripped the hilt of his sword. In the flickering light of the torch, he finally couldn't help but break the silence: "Lord Alpha, is what they said true? Does the Druid tribe really have a secret treasure that can change the world?"
Before he finished speaking, the air around him seemed to suddenly freeze, and even the chirping of insects in the distance became exceptionally clear.
Alpha leaned against the bloodstained watchtower, his silver armor glowing coldly in the afterglow.
Alpha lowered his eyes and wiped the dried blood from his sword, his voice low and firm: "No secret treasure can subvert the world, all changes come from the human heart. This is just a bait thrown by the enemy, trying to make us suspicious of each other and lose our composure."
Having said that, Alpha's grip on the sword tightened unconsciously - the legends of the Druid Holy Spring and the Fusion Stone were too bizarre, and even though he never believed in rumors, he had to be on guard.
"Quinte, Mash, Baras, you go and rest first." Alpha turned and looked at the battlefield shrouded in dusk. Among the broken walls, the campfires of the Hague bandits were twinkling, but strangely, there was no sound at all.
Those bandits who were usually extremely vicious were now as quiet as dormant poisonous snakes, and no one knew what conspiracy they were brewing.
Alpha stroked the lines on the hilt, his eyes swept across the distant mountains and forests, and suddenly said: "Mingyue, you have dark circles under your eyes, go to sleep until night. Let the stars accompany me during the day, and you will be responsible for delivering messages to me at night."
After everyone dispersed, Alpha called the elf girl Fanxing and said, "Go and ask the druid priest Balman. I have something important to discuss with you."
Alpha looked at the wild grass swaying in the wind outside the camp, his thoughts drifting further away.
The matter of the secret treasure can be put aside, but the intricate terrain of the Druid Tribe must be understood - those dormant bandits may attack in the cover of night.
A moment later, Priest Baalman came hurriedly.
The middle-aged druid priest just watched the unconscious elf Gulina take the healing herbs, her breathing gradually stabilized, and her face regained some color.
"Captain Alpha, please go ahead." Balman's voice was hoarse, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were still stained with dust from the battle.
"Is there any other exit to the tribe? Can we be surrounded by the enemy?" Alpha pointed to the mountains and forests in the distance. There was smoke rising from the chimneys, and it was unclear whether it was an enemy or a friend.
Balman pondered for a moment, and slid his skinny fingers across the map: "This forest seems to be connected in all directions, but this main road is the only one that can accommodate a large army. The other trails are rugged and difficult to pass, and cavalry cannot pass at all. At most, they can only accommodate a small team of 34 people."
"What about the tribe?" Alpha asked with a frown, his nails scratching on the wooden table.
The Druid Tribe has been occupied for several days, and Alpha absolutely does not believe that there is only one way to survive in such a large territory.
"The other passage leads to the Misty Mountains." Balman's voice suddenly dropped, "But that is a unique migration route for us druids. Even if outsiders force their way through, it will take at least seven days. In comparison, they are more likely to attack from the mountain forest trail."
Alpha was silent for a long time, then suddenly changed the subject: "What are your plans for the future?"
Alpha already had a plan in mind - as long as the Hague bandits did not attack again, he would quietly break camp tonight.
The supply of the mining town was urgent, and they could not stay here for long.
Balmain's shoulders trembled slightly, and tears welled up in his cloudy eyes: "Our holy spring has been polluted, our homes have been destroyed... We can only migrate, but where can we find a place to stay in this vast continent?"
Suddenly, Balman knelt on one knee, and pleaded in an old voice: "Lord Alpha, can you take us away? We are willing to sign a blood pact and be an eternal ally!"
"Get up." Alpha held out his hand, but his tone was as cold as iron. "The contract is just a piece of paper. What I need is mutual benefit and win-win, not a one-sided burden."
Alpha turned and looked at the gradually hot sun, with a flash of determination in his eyes: "Baruch! Take thirty people to dig horse pits around, and then use dead wood to make some chariot models. Remember, make sure the entire forest is "covered" with our defenses!"
The night wind swept through the camp carrying the smell of blood, and Alpha tightly grasped the horn at his waist.
The mining city five hundred kilometers away is the final destination of their operation.
Before leaving, Alpha must teach those thieves who are hiding their heads and showing their tails a lesson they will never forget.
The dusk dyed the sky a deep blood red, and the battlefield was filled with suffocating silence after the rain of arrows stopped.
This seemed to be the bandit group's last attack during the day, and there had been no large-scale conflict for almost an hour.
The elf Evelyn clenched the trembling longbow in her hands, her emerald eyes reflecting the bonfires flickering in the distance, and she nervously tugged at the corner of Alpha's clothes.
"Master Alpha, why don't those people attack us?" Her voice was filled with the panic of a deer in the woods, and her ears trembled slightly as she spoke.
Alpha, whose silver hair was like pouring moonlight, lowered his eyes and wiped the edge of the sword, and dark red blood flowed down along the delicate lines.
He did not respond immediately, but turned to look at Melissa who was wearing a crow feather cloak beside him.
The moment the two looked at each other, their tacit understanding was like a taut bowstring, ready to analyze the situation into arrows and shoot at the enemy at any time.
Melissa's fingertips traced the map accurately, and her hoarse voice, like a dead leaf, was full of the calmness of a veteran: "Princess, those people have scattered, and they seem to be looking for a way to get around."
She paused, and pointed her jade-like finger at the eastern mountains, "There are probably 34 people on the eastern road. It's not that they won't attack, but they are ready to completely surround us and annihilate us in one fell swoop."
Before he finished speaking, the howling of wolves could be heard in the distance, as if it was the prelude to this death siege.
Evelyn subconsciously took a half step back, and the oak tree behind her suddenly made a teeth-grinding creaking sound.
Only then did she realize that the bark was densely covered with arrows, emitting a cold glow in the twilight.
When Evelyn turned to look at Alpha, she saw that she had casually tied her hair into a neat bun, and the moonlight cast a firm shadow on her angular profile.
The entire battlefield situation was reflected in those violet eyes, like an emperor planning his strategy.
"Okay! I'm glad you noticed it." Evelyn took a deep breath, trying to calm her pounding heart.
She suddenly remembered her mother teaching her to identify the paths of stars in the Elf Forest when she was a child. The calm look in her eyes at this moment was as reassuring as it was then.
The night wind swept across the camp, lifting the corners of Alpha's cloak, as if it were a victory flag about to be unfurled.
The night was as dark as ink, and Eagle's Beak Cliff cast an eerie shadow in the moonlight.
Alpha, wrapped in a black cloak, paced back and forth in the makeshift command tent, his eyes under the bronze mask as sharp as an eagle.
This was a battle of revenge that Alpha had been planning all day, and for this moment, he had assembled the most elite warriors in the tribe.
"Baruch, are all the traps ready?" Alpha called the captains of each team again and slammed the holy sword in his hand heavily on the ground, making a dull echo.
This time, Alpha will make those bandits pay a heavy price for their greed and let them know that not everyone can be provoked.
Baruch, a short but very strong dwarf warrior, stepped forward, and the sound of armor colliding made a crisp sound: "Lord Alpha, it's all done! The chevaux de frise stakes are buried deep underground, and the rolling stones and traps are ready to go, waiting for the enemy to fall into the trap!"
Baruch's scarred face was full of determination, and the battle axe at his waist gleamed coldly in the candlelight.
Alpha nodded slightly and turned to another dwarf captain: "Baras, how are those wooden chariots used to confuse the enemy?"
He wanted to use these carefully crafted fake chariots to give the bandits the illusion that their main force had been deployed and that they were determined to fight to the death.
"Don't worry, sir!" Barras straightened his chest and smiled confidently, "We deliberately smeared mud on the surface of the chariot and hung a broken shield on it to ensure that the enemy will not be able to tell the real one from the fake one!"
This experienced dwarf master craftsman has already paid attention to details to the extreme.
"Da Gama, how is the evacuation of the Druid tribe going?" Alpha asked in a deliberately calm tone.
Although Alpha was unwilling to admit his alliance with the druids, he secretly arranged for elite troops to protect their evacuation.
Da Gama immediately knelt on one knee and said, "Sir, the druids have safely evacuated five kilometers from Eagle's Beak Cliff. After several rounds of cooperation, our tacit understanding has become better and better, and the action is faster than expected!"
At this moment, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside the tent. A dark elf scout rushed into the tent: "Report! The enemy in the dense forest on the east side has begun to move!"
A cold light flashed in Alpha's eyes, and he clenched the scepter in his hand: "Okay! Everyone, take your positions and prepare to close the net! The goal this time is to annihilate the enemy's living forces and let them know the price of provoking us!"
The brief and powerful command made all the soldiers present feel the determination to win.
Eagle's Beak Cliff is exceptionally quiet late at night, with only the rustling sound of the mountain breeze passing through the treetops.
Alpha stood at a hidden observation point halfway up the mountain, staring at the movements below the mountain through the darkness.
With the faint moonlight, Alpha could clearly see the shadowy figures of enemies in the dense forest, approaching cautiously on both sides of the road.
In front of the mountain pass, the main force of the bandit group also began to stir.
In their eyes, the defense of Eagle's Beak Cliff was useless, and the "guards" in the outpost were motionless and completely defenseless.
Suddenly, a flare exploded in the sky, and a red light cut through the night sky.
Almost at the same moment, the bandits rushed towards the outpost like a tide, and the ambushes on both sides quickly attacked.
They covered the mouth and nose of the "guard" with skillful movements, and flashed the dagger - but the expected blood did not appear, and the "guard" in their hands turned out to be a dummy carved out of wood!
Just when the bandits were stunned, a deafening roar suddenly sounded in the valley.
The violent knights led by Quinte rushed out like thunder, and the sound of horse hooves shook the ground.
Alpha deliberately did not use crossbows in order to make the main force of the bandits in the mountain pass mistakenly believe that they had broken through the defense line and lure them out in full force.
"Kill!" The mutant warriors brandished their weapons and rushed out from all directions.
As for the bandits traveling through the dense forest, most of them did not wear heavy plate armor due to their limited mobility. Faced with the well-equipped defenders, they soon fell into despair.
"Charge!" The main force of the bandit knights finally couldn't hold back any longer and let out a thunderous shout.
However, what awaits them is a death trap carefully laid out by Alpha...