When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 580 - 558 Battle of Black Lettuce Village (Part 3)

"Praise the Holy Wind!"

The leading temple knight was the first to be hit.

He had just stood up on his stirrups, calling out the names of his companions.

Then came a loud explosion, and the temple knight's chest plate armor suddenly blew open, blood jetting out like it had no fear of death.

As if struck by an invisible giant hammer, the knight let out a roar amidst the shattered armor on his chest, and flipped over, plunging off his horse.

People didn't even see how he died; they only saw the peacock feather on his helmet fluttering upward into the sky.

Like a wild duck turned into minced meat by a lead shot.

"Dismount, take cover!"

The other Imperial Knights, who were several versions behind Ailard, recalled the terror of the battlefield.

They either lay flat on their horse's backs or clumsily jumped off their mounts.

Compared to Ailard's terrifyingly sharp instincts, their reactions were far too slow.

Hundreds of clockwork guns erupted with shrill roars in synchrony with the orderly commands.

Chunks of lead shot flew, and the crowded knights had nowhere to hide.

In the midst of agonized cries and the whinnies of horses, delineated by the edges of the street and rooftops, wisps of blood mist and spurts of blood erupted one after another.

Like the crackle of beans popping, knights on horseback fell one after another.

Terrified warhorses wheeled, trampling over fallen priests and knights, grinding fragments of viscera and flesh into a puddle of bright red mud.

However, clockwork guns are not machine guns; after a burst volley, they entered a brief reloading phase for a three-stage volley.

While all the knights were still paralyzed in terror and blood, Ailard seemed to turn back time, hooking his ankle onto his saddle, and with a whoosh, slid from the ground to the horse's back.

Silently hugging the horse's neck, he poured a potion into the horse's mouth, and in the blink of an eye, he was already several meters away.

"Quick, while they're winding the guns, let's rush out!"

"It's too crowded; don't engage here."

Only then did the Imperial Knights suddenly realize, mounting their horses, they chased after Ailard's lone figure trying to break free from this death trap.

The knights lay flat on their horse's backs, carrying kite-shaped shields for consolation, scrambling wildly down the cramped street.

Their warhorses' hooves clashed and collided, manes matted with blood and sweat, occasionally slipping on the blood-slick ground and toppling over.

The most suffocating was the swarm of lead shots chasing them like locusts, and the occasional barrage from either side knocking their companions off their horses.

Amid the shockwaves and flying lead, the knights never felt the hundred meters of this village street to be so long.

Yet, there was a glimpse of hope; following Ailard bursting out of the street, less than a hundred temple knights also managed to break through.

The faces of the pursuing Imperial Order Knights behind the temple knights even bore hopeful smiles, but before they could fully emerge, a searing wind met them head-on.

At least ten fireballs rose from behind the houses, crashing in front of the temple knights.

Behind the wall of fire, the long spearmen who were strategically hiding miles away finally arrived.

"Close to the center, shoulder to shoulder!"

"Charge!"

Amid the synchronized stomps, first the front row, then the second and third, the spears lowered in waves like steps, targeting the Imperial Knights behind the fire wall.

The dazzling, sharp spears formed a hedgehog-like long wall, blocking this country lane tightly.

Through the gaps between the houses lining the street, knights could see black-clad soldiers clutching long muskets sprinting.

Dark gun muzzles protruded again, aiming at the remaining eighty-plus Imperial Knights, over fifty Square Banner Knights, and over thirty Squire Knights.

And visibly farther behind, two corps were rapidly approaching.

After all, the village was only so big, and accommodating four hundred Holy Gunmen without exposing them was already commendable, not to mention the disguise of the Saint Sun's Army as fallen villagers.

Even two corps of long spearmen had to ambush in the fields outside the village, luckily hidden by the overgrown weeds, preventing Ailard from discovering them.

Lauren never intended to wipe out all the knights with one ambush; ultimately, the resolution relied on a close combat assault by the spearmen.

Yet, facing these nearly two hundred knights, half-dead and demoralized, and several thousand comrades behind them, the outcome of this battle was already sealed; it only depended on how much gain could be reaped.

"Front row kneel, second and third row stand firm, the devil's hounds are charging!"

Holding a spear in the third row, Lauren shouted loudly.

He was born a Holy Gunman but it didn't prevent him from motivating the spearmen.

Quickly, an intense melee and relentless gunfire enveloped this narrow area.

When six hundred spearmen held off over a hundred knights and awaited reinforcements from two corps, the battle had already entered garbage time.

Or rather, after the knight's formation was shattered, it essentially entered garbage time.

When André arrived, bouncing on a donkey, the battle of Black Lettuce Village was already decided.

The last sixty or so Imperial Knights surrendered, tethered at the necks, kneeling in a row in the mud.

While the donkey cart transported the over ninety lightly wounded or unconscious prisoners.

As for the other two hundred forty-plus knights, including fifty-four Imperial Knights, they either turned into decomposed corpses or charred remains.

"Of course, not everyone escaped," standing beneath the tattered Imperial flag, Lauren pulled down the banner and tossed it onto a loot wagon, "A dozen or so Imperial Knights fled, they were too fast, we couldn't catch them."

"What about that commander, the one named Ailard?"

"He ran with the temple knights, Count Nathaniel's knights are in pursuit." Lauren sneered disdainfully, "Not around when fighting, but shows up afterward, that's nobility for you."

"And what about those thousands of guards and soldiers?"

"First pummeled by clockwork rounds, then caught in crossfire, two corps flanked them, and they crumbled."

"Congratulations on achieving such a great victory, you'll have something to report to your superiors." André clapped, smiling.

Though André's applause was congratulatory, to Lauren, it felt a bit harsh.

After all, the key role in this ambush was played by Valent Taylor and André's Saint Sun's Army.

Without them, forget setting an ambush; lacking cavalry for assistance even knowing the enemy movements would have been a major challenge, leaving them stuck in passive defense.

"I won't steal your credit; I'll report exactly who did how much," Lauren glared, leaving André at a loss for words.

In this battle, with forty clockwork rounds, the cost of twenty-nine lives, and three hundred twenty-two minor injuries, the Imperial Order left by Prince Kongdai was brought down.

Though half of Ailard's Imperial Order was temporarily cobbled together, weaker than a full Imperial Order.

But to achieve such results with 2,300 men is undoubtedly a major victory.

After this battle, Prince Kongdai could only count on four remaining Imperial Orders.

Twelve Salvation Army corps and nearly a thousand cavalry opposed four Imperial Orders and three Elite Mercenary Corps, reducing the gap by at least one Imperial Order.

An Imperial Order led by Ailard and one directed by Prince Kongdai are two completely different things.

If the assault on Hotam County were a test paper, then Lauren and André scored full marks on the first major question.

Gazing at the defeated Imperial Knights, the usually unperturbed André couldn't help but sigh:

"Do you think Prince Kongdai ever realized his Imperial Order would fall so quickly?"