When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 872 - 823: Battle of Malunpo (4)

The morning cold wind was still biting. Count Dretta stood early on high ground, gazing out at the distant Thousand River Valley army positions.

He had originally prepared to start a new offensive, but the scene before him made him rub his eyes vigorously.

Black and red flags fluttered, footsteps making a uniform rustling as they trod on the snowy ground.

The flags representing the Holy Grail Cavalry Corps walked beside the black and red banners, marking about five hundred Holy Gun Cavalry.

Of course, as Jeanne's direct cavalry unit, they had their own name, akin to the Holy Armor Forbidden Army in the Imperial Guard—they were known as the Holy Grail Gun Cavalry.

But regardless of how the opposing Thousand River Valley Army deployed or altered formations, one thing was certain—

The Thousand River Valley Army actually lined up and marched out of the camp?

"Have they gone mad?" a Knight incredulously whispered.

"Do they wish to settle the outcome with us in a field battle?" Another noble furrowed his brow, "One thousand against eight thousand in a field fight—this is suicidal."

Yet Dretta did not immediately order an attack; his gaze calmly swept over the enemy formation.

"No, no, not just a thousand," he murmured.

As he observed the enemy's formation and listened to the scout reports, Dretta's heart beat faster with each count: "No less than six horizontal arrays… three thousand men! Where did that other two thousand come from?"

By his calculations, there should only be two thousand in the camp, with perhaps only a thousand combat-ready soldiers for field battles.

Now there were three thousand—could their reinforcements have arrived? Lord Raffel's efforts had gone awry?

Under the sunlight, wisps of steam rose from Dretta's head, almost like smoke billowing from his mind.

Quickly simulating various possibilities in his mind, he immediately summoned a scout: "Go verify the situation in other fields, especially the defenses of the other camps." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

The scout swiftly departed, while he remained on the mound, looking towards the distant battlefield.

Amidst the melting snow, patches of yellow-brown earth surfaced, as if balding spots.

Column after column, arranged in narrow and long horizontal arrays, slowly marched towards them, silent yet determined.

Moments later, a scout conveying messages through semaphore returned: "No abnormalities in any of the other camps."

"Lord Earl!" Baron Marchelov eagerly said, "Their numbers are far fewer than ours, only three thousand, while we have eight thousand!

No matter what tricks they're trying to play, our numbers are twice theirs; the advantage is ours!"

Dretta took a deep breath, pondering silently.

The enemy's actions were very unusual; rationally speaking, they shouldn't abandon their fortress defenses…

No matter their plans, just comparing troop numbers shows the Leia Army holds the absolute edge.

If he doesn't attack now, it would give the Thousand River Valley People time to adjust their tactics.

Should their reinforcements truly arrive, he would become a laughingstock.

After much deliberation, Count Dretta's face twisted into a fierce expression: "Organize the troops and launch the offensive!"

...

The Marlenpo battlefield stretches about five kilometers in depth, the entire terrain forming a gentle slope.

On the west side lies a winding tributary, connecting hills and forests to the north, with the Thousand River Valley Army's camp to the southeast.

The whole battlefield isn't particularly rugged; the land hasn't thawed, which is of favorable hardness for artillery.

Through the cold east wind, both sides' Rangers have already started the first round of skirmishes on the battlefield perimeter.

With information from Rangers and binoculars, intel quickly consolidated in Victor's hands.

The eight thousand-strong Leia Army has completed assembly, now extending laterally.

Though the Dretta Cobb lineage hails him, it doesn't rob him of flexibility.

Following traditional tactics, he divided troops into left, center, and right three routes, yet flexibly altered the 2,000-person large array into 40x20 smaller arrays.

Moreover, with a bit of cleverness, he intentionally elongated the front-to-back intervals, making the rectangular formation appear square-like.

This might fool their own, but not Victor—who's equipped with binoculars, seeing through immediately.

Such arrangements, when facing the Salvation Army, make it harder to be flanked.

The central route, commanded personally by Count Dretta, comprises three 800-man small arrays, 400 personal guardsmen, and a squad of 300 Imperial Knights.

Both left and right have two 800-man small arrays each, with the right side also hosting five squads of 200 Extraordinary Knights.

Additionally, two 200-man Ranger teams are engaging in skirmishes outside, occasionally harassing the Black Champion Army.

The entire Leia Army array resembles a steel giant serpent, poised for battle.

The infantry phalanx's long spears densely rise, with Knights mounted upon warhorses, observing the Black Champion with an air of detachment and excitement.

Unlike the Leia Army, Victor-led Black Champion Army, though they actively exit camp to confront, keeps strict control over their base, not fully leaving the fortifications.

Under cover of their camp, Victor plans to adopt a rotation battle strategy.

Whenever a unit grows exhausted, it immediately withdraws to the earthworks to rest, with another unit emerging from behind to replace the defense line.

Such an approach leverages the Gallar Array width advantage, akin to Horn's actions during the Battle of Pavia.

Regarding the military formation, facing multiple enemy routes of attack, they're still adhering to the classic fore four rows and rear three camp layout.

With the front four accurately lining up against the seven 800-man small arrays, even Holy Gunmen might need to engage closely.

But with the Defensive Army at hand, if necessary, let these Defensive Army step up.

Before the military horn sounded, Victor indeed witnessed the Leia Army's initial assault.

Predictably fueled by potion fever, in advance of everyone the Leia Knights launched a reckless charge.

This had nearly become a staple for clashes between the Salvation Army and Leia Army, even leading to betting.

A rural Knights squad of 200 on the right route initiated the charge first.

Though armored, they lacked compared to Imperial Knights, equipment quite basic.

Most merely wore chainmail, iron helmets, with their warhorses devoid of armor.

Confident in scaring off the Thousand River Valley Army with their charge.

The horses accelerated, iron hooves thundered, stirring cold mud.

However, the Thousand River Valley Army remained unmoved.

Long Spear Cultivators slightly bent their knees, Holy Gun Cultivators began cranking their weapons.

Gazing at the thin sheet of Black Champion horizontal array, many rural Knights' confidence swiftly waned.

"What's happening? Why don't they move?"

Reducing alongside were the horse speed and foremost charging numbers, until the Knights reached the front line.

Anxiety even overshadowed the potion-induced adrenaline rush.

In that moment, the trumpet sounded.

"Engage the enemy!"

"Praise Holy Wind!"

As lead pellets clattered onto the Knights, charging momentum instantly halted.

Holy Grail Cavalry drove warhorses into a head-on collision with the incoming rural Knights.

Metal clashing sounds and screams mingled.

Blood spurted, warhorses torn by blades, Knights hurled or shot point-blank.

The rural Knights initially believed they'd easily shatter the infantry array as usual, but instead encountered genuine adversaries.

These were no ordinary farmers to bully.

With just a salve and impact, even cavalry brawl barely persisted long before the rural Knights' formation crumbled apart.

The Leia Knights within the ranks roared angrily, helplessly witnessing their cavalry being torn apart.

"Foolish!" Count Dretta's gaze darkened, "Without my orders, Knights shall not charge first; they have maximum ten shots per battle—use infantry to whittle down!"

"Wooo—"