When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 874 - 825: Battle of Marenpo (Part 6)

Riding out from the phalanx, surrounded by dozens of cavalry guards, Count Dretta charged up the side of a hill.

On the horizon where the undulating hills met the sky, snow and sand fell silently.

Even with the naked eye, Dretta could see the black silhouettes lined up neatly crossing over the ridge.

Despite the distance, Dretta could still hear the clanking of armor and weapons clashing.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!" After cursing three times, Dretta's face turned ashen.

Over a thousand people, according to the Mad Pope's pseudo-Holy Alliance formation, should form two infantry regiments with about a hundred Kush Cavalry.

Amid the crowd of black clothed and armored figures, a shifting multicolored plume stood out conspicuously; it was the one hundred Holy Grail Gun Cavalry led by Kolman. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Although this thousand or so men might not affect the final outcome of the battle, they brought significant uncertainty to this fight.

Originally, within five more minutes, at the current pace, they should have been able to crush those entrenched at Maron Slope, Balin Manor.

Once Balin Manor fell, the few remaining villages and camps at Maron Slope would be as good as finished.

But just at this crucial moment!

Most importantly, where did they come from?

"Damn it, damn it..." Dretta seemed incapable of saying anything other than damn it.

But eventually, he suppressed the unease in his heart. Though the plan had a hitch, he could barely accept it.

After all, extracting a thousand men from the fort line, no matter how tense, was not impossible.

Turning the horse's head, Dretta said with a grim face, "No need for the Imperial Knights to fight on foot for now, tell them to mount up and intercept those reinforcements."

While Dretta was in turmoil, the Black Champion Army's morale soared.

"It's the reinforcements!"

"Lord Kolman has arrived with the reinforcements, the reinforcements have arrived!"

The cavalrymen tore at their throats, shouting from behind the hill as they sprinted to deliver the good news to everyone.

Some cavalrymen even got too close to the battlefield and were shot through the throat by an arrow from an Imperial Knight, but even then, he couldn't help but use his last ounce of strength to raise the banner high.

"Comrades! Hold on for five more minutes!"

Climbing onto another hill, Kaler roared, "Did you hear? The reinforcements have arrived; everyone from the Kaler Hundred, follow me, line up at the fort and push these dogs back home!"

As if recreating Horn's Battle of Pavia years ago, the banner representing Victor's main general and the last hundred reserve rushed forward.

From above, it seemed like a piece of silk flowing with the waves was suddenly twisted tight, indeed blocking the surging torrents.

The news of the reinforcements rapidly spread across the battlefield, and the initially crumbling morale was stabilized in just a few dozen seconds.

Momentarily abandoning his noble demeanor, Count Dretta burst into a slew of swearing from Dawn Island.

He even regretted sending the orderlies to intercept that thousand reinforcements.

But if they didn't intercept, with both sides combining, it might not be better than now.

"Raise my standard." Seemingly having made a decision, Dretta lowered the visor of his bird-beaked helmet.

"Lord Dretta, what are you going to do?" Baron Marchelov said in terror, grabbing Dretta's arm.

"Do what?" Dretta gritted his teeth below his faceplate, "This battle allows only victory, not defeat. If they can charge into the fray personally, why can't I? I am a Titled Knight too!"

"You don't have to, Lord Dretta, your future is bright."

At that moment, the remaining four hundred Extraordinary Knights gathered under the banner, opening the pouches at their waist and swallowing the potion.

Dretta was no exception. But as he was about to drink his potion, his arm suddenly halted.

"Woo woo— woo woo—"

The sound of another horn blast sounded, as if right next to his ear.

The heavy sound of hooves came from the other side of the hill, echoing across the battlefield.

The hooves seemed to be an invisible hand pressing down on everyone's chest, making each breath heavy.

Dretta's eyelids twitched slightly; he put down the potion, slowly turned his head, and looked towards the other side of the hill.

Then, his pupils suddenly contracted.

In the dim sky, white and silver lights shone; a cavalry contingent of nearly a thousand was advancing slowly.

They formed a hundred-man wide front, arranged like the Deng Jia'er Array in a 100X10 horizontal formation.

This was the Falan Royal Cavalry's battle array, probably taught by those unruly Falans.

But... but the banner carried by this group of cavalry made Dretta dizzy, even before he drank the potion.

The Holy Grail.

In the Holy Alliance's military structure, it represents the most loyal, elite, and formidable knights—the Holy Grail Gun Cavalry.

The Holy Grail Gun Cavalry not only demanded masterful riding skills but also proficiency in breathing techniques and being a Blessed.

Indeed, Horn hired a considerable number of Falan instructors to help train them.

And now, they stood before Dretta.

Dretta felt his fingers shaking uncontrollably, cold sweat quickly seeping through and soaking his leather gloves.

Though not very old, Dretta had experienced many battlefields, but at this moment, he felt true unease for the first time.

Not only because of the combat strength of the Holy Grail Cavalry—they were indeed formidable, yet still within controllable limits.

but because their presence signified something much more terrifying.

Extracting a thousand infantrymen was within acceptable limits, but pulling out nearly a thousand Holy Grail Gun Cavalry, that's abnormal.

Considering a horrifying possibility, Dretta, trembling, asked Marchelov beside him, "Is there contact with the other four detachments?"

Marchelov, seeing that Dretta had abandoned the charge, breathed a sigh of relief, "I'll go make contact now."

As Marchelov rode off, the situation began to spiral completely out of control.

Close to a thousand Holy Grail Gun Cavalry rapidly entangled all the Extraordinary Knights, forcing the Imperial unit to give up supporting Kolman.

After a morning of combat, the knights had used their Divine Art, consumed their potions, and morale wasn't as high as when the battle started, relying on sheer breath control.

Meanwhile, the Holy Grail Gun Cavalry, though weary from travel, had far superior spirit and morale compared to these Extraordinary Knights.

However, things did not stop there.

In the distance, on the mountain path, new infantry formations began to appear one after another.

Black armor, silver armor intertwined, lances and sacred cannons side by side, new reinforcements surged into the battlefield like a tide.

One thousand, two thousand, three thousand...

Eventually, a total of three thousand appeared on the battlefield.

Adding the Holy Grail Cavalry, Thousand River Valley now had a current strength of five thousand!

After the previous depletion, the Leia people had fewer than seven thousand soldiers left, not even reaching the conventional standard of a twofold numerical advantage, or even the fifty percent strength superiority required for a field battle!

The whispers among the Leia soldiers increased, hands gripping weapons started trembling slightly, and low curses echoed from all around.

Watching the battlefield intently, Count Dretta's nails dug deep into his palms; he could almost hear the violent beating of his own heart.

But even worse was yet to come.

When he hurriedly ordered contact with the other fronts, the intelligence Marchelov brought back plunged him into despair.

"My lord, we've lost contact with the other four armies for some time now."

Count Dretta's world seemingly collapsed at that moment.

He finally realized—

This was not a mere reinforcement, but a comprehensive encirclement.