Munitions Empire

Pointing at a legion that was near collapse, his angry voice made all the officers around him lower their heads, "A legion, overwhelmed by just 500 enemy troops, has lost three lines of defense! The Northern Ridge troops only number a third of ours, yet now it's we who are desperately defending and they who are attacking!"

"Did that guy Fisheo... actually take the initiative to attack... Did he figure out that our reinforcements are about to arrive?" the Suthers officer muttered to himself as he watched the distant collapsing defense line.

His aide stood beside him, trying to console him, "General! Although we're in a passive position, didn't the messenger sent by General Tucci yesterday say that as long as we tie down Fisheo and prevent him from fleeing, we'll be fine?"

They had assembled 10,000 troops at Northern Ridge, while Fisheo had only 1,500. With a pincer move from both sides, Fisheo was bound to lose.

In this situation, all they needed to do was to hold on and not be defeated by Fisheo in advance. As long as Fisheo couldn't achieve a decisive victory, his Northern Ridge Legion would have no choice but to surrender their arms.

"Besides, it's not that our army is incompetent... There's something fishy about the weapons of Fisheo's troops!" said the aide, his tone filled with resentment.

Having fought Fisheo's troops all morning, they naturally understood why Fisheo's forces were so ferocious.

The weapons in the hands of these troops were not the familiar Shireck Flintlock Guns, but clearly a type of new weapon.

As soon as the two sides engaged, the advantage of the enemy's firepower density became apparent. A torrential downpour of bullets left the Suthers troops unable to catch their breath even now.

Their first line of defense, a whole legion, quickly could not withstand the assault and collapsed completely under Fisheo's attack.

Having barely stabilized their position, the Suthers troops had just established a defensive formation when Fisheo's troops turned their guns and fiercely attacked the Suthers' left wing.

With a company's worth of concentrated force charging forward and the advantage in artillery at certain points, the Suthers troops were soon defeated again.

From the start of the engagement until now, the Suthers troops, originally prepared to go on the offensive, had been fighting a defensive battle the entire morning, and one that crumbled upon contact at that.

They had lost over a thousand men, particularly on the left wing, which was practically stunned into submission. Just the sight of Fisheo's wolf banners made those Suthers troops instinctively retreat, not even daring to put up a struggle.

So, the Suthers troops retreated 2 kilometers, clinging to a loss of over a thousand men, dragging Fisheo's forces into the rhythm of a war of attrition.

Fisheo was anxious too. He had promised Tang Mo that he would quickly end the main battlefield's skirmishes and then lead his forces south to join Tang Mo in facing the enemy reinforcements coming from the southeast.

But now, the Suthers troops in front of him would crumble upon contact and, after running a few hundred meters, they would start to re-form their ranks again. This was the situation he did not want to see.

There was no alternative; his troops' strength and mobility were insufficient to achieve annihilation, so he could only watch as the Suthers troops retreated time and again.

He felt helpless at this moment, because the opponent's combat effectiveness was clearly not high, so they didn't even have the courage to stop and fight a desperate battle. This led to a serious problem: Fisheo's forces couldn't secure a win in the short term, which meant they couldn't go to support Tang Mo.

"If this still doesn't work, then we'll pull 200 men from our left wing to support Tang Mo!" Fisheo gritted his teeth and instructed the officer beside him.

Upon hearing such an order, the officer was horrified and immediately tried to persuade him, "My lord, if we divert more troops, we might not be able to maintain our offensive."

The main reason they had been able to crush the large army of the Suthers Kingdom was that they had continued to press the attack, keeping the enemy's troops in constant retreat and disarray.

Consequently, Suthers' advantage in the total number of cannons could not be utilized effectively, allowing the needle guns to perform optimally in close combat.

But if their offensive were to stop, the enemy could adjust their deployment at leisure, and their numerical superiority in artillery would become evident, leaving them even more at a disadvantage.

"Having fought so hard all morning, the soldiers are already a bit strained physically, and with the additional losses, the pressure on us is substantial," another worried officer counseled Fisheo: "We have already suffered seventy to eighty casualties... and with the wounded, it's getting very difficult to keep up the offense."

"But, I made a commitment to Tang Mo," Fisheo said, glancing at his daughter who stood beside him, her face somewhat pale, "If anything goes wrong at the fork in the road, we will be defeated just the same."

"We can only hope that Tang Mo will hold on a bit longer now. After all... he promised to stand firm there for a day. With a day's time, we are confident we can defeat the enemy forces ahead!" Watching the smoke of battle, the officer who had first counseled Fisheo continued, his scalp tingling with determination.

"Ah..." Fisheo sighed irritably, then shifted his focus back to the battlefield, "Order the troops on the right flank to press forward! Aim to completely crush the enemy's left flank within an hour!"

"Yes!" An officer mounted his horse, "I'll personally supervise the battle! Give me an hour, and I guarantee the defeat of the enemy's left wing!"

...

"You really are... too blunt." Tang Mo covered his face in helplessness as he looked at the columns of Suthers soldiers who, except for not carrying weapons, looked almost ready to march. your-chapter-source

Tagg, as the epitome of Northern Ridge bluntness, did not disappoint. Leading 40 cavalry, he actually blocked the fleeing Suthers troops and brought most of them back to Tang Mo.

Yes... brought, them, back...

The defeated 2,000 troops commanded by Tucci, like frightened birds, encountered Tagg on their way and surrendered without a fight, gentlemanly laying down their weapons.

That's right, you read that correctly. These Suthers troops decided not to run anymore, they were tired... They handed over their weapons, and then, with a few officers taking the lead, surrendered to the 40 cavalrymen led by Tagg.

More than 20 wagons, over 40 war horses, nearly 2,000 soldiers, just like that, dropped their arms and surrendered!

Due to a shortage of hands, Tagg, who was escorting these Suthers troops to find Tang Mo, managed to bring back only about 1,000 men in the end.

The rest of the surrendering Suthers soldiers, most of them, took advantage of the chaos to escape, and likewise due to insufficient manpower, Tagg only brought back 30 cavalrymen...

The other 10 cavalrymen were left behind to guard over a thousand Shireck flintlock guns and other military supplies such as gunpowder.

"My heavens, we have an entire legion of prisoners here... and we only have enough soldiers for one battalion." Wes was looking at the sea of people squatting along the road, waiting for new orders, and could hardly believe his eyes.

Several Suthers officers, adorned with opulent hats and swords at their waists, walked up to Tang Mo, presenting neatly folded regimental colors to the victor.

"We have been defeated! Sir! This is the honor you deserve." The Suthers officer holding Tucci's regimental colors bowed his head and said, "Your magnanimity will make your reputation travel far and wide."

He was referring to Tagg's allowance for them to keep their swords as prisoners. After all, the taste of defeat was bitter. If they could be treated with respect, surrendering would surely feel more comfortable.

Tang Mo took the regimental colors, then passed them with some dismay to an attendant nearby. He looked at Tagg and then at Wes and Redman, before speaking, "Due to Tagg's outstanding performance, we are now unable to spare any troops to go to the frontline to assist Lord Earl."

"My lord," Tagg spoke up, somewhat embarrassed, but at a loss for what to say next. He hadn't anticipated that his great victory would actually end up causing trouble.

"It's alright, Tagg, it's alright!" Tang Mo reassured the straightforward officer, then addressed Redman, "Leave the handling of this to you. Have the first and second platoons guard these prisoners, and have the third platoon's men bring back those flintlock guns and military supplies for inventory..."

"Get the cadets to help, quickly pack up the artillery, organize the baggage train, and retreat back to the village at the crossroads. Command the army cooks to prepare the food, and have the soldiers rest in turns while ensuring effective guarding of the prisoners!" He continued his instructions, pointing to the rather embarrassed Suthers officers, "Prepare some food for them as well."

After the Suthers officers had left, Tang Mo continued issuing commands to Tagg and Wes, "Once you've handed over control, join me with the 30 cavalry to check out the battlefield near Lord Earl's position. I'm leaving everything here to Redman."

"The platoon leader of the third platoon will take my orders. Have the 10 cavalry watching the supplies disperse! Ensure there are no large Suthers forces nearby... Avoid any mishaps, and be vigilant! Understand?" Tang Mo finished speaking and walked towards his warhorse.

"Yes, my lord!" Redman nodded slightly, and then began issuing a series of orders to coordinate the manpower.

Meanwhile, Tang Mo mounted his horse, casting a glance at Tagg and Wes who also mounted their horses, "Let's hope that Lord Earl has already decided the victor on his side."

"I doubt that's likely." Tagg, looking over at the dark mass of prisoners not far away, said reflectively, "You fought too quickly here. It's certain that Lord Earl hasn't decided the victor yet."

"Then let's go and lend a hand! And maybe tease him a bit..." Tang Mo spurred his horse, "Taking so long to fight a battle."

"Hahaha!" Wes burst into hearty laughter, hurrying after Tang Mo, "Look at Tagg, his face is turning red from holding it in."