plumnovel #676 - They will worship me like a god
#676 - They will worship me like a god
On March 18, 1447, a vast fleet of hundreds of barges sailed majestically past the Twin Serpent Fortress.
Beneath the tattered church banners, the knights and soldiers in the castle only dared to peek out, fearing that the terrible stone balls or iron shots would hit their heads.
On the blue silk-like river, the wall-like fleet slowly moved through the green sea of forests, drifting downstream along the river.
The soldiers in the castle counted and counted, but gradually lost track.
Since obtaining the entire Thousand River Valley, Horn had far more resources at his disposal than before. Previously, transporting over 8,000 troops required several trips back and forth.
But this time, he could mobilize a full 120 barges at once to advance towards the front lines, with numerous merchant ships contracted for military supplies following behind.
Only when the shadows of the ships disappeared did the castle on the west bank dare to send out scouts, reporting to the church in the rear amidst the dust raised on the dirt road.
On March 22, 1447, the victory day of Thousand River Valley, a total of 7,800 war monks from the Guard Battle Group and half of the Divine Punishment Battle Group successfully arrived at the front line, Greenblood Town.
As the only passage to the Avis Temple, Horn himself did not need to prepare supplies, as Greenblood Town itself had stockpiled a large amount of supplies that had not been transported to Sola Fortress.
Upon arriving at Greenblood Town, Horn directly requisitioned the temple on the west side and set it up as a temporary headquarters.
Before Horn arrived, quartermasters of all levels had already moved into the town, and two Guard infantry regiments quickly controlled all key roads in the town.
The local townspeople sat under the eaves, watching the orderly patrolling soldiers with curiosity and fear.
As for the remaining infantry regiments, they naturally would not camp in the town, as the town could only accommodate a maximum of 3,000 residents.
After transporting the miscellaneous quartermasters and necessary guard troops, there was basically no space left for other troops.
Before formally entering Greenblood Town, Horn personally rode around the area for at least half an hour, chatting with different locals, before officially returning to Greenblood Town.
Handing the warhorse to the quartermaster, Horn walked briskly up the moss-covered temple steps between the cracks, and entered the bronze door with serpent carvings under the marble gable.
"Your Grace, this way."
Following behind the quartermaster, Horn passed through the wooden barrels and dried hams piled up in the hall, walked past the long table where a dozen staff monks and messengers were sitting, and then entered his own temporary office.
For Horn, this battle in the Southern County was not even in the top ranks of the battles he had experienced.
Black Serpent Bay was a place crisscrossed by streams and jungles, where even knights had to dismount and fight on foot. Without a horse, a knight was as vulnerable as if he had lost his horse.
Who were the people and soldiers who opposed Horn back then? Prince Condé, the number one cavalry commander of the Laya Kingdom, leading the strongest Edict Company in history.
Who are these people in Black Serpent Bay? Asking them to fight Horn?
If this battle wasn't so urgent and its political significance far outweighed its military significance, Horn would have wanted to let the young officers train themselves.
However, a lion uses all its strength even when hunting a rabbit. Since he had come in person, Horn would not make the mistake of underestimating the enemy. Besides, he also wanted to use the Southern County battlefield to test new tactics.
"Pettier, I am issuing the following orders, take them down," Horn said quickly as he tossed his belt onto the chair.
Pettier immediately took out his shorthand notebook, so at least Madelaine wouldn't have to ask Horn how to write "orders" again.
"Send out reconnaissance cavalry to ascertain the enemy's position, numbers, and marching route, and send troops to control bridges and roads to ensure the smooth flow of traffic," Horn tapped the table with his knuckles. "Check the town's food and supplies. Before dinner, all regimental commanders and infantry commanders must come to my office for a meeting. Understood?"
"Understood."
Taking the orders and walking to the temporary staff office outside, Pettier cleared his throat and said sternly: "Summon Lady Novia the Witch, and ask her to go to the vicinity of Avis Temple at night to scout the enemy's troop deployment.
Order the Kush Rangers to set off immediately, advance 10 kilometers along the main roads, collect information on enemy activities, and report enemy movements every evening.
Order the first and second infantry regiments of the Divine Punishment Battle Group to quickly station themselves on the high ground on the east side of the town, construct temporary fortifications, and order the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth infantry regiments of the Guard Battle Group to guard the bridge on the south side of the town, set up roadblocks and deploy sentries.
Order the third and fourth infantry regiments of the Divine Punishment Battle Group…
Order the quartermaster to immediately count and register the town's food, water, and horses, and give priority to supplying the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth infantry regiments of the Guard Battle Group and the cavalry regiment, ensuring sufficient supplies for three days.
Order all officers at all levels to come to the temple on the west side of the town at 5:00 p.m. for a pre-war meeting. After receiving the order, the troops must maintain a high state of alert, ensuring that they are all in place by 4:00 p.m., and no one is allowed to go out at night…"
Soon, orders were spread from the temple to all directions, and the originally quiet temple quickly became noisy.
"Where is the clerk of the Fifth Infantry Regiment? Why is your unit still here? Leave immediately!"
"It must be demolished! I don't care whose house this is, demolish it!"
"Has the Third Infantry Regiment of the Divine Punishment Army arrived? Not yet, not yet! If you can't find those three bastards within a quarter of an hour, go explain it to His Grace yourself."
"Can't speak? Huh? Come on, did you give those 13 buckets of salted meat or not? Tell me!"
According to the regulations, the commanding officer of the army is not allowed to leave the army before the camp is completed, so many affairs are handled and conveyed by the regimental clerk and the quartermaster.
But don't think that Pettier, as a privy monk, is high and mighty. He is not someone to be easily fooled.
Pettier had an amazing memory and was once known as a living ledger. He came from a merchant family and started as a low-level quartermaster, so he was proficient in those crooked ways.
Any crooked ideas or tricks would be bloodily exposed in front of him, and then reprimanded directly to the heart.
Whenever you entered the temple, you could see a row of trembling camp followers, quartermasters, and regimental clerks at the long table.
After the initial chaos, the locals were surprised to find that in the time it took to take a nap, the originally chaotic army had suddenly become orderly.
After the temple on the west side became the temporary headquarters, the army, which had been like headless flies, suddenly found its queen ant.
Quartermasters and regimental clerks went in and out of the temple, and mounted military police galloped through the streets, throwing out orders from scrolls.
Those Black Serpent Bay secret party members who came with the army stood blankly by the roadside, watching the incredibly complex army and material mobilization, which in their eyes, was being completed at an increasingly faster speed and efficiency.
The chaotic and piled-up materials were stored in categories, the houses and stalls that occupied the roads were collectively demolished, and garbage and feces were cleaned up.
In the blink of an eye, hundreds of tents and black and red flags rose on several water sources and strategic terrains around the town.
The slacking porters were hung up by the military police and spun like tops, and the local ruffians were even more obedient than quails in the sound of gunfire and shouts of "Open the door! Cheka!"
The Black Serpent Bay warriors stationed locally were even more surprised to find: Oh, Greenblood Town actually has so many supplies, they can actually eat their fill.
The town chief was bullied by these Black Serpent Bay warriors to the point where he could only eat swill that day.
In almost an afternoon, the originally chaotic town became orderly.
Some hunters who went out in the morning and returned even suspected that they had gone the wrong way. Not to mention the hunters, even Novia, who returned, hovered over the town several times before daring to land.
When everything was settled, at 4:50 p.m., the quartermaster woke Horn up on time after he had slept all afternoon.
After washing his face, Horn walked into the hall with vigor, and officers of all levels were already waiting on both sides of the long table.
He plopped down on the stone bench, looked around and said: "Avis Temple's stone walls are three meters thick. In three days, four new six-pound sand sculpture cannons will be transported from the rear. What do you say?"