Chapter 177: War (Part 1)

  At dusk, over twenty strange figures flew in formation across the sky of the Barbarian Highlands. These figures had much thicker necks than ordinary eagles, lion-like bodies with wings spanning four to five meters, and people riding on them - they were the renowned griffin knights of Erathia.

  The leading griffin knight captain yawned as he watched the distant sunset. He was calculating whether he could slack off tonight and sneak somewhere for a good sleep. Riding a griffin in the cold night wind high above the plateau wasn't comfortable at all. Although no one would dare say that the Erathia griffin forces lacked discipline, the current situation indeed made it hard to stay alert during patrol and keep watch.

  The Church's allied forces had been deep in the Barbarian Highlands for half a month. Except for some probing contacts between reconnaissance units, no bloody battle with the orc forces as expected had occurred. The allied forces from various nations advanced straight from all directions, and it seemed only a matter of time before they reached Oufu City. Although the generals at headquarters became increasingly cautious as they progressed, the officers and soldiers below had indeed begun to slacken, or rather, become even more lax.

  They seemed to have good reason to relax. Strategically, the combined armies of various nations totaled one hundred thousand, while the number of orcs in Oufu City was estimated not to exceed six or seven thousand at most. This tenfold numerical advantage had filled all soldiers with confidence. As for the officers, they seemed to have even more reason for confidence - Oufu had always relied on trade with surrounding countries for food, and under His Majesty the Pope's orders, the surrounding countries had long ceased trading with Oufu. The barrenness of the Barbarian Highlands was known to all. Not a few people had been to Oufu, and they could all testify that there were not enough fertile fields and pastures around Oufu to feed the astonishing appetites of werewolves and Ogres. Without sufficient food supplies, even the most elite troops with the strongest combat capabilities would be like a kitchen without rice. No matter how famous the orc city-state lord was for his wisdom and strategy on the continent, it was impossible for large groups of orc soldiers to maintain strong combat capabilities while dizzy with hunger.

  Since entering the Barbarian Highlands, Oufu's actual response seemed to be a complete mess. The Wyvern, originally a weapon for reconnaissance and sneak attacks, seemed completely useless against the griffin knights. Although individual Wyverns were far more powerful than griffins, the number of griffin knights far exceeded that of Wyverns. Moreover, after years of fighting with Harpies from Nighon, the cooperation and tactical literacy among griffin knights had been thoroughly honed. In the first contact battle after entering the Barbarian Highlands against orc reconnaissance units, ten griffin knights tore a Wyvern apart with exquisite coordination. Since then, Wyverns never made contact with these same air units again, and the air supremacy originally controlled by Oufu was seized in just one encounter.

  Erathia had always been unwilling to expose the true strength of its griffin forces to other countries, but this time, to show respect for His Majesty the Pope, they sent almost all griffins to the battlefield. The effect of over two hundred griffins and their knights on the battlefield was indeed extraordinary. Both Erathia and other religious countries' officers felt greatly reassured. They knew very well that controlling air supremacy meant absolute reconnaissance advantage and absolute tactical initiative. The side controlling air supremacy would have great advantages in reconnaissance, tactical arrangements, and even strategy.

  As expected, the dreaded sneak attacks by orc forces never occurred. Instead, small groups of reconnaissance orcs were constantly discovered and defeated by griffin knights. However, the alertness and ferocity of these orcs were indeed unexpected. The inability to capture one alive was a considerable regret. In such a favorable situation, the morale of the allied forces was unprecedentedly high, as victory seemed assured from any perspective.

  The only unexpected thing was that, so far, the biggest problem actually came from within the allied forces themselves.

  Unlike the high morale of all the soldiers and officers below, the Temple Knights and several generals in charge of supreme command showed extraordinary caution. They did not take advantage of this great opportunity and the high morale of the soldiers to advance directly. Instead, they advanced, formed formations, and camped in the safest and most rigorous manner. Various units must maintain a state where they could support and respond to each other. Large numbers of troops always escorted the supply routes, advancing step by step as steadily as the most conservative old men, as if they would not take another step forward without leaving a footprint on the rocks of the Barbarian Highlands.

  Caution is certainly a good thing, but excessive caution seemed to hurt morale, especially as this careful rigidity became more obvious over time, even evolving to a point somewhat unacceptable to the soldiers. Since yesterday, the supreme headquarters had actually issued an order for the troops to rest during the day and march at night, on the grounds that this would most effectively prevent night attacks by orc forces.

  As soon as this order from the Temple Knights was issued, the long-suppressed dissatisfaction began to erupt. This was particularly difficult to resolve when the dissatisfaction came not only from soldiers but more from officers who understood strategy and tactics. Although the Temple Knights spent considerable effort on boosting morale and reducing dissatisfaction.

  The effect was not significant. After all, this was a huge allied force composed of multiple nations. The Temple Knights were not the true commanders who had always led them. Most importantly, the obvious advantage was clear to any officer who understood strategy and tactics.

  Although the Temple Knights' command was indeed effective, with no confusion in command, and the large force was still advancing toward Oufu in the safest and most adaptable manner, unknowingly, a lazy and weary atmosphere had spread among the troops. Except for the griffin knights who still had something to do, this grand expedition in the hearts of soldiers and most officers had degenerated into a dull march that deliberately made themselves tense and suffer.

  Two shadows suddenly appeared in the evening glow of dusk. The griffin knight captain suddenly became alert and shouted: "Attention all, combat formation. It's the orcs' Wyverns."

  Although all griffin knights noticed, they were not nervous. Just two Wyverns - they had enough confidence to handle them. Sure enough, the two Wyverns stopped approaching at a considerable distance from them.

  The deputy captain was a battle mage. This was also the most powerful component of griffin knights - mages who could attack in the air were absolutely soldiers' nightmares and the best weapon against any flying enemy. He looked at the two figures still the size of bats, turned to the captain and said: "What do these beasts want? Should we take the initiative to attack and eliminate them?"

  The captain thought for a moment, shook his head and sighed: "Forget it. Didn't Lord Aldric specifically give us a lecture last time? Absolutely forbidden to be provoked by those orcs to act without authorization. Even if we catch up and eliminate the two Wyverns without any damage, what awaits us probably won't be commendation but punishment. I think those orcs are just observing us."

  The battle mage spat and cursed: "Fuck, it's like we're the ones being surrounded and hunted. So timid and fearful. Not a bit of manliness, are they impotent?"

  "Don't say that. Didn't you see them show off their skills in front of everyone last time? It was truly convincing."

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  "Valor and combat capability are two different things. The true valor of soldiers is not something those guys who stay in prayer rooms all day can have." The deputy captain suddenly seemed to realize something, leaned over with a frown, and whispered as if telling an incredible secret: "Hey, think about it, Celeste... probably doesn't have brothels, right? Do you think they might really..."

  The captain was startled, glared fiercely at the battle mage. He was a devout believer and absolutely would not allow such unrestrained slander. But just as he opened his mouth to shout angrily, he saw a flash before his eyes. An arrow about a meter long pierced through the griffin's chest, skewering the rider and mount together. The battle mage's cry mixed with his griffin's, and both man and beast fell toward the ground skewered together.

  The captain was stunned, but just as he opened his mouth, another equally huge arrow hit his face. An arrowhead the size of half a palm directly sliced off half his head. The headless corpse swayed, still making a sound that could no longer be distinguished as an order or an exclamation, then sprayed blood and collapsed limply on the griffin's back. Dark red blood and floating white objects immediately stained the raptor's beautiful yellow fur.

  The griffin seemed to sense its master's death, cried mournfully, and pounced toward the distant Wyverns. The cries of other knights in the formation immediately turned into roars of anger. The entire squad of griffin knights rushed toward the two distant Wyverns in unison. Although the commander was lost, the effect of anger and fighting spirit was more motivating than any command.

  More importantly, they knew that just two Wyverns could never be a match for over twenty griffin knights, absolutely impossible.

  Sure enough, the two Wyverns saw the griffin knights approaching and immediately turned to fly back. But they hadn't flown far when two more equally huge arrows flew from the Wyverns, shooting down two griffin knights.

  The griffin knights became even angrier and chased more urgently. But the Wyverns' speed was not much different from griffins. No matter how they pursued, the distance of about two li between them could not be shortened. And every once in a while, arrows would shoot from the Wyverns' backs. When the third giant arrow shot from the Wyverns again skewered a griffin knight and griffin together, slicing off half of a griffin's wing, they finally realized something was wrong. Under the command of a few experienced warriors, all griffin knights began to retreat back the way they came.

  But at this moment, the two Wyverns that had been fleeing ahead also turned around, changing from fugitives to pursuers. The griffin knights finally felt panic because they realized that however far they had flown while pursuing, they would have to fly the same distance back to escape, and the orcs on the Wyverns could shoot just as many times.

  Night fell, but the allied forces did not take advantage of the darkness to advance.

  In the command tent of the Erathia army, the faces of several Temple Knights and generals were grim. On the ground lay the corpse of a griffin and its knight, with a giant arrow about a meter long just removed from the body.

  Wilskey picked up this arrow, slightly larger than the ones he usually used, examined it, and said: "This cannot be fired by a bow; only a ballista can launch something like this. The arrowhead is woven with mithril wire forming a magic array. It not only enhances penetration and destructive power but, most importantly, minimizes the influence of air. The arrow shaft is also very precisely and professionally made, ensuring the arrow's straight-line range. The cost of making one such arrow is no less than fifty fine steel longswords. That's why it can achieve a terrifying range of two li."

  An Erathia general immediately said: "The cost of raising and training a griffin and griffin knight from childhood is absolutely enough to forge a thousand excellent fine steel longswords. And within an hour, we lost forty-eight griffins and griffin knights. Moreover, all the squad leaders sent were killed. They were the most experienced warriors. Without them, the combat effectiveness of the griffin forces would at least decrease by half."

  "All griffin units on patrol in various areas were attacked at the same time. The orcs used the same method - first shooting the squad leaders. Without commanders, people naturally lose control of advance and retreat. If they weren't all clear-headed elite warriors who knew to retreat when they saw something wrong, the losses would have been even greater."

  Wilskey frowned and said: "Do the griffin squad leaders insist on wearing different clothes from their members to make it easier for enemies to aim?"

  "No choice. Air combat is not like on the ground. For formations or commands, sound often cannot be transmitted; it can only rely on mutual tacit cooperation. Sometimes the distance between each other is too far to see clearly. Therefore, the squad leader's clothing must be distinct in color to ensure the operation of tactics and formations."

  "I really doubt, at a full two li distance, what kind of ballista can have such accuracy? Even with such accuracy, how to aim? If it were you, I would still believe it, but those barbaric orcs..." Another Erathia general hesitated, then turned to ask Wilskey. He had seen this Temple Knight's archery skills before and found it hard to believe those barbaric sub-humans could reach that level.

  Wilskey shook his head and said indifferently: "What has already happened doesn't need further doubt. I believe ballistas finely crafted by dwarf artisans are precise enough. With winches matched with orc strength, the fired arrows absolutely have enough destructive power. As for vision... even I wouldn't dare compare with lizardmen. After all, my eyes can't grow protruding outside the body like theirs and automatically adjust. Plus long-term specialized training, so their ability to do this is indeed not worth doubting."

  "At a distance of two li, let alone the crossbow bolts of griffin knights, even the spells of battle mages absolutely cannot reach. They maintain this distance, using Wyverns equipped with ballistas operated by lizardmen to seize air supremacy. This tactic fully exploits the advantages of Wyverns' strength and size, and they advance and retreat with discipline, never chasing above our army to give our ballistae and mages a chance. Should we just let those dozen or so Wyverns completely suppress our griffin knights?"

  A staff officer thought for a moment and said: "Let the mages and ballista units ambush ahead first, then use griffins to lure them into the air above, then suddenly attack. How about this plan?"

  "That's impossible. How would you ambush?" someone immediately responded. He was stationed at the edge of the eastern highlands and was very clear about the orcs' capabilities. "Their vision isn't limited by night. No matter how you deploy troops, they can see everything clearly from above."

  Aldric turned to Wilskey and said: "Tomorrow we can go out together. These ballistae are useless against us. As long as we find a way to eliminate those dozen or so Wyverns, the initiative in battle will be completely on our side."

  "My lords, perhaps this is exactly Oufu's intention." The young Templar beside them suddenly spoke. He had not spoken before, just quietly watching the sand table on the desk and listening to the dialogue between the generals and Temple Knights.

  Aldric frowned at him and asked: "What do you mean? Javi samurai."

  Javi samurai nodded and answered in a very calm voice: "I think, since Oufu can devise such a precise and effective tactic, how we respond to this tactic must also be in their plan. For such ultra-long-range aerial ballista sniping, only powerful individual assault tactics can break it. We can think of this, and the people of Oufu certainly won't be unclear. In their eyes, perhaps the lives of Lord Wilskey and Lord Aldric are more valuable than the entire griffin force..."

  "You mean... Oufu is actually doing this to lure and kill the two Temple Knights?" An Erathia general couldn't help but laugh. "Hahahaha, you think those orcs have the ability to kill two Temple Knights with such divine combat skills before an army of one hundred thousand? I'd rather they dare to come out in force so we can annihilate them all at once."

  But neither the Temple Knights nor the Templar laughed. Their faces became increasingly grave. Because only they knew this was not impossible, but highly likely. In terms of individual assault, Oufu was only stronger than them. Lancelot would not appear on this battlefield in the Barbarian Highlands. Almost all Temple Knights were out, as he must stay in Celeste to protect His Majesty the Pope. As long as the target appeared and exposed themselves under the protection of the one hundred thousand army, they would never doubt that man had the ability to kill anyone.

  But the Erathia generals and staff officers would not see it this way. In their eyes, this was less caution and more timidity. The unshakable position of Temple Knights in their minds had begun to change these days, and their current reaction poured another bucket of ice water on this prestige.

  A staff officer looked at the heavy atmosphere, sighed and said: "My lords, I'll say it again, aren't we being a bit too cautious? In fact, many troubles come from our own excessive caution. We could absolutely advance straight with our one hundred thousand army to take Oufu directly. In the face of absolute power comparison, these petty tricks by Wyverns are completely useless."

  The two Temple Knights and the young Templar did not speak, nor did their expressions change. After a long silence, Wilskey said in a deep voice: "Both His Majesty the Pope and Lord Lancelot told us we must be careful when dealing with Oufu and not be careless. And we ourselves also think they are indeed opponents not to be underestimated. Actually, our current steady advance is to turn the battle into a direct clash of forces between both sides. As long as we slowly progress step by step, without revealing any flaws, and move all troops to Oufu City, that will make them unable to use any tricks."

  A general snorted and said: "Perhaps His Majesty and the Paladin Lord are right, but commanding from Celeste a thousand miles away, how can they adapt to the rapid changes on the battlefield? I admire your combat skills immensely, my lords, and I'm truly convinced, but actual battlefield combat is not that simple. There's an old saying: 'When a general is in the field, the king's orders are not always obeyed.' Too many considerations in command is a major taboo in military strategy. Personally, I think... we shouldn't overconsider His Majesty the Pope's previous words."

  Other colleagues couldn't help but glance at this general. Although he spoke rather euphemistically, he ultimately said what everyone was currently thinking. The biggest problem now was not just the sniper tactic of Wyverns against griffin forces; that was just a trigger, highlighting the lack of coordination in command within the allied forces.

  The Temple Knight did not speak, quietly listening to this general continue speaking.

  "Changing the army's advance to rest by day and march by night a few days ago to prevent orc sneak attacks had already greatly lowered morale in the army. After being attacked today, you two lords immediately ordered us to stop marching and strictly guard against orc sneak attacks. We actually know the orcs might follow up with such actions, but if we always become jumpy as startled birds at every sign of trouble, what will the soldiers think? In the long run, even if we can advance to Oufu City, morale will be worn away in this slow suppression and distrust. Soldiers without morale..."

  Aldric suddenly spoke, interrupting the general: "No need to say more. At dawn tomorrow, we will set out with the griffin knights."