271 Chapter 27The movement of the enemy army was quick to be noticed by the guard who remained by the side of the baron as he had his eyes set on them since the beginning of the battle. “It’s best if you retreat to the castle now, my lord.” The guard suggested to his master as he knew that their infantry which was blocking the entrance wouldn’t be able to repel the assault of the main force of their foes.
He was glad that the usually proud baron threw aside his pride and listened to his previous suggestions which did wonders for their side. The guard knew that he was far from being a competent commander but he had experienced a lot of battles already in his lifetime and learned a lot of things from the battles that he had survived from. Since he was never promoted from the ranks and remained but just a lowly soldier who were always in the thick of battle, he opted to become a guard to the nobles because with his age now, it would be easy for him to lose his life. And with his wealthy experience as a soldier, it didn’t take long for him to be hired by his current master and he had been in his care for more than two years already.
The baron ignored his suggestion to fall back to the castle as this was the first time that he felt that he was doing something great and it made him feel good inside with his soldiers long up to him. He focused his gazed onto his target then released his fingers on the string of the bow and sent the arrow flying towards the enemy soldier who was lacking in armor as the arrow easily penetrated his chest through his clothes. “My soldiers need me here and I will stay here…” the baron sounded confident as he shot his next arrow successfully taking another enemy out.
“But…” the words of the guards were cut off when he tried to dissuade the baron in his decision, “Enough! I will stay here and that’s that! You are but just my guard not my master! Act like one!” the baron got angry at his guard. He had no gratitude for the guard who made great contributions to the battle as he was more focused in enjoying the feeling of being great.
The angry shout of the baron made Captain Kertakk shift his gaze from his soldiers towards their lord, when he saw who he was shouting at with anger, he shook his head, “There goes my newfound respect for you…”
The guard who was scolded by his master dues to his previous words kept his mouth shut but he was still full of worry for the safety of the baron. Despite being rebuked by the baron, he still stayed beside him to ensure his safety not because he was loyal to his master but because he would become jobless if the baron dies.
Commander Lastam led their massive formation as they charged towards their foes.
“Break through them!”
“Kill!!!”
.....
“Slaughter them!!!
“No mercy!!!”
Shouts came from the men of Commander Lastam while they headed towards their foes. Lishtal can’t help but pity the surviving members of the second wave who would soon be trampled by them to death since they are in their way.
Captain Kertakk commanded for his soldiers to pull back halfway through the arch as to lessen the impact of the next enemy charge as soon as he realized that the bulk of their enemies which were yet to join the battle came all at once. His soldiers listened to his words and slowly retreated inside the arch of the gate; the mixed enemy infantry gave out cheers thinking that they are beating their foes when they realized that they were slowly pulling back. Their attacks became more frenzied as they were eager to get into the town as early as possible and begin looting for wealth but little did, they know of the danger that was coming.
Captain Kertakk hurriedly climbed the stairs to the walls, he was already drenched in sweat but he still had a duty to perform, “My lord, you have to retreat to the castle and arrange for its defenses.” His voice that was clearly tired came but the baron just snorted at his words and continued on shooting arrows after arrows with glee. His delight came from his targets being closer and packed even tighter than before which made killing them easier since with how crowded together, they are, even if he blindly shot an arrow, he was bound to hit someone among them provided that he shoots towards their direction.
The attack under the lead of Commander Lastam came and slammed against the infantry that was blocking the gateway but before they can reach them, their allied mixed infantry were the ones who took the brunt of their charge as they were trampled to death by their own comrades. Screams of panic and groans of pain filled the ten-meter-wide path as soldiers were squashed to death by the cavalry or sent flying by the impact of their charge. Equipped with their battle energy, Commander Lastam and the elites of his group made easy work of the frontline of their foes as they tore their formation apart.
“Captain! The infantry won’t be able to hold them off much longer!” a shout of distress came from one of the sergeants as he tried to maintain control of their lines.
“Take the baron back to castle safely… by all means…” Captain Kertakk directed his words towards the guard who was beside their lord. Realizing that his life would be in danger if he remained there, Baron Masud’s cowardice came back as he sprinted down the walls throwing away the image of him that he built before with his words. The captain and the guard shook their heads after seeing their master flee faster than a spooked rabbit in the wild.
“Archers! Take positions inside the houses in town! We will turn the entire down into a battlefield!” Captain Kertakk shouted as he followed after the guard who went down the walls to chased after the baron to ensure their master’s safety and probably also his.