Outside a city that was neither too big nor too small, flags were flying and swords and spears were everywhere. The city wall was more than five meters high, which was considered very low in this world.
There were not many people on the top of the city wall, because mortar shells kept hitting the top of the city wall from below, exploding sparks. The soldiers in the city were already frightened, although the enemy only had five guns. However, this unprecedented weapon was so powerful that it completely destroyed their morale.
The city lord was hesitating whether to surrender, but he saw that the army outside the city had already organized a charge. The more than one hundred warriors in the front were one section taller than the warriors behind them. These sturdy warriors only wore simple leather armor, and their thick tendon meat bulged out from the leather armor, full of oppressive power. They held axes and giant swords in their hands, waving them at the city and making loud howls.
Berserker!
The city lord had never seen a full-fledged army of berserkers. He had only heard of the strength and madness of these warriors. He never expected that the earl would actually send such a terrifying team to his remote battlefield.
I heard that the worst berserkers also have low-level strength, and their strength will be doubled after they go berserk. It's obvious that such a team is definitely not something that his mob can contend with.
He hurriedly called one of his subordinates, asked him to wave the flag of the Temple of Nature, and go out of the city to surrender to the other side.
Unexpectedly, the messenger was blasted into charcoal by a fireball as soon as he left the city through the side door. In panic, the city lord saw the woman on the hillside opposite the city making a throat-cutting gesture to him from a distance, not even giving him a chance to surrender.
This was the team that Count Carlos led to attack Gronia City on the eastern front. The woman on the hillside was naturally Serinda, the leader of the Count's detachment.
This was already the third city Serinda had attacked. The first two cities were captured without much fighting. Gronia, a small city leading to the eastern harbor, was the first city they had actually attacked.
When Serinda and Li Jia set out from Ariak, they had only a thousand troops, including more than a hundred Berserkers and five mortars obtained from the Chinese, which were their most relied upon.
However, Serinda soon showed her aristocratic character. After she captured each city, she recruited a large number of farmers and citizens from the surrounding areas to join her army. It was not that her army was popular, but that she used coercion, inducement, and coercion to conscript many people. On the other hand, she spent a lot of money to recruit all the mercenaries she met on the road. After passing through two cities and several small towns, her team swelled up like a balloon. When she arrived at the city of Gronia, her team already had more than 3,000 people. Although the quality was not satisfactory, at least the momentum was very scary. Li Jia had some complaints about the way he recruited soldiers, but Serinda said that this was the way the nobles had always fought.
"If you can get the Chinese to equip us with air rifles and gas-powered cannons in large numbers and train the army like you do, I can avoid recruiting these people into our ranks. But now, you want me to fight your way with a few small pistols and five mortars
Don't think I'm cruel. You should play the cards you have in your hand in the right way. This is a natural thing. It's not something you or I can solve with just a word. "
So Li Jia could only watch Serinda and form a team using the traditional methods of the nobles.
Standing on the hillside opposite the city, Li Jia said, "The lord on the other side was clearly about to surrender, why did you blow his messenger up into the sky?"
Serinda shook her cape behind her, looking very dignified. She said sternly, "I gave him a day to think about it and told him the consequences of not surrendering. He actually ignored my words. No wonder I kept my promise.
Isn't keeping one of the most important qualities of a commander?"
Li Jia clenched his fists, his voice trembling: "Are you really going to massacre the city? But originally, you could have made him open the city gate with just one sentence."
"I gave him a chance, but he didn't give himself a chance." Serinda turned around and pointed at the warriors who had assembled at the bottom of the slope. "As their lord and commander, I have promised them what they can get. When the Lord of Gronia rejected my kindness, everything in this city had actually been allocated to them. That's right, burning, killing and looting are the inevitable outcomes, because all the lives and wealth of this city have been handed over to my warriors.
Can I take back from them what I have given them? Shall I withhold the wealth from those who are loyal to us, and leave it in the hands of those who are against us?"
"But... in addition to wealth, we can also keep human lives and put them to other uses." Li Jia said.
"Letting them die is the best use of them. There will be a tough battle in Antolia City later. My father never expected us to capture this strong city. However, I must show him my strength and ability.
Therefore, our elite warriors are in urgent need of a battle, a small-scale but decent battle to improve their condition.
Those newly recruited people are still farmers holding hoes. Do you know how to turn them into real warriors? "
Li Jia knew the answer clearly in her heart, but she couldn't bear to say it out loud.
Serinda said without hesitation: "See blood! Only after they have killed people and seen blood, they can transform from a farmer into a warrior. This is more useful than any training. In the past, some people even ignited their fighting spirit in the process of killing people. I hope we will have such good luck today."
At this time, a tall berserker walked up the hillside and reported to Serinda: "Lord Serinda, a section of the city wall has collapsed. We should be able to organize a charge. I believe that as long as we rush in, these rubbish in the city will be scattered to pieces. Lord, just give the order and wait for our good news!"
Serinda said, "Lumiere, pass on my order. The attack begins! I don't want any of the property in the city. I will give it all to the soldiers who rush into the city!"
"Yes, sir! I will seal off the city lord's mansion!" said Lumiere.
"Very good, go ahead!" Seeing Li Jia's pale face, Serinda said, "Dear, you'll get used to it. You can't accept this yet because you don't have the heart of a commander yet." (To be continued)