That afternoon, Xiao Chen, Olgas, Roger, and Evelyn hid their bodies, left Blackwood Pass, and sneaked towards the imperial camp behind the mountain. The camp was actually very close to Blackwood Pass. After leaving the pass, they passed the previously burned outpost camp and turned a mountain pass to see the camp built in the valley. It took Xiao Chen and his companions only more than half an hour to reach the camp. They did not encounter any scouts or reconnaissance cavalry along the way. This section of the road seemed to be undefended.
"The Imperials' defense shouldn't be so lax. In the past, there were always several checkpoints on the road leading to their camp. Today, there is nothing, which means they clearly want us to watch them withdraw. I think even if we weren't invisible, they would not care about us." Orgas said.
"They are quite generous. Aren't they afraid that we will harm their emperor?" Xiao Chen asked.
Olgas said, "This Emperor Alfred is very courageous. I never thought that the Emperor of the Purple Eagle Empire would come to the front line. This little emperor is not the same kind of person as his father. Although his father is also a warmongerer, he is almost a madman. It has only been a few years since the last war? He found an opportunity to start such a war again. I really don't know what he is thinking. Humph, do you really think you can become the overlord of a unified continent?"
"Unify the continent?" Xiao Chen had never heard anyone in this world mention such a statement.
"This is also a rumor among the nobles. It is said that Alfred got drunk at a New Year's Eve dinner and said that the entire continent was a gift from the God of Nature. Ha, don't worry about it, it's just the drunken talk of a madman." Olgas said.
They found a forest on the gentle slope opposite the valley and hid themselves there, quietly observing the movements in the valley opposite.
The valley was very large, with natural mountains on three sides as barriers. One side was open, and the imperialists built a wall along the opening, naturally forming a small city. Xiao Chen and others looked from the hillside and could see a large number of wooden houses and tents in the camp.
Many people were walking back and forth in the camp, lining up, and even more were carrying supplies and loading them onto ox carts. Not long after, two teams left the camp and headed for the road to the north. Half an hour after they left, another logistics team formed by ox carts left.
Olgas said, "This is the Imperial brigade. There are about 500 people in the two brigade. Added together, there are 1,000 people. However, these are not the elite troops of the Empire, but ordinary peasant soldiers. Generally, the core of such a ragtag army is composed of two mid-level or low-level knights as the chief and deputy commanders, plus some personal soldiers such as attendants. Their main role on the battlefield is to build fortifications, fill trenches, intercept and chase the defeated enemy, or consume the enemy's arrows and weapons in siege battles. They are not used in frontal field battles."
Xiao Chen looked carefully and found that most of these soldiers were indeed very thin and weak. They looked terrible whether they were lined up or marching, let alone having any murderous aura on the battlefield.
"However, these people are also indispensable." Roger said, "The Empire's army is not like our guards. It is impossible to let real soldiers do those miscellaneous tasks."
"What kind of team did you lead back then?" Xiao Chen asked.
"I fought on the Eastern Front, and my brigade was considered the elite of the Empire. Unfortunately, the commander of the corps at the time made mistakes in command, and the enemy broke up our brigade during a night attack. That's why my brigade was trapped on a hill."
"Who was your opponent at that time?" asked Olgas.
"Count Bellano." Roger said.
"Hehe, it's indeed the guy who is good at sneak attacks. I think the Imperials on the Eastern Front should be very troubled by him now." Olgas sighed, "Alas, in fact, the Kingdom is not short of famous generals and talents. Both me and Belano have the ability to strangle the Imperials. But why has the situation fallen to this point now?"
Xiao Chen said, "There is a saying in my hometown that war is the continuation of politics. The current situation in the capital is a good example of this. When a country is in internal turmoil and political instability, no matter how powerful the army is or how wise the generals are, they will not be able to exert their strength. On the contrary, Emperor Alfred purged several powerful ministers in the past two years and suppressed the opposition in the Senate. This gave him the confidence to go to the front line and launch a war."
"Yes." Olgas said, "I hope it is the right choice for me to join you, and there won't be so many troubles in your team."
Xiao Chen said: "Of course, I dare not say that we are united internally, but at least on major issues of right and wrong, we are united against the outside world, you can rest assured."
An hour after this group of imperial soldiers left, a new army set out. This army was completely different from the previous one. Each soldier looked tall and strong, and many of them had hair, horns and scales on their bodies, looking extremely ferocious.
"These are the most elite beast legions of the empire. Of course, they don't call them that," said Orgas.
"This is the 'Mad Beast Legion'. There is another 'Mad Beast Legion' on the Eastern Front." Roger added.
"Well, no matter what, these beast cubs are not easy to deal with. The kingdom has suffered a lot from them in the battles on the plains. Generally, we have to rely on the kingdom's magicians to have more advantages to compete with them. These beasts have poor mental resistance. In previous battles, the magicians of the Spirit Refining Tower were their nemesis. But now, the queen has actually destroyed the Spirit Refining Tower herself."
"That guy looks very strong." Evelyn pointed at a general on horseback in the team. The man was probably in his fifties, with some gray hair, but a very strong body.
"That's Duke Stuart. The old guy has been against me for more than ten years and is not easy to deal with. If the emperor hadn't come here in person, he would be the supreme commander of this camp. I didn't expect him to lead the beast army to withdraw. So it seems that they really withdrew their main force." Olgas said, "Should we send some people to follow and see?"
"No, we are too weak and it is too dangerous to separate." Xiao Chen pondered for a while and said, "Although the Wild Beast Corps is strong, the threat to our Black Wood Pass is not as great as that of the Black Guards. We have not seen the movements of the Black Guards yet, so let's wait a little longer."
They watched the Wild Beast Corps march out in waves. It took about an hour for the 5,000 to 6,000-man team, plus baggage, to finish the march. But not long after, a team wearing black armor and robes appeared behind them.
"Black Guards, they are coming. Let's go and follow them to see for ourselves!" Xiao Chen said. (To be continued)