"This is simply... God's punishment," Tie Axe sighed. "I can't even see the shadow of my opponent, so I can only be beaten passively. If it's an ordinary enemy, it's absolutely impossible to finish this mountain road under fire."
The commander-in-chief of the First Army has seen the power of the howitzer, and naturally knows how amazing it will be when it falls in a densely marching team. From the landing of the first cannonball to the front of the position, it was five kilometers away. The enemy either ran all the way, expending all his strength before the battle, or continued to move forward regardless, dragging the incomplete team to attack the position. Of course, the most likely scenario is that they will be scattered in a hurry, and the march will turn directly to rout.
"Unfortunately, the enemies we have to deal with are not ordinary," Roland smiled. "And the number of shells is also very limited, otherwise the two fortress cannons alone can wipe out the opponent."
Due to the use of whole-loaded ammunition, the fortress cannon has a rate of fire of up to eight rounds per minute. The efficiency of firepower delivery is absolutely insane in this era. Since the alchemist of the capital moved to Neverwinter with a large number of apprentices, the production of double-base propellant has been increasing, and the number of shells has become the biggest limit. The trigger fuze can only be produced by hand by Anna, and the extremely precise mechanical The structure restricts the production capacity of the howitzer.
"Your Majesty, all 20 rounds of calibration artillery have been fired," Battalion Commander Fanerhui reported after repeating the firing several times. "A total of six valid target data have been obtained, which are roughly distributed in the second half of the mountain road."
"Very well, let's be here today." Roland nodded.
After all, test shells also need to be specially made. Although solid warheads are used, the shape and weight are the same as those of fuze-mounted grenades. Only Anna can do this delicate work. Every day, she takes time to make a certain number of test warheads. For the artillery battalion school fire.
"Do you need to go anywhere else?" Iron Axe asked.
"No," Roland shook his head after thinking for a moment, "I'll go back to the camp first, and you can continue to arrange soldier training."
"Yes, Your Majesty," he saluted.
After returning to the camp, Roland leaned on the reclining chair and let out a long sigh. He found that he had nothing to do, or that he had already done what he had to do, and the rest was left to fate.
Five days ago, the church finally responded. According to Maisie's report, the gates of the holy city were wide open, and countless men and horses poured out of the city, lined up in neat long queues to head towards Cold Wind Ridge. The armor of the warriors shone with silver light, and when viewed from the sky, it was like a sparkling river running through the desperate mountains.
At the same time, the spies stationed in the Old Holy City and the Hermes Plateau also sent back secret letters, saying that the scale of the church's operations was unprecedented, and that there were many fewer people in the city.
It was clear that the enemy had come out in full force.
Roland, who got the news, rushed to the front line immediately, and his arrival also boosted the morale of the soldiers of the First Army, and a decisive battle to decide the future of both sides was coming.
More than 4,000 elite soldiers, a reserve knight team provided by the Duke of the North, a preliminary investigation team composed of Lightning and Maisie, Sylvie's unrelenting firepower guidance, and the battle witches distributed around the camp, such Preparation is not incomplete. Even the actions of the church were carried out step by step in accordance with the battle plan formulated by the staff. In addition, all the residents of Cold Wind Ridge had been evacuated. Even if the other party wanted to use the maddening pills, they could only consume the believers in the holy city, or from Other kingdoms forcibly levied their inhabitants.
This start has been perfect enough.
But there was always a trace of worry in Roland's heart.
That is the pure one.
What form they will take and what ability they will use to interfere in the decisive battle is unknown.
In order to avoid casualties caused by the enemy's sneak attack, the witches who stayed on the front line these days all slept in their clothes, and they were all concentrated in a lobby. Sylvie and Nightingale were divided into two groups to keep vigil by turns. As long as they found a magical reaction, the entire camp would be awakened by the echoing siren.
As a result, to this day, the church has not taken any extra actions other than sending troops to occupy the Cold Wind Ridge, and Roland has not even seen the shadow of the Pure One.
He didn't know whether the enemy was planning an earth-shattering conspiracy, or whether he was simply disdainful of harassment and planned to crush himself directly on the frontal battlefield.
No matter what, all he can do now is to continue to wait.
…
After dinner, Roland lay down on the bed early, but he couldn't fall asleep until the bright moonlight shone down on the head of the bed through the cracks in the window. Putting on his clothes, as soon as he walked out of the bedroom, the nightingale who was staying outside immediately flashed over.
"Why, can't you sleep?"
"A little bit, probably because there are too many straws under the bed," Roland rubbed his neck and took out a wheat leaf from his collar. "When you lie down, you feel like something is always tying your back."
"I think so too," Andrea, who was also in the first half of the night group, echoed, "Not to mention transporting a big bed, at least two more layers of silk duvets, the Duke of Northland is too stingy."
"We are fighting, not outings, ladies and gentlemen," Ashes said angrily, "A house with shelter from the wind and rain is a good thing, how can there be such high requirements."
"Of course, for people with rough skin and flesh, it really doesn't make any difference."
"That's better than being weak."
"I think we need to fight again to see who is really weak."
"You will naturally understand after the church is settled."
"Wait... Can I place a bet?" Sha Wei raised her hand.
Nightingale pulled him aside, "Don't pay attention to them, it's a routine every night."
Roland smiled and shook his head, "If I had known, I wouldn't have separated the two of them." Since Nightingale's detection range was far smaller than Sylvie's, the combat mission of the first midnight group was handed over to the card-playing trio, plus Nightingale's. If so, this is already the strongest attacking combination that witches can come up with. In the second half of the night, the group was mainly defensive. The members were Agatha, Zephyr, and Iffy, who were unparalleled in controlling and blocking the enemy. "How about the others, are they still adapting?"
"The sisters of the mutual aid society are not as particular as you are," Nightingale blinked. "They have all gone through the days of fleeing and sleeping in the open air. Under such circumstances, they can fall asleep when they close their eyes."
Well, it seems that he is the one who is the most restless... Roland sat on the steps, looking up at the stars, and was silent for a long time, "What will happen to us when this is over?"
Nightingale sat down beside him, "Are you nervous?"
"I'm just a little emotional," he rubbed his nose guiltily. "If we fail to defeat the Church..." Will Neverwinter continue to follow the current order? Will the kingdom be completely swallowed up by the church, or will it return to the old path of aristocratic division? And Anna and the other witches... Can they really escape to Sleepy Island safely
Before he knew it, he had developed a strong feeling for the land and people he devoted himself to creating.
"Don't worry," Nightingale took his hand and said softly, "As I said before... As long as I'm still alive, you won't be hurt in any way," she paused, "and our story has only just begun. start."