Chapter 1417 - 762: The Generous Baron

Chapter 1417: Chapter 762: The Generous Baron

"Hmph! Does he think he can stop us?"

The Commander didn’t waste any words, signaling the troops to accelerate forward, as there was no need to conserve energy for the remaining distance.

The pace of the advance quickened, and within the ranks, twenty artillery pieces were gradually pulled into position by the horses, poised to face the front of the walls.

"Last chance, the Lord mercifully wishes to avoid bloodshed. Surrender now and you’ll live; otherwise, the bullets won’t show mercy!"

"Have your Lord get out! This is my territory, you are the invaders!"

The Knight was naturally unwilling to retreat in the slightest, because upon moving closer, he realized that the soldiers mostly weren’t wearing armor, making it difficult to defend against arrows.

Daring to approach, the archers from elevated positions would shoot downward, intending to fill this place with your corpses if you tried to breach it.

However, he shouldn’t have mentioned someone, as the soldiers of Hamlet could not tolerate his attitude toward their own Lord.

"Damn it, bring up the artillery and blast them for me!"

"Fire!"

The Commander’s hoarse shout resonated, closely followed by the gunners’ calls, and then the artillery erupted with a roar, plumes of white smoke billowing upwards and forming cloud-like shapes that lingered over the position.

This scene frightened those present, including the Knight, who quickly ducked back under the walls.

Interestingly, the artillery wasn’t aimed at the walls or the gate, but rather at the wooden arrow towers.

Under the bombardment, the wood couldn’t withstand it, and a round of twenty shots collapsed the tower, sending the archers atop it tumbling down.

This was still acceptable; one shot went high and smashed directly into the platform, splintering the wooden railing and sending shards flying into the archers’ bodies, leading to a chorus of wails.

Not to mention the shot piercing holes through bodies, even tearing half of a torso as it passed, leaving no scream possible.

The roar of the artillery... the crash of the collapse... the cries and screams unfolding one after the other; this is the brutality of battle.

This scene was visible to the Knight, as well as to the foot soldiers, who initially had little morale, given that it was your lord’s land, not theirs.

Standing here was entirely sustained by rewards and the Knight’s pressure, but now they were completely bewildered.

Meanwhile, on the other side, nothing concerned their reaction. When the Knight denied the Lord, the conflict became irreconcilable, and after taking down the vantage point, the troops immediately advanced.

Hamlet was currently equipped with light artillery, also known as field guns, specializing in specific areas, lacking siege capability, making even the stone walls ahead problematic.

They needed to use iron shot to knock closer to collapse, but the wooden arrow towers were much simpler, even stone shot would suffice.

Upon approaching within a hundred yards, the standout pieces were several mortars, not as dramatic as artillery but well-suited for walls and trenches.

With a mortar’s range limited to about a hundred yards, it was essential to eliminate the arrow towers first.

The mortars were simpler to operate than cannons, yet harder to aim due to the parabolic trajectory requiring calculation of the landing spot, hence the best gunners were assigned to this task.

Fortunately, these artillerymen were trained and had standard references, they only needed a few data points to ascertain the answer.

Bonaparte required none of this, merely a glance, and the answer formed in his mind, finishing aiming first, he fired a shot.

The bomb with a lit fuse traced a parabolic arc across the sky, bypassing the walls to accurately land behind them with an explosion.

"Boom boom..."

Successive explosions, though not as precise as Bonaparte’s, engulfed the area, continuing to decimate the enemy’s effective forces, preventing them from daring to emerge and counterattack.

Then, the second round of loaded cannon also fired again, this time smashing into the gate, shattering the blockade in front and scattering fragments across the ground.

After the artillery came the infantry advance, at this point, there were still mortars lobbing bombs; what ordinary soldier would dare to do this?

Infantry and artillery coordination, even wealthy Totnes couldn’t train soldiers of such caliber...

Yet, the Knight and his painstakingly assembled troops suffered significantly.

Bonaparte’s first shot aimed directly at the Knight, but the Knight wasn’t foolish, although unfamiliar with artillery, seeing the arrow towers’ outcome, he didn’t think he could withstand it.

Thus, upon noticing a bomb descending from the sky towards him, without hesitation, he turned and ran, given the mortar’s notable trajectory; if it were a cannon, there would be no reaction time at all.

But speed is relative; before the Knight had run more than a few steps, the bomb exploded behind him, with the shockwave evident only at a distance of two or three meters, relying primarily on fragments for lethality.

The Knight only felt a push from behind, dizziness engulfing him as he fell to the ground, followed by a chaotic noise making it difficult to react, like striking metal, piercing flesh, or colliding with stone...

Yet, more explosions echoed, scaring the Knight so much he remained prone without daring to rise, and this decision saved him.

Eventually, when the Knight regained awareness, his cloak torn, the armor on his back dented in several places, and shrapnel embedded within, narrowly avoiding penetration.

He ran swiftly and his constitution withstood the shockwave, his armor deflected the shrapnel’s damage, but what about the foot soldiers gathered around him?