Chapter 1433 - 770: First Battle Is the Decisive Battle

Chapter 1433: Chapter 770: First Battle Is the Decisive Battle

Among these nobles, there may be some fools, but most of those who are still alive survived the last calamity of the Hamlet and have developed, so they indeed have some capabilities.

Thus, after receiving news of the Romani trade, they realized that a battle with Hamlet was inevitable.

Initially, it was just a mutual exchange of information among the nobles. When it was confirmed that Hamlet had indeed launched a war to reclaim the territory, they had already begun war preparations, recruiting soldiers, and gathering knights, though their timing was a bit slower than the Baron.

As the war situation on the Baron’s side became increasingly difficult, and Hamlet began to show its strength.

These nobles set aside their longstanding grudges and united against the external threat. The bureaucrats displayed unprecedented efficiency, and other forces continuously provided support, either by joining the army or donating resources.

One could say that, under the provocation of a certain "evil" lord, they demonstrated the extreme potential of this system.

At the time, they did not respond to the Baron’s call for help and join the fight due to inadequate preparations.

Reinforcements from distant areas hadn’t arrived, and resources were still in transit. They lacked enough cattle and horses, relying more on manpower for transportation, which was free since serfs were unpaid.

Of course, the main reason was none of them wanted to clash with the currently flourishing Hamlet. They let the Baron, who had no other choice, face the initial onslaught, believing that even if he couldn’t win, he could at least buy them time and opportunity.

From the very beginning of contact, the Baron indeed gained them a few days, allowing other nobles to gather their troops and station them at the border of the Baron’s Domain, ready to withstand Hamlet’s invasion.

They couldn’t abandon their own land like the Baron did, as doing so would negate the possibility of a war of attrition. They aimed to stop Hamlet’s main force outside.

They even planned to take the initiative and fight on the Baron’s turf so that even if it was destroyed, they wouldn’t feel the pain, since the Baron had no objections anyway.

Unfortunately, the Baron’s army collapsed at the first engagement, and Hamlet’s main force remained intact, a battle of attrition was out of the question.

Before these nobles finished marveling at the strength of Hamlet’s army and mocking the Baron’s incompetence, what Hamlet did upon occupying the town sent chills down their spines.

A fierce argument was breaking out in the large camp built along the Baron’s Domain border.

"Those Hamlet people are extremely persuasive; the peasants submitted to them completely, ignoring all the Baron’s kindness."

"We can’t let them reach our side; otherwise, the peasants might waver. But we should wait for more support to arrive."

"We should advance now while their artillery is spent on the farms and haven’t had time to resupply."

"Exactly, every moment we delay allows them more time to recover. We must act now, or the opportunity the Baron bought us will slip away!"

"Attack, attack, attack!"

Indeed, under the immense pressure brought by a certain evil lord, the intense debate wasn’t between the warfaction and the peacefaction; they were all warfaction.

The radicals stated they must fight and stop the enemy outside their domain, but they needed time to equip and train the new recruits.

Moreover, the more people they conscript, the higher the chance of victory. Even using them to drain the enemy’s ammunition was a tactic.

The conservatives felt the radicals were too conservative, insisting they attack immediately, for the longer they delayed, the stronger Hamlet would become.

As for the serf soldiers, there was no time to train them. It didn’t matter how many died, as dying for the nobility was their honor.

Leading the charge were the other two barons of this region, who had occupied most of the former territory of Hamlet and feared it the most.

Consequently, the conservatives prevailed, and a six-thousand-strong force moved recklessly toward the recently victorious Baron’s Domain, hoping to annihilate the evil Hamlet army.

Victory belonged to their righteous selves!

...

"Sir, the new round of intelligence has been delivered. Everyone is waiting for you."

"I know." Lance extricated himself from those tedious matters and headed to the military camp.

Barton and several commanders were already waiting. Lance wasted no time and spoke directly.

"You must have seen the intelligence. What’s the situation now?"

"About a hundred full-armored knights, but those with actual fiefs are less than thirty. Most are those wandering knights and the church’s Crusader knights."

"However, there are more than two hundred without armor or in half-armor, mainly those personal guards of the nobles."

"There aren’t many longbowmen, only about a hundred, but there are quite a few regular archers, around five hundred, and even a makeshift musketeer unit, although there are fewer than a hundred of them."

"Churches have also united to send out..."

The reports from several commanders made it clear the situation was under control.

Those nobles could send people to inquire about information; how could Lance possibly not know their movements?

Like the Baron, Lance had deployed people long before. Didn’t you notice Laura and Dismas had been absent all this time?

One could say that when Lance took down the Baron, he already foresaw that those nobles would intervene, even allowing it to happen because he was too lazy for a prolonged fight.

However, Lance was a bit surprised upon hearing all this.

Initially, based on intelligence, Lance estimated that these southern lords combined could muster five thousand men, including the defeated Baron’s forces.