Chapter 322: The Clash of Battle
Gerd parried a thrusting spear, stepped forward, and swung his greatsword in a silver arc, cleaving the throat of the man who held it. Blood splattered.
He then dodged to the right, avoiding a swing from a longsword while bringing his own greatsword down with a powerful overhand chop that nearly split a Nilfgaardian soldier in two.
But just then, two more Nilfgaardian soldiers took advantage of Gerd's open guard. They lunged, their spears thrusting at his back. They were sure Gerd was done for.
But before their spear tips could touch him, two arrows streaked from the distance, finding the gaps in their armor. Gerd pulled his greatsword free and swung it in a wide arc, effortlessly killing the two.
He didn't have time to thank Lynn for the covering fire. He quickly pulled out two more bombs, also given to him by Lynn beforehand—Enhanced Samum and Grapeshot. He tossed them forward and grabbed a nearby corpse to use as a shield.
BANG! BANG!
The bombs exploded, carving out two small, temporary voids in the tidal wave of men. In that empty space, Nilfgaardians who had not died instantly lay on the ground, wailing and clutching at their severed limbs.
Gerd didn't hesitate. Seizing the opportunity, he raced across the single wooden plank. A few Nilfgaardian soldiers, who were not afraid of death, climbed over their comrades' bodies and chased after him, only to be taken down in quick succession by Lynn's bow.
Gerd crossed the trench and tore the last plank away. The Nilfgaardians opposite him, unable to stop their forward momentum, tumbled into the ditch, impaling themselves on the sharpened stakes at the bottom.
The Tuirseach forces guarding the palisade moved the obstacles back into place, sealing the fence completely after Gerd had passed.
On the deck of the flagship, a messenger reported to Count Tullius.
"My Lord, the Württemberg and Nassau infantry have sustained fifty percent casualties. The captain of the Württemberg infantry has been killed."
Count Tullius's eyes twitched, but he masked his expression well. "Order the Württemberg and Nassau infantry to fall back. Bring in the Pfalz and Lübeck infantry to continue the attack."
After the messenger left, a solemn expression finally appeared on the Count's face. The resilience of the islanders was far beyond his expectations. They were proving to be much more difficult to deal with than he had anticipated, but he was committed now.
If he ordered a retreat, the soldiers who had already died would have done so in vain. And what if they were to try to flank the island only to face more resistance? Would they flee again?
Was there a war that didn't have casualties?
In truth, Count Tullius had already figured it out. These few hundred men were all the enemy had. His army was three times their size. Even if he had to sacrifice men to win, he would still come out ahead.
As long as he could break this enemy force, there was no way a second resistance could be raised on Spikeroog. After that, he could ride the momentum of victory straight into the undefended Tuirseach castle and pillage it. When he returned to Nilfgaard, he would be treated like a hero.
On the other hand, if he went back empty-handed out of concern for his troops, he would face the Emperor's wrath. By now, the Empire's coast was still being ravaged by the Skellige fleet.
Villages were being pillaged, farmlands were being burned, maritime trade had been cut off, and the losses to the Merchant's Guild were incalculable.
Nilfgaard's centralized power was immense, but it wasn't to the point where the Emperor was the state. Even the Emperor needed the support of others to keep his throne.
Therefore, if his mission to the Skellige Isles was a success, all would be well. But if he ran back in disgrace, he, a defeated commander, would be used as a scapegoat to divert the attention of the public and the Merchant's Guild. It wouldn't matter how powerful his family was.
So, compared to losing his head over concern for his soldiers' lives, he would rather have their bodies pave his way to victory. The saying, "In times of peace, treat your soldiers like your own children; but on the battlefield, use them like clay figures, and do not care about casualties for the sake of victory," applied perfectly here.
Under Count Tullius's orders, the Nilfgaardian forces who had been pursuing the islanders fell back and were replaced by a fresh wave of soldiers. These men had been resting ever since they landed. Their stamina had returned, and their seasickness had somewhat subsided. Upon receiving the commander's orders, they surged forward like a tide.
Ever since they had learned of the impending Nilfgaardian invasion, the Tuirseach branch family had erected a row of stakes facing the beachhead. The middle section was left open for movable obstacles, and the palisade extended to the steep cliffs on both sides. This arrangement forced the enemy to attack from the front.
But after Lynn arrived, he had a suggestion: to dig a trench in front of the fence and line the bottom with sharpened stakes on the side closer to the palisade.
Previously, when the Clan Drummond forces went out to support Clan an Craite, they had laid planks over the trench and moved the obstacles in the middle of the palisade aside. When everyone retreated back behind the fence, they removed all the planks and moved the obstacles back into place.
Thus, when the Pfalz and Lübeck infantry took over for the Württemberg and Nassau infantry, they had to climb down into the trench, carefully step over the stakes, and then climb up the palisade. This process was dangerous even in peacetime. Not to mention that as they started to climb up, they were met with a wall of spears and swords waiting for them.
The first couple dozen unlucky soldiers either managed to climb up only to be cut by the spears and swords from behind the palisade or fell back down, losing their footing while trying to dodge, and impaled themselves on the sharpened stakes at the bottom.
Realizing this was a losing strategy, the Nilfgaardian army temporarily halted their assault. They quickly brought up a group of archers, who stood on the other side of the trench and began to fire at the Tuirseach forces. Clan an Craite's archers immediately returned fire, but the Nilfgaardian archers outnumbered them five to one. Even with the disadvantage of shooting upwards, their sheer numerical superiority was enough to compensate.
After several volleys, the an Craite archers were pinned down. Not only that, but the Nilfgaardian archers were also firing at the Tuirseach forces behind the palisade, forcing them to retreat.
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