Chapter 83: Kill Odin!

  At noon, the defeated and disorganized soldiers slowly gathered back, with around 1,500 people. Xia Ya originally wanted to reorganize these troops for use, but more than half of them had suffered serious injuries. Some were not severely injured, but after fleeing and running long distances, they were already exhausted. Moreover, it seemed that the majority of the soldiers had been killed by Odin's men, completely losing all will to fight, with every face filled with terror and numbness.

  Xia Ya thought he didn't have the ability to immediately awaken the fighting spirit of these guys - he wasn't one of those legendary heroic figures who could give a speech and exude an aura of royalty, making these defeated rabbits regain their courage and become brave warriors - this kind of thing only existed in legends anyway, it was impossible in reality.

  So he simply handed over all these defeated soldiers to Kato to replenish the logistics, but then withdrew more than 200 people from the logistics again.

  However, in the afternoon, bad news came one after another!

  Xia Ya divided his 200 cavalrymen into six teams, leaving the barracks to search in all directions. Six teams returned at noon, with two teams retreating a bit late after encountering Odin's small troops and escaping after an intense battle, losing nearly half of their men and horses.

  All six directions of the search party encountered small detachments of Oding troops!

  That is to say, they were surrounded by Odin's people!!

  "It's clear that these Odinians want to cut off our connection with the outside. Shayya scratched his head in distress: 'The generals on the front line are probably still unaware of the trouble behind! Or maybe they already know, but perhaps they've also encountered their own troubles. Moreover, there's another thing I'm worried about... The Odinians have probably directly flanked us and taken over Wildfire Town! With a small garrison in Wildfire Town, if the Odinians occupy it, it would be perfect as a stronghold to block our retreat southward, while also being able to resist the Imperial army's northward advance."

  Xia Ya sighed, in the large tent, that officer named Sret, as well as Sharba, Kato, and three other officers of the same rank gathered together.

  Xia Ya took out the map on the wall.

  "Our situation is not good now... Originally, the plan for this time was to have three armies on the north side of Wildfire Prairie to resist the Odin people in three ways. In the south of Wildfire Town, there was also an army stationed as a reserve team."

  And after the second ninth legion of both roads was finished, according to current intelligence, Hastings has already run to our back. If they occupy Wildfire Town... No, not if! They must have occupied Wildfire Town! In this way, even if the reserve troops in the south come to support, they will be dragged down at Wildfire Town and cannot go north - Moreover, I am worried that Hastings has deployed so many small forces around us to cut off our communication. Maybe by the time the reserve troops in the south receive the message to go north, our blood will have been drained!

  Inside the main tent, only Sret, the commander of a battalion, was leading an infantry battalion, which is considered a combat unit, and also had some foundation in military strategy. He nodded his head, looked at Xia Ya, and said: "That guy Hastings has a big appetite! He launched a surprise attack on the 29th Battalion, and then even cut off our rear route, planning to wipe out both our 13th and 6th Battalions in the north... Hmph! Thinking of taking down four Byzantine battalions with one battle, Odin's appetite is too big!"

  Kato and Sharuba were just personal guards, they had never led troops before, so they couldn't offer any suggestions, they could only listen on the side. Sharuba grew anxious and suddenly shouted: "We must think of a way to contact the general in the north! Why not... let me lead the cavalry to charge north!"

  Xia Ya looked at him and said seriously, "No! It's not that I don't want to contact the general, but we can't right now! What we can think of, as a famous general of Odin, wouldn't Hastings have thought of it too? I guess, whether going south or north, many small detachments must have been set up to intercept us. Even if you're willing to risk your life to try, I'm afraid it would be a waste of our limited cavalry."

  Kato was a bit more clever, and he also established some trust with Xia Ya: "What do you think?"

  "We'll stay put!" Xia Ya sighed: "Most of us are infantry, and if we leave the defensive fortifications at our garrison, whether it's a breakout or a retreat south, it's a dead end! We don't have many people, and we also need to bring along a large transport team, logistics camp, plus over a thousand wounded soldiers. How fast can we run on our two legs? If Hastings can make a flanking attack, then his troops must be mostly fast cavalry, even the Odinians' reindeer cavalry. If we encounter the enemy in the open wilderness, the Odinians only need to use 800 cavalry to annihilate us! And I'm sure Hastings has set up forces around us to intercept us, just waiting for us to come out of our shell. So... there's only one way to stay here and rely on the defensive fortifications, we can still have a glimmer of hope."

  He paused, took a deep breath, and his eyes turned serious. "Everyone," he said solemnly, "I'm not afraid of death! I also know that none of the brothers in our 13th Battalion are afraid to die! But at this moment, compared to death, we have an even more important task to complete!"

  "What task?"

  Xia Ya clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth: "Hold this garrison! Hold this stronghold!!"

  He then explained: "With this small number of troops, mostly infantry, going north to meet the general would be useless. Even if the whole army died, it would have no value at all. I guess that when the generals in the north find out that things are not right and encounter Hastings and the Odinga army in the valley, they will definitely think of a way to break through!

  If we lose this stronghold as well, even if the general returns with a large army, there will be no old nest left for them to settle in. Without a foothold or supplies, they will be surrounded by the enemy in the wilderness and can be starved or squeezed dry in just a few days! At that point, it would truly be a case of having nowhere to go, neither heaven nor earth!

  The road to the south has been occupied by the Odins of Wildfire Town! Only here, after the generals kill their way back, there are still large quantities of supplies, food, and ammunition for replenishment. Everyone relies on the defensive fortifications of the garrison to hold out, waiting for the reinforcements from the south to arrive... This is the only way to survive! Not just us, but also the only way for the generals in the north to survive!"

  Xia Ya's words infected everyone present, and those present were some low- to mid-level military officers. Who would have thought that this newly emerging personal soldier actually had such insight?

  "There's a third reason..." Xia Ya's voice dropped a few degrees: "Hastings will definitely want to take away our garrison as soon as possible! The more we defend here, the more troops Hastings will attract! It can also alleviate some pressure on the generals who are breaking through in the north..."

  "It's probably the situation! We hold on here, and the 13th Legion still has a glimmer of life! If we lose here... Are we going to let the cavalrymen of the 13th Legion go and knock their heads against the city walls of Wildfire Town?" The officer of the Sret Regiment also shouted loudly.

  The officers of the 13th Legion showed no fear, everyone was excited and shouted in unison as they went out to prepare. It was Carto who walked at the end, asking Xia Ya in a low voice: "Hey, are you really sure that the generals will kill them back? The enemy is Hastings! Don't we really need to go and support them?"

  Xia Ya sighed and said in a low voice, "Firstly, our military strength is too weak, and we are all infantry, so we don't have the power to respond. As for the second point... believe in General's ability! The combat effectiveness of the 13th Army is not just bragging, right? I, a rookie, have confidence, but you, an old bird, are shaking?"

  He paused for a moment, Xia Ya smiled slyly, his eyes rolled around, and his smile was somewhat strange: "Don't forget, besides the general, there is also the most skilled Rouru General who excels at running away! He's the most cunning rabbit in the Byzantine Empire!"

  ※※※

  The camp was in a state of tense bustle, with large quantities of arms being distributed to everyone's hands. Even the cart drivers in the transport team were allocated a set of leather armor, a shield and a sword. That fellow Carto actually dug up some good stuff from the armory.

  Three ballistae, a heavy-duty medium-to-long-range attack weapon, with massive crossbow arrows having strong piercing power, the crossbow is mounted on a small two-wheeled cart, and one shot can fire ten crossbow arrows. Xia Ya tried it out, and its power was enormous, with the farthest range being around 800 meters, and within 100 meters, even two layers of iron shields could be easily penetrated. With one shot firing ten crossbow arrows, the coverage area is not small either. When facing an enemy's collective charge, if you come up with this move, it can absolutely become a sharp weapon on the battlefield!

  The only drawback is that the crossbow bolts are not too many, and after one shot, it takes some time to reload the crossbow. According to the range and movement speed of infantry attacks, it can only be loaded and fired about three times.

  The second good thing is a small catapult, with a longer range, which can hit over 1,000 meters. However, digging up stones was difficult, so Xia Ya mobilized all the transportation troops to collect stones and had Kato prepare some oil-filled jars. Moreover, this thing has no accuracy when thrown out, within the effective attack distance, it's just wherever it hits... If you want precise attacks, then you can only rely on luck.

  So this catapult in the Byzantine army had another name: the merciless cannon.

  There were only four catapults in total, after all, the Thirteenth Legion was a cavalry unit and hadn't prepared many heavy equipment.

  Xia Ya's premonition was very accurate.

  On the second day of busy work in the garrison, Odin's attack came! It was clear that, as he had guessed, in order to prevent the main force of the 13th Legion from breaking through and returning from the north, Hastings wanted to quickly capture this stronghold and block the 13th Legion's return route!

  In the morning, the warriors on the watchtower shouted anxiously. Xia Ya rushed to the platform and looked northward...

  As far as the eye can see, dust fills the sky!!!!!

  ※※※

  A dark mass of Odin's people appeared in the north, from behind the mountain slope, from the highway, like an ant colony spreading out. In the front row were teams of Odin warriors, most of whom were bare-chested - born in the northern country of Odin, accustomed to icy weather, and not afraid of this bit of winter wind in such a place.

  Odin's warriors held battle-axes in their hands, yelling wildly in the cold wind, spewing out hot air to form large patches of white mist that swirled around their heads.

  The dense crowd of people made Xia Ya's heart beat faster, and the array of Odin's men in front of him seemed endless, with no end in sight. The dense and crowded appearance made one's scalp feel numb!

  One by one, the warning shouts spread throughout the garrison. Under the urging of the officers, a large number of soldiers rushed over, carrying weapons and shields in their hands. The archers quickly formed up, each face full of tension.

  Xia Ya grasped the axe in her hand, which was a long-handled battle-axe selected from the armory. She had sawed off some of the handle to make it just the right weight for her.

  The morning sunlight shines on Odin's array, axe light reflects, and becomes a piece of white cold light!

  "My god... so many..."

  Xia Ya muttered something under her breath.

  By his side stood the lieutenant named Sret, who glanced at Xia Ya and patted him on the back, saying in a low voice, "Don't be nervous, there are only about 10,000 of them."

  Xia Ya turned her head and glanced at this guy: "How did you know?"

  Sui Rete said in a low voice, "You still don't have experience, after serving in the army for a few years, you can tell how many enemies there are. With this formation and thickness, the number of people can be guessed."

  Damn it! Ten thousand people... ten thousand is already a lot! Here, there are only two thousand people who can fight, and many of them are just transport teams or craftsmen who have picked up weapons.

  Xia Ya spat out a mouthful of saliva.

  He was afraid in his heart.

  I'm really scared.

  This isn't funny at all. Apart from those who are mentally ill, no one is born not fearing death. Looking at the Odinians in front of him that made his scalp feel numb, Shaya felt his breathing quicken, his mouth and throat dry, without a single drop of saliva, and his heart beating wildly!

  At this moment, he couldn't help but wonder:

  Can I really hold off these Odin's attack? Damn it! Their numbers are just too many! Can I hold them off?

  Or can I survive?!

  A real man isn't afraid of death? Don't be ridiculous! Even a good fellow is also afraid of death!

  He gripped the axe tightly, patted his chest and felt the hardness inside. He had stuck a piece of dragon scale on both his front and back chests - he didn't bring out many dragon scales, apart from himself, he quietly gave two pieces to Sharba and Kato, as for others... he couldn't do anything about it.

  It's a matter of life and death, all depends on this battle!

  The tortoise tightly grasped the axe handle!

  He had no sense of belonging to the Byzantine Empire.

  To be even more despicable, his sense of belonging to the 13th Legion had not reached the point where he would die for it. So far, he only had feelings for these friends in the Imperial Guard.

  In such a perilous situation, he too had been timid and even thought of taking advantage of the absence of people to slip away, casually finding a place in the Wildfire Plains to hide, waiting for the battle to be over, regardless of whether it was the Byzantines or the Ottomans who won, he could return to Wildfire Town as his tortoise hunter.

  But... no way!

  Tortoise also has tortoise's dignity! His only friends are all here now, abandoning his friends and escaping alone is not something a tortoise can do!

  There is another important reason.

  Tortoises also have their own ideals!

  At first, he walked out of the mountain and into the outside world, unwilling to spend his life in a humble abode in the mountains! He wanted to be a mercenary, a warrior, and make a name for himself in this world!

  Who says the armadillo has no ambition? He does! Although so far, the armadillo can't think of anything like power or wealth, but he also has a little bit of his own ambition.

  At least... make a name for himself! As for what this name is, in his heart now there is only a vague concept.

  He doesn't need to think too much about it.

  This battle, if we die, it's all over! If we can survive... then that's the "famous move" in the turtle's heart!!

  I won't die! I won't die here! I'm still a virgin! I haven't enjoyed women yet! There's still so much gold at home that hasn't been spent! I still want to buy a piece of land, buy a big house! I still want to live a good life!

  So, I won't die here! Absolutely not!!

  The Odin warriors' thunderous roars rose and fell in a continuous wave, like the howling of wild beasts, each one stimulating the hearts of the Byzantine soldiers.

  At this moment, a tall figure suddenly stood up, facing the distance, facing the dense figures in the distance, facing the distant roar, he took a deep breath and let out a loud roar!!

  His roar was even more ferocious, more majestic and unyielding!

  If they're all beasts... then he must be an even more majestic one!!

  "Come on! Odin's men!! I won't die!! Absolutely won't die here!!"

  Xia Ya's face was twisted with muscles, and when he turned his head, it was filled with a ferocious expression like a desperate struggling beast, which stunned Slet nearby.

  The tortoise raised its axe and roared out a sentence to the surrounding warriors, which later became a legendary slogan!

  ……

  "Kill Odin's men!! Kill Odin's men!! Kill more of Odin's men!!!"

  A voice like thunder!

  ——————

  Tonight at 12 o'clock! On time on the shelves! On time update next chapter!!

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