The First Vampire - Chapter 466:
Chapter 466: 464 Breakout (Down)_1
The night was deep.
Count Nicoll gazed in the direction of White Dew City in the distance and asked his deputy officer:
“How much longer will it take to reach White Dew City?”
“Sir, at our current pace, it will probably take about three more hours.” The deputy officer thought for a moment, then asked, “Should we increase our marching speed?”
“No.” Count Nicoll refused immediately, “White Dew City is home to a hundred thousand Pegasus Army troops. They have the advantage of the terrain and were well-prepared. There’s no way the Blood Knight Army could break them in such a short time.
We don’t need to rush, maintain formation and push forward steadily.”
“Yes, sir!”
As they talked, there was suddenly a commotion from the left wing of the army. Count Nicoll, frowning, ordered:
“Halt the advance!”
Seeing this, the deputy officer cautiously reminded him, “Sir, it appears to be a small detachment of the Blood Knight Army harassing us, aiming to slow down our progress.”
“I know.” Count Nicoll nodded, “Send someone to check the situation, just to be safe.”
“Yes, sir.” Although a bit helpless, the deputy officer had tried to subtly suggest to Count Nicoll not to let the harassment of the Blood Knight Army slow them down, but it seemed that…
However, he understood Count Nicoll’s mindset.
This time, Duke St. Prowse had issued a call to arms, asking the lords to surround White Dew City with their armies and cut off the retreat of the Blood Knight Army.
Although the lords had complied, they each had their own agendas.
Just like Count Nicoll, he actually knew that the Blood Knight Army was sending out small forces to delay the allied lord’s advance. However, Count Nicoll was intentionally playing dumb, dawdling outside the city.
The reason was simple, he did not want his army to face the fearsome Blood Knight Army.
The news of the Huorong Army’s total annihilation by three thousand Blood Knight Army had already spread south of Mount Althus, and when Count Nicoll first received the news, he absolutely refused to believe it.
However, as the news was confirmed, the idea that the Blood Knight Army was invincible took hold in Count Nicoll’s mind.
Other lords who had accepted Duke St. Prowse’s call to arms felt the same way. The tragic defeat of the Huorong Army had utterly shattered their confidence.
If three thousand Blood Knight Army could be so terrifying, what about the main force of the Blood Knight Army in White Dew City?
Thus, these lords of the Eastland prefer to let the Pegasus Army exhaust the strength of the Blood Knight Army. When the Blood Knight Army was exhausted, they would surround it with their own armies, hoping to gain some military achievements.
As for whether this would cause heavy casualties to the Pegasus Army, reduce White Dew City to ashes, or even provide an opportunity for the Blood Knight Army to break through and withdraw, Count Nicoll and the other Eastland lords did not really care.
What they cared more about was their own family’s army, which was the basis of their standing.
Duke St. Prowse was well aware of this, so he made serious promises to these lords who had come to help.
For example, to Count Nicoll, Duke St. Prowse promised that if they were able to annihilate the main force of the Blood Knight Army in this battle, the Nicoll family’s nobility could be elevated a notch.
Going up from count, that would be marquis!
Generally speaking, the four dukes rarely bestow the title of marquis, except for the first in line to their own succession.
After all, the territory required to confer a marquis is too vast, and the dukes were not willing to empower their vassals with such great forces.
Only Garcia, who was of the St. Hilde family, and had established countless military exploits, could be granted the title of marquis.
Count Nicoll had never thought that he could one day be on par with Marquis Garcia, but even such a temptation could not alleviate his fear of the Blood Knight Army.
Actually, if Duke St. Prowse could have assigned someone whom he trusted and who was prestigious enough as the inspector-in-chief, these lords would not be dawdling so much.
But the problem was, Duke St. Prowse could no longer dispatch anyone.
He, of course, couldn’t leave White Dew City. As for Marquis Vincent, his eldest son, he hadn’t completely trusted him at that time.
His second son, Count Evan, was not by his side, and even his youngest daughter, Anna, was untraceable.
Other people simply didn’t have the qualifications to control the situation.
In desperation, Duke St. Prowse could only appoint Count Nicoll as temporary commander of this lord alliance army.
But judging from the current situation, he seemed to have overestimated Count Nicoll’s courage.
Moreover, he misjudged the real target of the Blood Knight Army’s surprise attack on White Dew City –
It was not the Howell Family, but he himself!
…
The gentle light of dawn gradually filtered through from the east, gently and persistently tearing apart the dark blanket of the night.
Count Nicoll woke up from his sleep, rubbed his eyes, and pounded his back.
The old count, in his sixties, suddenly felt that he was no longer able to adapt to the military life.
If the promises given by Duke St. Prowse weren’t so tempting, Count Nicoll really wasn’t prepared to lead an army into battle himself.
While he was stretching his body, suddenly, the ground seemed to start shaking.
Countless thunderous noises came from the distance, like the rumble of resounding thunder, and like a surging tide.
The Count’s face changed instantly, he roared:
“Halt! Form a line to prepare for enemy encounters!”
Just as the command was issued, Count Nicoll saw countless shadows suddenly appearing on the horizon, filling the entire land, without a single gap, even the rising sun was obscured by this dark tide.
Suddenly, the sky changed color.
Count Nicoll felt his heart was being tightly held by a giant hand, he could not breathe at all.
Is this the Blood Knight Army?
“Raise shields!”
“Ready spears!”
“Prepare, bowmen!”
…
As the pace of their march was slow and they were well prepared, the response speed of the allied Lords’ army was very fast.
However, even if they had formed a full defensive formation, they couldn’t help but feel nervous facing the oncoming Blood Knight Army.
Nearly twenty thousand elite cavalrymen launching a group charge, such a scene is unimaginable for those who haven’t experienced it first-hand.
That kind of impact, that kind of oppressive force, is enough to make anyone tremble with fear.
Facing the numerous allied army of the Lords, the Blood Knight Army did not choose any probing moves and started with a straightforward group charge.
Because Knight Logh had absolute confidence.
Throughout the night, the Blood Knight Army had been keeping a close watch on the Lords’ Army outside the city and persistently sent out small troops to harass them.
So, the probing was already in progress.
And, the feedback was so disappointing that it even caused Knight Logh to be disillusioned.
Is this all there is?
The weakness of the Eastern Army was expected, but he didn’t expect them to be this feeble.
Moreover, Knight Logh could tell at a glance that these Lords had no courage to fight a life or death battle with the Blood Knight Army.
Therefore, facing such an opponent, Knight Logh chose the most direct and violent way of attacking –
Charge ahead!
The surging cavalry, like a loosed sharp arrow, charged into the military formation of the Eastern Allied Forces with unstoppable momentum.
It was like a red-hot blade being inserted into butter, the seemingly intact infantry formation was actually fragile and was torn apart at once, leaving a ghastly gap.
Countless Eastern soldiers who were caught off guard were crying and crawling, trying to escape from this devilish army that seemed to have crawled out from the underworld.
This was not an opponent they could handle.
They stood no chance at all!
The gap was getting bigger and deeper, quickly forming a passage that ran through the entire military formation.
After breaching the allied forces’ formation, the Blood Knight Army did not stop and headed straight north.
Only leaving behind a devastated field of the Eastern Allied Forces, and a group of Eastern Lords who had completely lost their nerve.
