Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 276 Confrontation
Sparse stars twinkled in the blue-gray sky at dawn, and gray-white mist swirled and rolled over the Great Horn River.

If it weren't for the existence of humans, all of this would just be an ordinary early winter morning.

But beneath the tranquil surface lurks a deadly danger.

"Boom."

"Boom."

The sound of oars slapping the water like a fish's tail echoed across the river.

Suddenly, the outline of a sheepskin raft emerged from the thick fog, then a second, a third...

These sheepskin rafts are very small, each carrying only five or six people.

Of the five or six people, two were paddling, their brows slick with sweat. The rest knelt, holding bows, their lower bodies still, looking around nervously.

Fear, excitement, and greed were mixed on everyone's face and in their eyes.

Without any beacon fires, shouts of battle, arrows, or lead bullets, the eight sheepskin rafts encountered no resistance and smoothly crossed the Dajiao River, officially entering the territory of Tiefeng County and Langtun Town.

"Sweet Spring! It's a success!" A young Hud [Stone Arrow] couldn't hide his joy and said in a low voice to another young Hud, "The two-legged people didn't notice you and me!"

The young Hedman, known as "Sweet Spring," had a scar running across his nose. He hissed at the speaker in a low voice, "Shut up!"

The former immediately stopped talking.

Gan Quan walked over to another old Hed man: "Bald Tail! Take a headcount. Sound the horn and call the rest over."

The old Hed man with a deeply lined face [Bald Tail] took out a deer bone flute, put it to his lips and gently began to blow.

"Ooh... Ooh..."

The sound produced by the bald-tailed whistle is like the cry of a deer; it is not loud, but it has a strong penetrating power.

On the other side of the river, another young Hedman [Blue Horse] was waiting anxiously.

Suddenly, Qingma heard the sound of deer calling from behind the thick fog, and learned that Gan Quan and the others had successfully crossed the river.

"Drive the horses into the water!" Qingma immediately ran and shouted, ordering the slaves and subjects, "Drive the horses into the water!"

The herd of horses began to move; the two hundred-plus horses walked slowly, and the rumbling sound could not be hidden.

"Hurry up! Hurry up!" Qingma lashed out with his scabbard, whipping the slow-moving slaves and subjects. His triangular eyes flashed with malice. "Don't make the horses drink! Drive them away! Horses aren't made of salt, they can't be dissolved! Get out of here! You cunning, lazy devils!"

The river water in early winter was bone-chillingly cold, and the horses huddled together, reluctantly stepping into the icy water.

The Heds shouted and waved their long whips to drive the horses.

The leader of the herd—a large, light red horse with a white nose—was the first to start swimming.

This wasn't the first time my daughter had gone swimming.

The waters of the Dajiao River crashed against its sturdy body, while the calf struggled to breathe, its chest bulging larger than usual, its body floating in the water with its neck and back above the surface.

The rest of the horses followed behind the leader, parting the water and slowly pacing forward until their hooves could no longer touch the riverbed, at which point they began to paddle.

A dozen or so Harts followed the herd of horses in three leather rafts. Each of them carried a lasso and a lasso, just in case.

But an accident still happened. One of the old white horses was too weak and suddenly lost its balance while swimming.

The white-browed old horse's body went sideways uncontrollably; it broke away from the herd and was swept downstream by the river.

The Hed people on the raft hurriedly threw out the lasso, but things changed too quickly, and the white-browed old horse disappeared into the thick fog in the blink of an eye.

Qingma was furious, his triangular eyes blazing with rage: "Blind fool! Don't paddle forward! Let the herd swim diagonally against the current! Don't let the water wash the horses away!"

Not far downstream, the eight sheepskin rafts that had just crossed the river returned. Inevitably, during their round trip, these eight rafts drifted several hundred meters downstream.

The white-browed old horse drifted past them, but the horse was already dead.

The rower watched silently as the white-browed old horse bobbed and sank in the dark river.

The first trip transported people, the second transported horses, the third transported saddles, weapons, and armor, and the fourth and fifth trips were still transporting people.

It took five trips to transport about a hundred riders and more than two hundred horses from the west bank of the Dajiao River to the east bank.

The leader of this Tertun centurion was "Heller Grey," meaning spring water.

The triangular-eyed blue horse and another young man [Stone Arrow] are Gan Quan's "companions," which are the full-time warriors of this tiny tribe.

The others were all subjects and slaves of Gan Quan, such as the old slave [Bald Tail], who was given to Gan Quan by his grandfather when Gan Quan was still unable to walk.

In terms of lineage, Gan Quan has an illustrious background; his grandfather was the father of the fire-maker.

However, in terms of strength, Gan Quan only had about a hundred cavalry and a little over two hundred horses, and his subordinates included both old and young men, making his fighting strength extremely meager.

For the Hed people, being the vanguard was a great honor, and usually meant a larger share of the spoils. So, logically speaking, it shouldn't have been Gan Quan's turn to lead the charge.

But who can blame them when Gan Quan is a blood relative of the fire-warmer?
The man who was tending the fire took care of his nephew, who hadn't received much property, and made Gan Quan one of the vanguards, arranging Gan Quan's marching route on the upper reaches of the Big Horn River.

The day after the night battle at Shovel Harbor, Gan Quan led his centurions to the border of Lower Iron Peak County without a sound.

Crossing the upper reaches of the Big Horn River is much easier than crossing the lower reaches of Shovel Lake.

Gan Quan first found a place with a gentle current, then prepared leather bags and a raft overnight, and under the cover of thick fog the next morning, successfully crossed the border river.

Gan Quan was the first "Turukota" of the Teldun tribe to lead his entire unit across the border river—a fact he was unaware of for the time being.

[Note: Turukota is roughly equivalent to a centurion]
Compared to the failed raid downstream of Shovel Lake, the crossing of Ganquan was surprisingly smooth; the Parat people didn't even raise any alarms.

After the initial euphoria came a deep sense of unease.

Gan Quan, Qing Ma, Shi Jian, and the old slave Tu Wei had to decide on their next move.

"Is there even a need to think about it?" Qingma shouted impatiently. "The fire-gatherer ordered us to raid villages and disperse the two-legged people's forces. Just saddle your horses, string your bows, and kill any two-legged people you see, won't that solve the problem?"

The old slave, Bald Tail, asked in a hoarse voice, "Where are the villages of two-legged people? Where is the army of two-legged people?"

Qingma was speechless when asked the question.

The Paratul people suppressed the Hed tribes for thirty years, and the Hed people were completely ignorant of the internal situation of the Paratul.

For the past thirty years, the only way the Hed people have learned about the inner workings of Paratul has been through smuggling caravans.

However, most smuggling caravans had connections to the powerful and influential Palatine, and the information they provided was often only partially true.

Gan Quan only knew that he was in the most remote "grassland" of the two-legged people's territory, but he had no idea how many people, villages, or towns were in the grassland.

“No need to worry so much! If you’re afraid of wolves biting you, does that mean you shouldn’t set up a fortification?” Gan Quan licked his teeth, his eyes flashing with a fierce light. “You and I are the vanguard. The Fire-Keeper ordered us to make a big show of it. Send someone to deliver a message to the Fire-Keeper, telling him that we have crossed the river. We’ll cast our nets and find the Two-Legged Man’s camp first.”

Seeing that Yan had already given the order, Bald Tail said nothing more.

Gan Quan ordered someone to deliver a message to the people warming themselves by the fire, and at the same time ordered his men to hide the sheepskin raft. He then led more than a hundred riders at breakneck speed toward a populated area.

Once the battlefield expands to hundreds of kilometers in length and width, the ability of each unit to make independent decisions becomes crucial.

This is precisely where Hart's forces excel.

……

Gan Quan crossed the upper reaches of the Dae Gap River unharmed and entered Ha Tie Feng County.

Another Tertun Nayan, "Taltay [fat]", also crossed the Dajiao River downstream and entered Zhongtiefeng County.

Tartai was a relative of the fire-bringer's wife, and according to the route, he needed to cross the river downstream of the Big Horn River and upstream of the Shovel Harbor.

What is called a "route" in the Common Language is called "Zasak" by the Hed. In Hed, Zasak also means "military order," "decree," or "command."

Therefore, it can be seen that for the Hads, "route" and "military orders" were essentially the same thing, and route and punctuality were the most important concepts in Had military operations.

Once the chief has set the route, all the junior chiefs must strictly follow it.

Deviating from the route without permission will be severely punished, as will failing to arrive on time.

This military custom arose from the hunting traditions of the Hed people. During a hunt, if any small unit deviated from the route, the prey would break free of the encirclement.

Therefore, during the hunt, which can last for a month or even three months, each unit must strictly follow the designated route.

This is how the Hed people hunted and fought.

The fire-bringer designated the river-crossing areas for his vanguard officers, and the Kotas had to cross the river in those designated areas, since the other areas were the "routes" of other Kotas.

The tribes under Hart did not have the engineering capabilities of the Paratul standing army to cut down trees to build bridges, and they even lacked people who knew how to build pontoon bridges.

Therefore, the way Fat Man Tartai crossed the river was similar to that of Ganquan: first, a small team of archers took advantage of the thick fog to reach the east bank and occupy a "landing site".

Then the rafts returned to the west bank to pick up more people.

The only difference is that the fat Tartai is more cautious, more experienced, and has more troops at his disposal.

This time, Fat Tartar led three hundred-man squads, each composed of carefully selected young and strong men.

On their first crossing of the river, Fat Tartai stretched out two leather ropes on either side of the Big Horn River.

By securing the ropes firmly to both banks, the sheepskin raft can be pulled across the river by the ropes without being swept downstream.

The first time we crossed the river took a while, but the second time it was much faster.

As the sun rose and the fog gradually dissipated, the sheepskin raft had already made two round trips.

The personal slave "Chahan [White]" respectfully reported to Tartai: "Noyan, there are already about a hundred young men on the other side." Tartai was named for his fatness, which was not a good name. Tartai usually hated being called "fat man," so his attendants, subjects, and slaves all addressed him as "Noyan [leader]" to his face.

"Have the sentries been released?"

"They've been released."

“Alright!” Tartai ordered, stroking his whip. “Send the horses over there.”

"Hey ha." Chahan bowed with his hand on his chest and prepared to leave.

"No! Don't send them yet!" Fat Tartai squinted, his eyes almost turning into slits. "Send ten horses over first, and send out light cavalry to check the situation in more distant areas."

"Hey ha."

So the ten horses were sent over, which delayed things further.

The Teldenans on the east bank didn't have time to saddle their horses; they simply mounted the barebacks and rode off.

Before the sound of hooves had faded into the distance, a chilling battle cry suddenly erupted from behind the thinning mist: "[Common Language] Draw your sword!"

It was as if hundreds or thousands of men were roaring at the same time: "Uukhai!"

"An ambush! Idiots! The sentries deserve to die!" Fat Tartar cursed incessantly, "Bring the men back!"

It was too late. Two muffled cannon shots rang out from the opposite bank of the river, and sharp bugle calls pierced through the thin fog, echoing across both banks of the Dajiao River.

Company Commander Tamas leaped off the ridge, carrying a boar-hunting spear and charging ahead.

To Tamas's surprise, someone was ahead of him: a short figure, holding a boar spear horizontally, charged into the fog with a howl.

Since the dilapidated shack burned down, Peter the Short hadn't uttered a single word. He neither cried nor laughed, eating and drinking whatever was given to him, like a walking corpse.

Even though Company Commander Tamas repeatedly assured the dwarf that he would rebuild his house after defeating the barbarian Hed, it did not make the dwarf's eyes light up.

However, at this moment, Peter the Shorty charged toward the riverbank like a madman, much to the surprise of his comrades.

When that dilapidated wooden house with a large hole in the roof and drafty walls was burned down, a piece of Peter Bunier's heart felt empty.

But now, that missing piece is filled with hatred and anger.

Peter Bunier dared not hate "Blood Wolf," who gave him his surname, nor did he want to hate the company commander who treated him like a brother; he could only hate the barbarian, Hed.

That damned barbarian, Hed!
That damned barbarian, Hart!
Why did you come here?
I'll kill you all!
The hundred or so Teldun people crossing the river huddled together with their backs to the water. The fog had not yet dissipated, and all they could hear were shouts of battle coming from all directions.

"Scatter! Don't crowd together!" a Red Feathered Little Leader shouted hoarsely, "Scatter!"

Apart from the Red Feathers, none of the Teldun people on the east bank wore armor—if they wore armor while sailing, they would sink to the bottom if they fell into the water, and their only weapons were hornbows and scimitars.

Everyone longed for the shore, for the safer crowds, leaving no room even to shoot an arrow.

Hong Lingyu became ruthless, dragging her subordinates out of the crowd one by one: "Scatter, draw your bows!"

The shouts of battle grew closer and closer. Some of the Teldun men, unable to withstand the psychological pressure, released their bowstrings and fired arrows into the pale white mist.

The arrows were swallowed by the white mist, and it was unclear whether they had hit anyone.

Other Teldun men also drew their bows and fired arrows, shooting wherever there was a sound.

Meanwhile, the people of Teldun on the opposite bank were frantically paddling and dragging their rafts across the river.

Hong Lingyu saw this and was very anxious.

The Hud people generally believe that the first twelve arrows are a bowman's "best" arrows, and that after that, the bowman's strength gradually declines, and the accuracy, power, and speed of drawing the bow will all be much worse.

However, unable to withstand the psychological pressure, the Telden men had wasted all their "good arrows" shooting at the fog.

"Stop!" Hong Lingyu shouted angrily, whipping her subordinates. "Shoot only when you see a person with legs! Shoot only when you see a person!"

Suddenly, a tremendous force came from behind, accompanied by the exclamations of his subordinates. Red Feather, who was standing in front of the crowd, was violently stabbed to the ground by a short Palatine soldier who rushed out of the white mist.

The boar spear failed to pierce the armor plates; Red Feather's ribs were broken by brute force, and he was pushed to the ground.

Red Feather struggled to get up, but the short Parat man went berserk and pounded on Red Feather's back repeatedly, as if he were torturing his mortal enemy.

The Teldun people were stunned; even the Heds had never seen such a ferocious monster.

"Shoot him! Ah!" Red Feather coughed up blood as he was smashed through the armor; he even heard the cracking sound of his spine breaking: "Shoot him!"

The Terdon archer then came to his senses and shakily drew his bow and nocked an arrow.

"Die!" Another tall Paratul leaped out from behind the white mist and pounced on the Teldun without hesitation.

The tall Parat people's boar-hunting spears went straight for the throat of the Teldun people in front of them, only pausing slightly at the throat before piercing the spine.

The Teldun man cried out and grabbed the spear shaft.

The tall Paratul tried to pull back his boar-hunting spear, but the Teldun refused to let go.

If you were a new recruit, you'd probably be foolishly playing tug-of-war with the Teldens at this point.

However, the tall Paratul soldier was a company commander named Tamas. When he saw the spear shaft being held, he immediately discarded the spear, drew his sword, and ignored the barbarian with the spear stuck in his throat, instead slashing at the others.

The incident happened in an instant, and more and more soldiers from Tiefeng County rushed out of the white mist.

Upon seeing the hundreds of Telden men on the riverbank, most of the soldiers in the First Company were stunned at first, and then they shouted and charged toward the enemy.

The two sides engaged in a chaotic battle in the mist. Those wearing fur robes were the Hed people, and those wearing cloth were the Paratu people. Everyone had a ferocious look on their faces and gritted teeth.

Meanwhile, the already crazed dwarf Bunir continued to smash Red Feather's spear repeatedly. The tip of the boar-hunting spear had already been broken, but the dwarf continued to smash it with the broken spear.

Red Feather screamed incessantly, digging at the dirt in an attempt to get up, but his lower body was no longer under his control.

A strong wind howled in, and the thin mist was instantly dissipated.

The fog that had been obscuring their vision had dissipated, and the fat man Tartai on the other side of the river immediately ordered his men to fire arrows.

Arrows rained down on the east bank like hail, flying indiscriminately towards both sides locked in battle.

It was at this moment that Bart Sharling arrived on the battlefield with the Second Company.

Upon seeing the battle situation on the shore, Bart Sharing exclaimed that things were going badly.

With no way to retreat, the barbarians of Hed had high morale, and both sides on the shore were already bloodthirsty.

The barbarians on the other side clearly had no intention of rescuing their people, but rather wanted to kill as many Parat people as possible.

"Company commander, shall we go?" Sergeant [Nine Fingers] asked, rubbing his hands together eagerly.

"Go to hell!" Bart Sharing roared, "Sound the retreat horn!"

"retreat?"

"Just blow it!"

The retreat melody began.

Although Company Commander Tamas was confused, he still roared the order to the soldiers around him: "Retreat!"

"Retreat!" The sergeants of the company repeated the order, pulling the bloodthirsty soldiers around them away from the battlefield.

As Tamas passed by Peter Bunier, he noticed that the latter was still hitting a Red Feather on the back.

The red-feathered one, though on the verge of death, was still alive.

Tamas kicked Peter the dwarf to the ground, lifted the armor curtain at the back of Red Feather's neck, and gave the dying Red Feather a quick death.

"Enough," Tamas snapped, pulling the dejected Peter back to the attack position.

The Teldenans on the east coast fought with sheer willpower, but when they suddenly lost their enemy, they were at a loss.

"[Herd] The raft!" a Teldun man cried out excitedly, dropping his weapon. "[Herd] The raft is here!"

This shout was like a starting gun; the surviving Teldun people rushed toward the sheepskin rafts that had not yet reached the shore.

"[Herd] Don't leave me here!" cried a heavily wounded Telden man.

But no one paid attention. Suddenly, a glimmer of hope appeared in their desperate situation, and the surviving Telden people all became reckless.

"[Herd] It's over!" The enraged fat man, Tartar, threw his whip fiercely into the river.

"[Herdh] Surrender and you'll be spared!" The soldiers of the Second Company, speaking broken Herdh, formed a loose line and rushed towards the shore: "[Herdh] Surrender and you'll be spared!"

Bart Sharling did not charge to the front; he remained on higher ground by the riverbank, frowning as he observed the battlefield situation.

Sergeant "Nine Fingers" cut the rope connecting the two banks immediately, following Bart Sharing's orders.

Caught off guard, the Teldun people's sheepskin rafts were swept downstream by the river.

The Teldun people, having lost their will to resist, laid down their weapons and knelt in surrender.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the Teldun people on the opposite bank symbolically fired a few volleys of arrows, and then stopped wasting their arrows.

Several bodies floated on the water, silently carried away by the river.

The first direct confrontation between the two armies in Zhongtiefeng County ended in a narrow victory for the defenders.

[Missed it...]
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(End of this chapter)