Imperial Crown.

Chapter 88 Before the decisive battle
"I come!"

Weisdon was the first to raise his hand, his face glowing with excitement.

Three thousand gold coins is not a small amount, and such a good thing can't be encountered at any time!

But since it's a good thing, he certainly wouldn't be the only one willing to do it.

"Master Weisdong, you should take a break. You are not extraordinary yet." Gao Er said half jokingly and half seriously: "Let me do it. I am the Earth Fighting Spirit. It is not easy to die!"

"Come on, your earth fighting spirit is too weak to kill. If anyone is going to be the vanguard, it has to be me!" Link raised his palm and a layer of fire lit up: "Flame fighting spirit is much more powerful than you!"

“Don’t fight with me.” Mosing Gan was unwilling to lag behind: “Earth flames are all the same, they are all attached to weapons anyway. My life force is still real and my strength is great. I can even stop the blood-eyed warhorse. I have to do the job of the vanguard!”

Link glanced at him and said, "You? Forget it. Have you recovered from your previous injuries? Don't vomit blood while riding a horse!"

"Who are you looking down on?" Mosingam pounded his chest hard. "I ate five pieces of black bread and three pieces of bacon in the evening!"

He was a first-level transcendent and had been strengthened by Raven. He fainted partly because of his injuries, but more because of exhaustion caused by the depletion of his fighting spirit.

Now, after taking a bottle of healing potion and eating a big meal, his body has almost recovered.

Only Simon was not as enthusiastic as they seemed.

He looked at Weisdong with a complicated expression and said, "I am a guilty person. I am alive today only because of the generosity of the Baron. It is most appropriate for me to take up this position."

"The Vanguard is still too dangerous after all."

After saying this, the other people's expressions became a little strange, but Weisdong became more and more excited in the atmosphere of competition: "It's dangerous, where is the safe place on the battlefield?"

"Well, all right!" Eric coughed heavily. "I know you all want to take this position very much, but this time you are the vanguard and you also have to lure the enemy. In order to preserve our strength, only one of you can go."

He paused for a moment and said, "So, for the sake of fairness, how about we draw lots to decide?"

Of course no one objected.

Seeing that no one objected, Eric took out a blank piece of parchment and cut it into five pieces with a knife. Then he turned his back and picked up a charcoal pencil and started to dot on it. Soon, he had five crumpled pieces of paper in front of everyone. "Among these five pieces of paper, only one has a mark left by the charcoal pencil. Whoever draws that mark will be the pioneer."

"let's start!"

As soon as he finished speaking, four arms reached in and took away each of their paper balls.

Simon finally picked up the remaining paper ball.

However, Visdon did not notice this detail. He was completely focused on whether he could become a pioneer.

He felt his throat itchy, his mouth dry, his palms sweating. He kept swallowing his saliva, holding the paper ball with his chin, and unfolding it bit by bit.

Finally, the paper ball flattened out.

Looking at the black circle above, Weston waved his arms excitedly:

"Yeah! It's me!"

"Tsk——" Mosing Gan crumpled the parchment in his hand into a ball again and threw it into the fire with force.

The remaining three people did the same thing, and Gore said sourly: "Oh, what bad luck!"

Weisdong smiled with his teeth showing: "Hey, don't be angry, when I come back to collect the bounty, I will treat you to a good meal and go to Mon'en City for a tour!"

"That's going to cost a lot of money." Link sighed, "Are you really willing to spend that?"

"Of course!" Weisdon nodded vigorously.

Money is a good thing, but most importantly, he wants recognition from others.

He achieved good results in yesterday's battle, but his performance in the early stages was still too poor. This time, as a pioneer, he must impress everyone!
"Okay, now that it's decided, let's talk about the specific tactical arrangements." Eric poked the fire with a wooden stick, making the flames brighter.

"At dawn tomorrow, we will set out in two teams, front and back."

"Wesdon, you lead all the soldiers of the second and third squads of each battalion on horseback to march out first. I will lead the remaining soldiers with Gore and others to provide support five kilometers behind you."

Weisdong was a little excited, but also a little hesitant: "But... I have never led troops independently."

"It doesn't matter. The captains of these troops will follow you. You just need to protect the flag." Eric laid out all the details he had prepared. "And if there were no difficulties, how could there be a reward of 3,000 gold coins?"

Weisdon smiled and nodded.

"You have to do two things." Eric looked at Weisdong and raised two fingers in turn: "Hold on, and then run!"

Weisdong was a little confused: "How long can you hold it?"

"Hold on until you can't bear it anymore!" Eric's voice became deeper and more serious:
"The most important goal of this battle is to lure Heleti out of the scorpion nest, the farther the better!"

"From what happened yesterday, Heleti is extremely cunning. If you go up with the mentality of holding on for a while and then leaving, he will definitely realize that there is a trick and will never follow you."

"So this time, you have to grit your teeth and fight to the death!"

"We have limited manpower and supplies. This will be our last chance. If you fail to complete the mission, not only will our entire group be wiped out here, but the Baron's operation will also likely fail!"

At this point, Eric stared into Weston's eyes and said, "So I'll ask you one last time, can you do this pioneer?"

"Yes!" Weisdon nodded vigorously.

The greater the responsibility, the greater the credit!
"Then I'll leave it to you." Eric took out a bottle of potion from the bag behind him: "Take this bottle of healing potion, just in case."

"Okay!" Weisdon took the potion and put it in his waist bag.

Everyone except Weisdon himself knew that the potion was just a consolation.

The situation on the battlefield changes rapidly. If you are really injured, how can you have time to drink medicine?
What's more, in the fierce battle, it is difficult for such fragile items to remain intact.

Just like the dead Jose, he also had a bottle of healing potion in his bag, but when they were cleaning up his body, the bottle of potion had already been broken at some point.

"Go and rest before dawn." Eric ordered, "Tomorrow will be the final battle!"

Everyone nodded and returned to their respective seats.

Weisdon looked excited and had already started preparing for his speech before departure.

Gore, Link and Mosingam were arm in arm, preparing to go get something to eat.

Only Simon did not move.

After everyone had left, he spoke in a low voice with a gloomy look:
"I follow your orders, but that doesn't mean I agree with them."

After saying that, he got up and left.

Eric acted as if he hadn't heard it, staring into the fire without saying a word.

In winter, the nights in the Bloody Highlands are always very long, but even the longest nights will eventually be followed by the sun.

Its daybreak.

The breakfast was the sumptuousest since they entered the Bloody Highlands, but this did not make the Eagle Army soldiers happy, and an uneasy atmosphere quietly flowed.

When the assembly drum sounded, they stood neatly in a square array wearing their respective equipment, but the size of the square was much smaller than before.

After the last battle, with a loss of 27 people, each team was less than fully staffed.

The second battalion of sword and shield soldiers suffered the most serious losses, with 13 of the 27 casualties, nearly half. The third battalion of crossbowmen suffered the least casualties, with only five casualties.

The first battalion of spearmen lost nine men.

"Today is not a defensive battle, but an offensive mission." Eric looked around the field seriously: "First Battalion, Second and Third Squads; Second Battalion, Second and Third Squads; Third Battalion, Second and Third Squads, step out!"

In the tense atmosphere, the soldiers whose names were called walked out under the leadership of their respective team leaders.

The number of people who have now stepped down is now 49, which accounts for two-thirds of the remaining personnel.

"Today, you will serve as the vanguard with Master Weisdong and take the lead in attacking the Scorpion Nest. Everyone must obey his command!"

Upon hearing this order, even the disciplined Eagle Army soldiers changed their expressions, and some of them showed a hint of fear on their faces.

Even in a defensive operation with strict tactical arrangements, the casualty ratio between the two sides was close to 1:1 during the stalemate phase. Now asking them to actively seek a field battle, with a rookie like Visdon as the commander, is simply courting death!

Seeing the morale wavering, Eric's eyes showed a hint of cruelty:
"Have you forgotten how the Baron dealt with the deserters before he left?"

This sentence immediately extinguished the hope in many people's hearts.

The scream of the unfortunate guy who was burned to death by magic before his death became an important source of nightmares for many people in the early stages of the march.

"If the Baron can do it, I can do it too!" Eric's eyes swept over the soldiers like a tiger:
"Become a deserter and die in my hands, with your family ostracized and ridiculed; or move forward, be a hero if you win, and even if you die, an eagle will adopt you and protect your family!"

"You choose for yourself!"

The selected soldiers looked at each other, and their expressions gradually became determined.

If they died in battle here, their families would be able to receive compensation, as everyone would deeply appreciate the Baron's generosity; but if they were executed as deserters, not only would their families not get a single penny, they would also be despised and ridiculed by everyone.

"It looks like you've made your decision." Eric noticed the subtle change in morale: "Then get ready to go!"

After saying this, he turned his head and winked, and Weisdong walked forward.

Weisdon had a lot to say, but when he saw those pairs of determined and resolute eyes, he felt unprecedented pressure and immediately forgot all the prepared words.

"I...will be at the forefront."

Weisdon swallowed his saliva:

"Mount!"

The selected Eagle Army mounted their horses and, led by Visdon, charged into the bloody heights in the morning light.

The sound of nearly fifty horses galloping was quite majestic, and the fluttering Griffith family flag behind Visdon immediately attracted the attention of nearby scouts.

A few stayed behind to continue observing their movements, while others immediately rode away and rushed towards the scorpion's nest.

Following Eric's instructions, Visdon led the team forward at a slow pace, trying to save horsepower as much as possible, but his goal was clear and firm.

Looking at the Scorpion Nest scouts patrolling a hundred meters away, Weisdong shouted with all his might:

"Go back and tell that so-called 'Sand King' of yours!"

"I, the Baron of Eagle Territory, Raven Ota Griffith, am here!"

"Isn't he too scared to come out to find me? Then I'll go find him and shove his head up his own ass!"

Half an hour later, Heleti listened to the scout's report with a rather strange look on his face:
"Did he really say that?"

"Exactly!" The scout lowered his head, "And they are definitely heading towards the Scorpion Nest."

"Haha, so arrogant." Heleti looked at Eugene and said, "What do you think they are up to?"

Eugene thought for a moment and raised his head: "The only answer I can think of is to lure you out."

"As for why I want to lead you out, I... can't judge."

"Why is it so difficult to judge?" Heleti snorted, "Either they think they can defeat me and kill me head-on in a field battle! Or, they want to attack the Scorpion Nest while I'm away."

"Lord Shah, you are really wise." Eugene praised him, and then put forward his own opinion: "So, it is better to ignore them this time."

"Ignore? That won't do!" Heleti stood up and walked down the platform step by step: "I must accept this battle."

Eugene was stunned: "Sir, there are obviously risks here, but why..."

"That's why I said, you are not a horse thief!" Heleti said with a sigh:
"Why do you think I have the name 'Sand King'? Why do I have such a large force under my command? Is it just because of my strength at the third level?"

"Wrong! Big mistake!"

"The bandits came to me because I could lead them from one victory to another, and make them always the killers instead of the killed!"

"Follow me, and you will be rich and safe!"

"But, in just one battle, we lost nearly eighty brothers."

Heleti looked at Eugene with a deep look in his eyes: "Your response was correct. The enemy's situation is unclear, so I really shouldn't act rashly."

"But now, the people who killed so many of my brothers have come to my door and almost spit in my face. Tell me, can I stay indoors?"

"No." Eugene responded.

Heleti raised her voice: "That's right, no!"

Under the morning light, Heleti put on his helmet and said, "Pass my order. Leave 20 people in the main camp and 10 people in each camp. The rest of you should gather immediately and set off with me!"

"I need to remind everyone one more time."

"The dignity of the Sand King must not be violated!"

The gate burst open, and inside the Scorpion Nest Square, the horse thieves gathered like a swarm of bees.

They wore different kinds of armor, had all kinds of weapons, and their words and actions were completely undisciplined.

But among this "internationally-made" army, there was a group of unique horse thieves.

There were twelve of them in total, and each of them wore a set of enchanted plate armor and rode a first-level Warcraft Blood-Eyed Warhorse. The weapons on their waists, the shields behind them, and even the horse bows on their backs were all enchanted weapons without exception.

These are Helaiti's true elite, his personal soldiers, the "Scorpion Guards".

Riding on his mount, Heleti picked up the enchanted spear "Sandstorm" in his hand and slowly rode forward.

The chaotic bandits made way for a clear path, and everyone bent down and bowed their heads to pay high respect to the "Sand King".

The Scorpion Guards were the first to catch up with him, followed by Eugene, and then the other horse thieves.

The city gate slowly opened. Helaiti stopped his horse, looked back, smiled slightly, raised his arms high and waved them vigorously, and was the first to rush out of the city gate on horseback.

Followed by.

The sound of hooves is thunderous!

……

(End of this chapter)