Magic Industrial Age.

Chapter 496-494: Annihilation (Please Subscribe)
Grand Basset, located 20 kilometers west of Brussels, is similar to Badac in that it was a key transportation hub that developed alongside the Flower District.

The difference is that, because it is located on the busy route from Siren Port to Brussels, it has developed faster and is more complete than Badac, and has already become like a small town.

Its architectural style began to resemble the neighborhood model in Brussels, and a designer was specially hired to plan the town as a whole.

It is worth mentioning that there are three different modes of transportation between Siren Harbour and Brussels.

One is the railway, located north of the Ruhr River, which is not open to private individuals because its capacity is fully utilized.

Basically, large items produced by Raymond Magic Corporation, such as processing machinery, various types of field artillery, and heavy trucks, are transported via the rail system.

However, with the development of the flower industry, orders and industrial capacity have surged, and even operating at full capacity, the railway is finding it difficult to keep up.

Therefore, river transport on the Ruhr River became a good supplement!
Loy specially selected a branch from the Lion Fleet, choosing capable personnel to be in charge of river transport, and equipped it with corresponding river transport vessels, thereby alleviating some of the transportation pressure.

The remaining transport capacity was occupied by private enterprises and various merchant fleets.

Even so, it was still not enough, so land transportation developed.

The land route from Siren Harbour to Brussels, located south of the Ruhr River, has been specially renovated and expanded to have three lanes on each side, making it quite convenient. Many towns have indeed developed along the way.

In particular, the bustling trade route far surpassed that of the western route, so its expansion was extremely rapid.

The same applies to Andaman, Lapland, Lyon Bay, Little Barsade, and now Big Barsade.

The Sardinian army, relying on its powerful military force, plundered many small towns along the way.

It can be said that of the three legions, Earl Hoven Xavier and his Coast Knights, the newly formed 39th Division, made a fortune.

Although the Flower Kingdom issued a retreat order, people could leave and take small pieces of gold and silver with them, but large items could not be moved.

Then, encountering the Sardinian army, born of pirates and most skilled at plundering, they were truly like mice falling into a granary.

Before even reaching Brussels, Count Hoven Xavier could only spare two thousand men to transport the goods back.

Fortunately, there were Sardinian warships along the coastline that could be temporarily used as cargo ships.

Despite this, the morale of the newly formed 39th Division did not decline in the slightest, and the Coast Knights were even more enthusiastic.
Even the mages of the Palm Mage Guild have lost their aloofness and are now shouting every day, "Advance! Advance! Advance again!"
The reason is simple: Count Hoven Xavier claimed that what he plundered on the road was not even a fraction of the wealth of Brussels.

Instead of being complacent here, let's storm Brussels and make a fortune.

In a sense, he was right; the greatest wealth of the flower kingdom is concentrated in the city of Brussels.

But this is not a reason for the Sardinian army to act impulsively.

Grand Basset, the closest and most prosperous town to Brussels, was a place Count Hoven Xavier actually wanted to avoid.

However, when the knights and soldiers, their eyes bloodshot, saw the people of their territory who had not yet managed to evacuate, they could no longer restrain themselves.

In particular, the panicked crowds surged into the town, and the overturned carriages scattered gold and silver coins everywhere, dazzling the eyes.

Even more, there are many gemstones, pearls, corals, amber...

At this moment, to hell with orders and detours!
So the leading coastal knight gave a loud shout and spurred his horse into the fray, and his men followed suit without delay.

As for the soldiers of the 39th Division, they were equally impressive. Their legs moved so fast they seemed to be sparking, as if they were afraid of being too slow.

As they accelerated, the entire team surged forward, even the mages scouting in the sky slid down on their magic carpets and performed a swirling dive.

Some people went to pick up money from the ground, some rushed into nearby homes, and some chased after the fleeing people...

In short, it was a complete mess, with absolutely no discipline whatsoever of a regular army.

Perhaps the only one who is still somewhat clear-headed is Earl Hoven Xavier.

He stared at the absurd scene before him, overwhelmed by a profound sense of unreality and a brewing sense of impending crisis.

It seems something bad is about to happen.

In fact, his hunch was correct. Behind the town of Grand Basset, Alfonso Zeke saw the scene before him and couldn't help but smile.

That smile contained smugness, contempt, and above all, an uncontrollable murderous intent.

He waved his hand and said, "Since the guests have arrived, let's treat them well."

"On my command, attack! Attack! Attack!"

boom!
This was the first round of shelling. The cannons protruding from the houses lit up with magical runes, and then, amidst the roar and tremors, they fired the shells.

At that moment, the shells shattered flesh and blood as they passed, and after exploding in mid-air, countless fragments flew everywhere, carrying up countless severed limbs.

The fanatical Sardinian soldiers were terrified; the slow-reacting ones were still trembling in place, while the quick-reacting ones had already sought various forms of cover.

After all, he had been on the battlefield and was no stranger to artillery fire, so his reaction was relatively quick.

As for the Coast Knights, although they are not as outstanding as the entire Hellfire Knights, they are not without their share of strong individuals.

Each of them shone with fighting spirit, and each gathered a group of people to protect themselves.

However, when the magic tank came out, they were all stunned.

The enormous steel monster, like a metal fortress, rolled forward amidst the roar of its engines.

Each flash of the dark cannon barrel claimed countless lives, while heavy machine guns swept across the area, their tongues of fire spitting out deadly bullets. Grand Bassadi, already a small town with its crisscrossing streets, could easily swallow tens of thousands of soldiers without any resistance.

The activated magic tanks are like mobile fortresses, and a squad of infantry is always deployed around them.

They used tanks as cover to drive away and annihilate the enemy while on the move.

At this moment, the Sardinian soldiers even felt as if they had stepped into a series of traps.

Because no matter which direction they flee in, they will encounter other magic tanks around the corner, which will cooperate with the infantry to clear out and kill them.

And on the high ground of those buildings, there were also plenty of machine gunners and snipers.

One was responsible for blocking, and the other for picking off the strong ones; they worked together seamlessly.

This is another way to use the magic tanks explored in Flower Territory.

Although the narrow streets and alleys make it difficult for tanks to roam freely, their thick armor makes them almost fearless, and if they encounter a strong enemy, they can even fire an armor-piercing round.

With the addition of appropriate infantry support, the enemy can be utterly routed.

This was the plan strongly advocated by Alfonso. He studied it day and night, and simulated it countless times, until today, when it was put into actual combat.

At that moment, the town of Grand Basset was a cannibalistic den, swallowing up tens of thousands of Sardinian soldiers without even making a splash.

Outside the town, Earl Hoven Xavier felt a chill run through his body and trembled with fear, but the next second, he roared out orders.

"Retreat! Retreat! Everyone, get out of here!"

Even without his order, the chaotic Sardinian knights and soldiers were already trying to escape.

The newly built town has no walls, so theoretically they could escape from the ends of the streets and alleys.

But every time they found a way out, they were met with shelling.

The magic tanks that emerged from underground blocked their path, and the cold glint of their metal made the soldiers lose even the courage to break through.

But their lack of courage doesn't mean the soldiers of Flower Territory will back down.

Artillery fire, heavy machine gun fire, and infantry semi-automatic rifle barrage – a series of killings, bloody yet efficient.

At one point, Earl Hoven Xavier finally lost his temper and roared, "Aren't you going to make a move?"

"If the kingdom's army is completely wiped out, you won't be able to explain it to Her Majesty the Queen when you return, will you?"

"Help! Please, help us!"

His roar was hoarse and desperate, like that of a madman, but it still had an effect.

A fourth-tier fire-type Calamity Knight descended from the sky and crashed directly into a magic tank.

The surging battle aura, carrying intense heat, seeped into the tank through the gaps in the joints, seemingly intent on melting it completely.

He successfully killed the crew members, but there were already contingency plans in place to counter his actions.

In that short time, a magic tank that was kept running locked onto the fourth-tier fire knight and fired an armor-piercing round.

boom!
With a deafening roar, flames erupted as magical energy transformed into powerful kinetic energy, granting a missile astonishing speed.

Caught off guard, the knight had no choice but to swing his sword, intending to detonate it.

It had an effect, but he was also thrown out by the head-on impact and crashed into a house.

The next second, countless tanks aimed at the house and began a relentless bombardment.

At this moment, the world seemed to fall silent. Countless fourth-tier calamities who wanted to make a move watched this scene in silence, their lips twitching.

The next second, amidst the explosion and smoke, a burst of battle aura erupted, carrying a figure soaring into the sky.

A fourth-tier tank is still a fourth-tier tank; using a magic tank to deal with it is still too much of a stretch.

Unless a single shot lands squarely, it's difficult to inflict fatal damage.

Alfonso shook his head in dissatisfaction, but he was quick to act. The next second, the Calamity experts from the Flower Territory rushed over to stop Sardinia's Calamity from making a move.

In fact, with the fire-type Scourge Knight in front of them, they were unwilling to take action.

At this moment, Earl Hoven Xavier was lying on the ground, as if he had completely lost his strength.

Even when a squad of Flower Lord guards surrounded him, he lost all will to resist.

In this battle, the Sardinian army was lured into a trap, and the Coast Knights, along with eight thousand Sardinian soldiers, were completely annihilated.

The Palm Mage Group was too scattered and did not play a significant role.

However, mages have more ways to escape, and most of them use magic scrolls to leave the battlefield.

As for Earl Hoven Xavier, he was captured on the spot without even putting up a fight.

With this, the fighting on the western front ended, but things changed on the southern front.

(End of this chapter)