Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 668 Probing and Tug-of-War

Ice Sea Base, Northern Army Frontline Command Post.

The first battle, which broke out at the early warning line more than ten miles from the base, quickly brought back all the battlefield intelligence. The fierce battle at the front was coming to an end. Although the Lizardmen were the first to launch the attack, the Northern Army, which had been prepared, repelled their long-planned first wave of attacks in just half an hour.

After receiving the message that the alarm had been lifted, Vaughn put down his communicator, walked to the sand table with a somber expression, and fell into deep thought.

Unbeknownst to them, the enemy had also devised "new weapons" that they had never heard of before... At the same time, through observation and imitation, they learned to dig trenches like the Northern Army, use underground fortifications to resist artillery bombardment, and cover the advance of the main force.

Although these actions still failed to achieve any results from the overwhelming firepower of their own side, Vaughn had clearly noticed that these alien races were gradually trying to catch up with humans in terms of tactical deployment and combat strategies.

Fortunately, the combat command system personally designed by His Majesty is still far ahead of the enemy in terms of intelligence gathering, defense early warning, troop deployment, and post-battle review.

Just like the raid that just ended—from receiving reconnaissance intelligence to quickly responding and defending, and then flexibly adjusting strategies according to the battlefield situation, each combat unit reported the details of the battle at each level. After all the information was collected and summarized by the command department, the staff officers analyzed and reviewed the entire battle, gaining the most intuitive understanding of the whole battle.

"The enemy didn't even get close to our first line of defense. They used those strange black worms to launch a large number of black crystal spikes at our position from the ice trenches... In the end, they left behind about three thousand dead soldiers and then retreated along the trenches."

They didn't even last until the Northern Army's air force arrived before being easily defeated in the first round of the great battle between the two sides... Many young officers and staff officers seemed very excited, as if this long and arduous war, which they had thought would be extremely difficult, was now a victory that was within their grasp.

“It’s not that simple…” Dickinson frowned and said in a deep voice, “They’ve been quietly digging trenches and sending out entirely new evolved units. They definitely didn’t just come up here to let us line up and shoot them.”

This is definitely a test! But what are they testing?

"What is the casualty situation of our troops? How much damage did the black spikes sprayed by the worms cause to the front lines?"

Staff Officer Ross, holding the newly copied report in his hand, quickly read aloud: "39 dead and 117 wounded, with 90% of the casualties caused by enemy crystal spikes. The combat battalion headquarters located in the middle of the front line was the main target."

With a casualty ratio of 100 to 1, even if their plan was to use a "trading tactics" to outlast the two races, the Northern Army still had a clear advantage in terms of casualties. The Lizardmen simply couldn't outlast them.

"So... the original plan to push back towards the second floating island?"

Vaughn decisively raised his hand and pressed down, saying in a deep voice, "Hold on! Let's see what they're trying to test. If nothing unexpected happens... the enemy's second wave of attacks will come soon after this battle."

……

And indeed, as Commander Vaughn had predicted, over the next ten days, the Lizardmen, relying on their dense network of ice trenches, launched surprise attacks on the Northern Army's front lines every two or three days. And their tactics were almost identical… at dawn or dusk, when the human soldiers holding the lines were most fatigued and let their guard down, they would suddenly surge forward from behind the ice trenches, then unleash their enormous black worms to spray large amounts of sharp black crystalline spikes at the positions, creating an opening for their advance.

When the Northern army launched its counterattack, they would act decisively... and hastily retreat, leaving behind nearly a thousand corpses, before the artillery could bombard them.

In this back-and-forth struggle, the Lizardmen and the Northern Army somehow managed to form a strange "tacit understanding."

The early warning line at the forefront began three shifts. The soldiers who were sent to the front line in rotation gradually got used to the frequent attacks by the enemy and the crystal spikes sprayed from the ice trenches.

The main reason is that... their crystal spikes are extremely inaccurate. Unless you're one in a million unlucky souls, most soldiers can easily dodge them by using cover if they are focused enough.

Meanwhile, the enemy's winged beings, who were stronger and more mobile, also showed much more hesitation in the struggle for air superiority... Compared to the past when they would swarm up and chase after any Northern Army airships as soon as they were spotted, they now seemed to have restrained themselves. As long as the airships did not directly enter the three-kilometer range of the second floating island, they would at most linger at a distance and would not choose to rush up and pursue them.

Vaughn and the General Staff were racking their brains over the enemy's strange reactions.

According to the original battle plan, the Northern Army should have already advanced to the vicinity of the second floating island and set up the magic-powered heavy artillery in front of the enemy... However, due to the enemy's strange behavior of digging ice trenches and repeatedly probing attacks, as well as the appearance of the new type of unit, the worms, the command felt that something seemed amiss.

"Postponing the counter-offensive plan is not a bad thing for us. After receiving the report, His Majesty also believes that our actions need to be cautious. It would be best to thoroughly understand the enemy's thoughts and see if they have any more evolved [new weapons] hidden away."

The vast majority of mid- to high-ranking officers approved of Vaughn's move, except for the fire mage, Colonel Horden of the Independent Airship Regiment, who was extremely dissatisfied with the command's actions.

Most of the high-level battle mages led by him were fanatics who had been stationed in the Evil Moon Mountains to fight against the demons. In their minds, true battlefield commanders and decision-makers should not be too afraid of taking risks and losing personnel. With victory as the ultimate goal, they would be willing to carry out even a battle plan with no chance of survival without hesitation. It was better than being cautious and indecisive like this now.

Therefore, the Son of Flame, representing the Airship Independent Regiment, requested permission to fight from Vaughn several times, but unsurprisingly, he was resolutely rejected each time.

"They're not following the original battle plan, and they're being led by the nose by the alien race... There are always deaths in war. If you're so afraid of a large number of soldiers dying, you might as well retreat! Leave the front line to us combat spellcasters!"

Stormwalker Matthews Willie covered the mouth of the Son of Flame who was still cursing and said in a low voice, "His Majesty must have appointed Commander Vaughn to be in charge of the operation because he values ​​his cautious and methodical nature. If you're really feeling frustrated, I'll get you a Barrett. When those damn aliens come to plunder again, you can go to the front lines and take your anger out on them."

Although the fire mage was sharp-tongued, his actions spoke louder than words. He knew that the more critical the moment, the more he needed to follow military orders. Venting his emotions was one thing, but directly disobeying military orders and acting on his own was a major taboo.

"Hmph, don't give me that! You're trying to persuade me to leave my post and head to the front lines at a time like this? I think you'd be hoping I get a complaint from the military law department, wouldn't you?"

(End of this chapter)