I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 128 The Disparity in Casualty Ratio
As long as it is not the kind of deception that involves short selling, giving money away is always effective in boosting military morale.

Encouraged by wealth, and after forcibly requisitioning all the animals capable of carrying loads from nearby villages and towns, the marching speed of the halberd soldiers and musketeers finally increased.

In addition to the pancakes, Marlowe also distributed all the cash he had on him. He set an example by walking with his weapons in hand, leading the other soldiers to follow.

Finally, at noon, Marlow, who was out of breath after walking quickly, saw a group of mountain horses outside Miller Town and the town in chaos.

Marlowe saw the enemy, and the three bandits who were watching the horses also saw the former and the army following them.

The three men took action without saying a word. The leader rode the lead horse and galloped in another direction, while the other two waved their whips, whipping the air, making loud air explosions that frightened the horses.

Relying on the lead horse effect and the drive of two whips, the herd of horses ran away from Malo's squadron.

Marlowe didn't care about these mountain horses and the three fleeing bandits. So many mountain horses might be valuable, but it would be difficult to catch up with four legs on two legs.

Secondly, Marlowe knew exactly what his target was…it was the large force of these “rebels” who were committing crimes in the town. Chasing the horses would only disperse his own forces and give the enemy time to react.

"All soldiers, put on your armor, follow me into the town and wipe out those rebels!"

The smoke from the burning wood wrapped around the spires of Miller Town like a shroud. Marlowe's cowhide boots crushed the broken tiles, and as he rushed into the town at the head of the pack, he could smell the blood.

Three men who should be the town militia were kneeling at the town gate, unarmed. When they saw Marlowe and the halberd man coming in, they showed surprise on their faces.

"Quick, sir, they've gone to the mayor's house."

In fact, Marlowe had already seen the column of smoke rising from the center of the town without the militia telling him. He waved his hand and ran forward with the soldiers behind him. The townspeople in the houses on both sides of the street looked at them with complicated eyes.

Seventy soldiers quickly rushed into Miller Town, their footsteps echoing in the stone alleys. The gunmen hurriedly used tinder to light the fuse hanging on the gun as they ran.

After walking for a while, Marlowe heard the sound of hurried horse hooves coming from the front. Obviously, the enemy had noticed something unusual. He immediately stopped on the empty street and nervously gripped the shark skin handle of his sword.

"Halberds, form up! Quick! Three rows in a horizontal formation! Musketeers, step forward and prepare to fire!"

The sound of flintlocks of muskets rang out one after another. The young musketeer Guillaume licked his cracked lips. He obeyed the order of his superior and squeezed past the halberd holder who was half-kneeling on the ground in front with his companions. The gunpowder bag on his waist hit the latter's helmet, which caused a burst of curses.

The halberdiers and musketeers brought out by Marlowe were all regular soldiers. Although their equipment was neglected, they were indeed veterans who had been in the army for more than three years and were the property left to the Republic by the former king.

They were well-trained, so when Marlowe gave the order, they executed it quickly and completed their formation before the cuirassiers in front could launch a charge.

The dense sound of horse hooves was getting closer. Standing next to the halberd bearer and behind the musketeer, Marlow saw nearly ten cuirassiers rushing from the front.

"Musketeers, fire!"

Twenty muskets simultaneously spewed out orange-red flames, and lead bullets tore a path in the fog, but only sparks flew on the knights' plate armor in the distance, failing to stop their charge. Only one horse fell in the shooting.

Marlowe saw a double-headed eagle etched on the breastplate of the leading cavalryman, and a terrifying laugh on the man's face beneath his high helmet.

After the volley was completed, the musketeers immediately turned and fled, passing quickly by the halberdmen with heavy and panicked steps.

The musketeers had barely made way when the cuirassiers' charge reached the halberdiers, their knightly swords swung downward in unison, splitting the smoke and the halberdiers' fear. Marlow saw up close how the sergeant bearing the brunt of the halberdiers' charge, due to his excessive bravery, had positioned himself slightly too far forward, and was cut in two, halberd and all. The enemy's two-handed swords had a terrifying edge.

The two halberdiers swung their halberds with all their might, chopping and stabbing the weapons at the enemy, but were blocked by the sophisticated breastplate. Amid the crisp sound of hammering, a few sparks were flying.

Then, the attacked cavalrymen could not reach the halberdiers because their weapons were too short, so they took out their flintlock pistols in anger and fired at the halberdiers at close range.

After two loud explosions, the two halberd bearers immediately fell backwards.

"Pikemen advance, stab the horses, cut their horses!"

Marlowe roared and ordered the halberdiers to change their target of attack. This order woke them up from their dreams, and the halberdiers in the second row thrust their weapons towards the mountain spurs under the cavalrymen's crotches.

Such an attack was very effective. The horses under the cavalry's crotch were only mountain horses. Their sprint speed was neither fast enough nor brave enough. When facing the shining halberd blade, they automatically slowed down, resulting in the cavalry being unable to break through the halberd holder's formation.

Now, under Marlowe's command, three rows of halberd soldiers advanced in an orderly manner. In just two hits, the legs of two cavalrymen's mountain horses were broken, causing them to fall off their horses. More cavalrymen were forced to turn around and retreat.

A young soldier wearing an iron helmet with a nose guard thought this was an opportunity. Eager to earn a hundred silver coins, he shouted an incomprehensible war cry, stepped forward, and chopped down a foot cavalryman with the halberd in his hand.

As a result, the cavalryman just raised his sword, and when the tip of the halberd was bounced away, the long sword spun in his hand, cutting off half of the head of the intruder, and the brains splattered on Marlowe's boots.

However, due to the death of the reckless attacker, the cavalry's retreat was delayed, and five halberd soldiers stepped forward and stabbed the swordsman with their halberds.

Amid the clanging sound of iron hammering, a halberd slashed across the latter's neck, killing the swordsman who wielded the knight's sword so tightly that it was impenetrable.

Although Marlowe did not participate in the battle, the intense battle scenes and the continuous deaths of his own side still made his adrenaline surge. He was gasping for breath, and his head and face were covered with sweat.

The battle was short. The ten cavalrymen only made a tentative charge. When they found that they could not break through the halberd soldiers' line, they retreated and left. As a result, the musketeers who retreated behind did not have time to finish loading the second lead bullet.

But although the battle was short, Marlow looked around the battlefield and found that in the contact between the two sides, five of his halberdiers fell, while only one of the other side was killed.

Although they had more people, they suffered a five-to-one casualty ratio in the battle.

Looking at the enemy's receding back, Marlowe subconsciously swallowed his saliva, and the excitement brought by the joy of successfully capturing the enemy began to fade from his mind.

The quartermaster began to realize the enemy's elite strength. If he had not acted decisively and seized the opportunity when the enemy's forces were dispersed, his halberd soldiers might not have been able to withstand the latter's attack.

In addition, Marlowe also discovered that the sound of the musketeer's gunfire was not right. The gunpowder did not burn completely, so the gunshot was muffled.

"Take that body and his weapons, and we'll retreat!

Brothers, something is not right. Bring the bodies back to Oncandra. Each of the living will receive fifty silver coins, and the dead will receive one hundred silver coins.

I am Marlow Benson, and I swear by the Benson family."

(End of this chapter)