Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 54 Fierce Battle
Similar scenes were unfolding simultaneously on several other main roads in Seville.

Since Colonel Marcus's armored knight fell rather suddenly, the Garter Knights members, who had already dispersed to other streets to challenge enemies one-on-one, had no idea what they were about to face.

On another road, a pilot of the Knights of the Garter was confidently controlling his armored knight, striking his shield with his armed sword as he moved forward.

They were incredibly motivated to fight.

He was even joking with the infantrymen around him through an external speaker.

"Soldiers, watch closely! It's a rare sight to see armored knights in one-on-one combat!"

After saying that, the white 'St. George III' sped up and went to meet it.

Just like their squadron commander Marcus, these pilots of the Garde Knights possessed their own pride and confidence.

This confidence stemmed from the Knights' terrifying record and Brittany's comprehensive lead in armored knight technology.

Every pilot of the Knights of the Garter never believed that he would be defeated in a 1v1 situation against an enemy.

However, just as the two tin cans were about to collide, he saw a blinding light burst forth from the tip of the unassuming 'fire poker' in the other's hand.

Then, he knew nothing more.
The black and white painted 'Siegfried Type 1' made a very stylish sideways dodge to clear the way.

The 'St. George III', with a hole already in its frontal armor, lurched forward several more steps due to inertia before collapsing to its knees, thick smoke billowing from the cockpit.

The driver of another 'St. George 3' nearby had already noticed that the communication channels seemed to have suddenly become quieter.

However, he wasn't thinking too much about it at the moment, focusing more on the battle at hand.

With his superior machine performance and skillful piloting, he successfully blocked the 'Siegfried Type 1's' impact with his shield, creating a convenient distance for his armed sword to strike.

Just as he was preparing to retaliate, he saw the other side shove that strange weapon directly outside his cockpit.

"What the hell is this thing?"

This was his last thought in life.

In a short time, the Knights of the Garde were wiped out by these hastily made, hand-crafted, energy-concentrating armor-piercing bullets, destroying four of their armored knights.

These once-arrogant imperial elites never understood how they had been defeated, even until their deaths.

As the four armored knights crashed to the ground, the accompanying infantry and knightly attendants who had been following them were thrown into chaos and panic.

Their greatest asset was instantly destroyed like paper in front of them; this dual impact, both visual and psychological, was devastating.

Once the most threatening armored knights were dealt with, the Teutonic Knights' pilots showed no mercy. They bypassed the wreckage of the enemy knights and charged straight into the infantry, unleashing their fury.

Without the cover of the armored knights, these accompanying infantrymen suffered heavy losses when facing their attacks head-on.

However, weapons made hastily and by hand are unlikely to have a high pass rate.

Of the six armored knights that the Teutonic Knights sent out, four successfully destroyed their targets in the first wave of attacks.

However, the armor-piercing rounds in the hands of two armored knights malfunctioned.

A Teutonic Knights pilot fired his armor-piercing rounds, only to see a ball of dim yellow flame erupt.

The explosion's power was greatly reduced; although it left a horrific dent and melted marks on the enemy's armor, it ultimately failed to penetrate it.

"Damn it! What bad luck!"

The pilot cursed angrily from inside the cockpit.

Fortunately, his opponent was also quite startled by this and instinctively took two steps back.

This gave the Teutonic Knights pilot a precious chance to catch his breath.

Without the slightest hesitation, he swiftly discarded the malfunctioning weapon in his hand and then retrieved another spare shaped charge armor-piercing round from the temporary rack on the back of the machine.

These were extra coins that Ludwig had the workers rush to produce in order to prepare for the possibility of misfires.

"Come again!"

He roared and charged forward again, maneuvering his armored knight.

The pilot of the Garde Knights opposite was filled with astonishment and doubt.

He didn't know what that attack had just been, but he could sense that it was powerful enough to be fatal.

Seeing that the other party was charging at him again with the same 'fire poker', he dared not be careless in the slightest and raised his shield, preparing to defend with full concentration.

This time, however, the Siegfried 1 was even more swift and cunning.

The heavy metal can wobbled, deceiving the opponent's shield block, and then accurately delivered the armor-piercing round in its hand to the opponent's side armor.

"boom!"

A dazzling burst of fire erupted once more, but this time, Lady Luck did not smile upon the 'St. George III'. His vehicle groaned under the strain, its side armor completely pierced, and the jet of hot metal shredded everything inside.

Seeing the enemy armored knight fall out of control, the Teutonic Knight pilot breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to retreat to rejoin the others.

But the sudden sound of heavy footsteps from the side immediately put him on high alert.

Another white St. George III had sped out from around the corner and blocked his way.

"You can't escape, you Saxon barbarian!"

Although the pilot of the 'St. George III' had no idea what the enemy had just used to kill his comrade, he clearly had no intention of turning back and charged straight at them, brandishing his weapon.

Having exhausted their shaped charge armor-piercing rounds, and facing a one-on-one situation, the Teutonic Knights, who had just expended a great deal of energy, quickly found themselves at a disadvantage against their enraged and well-rested enemy.

Just three rounds later, he was outmaneuvered by the clearly more agile 'St. George 3', which then pierced the internal combustion engine from behind with its enchanted armored sword.

In the Armored Knights civil war, this was tantamount to death.

After a brief but fierce battle, only four black-and-white painted Siegfried 1s and three white painted San Jorge 3s remained inside the city of Seville.

The ratio of armored knights between the two sides has shifted to four to three.

The Teutonic Knights once again gained the advantage in numbers.

More importantly, Ludwig and his men still had a few shaped charge anti-tank missiles left to use.

Meanwhile, the Knights of Garde were clearly intimidated after their five armored knights were swiftly and decisively wiped out.

The remaining three drivers were no longer as arrogant and conceited as before.

They stared in horror at the Teutonic Knights opposite them, who resembled gods of death, and the strangely shaped 'spears' in their hands, and unanimously chose to retreat.

This was also the day with the greatest casualties the Order of the Garter had suffered since its founding.

Including the two that Ludwig had previously destroyed with superior forces on the high ground, they lost a total of seven of their newest 'St. George III' armored knights in a single day.

This was an unprecedented and humiliating disgrace for the Garter Knights, who had always enjoyed smooth sailing and considered themselves the spear of the empire.

Without a doubt, this was the darkest day since the Knights were founded.

After suffering heavy losses, the remaining armored knights of the Garde Knights no longer recklessly ventured deep into enemy territory.

They carefully accompanied the knights and infantry, using the long-range weapons that Britannian drivers usually despised to provide direct fire support for the infantry.

The pace of the battle suddenly slowed down.

News of the heavy losses suffered by the armored knights quickly reached the command post at the rear via messengers.

When Eldridge and the other Britannian officers heard the news, they all wore expressions of disbelief.

"What did you say? Five more have disappeared in such a short time?!"

Colonel Henry of Brittany grabbed the messenger by the collar, his eyes wide as saucers.

"Yes, Colonel Marcus was also killed in action," the messenger replied, his voice trembling.

The air inside the tent seemed to freeze.

Meanwhile, the Kingdom's army commander, Sanhurjo, upon hearing of the heavy losses suffered by the Britannians, showed a fleeting, barely concealed schadenfreude on his face.

But he quickly realized his loss of composure and, in the next instant, switched back to an expression of grief and shock.

"My God! How is this possible! How could the Saxons have done this!"

Upon hearing his voice, Eldridge gave him a cold look but said nothing.

At this point, even if Eldridge and Colonel Henry wanted to regroup their troops and reorganize the attack, it was already too late.

Because a large number of troops had entered the city, they were now completely entangled with the defending forces and engaged in fierce fighting in the streets.

Ordering a retreat at this point would only expose their vulnerable rear to the Saxon barbarians hiding in the ruins.

So unsurprisingly, they also experienced the same common situation as before with Sanhurho—they got carried away.

"We cannot retreat! The army of the Holy Britannian Empire must not back down in front of these country bumpkins!"

Colonel Henry, just like General Sanhurjo a few tens of minutes earlier, waved his hands in a frenzy and ordered the reserves to prepare for battle.

Eldridge remained silent, turned and walked out of the tent, a surge of magical energy emanating from him.

He decided to go to the front lines in person.

(End of this chapter)