But General Kosa was not as optimistic as the emperor: from Atalya to Alanya, it was a narrow and long coastal road, and then turned an angle in front of Alalmanburg, forming a blunt triangular continent, with dense forests and mountains to the north, and then by the sea were piles of soft sandy beaches, and in ancient times the entire Atalya Bay was under the jurisdiction of the "Kibiodont Fleet Military District", which was rich in timber and a large number of light warships "Panphelian ships", because the bay was shallow. Not particularly suitable for large ships, and the sea often encroached on the land on the shore with silt, making the delta damp and squishy - and now General Cosa's troops stepped on the land as if they were walking on a swamp, one foot deep and one foot shallow. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

"It's hard to advance, it's hard to retreat. The previous emperor took 20,000 people to save Alalaman without success, and was played by Gawain's 7,000 people. Now I have only 7,000 men, and the enemy still occupies a strong fortress, and it will be troublesome if anything goes wrong. What do you say you can do, not only to fulfill the emperor's mission, but also to keep me from losing my merits. "Before leaving, in Fort Alanya, Xhosa consulted the adjutants for advice.

Some advocated throwing all their forces and launching a lightning raid on Fort Alaman;

while others advocate dividing the whole army into two teams, echoing the front and back, because no one knows what is in front of them and where Gawain's main elite is;

At the same time, it was also advocated that only a few men should be deployed outside the castle of Alaman, and His Excellency General Cosa personally led the main force to bypass the fortress along the mountain and break directly into the city of Seleucia.

Three options, the first too reckless, the second too risky, worthy of General Xhosa, a friend of Brenus. In the end, he chose the second option that he thought was the safest—he appointed a lieutenant named Simon, who led 1,500 men to the front, and he himself led the rest of his men and horses, and walked slowly behind him, "If the situation is not right, return to Alanya at once." "Because this fortress not only provides shelter for Xhosa, but also serves as a gateway to the Atalia Bay.

At the first hour of the morning, in the gray night, the gates of Fort Alanya were opened, and Simon took the lead in marching towards Alalman with his troops; About another hour later, General Xhosa set out after him.

At the same time, under the city of Seleucia, the red-handed cavalry followed the line in silence, one by one, mounted one after another, the current flag officer held a torch of illumination, and the eyes of the rest of the cavalry were fixed on this moving "banner", and 1,200 men rode at a rapid trot, crossed the Seleucian long battlements, and marched along the gray-white road between the vast fields, and the slender and sharp black shadow of the spear tied to the shoulder armor or stirrup with a rope flickered, piercing the blue-gray night sky, and making only the slight sound of the friction between the armor and the weapon, It's like a low tide. Rows of feathers, interspersed with sporadic torches, Anna got up early, standing on the terrace at the top of the Acropolis, her small silhouette standing out between the gray battlements and the dark blue sky.

All the cavalrymen saw the farewell figure of the purple-clothed princess, and they were silent, raising their arms on horseback one by one, saluting the princess on it, and then holding the reins and running to the battlefield.

Among them, Gawain, his eyes under the red feathers, deliberately looked at the small silhouette for a few moments, and then headed in the direction of the Akum Bazaar, the great hospital on the mountain, the spire of the cross reflecting the rising light.

When the morning star disappeared into the night sky, and after the morning light shone down the foothills on the north side of the Hamamichi, General Simon's fifteen hundred soldiers were somewhat agitated and arranged in the open space of seven galli outside the west gate of Alalmanburg - because on the opposite side of them, at some point, there appeared cavalry on three fronts, horses of various colors, mounted spears on their backs, bright armor, and five-colored feathers and mane, "When did the enemy's cavalry arrive?" So silently. "The Imperial Army of Simon, who nervously folded their shields and held spears, was frightened, but fortunately, the hill on the left and the seashore on the right provided natural shelter for the wings of their array, so they could still withstand the spear formation against the cavalry in front of them.

They were waiting for reinforcements from General Kosa - and soon after, General Kossa, with his banner raised, did arrive with his main battalion.

At the sound of the horn, Kossa pulled his bridles through the array of soldiers, leaned against Simon and the other lieutenants, and observed the brigade of cavalry in front of him, which was also unmoved: the flag cart with the red hand cross sword emblem, and the battle flag of the black cloth and white cross, the guards in shining armor gathered around the flag cart to serve as guards, and then the cavalry on the first line, "The sand is so soft that they dare not take the trouble to charge at the tip of our spear." General Xhosa grinned, as if he was saying it to his staff and subordinates, as if he was saying it to himself, "The general with the red feather feather over there is the traitor Gawain......

He saw that Gawain was riding a black war horse from a distance, right between the banner and the guards, his face was like iron, and he never said a word to the others.

Behind Gawain's cavalry, with their backs to the swamps, were Gregor's brigade and all the Armenian logisticians, who were on their knees, and put down their banners and shields to cover them, so that the enemy could not know why.

When everyone asked him to give instructions, Xhosa's mind turned and he gave a very clear military order: "Divide everyone into two parts, divide the line and arrange the formation, and the front line is all stacked with shields and lined up in a spear formation, facing the enemy's cavalry, so that it cannot gallop vertically and horizontally; The men and horses of the rear line, each armed with a full arm, were ready to fire in case the enemy blocked our retreat with ships from the sea. Send a herald to keep in touch with Alanya at all times, and once it is nightfall, then to retreat back to Alanya alternately - if the Emperor makes progress at Milio Sepharon, Gawain will retreat, because he will go to the rescue, and then our army will set out to attack Seleucia, which is the perfect strategy. ”

After this impeccable "panacea" was sacrificed, Xhosa's subordinates could not say that there was any flaw, so they complied with it.

Daylight slowly moved over the heads of all the soldiers on both sides, and the army of the Gawain side was silent, and the army of the Xhosa side was in order.

About noon, there were indeed a few Seleucian-flagged galleys, accompanied by light boats, beating drums, but seeing that the Xhosa army had already prepared, these boats just circled like patrols, and then slowly retreated, and the swing of the oars outside the water was clearly visible.

General Xhosa, on horseback, was slightly relieved to see this sight.

Then there was a silent confrontation for half an hour, when Xhosa suddenly heard a regular tremor on the undulating hill to the left of his ranks, apparently caused by the footsteps of the army. (To be continued.) )