第3章 戰場的終局 「追擊！把王國軍都推下去！」 寒煜公扇動著部下情緒，勝負已分，不需要精緻的操作，需要的只有鼓勵士兵奮勇殺敵擴 大戰果． 這次出兵由於預想的戰場一開始就被王國軍佔據了地利，所以寒煜公的局面開場並不好打 ，而且這個戰場不利於騎兵的開展，帝國的主力是遊牧輕騎兵，狹窄的正面根本不適合騎 兵活動，因此大批的馬被放在後方，正面戰場都用下馬的士兵來當步兵用． 這也是王國軍勇於將重騎兵這樣早放入戰場的主要原因，若是戰場是平原，輕騎兵可以耗 死重騎兵的戰場，王國軍是不可能中計的． 結果王國軍還是中了計，重騎兵被殲滅，主攻的步兵遭到痛擊，靠著艾森豪跟他的嫡系軍 團斷後，王國軍步兵算是大部份逃了出去，代價就是艾森豪這個王國的未來總元帥夭折在 這裡，還有王國一個大家族的家家白幡． 巴浩然知道回國去將會面對的是如何的下場，王國的傳統，打敗戰的將軍將要面對陣亡將 士的遺族挑戰，遺族有權力為自己的親人報仇，向愚蠢的指揮官報仇． 巴浩然必然會遭到艾森豪家族的挑戰，而他也必死無疑，但是現在他必須要做到自己該做 到的工作，帶領更多的人回家，這是遠征軍指揮官的工作，也將是他最後的工作． 巴浩然糾集最後的弓箭手，他們重新的補給了箭矢，讓他們射住上山的道路，在道路的兩 旁點上篝火，天色越來越暗，士兵需要見到回家的路． 殘兵就是如此． 殘存亦末路，兵敗如山倒，敗者無一死，將來富如山． 可惜這次的敗者死的很慘，所以沒有將來了． 收歸的士兵幾乎都丟棄了鎧甲，太重了，在逃命而且是往山上逃命的過程，鎧甲是負擔， 所幸士兵的武器大部份都在，這算是不幸中的大幸． 總兵力七萬，王國三千重騎兵折損，一萬艾森豪將軍的親兵軍隊遭到殲滅，整體來說王國 軍還不算失去戰鬥力，還能一戰． 預期中的追擊軍隊並沒有出現，帝國軍沒有追擊，而從高處往下看，帝國軍的營地悄然無 聲． 詭異，一場大勝戰之後，帝國軍應該是在狂歡，並且清算戰功，然而帝國的營地居然一絲 的火光都沒有？ 出事了嗎？莫非帝國內部出了事情，讓寒煜公放棄這唾手可得的全面勝利撤退了？ 巴浩然的腦中不斷的反復推敲可能的發展，得到了一個不可思議的結論． ＂帝國內部有變，根據情報帝國皇帝這一年來身體都不好，所以寒煜公的退兵非常有可能 是帝國皇帝出了事，他要回去處理內部的問題！＂ ＂這就代表著他只會帶著親兵先回去，帝國軍隊會在沒有指揮官的情況下慢慢歸國，這就 是個痛擊帝國軍的大好機會！＂ 巴浩然從各方面推敲都覺得有這種可能． 同樣屬於大草原的國家，王國軍也有著大批的馬匹可用，巴浩然讓一萬弓箭手上馬，連夜 下山追擊帝國軍，同時安排副將帶另外兩萬輕騎兵於明早出發，作為第二陣接應巴浩然， 剩餘的殘存士兵守好陣地，不能讓帝國軍通過． 如果艾森豪沒死，巴浩然不會如此莽撞的做出這樣的決定，然而艾森豪的死，逼著老將巴 浩然無路可退了，他必須要取得一場大勝來證明自己的能力，才能避免被遺屬報復． 進入了帝國軍的營地，果然走的非常匆促，戰場上面的戰利品都沒時間帶走，巴浩然也奪 回了艾森豪首級與軀體，軍旗也奪了回來，雖然說都是敵人留下的，但是這也是勇敢的闖 入敵軍營地才能取回，這是勇敢而無畏的行動． 計算營地的火堆溫度，帝國軍走的非常匆忙，應該還沒走遠，巴浩然更加確定了自己推斷 是正確的，讓全軍上馬，最大速度追擊！ 巴浩然派了傳令回上山，讓第二陣提早出發，讓殘存士兵下山來把裝備搬回去，重騎兵的 武裝很貴，將來重建會需要用到． 下山出了隘口，巴浩然一路驅趕著部隊快速推進，而地下滿布著騎兵的踏印，這證明了帝 國軍上馬撤退了，老將軍一馬當先的追擊，情緒高昂，好不威風． 逆轉局勢就在眼前，只要咬上了帝國軍的後衛，大勝就是結果． 三個時辰的追趕，王國軍俘虜了一批運送輜重的帝國軍伕，帝國士兵都跑了，就留下這些 平民軍伕． 巴浩然現在完全確認了帝國撤退的事實，更加的讓軍隊加快腳步，追趕帝國軍的後衛，挽 回臉面的戰役就靠這場了． 巴浩然帶頭領軍加快速度，他預計翻過這個小山頭，就應該能見到帝國軍了，而當他上了 山頭之後，他果然見到了帝國軍． 只不過是嚴陣以待等著他的帝國軍！ 「退！這是陷阱．」 老將的經驗直接讓她判斷出這是陷阱，帝國軍兩翼開始從兩側包圍小山丘，而且帝國軍的 騎兵體力充沛，自己的一萬士兵騎的馬都已經氣喘吁吁了． 然而前進容易，後退困難，尤其是沒體力的騎兵，巴浩然能做的就是讓士兵快撤退，換來 的是更多的馬匹暴斃在路上，落隊的士兵都成了俘虜，整個騎兵隊已經沒有了組織． 只有看後面的接應部隊了，只要能接應上，自己還是能逃出去． 終於在減員嚴重下，巴浩然跟後面的接應兩萬騎兵會合，這時候就沒必要在這裡死戰，先 撤退再說，但是帝國軍的騎兵卻是如同附骨蛆蟲一般的死咬不放，像是驅趕一樣驅趕著王 國軍撤退． 絕望了！ 通往歸路的隘口，被帝國的步兵把守住了，並且連營結寨牢不可破，兩萬余王國騎兵，被 後有追兵前有阻兵的局面下陷入包圍網，最終在巴浩然自盡之後，半數的騎兵投降帝國軍 ，另外半數抵抗到底被殲滅． 帝國的騎兵繼續穿過步兵陣地奪回原來的主營，正在搬運戰利品上山的王國步兵哪裡是帝 國騎兵的對手，這次的追擊就是徹底的崩潰，最終王國遠征軍，全軍覆沒，除了投降之外 ，無人生還． １－３完 然而這場戰役，皇帝軍的慘狀是毫無疑問的苦酒，必須要讓寒煜公痛苦的飲下． hapter 3: The End of the Battlefield “Pursue them! Drive the Kingdom troops off the cliffs!” Duke Aureus fanned the flames of his soldiers’ fervor. The battle had already been decided. No delicate maneuvers were needed now— only the relentless push to expand the victory. From the beginning， the terrain had disadvantaged the Empire. The Kingdom held the high ground， and the narrow valley left no room for cavalry. The Empire’s main strength—its nomadic light horsemen—could not deploy. Most of the horses were tethered in the rear while dismounted riders served as improvised infantry. This was precisely why the Kingdom dared to commit their heavy cavalry so early. Had the terrain been open plains， the Empire’s light riders would have whittled the heavy cavalry to exhaustion. But in this cramped ravine， the Kingdom believed the Empire helpless. They were wrong. The heavy cavalry was annihilated. The main infantry thrust was shattered. The only reason the Kingdom’s foot soldiers escaped at all was Eisenhower— whose rearguard bought them time with blood. But the price was steep: Eisenhower， the Kingdom’s future supreme marshal， lay dead. And with him， one of the great noble houses had been extinguished. General Bahoran knew exactly what awaited him back home. In their tradition， when a campaign was lost， a commander must answer to the families of the fallen. The bereaved held the right to challenge the one responsible for their kin’s deaths. Bahoran would inevitably face a challenge from the Eisenhower clan—and he would not survive it. But that was a matter for later. For now， he still had a duty: to bring home as many soldiers as possible. It would be his final act as commander of the expeditionary army. He gathered the remaining archers. Their quivers were refilled， torches lit along the mountain path. Night was falling， and the men needed light to see their way home. A battered army is always the same— its soldiers discard armor to lighten the desperate climb， its victory songs silent， its future dim. Most had thrown away their breastplates during the uphill retreat; armor was too heavy. At least they kept their weapons. A small mercy in a disaster. Out of seventy thousand， the Kingdom had lost three thousand elite heavy cavalry and ten thousand of Eisenhower’s personal corps— but on paper， the army still had enough strength to fight another day. Yet the expected Imperial pursuit never came. Bahoran frowned. The Imperial camp below was silent—dark， without even a single fire burning. It was wrong. A victorious army should be roaring with celebration， dividing spoils， shouting the Duke of Winter’s name. But instead—nothing. A chill ran through him. Something has happened…? Could it be that the Empire had suffered internal turmoil? Rumors for the past year spoke of the Emperor’s failing health. Bahoran’s mind raced. “If the Emperor has died… the Duke of Winter must return immediately to take control of the capital. That means he’ll take only his personal guard， leaving the bulk of the army to withdraw slowly. That… would be the perfect moment to strike the Empire’s unled forces!” The more he analyzed， the more the theory made sense. Both the Kingdom and the Empire hailed from the vast grasslands— both possessed swift cavalry. Bahoran quickly reorganized his forces: ten thousand mounted archers would ride through the night in pursuit; another twenty thousand light cavalry would depart at dawn to reinforce him; the remainder would hold the mountain pass and block the Empire’s return. Had Eisenhower survived， Bahoran would never have taken such a reckless gamble. But Eisenhower’s death left him no escape. He needed a victory—any victory—to salvage his honor and survive the reckoning waiting at home. He entered the Imperial camp. They had indeed withdrawn in great haste— spoils left behind， equipment abandoned. He retrieved Eisenhower’s severed head and body， as well as the captured banner. Though left behind by the enemy， reclaiming them required courage， and it would earn him the right to stand before the Eisenhower clan with dignity. By examining the temperature of the extinguished fire pits， Bahoran judged the Empire had left not long before. They could be caught. “Mount up! Full speed!” A messenger galloped back to the mountains to urge the second wave to depart early. The remaining soldiers would retrieve the valuable heavy cavalry armor— equipment too precious to leave behind. Once they left the pass， tracks covered the snow. Horseshoes. Countless. Proof that the Empire was indeed retreating on horseback. Bahoran rode at the front， fury and hope burning in equal measure. Redemption was in sight. If he caught the Imperial rear guard， he could overturn the humiliation of Coldwell Gorge. Three hours into the chase， his troops captured a caravan of Imperial laborers— civilians transporting supplies. The soldiers had fled， leaving their workers behind. This confirmed it: the Empire was retreating. Bahoran’s conviction solidified. He pressed the army even faster， determined to seize the Duke of Winter’s tail. As he crested a small ridge， he finally saw the Imperial troops. But not retreating— waiting. In formation. Prepared. “Retreat! It’s a trap!” The old general’s instincts screamed. Imperial cavalry surged along the flanks， encircling the hill. The Kingdom’s horses were exhausted; the Empire’s were fresh. Advancing was easy. Retreat， under pursuit， was agony. Panicked horses collapsed; soldiers fell behind and were taken prisoner. The formation dissolved. Only the second wave could save them now. Bahoran managed to join his twenty thousand reinforcements. There was no point in fighting— the priority was escape. But the Empire did not relent. Their cavalry clung to the Kingdom’s heels like parasites， driving them mercilessly downhill. Despair crashed over him. The pass—their road home— was held by Imperial infantry， their camp fortified， escape cut off completely. Twenty thousand Kingdom riders— pinned between the Imperial hammer and the anvil of their own defeat— had nowhere left to run. When Bahoran finally took his own life， half the cavalry surrendered， the other half fought to the last and were slaughtered. The Imperial riders swept past their infantry and reclaimed their original camp. There， they fell upon the remaining Kingdom infantry— those who had been gathering spoils， unaware—and crushed them. The pursuit ended not in victory， but in annihilation. The Kingdom’s expeditionary army was destroyed. None survived save the prisoners. 1-3 End Yet for all the Empire’s triumph， the aftermath awaiting the Emperor’s army was nothing short of bitter poison— a cup Duke Aureus would be forced to drink to the last drop. --

※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc), 來自: 101.14.3.113 (臺灣) ※ 文章網址: https://webptt.com/m.aspx?n=bbs/DummyHistory/M.1764743965.A.FD7.html