336 – Attack on Veneta Castle (3)
Peter Yeager gave an order after firing catapults and ballistas intensively for an hour.
“All troops go over the walls! When our infantry reaches near the castle wall, aim the catapults and ballistas inside the wall and fire, while the archers and wizards take cover!”
As soon as Captain Jaeger’s order was given, the Reich Imperial Army soldiers began to march towards the castle wall, aligned in line, like a machine in motion.
As the magic and arrows fired by archers and wizards, and the supporting fire of siege weapons followed, the militiamen, who had not even been properly trained, let alone fought in a proper war, trembled in fear at the sight.
No, even the nobles on the castle walls who had experience leading mercenaries in several wars felt fear.
What they were afraid of was not the fear that they might die at any moment from a long-distance attack, but that all the soldiers of the imperial army were charging towards the castle walls without hesitation.
In the meantime, even though countless of his comrades were dying, he stepped on the corpses and advanced, giving off the air of a murderer with no emotions.
They knew very well that if these people were shown even the slightest gap, they would rush into it like waves rushing in.
“f*ck you, you crazy bastards. “You know so well that you’re going to die, but you approach me like that without hesitation?”
“Peter Yeager you bastard, how on earth did you train your soldiers?”
“Put spearmen first on the castle wall, and send soldiers with maces and swords behind them. Otherwise, you will be pushed out in an instant.”
The militia hurriedly changed their deployment as ordered anyway, and the Reich Imperial Army advanced, holding weapons in one hand and ladders in the other.
“Long live the Reich Empire! Long live your Majesty the Emperor! Don’t be afraid and go ahead! Just like in training! “If you get scared, that bastard will die first!”
“If you turn your back, I will kill you right away for escaping from an enemy battle! So, if you want to live, move forward! “Don’t even think about useless things!”
“Just think about being the first to climb the castle wall and survive! As long as you climb the castle wall first and survive, you will receive a medal! “Let’s risk our lives and sell like Captain Jaeger. Let’s change it, for f*ck’s sake!”
The soldiers, who had become accustomed to formal training and control according to reasonable military law over a long period of time, continued to march without wavering according to the orders of their commanders.
In the meantime, when a comrade dies, just like they did in training, their body moves before reason to fill someone else’s place.
Soon, the imperial army’s vanguard troops arrived at the castle wall and set up ladders.
“We must overcome the castle wall! Hurry and stick! Archer platoon! “Right away, fire cover fire and kill the militia bastards around you!”
“The wizards assigned to the battalion support the brave comrades who climb the ladder!”
“Slaughter the ragtag militia! Everyone charge forward!!”
In the process, naturally, the militia members struggled to stop it by throwing stones, shooting arrows, or stabbing with spears.
Imperial soldiers died so quickly that it was difficult to count the number of them, whether tens, hundreds, or perhaps even over a thousand, were sacrificed in the process, but they still silently climbed the ladder like murderous monsters or killing machines that did not feel any emotions on the outside. It went up.
Through strict military discipline and training, the soldiers commanded by Peter Yeager have clearly learned that ‘if you disobey orders here, you will become a traitor and will definitely be beheaded’, so they take the risk of death and do not spare their bodies. It wasn’t, though.
The sight of the imperial army throwing away their lives like straw and trying to complete their goal was enough to lower the morale of the militia, who had to survive and protect their families at all costs.
Nevertheless, the militiamen trembling on top of the castle, wearing weapons and flimsy armor, resisted by swinging their weapons in a desperate attempt to survive.
“Ugh, f*cking die! Die! “You bastards of the imperial army who are no better than these dogs!”
“If you guys hadn’t come here to invade! “Pietro never had to die!”
“Go back to your country! “You dirty bastards!”
Many Imperial soldiers died due to the indiscriminate attacks of the frightened people, but Peter Yeager knew that if he lost this momentum, the deaths of the soldiers who had been sacrificed so far would be a total loss.
I decided to issue a more stringent order.
“Keep sending in follow-up units! By any means necessary, we must climb to the top of the castle wall within today. We must show the might and power of the imperial army to the Venetas on the walls! Climb the wall even if it means sacrificing it!”
As he gave this command, he recalled something he had heard before coming to the Reich Empire.
‘Those who decide on war are old and high-ranking people, but those who die are young soldiers.’
Generally, the high-ranking people on the continent of Europa knew this principle, and since I had no chance of dying, they showed the attitude of being willing to go to war whenever necessary.
Captain Jaeger, who still retained many of his values from Korea, felt personally guilty and gave orders to ensure that their sacrifice would not be in vain.
“As soon as we capture part of the castle wall, I will personally lead the guards up the wall and command it on the spot! So tell them to breach the wall at all costs!”
The reason why Peter Yeager was obsessed with breaching the castle wall was simple.
Considering the population and defense level of Veneta City, it was impossible to capture the castle on the first day by mobilizing only about 150,000 troops.
What if we succeed in occupying part of the castle wall, which can be said to be a precursor to the fall of the castle, on the first day, which determines the course of the battle?
We were able to instill despair in the militia, whose morale was already low, thinking, ‘If the walls were breached on the first day, we won’t be able to do anything.’
A militia that has completely lost morale becomes, to put it a little exaggerated, as weak as a scarecrow holding a spear, so the damage incurred when attacking a castle in the future can be greatly reduced.
If they used it to carry out all kinds of internal operations, it would be easier to recruit good militia members who would become spies themselves and willingly open the castle gates.
And not long after, perhaps because of Jaeger’s earnest heart, an Imperial Army officer finally climbed the castle wall holding the banner of his battalion.
He held a flag in his left hand and a mace in his right, and shouted as he crushed the head of the militia that blocked his path.
“Captain Randel of the 81st Division! The first imperial army to climb the castle walls! Long live the Reich Empire! Long live your Majesty the Emperor! Long live Deus!”
Numerous militiamen pointed their weapons at him as he climbed the castle wall and held him in check, but he was a trained veteran who challenged human limits countless times during his time in the 7th Guards Division.
Holding a spear with his battalion’s flag on it, he stabbed the torsos and vital points of the militiamen who were coming one by one through the narrow passage, killing them with precision, thereby buying time for other soldiers to come up.
Meanwhile, when he raised his flag, the commanders under Captain Jaeger changed the aim of their catapults and ballistas from near the walls to deep inside the castle.
The archers and wizards also focused their attacks, targeting a distance away from Captain Randel and his soldiers.
“It would be a shame if Captain Randel, who was on top of the castle wall, died due to a mistake by one of his allies! “Change your aim.”
“Stop attacking catapults and ballistas! “Change your aim!”
“Fire at the cowardly soldiers on the castle wall! Launch!”
The imperial army officers who saw this were 90% respectful of the bravery and martial arts and 10% envious of the huge reward and promotion that would follow, so they grabbed the ladder and started climbing the castle wall.
“Captain Randel, we can’t just let that bastard suffer! “I, Major Rein, the battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion, will be at the forefront as the battalion commander, so follow me!”
“You can’t show Captain Randel anything embarrassing! Follow him, charge forward!”
“There is a hole to jump into! “Dig in there!”
The butterfly effect caused by Randel quickly spread throughout the Venetian castle walls, and the imperial soldiers began to occupy the walls little by little.
In the process, numerous militiamen were killed by Reich soldiers who climbed up the ladder.
“Stone! They are the bastards who threw stones. Crush his head with a mace! “Our squad leader was stoned to death!”
“You cowardly scarecrows! Come and hit me quickly! “I will kill you all!”
“Did you enjoy throwing stones and spears on the castle wall? “Try it sometime!”
Although the imperial soldiers marched like robots without any emotions on the outside until they climbed the castle wall, their hearts were actually full of resentment that their comrades died without being able to resist.
When the opportunity to solve the problem came, everyone turned on the light in their eyes and charged in while maintaining the five and ten points just as they had learned in training.
The militia of Veneta City were killed without even being able to use their hands or feet, as it was difficult to deploy a large number of troops at once using ‘numerical superiority’ due to the narrow passage on the castle wall.
Peter Yeager said that although the report had not yet been posted, he saw the Imperial Army’s flags flying around on the castle wall.
“It may not be able to capture the castle, but it can bring great fear to the enemies. “It’s as planned.”