Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

And at this very moment, just outside the Terdun Camp, Winters was shouting with great excitement in Herde Language he had just learned: "We're defeated! We're defeated! Our army is defeated! The fire-tenders are dead!"

With the enhancement of a sound-amplifying spell, his solo shouts equaled the volume of a hundred-man squadron.

How could Colonel Jeska possibly let the people of the Terdon Tribe get a good night's sleep?

The cavalry detachment that was delivering the gunpowder to the Bridgehead Fortress had been detained by the Colonel, just waiting for this moment to come into play.

"Hoorah!" Pierre fiercely spurred his horse's flanks, desperately shouting to embolden himself, swinging his saber like a full moon, cleaving off half a Herde's head with a single strike.

Anglu, Vashka, and Bell closely followed Pierre, similarly brandishing their sabers slashing left and chopping right.

The Piaoqi Cavalry and the Dusacks cut through the Terdun Camp, ramming and killing anyone they saw.

Winters took out objects the size of a head from his saddlebag, lit the gunpowder fuse on the outside, and hurled them at the panic-stricken Terdon Tribesmen.

These head-sized objects were "Improved Fragmentation Grenades."

The original grenades not only wasted gunpowder but also had excessive power and were prone to causing accidental injuries.

Therefore, the urgently modified second version of the grenades were all switched to small kegs. Just the size of a head, sealed inside and out with pitch.

While applying the outer layer of pitch, they conveniently stuck the grenade fragments into the pitch to increase lethality.

Winters rode a robust horse around the outskirts of the Terdun Camp, continuously throwing out fragmentation grenades.

Flashes of light were followed by muffled explosions, small iron fragments flew in all directions under the night sky, stirring up a storm of blood and flesh.

"That's enough! Retreat!" Andre caught up with Winters from behind: "It's utter chaos! If we keep fighting, we'll get caught in there too!"

Winters reached into his saddlebag, which was now empty as all eight grenades had been thrown.

"What a pity," Winters thought, "If I had three thousand riders, we might have been able to crush the Terdun Tribe in a single blow."

Unfortunately, Winters didn't have them; he only had a hundred riders—more than half of whom were lent to Jeska by the Seklers.

The Terdon Tribe was in disarray, but their camp wasn't bombed.

Each Herde Centurion had their own resting area, and most soldiers could still locate their Centurion.

Once they regained their senses, this hundred riders would be wiped out in an instant.

If they disengaged from battle now, the people of Terdun would need at least until dawn to regroup, and that was enough.

"Let's retreat," Winters nodded.

The bugler sounded the retreat signal, and the Paratu Cavalrymen upon hearing the call, withdrew from the fray and hurried to the predetermined rally point.

Andre, mounted on a very majestic black horse, asked Winters smugly, "Do you think this is worth a Grand Cross medal?"

…

Meanwhile, eight kilometers to the east of the Jeska's fortress, at the Sekler's temporary camp.

Two infantry battalions crossed the Confluence River via the Floating Bridge, joining with the six existing infantry battalions of the Sekler Tribe.

Within the temporary camp, General Sekler left only a few soldiers and all the military flags.

Under Sekler's command, the eight infantry battalions set off overnight towards the northern stockade.

… Stay tuned with My Virtual Library Empire

"W.M's Book of Spells"

Entry: Rupture Spell

Description: Apply the Arrow Flying Spell to an object in two directions at once, emphasizing explosive force rather than precision.

Note: I never imagined that the Rupture Spell would actually be in the kinetic series of spells. Once again I am curious, what would be the result if someone could cast the Arrow Flying Spell in more than two directions at once?

Further Note: If Teacher Christian's work is not published, this year's Antoine-Laurent Award is definitely mine. If the Whirlwind Spell, Fire Tornado Spell, and Huygens' Deflection Spell get published this year, maybe ... I could publish next year?