Chapter 356: The Trump Card of Barnes Village
Evading a variety of traps, Hudson led the remaining soldiers back inside the fortress, covered by other soldiers.
As they withdrew, the previously retracted barricades were immediately erected once again, along with the arrow towers and Bowman Team, previously halted in action.
A sky filled with arrows barred the way of Jin Jingshan and his followers, who had no choice but to stop and respond, defending as they slowly advanced.
Witnessing the scene, Hudson instantly heaved a sigh of relief.
Thankfully, the territory still had some depth. Otherwise, they truly would have been in peril just now.
"Thank you," Hudson said, looking at Valerian beside him. If it weren't for Valerian charging into the formation to save him, he feared he would have indeed fallen into Ningshan Village's hands.
Looking again at the reassembled, compact troop from Ningshan Village, which seemed calm but was actually a gaping hole ready to swallow lives, a shiver of hindsight fear tinged Hudson's gaze.
He really hadn't expected Ningshan Village to have such strong control over their soldiers in combat.
Changing formations wasn't unfamiliar to armies, but it was for village-level territories due to insufficient troop numbers, restricted Levels, hasty combat, and the rapidly changing nature of battle; it was difficult for a Lord on the battlefield to completely command every person in a short span of time.
Against this backdrop, the rapidity with which Ningshan Village's soldiers and Professionals could understand their Lord's commands and change formations appeared particularly incredible.
Hudson recalled the flag Jin Jingshan held in his hand.
He felt it must be inseparable from that flag.
Listening, Valerian spoke directly, "I think you holding onto it still leaves some hope."
Not everyone could be persuaded by the Lord.
If Hudson died, the future of their territory would be even more uncertain.
Hearing this, Hudson paused for a moment, appraising Valerian with an undetected scrutiny, "Do you lack confidence in our territory's battle against Ningshan Village?"
"Yes," answered Valerian, "There are too few people in the territory, and everyone is insecure inside, lacking the courage to charge forward blindly. Against the currently fierce Ningshan Village, to some extent, we have already lost."
Valerian said these words with a touch of indifference at this moment, even though he knew that if others heard, he would definitely be in trouble with the Lord. Yet, he still spoke.
After hearing this, Hudson comforted him, "The Lord daring to choose Ningshan Village must have considered the issue of manpower. He certainly has his own trump cards."
These were Hudson's thoughts based on his understanding of Viscount Robin.
No matter how irrational, one would not gamble their territory as a jest.
Of course, Hudson also understood that if the trump cards proved useless, they would certainly perish together with the opponent...
Thinking thus, Hudson felt a shiver down his spine.
What should he do if the Lord failed and they had to die with the territory? Should he follow the Lord to the end, or find an escape route?
The thought emerged but was swiftly suppressed by Hudson.
At this juncture, he could only see this path to its end.
Win or lose, they had to fight it out first.
After the results, he would discuss his future!
Perhaps there would be no future at all!
Valerian, upon hearing Hudson's words, flashed a look of hope. If there were fallback plans, nothing could be better.
No one wanted to become a refugee if there were a chance.
While the two had their brief discussion, a soldier hurriedly came down to find Hudson.
"Lord Hudson, the Lord summons you."
"Alright," Hudson came to his senses and pulled the arrow from his shoulder, blood gushing out. He swiftly drank from a Healing Potion, and after finishing it, the wound healed immediately.
After recovering, Hudson then walked up to the city wall.
Upon reaching the wall, he was met head-on with a barrage of arrows, but they were stopped by the fortress's protective shield.
But the last wave had barely ended when the next one immediately followed.
Looking down, what met the eyes were even more crossbow carriages and catapults.
They were attacking Barnes Village with all their might, aiming to exhaust its resources.
When the enemy advanced, we would strike; when they retreated, we would advance.
What we controlled was the initiative.
Barnes Village was facing a dilemma, neither fighting nor defending seemed right.
Defending might work for a longer time, but could the energy withstand the consumption?
It couldn't! At least not for 24 hours, which is why the soldiers of the territory were planned to slow down the enemy's pace.
But what was the result? The first group surrendered immediately, and the second group was almost annihilated.
Clearly, Barnes Village was at a disadvantage now.
"You've just had a confrontation with them. How do you feel? Can we organize another attack?" Viscount Robin asked directly.
Hudson glanced at Viscount Robin, who still appeared relatively calm, and hurriedly said, "The Lord of Ningshan Village has very strong control over his soldiers, capable of commanding them to change formation in the shortest time, adjusting to our attacks. With the unpredictable changes in formation, even if we attack, we are unlikely to gain any advantage; it would be just some... senseless sacrifice. However, if Lord Viscount requires it, we will do so."
By the end of what Hudson said, he had lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear.
Since he had made up his mind, he naturally wanted to show Viscount Robin, the Lord, his loyalty.
This had always been the foundation of his stance.
As expected, after hearing Hudson's final words, Viscount Robin's brows slightly relaxed.
He hadn't misplaced his trust.
"How is he controlling those people?" Viscount Robin inquired.
"It must be the flag in the hands of the Lord of Ningshan Village," Hudson replied without thinking, also relieved that he had remembered to observe carefully during the recent combat, which now came in handy, providing valuable information.
Hearing about the flag, Viscount Robin's gaze landed on Jin Jingshan below, and indeed, he saw the flag in Jin Jingshan's hand move every time the soldier team initiated a new attack.
Having confirmed this, Viscount Robin's eyes flickered.
If it was under Jin Jingshan's control, then just one problem with Jin Jingshan, the main organizer, would open up a breakthrough in this battle.
Thinking this, Viscount Robin's hand moved involuntarily.
In the next instant, a magic scroll appeared in his hand and was handed to Hudson, "Organize one more attack, get as close to Jin Jingshan as possible, and then unleash the magic scroll."
"What is this?" Hudson asked reflexively, looking at the scroll.
Could this be the Lord's trump card?
"A teleportation scroll, promised to me by an advanced mage. Once unfurled at the target, the victim will receive a lethal blow through space magic," Viscount Robin briefly explained.
Hearing this, Hudson's eyes instantly lit up.
An advanced mage, and a space mage, at that. An intermediate mage would definitely not be able to withstand it in his hands.
As long as Jin Jingshan died, Ningshan Village's attack would be deemed a failure.
Even if he did not die, a gravely wounded Jin Jingshan meant that without their leader, Ningshan Village was not to be feared.
He took the scroll immediately, without any hesitation.
"This time, don't disappoint me again. I'm waiting for your good news," Viscount Robin said with an emphatic tone.
"Yes," Hudson responded seriously.
Given the attack range of an advanced mage, a surprise attack would be a matter of minutes.
The next moment, Hudson was already organizing the team, starting the second "attack."