Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

Kneeling on one knee on a rowing boat pieced together from three planks, Tamas used an oar to push the boat away from the temporary dock and led the way toward Magit Island.

Over forty warriors split among twenty-three small boats, following the camp commander, gradually departing from the west bank.

Before the battle began, discounting the specially made large boats, the Iron Peak County Regiment had sixty small boats in hand, so they transported the entire battalion to the island in one go.

But going was easy, returning was difficult.

Some boats ran aground on the landing site, trapped between the "caltrops" and the riverbank, rendered immovable;

On some boats, the warrior responsible for returning the boat was unfortunately killed by the United Provincials, and the uncontrolled boat was swept far downstream by the river, making recovery difficult for the time being.

Some canoe-style small boats were, to begin with, single-use.

So in the first departure, there were clearly sixty small boats, but before the second departure, Tamas counted again and again and never reached twenty-five.

Boats were scarce, and manpower was equally scarce.

Not every soldier in the Iron Peak County Regiment was an expert swimmer. The ones who could swim were already pulled out, either to strengthen the first battalion or deployed on each large ship and boat, serving as makeshift "sailors".

Major Mason originally reserved some skilled swimmers as a reserve force.

But when the United Provincials climbed out of the caltrops, attacking the large boat, the reserves were also sent out.

So the more than forty warriors crossing the river this time might be the last batch of reinforcements the west bank could offer before the completion of the floating bridge.

Tamas knew this, and he ensured the warriors attacking with him also knew this.

But he knew clearly that this kind of "risk disclosure" had no meaning—there wouldn't be a single warrior who would back down.

What he should do was not to inform his subordinates of the risks they were about to face but to ensure his subordinates wouldn't bear unnecessary risks.

But he wasn't sure if he could achieve that.

Therefore, before departure, during the final roll call, Tamas felt as if a stone pressed on his chest, and guilt prevented him from looking directly into the warriors' eyes.

Fortunately, once they set off, he didn't think about these things much anymore.

Starting from climbing onto the rowing boat, there was only one thing in his mind—to land.

As the boat's bow continuously cleaved through the river, Tamas gradually neared the middle of the river.

The firelights on the island were already clearly visible and vice versa.

So Tamas lowered his body, easing his paddling movement to delay exposure as long as possible.

Behind the initial blasting point, an encampment was ignited by alchemical fire.

The wooden roof of the encampment burned vigorously, like a giant torch, illuminating the nearby river surface clearly.

So this time, they couldn't use the initial landing point anymore.

Fortunately, before the United Provincials counterattacked, Woods Frank's crafted winch exhibited its might, easily pulling out a large number of caltrops, tearing a big gap in the United Provincials' waterline defenses.

However, there was also a problem:

In Major Mason's battle plan, using large vessels and winches to destroy the caltrops was a prerequisite for building the floating bridge;

The large vessel and winches completed their tasks excellently, so the gap torn in the United Provincials' waterline defense was directly opposite the floating bridge.

Although the floating bridge was still a long way from the far shore, the United Provincials were very likely to increase their manpower at this position.

So, should they land from the new gap? Or should they use the blasted landing point? Or should they drag the cable over again and create another gap?

Is there still time to drag the cable over again?

In a dilemma, Tamas couldn't help but think: if Your Excellency were here, Your Excellency could make a decision in a second, and then all I need to do is obey.

But now, Tamas could only make the decision himself.

He decided to land from the new gap created by the winch.

He wasn't sure if this judgment was right or wrong.

So he decided to be the first to set off, leading all his subordinates.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, the water was slowing, and the riverbank was just ahead.

But Tamas still dared not relax his vigilance, the closer he got to Magit Island, the tenser his nerves became.

Suddenly, a flare of brief but bright red fire erupted from the high slope behind the riverbank.

Without hesitation, Tamas flipped into the water, and the simple boat capsized along with him.

While Tamas was still mid-air, a series of red flares erupted on the United Provincials' position, one following the other, almost forming a line.

The brief firelight illuminated the erupting smoke, and almost simultaneously, the crackling of gunfire spread in all directions.

Almost at the same time, lead bullets flew around Tamas.

Tamas hid under the water's surface, seeing nothing, only able to hear the continuous "plop, plop" sounds of lead bullets entering the water.

Tamas didn't worry about his safety, knowing lead bullets soon lost their power in the water.

What he worried about was the barrel tied behind the rowing boat, which contained life-threatening items. If it got hit and leaked, everything would be over.

So as soon as the sound of bullets entering the water paused, Tamas immediately surfaced, drew out the dagger strapped to his calf, and cut the rope between the boat and the barrel. Then, biting the rope, he swam vigorously toward the riverbank.

"Boom!"

A thunderous sound, ten times louder than the United Provincials' gunfire, came from behind Tamas.

The New Army's cannons responded to the United Province Musketeers' volley with deafening roars.

Hail-like grapeshot flew over Tamas' head, crashing into the United Provincials' positions.

Tamas could even hear the "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh" of projectiles cutting through the air, right by his ears.

After about five breaths, a second roar thundered.

After another five breaths, a third roar followed.

Tamas understood the artillery brothers were covering the infantry brothers landing on the island.

Gritting his teeth, he swam desperately towards the opposite shore.

Meanwhile, sporadic gunfire rang out from the trenches on the riverbank.

Smoke started to rise from the trenches, at first thin, but soon grew thick.

Soldiers of the Iron Peak County Regiment on the island were also doing their utmost to cover their comrades landing on the island.

The northwest wind tonight pushed most of the smoke released by the soldiers in the trench towards the interior of the island, spreading between the New Army's trench and the United Provincials' breastworks.

Though not perfect, it still somewhat hindered the United Provincials' vision.

Taking advantage of the smoke and artillery cover, Tamas swam into the shallows.

As soon as his feet touched the soft riverbed, Tamas rushed forward a few steps, then grabbed the rope in his mouth, dragging the barrel behind him to the riverbank.

Having only dragged it a few steps, he finds himself out of the water, and the barrel "ran aground" as well.

Losing the buoyant assistance, the watertight barrel filled with deadly contents became immensely heavy, nearly costing Tamas his life.

Fortunately, two figures crawled out from the trench on the riverbank, sprinting towards Tamas.

No words were needed, the three of them worked together, wading through mud and crossing the riverbank, occasionally dodging lead bullets falling beside them, but they skillfully managed to lift the barrel into the trench.

Finally reaching the "front line," Tamas slumped to the ground, gasping heavily and coughing unstoppably.

It was at this moment that a soldier who helped carry the barrel recognized who it was.

"Commander?"

"Is it Commander?"

"Commander Tamas is here!"

Cries erupted in the trench.

"Why are you here?" Peter Buniel rushed over first, asking with a sob, "You're finally here."

"There are more coming!" Tamas quickly gave orders between breaths, "They also have ammunition barrels, help them land."

"Got it!" The soldiers around Tamas shouted affirmatively, offering their help to get the barrels ashore.

Just then, a sentry's warning shout broke out at the top of their voices.

"They're coming!" the sentry yelled at the top of his lungs, "The United Provincials are approaching through the smoke! It's all my fault, I..."

"Axe!" Tamas shouted sternly, interrupting Peter, and struggled to grab the axe, swiftly hacking into the sealed barrel a few times to create an opening, then manually tearing apart the boards at the opening before snatching them off, and biting the rope, swimming vigorously towards the riverbank.