Chapter 421: A Great Victory

Chapter 421: Chapter 297: A Great Victory

The Turkic People realized they could neither immediately disengage from the battle nor gain the upper hand.

The Turkic Archers in the front rank began drawing the Curved Sabers at their waists, whipping their reins and charging heedlessly toward the shield wall formed by the Knights. Unsurprisingly, the result of their charge was being pulled from their Warhorses by the Knights and having their throats slit.

However, their defeat and death bought time for the Turkic People further back. Under the command of a Turkic Commander, those in the rear who still had the will to fight began to make limited adjustments to their positions. They drew their Short Bows and fired Arrows at the advancing Knights, successfully disrupting a portion of them.

But under the cover of night, the accuracy of the Bow and Arrows dropped severely, rendering them of limited use.

Some of the Turkic People began to dismount, draw their Curved Sabers, and form a line to confront the shield wall formed by the Knights.

Though fewer in number, they relied on their proficient combat skills to engage the Knights in close-quarters combat.

The Turkic Warriors swung their Curved Sabers while ramming the enemy with their shoulders, trying to tear open the Knights’ defensive line.

The Knights stood firm within their shield wall, their Armor clanking. But the fighting spirit of these Turkic Warriors was astounding; they seemed to have no fear of death, growing more and more frenzied.

Their stature was relatively small compared to the Franks. They excelled with the Bow and Arrow but were weaker in melee, far from a match for the Western European Knights who were renowned for their close combat prowess. Furthermore, for the sake of mobility, the Armor worn by these Cavalry Archers was merely Leather Armor.

But they were fearless, stubbornly charging forward and pushing against the Knights’ shield wall with their bodies.

“For my lord! For my lord! For my lord!”

“The enemy will be defeated! The enemy will be defeated! The enemy will be defeated!”

The fighting Turkic People shouted loudly in the Turkic language, trying to rally the morale of their comrades.

Their blood flowed on the battlefield and bodies piled up like mountains, but their charge continued, growing ever more ferocious. For a moment, they actually forced the Knights’ shield wall to begin retreating.

Some Knights were stunned by the sudden burst of momentum from the Turkic People. As a few Knights fell injured, the left flank began to loosen and the Knights’ morale started to wane. A gap was about to be broken open.

“Fire! Fire! Fire!” a Turkic Commander bellowed in the Turkic language. Waving the Curved Saber in his hand, he commanded a dozen or so of his elite Cavalry Archers to fire, harassing the Knights’ formation.

The next moment, however, a Long Spear came flying through the air and pierced his abdomen. He fell directly from his Warhorse, but his ankle remained caught in the stirrup.

The Warhorse, panicked by the blood blinding its eyes, began to buck and spin in circles, dragging the Turkic Commander’s body. It crashed into the surrounding Turkic Cavalry Archers, causing considerable chaos.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, and do not be dismayed, for Yahweh your God is with you; He will not leave you or forsake you,” Eric roared at the Knights, banging his Longsword against his Shield. “We must believe in that Power, firm as a rock and unshakeable! We must believe in that Power, praised by all and full of glory! We must believe in that Power, which grants us Courage to overcome all hardships.

We must believe in the Power given to us through the love of the Lord, through the piety of the faithful, and by the cross we bear!

Whether spiritual or worldly, we shall be more than conquerors!

For He teaches our hands to make war, and our fingers to fight!

He is our loving-kindness and our fortress, our stronghold and our savior, our Shield and our refuge, who subdues the followers of Heresy under us!

Now, cry out with me! My Lord Yahweh, Lord of Glory! Lord of Hosts! Lord of War!

We hallow Your name! May the glory not be ours!”

“O Lord! May the glory not be mine!”

“O Lord! May the glory not be mine!”

“O Lord! May the glory not be mine!”

“….”

The Knights roared in response, their shouts gradually calming some of their panicked comrades.

The line, which had loosened under the Turkic assault, became orderly once more. The gaps in the formation were filled again.

The roars of the Turkic Warriors and the battle cries of the Knights intertwined, creating a symphony of battle. The air was thick with the stench of blood and sweat.

Another Turkic Commander raised his Curved Saber high and once again gave the order to charge. The Turkic Warriors pounced on the Knights like fierce lions.

However, the Knights’ shield wall was as solid as steel. The Heavy Knights drew close together, forming an impassable barrier. A few Turkic Warriors tried to break through the flank but were impaled by the Heavy Knights’ Long Spears. Blood instantly flew, staining the ground red.

The three shield walls gradually closed in, forming a complete encirclement of the Turkic People.

“Kill them all! Take no prisoners!” shouted the Count of Ponthieu.

The remaining few Turkic Commanders desperately tried to direct the battle, but the situation was already out of control. The Knights pressed ever closer, compressing the Turkic People’s space. The Turkic line was torn apart, and more and more of them fell. The Turkic People finally began to panic; they longed to escape, but there was nowhere left to run.

The Knights charged. Their Longswords whistled through the air as they cut down the enemies who had lost their will to fight, leaving countless fallen figures on the ground.

Eric saw a Turkic Commander trying to escape and roared at the Knights around him, “Capture him! I want him alive!”

Quickly, a dozen or so Knights formed up to block the Turkic Commander. They struck his arm with a Long Spear, knocking him from his Warhorse. Two Knights pinned him firmly to the ground. His Helmet fell off, and one Knight struck him on the head with his sword hilt, causing him to collapse to the ground, unable to struggle.

Eric tapped the Knight who had struck the Turkic Commander’s head with his own sword hilt and said, “What good is it to us if we capture a fool?”

‘From their red sashes, I can tell these two Knights are from Boulogne.’

“Yes, Your Excellency,” one of the Knights said to Eric. “We weren’t thinking just now.”

The din of battle was fading. Now completely without command, the Turkic Cavalry Archers were fleeing in disarray.

….

On the other side, the battle between the Knights led by Evler and the Guram Cavalry escorting the supplies was much more difficult than Eric’s.

Because Evler charged down into the valley too early, and because he completely failed to restrain his Knights, the effectiveness of their assault was greatly diminished. Although Evler himself did not, some of the Knights under his command foolishly raised their family banners, allowing their attack to be detected by some of the Gulam.

Moreover, the Gulam were much better equipped than the Cavalry Archers, and they had been trained in close-quarters combat since childhood. In terms of fighting skill, Count Evler’s Knights held little advantage.

Evler was completely oblivious to this, believing the Turkic People’s melee skills to be pitifully inferior.

Even though Eric had already warned him, he still believed that these so-called Gulam were, at best, only a tiny bit better than the Turkic Cavalry Archers he had so easily routed before.

Contrary to his expectations, it wasn’t until the battle began that he realized he had run into a tough opponent. The fighting was incredibly fierce and quickly fell into a stalemate. Fortunately, Leif, who was stationed in the valley, realized something was amiss. He promptly advanced toward the valley, leading a contingent of Knights, Shield Soldiers, and Archers. By using the Archers for harassment and pushing forward with a formation of Saxon Shield Soldiers and Dismounted Knights, they were finally able to break the deadlock.