Lord of the Rings: Warriors

"Quick! We need to inform the Grand Duchess! This place is no longer safe! We must retreat!" Lavian's expression was grim.

"... My lord, I suggest you figure out how to deal with that thing in the sky first! As long as it's up there, our movements are completely exposed to the enemy! 

Those pursuers behind us? All thanks to that creature!" Hollin lay weakly on his horse, his voice filled with frustration.

"He's too far! I can't reach him!" Lavian's face twitched in frustration. That two-headed draconic aerial knight was utterly infuriating. 

It could clearly engage them in close combat, but instead, it hovered like a persistent fly, trailing them from behind.

"Ah! If only we had aerial knights!" Hollin sighed.

"Even if we did, we wouldn't be able to win! That's a wyvern! Its bloodline may be a bit muddled, but it still carries the blood of dragons. 

And what do you suggest we send against it? A unicorn? A griffin?" Lavian glanced up at the two-headed wyvern in the sky, feeling a heavy weight settle in his chest.

Indeed, the entire Crusader force lacked the means to deal with aerial knights. If Rynar were here, it would be a different story. 

Caslow would have shown them what true "Dragon Rider's Majesty" looked like. 

Kaldor, having consumed the Dragonblood Elixir, had surpassed his mortal limits and was evolving toward a dragon-like state. 

Against this mixed-blood wyvern, merely unleashing his draconic aura would be enough to force it down from the skies.

"Sir Lavian! I think there are people ahead of us!" Hollin squinted, spotting a group of light cavalry wearing deep purple leather armor in the distance.

"It's the banner of the Crossed Purple Jasmine! They're our riders!" Lavian breathed a sigh of relief.

…

"Soldiers! I am Lavian, Knight Commander of the Knights of the Crossed Purple Jasmine! Follow my command — retreat along the same path!" 

Lavian barked his orders, wasting no time on explanations.

"... We will obey, but I hope you know what you're doing!" The captain of the cavalry hesitated for a moment before giving a firm response.

"If you don't want to be melted into a puddle of sludge by the wyvern's acid, you'd better follow us immediately!" 

Hollin, supporting his wounded left arm with his right, nodded in the direction of the circling two-headed wyvern.

"By the Dragon God! A two-headed wyvern knight?!" The cavalry captain's face turned pale.

"Move! Take me to the Grand Duchess!" Lavian's tone left no room for negotiation.

"Yes, Knight Commander!" Realizing the seriousness of the situation, the cavalry captain immediately complied. 

The presence of an aerial knight meant they had been under enemy surveillance from the very beginning…

…

"What's the matter, Lavian?" Nyx asked casually, crossing her legs with an air of grace. She accepted a cup of finely ground Dorwinion coffee from a servant.

"Your Grace, we need to retreat!" Lavian's face was grim.

"Why?" Nyx raised an elegant eyebrow. Among her trusted knights, Lavian was second to none in rank and influence. If he was speaking so urgently, then it was not a trivial matter.

"We've likely been under enemy surveillance for a while. I took a knight on a scouting mission and ended up being chased by a two-headed wyvern knight. 

On the way back, we were ambushed by the war chariots of the Eastern Barbarians! 

This proves our position has been completely exposed, and our situation is extremely dangerous!" Lavian spoke quickly, his eyes sharp and focused.

"Is that so...?" Nyx's gaze faltered, uncertainty flickering across her face. She was still a young lady. 

She could handle being graceful, beautiful, and charming, but leading an army was a task beyond her experience.

"My suggestion is simple — immediate retreat!" Lavian declared firmly.

"Why? Can't our Crusaders defeat them?" Nyx was visibly puzzled.

"This isn't about winning or losing, Your Grace. It's that we know nothing about our enemy. We can't even effectively counter their aerial knight!" Lavian's cold, hard truth hit like a bucket of ice water.

"Ah..." Nyx exhaled deeply, disheartened.

"So... does that mean our hopes of restoring the duchy are lost?" Her voice trembled, a hint of a sob emerging.

"Your Grace, our current priority is to conserve our strength and bide our time. Right now, we're like a rootless weed adrift on the water. 

After just one battle, we don't even have the means to properly maintain our weapons. 

Our knight corps is down to only 24 knights, not even enough to form a respectable hundred-man battalion." Lavian explained with patience.

"Then order the soldiers to retreat. But… where do we retreat to?" Nyx raised her head to ask.

"Ugh... We'll have to retreat west for now. If things get worse, we may be forced to flee all the way to the Shire." Lavian sighed. 

The human settlements in the north were few and far between, and with no friendly strongholds nearby, they had no choice but to play it by ear.

"Your Grace! Commander! Bad news! 

The Eastern Barbarians with their war chariots have caught up… You'd better see this for yourselves." Hollin lifted the tent flap, his face filled with dread.

"Damn it! They're relentless!" Lavian cursed and quickly strode outside.

…

"They're certainly treating us with 'respect'!" Lavian stood atop the camp's watchtower, his jaw tight with rage. The scene before him almost made him grind his teeth to dust.

Nearly a thousand war chariots lined up in a massive formation, stretching for a full kilometer. The sight was terrifying. 

Three soldiers occupied each chariot, their long polearms and spears gleaming with a deadly cold light. The entire force numbered around 3,000 troops.

"We're in serious trouble!" Hollin leaned on a crutch, his face pale and grim. 

The Crusader force had superior numbers, but against an enemy that commanded the terrifying mobility of war chariots, sheer numbers meant little. 

Those war chariots could crush infantry formations with ease.

"What do we do now?" Nyx appeared behind Lavian, her fox-fur cloak draped over her shoulders. Her expression was panicked.

"All units, listen up! Form a defensive line with your backs to the camp!" Lavian ordered. It was a tough call. 

Defending from inside the camp would reduce casualties but severely limit the Crusaders' maneuverability. 

The narrow pathways of the camp would hinder the soldiers' movements, making them vulnerable. Lavian had no choice but to position them outside the camp.

"Form up! Prepare for battle!"

"The time has come to prove your loyalty to Her Grace! Crusaders, to arms!"

"Fight for the duchy!"

"Form ranks! The enemy is upon us!"

Nearly 5,000 Crusaders moved swiftly at the commands of their officers. They dropped their chores, donned their armor, and took up their weapons. 

Like a surging tide, they flowed out of the camp, forming a massive square formation with their backs to the camp.

The Crusader foot soldiers were equipped with plain but effective gear: linen robes emblazoned with crimson crosses, light purple leather armor, kite-shaped iron-bound shields, iron longswords, three-meter-long white ash polearms, and single-bladed skull-splitting axes. 

These soldiers made up the backbone of the Crusader force. And today, they faced one of the deadliest forces on the continent — the war chariots of the Eastern Barbarians.

"Uwaaah!" The Eastern Barbarians shrieked like madmen, letting out beastly howls that echoed through the battlefield. Their inhuman cries sent chills down the spines of the Crusaders.

"Steady! Brace for impact!" an officer at the front shouted as the Eastern Barbarians' war chariots began to pick up speed. 

The formation had to stay tight. If it broke, the lightly armored soldiers would be slaughtered.

"Archers, ready!" Lavian raised his lance, signaling the mixed battalion of 1,000 archers to prepare their arrows. They were the Crusaders' most precious long-range asset.

"Loose!" Lavian swung his lance downward, and a volley of arrows rained down on the incoming war chariots.

The chaos that followed was nightmarish — soldiers thrown from chariots, bodies crushed beneath wheels, and the thunderous collision of steel and flesh.

The collision left neither side unscathed.

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