"Your Majesty is right."
"Your Majesty, if those defeated soldiers don't change their route, we can send out several cavalry battalions to pursue them at full speed. We should be able to catch up with them within a few days."
“Their marching speed is not as fast as ours,” the scout said confidently.
Upon hearing this, Qin Ze fell into deep thought.
With the addition of ponies, their marching speed was indeed quite fast, while the fleeing soldiers had hurriedly escaped two nights ago. According to the soldiers, they saw that most of those who fled were infantry, with cavalry making up only a small portion. Therefore, even if they managed to escape, their marching speed wouldn't be very fast.
Sending troops to pursue them might be feasible, but this is, after all, Gothic territory, and they are more familiar with the area. If they cannot be annihilated, they will only be allowed to escape to various places. If a deep pursuit is carried out, the cavalry may very well lose their way.
Thinking of this, Qin Ze shook his head and said, "Then there's no need for that."
"However, since there is a possibility of catching up, you should try to scout further ahead, but do not expose yourselves to the enemy."
Upon hearing this, the scout immediately nodded and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."
Qin Ze said, "Let's leave it at that for now."
“Continue your reconnaissance and see if any good opportunities arise. This fleeing army is in such a panic that its leader is probably terrified.”
"Perhaps... we can make use of it."
"Go, investigate further and report back."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
——
It was around dusk on January 7th.
Tacino, leading his routed soldiers, looked worried.
If he was pleased with himself for taking more than 19,000 soldiers with him when he fled from the military factory, because the large number of people could lighten the extremely serious crime of "desertion," or even make it not a "desertion" but a "tactical retreat."
But now things are different. The large number of people has become a burden. Out of more than 19,000 men, there are only a little over 1,000 cavalry, which makes the marching speed extremely slow.
He couldn't just abandon these people and leave the main force, otherwise he would be labeled a "deserter." So, in his dilemma, Tacino could only order his soldiers to abandon the heavy artillery and increase their marching speed as much as possible.
Even so, the marching speed still seemed too slow to him. After all, the Macedonian military factory had fallen four nights ago, and the Yan people seemed to be moving with extraordinary speed in both combat and marching. This made Tachino worry.
Logically speaking, the Yan army, having just acquired the Macedonian military factory, should have taken a few days to rest and recuperate. However, it would be troublesome if they chose to send an army to continue their march.
If it were any other enemy, Tachino wouldn't have thought this way, but this time the Yan people had already demonstrated their fighting style, so this worry had been troubling him.
The idea of disbanding the group on the spot and letting them escape had crossed Tacchino's mind, but he quickly rejected it, not daring to bear the guilt.
Only by bringing this defeated army to the Heinrich military base near the entrance to the Enzos Mountains could this "escape" be reasonably transformed into a "tactical retreat." To this end, he had summoned several officers from this group early on, instructing them to unify their statements and fully cooperate with his narrative.
But what if the Yan people pursue us? Fighting them is absolutely out of the question; if we do, we'll die a horrible death.
'If they really come after us, we'll all have to run for our lives...' After some consideration, a distraught Tachino could only think of this.
Just then, a lieutenant beside him suddenly shouted:
"Sir! Look ahead!"
The sudden shout startled Tachino from his thoughts, and when he looked up, a look of joy appeared in his eyes.
A small squad of more than ten cavalrymen was approaching from the opposite direction; they were our own troops.
A moment later, as the group of people approached, Tachino learned that they were messengers from the Heinrich military base.
The messengers were all astonished when they saw Tacino and his party.
"Sir, what's going on? How did you end up here?" Lieutenant Mord, the head of the messengers, asked in surprise.
Although he had raised the question, he had noticed moments earlier that the troops were disorganized and listless, clearly having been in the midst of a battle.
Based on his encounter with Harris and his group on the road, he could roughly deduce that the situation at the Macedonian military factory must be extremely bad.
"The Macedonian arms factory has fallen," Tachino said with a sorrowful expression.
Although they had a premonition, the messengers were all horrified when they heard the news with their own ears.
The night before last, they encountered Harris and his group on their way to the military factory. Harris said that the troops that had come from Brulow Port to support the military factory had been defeated by the Yan army, and the military factory was in imminent danger. The Yan people were about to launch an attack on the military factory.
Harris's words were undoubtedly shocking news, because the military base had previously received information that Foster Harbor had fallen and the Macedonian munitions factory might be attacked by the Yan Kingdom. As a result, General Brewster, the commander of the Fourth Army at the military base, urgently dispatched three divisions to the Macedonian munitions factory, while they came ahead to deliver the message.
But while the main force was still on its way, the Macedonian military factory had already fallen!
In just one week, the defenses were breached one after another, from the fall of Foster Harbor to the fall of the Macedonian military factory, so fast that people could not even react.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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