The Prince of Travelers

Chapter 041: Attack of the Pioneer Forces

"As expected of the capital," muttered one of the enemy officers leading the fortress attack, "Our shadow army cannot conquer them overnight. In fact, we have exerted full strength to penetrate it. Senior High, there's no shadow army left."

"I guess," the other officer commented, "The problem is not the internal strength of the capital, but the guests who come to them. According to the last report, additional troops from the empire came the day before our arrival."

"What do you think?" the first officer looked straight at the capital's fortress, "Are we going to be able to break through their fortress that is fully protected by the empire?"

"If it's just about completing a mission, I'm sure we can" replied his friend who smiled bitterly, "But, it seems difficult to penetrate it, let alone conquer it. From the very beginning, the task of the vanguard forces was simply to break the enemy's concentration and die."

"Don't say that, my friend," the first officer encouraged, "Anyway, we must return safely from this prolonged war. We're pretty much splitting their focus."

"Yes, you're right," his friend gave a small nod without losing his bitter smile. The first officer stood in front of his entire army. He loudly made a short speech and spoke to him with a command, "Fire the asura arrow!"

"Hhhh!" exciting forces pioneer compact. Shortly thereafter, a special arrow was fired. It was an arrow sign that the war had already begun. The vanguard forces advanced in unison.

***

"They've fired an asura arrow" Li An said above the fortress. Thousands of troops came to surround him. Their weapons glistened brightly and dazzled in the sun. "We also need to move. Prepare your arrows."

"Hhhh!" answer the archers on the fort. They compactly took the arrow and attached it to the bow. When the enemy entered the range of the arrows, Li An also gave a signal to them to release the arrows.

"Prepare the new one!" li An shouted out instructions. The new army came with ready arrows. They can shoot at any time. With a single instruction from Li An, hundreds of arrows fell on the heads of the enemies. Those who are unlucky, die instantly.

"Are you sure you can lead them well? Aren't you focused on scholars?" li Bei asked who was standing beside Li An, "Your arm must still be sick as well. Don't force yourself to croco-croco like them. You can rest now."

"In a moment," Li An replied briefly, "The Cenangkas are simply obeying my orders."

"Haha ... Why do the Cenangkas even use arrows?" Li Bei was still briefly war-torn while the war was going on, "Aren't you guys close combat experts?"

"That's why they're here," Li An looked at an enemy troop that was about to set foot on the fortress, but was pushed down by the Cenangkas this morning on guard. "Again, their archery ability is not bad. Why are we wasting their talents?"

"You don't want to show off, do you?" asked Li Bei who continued to pay attention to the course of the war. Li An smiled wryly, then replied, "Who wants to show off? Try to blame someone who is even preoccupied with playing when the conditions are still not conducive, even though the Dragon Army and Red Steel Army of Kak Xiang are under his control, plus the royal guard troops."

"Ck! That's not a big deal. After all, your army was enough to finish them off," Li Bei pointed to the war that sided with them. He was quite amazed to see the shrewdness of the Cenangkas Army led by Wang Hongli under Li An's rule. Although they were very few compared to the troops under the other princes, they were elite and agile warriors.

"How enough?" Li An chuckled in annoyance, "We are outnumbered, while they keep coming. Our strength will weaken with time. We should be able to win this war as soon as possible."

"No!"

Li Bei nudged Li An's forehead. He ruffled his waist and said, "I know that. But our job is not to attack, but to defend. The Red Steel Army will be here in a few days time. When the time comes, let your troops rest. I'll take your place."

"Let Xiang alone finish them off," added Li Bei, "We are stabilizing the political and security conditions here."

The war lasted until noon. Both sides paused for a moment. The enemy vanguard forces decided to retreat and re-strategize. They just attacked again in the afternoon. At night, the war died down. However, tension still lingered around them.

"Prince, how long will we stay like this?" asked a high-ranking officer from the Left Kingdom after a few days of being attacked. After the night's chaos was over, the Left King was found wounded and unable to take care of the government. Prince Yong Seong was still too small, whereas the king's relatives were unwilling to accept this heavy and risky trust, let alone the military strength they had grasped by the prince from Tang. De facto, they are gone. The government is also managed by senior ministers.

"Today, they're coming," Li An replied without saying much more, "Look and watch!"

***

"It's strange" said one officer from the vanguard army, "Why are they so passive?"

"passive? Are you stupid?" another officer's lips. It has a long cross-section. "How many days have we raided the capital, but never set foot there a step?"

"They were just focused on defending the fort," a white-haired officer protested, "Possibly, they did that to buy time and wait for help. It seems, they don't have a lot of troops left to face us directly."

"Then" a thick-tongued officer stroked his slightly bearded chin, "We must quickly subdue them before help arrives. With our full strength, it can definitely be done."

"Isn't that too rushed?" the first officer disagreed, "Until now, the scouts and couriers we sent have not returned. Better, we wait for information from them. Aren't they coming soon?"

"They'll never come back" a wise-looking old officer shook his head incisively, "The shadow army isn't even left, let alone the scouts we sent there in the night blind. As for the couriers, they should be on their way back from headquarters."

"That's it!" exclaimed the cross-moustached mustache officer, "Don't be such a coward. We have to move fast and conquer them."

"But ...," the first officer wanted to reconsider the decision, but the other officers stared at him lightly. They finally made up their resolve. The white-haired officer knocked on the table as if finalizing the decision. "No more debating! We'll attack the capital in full force tomorrow."

"Please, Officer, beg for mercy," a soldier suddenly walked into the command tent without permission. His attitude made the moustache angry. He wanted to hit him, but the old officer got in the way.

"True," the twitching eye agreed with the old officer, "He must have had a good reason to dare interrupt our meeting. Name your problem, soldier!"

"Pe–the scouts have confirmed," said the soldier with cold sweat running down his temple, "A large number of red-armored troops are coming towards us. It was clear that the army was a relief force from the empire."

"What's? How could it be so fast!?" the first officer couldn't believe it, "Where are they?"

"Jully!"

An arrow pierced into the command tent. The arrow struck the shoulder of the first officer. He fell to his knees and endured the pain. The soldier finally said with pushy eyes, "They've arrived."