"Not yet," Valerius responded.
"Rest assured! As soon as the battle begins, I will stand behind this side’s troops. Once the enemy charges close, I will immediately have the soldiers charge and block them, ensuring they do not harm your soldiers!" Torrelugo solemnly promised.
"Thank you, Legion Commander!" Valerius pounded his right fist on his left chest, saluting to express his gratitude.
Torrelugo said seriously, "No need for thanks. Although we’ve trained together on the training ground, being on the battlefield is a different matter. We need to closely cooperate to successfully complete the mission and defeat the enemy."
"You’re right." Valerius nodded in agreement once more.
As Torrelugo turned to leave, he couldn’t help but glance again at the soldiers drawing the Arm Crossbows. He suppressed the urge to take one and play with it, knowing full well that even as a Legion Commander, the Crossbow Soldiers would not hand over their crossbows to him. Before the war began, the Military Department had issued an order: the Crossbow Soldiers must safeguard each crossbow; even if destroyed, they must not fall into enemy hands!
Watching Torrelugo’s departing figure, Valerius breathed a sigh of relief: he had not fought alongside Torrelugo before, only hearing that this man was straightforward and valiant in battle. Unexpectedly, he was also thoughtful and considerate, which augurs well for cooperation between the two teams.
As he was pondering, a commotion arose from the Second Legion’s formation behind him, immediately catching his eye: small squads of soldiers emerged sweaty from the gaps between the Centurion formations. They worked together to carry the wooden mounts as tall as a man for the Crossbows, with some carefully holding the bow slots and spring arms...
The leading person was named Fortunius, a Sulla veteran who joined the rebel army with Flanitnus. Having previously served as a Crossbow Gunner in the Roman Army, he was later appointed by Maximus as the Crossbow Cannon Team Leader. Despite some friction between the Marius veterans and the Sulla veterans within the rebel army, Fortunius showed respect towards Valerius, saluting first and then apologetically saying, "Brother, we are late; please forgive us!"
"Not late at all, the enemy is still forming up, and you arrive just in time," Valerius courteously reassured, "Would you mind checking if the spot I chose is suitable for setting up the crossbows?"
Fortunius inspected the area carefully and returned to say, "Brother, the spot you picked is excellent, with relatively flat ground and not too high, conducive to utilizing the crossbows’ power."
"That’s good; quickly set up your crossbows." Valerius said earnestly, "I suggest placing your crossbows close behind my troops, with my soldiers providing cover to avoid alerting the enemy. After all, the enemy tasted the power of our crossbows when they besieged our camp last year... When the enemy begins their assault, I’ll have my soldiers make way for you. What do you think?"
"Brother, you are thoughtful; let’s proceed as you suggest." Fortunius replied before going to command his subordinates to place the crossbows.
Initially, due to long campaigns, many crossbows in the rebel army were damaged, with only five successfully modified. They played a significant role in the temporary camp’s defensive battle. Once the tribe was established, and the Iron Workshop began normal operations, the Military Department repaired and modified all crossbows, so this time the Crossbow Cannon Team brought over ten crossbows in total.
After the bases were set and the soldiers started assembling, Fortunius ran back to Valerius: "Brother, have you tested the range of the Arm Crossbow here?"
"I tested it when we were in the middle of the formation but not here, fearing it would be discovered by the enemy," Valerius had pondered this before and did not hesitate to say, "This area is about ten meters lower than the center, so I estimate the range of the Arm Crossbow to be approximately between one hundred to one hundred ten meters."
"One hundred to one hundred ten meters..." Fortunius contemplated aloud, "If that’s the case, the accurate range of our crossbows has to be over two hundred..."
"Fortunius." Valerius looked at him gravely and suggested, "I suggest waiting until the enemy is closer before firing to prevent them from being scared off by the power of the crossbows and fleeing to other locations early!"
"Brother, you are right! We hardly have an opportunity to gain merit, so we can’t let the enemy escape." Fortunius agreed wholeheartedly and, after some thought, said, "Let’s wait until they’re at one hundred eighty meters... no, one hundred fifty meters. At such close range, the power of the crossbows can be maximized, making it difficult for them to escape even if they are alarmed..."
.....................
The Pannonia’s four major tribes had no unified command for the assault, but it was agreed beforehand: whomever forms up first will launch the attack first.
The Brochi Army was originally marching on the east bank of the Kolana River and did not need to move elsewhere to form up, so they should have been the fastest to form up.
That was indeed the case, but Bricks hesitated to give the attack order, fearing his army would advance alone and face concentrated enemy attacks until a horn sounded from the center route, prompting him to instruct his buglers to sound the horn.
"Woo!!!..." With the deep and resonant horn sound, the Brochi Warriors began advancing. Their pace was not fast because although the two armies were only a mile apart, the terrain was uneven, making it unnecessary to exhaust energy too early.
The enemy stood on a higher ground ahead. The warriors vividly remembered the leaders’ words before formation: "...Our original lives were peaceful and harmonious, but after these wicked enemies came, they invaded our territory, burned our homes, killed our brothers and sisters, and incited the slaves to rebel... Some tribes in western Brochi are nearly wiped out, so today we must do everything to defeat them! Slay them! Only then can our families be safe, and our tribe will regain peace!..."
The warriors repressed the surging hatred in their hearts, gripping their shields and long spears tightly, gathering strength as they advanced, though they clearly forgot that this war originated from Pannonia’s initial invasion of the Aldeans.
Closer... even closer... so close that the Brochi Warriors could look up and see the faces beneath the enemy’s cheek-guard helmets and the gleam of breastplates reflecting off the large shields...
Despite the enemy’s excellent equipment, the Brochi Warriors believed their bravery and sheer numbers would be enough to overwhelm and defeat them.
The warriors closest to the riverbank were somewhat puzzled because they saw that the foremost enemy line was unusually not wearing armor or carrying large shields, and they appeared unarmed. What were these enemies planning?
While perplexed, they noticed these enemies began moving left and right, opening gaps, behind which stood wooden-looking devices...
What are these things for?... Most warriors were bewildered.
Only a few who participated in last year’s attack on the temporary camp of Nix recalled harrowing memories upon witnessing this scene. Their faces changed dramatically, crying out in succession, "Everyone, beware!... Those things shoot terrifying arrows; avoid them! Avoid them!"
At this moment, the leaders of the Brochi Tribe began shouting, "Revenge!" within the ranks.
Countless warriors echoed the call of "Revenge," filling the entire left flank with roaring fury. Their hatred was ignited, their fighting spirit surging. They gripped their shields in the left hand, high-held spears in the right, and stepped into quick-paced strides forward.
Amid this surging tide, the warnings of the few were like fleeting waves, quickly disappearing.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!..." Arrows shaped like short spears whistled through the air, swiftly piercing through a Brochi warrior’s body, seamlessly continuing into the one behind him and then embedding into a third warrior’s chest. The powerful thrust toppled several more warriors behind...
The surging tide of warriors was instantly plowed into ten narrow channels, but they were quickly filled again by rushing soldiers from behind.
Seeing this shocking tragedy, the warriors beside them were pale with fear, yet amidst the deafening yells and the pushes from comrades behind, they had no choice but to press forward.
"Crossbows ready!" Fortunius shouted loudly, raising the colorful flag he held.
The Crossbow Gunners forcefully turned the windlass, drawing the bowstrings to the ends of the slots, and placing in the massive arrows...
"Fire!" Fortunius swung down the colorful flag vigorously, and ten crossbows fired again.
The whistling arrows sank into the surging enemy, creating astonishing casualties once more.
But the screams and exclamations were completely drowned out by the tens of thousands of warriors’ shouts, which only accelerated their advance.
"Crossbows ready!" Fortunius raised the colorful flag once more, and from the front left came Valerius’s voice: "Crossbow Soldiers ready!"
Upon hearing the voice, the crossbow soldiers turned their heads towards the left flank’s leader position, where they saw a red flag being raised. The rear row hurriedly passed their drawn and loaded crossbows to the front row comrades and then picked up the other crossbows placed beside them for stringing and loading.
The front row crossbow soldiers took the crossbows, following the countless drills: left hand under the crossbow arm, right hand poised over the trigger, eyes on the sight, targeting forward...
In reality, no precise aiming was needed as enemies were everywhere below the hill, densely populated...
Valerius intentionally waited until after the crossbows fired before waving the flag and shouting, "Flat-trajectory fire, shoot!"
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!..." Three hundred crossbow arrows were released simultaneously, sweeping across like a massive scythe, accompanied by endless cries of agony, laying down the foremost Brochi warriors.
This immediately slowed down the advance of the Brochi warriors.