After Sir Colin led the Aldor coalition on a long march of hundreds of miles, they finally encountered the main force of the Gabella Empire, which had been fully assembled.
This was a field called Dalos, flat and covered with withered grass, perfect for the deployment of large armies. The two armies quickly formed ranks and faced each other.
The Ausser Army's formation was simple and disciplined, with 10,000 Sentinel Legion soldiers at the front, over 30 cannons evenly deployed along the line, and soldiers arranged in three lines, the first two lines carrying matchlock guns, and the third line a mix of flintlock musketeers and ammunition carriers; 15,000 vassal state troops formed the second line, and 5,000 Freemen Cavalry were stationed on the flanks.
Gabella, on the other hand, maintained their traditional formation, resembling a mobile steel fortress with ten thousand Fire Dragon Legion soldiers. Soldiers formed a tight vanguard, their Fire Crossbows gleaming with a steady orange-red light. Over thirty Thunder Hammer magic crossbows were deployed in a triangular formation, their engraved magical runes shimmering with light. Twenty thousand Gabella infantry formed a double-layered, dense square formation. The outer layer of soldiers held shields as tall as a man, the shields seamlessly joined together, while the inner layer of spearmen pointed their spears diagonally to the sky, forming an impenetrable forest of spears. Three thousand noble cavalrymen, clad in armor and their mounts adorned with stab-proof horse armor, stood ready on the right flank.
"Is that the army that defeated the Papacy?" A young soldier in the Ausser Army line gripped his firearm tightly and muttered to himself.
The veteran beside him nodded and said, "I heard their phalanx can withstand the charge of the Papal war elephants, and their magical weapons are even more powerful. But don't worry, we also have firearms and cannons."
Because Gabella's dramatic shift in attitude toward magic was so shocking, news spread quickly, and it was already widely known that Gabella's army contained mages and magical weapons.
As soon as he finished speaking, Sir Colin waved his command flag, and more than thirty cannons of the Ausser Army simultaneously raised their muzzles. The artillerymen bent down, loaded ammunition, and fired, their movements so precise as if they had copied and pasted each other – the result of countless training sessions.
"Fire!" With the roar of the Ausser Army artillery commander, more than thirty solid shot whistled through the sky and crashed into Gabella's army formation.
Almost simultaneously, Marshal McDonald lowered his command flag, and a unified response rang out from the Gabella army: " Thunder Hammer, charge! Fire Crossbow, prepare!" The Thunder Hammer ballista operators moved with practiced ease, embedding crystals imbued with fire magic into the breech, while the Fire Crossbow operators raised their crossbows in unison, aiming at the direction of the Ausser Army's advance.
Sir Colin, observing the enemy through his binoculars, grew cautious. Facing them was a pinnacle of an old-era army, whose tactical coordination and reaction speed far surpassed any enemy the Ausser Army had ever encountered.
The Ausser Army shells hit their targets first, slamming into the shield wall of the Gabella infantry phalanx. Splinters and severed limbs flew everywhere, and many soldiers were knocked to the ground bleeding from the shock. However, the phalanx did not break apart, and soldiers in the rear immediately stepped forward to fill the gaps, keeping the shield wall intact.
Just as the Ausser Army artillery was preparing for its second reload, Gabella's counterattack arrived—more than thirty fireballs were fired from the Thunder Hammer ballistae, slamming into the Ausser Army with scorching jets of air. Cannon position.
"Scatter!" the Ausser Army artillery commander roared as he lunged to the side. The fireball exploded upon landing, though it did not destroy the steel-cast cannons. Soldiers, however, had no time to dodge, their clothes were set ablaze, and screams echoed across the battlefield.
For the first time, a commotion broke out in the Ausser Army lines. Some soldiers turned pale, their firearms nearly slipping from their hands: "What kind of weapon is this? Its power is comparable to our Cannon!"
Sir Colin, watching from the high ground, was alarmed. He had anticipated the strength of Gabella's army, but he hadn't expected their magical weapons to be able to directly confront firearms. However, he quickly regained his composure, drew his sword, and shouted, "Hold formation! Advance in lines! Artillery cover!"
The discipline of the Ausser Army proved its power at this moment. Upon hearing the order, the restless soldiers rearmed into three lines and advanced towards the opposite side to the beat of the drums. The artillery moved the damaged cannon and re-established its positions.
Arthur led a thousand cavalrymen from the Legion headquarters and the Freemen Cavalry in a charge, attempting to tie down the Gabella right flank cavalry. Seeing this, the Gabella noble cavalry, under their commander's orders, formed a wedge formation to meet the attack, and the two sides clashed instantly. The Freemen Cavalry's scimitars clashed with the Gabella cavalry's longswords, sparks flying.
The Gabella cavalry's tactics were more disciplined, their wedge formation constantly tearing apart the Freemen Cavalry's lines. Had the Freemen Cavalry not relied on their nomadic horsemanship and agile combat skills, they would have been scattered long ago. After Arthur swung his sword and felled an enemy rider, he was secretly surprised; the Gabella cavalry were well-trained, in no way inferior to the Aldor knights.
The long-range firepower exchanges on the battlefield continued. What shocked Gabella's side was that the Ausser Army's line infantry were actually advancing steadily despite the bombardment of Thunder Hammer. This was very unusual. The armies they had encountered before would usually scatter after a short time when faced with these explosive magical flame bombs.
But as time went on, another unsettling sight emerged—their Thunder Hammer troops were being suppressed by the enemy's long-range firearms capable of launching metal projectiles.
Several Thunder Hammers were destroyed in succession by concentrated artillery fire from the Ausser Army, forcing the previously forward-deployed Thunder Hammer units to repeatedly retreat. These sophisticated magical weapons were extremely complex and expensive, with lengthy production cycles; the destruction of each one represented a significant loss for Gabella's army. However, this also meant that Gabella... The Thunder Hammer forces suffered their first combat losses.
What the Gabella found even more unbearable than the destruction of the Thunder Hammer itself was the casualties among its operators. Unlike the Fire Crossbow soldiers, who only possessed magical senses and could only be called quasi - Spellcasters, the operators of the Thunder Hammer were all true Spellcasters from the Arcane Society. The Emperor and the Arcane Society repeatedly emphasized the need to ensure their safety, but after two rounds of artillery fire from the Ausser Army, more than a dozen of them were killed.
Before Marshal McDonald could even give the order, the mages abandoned their heavy Thunder Hammers and ran to the rear of the army. Old Marshal had no choice but to order the mages' squires to drag the Thunder Hammers back with them and redeploy them to a safe location as soon as possible. This commotion weakened Gabella's ranged firepower.
Marshal McDonald was furious. He wanted to order the oversight team to arrest a few of the mages who were leading the retreat and behead them as a warning, but he couldn't. These legitimate mages held a superior position in Gabella, and even as the commander, he had no right to force them to their deaths. If he did so, not only would it cause immediate infighting on the battlefield, but even back in the capital, the Emperor and the Arcane Society would blame him.
In previous battles, the mages stayed in safe places and provided ranged firepower, so the two sides cooperated well. But now, when they encountered Ausser Army firearms that could threaten their lives, they suddenly became chaotic.