Gospel of Blood

Chapter 284: Bombardment

As the sound of the horn echoed, Castell’s coalition army began to move slowly. From the hill, the massive coalition, divided into five formations by Baron Angus, advanced towards the rebel camp in a “2+3” wedge formation.

The formation wasn’t as impressive as Charlotte had imagined.

Compared to the medieval military formations she had seen in movies from her past life, it was far inferior.

From a distance, it looked like five enormous, slowly shifting gray-black rectangles, barely resembling a proper military formation.

If it weren’t for the relatively orderly nobles at the forefront, Charlotte might have doubted that such a large formation could maintain any semblance of order.

This was inevitable. Castell’s coalition wasn’t a well-trained standing army but a collection of nobles, their private soldiers, and conscripted peasants from various regions.

Many of the conscripts were likely working in fields or hunting in forests just three months ago, with barely a month of training. Their current discipline and execution were a testament to the efficiency of the northern nobles and Baron Angus’ capability.

Despite this, the looming threat of the advancing army cast a shadow over the entire rebel camp.

With the bloodbornes’ excellent eyesight, Charlotte could clearly see the rebels spring into action as soon as Castell’s horn sounded.

Archers manned the wooden walls and towers, and soldiers operated crossbows and small stone-throwers on the watchtowers, aiming them at the distant army. More soldiers poured out of tents, forming ranks under the orders of mounted nobles.

Having camped for two to three months, the rebels had transformed the camp into a considerable fortress.

Charlotte couldn’t help but praise their efficiency. In a world with extraordinary powers, work efficiency couldn’t be compared to a similar historical period on Earth.

Conversations with local villagers revealed that the rebel camp had originally been a small town with walls, now further fortified by the rebels.

The coalition army advanced slowly, like a giant wave closing in. The vanguard stopped about 500 meters from the rebel camp.

A low horn sounded across the battlefield.

Charlotte saw the leading nobles in the two forward formations give orders, and soldiers moved to the sides, revealing rows of black cannons.

These were stone-throwers, formidable siege weapons in Myria. Even against a temporary wooden fort, the coalition had brought twenty of them, mainly provided by Charlotte’s direct domain and the Leon-Castell family.

Smaller noble families couldn’t afford such siege weapons.

As early cannons, these stone-throwers had short barrels, typically made of bronze or iron, sometimes of purple or yellow brass. Castell’s stone-throwers were about 5 meters long, with a 500 mm caliber, firing 700-pound stone projectiles. The accuracy was low, and the initial speed was slow. To enhance their effectiveness, the barrels were inscribed with magical runes, extending their effective range to 500 meters, far exceeding bows, crossbows, and low-tier mages’ spells.

The projectiles weren’t just stones; they often bore inscriptions. Especially in the initial rounds, the coalition used expensive enchanted projectiles with anti-magic effects to destroy extraordinary defenses.

Seeing the cannons, the rebel soldiers became visibly agitated, but officers quickly subdued the unrest.

Another low horn sounded, and the twenty cannons fired, producing white smoke.

A few seconds later, the roar of the cannons reached Charlotte’s ears.

The projectiles hit the rebel camp, causing the semi-transparent wall—the mages’ shield, ripples like flowing water.

The shield absorbed the impact, slowing the projectiles before they glowed red and dissolved like snowflakes.

However, one round of bombardment wasn’t the end. Three minutes after the first volley, a second round began.

The low-tier mages’ shield couldn’t withstand the enchanted projectiles. After weakening about a dozen projectiles, the shield shattered.

Most projectiles didn’t hit the low rebel walls but flew over, crashing into the camp like meteors. Many missed, but two struck targets—one smashing a tent, the other piercing a watchtower.

Yet, this was limited.

The cannons of Myria were still too weak. The enchanted projectiles could only rely on kinetic energy for damage, lacking the explosive power of later cannons on Earth.

Still, the pure kinetic energy and anti-magic effects made them the strongest force against mages on the battlefield.

Six minutes later, the third round of bombardment began. This time, the rebels’ mages couldn’t rebuild a large shield in time.

The projectiles hit the camp unimpeded.

Charlotte saw two more tents destroyed. Several projectiles hit gathered rebel troops, causing severe casualties and panic.

One projectile finally struck the wall, creating a breach without magical protection.

This caused further chaos among the rebels. They reacted quickly, sending shield-bearers to strengthen defenses at the breach.

A few minutes later, the fourth round of bombardment began. With previous adjustments, the projectiles were more accurate, with five hitting the wall.

Although two were blocked by suspected high-tier mages, three hit, creating more breaches. The rebel camp’s wall was now on the verge of collapse.

A louder horn sounded—the order to attack.

Castell’s coalition resumed their advance. Nobles and elite soldiers raised shields, while peasants carried ladders, charging towards the rebel camp.

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