Chapter 54 Hard Fight

Similar scenes were simultaneously unfolding on the other main arteries of Seville.

Because Colonel Marcus’s Armored Knight went down far too suddenly, the members of the Guard Knight Order who had already dispersed and proactively headed to other streets for one-on-one challenges had no idea what they were about to face.

On another road, a Guard Knight Order pilot was confidently controlling his Armored Knight, beating his shield with his armed sword as he advanced.

It could be said he was extremely battle-ready.

He was even cracking jokes with the surrounding infantry through the external speaker.

“Soldiers, watch closely! The sight of Armored Knights dueling is a rare one…”

With that, the white ‘St. George Type 3’ accelerated and charged forward.

Just like their squadron commander, Marcus, these pilots of the Guard Knight Order had their own pride and confidence.

This confidence stemmed from the Knight Order’s terrifying combat record and Britannia’s comprehensive lead in Armored Knight technology.

Every pilot of the Guard Knight Order never believed they would lose in a 1v1 against an enemy.

However, just as the two tin cans were about to collide, he saw a dazzling flash of light erupt from the front end of the humble ‘poker’ in the opponent’s hand.

And then, he knew nothing more…

The black-and-white painted ‘Siegfried Type 1’ smoothly dodged to the side, giving way.

Meanwhile, the ‘St. George Type 3,’ which now had a hole in its front armor, charged forward for several more steps under inertia before weakly kneeling on the ground, with thick smoke billowing from the cockpit area.

The pilot of another ‘St. George Type 3’ nearby had actually noticed that the communication channel had suddenly become quieter.

However, he didn’t think much of it at the moment, focusing more on the battle right in front of him.

Relying on superior machine performance and skillful piloting, he successfully blocked the ‘Siegfried Type 1’s charge with his shield, creating a suitable distance for his armed sword to strike.

Just as he was about to launch a counterattack, he saw the opponent press that strange weapon directly against his cockpit exterior.

“What the hell is that…”

This was the last thought of his life.

In a short amount of time, the Guard Knight Order had four Armored Knights taken out by this makeshift shaped charge anti-armor warhead.

These arrogant imperial elites failed to understand how they were defeated until the moment of their death.

As the four Armored Knights crashed down, the accompanying infantry and Knight Squires beside them were thrown into massive chaos and panic.

Their greatest reliance was instantly destroyed like paper right in front of them. This dual visual and psychological shock was devastating.

And once the enemy’s most threatening Armored Knights were dealt with, the pilots of the Teutonic Knight Order were not going to be polite. They all leaped over the wreckage of the enemy knights and charged directly into the infantry crowd, beginning a massacre.

Losing the cover of the Armored Knights and facing their attack directly caused heavy casualties to these accompanying infantry.

However, a weapon hastily manufactured like this, especially one that was entirely hand-made, would obviously not have a high qualification rate.

Among the six Armored Knights deployed by the Teutonic Knight Order, although four successfully destroyed their targets in the first wave of attack.

But two Armored Knights had issues with the anti-armor warhead in their hands.

One Teutonic Knight Order pilot, after triggering the anti-armor warhead in his hand, only saw a dim, yellow flame shoot out.

The power of the explosion was greatly reduced. Although it left a terrifying dent and scorch mark on the opponent’s armor, it ultimately failed to penetrate.

“Damn it! What rotten luck…”

The pilot cursed angrily inside the cockpit.

Fortunately, his opponent was also badly startled by the blast and instinctively took two steps back.

This gave the Teutonic Knight Order pilot precious breathing room.

Without hesitation, he quickly discarded the failed weapon and grabbed another spare shaped charge anti-armor warhead from the temporary hook on the back of his machine’s waist.

Ludwig had specially had the workers rush to make a few extra in case of a dud.

“Again!”

He roared and controlled his Armored Knight to charge forward once more.

The opposing Guard Knight Order pilot was now filled with shock and suspicion.

He didn’t know what that thing was, but he could feel that its power was lethal.

Seeing the opponent charging back with the same ‘poker,’ he dared not be careless in the slightest, raising his shield and concentrating on defense.

This time, however, the ‘Siegfried Type 1’ moved faster and more cunningly.

The clumsy tin can feinted, fooling the opponent’s shield block, and then precisely delivered the anti-armor warhead in its hand to the opponent’s side armor.

“Boom!”

The dazzling flash of fire erupted again. This time, the Goddess of Fortune did not favor the ‘St. George Type 3.’

His machine groaned under the strain, its side armor was completely penetrated, and the high-temperature metal jet shredded everything inside.

Watching the enemy Armored Knight fall out of control, the Teutonic Knight pilot just breathed a sigh of relief, preparing to fall back and regroup with the others.

But the sound of heavy footsteps suddenly coming from the side sent a sharp warning through his heart.

Another white ‘St. George Type 3’ had rushed out from the corner of the street, blocking his path.

“You won’t escape, Saxon barbarian!”

Although he didn’t know what the enemy had used to take out his comrades just now, this ‘St. George Type 3’ pilot clearly had no intention of retreating. He charged straight ahead, swinging his weapon.

Having used up his shaped charge anti-armor warhead and facing a fresh, angry enemy in a one-on-one fight, the Teutonic Knight, who had already expended a great deal of energy, quickly found himself at a disadvantage.

After just three rounds, he was outmaneuvered by the noticeably more flexible ‘St. George Type 3,’ and the enchanted armed sword pierced through his internal combustion engine from the rear.

In an Armored Knight civil war, this was equivalent to death.

After a brief but brutal clash, only four black-and-white painted ‘Siegfried Type 1’s and three white-painted ‘St. George Type 3’s remained in the Seville urban area.

The number ratio of Armored Knights came to four against three.

The Teutonic Knight Order once again held the numerical advantage.

More importantly, Ludwig and his comrades still had a few shaped charge anti-armor warheads left to use.

The Guard Knight Order, on the other hand, was clearly intimidated after having five of their Armored Knights instantly destroyed with lightning speed.

The remaining three pilots no longer displayed their previous arrogance and swagger.

They watched the murderous Teutonic Knights opposite them and the oddly shaped ‘spears’ in their hands with terror, unanimously choosing to retreat.

This was the day the Guard Knight Order suffered its heaviest casualties since its formation.

Adding the two machines previously taken out by Ludwig with superior forces on the high ground, they had lost a total of seven of their most advanced ‘St. George Type 3’ Armored Knights in a single day.

For the Guard Knight Order, which had always had smooth sailing and prided itself as the Spear of the Empire, this was an unprecedented disgrace.

Undoubtedly, this was the darkest day since the Knight Order’s inception.

Severely hit, the remaining Armored Knights of the Guard Knight Order no longer charged blindly alone.

They cautiously moved alongside their Knight Squires and infantry, using the long-range weapons that these Britannian pilots usually scorned to provide direct-fire support to the infantry.

The pace of the battle slowed down abruptly.

News of the heavy losses of the Armored Knights quickly reached the command post in the rear via messengers.

When Eldridge and the other Britannian officers heard the news, everyone showed an expression of disbelief.

“What did you say? Five more gone in such a short time?!”

The Britannian Colonel named Henry grabbed the messenger’s collar, his eyes wide like brass bells.

“Yes, Colonel… Colonel Marcus has also fallen,” the messenger replied trembling.

The air inside the tent seemed to freeze.

Meanwhile, the Kingdom Army commander, Sanjurjo, upon hearing the major losses suffered by the Britannians, momentarily flashed an expression of ill-concealed schadenfreude.

However, he quickly realized his lapse and, in the next instant, switched back to an expression of grief and shock.

“My God! How is this possible! How could the Saxons have done this!”

Hearing his voice, Eldridge shot him a cold glance but did not speak.

And at this point, even if Eldridge and Colonel Henry wanted to gather their troops and reorganize the attack, it was too late.

Because the large force that had entered the urban area was now completely mixed up with the defenders, entangled in a fight in the streets.

Ordering a retreat now would only expose their vulnerable backs entirely to the Saxon barbarians hiding in the ruins.

So, not surprisingly, they also fell victim to the same common situation that Sanjurho had experienced earlier—they lost their heads.

“We can’t retreat! The army of our Holy Britannian Empire must never retreat in front of these peasants!”

Colonel Henry, just like General Sanjurho a few dozen minutes earlier, frantically waved his hands and ordered the reserves to prepare to enter the fight.

Eldridge said nothing, turned, and walked out of the tent. A magical fluctuation also spread from his body.

He decided to go to the front line personally.

(End of this Chapter)