Charlot was about to react when Frederica reminded him, "It's too te to flee. If we change formation now, it will turn into a one-sided sughter. Only by meeting the enemy head-on can we maintain order."

  Although Charlot was only skilled in theoretical strategies, he understood the absolute correctness of Frederica's words. With the composition of the West Wind Knights, the moment the battle began, the prisoners would likely flee, triggering a catastrophic chain reaction. Without hesitation, he ordered the West Wind Knights to form an ironcd defensive formation to brace for the potential assault.

  Charlot had no idea which sides the warring factions belonged to. He could only hope the victors were allies.

  The city patrol guards, though a local force mainly tasked with maintaining order, had never seen proper battlefield action. Yet, they could set up a decent ironcd defense. This formation, often employed to handle rge-scale gang conflicts on the streets, offered the best chance of minimizing injuries among their ranks.

  As for counterattacks?What counterattacks?City patrol guards had never been expected to perform such feats.

  Half an hour passed, and the hills were overrun with fleeing soldiers. Behind them, a cavalry unit was systematically harvesting lives, moving with the precision of a well-trained elite force.

  Charlot, being a native of the Behemoth Principality, recognized at a gnce that the scattered forces ahead were from his "homend." Familiar from his youth, he could even discern that they belonged to Baron Feller's Yahoo Knights! The Feller Barons had long been vassals of the Grand Duke Ferdinand, their territory lying to the east of the Behemoth Principality. The current Baron Feller had a deep camaraderie with the Grand Duke, stemming from ties of marriage between their families in the previous generation.

  As for the pursuing force behind them, such a disciplined cavalry could not belong to Lady South Seraph's troops. The South Seraph restorationists cked any formal military training. Aside from raw passion, they were barely more capable than the city patrol guards.

  On the Old Continent, while knights were common, cavalry units were rare. Any force capable of maintaining formation during a pursuit was undoubtedly an elite force from one of the major empires. Though their uniforms cked the dark red hues typical of Byron’s army, their crescent moon pursuit formation revealed their identity unmistakably: they were Byron cavalry.

  Charlot cursed, "Bloody nterns! Why are Byron troops here?"

  By all logic, Byron’s forces shouldn’t have appeared this quickly. The Behemoth Principality had only just decred war on South Seraph’s domain, and Byron had only recently decred war on the Behemoth Principality. Byron’s forces should still be far from this battlefield—this was still Fars Empire territory.

  Charlot dreaded any encounter with Byron troops.

  Having trained in Blood Glory, he knew Byron vampires despised humans who practiced this art. Even in times of peace, crossing paths often led to drawn swords. On a battlefield, the result would surely be a fight to the death.

  If Byron’s cavalry learned that someone here practiced Blood Glory, they might abandon their pursuit of Behemoth’s fleeing forces and focus entirely on annihiting the West Wind Knights.

  Charlot harbored little confidence in the combat prowess of his knights. Though the Byron cavalry only numbered one or two hundred, he doubted this poorly trained, disorganized, and unmotivated force could withstand even a single charge. Without pikes, shields, or other tools for countering cavalry, the West Wind Knights were hopelessly outmatched.

  Looking around desperately, Charlot searched for a long weapon to disguise his identity but quickly scolded himself, "Idiot!"

  "Why bother with a spear? Use the rifle!"

  "Even if those vampires are cunning, they can't deduce my martial arts techniques just by seeing an anti-space long-range rifle!"

  Faced with Byron’s elite cavalry, Charlot had to avoid using vampiric weapons like the Vampiric Axe or Blood Rose, as they might provoke a concentrated attack. However, there were no such restrictions on other extraordinary weapons. Without hesitation, Charlot reached into his colr and retrieved his beloved firearm.

  Since he was heading to the battlefield, he had left behind items like his alchemical cane, Magnum Mauler, and personal alchemical pistol. The battlefield was no pce for elegance or pretentiousness. His cane, private carriage, and even the three young kittens at 58 Elysée Avenue were under the care of Mrs. Nancy and Madam Umeboshi, leaving him free of worries.

  With a wave of his hand, Charlot had a subordinate bring over a case of anti-magic armor-piercing rounds. Normally, he carried only three such bullets—enough for a street duel where a foe who survived three shots wouldn’t give him the chance for a fourth. However, three rounds were woefully insufficient for a battlefield.

  Charlot loaded twenty anti-magic armor-piercing rounds into his rifle and discreetly took out two Firequell Silver Rhinos, loading them with ammunition before securing them in his holsters. He had originally left his Firequell Silver Rhino VII in Machubi, but decided to retrieve it for this occasion.

  As for his other firearm, the Firequell Silver Rhino XIII, its psychokinetic magazine still held thirty-five rounds of unique energy bullets crafted by seven artisans. Each bullet had distinct properties, yet all packed formidable power, crafted by the Anneitor craftsmen. Venie Arsenault had added a few cat spirit magic bullets to its arsenal, capable of transforming an opponent into a kitten if they failed to resist her magic.

  With three firearms at his side, Charlot felt slightly more at ease.

  At that moment, Dubin Alger galloped back on a Shire horse, shouting, "The enemy only has two thousand men! We can win!"

  Charlot had little use for the Shire horse except as a scout mount, so he had entrusted it to Dubin. The seasoned patrol veteran had proven reliable, bringing back vital intelligence.

  Still, even knowing the enemy had only two thousand troops, Charlot had no intention of engaging.

  He was all too familiar with the quality of the city patrol guards.

  On the battlefield, losing one's head in the heat of the moment was the gravest danger.

  Seeing Charlot unmoved, Dubin added urgently, "They have only this one cavalry unit. The rest are Lady South Seraph's forces, whose combat strength is worse than ours!"

  Charlot’s expression flickered slightly, showing a hint of hesitation.

  After careful consideration, however, he decided against risking an engagement. Just then, the fleeing Yahoo Knights spotted what appeared to be Fars Empire troops on their fnk and surged toward them.

  Charlot, though cking military experience, had read enough history and military novels to understand the consequences of allowing fleeing soldiers to disrupt his formation. A broken formation would leave the West Wind Knights vulnerable to a devastating charge from the Byron cavalry.

  Though reluctant, Charlot raised his hand high and shouted, "Kill anyone who approaches! Force them to bypass us and regroup at the rear!"

  "Yellow Bear, take five hundred men and block those stragglers from escaping. Execute anyone who disobeys!"

  Though a true strategist or even a mere armchair general might consider his orders chaotic, they sufficed to stabilize morale in the moment.