Ch.298Conquest (2)

Munglig, leading the cavalry battle, could feel the tide of battle turning on his skin.

This was because the soldiers at the front were gradually moving to the left.

“The enemy is moving to the left, General!”

Munglig nodded at the Kheshig’s report.

And naturally looked to the left.

There stood a young centurion leading the infantry against the Song Dynasty’s great army.

“How brave. It feels like seeing myself in my youth.”

The Kheshig frowned at Munglig’s words.

This was because Jurchedei was incomparably more handsome than Munglig.

In this situation, when Munglig compared Jurchedei to his younger self, it couldn’t help but feel absurd.

Seeing the Kheshig’s expressions, Munglig drew his sword and frowned.

The Kheshig immediately returned to disciplined expressions as if nothing had happened.

“Anyway, what is the name of that fellow who resembles my younger self?”

“He is Jurchedei from the Mangut clan.”

“Jurchedei. An invaluable talent for supporting the Ulus.”

Munglig smirked, raising one corner of his mouth.

Then he grabbed his horse’s reins and looked to the right.

“Jurchedei has created an opportunity, so we will go right.”

Munglig was a veteran warrior and field commander who had survived many battlefields alongside Gurkhan.

Therefore, even without Gurkhan’s orders, he instinctively knew that the current situation presented an opportunity to strike at the enemy’s core.

“Prepare for a breakthrough on the right!”

“Lord Munglig orders preparation for breakthrough!”

When Munglig’s order fell, the Kheshig sheathed their swords.

Then they formed rings with their hands and whistled.

Horses covered in armor approached the Kheshig from where they had been waiting in the rear.

Mongol warriors changed horses even on the battlefield.

So they had specially prepared armored horses for breakthrough charges.

Anyway, Munglig and the Kheshig mounted these armored battle horses meant for charging.

Then they took out the long spears attached to the saddles of their previous mounts.

With this change in equipment, they resembled European knights.

Heavy cavalry.

One of the results the Mongols had obtained from contact with Europe during the Crusades.

“Survive, young warrior.”

Munglig said this as he lowered the face guard of his helmet reinforced with iron plates.

And fierce eyes began to shine through the face guard, looking ready to charge at any moment.

* * *

“The Kheshig unit has switched to charging warhorses.”

“The Kheshig has changed to heavy armor.”

“The red flag has been raised, my Khagan!”

Reports from the adjutants came in succession.

Hearing their reports, I couldn’t help but smile.

“He is more valiant and agile than any general on the battlefield.”

Munglig was a natural field commander.

That’s why he immediately understood my intention of sending Jurchedei to the left flank to lure the Song army’s encirclement.

His change to heavy cavalry armor was proof of that.

Anyway, Munglig and the Kheshig had changed to armor similar to European knights, or more precisely, similar to Jin Dynasty heavy cavalry.

And they raised a red flag, signaling me for permission to charge.

I couldn’t help but trust Munglig when he moved according to my thoughts without me having to give direct orders.

“Beat the drums.”

“The Gurkhan orders the drums to be beaten!”

“Beat the drums to signal the charge!”

Boom boom boom boom boom.

The soldier in charge of the drums beat them rapidly.

Hearing the sound, Munglig’s heavy cavalry detached from the central front and began moving to the right.

“My Khagan! The Song troops seem to have noticed!”

“They are changing the direction of their fire weapons to the right!”

As my adjutants said, the muzzles of the Song Dynasty’s fire weapons were turning to the right.

It seemed they planned to use firepower to block our cavalry charge.

“That won’t be enough to stop them.”

Munglig and the Kheshig were among the strongest units in the Ulus, alongside the Tamma.

Even during the Crusades, when huge boulders fell from the sky and Greek Fire that never extinguished burned the ground, they could not be stopped.

“But I cannot just watch my brother get hurt.”

I put on my helmet again.

And drew my sword.

“Prepare to charge.”

At my words, the soldiers took up their weapons.

And with an energy as if they would rush out at any moment, they looked toward where the Song troops were.

“We will cut straight through the enemy’s central army and aim for their commander’s head.”

It was a strategy that others might call crazy if they heard it.

Not attacking the central army, but passing through it to aim for the enemy commander’s head.

But for the cavalry-focused Mongols, it was a perfectly viable strategy.

Above all, the Song Dynasty’s so-called 700,000-strong army was actually in a state of disarray.

Most of their forces had moved to the left to block Jurchedei.

Additionally, their artillery was now pointed to the right to block Munglig’s cavalry charge.

With forces divided like this, the Song troops in the center numbered only about 200,000.

Of course, our forces were also limited in number as we had divided our troops on both sides.

The central army I was leading had only 20,000 men.

200,000 versus 20,000.

Despite being outnumbered ten to one, I was confident of victory.

“Those who operate tactics and strategy for self-preservation are mere scarecrows.”

Anyone who chose safety in their strategic and tactical operations, despite having opportunities to capture me, could never be a threat to me.

Others might call this arrogant.

But I had proven this through countless wars. So it was possible. My thinking was not wrong.

“Charge!”

When the order fell, my horse kicked the ground and rushed forward.

Numerous soldiers followed behind.

As we suddenly charged, the Song soldiers looked at us in surprise.

“Wh-what!”

“Gur-Gurkhan!”

“Out of my way! Weaklings!”

As my sword caught the light, Song soldiers’ heads flew off.

As these men were easily eliminated, the surprised Song forces became disorganized and the atmosphere turned chaotic.

“Hee-heek!”

“Wh-what do we d-do?”

This was an opportunity.

I took advantage of the chaotic atmosphere and charged straight in.

As we continued riding, we encountered the Song’s main firepower unit, their cannon battalion.

“M-Mongols!”

“How did they suddenly appear here!”

“I-I don’t know either!”

The Song cannon unit, which had been blocking Munglig’s cavalry charge with firepower, wore expressions of considerable surprise.

They tried to respond immediately but couldn’t.

This was because all their muzzles were pointed to the right.

“Fools!”

The cannons of this era couldn’t quickly change their muzzle positions like modern cannons.

This meant that even if they spotted us, they couldn’t direct their firepower toward us.

“Cut them down!”

Saying this, I pulled on my horse’s reins.

The horse, as if knowing what I wanted, leaped up.

“Urgh.”

“Gak.”

The Song artillery unit died trampled under hooves without being able to properly counterattack.

Seeing this, the Song soldiers looked at me with frightened expressions.

“N-no… it’s Gurkhan!”

“I-it’s over…! The devil has appeared here!”

“The Mongol emperor is here! S-save me!”

I was just one person.

But the Song soldiers who recognized me didn’t even think of opposing me.

From their perspective, this was natural.

I was an object of terror to them.

The soldiers I led had thoroughly destroyed the places they lived…

And killed all the families they loved.

We trampled the culture they enjoyed under our hooves and thoroughly defiled the civilization of the Central Plains with corpses and filth.

Not only that, we destroyed their fields and farmlands by spreading salt to ensure the civilization of the Central Plains would never revive…

The books and records containing the wisdom of their ancestors were all plundered and placed in the Great Capital.

We plundered everything the Song Dynasty had.

We took away their peace.

Just one person.

Because of me.

While everyone was paralyzed with fear and unable to do anything, the cavalry following me began taking their heads.

“Aaagh!”

“Gurk!”

Hunting prey fallen into terror was an easy task.

So my subordinates easily harvested the heads of Song soldiers as if picking apples.

Those bodies that lost their heads fell to the ground, never to rise again.

* * *

“Huff… huff…”

Sensing defeat, Jiasidao quickly fled the battlefield.

Numerous soldiers followed behind him.

“D-don’t follow me!”

Jiasidao sensed that if these men followed him, the Mongols would soon be in pursuit.

So he tried to prevent his adjutants and soldiers from following.

But in a life-or-death situation, there was no fool who would obey such an order.

“Damn it…”

Jiasidao had no choice but to lead his soldiers toward Sichuan.

He believed that if he returned there, Mengong would be present, and he could gather forces again to counterattack.

Of course, due to the atrocities Jiasidao had committed, the probability of Mengong helping him was very low.

However, with the Mongols pursuing Jiasidao, Mengong would have to help him whether he liked it or not.

Knowing this fact, Jiasidao was heading to Sichuan despite his shame.

As he was about to reach Sichuan,

A commotion arose behind him.

“What’s happening!”

“The Mongols are in pursuit!”

“P-persistent bastards!”

The Mongol army, called the devil’s troops, was tenacious.

They had relentlessly tracked the fleeing Jiasidao and finally reached where he was.

In this situation, death was inevitable.

So Jiasidao was about to order his soldiers to protect him from the Mongols.

At that moment, the sound of a horn suddenly rang out.

“Th-this horn sound… it’s our army’s horn!”

A look of relief appeared on Jiasidao’s face.

This was because someone who was clearly a Song general appeared before him, leading an army.

At his appearance, Jiasidao spread his arms wide and shouted loudly.

“H-help me immediately! The Mongols are chasing us!”

Unlike the urgent Jiasidao, the Song general remained motionless.

He looked at Jiasidao with a cold expression and then approached him on horseback.

Seeing this, Jiasidao thought the unknown general was rushing to save him.

But this was his misunderstanding. Because a sword rose from the Song general’s waist.

“Wh-what… guh-gurk!”

The Song general, Liu Zheng, looked indifferently at the head of Jiasidao, who died with a shocked expression.

Then he grabbed the head and shouted loudly toward the Mongol troops.

“We surrender!”