I Became a Genius Commander at the Academy

Chapter 193: Linz Plains Giant Slalom (5)

“Even if it means dying here, we must not let a single one reach where His Highness the Crown Prince is!”

“We’ll kill all these ironclad pigs right here.”

“Plant your spears firmly in the ground and face forward! Aim for the horses’ necks, not foolishly at the knights’ necks.”

As such, one of the absolute don’ts when infantry would be facing knights was attempting to kill knights with long spears.

This was due to the nature of long spears, typically over 6 meters in length, making it almost impossible to pierce through the armor’s vulnerable spots.

Therefore, following their commanders’ orders, the soldiers quickly aimed at the horses’ necks and stared directly at the faces of the enemy in front of them.

With the sound of hooves clattering, tens of thousands of knights approached the Reich Empire’s army, lances aimed.

“Let’s trample and kill those Reich invaders, worse than dogs!”

“Kill them all, without exception!!”

A few seconds later, the Reich Empire’s infantry collided with the knights of the Grand Duchy of Ostarica.

Nearly a thousand horses went berserk, bleeding profusely from pierced necks, and threw their riders to the ground.

The unfortunate knights thrown to the ground were mostly trampled into lumps of flesh by their comrades charging from behind.

As the horses got entangled with each other and kicked indiscriminately at both friend and foe, the battlefield turned into complete chaos.

“Damn it, you damned horse, stop kicking!”

“Save me, damn it! But why won’t these crazy ones get pierced?”

“Retreat! Retreat! We’re at a disadvantage like this! Turn the horses around!!”

Meanwhile, the soldiers of the 7th Guard Division of the Reich Empire, who faced their charge head-on, also suffered tremendous losses.

Some of the soldiers who faced the knights’ initial charge were either thrown high into the air and killed when trampled by horses, or crushed to death.

Additionally, a dreadful scene unfolded where 2 or 3 people were impaled simultaneously by lances where they properly penetrated.

Naturally, screams and groans filled the formation, and a horrific sight unfolded that was hard to watch with open eyes.

“Lieutenant Flo! Lieutenant! Squad leader!”

“Is this the time to lose your senses over fallen comrades? Pull yourself together and reform the formation!”

“Do not let the sacrifices of our dead comrades be in vain! His Highness the Crown Prince is watching over you.”

For a regular unit, it would be virtually impossible to withstand such a large-scale lance charge from knights and rebuild the unit.

Because soldiers of a division who lose hundreds, maybe even thousands, in a single attack take a long time to recover their morale due to the mental and physical shock.

Therefore, Colonel Grunwald, commanding the knights of Ostarica, thought,

‘General Yaeger of the Reich Empire and the Crown Prince truly have exceptional skills. Otherwise, how could a mere infantry division block 20,000 knights.’’

While expressing his admiration, he was certain of one thing.

It was that if they quickly turned around and performed a second knight charge, this unit would completely collapse, and they could achieve victory.

“All knights, prepare for a second charge! By any means necessary, even if it means trampling over the bodies of our comrades, we must capture the Crown Prince and General Yaeger here!”

At the same time, he thought confidently,

‘The Crown Prince might be useful for gaining territory, but that bastard General Yaeger must be killed. How on earth did he manage to block the knights with just one infantry division? Keeping such a man alive would be a great hindrance to the progress of the Ostarica Grand Duchy.’

While he was confident of victory, something happened that made Colonel Grunwald, who feared General Yaeger’s potential, and the other knights doubt their eyes.

“Reform the formation! We will never collapse!”

“Didn’t we face greater crises than this at Richten Hill for a whole month? If we collapse just like this, we should relinquish the title of Guard Division!”

“His Highness the Crown Prince is watching over us! Remember the harsh training we’ve undergone up until now!”

At those words, as if deeply engraved in their subconscious, their bodies started moving on their own, and the soldiers of the 7th Guard Division naturally reformed their formation.

Then, although they appeared somewhat weary compared to before receiving the charge, they returned to a state ready for battle.

At this sight, the knights despaired.

“Monster bastards, why are these infantry scum still able to fight after taking our charge?”

“Damn, we’re not going to make it. It feels like we’re screwed.”

“…As if the devil had crawled out from hell.”

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince, even without General Yaeger’s advice, could intuitively sense it.

That the time had come to push forward.

“Now is the chance! Push forward! I will etch your brave deeds in my eyes! Fight and win!”

The Crown Prince, having taken up his flag, armor, and weapon, strode to a very close distance to the enemy knights.

When one company of his personal guard was positioned there, he waved his flag himself to encourage the soldiers.

“I will never run away again. So, if you lose in this battle, die here with me; if we win, let’s all have a victory parade together! All troops, charge!”

Meanwhile, General Yaeger, upon witnessing the Crown Prince charging the 7th Division a bit faster than himself, secretly admired and commanded.

“Place the 31st Division, which was kept in reserve at the position of the 7th Guard Division, to fight the infantry ahead. At the same time, mobilize all reserves placed at the left and right of the 7th Guard Division to completely block the knights on both sides. Additionally, send signals to the knights to stab the back with lances to prevent them from fleeing.”

The command was immediately conveyed through flags and sound, and messengers quickly ran to inform each division with detailed information.

Thus, 20,000 knights, who failed to break through or leave the 7th Guard Division during the charge, soon found themselves surrounded from the front, left, and right.

“The knight bastards of the Ostarica Grand Duchy have fallen into a trap! Kill them!”

“His Highness the Crown Prince has decreed that for every two knights killed, a set of captured armor will be granted as a reward! That’s all money!”

“Kill them all without exception! Capture those who should be taken prisoner, and kill those who should be killed!”

As they were surrounded, the knights of the Ostarica Grand Duchy tried desperately to escape the encirclement.

The vanguard of the knights couldn’t recklessly move due to their failure to break through the 7th Guard Division, and from both the left and right, the infantry was increasingly pressing in.

There was too little space available to turn the horses around and retreat.

“Abandon the vanguard! We must escape by any means necessary.”

“Turn back! We have to turn back!”

“Change direction by battalion units, hurry!”

Thanks to that, the knights struggled mightily to change direction atop their horses, but the situation only grew more chaotic.

The veterans, who had been through many real battles, knew that circumventing was already impossible and were only preparing to dismount.

And Colonel Grunwald, having realized that there was no solution, commanded,

“Forget everything; everyone dismount. We’ll fight hand-to-hand and look for a way to retreat. Also, signal the infantry for support.”

In the current situation, since the knights couldn’t turn their horses, this was the best command to survive.

The knights of the Ostarica Empire had no choice but to dismount their horses.

At the same time, the division commanders of the Reich Empire’s military issued orders as if not to miss this opportunity.

“Shoot arrows and magic. Not a single one must be left alive! Kill them all!”

“Push them relentlessly! We must win at all costs.”

“We must kill all of them here!”

While issuing these commands, they applied maximum pressure from both sides, reducing to a minimum the space knights could use to escape.

Forced into a corner like this, the knights found themselves in a situation where they could not respond.

From behind them, about 10,000 knights of the Reich Empire, with lances in hand, charged towards them.

“Not a single one should be spared. Trample them to death!”

“Show them the greatness of the Reich Empire!!”

“Let’s end the history of the Grand Duchy of Ostarica today.”

Saying so, the calamity that was the charging knights of the Reich Empire advanced towards the knights of Ostarica.