The death of Egrim shocked Cha-Zanak, the Champion of Tzeentch, who was preparing to attack the Knightly Army from the west. Zanak had anticipated that Egrim might not be a match for the Sun King, but he never expected that Egrim, a Chaos Sorcerer of the Saint Realm, would fall so quickly—within just five minutes. How could this be? Wasn't it said that the Sun King Ryan was most skilled in melee combat, with his knowledge of magic being primarily auxiliary? How could he completely dominate Egrim in a magical duel within the soul realm? Something was off!
Although Zanak commanded a Chaos army of two to three thousand, aside from his elite personal guard, the Raven Guard, who were Tzeentch's chosen warriors, the bulk of his forces consisted of barbarian raiders and outcasts. There weren't even many Chaos Warriors among them. Zanak had studied Ryan's tactics and knew that if his army suddenly appeared on the left flank, Ryan would undoubtedly order the Old Guard to counterattack.
If Zanak had commanded the "Blade of Khorne" warband under the Valkyrie of Khorne or the "Children of the Final Plague" warband under Festus, the Champion of Nurgle, they might have stood a chance against the Old Guard in a direct confrontation. However, his "Raven Guard" warband was unlikely to prevail in close combat against the Old Guard.
"Let's stick to the original plan. Retreat to Conquata. We'll face the Knightly Army there in a decisive battle," Zanak told himself, refusing to admit any trace of cowardice or fear. Everything was going according to plan.
Thus, Zanak abandoned the attack and retreated toward Conquata as planned. Thanks to effective magical cover and the thick fog of Albion, as well as Ryan's focus on the frontlines, Zanak successfully withdrew, leaving the fierce battle at Hastings to continue.
The yellow-and-blue banners of the Nords appeared on the battlefield, bearing the symbols of a sea eagle, a ship, a shield, and a sword with a musket. Harold quickly recognized them—it was the Nord Marine Corps, which had clashed with barbarians countless times before.
The sudden arrival of this force seemed to invigorate the barbarians, who sensed an opportunity for victory. The Nords' bravery and fearlessness had always left a deep impression on the barbarians, who often praised these tenacious and resilient soldiers. However, the Nords were notoriously difficult to control for the southerners. They were prone to reckless charges, often ignored orders, and would charge like wild horses at the first sign of an opportunity.
True to form, the Nord Marine Corps launched a ferocious assault, using greatswords, halberds, and longswords to break through the first shield wall, toppling barbarian warriors. Even the barrage of throwing axes and spears from behind the shield wall couldn't stop the Nord Marines' relentless advance. Young barbarian soldiers rushed forward one after another, only to be mercilessly cut down by Sigurdson and his Nords, who were spurred on by cries of "For the Nords! For Winterhold and Sessemund!"
However, this played right into Harold's plan. The Nords' reckless charge gave him an opportunity to turn the tide. He personally led his champion warriors, who were fully armed and used wooden planks to create a path through the swamp. Harold's battle-axe gleamed—a gift blessed by Chaos.
The Bretonnians and Nords seemed helpless against the sudden appearance of the barbarian champions. The Nords who charged forward were quickly cut down, leaving them disoriented. They attempted several charges but were no match for the barbarian champions in close combat. At this critical moment, General Sigurdson raised his banner and shouted, "Nords! Over here! The situation is dire—we need to fall back!"
The Nord Marines then demonstrated their unique advantage: they were exceptionally skilled at fighting in chaotic conditions, whether in muddy swamps, waterlogged beaches, or storm-tossed ships. At Sigurdson's command, the Marines began an orderly retreat through the swamp, maintaining an astonishing level of discipline despite the chaos.
Seeing the Nords retreat, François on the left flank ordered a withdrawal as well. Thousands of Bretonnian soldiers were forced to abandon their positions and slowly retreat through the swamp.
The initial success of repelling the Bretonnians boosted Harold's confidence. He immediately led his personal guard back to the center while ordering his troops to maintain the shield wall. However, Davout's Mousilon Legion was already pressing forward, putting Harold's center under severe pressure.
But the barbarians miscalculated. As Harold withdrew to the center, the young barbarian soldiers, eager to prove their bravery and win glory, forgot his orders. Thousands of soldiers surged down the slope, chasing their enemies. Many of the younger warriors even tried to flank the Nords and Bretonnians, hoping to encircle and annihilate the "retreating enemy."
Seeing the infantry charge, the monster warbands also lost their discipline and joined the assault. Thus, the barbarians' shield wall collapsed.
François seized this opportunity. How could the old man let such a golden chance slip? The moment thousands of barbarians charged, he drew the Sword of the Unicorn and commanded, "Begin."
His chief lady-in-waiting, Chasis Morningstar, immediately began casting an eighth-level divine spell—Cloudstride! This spell allowed hundreds of cavalry to temporarily ignore terrain obstacles and move as if on flat ground. At the same time, the young barbarians trying to flank the Bretonnians found themselves facing rows of crossbowmen who had already taken position. Under the orders of their sergeants and knights, the crossbowmen mercilessly drew their bows and fired.
Three volleys of arrows caused significant casualties among the barbarians who had abandoned their shield wall. Then, François personally led the divinely blessed knights around the swamp, launching a surprise attack on the barbarians' rear. Ten Grail Knights led the charge, with over five hundred brave Bretonnian knights beginning their counterattack.
"The Duke is here! The knights have come to support us, men!" shouted Sir Jerrod, rallying the troops. The banner of the Unicorn Guard flew high, and at the sight of the knights' thunderous charge, the peasant infantry and freemen soldiers regained their morale. The retreat halted, and they turned to clash once more with the thousands of barbarians.
As François's knights flanked and struck the barbarians from the rear like a hammer on an anvil, the left flank of the barbarian army collapsed. About a thousand barbarians died in this hammer-and-anvil tactic, and the remaining five thousand began a full retreat. Harold's left flank was shattered.
The same scene unfolded on the side led by Calard. The Bretonnians cunningly used the same feigned retreat tactic to lure the barbarians out of their shield wall. Then, Calard personally led his cavalry, using Morgiana's eighth-level divine spell scroll to flank and strike the barbarians' side.
Calard's charge was even more ferocious than François's, and his Bastonne troops were more experienced. The Red Dragon Guard executed Calard's orders perfectly, launching a fierce counterattack. With Calard's flanking charge, the barbarians were routed.
Harold's brother, the Chaos Champion Gorwin Gorwinson, rode a Norscan warhorse and led a small group of barbarian champions to confront Calard. The two champions clashed, and after just three exchanges, Calard roared and lifted Gorwin's bleeding head: "Does anyone know this guy? Come claim the body!"
On the other side, François didn't even get a chance to fight. Harold's other brother, Leofwine Gorwinson, was unfortunate enough to be hit by Veronica's Luminark, which blasted him away with a blinding beam of light. When his guards finally found him in the swamp, all that remained was a headless, shoulderless, and chestless corpse.
By mid-afternoon, Harold's flanks had completely collapsed, leaving only his center struggling to hold against Davout's relentless assault. The self-proclaimed King of Albion roared in frustration, "Why haven't Zanak and Egrim's reinforcements arrived on time? Why did those fools charge without orders?"
Before he could finish, the thunder of hooves echoed from both flanks.
The Bretonnian cavalry was back, ready to flank and strike from the rear!
With the shield walls on both flanks gone, there was no one to stop the Bretonnian knights from charging into the barbarians' rear. The knights, shouting "For the Lady and the King! For Bretonnia!" lowered their lances and charged forward, showing the barbarians their fate.
At first, the barbarians were brave, knowing that the southern knights' charges were only dangerous at the start. Once the knights lost momentum and were deep in enemy lines, they could easily be pulled from their horses and killed.
However, while this logic held in theory, the sight of the knights' lance formation—with each lance tip being a terrifying, golden-armored Grail Knight—filled the barbarians with fear. They instinctively retreated.
And were crushed.
Before François's first charge had ended, Calard's second charge followed. Calard's devastating assault left Harold no time to recover, while François used the cover to withdraw his knights, reform, and launch a third charge.
Like a hammer repeatedly striking an anvil, the relentless charges finally shattered the barbarians' shield wall. However, the divine spell's duration was running out, so François and Calard led their knights out of the battlefield.
As the sun set, the self-proclaimed King of Albion continued to fight, but his army was falling apart.
To make matters worse, the Old Guard advanced.
Harold had heard of this fearsome elite force and had hoped to personally lead his royal guard to crush them and rally his troops. However, Ryan's orders were simple and decisive: the Old Guard's two grenadier battalions advanced, formed ranks, and unleashed volley after volley of musket fire, refusing to engage in close combat. The veteran soldiers' skilled reloading and the bog's sluggish terrain turned Harold's barbarian champion warriors into sitting targets, suffering heavy losses.
In two charges repelled by musket fire, a stray arrow ended the battle. About 280 meters away, Baron Nottingham, Bertrand the Chosen of Taal, slowly lowered his Taal Bow.
The arrow flew over the crowd and the shields raised by the barbarian champions trying to protect their leader, striking Harold three inches below his navel, piercing his thigh and tearing it from his body, pinning it ten meters away in the swamp!
Harold's lower body gushed blood, and the barbarian leader let out a piercing, agonized scream. Everyone saw a fountain of blood spray from his body, staining him red and making him the most conspicuous figure on the battlefield.
At the critical moment, his personal guard—the barbarian champion warband "Dragon Ship Legion" and a small group of blessed raider champions, the "Fighters"—desperately held back the Bretonnians rushing to claim glory, buying time for their king at the cost of their lives. Harold, clutching his bleeding wound, rolled in agony in the swamp before being tied to a strong Norscan warhorse by his subordinates and forcibly dragged from the battlefield.
Behind him, the barbarian army was in complete disarray, scattering in all directions.
The Battle of Hastings had come to an end.
The Albion barbarian army suffered over 5,000 casualties, losing all their elites, including their champion warriors, blessed raiders, and monster warbands. The Knightly Army lost over 700 men, with 1,300 wounded.
The swamp made pursuit difficult, and the thick fog of Albion and the distant forests further complicated the chase. The Knightly Army made a brief show of pursuit before halting.
King Ryan ordered the battlefield to be cleared. Dismounting from his griffon, he surveyed the devastated swamp and smiled. "Iron Pagodas and Hooked Horses—a single tactic to conquer the world. I don't use the hammer-and-anvil tactic often."
"Iron Pagodas and Hooked Horses?" Marshal Rokossovsky's First Guards Lancer Regiment had missed the battle, and Commissar Beria was in good spirits. The First Guards Lancers had not participated, suffered no casualties, and yet still gained credit.
What a stroke of luck!
After a few hours of clear skies, the weather turned gloomy again, threatening rain. Beria promptly produced a large umbrella and held it over Ryan. This task was clearly best suited for him.
"Iron Pagodas refer to heavy cavalry charging in a wall formation, while Hooked Horses refer to cavalry flanking the enemy's sides while their infantry is engaged in a frontal battle—essentially the hammer-and-anvil tactic," Ryan explained. "It's a classic cavalry tactic, but its success depends heavily on timing. For example, if you can't pin down or lure out the enemy's main force, sending cavalry to flank can easily lead to disaster or even annihilation."
"Your Majesty, this was a splendid victory," François said smugly as he approached. "What's our next move?"
"Without delay, after a brief cleanup, we'll march deep into Albion and crush Harold and his barbarian army at Conquata!" Ryan ordered calmly.
"Yes!"
Three days later, within the ancient ruins of Conquata, a city of the Old Ones.
"So, Ryan and his Knightly Army are heading straight for Conquata?"
"Yes."
"Excellent! Everything is going according to the Raven God's plan!" a mysterious figure cloaked in black said with deep-seated hatred. "Ulfric's World Walkers are approaching from the east, and the Daemon Prince Be'lakor's five daemon legions and ten Chaos legions have landed on the northern shore."
"Additionally, to the west, we have a new ally—the Earl of the Undead Ocean Empire has pledged to join us against the Sun King and his Sea God Fleet."
"Conquata will be the grave of the Sun King and his Knightly Army."
"Also, nearly thirty years have passed. Perhaps he has forgotten me, but I have never forgotten him."
"I have a score to settle with Ryan! I will pluck out his eyes, tongue, and heart, cut off his ears and fingers, to soothe my hatred and offer it all to the Raven God!"
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