Chapter 23: The Battle of Marken Village 2

The soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire moved swiftly, and soon they arrived at Marken Village.

"We go in. The first squad enters the center of the village, subdues the French forces inside, while the second squad destroys the warehouses. Full military action now."

Inside the village, Charles nervously directed his surrounding soldiers. Then, with his command, countless soldiers rushed into the village.

"Bang!" Suddenly, a gunshot rang out, and the foremost soldier of the Holy Roman Empire fell to the ground.

"Enemy sighted!"

"Damn it! Weren't all the French scouts cleared out? How are there still some?"

With the sound of gunfire, all the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire became tense. They quickly converged on nearby buildings, seeking shelter.

"Bang!" Another gunshot echoed. This shot completely disrupted the formation of the Holy Roman army, making them increasingly panicked.

"Return fire. Find that person and kill him," ordered the lead soldier of the Holy Roman Empire.

"But Duke Charles ordered not to shoot. It will alert the French forces in the village," a soldier hesitantly questioned upon hearing his superior's command.

"Didn't you hear the gunfire? Whether we shoot or not now won't make much difference. The French inside the village are already alerted."

"Yes!" After hearing the commander's order, the soldier nodded heavily and then lifted his rifle, starting to fire back towards the direction of the gunfire.

Meanwhile, Ralond had long since hidden himself. The shot just now was fired by Ralond. He had anticipated it.

Without experiencing the harshness of the battlefield, one cannot become a qualified soldier. No matter how much they train, these students from military academies are still just students. They lack the vigilance of being in combat.

So Ralond was not confident about the defense at the village entrance. He went to check it out under the cover of darkness, leading to the scene at the beginning.

The flames from the muzzle flash were very obvious at night, so after firing two shots, Ralond immediately dropped his rifle and ran away.

He needed to return to the village and report to the sleeping student soldiers.

At the same time, the intense gunfire at the door also awakened Pearson, who was sleeping inside the village.

The years of experience accumulated on the battlefield almost made Pearson open his eyes the moment the gunfire rang out.

"Trouble." This was the only thought in Pearson's mind at the moment. Then, he suddenly leaped out of bed, grabbed the clothes beside him, and headed towards the door as he dressed.

As Pearson walked towards the door, he met Ralond coming to report the situation.

"Ralond? What's going on?" Pearson hurriedly approached and inquired upon seeing Ralond.

"The instructor is the enemy. They've infiltrated near the village, and we don't know their numbers." Ralond quickly reported upon seeing Pearson.

"Damn it, they've discovered our stronghold." After hearing Ralond's report, Pearson understood what was happening. He hadn't expected the enemy to arrive so quickly. Hmm.

"Ralond, immediately notify everyone to prepare for battle. Have them rely on the houses in the village for gradual resistance. I've already sent someone to Turin for reinforcements. Based on the timing, they should arrive by tomorrow noon." Pearson then looked at Ralond and said.

"Yes, I understand." Ralond nodded heavily. He also realized there was no way out at this point. They couldn't leave here. There were a large number of war supplies in Marken Village, and damaging them would be a huge blow to the French soldiers fighting bloodily on the front lines in Turin.

...

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Everyone, assemble!"

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack! Everyone, assemble!"

As the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire were discovered, the entire Marken Village immediately entered a state of battle. Countless students were awakened and then grabbed their guns, running towards the defense positions that had been prepared earlier.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

As the student army clashed with the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire, gunfire echoed incessantly throughout the village. The attack from the Holy Roman Empire was extremely fierce. However, the student army utilized the defensive positions previously set up in the village for a steady resistance.

For a moment, the battle entered a stalemate.

"Damn it, how did the scouts overlook this? Weren't there supposed to be only students here? How can their firepower be so intense?" Watching the situation before him, Duke Charles angrily shouted.

But Charles wasn't panicked. Despite encountering a counterattack from the French, he could discern the weakness of the French from the intensity of the gunfire. The French on the opposite side numbered only a few hundred, while he commanded the most elite 1000 soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire.

He believed that with such military strength, even facing temporary resistance from the French, they could quickly destroy the enemy's defenses with the advantage of numbers.

Then, Charles loudly encouraged his surrounding soldiers, "Don't fear! The French are only a few hundred, while we are a thousand strong. Everyone, attack together, and crush their defenses for me."

"Charge!"

"Attack!" With Charles's command, almost all the soldiers of the Holy Roman Empire launched their attack almost simultaneously. They continuously swept towards the student army's positions, relying on their powerful firepower to quickly suppress them.

Meanwhile, on the student army's defensive position in the village, Ralond and others were not faring well. Faced with the overwhelming firepower of the enemy, their position couldn't even lift their heads.

"Ralond, this won't do. We must come up with a solution." Facing the overwhelming firepower of the Holy Roman Empire, even Marlin couldn't think of a way. He ran to Ralond, hoping Ralond could come up with something.

"They outnumber us, and they have more guns. There's no way we can face them head-on."

"What should we do next? At this rate, we won't be able to hold on." Marlin anxiously asked.

"Sigh! I remember there's a cannon in the village, right?" Suddenly, Ralond remembered the cannon that had appeared in the village before.

Marken Village served as a storage and transit station for supplies, so one or two cannons could still be found.

"There is a cannon. It was left over from the last military supply allocation. Are you suggesting we bring it here?" Hearing Ralond mention the cannon, Marlin also quickly recalled its existence.

"The enemy outnumbers us by too much, and their equipment is very advanced. Just adding one cannon here probably won't make much difference."