Annihilation

The sound of the horn echoed throughout the camp where Artys's forces gathered, signaling that it was dawn and time for the troops to rise from their tents. Artys was already awake and tending to the horse.

After strapping the armor to the horse, he climbed into the saddle and waited for the men to assemble. They would soon be marching into the enemy's territory and hopefully meeting his army on the battlefield.

Before long, his forces gathered and loaded their muskets, setting the firing mechanism to half-cock so they were ready for battle at any moment.

The armies marched together at dawn under their personal flag; which consists of a floating blue double-headed eagle, with bronze claws and details, whose chest is covered by the coat of arms of House Royce.

By the time they spotted the enemy forces, they were just a few kilometers from Gulltown. However, they were still a long way from the enemy forces, which gave Artys's army time to get into formation.

The artillery batteries quickly positioned the guns at an appropriate distance from the battlefield where the armies were arrayed. The primary target of Artillery would be archers and crossbowmen used by enemy forces; if they could eliminate them before the infantries clashed, casualties on Artys' side would be greatly reduced.

As his artillery moved into position and loaded the 12 field guns, Artys took command of the Cavalry, the heavily armored Cuirassiers. There were 100 cuirassiers, which were much larger than the opposing cavalry forces. With each armed with a pair of pistols, they had the ability to engage the enemy knights with 200 rounds, which was many more rounds than needed to eliminate the enemy knights. If fired at close range, it was more than enough to kill the knights or their horses. As such, your cavalry would be taking on the role of hunting down and destroying enemy knights.

As for the infantry, they were led by Ser Julius and the appropriate officers under his command. The army's musketeers were an effective force capable of reloading their muskets in a matter of seven seconds; they would stand in two lines, the first would fire a salvo and reload while the other line would move forward and fire another salvo. If necessary, they could use their bayonets in hand-to-hand battle.

This was the strategy Artys chose to go with; as soon as his forces were ready for battle, he began a speech.

"I look around me and see that they are not peasants, not serfs, not mountain men, but my people, brothers, fathers and sons. Under my leadership, we have made great strides towards a new era, where man value is not is determined by the class he was born into, but by the hard work and effort he puts into his community.

Many of you were raised from the life of servants, breaking your backs every day in the fields so that you can cultivate for your masters. Now you are in my army and receive good wages and adequate living conditions.

Lord Grafton tried to take my life, but more importantly, with it he would take the life you've built for yourself, which I've worked alongside all of you to implement.

I ask you not to put your lives on the line for some petty grievances that I, your lord and commander, have suffered, but to preserve the way of life we ​​all built and continue to work for! Today is the day we face what was the first impediment to the dawn of a new era, the dawn of the industrial age!"

While it was not an epic speech of a lifetime, it was more than enough to rally the men and bolster their courage. Just as Artys finished his speech, the enemy's horn roared in the distance, and with it an army of 2000 men came marching towards them. However, by this point, his troops were fully enthralled by Artys's battle cry and would willingly lay down their lives if necessary.

"Forward march!"

While covered in the echo of the thundering cannons and their exploding shells, Artys personally led the cavalry in a slow trot towards the enemy cavalry; they would begin the full charge once they were in range of the enemy riders.

Before Artys could reach the enemy forces, the artillery's explosive shells destroyed his enemy's lightly armored range forces. Shrapnel filled the air as the explosive blast ripped bodies apart, blood and limbs flying across the field, creating a chaotic death scene. The hiss of projectiles in the air was all that could be heard before the detonation claimed the lives of their enemies. Enemy forces have already begun to panic; they had never witnessed such a terrifying sight before, they thought to themselves that the wrath of the gods had descended on them. Fortunately, Lord Grafton, who had some military talent, quickly rallied his troops.

"Hold the line! Hold the line!"

He called the men of his army who were being torn apart by artillery fire. However, as they prayed to themselves, they marched towards Artys's forces. A decision that would ultimately be his undoing.

When the enemy Knights spotted Artys's cavalry advancing towards his position, they began a full-scale attack. With the heavily armored knights at their backs, the pace of horses in steel armor was enough to strike fear into any average soldier. Still, Artys just looked at them with a grim smile as he gave the order to his own cavalry forces.

"To charge!"

Their cavalry forces far outnumbered those of the enemy, and just as the two forces were about to clash with their spears, the 100 cuirassiers drew their pistols with both hands and pulled the hammers from their flintlocks. The sound of 200 pistols firing in unison as their lead bullets shattered enemy knights' armor was a sight to behold. In a single second, all of the enemy knights, without exception, fell from their horses, their lifeless bodies crashing to the ground like steel coffins. Thus, the battle began and the enemy's elite forces were crushed under the heel of the Runestone ruler.

***

The roar of the cannons fired in unison echoed throughout the vicinity of the battlefield as the soldiers remained in their line formations. The front line aimed their muskets, while the second line stayed behind them with their muskets raised. Instantly, the massive amount of lead flying downrange decimated the enemy forces. At best, enemy infantry were equipped with brigandine cuirass. However, such obsolete equipment could not protect the men who used it from the musket's devastating effect.

As the soldiers quickly began to reload, the rear line advanced with their guns pointed in the direction of their enemies, many of whom had not yet recovered from the shock of their front line being torn apart. Within seconds, the order to fire was given, and at Ser Julius's command, another volley of thunderous gunfire riddled the enemy lines. By this time, much of the enemy force no longer dared to fight and began to make their way.

Lord Grafton looked on in horror as he witnessed his glorious army slaughtered before his eyes. He had never witnessed such a crushing defeat. Though their forces far outnumbered Artys' in terms of numbers, they were quickly overwhelmed by the mysterious weapons in the hands of their enemy's well-trained soldiers. His knights led by his eldest son and heir were dead, the ranks of his infantry were shattered, and what little remained of his archers had already started the route.

As such, he quickly gave the command to retreat, while shouting to any troops that could still hear him.

"Retreat! Retreat to the City! Retreat!"

Just as Gerold gave the command to retreat, he heard once more the thunder of the guns and the whistle of the shot in the air, however this time it was not grapeshot that was fired, but a solid ball. The 12-pound cannonball flew towards him and pierced his chest, exploding his body. The Lord who supported Andar in his attempts to assassinate Artys's life was completely and utterly dead.

His orders to retreat were also in vain, as Gerold Grafton gave his last command, Artys's edict resounding in the air as he arrived with the Cavalry, who instantly slammed into the deflecting forces, cutting them down in the process.

"Don't give quarters!"

With that command, the musketeers quickly abandoned the reloading process and began a massive bayonet charge. Nearly 1,000 infantry armed with muskets that had their bayonets affixed surrounded the rout enemy forces and reaped their lives like wheat to the scythe.

The gruesome display of the chaotic battlefield was enough to make your stomach turn. The enemy forces were quickly surrounded and pierced in the weak points of their armor by bayonets. Artys swooped down from his horse with his saber decapitating a soldier who was trying to attack him, he couldn't help but feel that this was where he was supposed to be, leading his forces in an assault on their defeated foes. This was an absolutely humiliating loss for House Grafton, whose surviving forces were quickly cut to pieces.

After defeating the enemy army, his troops erupted in applause and celebration. The enemy army had been annihilated, leaving only a pile of corpses from its ranks. Due to the archers being decimated early in the battle and the heavy cavalry wiped out early on, the most serious injury was a few small lacerations caused by the desperate souls.

Artys was impressed with the performance. His victory was overwhelming. Who in this feudal age could compete with the power of steel and gunfire? As his troops cheered, he reloaded his pistols as Ser Julius approached him.

"Congratulations on the landslide victory, my Lord!"

Artys smiled and accepted the gesture before looking up at Ser Julius, who stood beneath his mighty steed.

"We may have won the battle, but the war is still going on. Get the army on the march; I want a siege camp built outside the walls of Gulltown before nightfall!"

With their orders given, the army quickly began to march to the nearby city, where they would begin the long process of laying siege to the remaining enemy forces hidden cowardly behind the City walls.