The First Vampire

The light of dawn vanquished the darkness, as well as the fear that shrouded the people’s hearts.

The chaos in the Uman clan’s camp had finally subsided.

However, when Colin sent messengers to find Count Uman, they found no trace of him.

“What? He ran away?”

“Yes, my lord. Not only Count Uman but also the army of the Uman clan is moving rapidly to the south.”

Colin snorted coldly, the Count Uman must be a rabbit, he ran so fast.

However, this also showed that Count Uman was extraordinarily alert and decisive in his escape.

They probably guessed that Colin orchestrated the assassination last night.

But Colin would not let this enemy escape so easily, he immediately commanded, “Sir Camber, rally the army immediately and chase Count Uman!”

“Yes!” Sir Camber had already realized that Vera fully followed her husband’s advice. Therefore, the current Colin was the real controller of this army.

However, before Sir Camber could take his leave with his orders, a messenger hurriedly ran over, reporting,

“Sir, there’s movement in the enemy ranks across the river. I fear they’re trying to cross!”

“What?” Colin was taken aback, he hurriedly told Sir Camber, “Forget about Count Uman for now, gather our warriors, prepare to fight the Dawson family!”

“Yes!”

When Colin and others arrived at the Ben Liu River, they saw dozens of unusually shaped boats tethered together with iron chains, floating downstream.

The boats were broad and deep in the water, as if loaded with heavy weights to serve as ballast. The boat’s canopy was high, forming a triangle on the deck. These boats linked together appeared like an added passageway across the river.

Colin immediately recognized the enemy’s intention to construct a floating bridge and ordered the bowmen to release their arrows into the river.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

The Golden Lion Legion on the southern bank of Ben Liu River continued to barrage the river with arrows.

But the effect was less than ideal.

All the arrows were blocked by the thick canopies of the boats, causing very little damage.

Meanwhile, the dwarf boats arrived at their designated location, they dropped their anchors and tossed out two large chains. Soldiers already waiting on the opposite bank immediately rushed over, pulling the chains and driving one end securely into the ground.

However, this only secured one end. The southern end was still loose, leaving the floating bridge resembling a headless serpent, one end anchored to the northern bank while the other swung freely in the current, a short distance from the southern bank.

Just as Colin began to wonder if the enemy had miscalculated the river’s width, another large boat floated downstream.

The large boat was full of dwarven infantry clad in heavy armor and holding large shields.

Only then did Colin realize that the large boat could perfectly fill the gap in the floating bridge. Evidently, the heavily armored infantry on this boat was intended to be the vanguard of the crossing.

Creak. Creak.

The large boat gradually settled into position, thus forming the floating bridge.

Colin was stunned, evidently he had not expected the dwarven craftsmen to be this proficient.

But then again, dwarves did have racial talents in forging, construction, and civil engineering.

With the floating bridge now in place, it was unlikely that the Golden Lion Legion could inflict significant damage on the dwarves from the river.

Still, the real challenge of a river crossing was securing a foothold on the opposite bank, so the decisive moment of the battle had not yet come.

However, the smooth progress of the preliminary preparation greatly boosted the morale of the dwarven warriors, cheers that could shake the heavens continued to reverberate from the northern bank of Ben Liu River.

Marquis Dawson looked at the floating bridge on the river surface, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

He felt that he had grabbed the hem of the Goddess of Victory’s garment, as long as he held on tight, he would be able to savor the goddess’s favor.

With great ambition, Marquis Dawson waved his hand, ordering, “Beat the drums! Cross the river!”

Boom, boom, boom…

The thunderous beat of war drums announced the beginning of this campaign across the river.

A military flag slowly advancing, with the crude roars of the dwarf officers continuously echoing out. Squads of dwarf soldiers, carrying swords and round shield, walked onto the pontoon bridge, swiftly advancing towards the south bank.

Next, the bloodiest and most brutal beach landing battle was about to unfold.

At this moment, the bowmen of the Golden Lion Legion had already ceased fire and were quickly retreating.

Thousands of infantry received orders to move forward, lining up on the riverbanks, it seemed they were determined to defend the beach at all costs.

Honestly, this battle wasn’t part of Colin’s plan.

He and Scholar Doan originally planned to quickly retreat with the Golden Lion Legion back to Winterfell City and defend it with the help of its tall and solid city walls.

But plans couldn’t keep up with changes, and the enemy wouldn’t just idiotically stand there waiting to be attacked.

Last night’s camp noise must have made Marquis Dawson across the river think that there was a problem within the Golden Lion Legion, prompting him to attempt to cross the river.

Under such circumstances, Colin couldn’t afford to retreat.

After all, the dwarfs had spent all night preparing, and by early morning, they had already completed the construction of the pontoon bridge and were already starting to cross the river.

If the Golden Lion Legion was still thinking about retreating, Marquis Dawson would definitely chase after them with a vengeance, then the retreat could easily turn into a rout.

Moreover, Count Uman, who had fled, was also an uncertain factor.

Colin wasn’t sure how many combat-ready troops Count Uman could gather after last night’s camp noise, let alone knowing whether Count Uman would try to block the Golden Lion Legion mid-way after this event.

So, under such circumstances, Colin had to strike hard at Marquis Dawson who was trying to cross the river, forcing the latter to dare not pursue any further. That way, the Golden Lion Legion could retreat more comfortably.

At this moment, both armies were already clashing at close quarters.

Heavy shield infantry from the ship were the first to jump off the bow, wading through the shallow river to set up defense. Behind them, two dwarf craftsmen jumped down, pulling an iron chain trying to stake it into the ground to fully secure the pontoon bridge.

Of course, the Golden Lion Legion would not let their enemy complete this last step so easily. Under the command of the officers, the infantry at the beachhead began to slowly advance, launching an attack.

As the Golden Lion Legion moved forward, the drumbeats of war from both banks intertwined and therefrom, the battle cries finally echoed to the sky.

The two opposing sides collided at the beachhead, amid sword and spear shadows, persistent war cries, and arrow showers, countless soldiers fell to the ground with agonizing screams. Blood freely flowed, coloring a large swath of the nearby water area red in a flash.

Endless streams of dwarf soldiers replenished the battlefield through the pontoon bridge, striving to stop the advance of the Golden Lion Legion.

However, they were outnumbered. The beach was soon crowded with people, but the defense line of the front heavy shield infantry was continuously pressed backward, so the dwarf soldiers behind were squeezed together, making it even more difficult for the soldiers on the pontoon bridge to rush out.

The Golden Lion Legion’s offensive was quite fierce, as if they were determined to push the enemy into the Ben Liu River in one fell swoop.

It has to be said, although the craftsmanship of the dwarfs was extraordinary, it still couldn’t make up for the discrepancy in combat power.

Although the dwarfs were not weak, their disadvantage in stature refrained them from exerting their full strength. After all, chopping downwards naturally feels more advantageous.

Moreover, unlike the half-elves, they lacked the agile movements and impressive archery skills. Therefore, when confronting a human army, dwarfs were usually at a disadvantage.

Of course, there were too many factors that determined victory or defeat on the battlefield, and it was not solely dependent on the fighting power of the soldiers.

Besides, the battle had just begun. Neither side had deployed its main forces yet, and it could still be considered a warm-up.

However, the setback that the vanguard encountered had already caused the watching Marquis Dawson’s brows to furrow.

After all, he was a commander who had followed Marquis Garcia in campaigns all over the place. He was used to the aggressive style of the Dark Cavalry, where everywhere they went, they swept away all obstacles and were invincible. Now, seeing his own army struggle in a simple beach landing fight, dissatisfaction overwhelmed him.

“Tumu, you lead the army across the river yourself. In one hour, I want to see your military flag planted on the land across the bank!”

“Yes!” A dark-skinned dwarf robustly pounded his chest armor, causing echoes.

Then he led his troops onto the pontoon bridge.

Visibly, the pontoon bridge sank lower into the water as this group boarded. Because, the troops under the command of this dwarf officer named Tumu were all heavy-armored infantry.