Steel Empire
Cavalry Offensive

The sound of horns echoed throughout the camp where Berengar's troops had gathered, signaling it was dawn, so that it was time for the troops to rise from their tents. Berengar was up and taking care of his horse; it was a pitch-black destroyer from the noble stock. The beast was truly extraordinary as its gleaming obsidian mantle glittered in the rising sun. Berengar named this horse Erwin after the famous German general of his previous life. The young regent had spent quite a bit of money to obtain an outstanding horse for his war horse, and as such, he tended to indulge the stallion.

He quickly attached a barding steel plate to the horse, which was blackened to fit his armor and had a brass decoration on it. Unlike normal cuirassiers, Berengar had chosen to protect his horse appropriately; after all, he did not wish to lose such a majestic being due to the horrors of war. After attaching the armor to the horse, he climbed up on the saddle and waited for the people to gather. They will soon march into enemy territory and hopefully engage their troops on the battlefield.

Before long, his troops had gathered and loaded their rifles, setting up a firing mechanism in half a chicken so that they were ready for battle at that very instant. As for the so-called professionals, they were equipped with spear and main sword as side weapons. The use of the spear was an innovation in which Berengar had equipped his father's professional army standard infantry after he ascended to the regent position. It did not take long for the infantry to become proficient in its use and formation, as it was much easier to train a group of pikemen than to train a gunner, artillery, or cuirassier.

Soldiers march together at dawn under the banner of House von Kufstein. By the time they fought the enemy forces, they were only a few kilometers away from the main city in the region; they were sandwiched between two mountain ranges and were in the valley below. However, they were still far away from the enemy forces, allowing Berengar's forces to break into the formation.

The artillery battery quickly arranged the weapons at an appropriate distance from the battlefield where the army was organized. The Artillery's main targets were archers and arrows used by enemy forces; if they could annihilate them before the infantry clashed, the casualties on Berengar's side would be greatly reduced.

While his artillery got into position and loaded 12 field guns, Berengar took over the Cavalry, a mix of Knights and Cuirassier with heavy armor. There were about 110 Cavalrymen in Berengar's army, which was much larger than the opposing army. With 80 Cuirassier, each armed with a pair of pistols, they had the ability to attack enemy knights with 160 shots which was far more shots than was necessary to eliminate the enemy knights. If fired from close range, it was more than enough to kill the rider or their horse. Thus, his cavalry would take on the role of hunting down and destroying the enemy knights.

As for the infantry, they were led by Eckhard and corresponding officers under his command. The militia gunners were an effective force capable of refilling their rifles within seven seconds; they would approach the enemy troops while flanked by pikeman, the report said, and firing shots when they are within enough range to deliver the most damage, then pikemen will protect them as they recharge and fire again. If necessary, they could repair their bayonets and help pikemen in close combat.

This was the strategy Berengar had chosen; once his army was ready for battle, he ordered marching into enemy positions.

While overwhelmed by the rumbling reverberations of his weapons and explosive bullets, Berengar personally led the cavalry by running slowly towards the enemy cavalry; they would start a full assault once they were within the reach of the enemy knights. Fortunately his cuirassier was supported by the veteran knights; considering they were the latest branch of his army and had yet to be tested in battle, it was good to have the knights beside them in such circumstances.

Before Berengar could even reach the enemy forces, the exploding artillery shells tore through the enemy's light-armored long-range troops. Shrapnel filled the air, while explosive explosions tore through bodies, blood, and limbs flying across the field creating chaotic death scenes. The bullet whistle in the air was the only one that could be heard before the explosion claimed the lives of their enemies. The enemy troops had already started to panic; they had never witnessed such a frightening sight before, they thought that the wrath of God had descended upon them. Fortunately the Marshal was a veteran of many battles and quickly gathered his troops.

"Hold in line! Hold queue!"

he called out to the men from his army who were crushed by artillery fire. Nevertheless, while praying to themselves, they marched towards Berengar's army. A decision that will ultimately be their downfall.

When the enemy Knights saw Berengar's cavalry rushing towards their positions, they began a full-scale attack. With the heavily armored knights on their backs, stepping on the horses in steel barding was enough to instill fear into any average soldier. Still, Berengar only stared at them with an evil grin as he gave orders to his own cavalrymen.

"Resigning charges!"

His Cavalry force was far more than the number of enemies, and just as the two armies were about to clash with their spears, the 80 cuirassier took out their pistols in both hands and pulled back the hammers on their flintlock mechanism. The sound of 160 pistols exploding simultaneously as their lead balls tore through the armor of the enemy knights was a spectacle to behold. In one second, all but a few enemy knights fell from their horses, their lifeless bodies smashing into the ground like steel coffins. The remaining knights sat in shock on horseback; however, they were actually hit by the enemy knights and their spears, ending their miserable lives before they could even react. Just like that, the battle had begun, and the most elite enemy forces were destroyed under the heel of the Kufstein Regent.