Chapter 39: Starting the War

Early the next morning, as the bugle sounded, Snorri rose and headed to the mess hall. There he saw Balin, who was packing dry rations for the warriors.

Since no one knew how long the war would last, every Dwarf Warrior was also issued a piece of stone bread with meat and a leather pouch of ale for emergencies. The original mess hall staff was insufficient, so administrative Dwarfs were also called in to help.

The pre-war food had improved, consisting of fresh roasted meat and barley cakes served with beer.

Snorri took his portion and found a place to sit down when, suddenly, a young Dwarf ran over.

Judging by his beard, his age was similar to Snorri's, and from his equipment, it was easy to see that this was a young Dwarf Warrior.

The young Dwarf spoke, his voice somewhat timid. "Respected Cho, Chosen of the Goddess! I am Edsen from Jiliuguan. This is my first time on the battlefield, and I, I am a bit afraid!"

The young Dwarf felt ashamed of his cowardice. "The Longbeard elders all say this is not good, but I still want to ask if you could bestow a blessing upon me?"

Upon hearing this, Snorri nodded. He set down his tray, imitated the methods of certain priests from his past life, reached out his hand to stroke Edsen's head, and said:

"May the Ancestor Goddess protect you, my kin! May strength and courage be with you!"

Snorri gave his most heartfelt blessing; although his voice was not loud, it seemed to instantly soothe the tense pre-war atmosphere in the dining hall.

Watching the young clansman leave excitedly, Snorri suddenly gained a glimmer of insight into the meaning of leadership.

After finishing breakfast, Snorri arrived at the outpost entrance to assemble. Genuomu-Suiluozhe was to review the troops with him one last time. The Dwarf side's order of battle for this engagement was as follows:

Genuomu-Suiluozhe (Dwarf Lord)

40 Hammer Guard

Snorri Thorsson (Rune Master)

40 Anvil Guard

10 Hammer Guard (Eternal Hammer Guard)

60 Quarreller

60 Thunderer

20 Irondrake

2 Bolt Thrower

Prospector (Tanchuozhang)

"Kin! Hear me!" Big 'Un Genuomu stood on a rock in the plaza and spoke.

"Today is a good day to settle a Grudge! In the previous battles, we have worn down the Greenskins' spirit through our heroic performance! Their strength has been further diminished by their infighting with the Dizhijiaohaoshu!

Now is the time to deliver the final blow! Let us retake Karak-Varn together! Let us bring the mineral deposits in Heishui Hu back under our control! Move out!"

The Dwarfs' assembly did not escape the notice of the Goblin Wolf Rider, who rode a dire wolf and sped back to Karak-Varn to report to the boss.

After receiving the news, Boss Lie-Fu quickly assembled his troops. "Babu, call the boys who are catching rats underground back for me! The stunties from the mountain have actually come out; I don't know who gave them the guts to face me!" Boss Lie-Fu roared at the Orc Captain.

"As for the rest, whether they are Goblins or Big 'Un, get to the main gate and assemble for me!"

Because the Greenskins in the city had been harassing the Dwarf outpost while fighting the Skaven underground, they had remained in a state of combat readiness, and soon the area in front of the gate of Karak-Varn was crowded with all sorts of Greenskins.

Boss Lie-Fu walked out of the castle, stood between two totem poles painted with Gork and Mork, and spoke:

"Lads! I know you don't want to stay in this godforsaken place anymore! No fights to be had, no Mushroom Brew to drink, and I, Boss Lie-Fu, am not happy either!"

Listening to the empathetic roars of the Greenskins below, Boss Lie-Fu was very satisfied.

"I know you're all sick of smashing those tin cans; their meat tastes like dirt and is hard to chew!" Hearing this, the Greenskins laughed even more wantonly.

"I also know you've had enough of hacking those rats! They have too much fur, and they aren't enough for a Waaagh! even if they get stuck in your teeth!

So, I have decided to leave this hellhole and fight our way back to the Badlands. I want to use my Battle Axe to tell those idiots who the most Waaagh! Orc is! Are you willing to follow my lead?"

Boss Lie-Fu raised his axe with both hands and roared at the sky.

Listening to the excited cries of the Greenskins, Boss Lie-Fu issued his order:

"Form up! Gork is above! Let us Waaagh! together!"

The Orc Captain led his War Pig to the boss's side. "Doing it the old way?" he asked, looking at the Dwarf army gathered behind the caltrops at the foot of the hill.

"Hmph, that's the only way! Run them over!" Boss Lie-Fu gripped the Battle Axe in his hand.

"Waaaagh!" He let out a roar with all his might, and a great battle began!

The Orc Captain rode his War Pig in the lead, followed by over a hundred Boar Boyz; they charged down the mountain path, attempting to open a path for the Orcs behind them.

Behind the War Pig Cavalry were Boss Lie-Fu and his Big 'Un honor guard, who formed the spearhead of the second echelon, with two hundred Orc Boyz behind them.

"Dense formation!"

"Fire!"

Seeing the swarming Greenskins, Genuomu and Snorri issued the order simultaneously.

"Bang! Bang!" "Whoosh! Whoosh!"

The Thunderers and Quarrellers opened fire. Because the distance was too great, neither the accuracy of the shots nor the power of the bullets was ideal. Their first volley only took down fewer than ten cavalrymen, and by the time they reloaded, the Orcs had already covered half the distance.

"Lads! Provide covering fire! Shoot them hard for me!" This was the shrill voice of the Goblin Shaman.

He did not charge down the mountain in the first wave, but hid behind a bulletproof bunker on the hillside, directing the Orcs and Goblins armed with crude bows and arrows to return fire.

The Orcs' arrows did not have much power, making only "Ding!" and "Ding!" sounds as they struck the meteor-iron Plate Armor, but they did distract the front-row Dwarfs to some extent.

After the Dwarf long-range fire launched another volley, the remaining seventy-plus Orc cavalrymen approached the caltrops.

"Waaaagh!" The Captain also roared, swinging his cleaver to hack open a section of the fortifications. Some riders were lucky enough to maneuver their War Pigs to jump over the caltrops, some failed to clear them and were skewered on the spikes, and others crashed directly into the caltrops.

The scene was in chaos, and the momentum of the cavalry's charge slowed.

Having lost another twenty-plus Orcs, they finally destroyed most of the makeshift fortifications. With only half the cavalry remaining compared to when they started, they circled back and regained their speed.

"Charge in! I'll reward whoever survives with a suit of Plate Armor!" the Orc Captain roared. He had two crossbow bolts stuck in him, and the pain only fueled his ferocity.

Watching the War Pig Cavalry charging toward him, Grom Skull-Cracker already had experience. "Ironbreakers! Hold the line for me! In the name of the Ancestor Gods!"

This time, the unit holding the front line with him was not just Dwarf Warriors with a few scattered Ironbreakers mixed in; the troops Grom Skull-Cracker had recruited from Karaz-a-Karak were put to great use.

Thanks to book friend and Low-key Brother Qiu for the monthly tickets. I have something to attend to today, so I will add an extra update tomorrow night.