Chapter 80: Chapter 78: Military Types (3rd update, please subscribe)
The Dragon Nest Legion, rigorously trained, could easily face any Beastman Tribe with their group assault power in a direct confrontation. However, against enemies like the Centaurs that rely on speed, they found themselves at a disadvantage.
Such agile and mobile enemies, once they see the situation turning unfavorable and start fleeing, there’s no way to catch up with them.
When exterminating the Blood Wolves initially, Austin had to use the strategy of trapping them in to deal with the Blood Wolves. In hindsight, if the Centaur Clan had been used back then, there would have been no need to waste strategies on those beasts.
Austin had long considered establishing a cavalry force. After exterminating the Blood Wolves, he once obtained several Blood Wolf cubs. Now these cubs had grown somewhat, but establishing a Wolf Cavalry force still seemed far off due to their insufficient numbers.
Two months ago, the Dragon Nest Tribe had broken through a Minotaur Tribe and acquired a herd of domesticated wild cattle. Back then, Austin also thought about establishing Cow Cavalry.
However, upon actual implementation, it was discovered that the wild cattle lacked both explosive power and endurance. They could barely be used as Heavy Cavalry for charges, which differed greatly from Austin’s plans for swift-moving Light Cavalry to chase down the enemy.
Additionally, no Beastman Tribe thus far could withstand the frontal assault of the Dragon Nest Beastman Legion, rendering the immediate need for similar Heavy Cavalry minimal. Hence, Austin only trained a small group of twelve Cow Cavalry as a reserve, to be expanded and brought onto the battlefield when heavy cavalry was needed in the future.
"Cavalry... it wasn’t a loss expending such effort to conquer this Centaur Tribe."
Now, with this group of Centaur captives, once they were trained and integrated into the Dragon Nest Tribe, the cavalry’s pursuing shortfall would soon be remedied.
Thus, not only would the military strength of the Dragon Nest Tribe increase substantially, but they would also have a wider array of tactical options for future campaigns.
"Although these Centaurs have surrendered, the war was quite fierce. During their military training and transformation, constant attention must be paid to their psychological state, and proper guidance should be provided."
At this moment, although the flames in the Centaur Tribe had been extinguished, thick smoke continued to rise slowly. Most of the houses had collapsed, beams fell and were charred black by the smoke, and the inflammable thatched roofs had burned to ashes, which scattered all over and filled the air, turning the entire tribe into ruins.
Quik’s use of the Flame Burst Technique was indeed powerful, yet also fortunate.
After the flame’s explosion, it ignited the dry wooden and thatched houses in the tribe, spreading swiftly and causing chaos among the centaurs who had been shooting arrows inside. Coupled with the assault of the Dragon Nest Beastman Legion, the Centaur Tribe was easily defeated.
This also served as a reminder for Austin.
The houses in the Dragon Nest Tribe were similar in structure to those of the Centaur Tribe. A careless fire could potentially lead to a major disaster, so it seemed essential to replace the houses with brick-and-tile ones. Luckily, the Goblins had already mastered the brick-making technique, with tiles probably not too far behind either.
Though the Kawa Great Forest did not lack rainfall, the sun was fierce. The thatched roofs dried fast after a rain, making accidental fires very possible.
Moreover, while fire prevention was a regular concern, an enemy-induced fire could result in a situation similar to what befell the Centaur Tribe, which would be perilous.
"Uh, Your Highness, what do you mean by psychological state..."
While Austin was quickly processing numerous thoughts, Quik cautiously inquired from the side.
"Oh, that, let’s discuss it back at the tribe. I’ll teach you then."
Austin wasn’t a psychologist in his previous life, but he had some knowledge, akin to knowing how bacon tastes without ever having seen a pig. It merely involved further splitting some areas in brainwashing courses, but here wasn’t an appropriate place to discuss this.
Austin walked towards the clearing, as the Dragon Nest Beastmen gradually brought out various spoils from the scorched, collapsed houses, piling them into a small hill.
Among the spoils were wooden spears, sharp stone knives and axes, stone pots and bowls, longbows, arrows, food, and more, with food being the majority, represented by many miscellaneous types.
Picking up a longbow, blackened by smoke and stained with blood — whose, unknown — Austin pulled it to feel its strength. The bow limb’s material was unknown, but its elasticity was remarkable — no wonder it was so powerful, with the bowstring likely made from horsehair.
"Is this self-sufficiency?"
A scene suddenly flashed in Austin’s mind:
A Centaur plucking hairs one by one from its tail, rolling them into a bundle, tying them to the bow’s ends to string it...
Shaking his head to dispel the nonsensical thoughts, Austin continued.
"These bow and arrow weapons manufactured by the Centaurs are impressive. Quik, have the Goblins at the manufacturing workshop learn bow-making techniques from the Centaurs when we return, to produce them as soon as possible."
If they could mass-produce bows and arrows, it would doubtlessly benefit the Dragon Nest Beastman Tribe’s strength attributed increase massively.
With bows and arrows, the Beastman Legion could further distinctively introduce another military division, the archers.
Infantry, archers, cavalry—these were the three main types of ancient military forces from Austin’s past life before firearms and artillery became prevalent, and they surely had their merits.
The stratification into these three military types promised an inevitable enhancement of the Dragon Nest Tribe’s power.
"Yes, Your Highness."
Nodding, Austin tossed the longbow back onto the pile.
His main goal wasn’t attacking the Centaur Tribe; that was merely a bonus. He hadn’t forgotten his true purpose for coming here.
Exploring the cliff caves in the nearby valley, presumably mage remnants left behind, was of utmost priority for this trip.
As Austin prepared to lead his men to explore the valley and cliffs, a small, hairy, oval object the size of a fist suddenly rolled off the pile of food, landing at his feet.
This was a coincidental result of him discarding the longbow earlier, likely some food or grain.
Initially dismissive, a mere sidelong glance piqued Austin’s curiosity. He crouched to pick up the rounded object and sniffed it:
"Is this... taro?"