Blackish-grey smoke instantly billowed from both ends of the city, and two successive booming sounds caused the floor of the watchtower to tremble slightly. After the roar, cheers erupted from below the city walls, as striking before the enemy was clearly a significant morale boost.
However, Willien knew in his heart that the first round of firing was all there would be.
Sure enough, after a few moments, two clumps of mud erupted in the fields, with not a single shot hitting the enemy, and even the predicted impact points deviated significantly from the previous practice. After landing, the cannonballs bounced and rolled forward a short distance, plowing a ten-meter-long shallow trench in the muddy battlefield.
Today was not a windless day, which meant that the Boulder Cannons would need more trial shots to hit their targets.
He was well aware that the cannons that Goldenspike City had built at great expense were vastly different from the long-barreled cannons used by Roland, even more so than the gap between muskets.
The most obvious point was that the Boulder Cannons could not move freely.
To prevent the cannon bodies from exploding, the craftsmen had melted down almost all the bronze utensils in the city, including the ancient bell in the bell tower. The finished product, manufactured after many experiments, was enough to overwhelm any carriage, with a barrel wall about an arm's length thick. It could only be erected in specially built gun towers, with elevation and direction controlled by winches, and each shot required at least a quarter of an hour to load.
In addition, the spherical cannonballs it fired were made of polished granite, and could not produce violent explosions like Roland's bombardment of the royal capital. Willien had also tried hollow cannonballs that could contain snow powder, but they were not only very unstable to use, but their production was also very low due to the iron shell—he had always wondered where Roland got so many raw materials from.
Therefore, from the beginning, the Duke's defensive strategy was to restrict the opponent's artillery from发挥 as much as possible.
As long as he forced the enemy to approach the city to fight, his Boulder Cannons would always have a moment to smash the opponent's head.
After a round of shooting, Roland's army surprisingly stopped advancing, seemingly intimidated by this unexpected attack. They even began to retreat, stopping nearly a hundred paces away from the impact points.
"What are they doing?" Grina asked疑惑ly.
Willien raised his telescope and noticed that the hundred or so people had taken off the equipment on their backs and were digging in place—at first glance, they seemed to be planning to clear a flat area in the field.
"They're probably afraid and want to adjust their formation and fight a protracted war," a viscount who was also watching from the watchtower exclaimed. "I heard that Roland Wimbledon has completely abandoned knights, and his army is full of ignorant peasants. They previously relied on high-quality firearms to win all the way, and have basically never encountered any挫折. Now that they need to capture the city walls while enduring our attack, they are also quite hesitant. This trick of turning earth into mud is really beautiful, my lord."
"But our income and retainers have also decreased a lot," another person frowned. "Many of our领民 escaped during this year's Evil Moon, and half of the workshops have been abandoned. If possible, it's better to negotiate with Roland Wimbledon."
"There's no basis for negotiation without equal terms. We have to win a battle first no matter what."
"Shut up, all of you," Willien said不悦ly. "I will never surrender to the Kingslayer. If you would rather abandon your noble status and betray Tiffeau陛下, I will put you in the dungeon first to accompany those 暴乱 people."
The scene fell silent.
To prepare for this defensive war, Goldenspike City had indeed paid a great price. It had not only transformed from a commercial heart into a fortress, but he had also made some reluctant moves that he had not wanted to make initially. But in the Duke's eyes, all of this was worthwhile. If the Fourth Prince had started by trying to win over the nobles to control Graycastle, he would have failed long ago. But the other party chose a rebellious path, attempting to overthrow the entire noble system and seize all the power into his怀.
As long as he could thwart Roland's attack here, others would change their previous attitudes and support him to continue to lead the Eastern Territory. More opponents would also emerge in Graycastle—it could be said that he was fighting against Roland for Tiffeau陛下, and also fighting to维护 the traditional noble system.
"My lord, the Boulder Cannons are loaded!" a servant reported.
"Should we continue shooting?" Grina asked.
"No, wait a little longer… unless we add snow powder, it will be difficult for us to hit that position." Willien shook his head. He regretted ordering the shooting so quickly. He had thought that firing earlier would allow him to adjust the aim sooner, but he had not expected the other party to stop advancing because of one shot. Now, watching that group of people busy in the mud, he felt a faint sense of不安 in his heart.
The cleared flat area was only enough for two people to stand on. It didn't seem like they were preparing to camp. More than a hundred people were divided into more than a dozen groups, and after clearing the ground, they began to fiddle with those green tubes.
Under the telescope, their actions were completely visible—the tube seemed to be just a part. It had a stand below it and a recessed iron plate at the end. In addition, several 怪 sticks were 插 into the tube body. These things had all been carried on their bodies before, and it took less than a quarter of an hour to put them together temporarily, which was enough to show how exquisite the design was.
However, the next moment, the Duke could hardly believe his eyes!
He saw the other party put a spindle-shaped jar into the tube, and then a plume of white smoke spewed out from the top of the tube at a rapid speed—
While the nobles were still wondering what this thing was, more than ten dark red fireballs suddenly bloomed inside and outside the city walls, followed by a series of thunderous explosions!
Since the houses near the inner side of the city walls had been demolished, leaving only various traps and obstacles, it did not cause much personnel damage. But the shock to Willien was indescribable!
At that moment, only one voice remained in his head.
That was actually a cannon?
But how could it possibly be a cannon!?
Although the Duke had not seen Roland's artillery unit with his own eyes, he had heard people describe it many times—they were divided into two categories according to the length of the barrel. The former could be mounted on four-wheeled carriages to travel with the army, while the latter had to be transported by ships. Neither type could be carried by human power.
It took two years to build these two barely usable cannons by exhausting all the craftsmen and raw materials of Goldenspike City. This was due to a lack of skill and experience, but there was no essential difference in principle from Roland's firearms. He believed that if he gave the craftsmen a few more years, they would definitely be able to make similar weapons.
But the scene before him completely颠覆 his thinking.
How could such a thin tube withstand the enormous pressure generated when snow powder exploded?
This was根本 not common sense!
"Take out the stone bullets and add half a bag of snow powder!" the Duke turned and roared at the servant. "Shoot immediately after装好. I will reward him with ten gold dragons for hitting one person!"
The latter hesitated, "Half a bag? My lord, that might damage the cannon body—"
"If we let them attack the city walls like this, there's no point in keeping the Boulder Cannons!" Willien grabbed his collar and said, "Do as I say! Now!"
While he was giving the order, white smoke floated up again from the front of the阵地.
The interval was less than ten breaths!
This time, Willien heard a slight buzzing sound, like birds chirping, or like the whistling of arrows through the air.
"咻————"
The next moment, several dazzling fireballs rose to the top of the city walls. The scorching heat overturned the bonfires and oil basins. In the blink of an eye, the top of the wall turned into a sea of fire.