Ch 78: Improvisation

Soaked in the icy river water, the grooms, unarmed, were the first to surrender. Following their lead, the soldiers also laid down their weapons.

However, all this was far from over. More than one hundred and thirty humans accepted surrender, but the warhorses didn’t understand human speech. Seeing a few of their own wounded by arrows, the horses instantly panicked, desperately fleeing in three directions: east, north, and west.

Faced with the frenzied horse herd, Vig immediately climbed a treetop and loudly urged the horn blower not far away:

“Quick, send a signal, have them put up the tripwires!”

This farce lasted until sunset. The assault team suffered twenty-seven casualties, all from being trampled and charged by the horses. Luckily, Vig had anticipated the risk of the horses losing control and had arranged for more than thirty men to lie in wait at six intersections.

Hearing the horn, these men intercepted the herd according to plan, ultimately harvesting one hundred and forty warhorses.

After securing the reins, the Vikings carved many palm-sized wooden models of ships, setting them adrift on the river surface. As agreed, if Ivar’s unit downstream discovered this signal, it meant the upstream operation had succeeded, and they should leave as soon as possible.

After resting for a night, Vig rejected his subordinates’ suggestion to continue searching and resolutely led the horses and prisoners out of the forest.

Returning along the original road to Ratatosk, Vig found the camp outside the castle sparsely populated, and many of the banners on the city walls were gone, leaving only those of Ulf, Pascal, and Leonard.

“Pascal is a civilian official, Leonard is wounded; that means only Ulf is left guarding the city. The main army has deployed—could something have happened to Ivar?”

Entering the city gate, Vig handed over the horses to the stable and asked Ulf, who had rushed over, “What happened?”

“Last night, Ivar’s men ran back to report that they had received news of success upstream and immediately retreated. On the way, Ivar changed his mind, intending to ambush in the rear of the main Wessex force, waiting for us to attack so he could unexpectedly strike at the enemy’s rear!”

The eldest son willingly took the risk. Ragnar, while furious, was also somewhat helpless. He left Ratatosk and the wounded to Ulf and led four thousand men south along the road.

After half a day’s march, Wessex scouts noticed the Vikings’ movements, frantically harassing them while sending men back to the manor to report.

“Ragnar is taking the initiative to attack?”

With the transport of horses and supplies yet to arrive, Æthelwolf was unwilling to act hastily and repeatedly rejected his subordinates’ requests for battle.

“Your Majesty, the Vikings are six miles away.”

“Four miles now.”

With the distance rapidly decreasing, Æthelwolf ordered everyone to prepare for battle, forming a relatively conservative formation, relying on the moat excavated outside the manor for defense.

Climbing to the top of the mill, he observed the number of enemies approaching from the north. They were roughly equal to his own forces—four thousand men, less than thirty cavalry for scouting and ordering, and about eight hundred heavy infantry.

“Equal numbers, but three hundred fewer suits of iron armor. Why would he dare to take the initiative to attack?”

Æthelwolf counted his assets, including eighty Frankish riders who retained their fighting strength, and didn’t believe he would lose to the other side.

If it were a small-scale skirmish, the Vikings, with their stamina advantage, could defeat an equal number of Anglo-Saxons. However, when the scale of the troops increases, the importance of formation and discipline rises sharply.

Winchester’s palace contains a complete set of the 《Commentaries on the Gallic War》 and several other military manuals. They mention that Roman soldiers were generally shorter than Germanic and Gaulish people, but through good formations, training, and equipment, they often achieved victory against larger numbers.

From Æthelwolf’s perspective, the Viking army was filled with raiders from various places, their discipline chaotic, similar to the Germanic barbarians of old.（ He overlooked the fact that the Anglo-Saxons were also a branch of the Germanic people, originating from Schleswig in southern Denmark.）

Summoning the various unit commanders, he confidently issued his orders, “After the battle begins, use the moat to block the enemy, and wear down the Viking barbarians’ stamina. Calculate the time; the warhorses will arrive in two days. After the cavalry numbers recover to two hundred, launch a counterattack.”

“For Wessex!”

The commanders shouted the slogan and left the mill to command their respective troops. During their stay at the manor, the Wessex soldiers had dug a moat two meters deep and three meters wide around the perimeter; the excavated mud was piled up behind the moat to form an earthwork.

When the Vikings were three hundred paces from the moat, the Wessex army was ready, waiting quietly behind the earthwork for the enemy to attack.

“It seems Æthelwolf isn’t a fool.”

Ragnar, his expression serious, avoided the north side, which had the most complete defenses, leading his troops in a circle, preparing to attack from the west.

Under his command, the Wessex soldiers shifted their defensive focus to the west, where the moat was still unfinished, leaving a gap of about fifty paces of ground.

Just as they were about to attack, Gunnar suddenly shouted a halt. “Your Majesty, do you remember Vig’s trick outside York? He deliberately let the Northumbrian army into the camp, using traps to entrap nearly three thousand men. I’m worried that the other side will use a similar strategy.”

Noticing morale slowly ebbing away, Ragnar growled, “What do you suggest?”

“Create a sufficient show of force, only putting in three-tenths of our effort. Once they learn that the supply lines have been attacked and their horses stolen, they’ll naturally reveal a weakness.”

Following Gunnar’s suggestion, the Vikings replaced their supply wagons with shield carts, pushing them within range to cover the archers in the rear and engage in an exchange of arrows with the enemy.

Under a hail of arrows, hundreds of infantry slowly pushed the shield carts toward the gap. After a brief, fierce melee, the enemy behind the gap showed signs of fatigue, as if another charge would defeat them.

“Indeed, these fellows are acting.”

Seeing this, Gunnar stopped his advance and instead focused on attacking the enemy’s left and right flanks. Sensing his intention, the Wessex army’s resistance suddenly intensified. Elite soldiers in iron armor replaced the militia, driving the Vikings out of the camp in one go.

The mill.

Æthelwolf watched the battle outside the window, deeply regretting the Vikings’ alertness. “What a disappointment. Why didn’t the strategies in the military manuals work?”

Suddenly, a guard ran up to report that the cavalry had been ambushed in the shallows, and the troops sent to search had only found ten warhorses in the forest.

“What did you say?”

His prized asset rendered useless, Æthelwolf grabbed the guard by the collar, paused for a few seconds, then pushed him away. “Seal the news temporarily. Don’t let it disrupt morale.”

“Yes!”

“Wait,” the Old King called out to the guard, “Ambushed in the shallows… could there also be Vikings ambushing at the other crossing point?”

Looking at the forest at the edge of his vision, Æthelwolf sensed that he was trapped.