At Bronze Yohn's command, Lord Follard's three sons, his third son, climbed over the waist-high fence, leaving only his second son, who was guarding him and holding a knight's shield.
Most of the Valley Knights who climbed over the fence fell directly into the mud, their clumsy heavy armor combined with their exhausted strength making it impossible for them to land steadily without falling... After falling, it was even extremely difficult for them to get back up.
"Gods!" Bronze Yohn roared in extreme grief, countless long weapons of various kinds smashing down on them, his eyes splitting with rage.
The essence of the Valley Knights was gathered here, and before Bronze Yohn could change his order, they swung the swords in their hands at the wooden stakes in front of them.
The overly dense formation left the Valley Knights with no space to dodge the long spears thrusting from behind the fence.
The Valley Knights' advance was blocked, and their formation became even denser... When one person fell in front, it often dragged down several, or even a large group of people.
Finally, the fence was cut open in many places by the fearless Valley Knights, but most of the openings were filled by the fallen bodies of the Valley Knights.
The slaughter continued; this was the Seven Hells for the Valley Knights.
The pride of the Valley Knights had kept them going until now, but their conviction of victory had already begun to waver when they trudged through the mud under a rain of arrows.
The finest knights of the Vale of Arryn were gathered here, their bodies already exhausted, their eyes beginning to glaze over.
Ahead, Kleber's long spears and the fence seemed like an insurmountable barrier, harvesting their lives every moment.
Underfoot, the wails of their comrades rose and fell, as if the stranger were calling to them.
The Valley Knights were packed tightly together, and a sense of despair spread through the air, covering everyone's heart like a dark cloud.
Bronze Yohn kept shouting to attack, but the pride and courage of the Valley Knights had already been exhausted.
The Valley Knights suddenly collapsed, their retreat like a breaking dam, unstoppable.
However, they had forgotten the large mud pit behind them, which they and their warhorses had trampled, and there... for them, it was still a death trap.
They were knocked down... tripped... slipped... fell... The exhausted Valley Knights, driven by the thought of escaping this earthly hell, desperately fled backward.
Not long after, another "dark cloud" rose from Kleber's army, sweeping like a gale towards the retreating Valley Knights.
...
Lord Royce was actually defeated by wildlings?! The nearly ten thousand Valley Knights remaining in the rear also began to stir.
Anxiety and fear spread like a tide, and almost everyone felt as if they were enveloped in darkness.
Ser Jeewood, the heir to Longbow Hall, who was overseeing the rear, did not know how to deal with this unexpected situation; he, who was usually so arrogant... seemed so flustered at this moment.
"Attack!" Someone suddenly shouted, and the voice sounded particularly harsh at this moment.
Ser Jeewood looked angrily in the direction of the voice, but before he could see clearly, responses appeared in the army formation.
"Attack!"
"Attack! Attack!"
"Attack! Attack! Attack!"
First a few people... then a group of people... finally, almost everyone was roaring "Attack."
They had thought this was a game of hunting wildlings... That sudden voice made the panicked Valley Knights feel as if they had suddenly found a way to break through their current situation.
Someone spurred their horse forward, and with the first came the second... They actually, without receiving orders, rushed towards the direction of Kleber's army.
Ser Jeewood and Lady Anya tried to stop them, but their voices were drowned out by the thunderous hoofbeats.
Why did Bronze Yohn make the Valley Knights under his command march on foot? It was because the wheat fields ahead were forbidden territory for horses; they had no choice but to make the knights dismount and become infantry.
"Gods, this is suicide!" The Valley Knights had already broken away from his command, and Ser Jeewood could only roar in place.
...
"Attack! Attack!" Some of the cavalry shouted while slowing their horses, gradually breaking away from the charging formation with their skilled horsemanship.
Among the Valley Knights participating in the agreed battle, some had hired freelance riders to do odd jobs, totaling over 1,000 people.
And among these freelance riders, some had received two or three gold dragons, and it was they who suddenly shouted the slogan to attack.
For them... the small money they received from the Valley Knights who hired them was far less than the other one or two employment fees they received in private.
Moreover, the task was very simple.
Someone approached them in private and said: This agreed battle is known throughout the Seven Kingdoms; only by slaughtering the wildlings of Crabclaw Point who dare to provoke can they be worthy of the Valley Knights' nobility and honor, and their task is to secretly instigate... to use the swords of the Valley Knights to bleed the wildlings of Crabclaw Point dry as much as possible.
Many were still struggling with how to get these generous gold dragons when another person approached them: he told them when to shout what slogans, and these slogans summarized to... True Valley Knights never retreat.
After thinking about it, it seemed that all the employers'... goals were consistent? Therefore, some lucky freelance riders accepted the double windfall with a clear conscience.
So, the trustworthy freelance riders, at the appropriate time, according to their private agreement, stirred up the Valley Knights' resolve for a decisive battle.
As for what the consequences of initiating a decisive battle would be... How could the noble knight lords possibly lose to those wildlings? Even if there were some setbacks, it was absolutely impossible to lose this battle concerning the honor of the Vale.
Then why did they slip away from the charging formation? Freelance riders were only hired to do odd jobs; they were not qualified to participate in the Valley Knights' battle of honor.
...
Who were the two people who privately bribed these freelance riders? One was Littlefinger, the other was Lord Green.
Littlefinger's goal was to make Crabclaw Point and the Alliance of the Righteous suffer mutual losses, or rather, he hoped that both sides would perish together; this result would make it easier for him to seize control of the Vale.
As for Lord Green's goal, it was similar; he hoped to eliminate as many obstacles as possible for the upcoming conquest of the Vale in this rare opportunity of a battlefield.
Therefore, Lord Green and Littlefinger both used seemingly innocuous covert methods, which intensified the ferocity of the war.
...
...
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