Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

"You all stay here, I’ll move the mercenaries to the west to replace our veterans!"

Messenger Officer Lop hastily spoke a few words before rushing past the veterans heading south towards the wooden wall. At the wooden wall, a group of more than thirty Shenluo mercenaries led by Captain Reinhardt were hiding in the shadows of the log wall. Messenger Officer Lop squinted, taking several breaths to spot Reinhardt standing at the wall’s edge with a backpack, listening intently. He quickly rushed forward, issuing orders harshly.

"Reinhardt! Quickly! Go to the west to support the Holy War veterans! It’s the commander’s order!"

"What are you saying? Come closer, I can’t hear you!"

"The commander said, you need to support the west! If we survive tonight, tomorrow you’ll get three months’ pay from the spoils!"

"Oh?! Three months’ pay, and we have to use those lousy spoils to cover it?"

Upon hearing this, Reinhardt grinned faintly, looking at the anxious Messenger Officer Lop standing right in front of him. The surrounding mercenaries also crowded close, blocking the distant veterans’ view. Reinhardt squinted, sizing up this constantly barking commander’s confidant, asking doubtfully.

"What’s happening in the west? How did the natives cause such a commotion? Did they set off cannons?"

"Ah, Almighty witness! It’s not cannons, it’s the natives deploying arquebusiers!"

"Oh! So you’re asking us mercenaries to go and stop the lead bullets from the matchlock guns?"

"No, no! Reinhardt, we’re all fish in the same net, we must hold off the natives’ attack tonight! Hold them off, tomorrow we’ll board the ship and retreat!..."

"So that’s it! Still, we’re being asked to be cannon fodder..."

"Reinhardt, it’s an order... uh! Huh! Huh..."

Messenger Officer Lop suddenly jolted, a fine steel dagger ruthlessly stabbed into the gap of his breastplate at his lower back, and his mouth was suddenly covered by Reinhardt! His face showed an expression of disbelief and fear, staring at Reinhardt. He wanted to shout something but couldn’t utter a single loud cry.

"You... you..."

"Go, wave the torch for the Cuba Kingdom’s warriors! Open the gate, let the warriors in!"

"Then, as planned earlier, we’ll pretend to run away! Along the village wall, moving east then north, shouting as we flee, don’t actively engage the Castilians’ veterans... remember?"

"Remembered! Leader!"

"Hurry up and act!"

The Shenluo mercenaries were impatient, each carrying a coarse hemp backpack. In that backpack packed a small piece of gold, worth tens or hundreds of gold coins, which was the "Kingdom of Portugal and Cuba Kingdom" paying them their yearly salary in advance! And the real bulk of the gold, as much as twenty pounds, was in Captain Reinhardt’s backpack, serving as a "ticket" to entice the captains to let them aboard!

"Chief Divine bless! The gatekeeping Shenluo tribe waved the torch, the wooden wall gate opened! It’s time to sacrifice for the Chief Divine!"

Warrior Captain Kepili’s eyes were fierce, observing the agreed movements on the wooden wall, taking a deep breath. Then, he glanced around him, at the hundred Kingdom’s heavy armored warriors and seventy grassland barbarian soldiers, roaring like beasts.

"Roar! Charge inside! Kill all the white-skinned demons! Divine war is eternal!"

"Chief Divine bless! Divine war is eternal!"

"Roar! Kill! Kill! Devour! Devour!"

The roars of the Kingdom’s warriors and grassland barbarian soldiers were filled with frenzy and ruthlessness. This was both cruelty towards their enemies’ lives and their own! Then, Warrior Captain Kepili shouldered the heavy battle axe, leading the elite warrior personal soldiers, quickly rushing into the demons’ wooden fort.

"Roar! We’ve come to kill!"

Kepili charged into the last demon stronghold, scanning all around. The few four-pound cannons placed on the wooden wall, these most dangerous thunderbolt ritual artifacts, were now empty with no one operating them. Looking further behind the wooden wall, the group of more than thirty Shenluo mercenaries bypassed the veterans to seize the road "escape", shouting loudly and crazily.

"Demon! Demon! Cipangu’s devil barbarians have broken in! So many barbarians, they are unstoppable!"

"They’re heading for the wooden fort, to chop off Commander Antonio’s head! Their target is the Commander!"

"Right! Go stop them! Go stop them!"

"?! Stop! Stop! Reinhardt, you can’t escape?!"

"Damn! Barbarian warriors are breaking in! Twenty, forty, sixty... Damn it! They’re at least five times our number, they all seem to have armor!"

The twenty-man squad of Holy War veterans guarding the south had been alarmed by such a terrifying upheaval! Seeing the overwhelming rush of armored barbarian warriors, they no longer had any time to manage the cowardly fleeing Shenluo mercenaries. Squad Captain Old Gil assessed the situation, flushed with rage suddenly. He immediately took out the warning horn and blew on it urgently!

"Doo-woo! Doo-woo!!"

This was the most dangerous urgent horn, signaling the most critical life and death moment! As the horn sounds finished, Squad Captain Old Gil tossed the horn with force, fervently and fanatically shouting out the suicidal slogan!

"Queen! Glory! Death!"

"So many barbarians! Tonight is the day we die in battle here, to journey to the Divine Country Heaven!"

"Follow my charge! Slay the demons!"

"Slay the demons!"

The twenty Holy War veterans unanimously shouted their final slogan! Then, like madmen, with a shield in one hand and a longsword in the other, they launched a desperate counter-charge against the approaching barbarian warriors! The opponent’s numerical advantage was too great, in such circumstances, there was no way to form a line and they would be surrounded from all sides! And in just moments, the situation developed as expected! Over a hundred Kingdom’s heavy armored warriors surged in like a tide, encircling and fiercely slaughtering this squad of veterans!

"Die! Face your death!"

Squad Captain Old Gil battled ferociously, raising a heavy shield strike followed by a slash of his longsword! His savage sword strike was swift and fierce, directly cutting into a warrior’s neck, splattering red all over his face! But as he struck his second blow, it hit something unusually solid!

"Clang! Thud!"

Old Gil’s arm shook, the overly familiar feeling made him widen his eyes instantly. It’s breastplate! Castilian-style steel breastplate! Among the attacking barbarian warriors, some were wearing breastplates identical to theirs!

"Ah! Uh! Huh..."

Both sides from the outset swung and struck in fervent offense, together heading towards death! Old Gil only went soft and numb for a couple of breaths, an exceptionally sharp steel sword cleaved and struck his neck!

"Damn! These barbarians don’t even know how to use longswords, wielding them like long battle axes! Almighty..."

Old Gil slumped, vision swimming in red. In the final moments of his life, he only cursed the foolish barbarians before collapsing. The brutal fighting continued for half an hour until reinforcements led by Antonio arrived, at which point Kepili had already cut down the last veteran in the squad. Then, squinting, he looked across at the demon leader, laughing provocatively.

"Come! Face your death, demon!"