The Lord of the Rings: Lords of Middle-earth.

Chapter 741: Getting into the trap
"Damn it! Retreat! All infantry, cover the civilians' evacuation!" The Dovenian heavy swordsmen on the city wall roared in anger after seeing the flying magic signal flare.

"Whoosh!" The crowd drew their sharp greatswords and stood them on the city wall, then leaned their heavy shields against the breastwork to block the orcs' stray arrows.

"Archers, protect the lord and the civilians as they leave! Heavy infantry, form ranks to meet the enemy!" The Dovenian swordsmen took on the task of covering the rear.

"Let's go! My lord! Let's get out of here!" Ymir said without further ado, hoisting Lord Ismir onto his shoulders.

"Evacuate! Soldiers, protect the civilians and evacuate in an orderly manner!" Ymir ordered his soldiers in Windhelm.

Soon, the goblin knights and other soldiers gathered all the people of Windhelm Town together. More than two hundred people, carrying large and small bags prepared in advance, ran in an orderly manner towards the east gate under the guidance of the soldiers.

……

"Damn it! It's a retreat signal! General Reno and his men are outmatched! Notify the other generals to prepare to cross the river and help General Reno and his men escape!" The dragon knights who were circling over the swift river for reconnaissance could not possibly miss the huge magical signal. It was obvious that something had gone wrong with Reno.

"it is good!"

……

"Damn it! Prepare the ferry!" Upon hearing this devastating news, the generals in Lulong Fortress were stunned. However, Lafitte Anthony, with his composure, was the first to recover and turned to give orders to his soldiers.

"Luke Merck! You stay here! I'm going to meet General Reno! All dragon riders, follow me!" Lafit Anton said through gritted teeth, feeling helpless. Facing an enemy that could force Reno to retreat, Lafit Anton was also apprehensive.

……

"Pfft!" The Dovenian heavy swordsmen stationed on the walls of Windhelm were already furious. They were surrounded by orc soldiers who outnumbered them several times over, but these great heavy infantrymen showed no panic. They raised their greatswords and broadswords and crushed any enemy who tried to provoke them into the dust.

"Kill!" A torrent of sword energy swept across the city walls! Without the distraction of higher-level combatants, the Dovenian heavy swordsmen were like meat grinders among sheep, tearing the enemy apart with ferocity. Their ironclad defenses successfully brought the orcs to their senses. They hesitated, clearly terrified by the Dovenian heavy swordsmen's bloody slaughter. Even the most fanatical orcs couldn't ignore the sight of their soldiers being sliced ​​in half by these killing machines; the bloodshed and screams inevitably eroded their morale. Thus, these lone, rear-guard heavy swordsmen successfully halted the advancing orcs, with only a few bypassing Windhelm to pursue those who retreated…

"Ouch~"

Listening to the orcs' pitiful howls, Lafitt Anthony helplessly picked at his ears. Were these bastards always this brave? Who gave them the courage to face the archers lined up in formation? To charge into the rain of arrows in a dense formation? Lafitt Anthony wanted to pull up the orc captain who was riddled with arrows. No human would dare touch their chopsticks at tonight's victory celebration if he didn't show up!

As you can see, two hundred Battanian archers, plus another two hundred Battanian archers brought by Raffit Antony as reinforcements, a total of four hundred men, fired only three volleys of North Wind Arrows, and nearly a thousand orcs were pinned to the ground.

"What? You guys were running away with your tails between your legs just like that? General Renault, are you kidding me?" Lafitte Anthony was shocked by these disguised wasteland orcs. Any general would laugh at an opponent of this level! This is just like racking up battle merits.

Confident after a successful battle, Raffit Antonidas ordered the dragon riders to escort the residents of Windhelm across the river, while he led four hundred Battanian archers to support the battlefield. In his understanding, there was no reason for the enemy to run away with their level of skill.
Lafitte Antony had considered using the wyvern riders for aerial support, but after glancing at the constant shockwaves and violent explosions overhead, he decisively abandoned the idea. Didn't they see Dos Antony and the Ringwraiths were locked in a fierce battle? For the wyvern riders to rashly intervene in a clash between top-tier professionals would be tantamount to suicide! The aftershocks alone would be enough to overwhelm them, and the dense forest environment wouldn't allow them to perform at their best. Therefore, Lafitte Antony didn't force them to join the battle.

So the humans, who were supposed to retreat, rallied an infantry force under the command of Raffit Antony and returned to fight. This caught the orcs off guard. After all, most of the real elite orcs had died in the aftermath of the battle between Dos Antony and Cernar. Only a few real orc regulars joined the "fake army" to participate in the siege of Windhelm. As a result, a small but exceptionally elite human army suddenly returned. The dense rain of arrows made the orcs almost pray to the Beast God.

Fortunately, the orcs had learned their lesson and become much smarter. Under the command of the regular army, they dispersed into small groups, which deprived the archers of the fun of swatting flies. When the orcs charged over howling, the orcs showed excited expressions. After all, although the archer troops were all incredibly strong, they didn't have heavy armor to draw their bows. This gave the orcs hope of scattering these annoying "human flies".

Then their nightmare began! These archers did not show the panic the orcs expected when they faced the approaching orcs. Instead, they smiled, slung their longbows over their shoulders, pulled out a small round shield, and then picked up a shiny little hammer!
"Crack!"

"Crack!"

"Kazha!"

A sickening sound of bones cracking rang out as the charging orcs despairingly discovered that this human archer force was not only a purely professional army, but, most terrifyingly, they were also heavily armored archers! In open field battle, a scattered armored unit facing a well-organized, heavily armored, penetrating force—the final outcome is something no one can doubt… When these Battanian warriors, shouting "Long live!" and defeating the rabble's vanguard with zero casualties, entered Windhelm and joined the garrison, the orcs' fate was sealed!
Under the command of the elite orcs, these wandering orcs died in droves beneath the walls of Windhelm. This not-so-high wooden and stone wall became an insurmountable mountain for all the orcs. Raffit Antonidas was a master of micromanagement, and with his excellent frontline rotation, he ensured that his soldiers participated in the battle evenly. This not only enhanced the vitality of the defensive line but also spread the damage evenly, so that everyone could take some hits instead of relentlessly attacking the elite frontline soldiers!
By the time the orcs realized something was wrong, they had nowhere to retreat. The remaining orc soldiers, numbering less than a thousand, launched a desperate charge towards the city wall, only to be shot down halfway by the well-rested Battanian archers. Thus, the defense of Windhelm was a resounding victory!

The battle between the middle and lower horses ended in a human victory, but the battle between the upper horses was fraught with danger for the humans!
The battle between Cernar and Dos Antony was evenly matched, while Lydalias and Khammur completely overwhelmed the combination of Caslo and Reno. This made it impossible for Whis, who had been watching from the sky, to remain indifferent. The Ringwraiths then revealed their true fangs!