The loss of Vallecas meant the Saxons had officially pointed their cannon barrels at the heads of the Madrid defenders.
The Artillery Brigade of the 8th Infantry Division, eager to deploy, dragged their 105mm howitzers and 77mm field guns onto the high ground after daybreak.
After a morning of intense labor, rudimentary artillery positions were completed on the heights.
The artillerymen took turns conducting several rounds of ranging shots, preparing to establish a temporary firing table here…
Most of the shells slammed into the sturdy old city walls of Madrid, kicking up plumes of dust but causing no substantial damage.
Yet, this was enough to strike fear into the hearts of the city’s defenders.
Today, the shells were only landing on the walls. Where the Saxons would dare to throw them tomorrow was something they dared not imagine.
The atmosphere within the city grew increasingly oppressive due to the sporadic sound of artillery fire.
Douglas Haig, Commander of the Britannian Expeditionary Force, had sent multiple telegrams back home even before the Vallecas Heights were lost.
He earnestly described Madrid’s precarious situation, requesting immediate reinforcements, especially the desperately needed support from the High-Level Mage Corps.
However, the several replies from the homeland were nothing but boilerplate political talk.
In summary, they all said the same thing: ‘Hold the line firmly, and a solution will be found.’
This infuriated Haig, who nearly smashed the command post’s telegraph machine.
It wasn’t until noon that a detailed telegram from the Minister of War finally arrived.
In the telegram, the Minister of War sternly instructed Haig to hold Madrid at all costs.
He emphasized that Madrid was the Empire’s most crucial strategic foothold in the Kingdom of Aragon and its most important bargaining chip in the upcoming negotiations.
Only by holding Madrid could the Empire have room to maneuver at the negotiating table; otherwise, all previous sacrifices would be in vain…
Negotiations?
Haig looked at the telegram and, momentarily losing control, crushed the cigar in his hand.
With the war in this state, what negotiations could there be?
Would the Saxons really spit out the meat they had in their mouths?
With no other choice, Haig reluctantly went to the High-Level Mage Corps garrison in the city again.
He conveyed the news exactly as he received it to the High-Level Tutors of the Mage Corps.
He hoped they would assist him in organizing a counterattack, even if only to retake the Vallecas Heights, for the sake of the Empire’s interests.
The High-Level Tutor’s response made him want to draw the revolver at his hip.
“Please rest assured, Commander Haig, should the Saxons begin their siege, I will lead all the High-Level Mages to fight until the last moment for the glory of the Empire!”
The words sounded noble, but the unspoken meaning was perfectly clear: until the siege truly began, do not expect the Mages to risk leaving the city to meet the enemy.
They had no desire to repeat the fate of their comrades in Seville.
Haig’s last hope of launching a counterattack with the High-Level Mages’ assistance was completely dashed.
Now, he could only watch helplessly as the Saxon shells crashed onto the city walls of Madrid one after another, continuously wearing down the morale and will of the defenders…
On the other side, at the Saxon Expeditionary Force’s temporary headquarters, a heated discussion was underway regarding whether they should immediately launch the siege.
The commanders of the two Corps and their subordinate Division Commanders almost unanimously advocated for the siege.
After all, the prospect of ‘capturing the enemy capital’ held immense allure for military men.
What Saxon officer wouldn’t want to add that glorious feat to his record?
However, General Mackensen, who had previously maintained a relentless offensive, was now unexpectedly calm.
Pointing at the map, he analyzed the situation for his emotionally charged subordinates:
“Gentlemen, we have indeed advanced triumphantly to the gates of Madrid… but we have also spent over ten days doing so.”
“That time has been enough for enemy reinforcements to land on the coast and travel by rail to reinforce Madrid.”
“Not to mention, the Britannians have concentrated all the Mages they can muster in Madrid.”
He pointed heavily at Madrid on the map with his baton.
“Therefore, it’s hard to say we still hold an absolute troop advantage outside the walls of Madrid.”
“Furthermore, Madrid is the most critical city controlled by the Britannians in the Kingdom of Aragon. They will defend it with all their might, because losing Madrid means losing their right to continue playing the game in the Kingdom of Aragon.”
Mackensen’s gaze swept over every general present.
“Therefore, I judge that if we begin the siege, our two main attacking Corps must be prepared to accept major casualties…”
The generals’ excitement cooled considerably after hearing Mackensen’s analysis.
They were all experienced commanders and naturally knew Mackensen spoke the truth.
Siege warfare was historically the most brutal and bloodiest form of combat.
Yet, even so, to exert greater pressure on the defenders within the city, Mackensen issued new orders.
He mobilized all the artillery brigades subordinate to the 2nd Corps, totaling 36 105mm howitzers and 162 77mm field guns.
He ordered them to concentrate their fire on a section of the city wall whose repair status was deemed inadequate, launching a sustained bombardment.
The artillery fire was more intense than ever before, shaking the entire city of Madrid.
Concurrently, the 9th Infantry Division, which had previously served as the Corps Reserve and sustained minimal losses, and thus maintained high morale, was brought forward.
After advancing to the outskirts of Madrid under the cover of the artillery, they began slowly moving toward the city walls by digging trenches.
This tactic was an old technique used by various nations during fortress sieges.
The ‘siege trenches’ they dug were different from the defensive trenches used for garrison duty during trench warfare or the assault trenches of later periods.
They were relatively more rudimentary. Their main purpose was to allow the besieging forces to approach the target walls with minimal losses.
Under the tireless bombardment of the artillery, the siege trenches, like earthen pythons, slowly wound their way toward the walls of Madrid.
Mackensen had even ordered the Corps ‘Fortification Engineers’ to bring explosives and prepare for breaching the city walls.
The ‘Fortification Engineers’ were experts in building fortresses and positions, and their familiarity with various structures also made them experts in demolition work…
Seeing that the Saxon engineers’ shovels were about to reach the foot of the city walls, the High-Level Mages inside the city, urged by Haig’s repeated pleas, finally became restless.
The High-Level Tutor, after a night of spell preparation, flew out from the city with the cover of other Mages early the next morning.
They flew directly over the section of the trench line currently under construction.
“Enemy attack! It’s the Mages!”
The Saxon soldiers on the ground spotted the uninvited guests and immediately raised their rifles and opened fire.
Further back, on the machine gun positions, the machine gun crews also found ways to raise the angle of depression of their weapons and fired bursts at the Mages in the sky.
In an instant, countless bullets whizzed toward the figures in the air.
However, a pale blue magical shield appeared around the High-Level Tutor, deflecting all incoming bullets and causing ripples in the shield.
The High-Level Tutor, though showing signs of fear, charged through the dense fire and hovered directly over the trench line under construction.
He extended his palm and thrust it downward—just as Eldridge had done outside Seville.
【5th-Circle Spell – Transmute Rock to Mud】
The section of the siege trench that had just been dug, along with the surrounding earth, seemed to instantly lose all its firmness.
Under the influence of the spell, it was transformed into a treacherous patch of soft mud.
A large number of Saxon soldiers working in the trenches were instantly swallowed by the viscous mud before they could even utter a scream.
Following this, the other High-Level Mages, while remaining within the cover range of their own defenders, unleashed a concentrated bombardment of [Fireball] spells onto the attacking force’s forward positions.
Fireballs the size of human heads, trailing long fiery tails, crashed onto the Saxon positions like a meteor shower, triggering a series of violent explosions.
This not only destroyed several positions that had just been painstakingly constructed but also inflicted heavy casualties on the soldiers.
However, this was all the High-Level Mages could do for now.
Under the High-Level Tutor’s strict orders, their attack time was severely limited to the duration of the [Fly] spell.
Furthermore, these Mages were genuinely apprehensive, fearing they might inexplicably die at the hands of these mortals, like their comrades in Seville.
So, they had no intention of prolonging the engagement.
After throwing one round of fireballs, they quickly retreated back into the city and did not launch any further attacks.
The Mage raid, while causing some trouble and losses for the Saxons, did not fundamentally alter the situation on the battlefield.
General Mackensen, upon receiving the front-line report, immediately ordered the troops to temporarily halt their advance.
However, he was not planning to give up. Instead, he planned to replan the attack route and mobilize more heavy machine gun teams to enhance anti-air vigilance.
He seemed to have anticipated the Mages’ intervention and did not show much surprise.
What truly brought the offensive to a temporary halt was a telegram from the General Staff Headquarters.
Chief of Army General Staff Moltke the Younger stated in the telegram that the Expeditionary Force’s initiation of siege operations had significantly frayed the Britannians’ nerves…
This led to them unprecedentedly making a proactive request in Paris for a second round of negotiations.
The Emperor and the General Staff believed this was an excellent opportunity.
Therefore, Moltke the Younger instructed General Mackensen to temporarily postpone the attack and preserve their forces.
Instead, they were to maintain pressure on the enemy through continuous encirclement, creating more advantages for their own negotiation representatives.
War, ultimately, was the continuation of politics.
General Mackensen, upon receiving the order, felt a tinge of regret that he couldn’t take Madrid in one fell swoop.
But this was actually the order he truly desired.
As a veteran general, he was keenly aware of the losses a forced siege would entail…
He immediately ordered the entire army to cease all aggressive actions against Madrid and shift to a full-scale state of encirclement.
On the other side, after the night raid melee at the Vallecas Heights, the 1st Company, having suffered significant casualties, finally earned a precious chance for temporary rest.
On this day, as Morin reorganized his troops for routine drill and physical training, a new notification popped up on the system’s 【Intelligence】 page.
【The Holy Britannian Empire and the Saxon Empire have begun the second round of negotiations in Paris】
(End of this Chapter)