4 PM, Dunwo Barony Manor
"Uncle, I think we should withdraw."
With the Frankish army on the verge of collapse, Lothair II could no longer see any path to victory.
Face dark, he left the church tower.
Taking only a small escort, he rushed to the stables and fled east at full speed before the Vikings completely surrounded the manor.
At this point, both the northern and southern wings of the Frankish army had been defeated.
The remaining ten thousand or so troops clung to the manor's defenses, desperately holding out while waiting for the reinforcements Charles had promised.
Another half hour passed.
Frankish morale finally broke.
Escorted by his knights, Charles the Bald withdrew from the battlefield, abandoning his infantry to be cut down by Viking cavalry.
"It's over."
From Vig's perspective, the battle had been one-sided.
He held superiority in numbers, equipment, and training.
And unlike many kings, as supreme commander he faced no interference, no competing voices, no disobedient nobles.
Suddenly, Leif delivered new intelligence:
Prisoners reported that Charles had spoken of two reinforcement forces advancing toward Dunwo Manor—
Northern force: 20,000 men
Southern force: 12,000 men
Another 32,000 troops?
Vig immediately adjusted deployments.
Most forces were recalled and reorganized to prepare for possible renewed fighting.
Not long after, a message arrived from the First Field Army.
Leif broke the wax seal and translated the cipher.
"Uncle, they were originally about eight miles (twelve kilometers) from Dunwo Manor and intended to rendezvous with us."
"After detecting Count William of Orléans's army, Shrike changed plans and intercepted them."
"With minimal losses, they almost completely annihilated the Frankish cavalry."
Leif paused.
Suppressing both shock and curiosity, he continued:
"The enemy's flanking attempt failed. They've chosen to move east instead and are expected to reach Dunwo Manor tomorrow."
"Another possibility is that they'll hear of Charles's defeat during the march and retreat."
After hearing the northern report, Vig was equally intrigued.
Regardless—
Count William was no longer a serious threat.
Only the southern reinforcements remained.
The battlefield was in chaos.
The pursuing cavalry and mountain infantry had scattered far across the countryside.
Vig detached one infantry regiment and sent it south in dispersed reconnaissance groups.
Their only mission:
Find the southern army.
October 21st, morning
The First Field Army linked up with the main force.
Wandering cavalry and mountain units gradually returned.
Still—
No sign of the southern reinforcements.
At noon, Vikings captured scattered Frankish soldiers in a forest ten miles south.
They belonged to Count Jean de Boival's force—
The very southern reinforcement army that had troubled Vig all night.
Recent weeks of continuous skirmishing had badly depleted Boival's scouts.
While marching toward Dunwo Manor, the army had accidentally lost its way.
Upon learning of Charles's defeat—
Boival simply withdrew east.
Thus ended the Battle of Dunwo Manor.
Casualties
Britannia
Total losses: 5,000
Killed: 1,500
Wounded: 3,500
Frankish Coalition
Total losses: 28,000
William of Orléans: 5,000+
Charles's army: 20,000+
Including previous smaller engagements:
Total coalition losses reached 32,000 men.
After suffering defeat on this scale, the Franks lost the ability to conduct field operations in the short term.
Vig now controlled the initiative.
Returning to Rennes, Vig hosted a victory banquet.
During the celebration, someone presented him with a crown—
Claiming the rangers had recovered it as loot from a village.
Vig examined it carefully.
The crown consisted of a gold circlet, engraved with fleur-de-lis, set with:
Eight sapphires
Eight red garnets
Four amethysts
Its real value was symbolic.
He ordered attendants to store it carefully.
Perhaps someday it would prove useful.
As the banquet grew livelier, Ricard—convinced that his success at Bull Bridge had earned him great merit—approached with a cup of wine.
He proposed pressing the advantage and attacking Paris.
Vig rejected the idea immediately.
"The Seine is a natural defensive barrier."
"The remnants of the Frankish army can retreat inside."
"We won't take it."
Ricard's suggestion triggered heated debate.
Someone proposed attacking Calais instead—
An even worse idea that ignored both river-crossing difficulties and the dangers of deep penetration.
The Frankish realm still possessed enormous reserves.
One victory wasn't enough to end the war.
Vig chose caution.
He had no intention of falling into the trap of winning early only to lose later.
After five days of rest, once the soldiers recovered—
Vig launched the next phase.
Targets:
Cherbourg
Le Mans
Caen
Top priority:
Cherbourg
Located at the northern tip of the Cotentin Peninsula.
Distance to Southampton:
190 km
Travel time:
Half a day to one and a half days.
Ideal as a future supply base.
In early November, Vig led the Royal Army to the outskirts of Cherbourg.
Years ago this had been Gunnar's smuggling port for warhorses into Britannia.
After smuggling collapsed, population declined sharply.
Only military functions remained.
Once again—
The familiar strategy.
Some troops dug tunnels.
Others cleared nearby noble estates.
After half a month—
Britannia captured Cherbourg.
Vig assigned defense duties to the Fifth Garrison Regiment and instructed Count Ricard:
"Same rules as before."
"Use prisoners to repair the walls."
"When finished, send them to Jersey Island."
Since the war began, Britannia had captured 18,000 prisoners.
Such numbers represented enormous danger.
Leave them in Frankish territory?
Too easy to escape.
Move them to Britannia?
Lower escape risk—but a mass revolt would be difficult to suppress with limited home troops.
After weighing everything—
Vig accepted Leif's recommendation:
Concentrate them on Jersey Island.
Escape became nearly impossible.
Even if they rebelled—
The rebellion would remain confined to one island.
The navy could simply blockade food supplies.
Eventually the prisoners would surrender—
Or starve.
Before parting, Ricard made another request.
His domain was mobilizing a second wave of troops.
By next year he expected 1,500 men.
He believed himself ready for greater responsibility.
Vig remained expressionless.
"No rush."
"We'll discuss it then."
After Dunwo Manor, morale across the aristocracy soared.
Not just Ricard—
Nobles across the kingdom wrote home, urging their lands to raise more militia and send them to Londinium for training.
More troops meant:
More chances for distinction.
More rewards after victory.
By early December, Vig returned to Rennes for the winter.
The cold forced him to suspend operations.
To occupy the season—
He established a campaign school, concentrating on training junior officers.
—------------------------------
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