𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟔𝟐: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐏𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝
“We’ve spotted the vanguard of the Royal Army. Looks like there are about three thousand of them.”
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Meg and the rest of the scouts, who just returned from a two-day reconnaissance mission, begin to fill in the enormous military map with the information they gathered.
Based on this, the course of action for our Lionel squad will be determined.
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“Just as expected. The commander of the Royal Army seems to be a person who utilizes orthodox and prudent strategies.”
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I mutter, resting my right hand on my lower jaw.
The number three thousand is infuriating.
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It’s not a force we can ambush with a small number of troops. Conversely, if we move with an equivalent force, we’ll be detected as expected.
Thinking logically, our choice will likely be to push out three to five thousand troops of our own and face them head-on.
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After all, it’s the first battle.
We want to win and boost morale. This is the same for both sides.
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If we’re aiming for a sure victory, the best strategy would be to throw the main force of the Gaillia army, commanded by General Kytes, of ten thousand.
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“But, wouldn’t it be questionable to play the ‘General Kytes’ main force’ card right off the bat?”
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Miliaria tilts her head in question.
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Indeed.
That’s the issue.
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Deploying the main force right away signals to the enemy that we’re lacking in troop reserves.
While the enemy likely already knows this, it would confirm their suspicions.
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And once they’re certain, what will the royal government do? They’ll instigate a war of attrition.
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They’ll throw in the armies of the feudal lords, relentlessly forcing losses.
It’s a wonderful plan that whittles down the power of both the Gaillia forces and those of the feudal lords.
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Just when we’re all worn out, the Royal Army will send in their main force, and the grind will continue.
By this stage, there probably won’t be many troops left on Gaillia’s side.
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And the city will be trampled by the Royal Army.
We want to avoid this situation at all costs.
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“So, let’s take care of those three thousand ourselves.”
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I reveal a sly smile.
Upon hearing this, Asuka slaps her palm with her fist.
You love preemptive strikes, after all.
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“We’ll be fighting an enemy three times our size. Bearing in mind this strategy is somewhat unconventional, listen up, everyone.”
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I gather the leaders who command the one thousand members of the Lionel squad.
They are Nazar, Joshua, Nicole, Salieri――our Captains.
Each of them commands two hundred soldiers.
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I have two hundred soldiers at my disposal. Our valuable magic forces, including Miliaria and Meisha, among seventy-one others, are gathered here.
Asuka’s squad of a hundred is in charge of their protection. They are also our slash squad for critical moments.
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The remainder are scouts like Meg.
They will play an especially important role, gathering information from the battlefield as my eyes and ears.
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I would have liked Asuka to command a squad too, but due to her lack of experience, I’ve placed her where she can receive my instructions directly.
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“Unconventional, huh.”
“Why are you grinning, Nicole?”
“I was just thinking how well Vice Commander Nel. . . I mean, Captain Nel excels at unconventional tactics. No ulterior motives.”
“It’s strange. All I can sense are ulterior motives.”
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Exchanging playful banter, we go on to discuss the strategy.
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Three thousand is a large army, easy to say in one breath.
There are plenty of villages with fewer inhabitants than this.
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So, with such a large number, complex marches aren’t possible, leaving the only option to advance using regular roads.
Also, the troops can’t all fit into post towns, so only the executives stay at inns.
The common soldiers have to sleep in tents.
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That’s why, often, communication between soldiers and executives can’t be done smoothly.
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Of course, there are sub-leaders for this, but it can’t be helped if they still want to rely on the instructions of their superiors. It’s human nature.
Acting on one’s own judgment can be scary.
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The night raid that day took advantage of exactly such a gap when the executives were absent.
After all, for some reason, all the executives got drunk on the wine served at dinner, and were in no condition to command.
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The Royal Army fell into a panic due to attacks that were carried out simultaneously from all four directions: east, west, south, and north.
Moreover, the confusion only grew worse because there were those shouting things like “We’re surrounded!”, “The enemy numbers over ten thousand!”, “The Captain has been killed!”.
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In reality, there were only two hundred soldiers in each of the four directions.
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In the midst of the confusion, the messenger sent to call the executives didn’t return, the front line had no instructions on how to move, and one by one they were shot down by arrows flying out of the darkness and died.
And when the Gaillia army finally stormed in, there were no troops capable of mounting a proper defensive battle.
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First, Nicole’s squad from the west and Joshua’s squad from the east simultaneously stormed in and decimated the Royal Army, then pulled out in the opposite direction.
Watching the timing, Nazar’s squad from the north and Salieri’s squad from the south then launched their assaults.
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And when these squads had retreated to the opposite side, Joshua’s squad from the west and Nicole’s squad from the east would storm in again.
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By repeating this, we made the Royal Army estimate our numbers.
As if they were surrounded and beaten by a large force.
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It’s a trick that works because it’s night.
In the daytime, they would see that the same unit is attacking multiple times.
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Anyway, in less than an hour of battle, the Royal Army lost about thirty percent of its troops and almost all of its food.
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Moreover, when dawn broke, not a single person remained in the post town, and as an added bonus, there wasn’t a single corpse of the attacking Gaillia army.
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Quite a ghost story, isn’t it?
