Chapter 390
(Kyle Calendar Year 515: Age 22)
Northern Front ㉗ – A Bitter Victory
Translator : PolterGlast
As dawn broke across the plain, the armies of the Demon
Territory Dukedom, the Empire Allied Forces, and the newly
integrated reinforcements began to
take action exactly according to the prior arrangements. Marquess Gorman,
spearheading a highly exceptional agile strike detachment selected exclusively from the cavalry units
of the First, Second, and Third Divisions, set his mounts into a quick sprint. Merging their forces beside the Special Fire Corps
and becoming a unified force of 6,000 riders, they tracked the heels of
the retreating Istoria Orthodox Theocracy, guided perfectly by the scouts who had shadowed the heretics since the setting of the sun.
Meanwhile, Darek, along with the First and Second
armies of the Royal Knights he had been leading, had joined forces with the
Third army's led by Schultz, and
they were speeding along a highway trail. They were accompanied by 1,000
cavalrymen led by the King of Fearalt, making a
total force of 16,000 men—the strongest attacking group imaginable. Moreover,
the Fearalt Principality army
included a Magic Corps of 500 men, possessing more than enough offensive
capabilities against longbows. Their
primary tactic was absolute: to maximize their traveling speed across the
unmapped hidden trails, and, if
possible, flank or get behind the enemy forces.
And the Empire
army too, having advanced its entire army south and reached the edge of the
Third Prince's mandate territory, turned east and began to move to play a part
in the encirclement network.
Conversely, the young commander-in-chief, Alexis, operated as the single
high-ranking officer who chose to permanently remain behind to anchor the main
camp, assuming direct command over the remaining infantry units from the First
Army to the Third Army.
「 However…... it is
regrettable. Ideally, it should be best to siphon our entire forces
into a full-scale frontal pursuit, 」 a sub-officer spoke.
Receiving that, Alexis shrugged and answered
matter-of-factly.
「 Even if we sent infantry into a pursuit battle, they
wouldn't be able to catch up. According to the reports delivered by our returning lookouts, those fanatical
bastards had meticulously prepared
a continuous line of signaling bonfires along the route that would become their
retreat path. Perhaps they had been retreating all night. 」
「 Then our our cavalry isーー 」
「 Even for a high-speed cavalry
legion, attempting to catch up to
an opponent who is actively fleeing at a speed
that completely violates conventional common sense
is an impossibility. Those masterminds had fully mapped out their
retreat inside their strategy
long before the dawn. I can
faintly grasp the true, sinister nature of their intentions. 」
「 Intentions……? It's true that only their army has not fought us
seriously from the start, hasn't it. 」
「 Precisely. Their strategy was to ruthlessly grind the militaries of the three
neighboring kingdoms to absolute powder—utilizing our forces as the meat-grinder. And concurrently, they flawlessly ensured we possesses no luxury to
mount a counter-invasion. Consider our position: our enclaves are currently
choking beneath a suffocating sea of over 15,000 captured prisoners of war. And
above all else…… 」
There, Alexis stopped his words. Because they were
strictly engaging in a defensive battle, and could not pursue more than
necessary. Although he was the Supreme
Commander, Alexis was also not in a position to make political
judgments, and an invasion stepping into another country was not anticipated in
his mission. The reinforcements from the Kyle Kingdom were also
dispatched for the defensive battle, and to request a pursuit more than
necessary would again require political permission and judgment.
「 A thoroughly regrettable
story. To think our lines finally managed
to wring out an overwhelming superiority over their front, only to find our
hands tied behind our backs…… 」
「 Yeah, but the war has not reached its definitive closure just yet.
The distance separating their encampment from the secure frontier checkpoints
spans a wide margin of well over 60
kilometers. Spearheading a large
army of nearly twenty thousand across it
is no casual stroll. 」
「 The only one who could pull off something like that is His
Majesty the Archduke. 」
「 Indeed…… if
it were Takuhir-sama, he could probably pull it off. Training of that
sort has been conducted up until now. Conversely speaking, it means it's not
impossible. 」
Their conversation, exchanged in a far-off place, was
turning into exactly reality.
※
As the morning sun slowly climbed toward its absolute
zenith, the elite cavalry units
spearheading the pursuit found a towering wave of intense, suffocating
frustration walloping their focus. For across every single major waypoint and
crossroad clearing the highways, an obstacle
violently materialized before their horses' hooves: hundreds of destitute,
terror-stricken common refugees fanned out across the dirt, blocking the paths
as they wailed for mercy.
「 Please help us! Those fanatical demons violently set our
villages ablaze, siphoning off every single grain of harvest and private
wealth! 」
「 We don't even have food to survive today! 」
Unable to ignore such people either, the cavalry units of
the First Army to the Third Army, who originally would have been pursuing from
the position closest to the enemy army, had no choice but to stop their march
every single time and leave behind a portion of their units to deal with them.
After the umpteenth stop, Marquess Solis forcefully
drove his mount parallel to the command saddle of his old peer, Marquess
Gorman, who was aggressively steering the absolute tip of the first
vanguard unit.
「 How villainous…… to use the
citizens as a shield and make us slow our pace…… At this
rate, let alone crossing the Third Prince's mandate territory, they will cross
the Empire territory and escape into the border. 」
「 Indeed…… However,
if it's within the Empire territory, crossing borders to
capture lawless invaders is permitted. But……」
「 That's right, if a situation arises where they can cross the
border beyond the Empire territory, we cannot proceed
further on our own judgment. As vexing as it is... 」
「 We have no choice but to place our hopes on the Royal Knights who advanced on the
western highway... It is truly regrettable, though…… 」
※
Yet, across a completely separate quadrant of the plain, the
cavalry legion commanded by Darek—despite having initiated their pursuit
from the furthest position—had, ironically, successfully
penetrated the deepest into the frontier territory. The underlying reason for
this was absolute. The route they advanced on was mainly the place where the Lute Kingdom army had advanced, and
ruthless plundering towards the citizens had not been conducted either, so
public order was stable, and thus there were no territory residents swarming to
seek help..
Furthermore, having fully anticipated that this would turn into endurance race to catch a fleeing rabbit, Darek
had issued a remarkably bold instruction:
every single knight had been commanded to strip off the
massive, weight-heavy full plate armor, leaving them
behind inside the main camp. They were clad
strictly in lightweight leather tunics, transforming the
heavy cavalry legion into a mobile fleet of light cavalry.
「Sir Darek, 」
King Krueger called out as his warhorse galloped parallel to
the Count’s saddle. 「 Will
we really be able to catch up to them? 」
「 I don't know. Even by Alexis's
calculations,, assuming that the enemy
devoted themselves to fleeing, he said it would just barely be possible to
catch up to them near the border of the Empire and the Imperial Kingdom (Orthodox Theocracy)... 」
「 I see…… and I
wonder if they are lying in wait for our arrival?
」
「 Fufufu, Your Majesty, you are expecting them to be lying in wait, right? 」
「 The same goes for
you, does it not, my friend? 」
The mutual, burning desires of the two tactics-maniacs were
realized around the time the sun was beginning to tilt. As the ridge of the
great mountain range forming the border between the Empire and the Imperial
Kingdom gradually turned into low rolling hills, fanning out
into an expansive frontier valley, they were able to catch up to the Istoria Orthodox Theocracy army setting
up camp with their backs facing toward
the border.
「 Is this…… the 『Dublin Tactic』
I heard about? 」
Before the eyes of the King of Fearalt who muttered so, the mountain range weaving the border
broke off, and amidst the spreading forest, a highway extended in a straight
line to the neighboring country. Taking advantage of the forests on the left
and right, the formation he had heard rumors of was deployed on the highway,
and the enemy army was lying in wait.
「 It seems we are the first to arrive. That being said, about
thirty percent have dropped out... Shall we wait for our allies too? 」
「 What does Sir
Darek want to do? 」 King Krueger responded, a dangerous, thrilling glint
flashing within his pupils. 「 The
enemy in front looks to be about ten thousand, and it seems they also have
dropouts from the forced march... 」
「 According what
my brother personally shared with my ears…… he said that
as long as preparations are in place, a non-stop night sprint of about 50 km is possible, and apparently there are actual examples of
it.. 」
「Oh? Was there military history even I did not know of?
How interesting.」
What Darek heard from Takuhir was, in truth, not military history from this world. It referred to the Great Retreat of Mino conducted by Hashiba Hideyoshi at the Battle of Shizugatake, which Nishida, who liked history, had read in
a book. This corresponds to the anecdote that Hideyoshi's army at the time moved its army about 52 km
from Ogaki in Mino to Kinomoto in Omi in a mere five hours. Of course,
this was something perceived as a level of movement that was absurd, both in
the Sengoku period of that time, and in this world as well...
「 Therefore, the enemy probably possesses a number larger than
they appear and has ambushers concealed in the forests on the left and right.
In order to make us, who charged forward underestimating them as a small
number, their prey, it is thought they are laying a trap here. 」
「 Hmh…… then
within 300 m of that encampment is a death-zone, right? Under normal circumtances, at least. 」
「 Precisely, Sire. Had Your Majesty’s
presence been absent from this war,
attempting to force a breach would mean nothing short of the deletion of my
riders. But right now…… the totality of our options rests entirely under your
guidance. 」
「 Magnificent! In that case, let us push our 500-strong Magic Corps
straight onto the front lines. Can we count on
your longbow cavalry to provide support, Sir Darek? 」
Concluding their short, razor-sharp tactical
synchronization—a dialogue that closely mirrored a riddling zen koan—the two noble giants let out a
shared, boisterous laugh. Since originally these two were exceptionally
interested in the enemy's tactics, and were full of the desire to crush them...
Things turning out like this was a natural result.
「 We shall puncture straight through
their camp! We need to neutralize the enemy's fortifications, before launching a
full-scale cavalry surge to trample their camp! 」
Darek declared so to the
entire army. Towards Commander Schulz, who knew the dreadfulness of this
formation and looked like he wanted to say something, Darek
simply flashed a sharp glance that explicitly
conveyed 『I
know.』
「 All units, prepare for active
deployment! The right wing shall be anchored exclusively by 1,000 elite
riders selected from the First Army of the Royal
Knights; concurrently, the left wing shall be secured by an identical
selection from the Second Army. Advance
to 400 meters in front of the enemy camp while being cautious of
ambushers in the forest! The center will be led by His Majesty and me with 800 cavalry, but all Wind
Mages accompanying the army will be deployed in the center! Right when
the enemy’s front line fractures, Commander Schulz shall spearhead our
remaining cavalry reserves to launch a frontal surge. I leave the command of the melee to your judgment! 」
Having rapidly finalized the tactics, Darek drew his blade, leading his unit into a thunderous forward gallop Daringly jumping into the trap the enemy army had
constructed, in order to tear through it...
Armed with a sophisticated strategy to bypass the invincible
grid, Darek drove his horsemen forward at top speed—completely blind to
the reality that deep within the shrouded trenches of the ridge, a vastly more
malignant, sickeningly cruel trap was lying in wait for them...
※
Having commenced their charge from a distance of 1,000 meters, they charged into the enemy camp while making their
horses' hooves echo in the surroundings. On horseback, it would only take a
brief moment of heartbeats.
「 Listen well, it's 300 meters!
Be absolutely sure to stop there! The exact fraction of a second our horses
freeze, Wind Mages, deploy your umbrellas and block the arrows! Afterwards,
Your Majesty, I shall borrow your strength! 」
Yes, the
operation the two adopted was a long-range operation utilizing the magical
attacks of the Magic Corps. Since
the heretics had set up a to lure in a cavalry charge into a trap, they were
nothing more than collection of sitting ducks waiting to receive a magical
bombardment from afar. And if they kept a distance of 300 meters, no matter how
strong a bow the longbow was, it could not pierce through the umbrellas
deployed by the Wind Mages. Up to
here, their operation was perfect. However……
When they cleared
the 400-meter threshold, Darek’s eyes locked onto the front of the enemy's formation—and a wave of pure horror
violently walloped his mind. He then let out a raw, blood-curdling scream.
「 Abort the charge!!! Halt all
operations!!! Do not shoot your magicーーYou must not
shoot!!! 」
Saying so, Darek raised his left hand largely and
gave the signal to the Wind Mages to
deploy the umbrellas of wind walls at an earlier timing than planned.
「What happened!」
Amidst the
confused soldiers, there was no way the cavalry could make a sudden stop; they
reached the planned position of 300 meters and stopped there. There, long-range
attacks from the enemy army assaulted them.
「Those lined up in front of the enemy camp are not
soldiers!」
「My word!」
Yes,
originally the lined-up abatis and horse anti-cavalry fences would be deployed,
and heavy infantry and the like would be positioned in the gaps to block the
spaces, but there, a human wall of hundreds of people was lined up, and the
enemy army was shooting from behind that human wall.
「 Tch!! To use
the territory residents as shields and attack us…… what manner of sickening,
un-human fiends are we hunting?! Entire army, pull back! Retreat! 」
Even
approaching a distance of 300 meters, it was impossible to actually distinguish
faces and the like. The ropes tying them down to that spot couldn't be
recognized either. Naturally, amidst the roar of horses' hooves, the screams
they let out shivering in fear couldn't possibly reach them. The only
incongruity Darek felt was the
figures of them writhing in some sort of terror and single-mindedly thrashing
about, unlike soldiers waiting for the enemy army with resolve.
「 So their vanguard is not soldiers, but citizens of the
Empire? 」
「 Yes, Your Majesty. Those bastards meticulously planned this under a
precise, calculated scheme: they fully expected our un-knowing
mages to unleash our magics to
incinerate the front line—strictly to leverage the brief fraction of a second
our ranks froze in absolute horror upon realizing we had slaughtered our own
countrymen to unleash a devastating long-range arrow storm to erase our cavalry
from the field. 」
「 Tch, how villainous. Are you saying they choose no means in
order to secure a victory?
」
「 Yes, they probably set a double trap for us. Tactically
striking at our agitation to switch to a counterattack, politically degrading
us as those who massacred the citizens of the Empire.... 」
「 Then what do we do? Do we just retreat?? 」
「 We have no choice. It seems they are bastards who do not choose their means. First, let us make
arrangements to rescue them 」
In the end, Darek and the others' attack ended in
failure, and they had no choice but to emptily pull back their formation and
wait for the arrival of their allies. Of course, they were considering a plan
to newly release scouts into the forest and rescue those who were captive...
However, when the sun set and the surroundings became enveloped in darkness,
before they knew it, the soldiers of the Istoria Orthodox Theocracy had slipped through the forest and disappeared
beyond the border.
The next
day, they were able to rescue the hundreds of citizens who had been tied up as
shields, but it was not something that could be called a victory in battle. In
the end, the Istoria Orthodox Theocracy
army withdrew its troops without suffering any damage worth mentioning. Exactly
according to their initial plan, their main forces disengaged from the
battlefield, fluidly preserving their pristine, battle-ready density to prepare
for their upcoming transition toward a completely separate, brand-new warzone.
Confronted by this strategic
exit, the fragmented Gryphonia Empire—currently choking beneath the
bleeding rifts of its own internal civil wars—alongside the Demon Territory
Dukedom, whose Archduke remained completely absent,
possessed no operational capital or political leverage to execute a
cross-border punitive expedition, leaving the heretics completely un-punished.
And thus, the battle of the Northern Front drew its curtains
here. Leaving behind a trail of bitter self-reproach and un-resolved malice, the
war had balanced its accounts by delivering a thoroughly hollow, bitter victory
into the hands of the defenders……
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