Chapter 245
Southern Front ①: The Road to
War
Translator : PolterGlast
In the fortress city of Galt, located at the
northernmost frontier of the Griffonia Empire, military forces from all
over the Empire were gathering one after another. Their numbers had already
exceeded 40,000, and the surroundings of the city were filled with men, horses,
and tents that could not be accommodated within the fortress.
Amidst this, a man growing increasingly impatient with the
unexpected development of the situation spoke to his aide.
"Just how long must we wait! At this rate, the Kyle
Kingdom will be destroyed before we even attack!"
"Even if you say so, the date for the advance has been
predetermined by the agreement with the Third Prince's side. We are also
waiting for Duke Harry to arrive leading the final 10,000 troops after
procuring logistical supplies..."
"What is taking Harry so long?"
"Well... it seems he is struggling because the
procurement of supplies from the merchants is not proceeding as hoped."
"That brat again!"
First Prince Glorious cursed Sieghart, calling
him a brat. In reality, for this campaign, Sieghart was not dragging
down the feet of his 'enemies within allies.' He had merely requested that
merchants prioritize directing provisions to him.
However, when the merchants received his words, they took it
upon themselves to infer his wishes, resulting in this situation.
For the merchants, the sugar Sieghart supplied was a
source of massive profit, and buying the favor of the Third Prince's camp,
whose succession to the throne was becoming the established course, was more
important than dealing with the declining First Prince.
Consequently, regardless of the original intent, the First
Prince's side faced hindrance in procuring provisions essential for military
action. Furthermore, it was currently before the autumn harvest, the time of
year when grain was scarcest.
Sieghart himself
was pondering a response while smiling wryly at this current situation.
"Your Highness, it seems the other side is struggling
quite a bit with procuring provisions. It would be troublesome if they
complained later. Why don't we just hand over our stockpiles? Of course,
charging a suitable handling fee."
"Hahaha, even at this juncture, a profit opportunity?
Indeed, it is undesirable to give him unnecessary excuses. Add a profit margin
that won't cause offense and send it to him."
"Yes, of course, I will take a proper profit. To begin
with, the war costs for this unnecessary battle they proposed are not trivial.
The likelihood of the campaign itself being a waste of effort is high, yet the
expenses incurred are borne by each camp. Besides, it would be troublesome if
they ran out of provisions after entering the enemy country and asked for
support."
"You mean we cannot rely on the harvest within the Kingdom?"
"The enemy knows we are counting on that. If it were
me, I would burn all the fields in the area being invaded. They have Mages
who can use fire freely, after all."
"Hmm... Do we have sufficient provisions? In the worst
case, we might have to feed the soldiers belonging to that side as well."
"Yes, of course, I have procured exactly enough
calculating for that. Well... As a result of buying it up for that purpose, it
ended up looking like they were having trouble procuring."
"What, so in the end, everything is in the palm of your
hand? If that is exposed, they will surely be furious."
"I won't make a blunder that would expose it. This
time, although few in number, Mages will accompany us as well. They
probably don't suspect we have a Space-Time
Mage with us. Carrying more provisions than packhorses can handle,
unbeknownst to them..."
Yes, for the past few years, Sieghart had been moving
energetically to discover Mages.
Although extremely few in number, Mages do exist
within the Empire. The annexed former Roland Kingdom had a Demon
Territory hundreds of years ago, so there are those who inherit the bloodline
of the Demon People.
The territory of the former Roland Kingdom includes
the former Margrave Goth territory
now governed by Sieghart, Count Astray territory, Viscount (formerly
Baron) Kampfer territory, and Marquis Bradley territory, most of
which were under Sieghart's influence.
And above all, the last of the jewels officially lost by the
Kyle Kingdom had flowed to a church established in the Roland Kingdom.
Hundreds of years ago, magic stones were circulated as
expensive jewelry even within the Roland Kingdom, and a considerable
number still existed. Sieghart had been buying them up. Of course, some
were officially imported through merchants, but he limited the quantity and
paid the utmost attention so as not to be detected by neighboring countries,
especially the Demon Territory Count.
And among those who were supposed to be executed as family
members of those who aided the rebellion in the Kyle Kingdom several
years ago, some had fled into Imperial territory, and church-related personnel
were included among them. Sieghart protected and secretly sheltered them. In exchange for providing information held by the
church, he gave them life and compensation that would become their future
fortune.
To counter the forces led by the Kyle Kingdom,
especially the Demon Territory Count, who possessed Mages and
boasted tactical superiority, Sieghart had been desperately searching
for countermeasures.
As a result of several years of effort, he had secretly
brought several Mages, including a Space-Time
Mage, under his command.
"Your fixation on
the Demon Territory runs far deeper than I expected."
"Well, my feelings originate from the writings left by
my ancestors, Gouras Kampfer and Sieg Kampfer, about 500 years
ago. The two family heads, said to have forged friendship with the Demon
People, secretly protected those with the bloodline of the persecuted Demon
People at the time and actively made them citizens. Therefore, within the Kampfer
family territory, there are exceptionally many who inherit that bloodline, even
within the Empire..."
"Hoh? You mean your current actions were prepared from
500 years ago? That is a truly interesting story."
"This might also be some kind of fate. That is why I
have always been skeptical about destroying the Kingdom. Well, the rest depends
on the other side. Whether the Demon Territory Count moves as we
expect..."
"Hahaha, I too would like to meet and talk with this Demon
Territory Count once. Durul
praised him exceptionally well too. Honestly, there are many parts where we
were saved by the policies he introduced over there."
"I heard he and his banner will also participate this
time?"
"Aye, at first when he heard there would be a
large-scale invasion of the Kingdom, he came to admonish me like a raging fire.
But once I explained our true objective, and told him he would be in charge of
the right flank, he grudgingly accepted it."
"Hahaha, that sounds like him."
Sieghart couldn't
help but smile wryly. In his own way, he must be quite grateful to the Demon
Territory Count.
Several days later, Duke Harry, who had been delayed,
arrived leading his forces, and the final meeting before departure was held at
the Galt citadel.
"First, Grat, I thank you for allocating
provisions to us. Though it was a somewhat expensive purchase."
Receiving the First Prince's remark at the opening, Grat
involuntarily looked to the side. Sieghart was sitting with an innocent
face. 'This guy, he really gouged them, didn't he?' He thought so
involuntarily but erased the expression from his face.
"I hear a famine of considerable scale occurred in the Kyle
Kingdom last year. The further north one goes, closer to the border, the
more provisions flow north through merchants, so I imagine it was difficult to
scrape them together."
Grat's answer
was also somewhat halting. While it was indeed an element constituting part of
the truth, it was only a small part of the reason. Because he knew most of the
cause lay with the fox sitting next to him with a composed face.
Since Glorious's side lacked definitive proof, he
changed the subject.
"Setting that aside, aren't the movements of the Fearalt
Principality and Istoria Imperial Kingdom too fast? Did someone
instigate them? I cannot help but think so..."
"Glorious, that is my line. We ignored the missive from the Imperial Kingdom and refused their offer of
alliance. Furthermore we have no connection with the Principality whatsoever. Yet, there is information that an envoy from the Principality
was coming and going from your place?"
"..."
The Third Prince (Grat)'s point was on the mark. The
First Prince's camp had contact with both and had promised an alliance this time. However, their execution was so skillful
that he had simply fallen into suspicion and paranoia.
"Your Highnesses, before the battle, I ask you to
please refrain from unnecessary suspicion. We need to unite and accomplish this
great undertaking, after all."
『Harry, you of all people shouldn't say that! How dare you, so
brazenly... 』 The Third Prince thought so in his heart but dared not put
it into words.
"Surely they are waiting for us, the most powerful
force, to join the war. To brush off the sparks falling on their own armies
onto others. How despicable..."
"It is exactly as His Highness Grat says. If we
continue to waste time in idle squabbling, the other two countries might reap the spoils of our conflict. I propose we should depart
immediately."
"We are ready at any time. We were simply waiting for
you. You are fully aware of that, aren't you?"
"Then, we march to the border tomorrow. Is this acceptable?"
"I wish to add one thing to Harry's words. Could
you leave the capture of the fortress built by the enemy at the border to us?
As proof of apology for our late arrival."
"I do not mind, but the terrain makes it difficult to
surround with a large army, so you will struggle a bit, you know? Glorious,
are you sure?"
"Aye. You may observe our skill slowly from the rear
without issue. We have countermeasures, you see."
Saying this, the First Prince (Glorious) smiled
fearlessly. With an expression as if to say he had sufficient confidence in
siege warfare and countermeasures against the Kyle Kingdom's Mages.
Receiving those words, the response for the opening battle
was decided. Movement to the border with the entire army began the next day.
And it was decided that the First Prince's vanguard, upon
arriving at the border, would plunge straight into battle.
His secret plan, a strategy meticulously prepared for the
conquest of Teigoon, would demonstrate its true worth in the battle to
capture the Southern Gate Fortress, the prelude to that conquest.
Because of this, Takuhir and the others would face an
unexpected offensive and be astonished, but in the Kyle Kingdom camp, no
one knew of this yet.
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