Chapter 140
Chapter 140
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: The War of the Harvest
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"Hmm, a good opportunity. I'd like to participate as well."
"Participate? But Lord Beonald, aren't you supposed to be developing that... armor thing?"
"There's no better testing ground for weapon development than the battlefield, is there? Furthermore, I need to show results to the Count... no, to the Family Head... and wouldn't it be good to have even one more combatant?"
"Hmm, certainly. Very well. However... if you become part of the army, you'll have to follow orders..."
"Just give me ten soldiers. As an independent support unit in the form of a new weapon research team... We have the achievement of capturing the 'Black Drake,' so that should be valuable enough, shouldn't it?"
"Umm... Let it be so."
With the achievement of the 'Black Drake,' Oswald couldn't really say anything special to Beonald.
In a war situation, any leader of any group wanted more powerful weapons or equipment, and since the Powered Armor had already definitively proven its strength, Oswald decided to grant Beonald's request as he asked.
Part of it was that, as a lord's proxy, he couldn't make overly aggressive judgments, but Beonald had already provided the family with numerous merits, so there was no way to refuse.
"Therefore, we are also going to the battlefield."
"Isn't that too sudden?"
"The war that broke out in the south is expected to be protracted, so there's no choice. We depart in a week, so we'll be busy again until then."
"I thought we could rest a bit after catching the Black Drake, isn't this a bit much?"
"A bit much... it is. But not doing the work that needs to be done would be utterly absurd. Now, now, let's work. First is the reinforcement plan using the materials from the Black Drake we just obtained. As you know, the Drake's hide and scales are tougher than most steel while being flexible and light. We can lighten the frame while strengthening its defense, and by inscribing formulas onto the Drake's bones, we can also create new weapons. There's so, so much to do. Hehehe... Hahahahaha!"
Beonald's eyes sparkled like an evil scientist creating a weapon to destroy the world.
Considering that in his past life he embezzled the Imperial treasury and national budget to satisfy his creative urges, it was only natural for him to be excited.
Thus, with Beonald taking the lead, they immediately began the Powered Armor's improvement with Selina, Veshia, and Heidi.
"First, the improvement plan is as I mentioned earlier: reduce the thickness of the existing external armor plating and reinforce it by covering it with the Drake's hide. I'll ask the tanners' guild to prioritize tanning enough Drake hide for one suit of Powered Armor within a week. Veshia, I'd like to ask you to prepare the armor plates about 30% thinner than the existing ones. Is that possible?"
"Hmm~ I'll start with the parts that need weight reduction first. Saying 'reduce by 30%' is easier said than done; in reality, we'll have to find new manufacturing methods."
"Good. I'll trust you."
"Don't worry!"
At the words of trust, Veshia's eyes lit up and she became cheerful.
Although she said it was difficult, to her, it meant being recognized as a professional, trusted, and given the task, so her motivation couldn't help but soar.
After that, she excused herself, saying she'd start work first, and Beonald then turned his question to Heidi.
"Heidi, any requirements regarding the weapon?"
"Well... when wearing the Powered Armor, physical abilities increase more than expected, so I think a weapon that's bigger and sturdier would be good."
"Bigger and sturdier... an increase in physical force. We'll have to use the Drake's tailbone. It'll make a good spear. Making it heavier is possible with formulas, so no worries there."
Thus, with the new reinforcement and improvement plans for the 'Powered Armor,' Beonald and his group finished preparations to work while traveling for a week.
After completing preliminary arrangements to continue working while moving south, they received ten soldiers from a Valderian family knight as an independent unit joining the forces heading to the battlefield.
"Veshia and Sain, stay here. After all, we're heading to a battlefield, so who knows what might happen. And Sain, as I told you... I entrust you with what needs to be done if something happens to me."
"I pray for your safe return this time as well."
"I certainly plan to. Well then~"
Thus, the other two stayed behind, and only Beonald, Heidi, and Selina joined the Valderian family's army and headed for the battlefield.
Thanks to their achievement of capturing the Black Drake, they received a dedicated carriage to conduct research while traveling. They split their time between lunch and dinner stops and sleeping at night to inscribe formulas onto the Powered Armor and overlay the Drake's hide to strengthen its defense.
War Day 20, Valderian Army Camp.
Full autumn had already arrived, and the crops in the farmlands had ripened sufficiently, forming fields of gold, but the harvest had not yet begun.
Moreover, not only was the harvest impossible, but on the half-burnt wheat fields, the war was still in full swing.
Due to the intervention of the Garkan Republic, the forces of the Northern High Nobles & Imperial Army and the Vaniro Count & Garkan Republic Allied Forces were currently equal at 80,000 vs. 80,000, engaged in continuous attrition warfare while ongoing talks continued between the higher-ups.
The current battlefield situation was that the Kemel Dukedom forces and the Imperial Capital Army, stationed in front of Vaniro Count's castle, were facing off against 30,000 Garkan Republic troops. Meanwhile, the Valderian Army was preventing the original roughly 50,000 Vaniro Count forces from returning to Vaniro Count's territory. For some reason, perhaps due to differences in troop quality, this side was also asymmetrical in numbers, yet a strange stalemate had formed.
"Fortunately, no battle today? Hmm... Ugh! Southern tea isn't to my taste."
"The south is more developed in alcohol than tea. Of course... it's wartime now, so alcohol isn't permitted."
"Anyway, the war has dragged on. Of course, it's fortunate we don't need to blame ourselves."
The Valderian family, as planned, was aggressively attacking tough territories when they received a signal, split their forces, and headed south. On the way, their path was blocked by Vaniro Count's subordinates who sensed something was amiss, leading to the current standoff.
The astonishing part was that as defensive troops appeared in Vaniro Count's territory, the forces that had gone out for support desperately tried to return, and the Valderian family troops heading down just happened to run into them from behind, hitting them in the back of the head and leading to the standoff.
"By the way, the Garkan Republic's military seems quite strong. I heard it's about 30,000... Why can't they win? We're outnumbered, but still."
"According to the messengers, it's a combined force of beastmen and demi-humans... they say it's a considerable strong army. Beastmen like orcs and lizardmen, stronger than humans, form the infantry lines, with elves and dwarves handling ranged attacks together. Even if you try to shake them with cavalry, the dwarves immediately form a solid defensive line, and they have mages among them, so it's reportedly quite tough."
"Kekehahat! Duke Kemel tried to be clever and tripped over his own feet."
Thinking of Duke Kemel, who tried to give them a bad route by claiming he'd hold them in check to gain merit first, only to have his nose broken, Count Valderian burst out laughing.
Of course, they also had to deal with the Vaniro Count's army, which had superior numbers, but since that side was mostly hastily assembled troops, the Valderian Count's army, which had undergone repeated harsh training and survived, was actually in a comfortable situation.
"Over there, they're raising a fuss asking why we aren't coming quickly."
"We're holding back 50,000 with 25,000... Saying 'why aren't you coming' is harsh talk. Write something like, 'We may be superior, but the physical numbers are different, you know,' and send it off."
"Yes."
Thus, since the Valderian family also had something to say, a letter was promptly sent.
Upon receiving it, Duke Kemel frowned but had nothing to say, as literally tying down 50,000 with 25,000 was strategically a sufficient achievement, so he couldn't really complain.
From the beginning, the Valderian family was in a position of serving the Empire under duress, so they didn't particularly want to hold back their strength in this war.
"I am worried about the grain market prices, though..."
"That's why we're harvesting the remaining crops, aren't we? Hmhahahahat! This way we can stop those bastards from splitting their forces and escaping again."
Since the enemy had more troops, they could have used a strategy where part of their force engaged in battle while another part joined up. To prevent this, the Valderian Family Head had come up with an idea.
Namely, local plundering. Mobilizing soldiers to steal unharvested crops and feed them to the troops.
"Most families couldn't do it... but it's something only our family can do. Hahaha."
The Valderian family, though noble, had a family tradition far removed from maintaining face or pride; they were self-willed and had no qualms about plundering the unharvested grains of the Vaniro family.
The Imperial Capital Army or Duke Kemel's forces, for whom the Empire's safety was more important, refrained from such actions to avoid creating ill feelings later. However, the Valderian family had no such concerns. On days without battles, they harvested to their heart's content and served their soldiers soft, white bread to maintain combat power and morale.
"I never thought I'd get to eat this expensive white bread in my lifetime."
"Ah~ it's crazy delicious. Good things happen even in war. Though the problem is that without proper tools, some weird stuff got mixed in..."
"Is now the time to worry about that? Just look at this fragrant smell and pure white inside! This is enough!"
Without proper milling tools and made by ration soldiers rather than professional bakers, the bread's quality was low. But for the soldiers, being able to eat warm baked bread was satisfying enough.
Meanwhile, there were those who viewed this situation with displeasure—namely, the soldiers under Vaniro Count who were supposed to harvest and eat that grain.
"Th-th-th-those bastards! Our grain!"
"What, are we just going to let them be?"
"Aigo! If they eat all that, what are we supposed to eat this winter?"
Murmur murmur...
The Vaniro Count's subordinate soldiers, though vastly superior in numbers, were of such poor quality that a head-on confrontation wasn't possible. Their plan, and Prime Minister Neumel's order, was to ignore the Valderian Count's forces chasing from behind and join forces to overwhelm the enemy troops at Vaniro Count's castle. But if they left those bandits plundering in the rear, they would truly lose their winter food supply.
"We must capture them first!"
"No! Our castle is about to fall, why are we leaving them be?"
"Wouldn't it be fine to cut off those 25,000 first and then go?"
"The Valderian family's forces are a strong army. We already know from several attacks that we can't handle them, don't we?"
Moreover, the Vaniro Count's army was a coalition of various nobles. Since Vaniro Count hadn't appointed an overall commander, command authority was unstable.
Thus, the representative nobles had to hold meetings to make decisions. Unable to do this or that, Vaniro Count's army came up with an astonishing solution.
"Then isn't the solution for us to harvest before they steal it and then go?"
"That's a brilliant idea."
"If we finish harvesting and store it in the castle before going, there will be no worrying factors."
"What if they siege and take the castle?"
"Then we can split our forces and leave some for the castle's defense. Anyway, the Garkan Republic's army is holding out well, so let's execute this quickly."
Thus, while the Garkan Republic's army, Duke Kemel's forces, and the Imperial Capital Army fought bloodily, the bizarre spectacle of the Valderian family's army and the Vaniro Count's army watching each other and competing in harvesting in the wheat fields unfolded.
"Oh, they're harvesting too. Hahahat! If we're not fighting and buying time, it's good for us. Kekekeke."
"Father! A messenger from His Majesty the Emperor has arrived from the capital."
"What? Have him brought in."
Meanwhile, the Emperor's envoy for negotiations finally arrived at the Valderian army camp, and the Imperial messenger got straight to the point, urging the Valderian army to actively crush the enemy and move to support their allies.