The Greenhorn Commander
A man stared intently at the map. He was the Commander-in-Chief of the anti-Grand Duchy forces. Since the Battle of Huntington Fortress, he had led his army through numerous victories, marching all the way to the outskirts of Wynn. Only then had the Grand Duchy's forces finally stood in his way, resulting in the current standoff.
"Hmm... If we can win just once. Just one victory..."
Contrary to his hopeful thoughts, reality was harsh. In every minor skirmish, the Grand Duchy's exceptional commanders had responded with perfect precision, preventing him from dealing any significant blows. In fact, the cavalry he had sent out had been ambushed and suffered losses, failing to make any real impact on the enemy.
Still, it wasn't the worst-case scenario. Mary, their most formidable knight, was not in Wynn.
Lady Mary and the current Grand Duke must not be on good terms right now.
The news that the Grand Duke had betrothed Lady Mary to Agrippa, a commoner, was the hottest topic in the Empire. To the childless Grand Duke, Lady Mary was both the sole remaining heir and a rival.
If he betrothed her to Agrippa—his closest friend, yes, but still a commoner—it's hard to believe they are on good terms.
The Commander-in-Chief smiled, reasoning that if the Grand Duke truly cared for his sister, he would have betrothed her to a prestigious noble family.
And I heard Lady Mary hasn't been seen in the Grand Duchy for some time now.
They had spent years planting numerous spies within their arch-nemesis, the Grand Duchy. According to the intelligence they sent back, Lady Mary was currently not in Wynn. Given that every report consistently stated she had slipped out of Wynn under the cover of night, it was safe to assume it was true.
"Commander!"
The Commander looked up as his lieutenant rushed into the tent.
"What is it?"
"We have intelligence that the enemy has marched out of Wynn!"
At those words, the Commander looked down at the map. "Where are they heading?"
He felt a surge of joy. The Commander had no desire to wage a siege battle at Wynn.
To abandon their advantageous high ground of their own accord... What a stroke of luck.
A siege battle demanded immense sacrifices from the attacking side, so this turn of events was exactly what he had hoped for. A smile spread across his face.
Just the fact that we were besieging Wynn would have been a massive blow to their pride.
The proud Ryan family would not easily accept being besieged in their own capital by a coalition of lords they had always looked down upon.
"Well... looking at their westward movement, it seems they intend to engage us in a pitched battle."
"A pitched battle...?"
The lieutenant pointed to Wynn on the map. "West of here is..."
His finger slid over to the Francesco Gallery. With the sea to the north and rugged mountains to the south, it was a choke point that anyone wishing to reach Wynn had to pass through.
"It seems they are heading here."
The Commander stroked his chin, lost in thought. Although they had a massive numerical advantage, the enemy held the upper hand in terms of troop quality.
Hmm... A pitched battle isn't necessarily a good idea.
With their supply lines stretching deep into enemy territory, any loss of their fortresses could cut off their supplies and leave them isolated.
Should I pull the troops back? Or should I...
The Commander stared at the map for a long time. Standing as still as a stone statue, he finally opened his mouth.
"All forces... we will pass through the Francesco Gallery as quickly as possible."
He resolved to pass through the gallery before the enemy arrived and engage them in a pitched battle on the plains.
"Yaaawn!"
Did I sleep in a weird position last night? My shoulders and back felt stiff. I massaged my shoulder as I looked down at the reports piled in front of me.
"So the Allied Kingdom ended up buying a massive amount of call options..."
By selling a vast quantity of put options on the anti-Grand Duchy faction's bonds, I had secured an enormous amount of cash, which I then successfully used to buy up Grand Duchy call options.
"Now, we just need a victory."
The enemies had been moving cautiously so far, which had bought me more time than expected. Thanks to that, I had managed to purchase far more contracts than my original target, so it was actually a net positive.
"Ah... right. I need to send a letter to Yohanes."
The fact that Yohanes, who was formally our ally, had been supporting the anti-Grand Duchy faction was a major issue. Previously, I couldn't issue a warning because there was no concrete evidence. Recently, however, we had captured proof that money was flowing into the anti-Grand Duchy faction from Nicea and Epirus in the form of bonds.
As much as I wanted to write a letter filled with creative curses, now was not the time.
"Let's keep it moderate."
I pulled out a sheet of clean white paper and began drafting a letter to Yohanes.
Scribble... scratch, scratch...
Once the letter was finished, I slipped it into an envelope, stamped it with my personal seal, and closed it.
"Phew... I have this much work now, but it's going to get even worse once the war is over, isn't it?"
Post-war cleanup, reconstruction, and everything else. Just the thought of the mountain of paperwork waiting for me made my head throb.
A few days later, the Commander-in-Chief, marching at the head of the anti-Grand Duchy forces as they emerged from the gallery, frowned. He watched the scouts galloping toward him from the distance and muttered to himself.
"They arrived... faster than I expected."
Seeing them return only a few hours after they had been sent out, the Commander-in-Chief felt an instinctive premonition. The enemy was close.
Neigh!
The horse let out a rough whinny and came to a halt. The scout dismounted hastily and reported to the Commander.
"Reporting, sir! The enemy has set up camp approximately fifteen kilometers away."
The Commander nodded, as if he had already expected this.
"Very well. I anticipated as much. Lieutenant, instruct the entire army that we will rest here for the day."
As the tents were pitched, the Commander surveyed the surrounding terrain, falling deep into thought.
Hmm... We have the upper hand in mages, soldiers, and knights. Yet they want to engage in a pitched battle now? Is the enemy commander a fool?
The enemy's commander-in-chief was Agrippa, a commoner. Though he had graduated top of his class at the military academy, he was a mere twenty-three-year-old greenhorn who had barely shed his peach fuzz.
Is it because he lacks real combat experience? He is far too clumsy.
The Commander himself had clawed his way up from the very bottom, witnessing firsthand how a single moment's mistake could lead to a devastating defeat. But the enemy commander, while talented, had no real experience. He was a greenhorn who had reached his position solely through connections and flattery.
"They said the current Grand Duke was a mere brat, and it seems they were right..."
A commander-in-chief handpicked by a young Grand Duke. The Commander had heard that the Grand Duchy possessed many legendary generals.
Just look at General Martin, who fought at Huntington Fortress. Even in the face of defeat, did he not manage a dramatic counterattack and secure a successful retreat?
The Commander felt that if a veteran like Martin had been commanding the Grand Duchy's forces, they would not have penetrated this deeply so easily.
And looking at the commanders who anticipated my cavalry's route and launched those ambushes, the Grand Duchy certainly has no shortage of brilliant generals and officers... So why on earth did they appoint an ignorant greenhorn as their commander-in-chief?
Though he now stood with the anti-Grand Duchy faction, the Commander had developed a profound respect for the successive Grand Dukes during his academy days. They were always arrogant, always strong. Possessing physical capabilities that transcended humanity, the successive Grand Dukes were legendary figures who had written countless myths on the battlefield.
Even Valorang had been the Empire's greatest knight and an outstanding general.
But what of the current Grand Duke? Coddled under the skirts of the Empress—reputed to be the greatest beauty in the Empire—he didn't even set foot in the Grand Duchy. He didn't lead his soldiers; he simply remained holed up in the Imperial Palace like a fool.
The current Grand Duke is an ignorant brat.
Even if his sister, Lady Mary, was a political rival, the Grand Duke should never have subjected her to the humiliation of being betrothed to a commoner.
If Lady Mary had been leading the knights in a charge, it would have been a massive headache.
Fortunately, however, Lady Mary had fled Wynn not long ago. Now, all that remained of the Grand Duchy was a hollow shell—tens of thousands of soldiers led by a greenhorn commander-in-chief with zero combat experience.
But I will not let my guard down. I will crush them... utterly and completely.
The grand legacy built by the Ryan family. If he could tear that legacy down, his name would be etched in the annals of history.
Therefore... I cannot afford to show any weakness.
With that thought, he stared at the map, drafting the troop deployment for tomorrow's battle.
The formation must be balanced, capable of transitioning rapidly between offense and defense.
To thoroughly crush the enemy...
With the sea to the west, if they deploy their cavalry, it can only be to the east.
Since the enemy's knights and cavalry would undoubtedly strike from the east, the Commander placed his spearmen and cavalry on that flank.
Once we break the enemy's cavalry, we will immediately strike their rear.
He then placed a small number of cavalry and infantry behind his central infantry.
And to respond to any emergencies, I will station cavalry and infantry in the reserves to protect the center.
Behind them, he positioned the mage units.
Our mages far outnumber theirs... We will bombard them relentlessly with high-firepower offensive spells while maintaining minimal defensive magic.
"Hmm..."
The sea to the west was a blessing, but just in case, he decided he should deploy spearmen to protect the mage units.
If even a small detachment of enemy cavalry manages to bypass our lines and attack the mages, it will be fatal. Mages have virtually no close-combat capabilities.
He designed a formation where approximately three hundred mercenaries would guard the mages.
"This should be the most textbook formation."
With that, the Commander looked forward to tomorrow's pitched battle.