20
Chapter 20
The reconnaissance officer and Charles dismounted. Charles approached the villagers and asked.
"What happened? Were there bandits?"
The eldest man among them stepped forward, leaning on his cane.
"Not bandits. Something like that."
"If not bandits..."
"The forces of House Kronor were here."
Karl von Kronor. He was the Grand Duke of the Grand Duchy of Kronor, tasked with guarding the North. He was also the Crown Prince's rival in this northern conquest.
"That's strange. This is House Kronor's territory; why on earth would the Grand Duke plunder his own lands?"
The reconnaissance officer asked, and Charles answered immediately.
"Scorched Earth Tactics."
"Scorched Earth Tactics?"
"Gabriel, the North is vast, isn't it?"
"It is."
"Conversely, its productivity is lower than that of the Central."
"Correct."
"With such a vast territory, supply lines naturally stretch thin. How do you solve that?"
"By... foraging?"
'Foraging' was just a polite euphemism for looting. For the armies of this era, plundering was a common occurrence.
"But now, foraging is no longer an option."
Because the enemy had already stripped the land bare.
"Ah!"
Gabriel clapped his hands as if he had finally realized.
Indeed, in the Northern Hemisphere, productivity is low due to the cold climate. Because the land is vast but productivity is low, supply lines naturally become overextended. To solve this, one must rely on foraging—essentially looting the locals.
But what if the defenders plunder the food sources before the invaders can? The invaders, starved and demoralized, would either desert or be unable to fight effectively.
This was a tactic frequently employed in Earth's history, most notably by Russia. Both Napoleon and Hitler fell victim to it, so its effectiveness goes without saying.
"Strategist, should we report this to headquarters immediately? We should inform General Valboa and await further orders..."
"Wait."
I raised my hand to stop Reconnaissance Officer Gabriel.
"What is it?"
"What happens if we go back and report? What do you think the next step would be?"
"I don't know... wouldn't they try to find a countermeasure?"
"They'll send out scouts again to figure out which villages have been plundered and which haven't. That way, they can send troops to the ones that are still intact."
"As expected of the Strategist; you see things differently. So, what should we do?"
"If it's something the next wave of scouts will have to do anyway, we'll just do it ourselves before we return."
"But... isn't that dangerous? There are only twenty of us. If we encounter the enemy plundering the villages, we'll be hunted down in an instant. I'm sure scouts are used to risking their lives, but are you really okay with this, Strategist?"
"Well... I can just die if it comes to that."
Of course, I had no intention of dying. I was simply betting on Glacia to bail me out if things got truly perilous.
"Hahaha! This is a masterpiece."
Gabriel laughed loudly.
"You are nothing like the previous strategist. You're either far braver, or far stupider. It must be one of the two."
Perhaps it was both. With that thought, we checked the map and headed for the next village.
-----
We spent that night in Ballen Village. It was a calculated risk, assuming the enemy wouldn't return to a place they had already stripped bare. My guess was correct; they didn't come back.
The next day, we passed through the villages surrounding Ballen, checking which had been plundered. As it turned out, many villages to the north of Ballen had been hit, while most to the south remained untouched.
When we asked the survivors when the enemy had left, they generally said a day or two ago. This meant there was a high probability that the enemy had already moved on. The chance of an encounter wasn't zero, but it was relatively low.
"It seems they plundered everything north of Ballen Village and then returned to their main camp."
"Indeed. It looks like they only targeted the north."
Gabriel agreed with me.
"Then Philippa, our next destination... since it's south of Ballen, there's a good chance it hasn't been plundered."
"Yes, that's right."
"I think we can spend tonight in Philippa."
"Yes. I'm getting sick of these military rations; I hope we can have some warm soup."
I completely agreed. Since joining the Reconnaissance Unit, I'd realized how scarce the food was. Occasionally, the soldiers would hunt rabbits, but that was a rare treat. Hunting every day would distract them from their mission, so they mostly ate beef jerky or black bread. Many might think black bread is actual bread, but it was more like a porridge—a stone-hard loaf soaked in hot water until it was edible. To be honest, it tasted terrible.
Food in the villages was slightly better. It was mostly bean or vegetable soup, and if we were very lucky, we might get some chicken. Praying that the next village was still intact, we headed forward. And then...
-Whoosh!
Contrary to our expectations, the village had already been plundered. Or rather, it was being plundered in real-time. A detachment of soldiers was moving from house to house seizing food, and while the peasants resisted to protect their supplies, they were simply cut down by swords.
Watching the scene from a distance, Gabriel asked me.
"Strategist, your orders. What shall we do?"
"How many of them are there?"
"At least three times our number. Their gear is far inferior to ours, so they aren't actually three times as strong, but that numerical gap is hard to overcome."
"..."
"Knowing when to retreat is also a form of courage. We should fall back."
Gabriel's opinion was reasonable. Any normal tactician would have said the same. But I was no normal tactician.
"There is a way."
"A way?"
"A way to inflict heavy casualties without losing to them."
Gabriel looked at me as if I were talking nonsense.
"The key is that the enemy is currently plundering food."
"Yes, that's true. And it looks like they're plundering valuables as well."
Those looted valuables wouldn't be sent up the chain of command; they'd stay in the soldiers' pockets. It was a crime, but a common occurrence in the military.
"If we attack while they're in the middle of plundering, we'll lose."
"Of course. They outnumber us three to one."
"But what if we attack after they've finished?"
Gabriel looked puzzled by that suggestion.
"Stop thinking like a soldier and start thinking like a plunderer. I'm poor. I joined the army to make money, and now I've gathered plenty of food and valuables. In this situation, if I'm chased by an enemy, what's the first thing that comes to mind?"
"Uh... that I need to kill the enemy?"
"No. It would be 'I just want to get out of here.' If we fight now, before they've achieved their goal, we'll lose. But if we hit them in the back as they're retreating after getting everything they wanted, we have a chance."
Gabriel looked skeptical, questioning if this was truly a certainty.
"Gabriel, I'm young and I got this position through connections. I know you don't trust me, but I'm risking my life in this battle too. Please, trust me."
"...But if we lose, we die. This isn't a game on a chessboard. You should value your life..."
"If we achieve success in this fight, it could lead to promotions. Whether you want honor or an early discharge, this will bring it closer."
Gabriel groaned at that, then spoke.
"Whatever. The moment I volunteered for the most dangerous reconnaissance unit, I threw my life away. Let's give it a try."
Then, Gabriel whispered to the soldiers who had been listening behind them.
"Is there anyone who disagrees? If you value your life, you can desert right here. However, you'll never be able to return to His Highness the Crown Prince's military camp."
"..."
"Fight if you want to move up in the world; leave if you don't want to die. This is your only chance."
"I'll do it."
"I'm in."
Voices of agreement echoed from all around. As expected of the Reconnaissance Unit, a group that had volunteered for the most dangerous posts.
"Alright, let's give it a try."
And so, we hid in the tall grass and waited for the enemy to finish their looting.
The plundering took some time. After spending several hours seizing all the grain and valuables from the village, the Northern Grand Duke's army began to ride away, laughing in satisfaction.
Their horses had slowed down under the weight of their loot, making them easy targets for our fresh mounts, which carried nothing but emergency rations and silver coins.
"F-fuck! What is that!"
The soldiers of Grand Duke Kronor shouted.
"The enemy! It's an ambush!"
"There aren't many of them! Fight! Fight back!"
But no one wanted to fight. Think about it. When you have a bag worth a fortune strapped to your horse, who would risk their life in a battle? All they could think about was getting those treasures to their own secret hiding spots.
Despite the officer's orders to engage, the soldiers did nothing but flee, and our side began picking them off one by one as they retreated.
"Dammit!!!"
A few tried to charge bravely, but they were few in number and easily suppressed.
It was simple to capture those fleeing with loot. Their horses were too overburdened with stolen goods to run properly.
After the skirmish ended.
Nearly half of the enemy had been killed or captured.
Meanwhile, our losses were only three wounded.
It was a one-sided slaughter.
Gabriel asked.
"I really didn't expect us to win so easily. How did you know we could do this, Strategist?"
"Thieves are always tense when they enter a place, but once they're leaving, they're blinded by greed and think of nothing but escape."
The strategy was inspired by a historical figure who had watched thieves rob his own home, only to strike them from behind as they attempted to flee.
"Attention!"
I shouted.
"Congratulations on your victory."
The soldiers of the Reconnaissance Unit cheered.
When they returned, they would be treated as heroes.