3
Chapter 3
Meanwhile, 'Leonia von Arcadia,' the Third Princess of the Arcadian Empire, was conducting experiments with her private soldiers.
She was testing which weapon was most suitable for protecting gunners stationed at the center of a square formation.
First up were the two-handed swords. The swordsmen fared reasonably well against the cavalry, but they ultimately failed to protect the gunners. The princess marked an 'X' next to "Two-handed Sword" with her fountain pen.
"Two-handed swords rely too heavily on individual skill. A single master swordsman can protect many gunners, but there are two problems. First, training such a warrior takes too long, and second, they cannot form a square formation. They're fundamentally ill-suited for group combat. Cross them off the list."
At the princess's command, a knight raised a flag, and as the two-handed swordsmen withdrew, knights armed with one-handed swords and shields stepped forward.
The knights locked their shields to form a square formation. While they could hold off a cavalry charge to some extent, they were eventually trampled as the battle dragged on. The difference in stamina between a horse and a human was insurmountable.
"One-handed swords and shields. If we use these, the shields need to be larger—enough to cover the entire body. Otherwise, the formation will be easily breached by a cavalry charge. Still, they can form a wall, so they're certainly more viable for group combat than two-handed swords."
Leonia marked a triangle next to the one-handed sword and shield. Finally, soldiers armed with halberds appeared. Horses, instinctively fearing long, pointed objects, hesitated to charge, allowing the halberdiers to take down the cavalry by targeting the horses' legs. This time, it was a victory for the infantry.
"Finally, the halberd is an excellent weapon that balances individual skill with the ability to maintain a square formation. It combines the strengths of both the sword and the spear. Since it focuses more on defense than offense, it aligns perfectly with the goal of protecting the gunners. This is the closest thing to a correct answer so far."
Though she circled the halberd, Leonia couldn't shake the feeling that a better tactic existed—something she hadn't yet discovered that could utilize gunners to their full potential, or even beyond.
She wondered what answer her father, the Emperor, would have come up with for such a difficult puzzle.
-----
The next day, an anonymous short thesis was published at the academy.
It was a mere six-page paper that attracted no attention, but Princess Leonia made it a habit to read every such trivial submission.
This was because Leonia had two older brothers—the Crown Prince and the Prince—both of whom held higher succession rights and had inherited far wealthier and larger territories.
Because of this, Leonia believed that to catch up to them, she first needed talented individuals. If she couldn't win through national power, shouldn't she excel in other ways?
For Leonia, those ways were strategy, tactics, and talent. She believed that by surpassing others in these areas, she could overcome any gap in national strength.
This was why she read every paper submitted to the academy. Not knowing what kind of innovative talent might emerge, reading every submission had become one of her most important daily routines.
Then, a paper with quite intriguing content was submitted. It was titled [On the Influence of Gunpowder Weapons on Future Warfare].
When she first read it, Leonia felt a spark of excitement. The paper argued that while gunpowder weapons were not necessarily stronger than traditional ones, they allowed for the rapid training of skilled soldiers and were ideal for turning civilians with no combat experience into viable troops.
The moment she read this, the princess realized the author possessed extraordinary insight. It was true; while training a skilled mage could take decades, a proficient gunner could be ready in a month. Even an expert artilleryman only needed half a year. Gunpowder weapons had the power to swiftly transform commoners into soldiers.
The princess mused that if she properly implemented production lines for gunpowder weapons, she could turn the continent's civilian population into an army in an instant. Just how massive would such a force be? With overwhelming numbers and the tactics to employ them, she might even be able to seize global hegemony, rather than just domestic power.
Gunpowder would dictate the future of war. Although the proper way to utilize 'muskets' had not yet been fully realized, once a single efficient tactic for their battlefield use was developed, muskets and cannons would become the protagonists of warfare. This was the conviction of the Arcadian princess. Therefore...
"Yuria."
The princess spoke to the guard knight attending her.
"Yes."
"Who is the author of this paper?"
"It was submitted completely anonymously."
"Is there no way to find out?"
"It would be possible if we used the authority of the Imperial family."
"That is not an option."
Using imperial authority recklessly would damage her reputation as a royal. While the thesis was certainly intriguing, it wasn't worth compromising her standing just to identify the author.
"Yuria, if any similar papers are submitted, you... no, I'll check them personally, so don't concern yourself with it."
Since this was a matter of importance, it was better to handle it herself than to leave it to a subordinate. Yuria bowed, and though the princess continued searching, nothing else of value surfaced that day besides the anonymous thesis on gunpowder weapons.
-----
The Age of Gunpowder and Magic.
In this game, nations are categorized as either [Traditionalist] or [Innovationist]. Traditionalists rely on swords and magic, while Innovationists utilize guns and cannons.
Princess Leonia von Arcadia was a quintessential Innovationist monarch, meaning she actively embraced gunpowder weapons.
Set ten years before the game's start, this was the period where she gathered information on gunpowder weaponry and recruited talent proficient in its use.
Thus, I knew she would take notice if I submitted a short thesis on gunpowder weapons.
I was subtly alerting her to my existence, effectively telling her, [There is someone as well-versed in gunpowder as you are.]
By now, she must be dying to find out who I am.
If I presented myself to her now, I could likely become one of her aides, but I had something more urgent to attend to.
"Time to make some money."
Charles Jean Rochefort came from a poor family. While his parents did their best to send him tuition, that alone wasn't enough for a comfortable school life.
Determined to earn a living, I headed to the library and began writing a book, referencing various tactical texts.
I titled my book [Tactics of a New Era: How to Utilize Gunpowder Weapons?].
The title alone was enough to make Third Princess Leonia von Arcadia drool in anticipation, wasn't it?
The book primarily covered the Tercio formation used in the mid-16th century and the later military reforms of Maurice of Nassau.
In other words, it detailed the tactics employed during the era when gunpowder weapons were first seriously introduced on Earth.
It was precisely the kind of material Leonia von Arcadia would crave.
After several days of writing, I split the finished work into two volumes and left the first one in front of the room of Yuria Russell, the princess's guard.
-----
The following evening, Yuria Russell returned to her room to rest after completing her guard duties.
There, she found an unfamiliar book waiting for her: [Tactics of a New Era: How to Utilize Gunpowder Weapons? Volume I].
The moment she saw the book, Yuria Russell had a thought.
'This book isn't for me; it's for Her Highness!'
The bedroom of Third Princess Leonia von Arcadia was guarded by knights twenty-four hours a day.
Since infiltrating the princess's quarters was impossible, I had left the volume in front of Yuria's room instead.
I was hoping the guard would deliver it to the princess.
Realizing this, Yuria Russell immediately took the book and headed toward the Third Princess.