Chapter 22
Chapter 22
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: Carrington Clash
-----------------------------------------------------------------
After leaving the military conference room, my master asked me in agitation.
"Als! Why did you accept that proposal!"
If his subordinates weren't an issue, we could have just withdrawn as is.
Even so, there were several reasons I accepted the offer.
"Even if we release Master's subordinates now, we can't predict what they'll do later."
"That's the same after the commission ends. They might try to take you out once the job's done!"
"You're right about that."
Strictly speaking, that was no longer a reason.
The decisive reason I took this job wasn't just to build up strength to check Marquis Millias—it was to uncover Crossing's true objectives.
Crossing Republic, portrayed as an evil nation in the game, constantly blocking the protagonist's path.
'The story update that's coming soon probably reveals their real goals. That means it could be closely tied to me.'
It lined up perfectly with the point where Als meets his downfall.
There was a high chance Crossing was behind the betrayer who lured Als into a trap.
'The protagonist being Crossing's slave adds up. There has to be something I don't know about.'
I wanted to gauge that through this war.
Once I received the operation briefing, I gathered the necessary supplies and headed to Carrington.
Carrington in the north.
Upon arriving at this stronghold garrisoned by 60,000 troops, a familiar face surprisingly came out to greet me.
"Welcome, General Wade. I'm Anton Kairos, aide to Lord Juras."
A beautiful young man in crimson armor.
'Red Knight Anton...!'
This guy was Juras's loyal retainer, tormenting the protagonist throughout the story.
Not a general but a pure warrior, he wasn't among the Ten Heroes or the Twenty Warlords, yet his personal prowess had earned him fame.
His individual strength was a whopping 99, top-tier even in the game.
He wouldn't appear in gacha, but if he did, UR rank was guaranteed. And here he was, pledging absolute obedience to me.
"By Lord Juras's command, I swear to faithfully carry out your orders in this war."
"Very well, Anton. Shall we start the military council right away?"
"Yes, sir."
The military council convened swiftly.
I'd been inwardly worried about friction with the officers, but nothing of the sort happened.
The 60,000 soldiers gathered here were all Juras's devoted private troops.
'Looks like he showed some consideration after all...'
They seemed to worship Juras like a god.
Since it was an order from their revered Juras, they intended to follow even a sudden mercenary's commands without question.
'Convenient for me, anyway.'
I could focus solely on the war without other distractions.
*
*
*
Meanwhile, in Carrington's Bekavia camp.
"Huh? Mercenary Wade? Who's that?"
A middle-aged man cuddling a camp prostitute in his tent furrowed his brow.
The reporting soldier, busily side-eyeing the naked women sprawled about, shouted emphatically.
"Yes, sir! It's that mercenary who repelled Gillas Melbourne's guerrilla force in the skirmish between Albad and Caliper Kingdom at the Pollick Mountains!"
"Ha! Ridiculous. Handing 60,000 troops to someone over that minor feat? Juras is going too far with his whims."
"The Supreme Commander asks how you'll respond."
"What do you mean how? Unless Juras or Creeper Nolak shows up, no hesitation needed. Time to teach this nobody the difference in class! Convene the officers' meeting now!"
"Yes, sir!"
Bekavia's camp here had three key officers.
The man who called the officers' meeting was Kal Maxmen, First General and Grand General, a veteran of countless wars.
And in the top command tent, a young man and woman awaited him.
"You're here, Master."
"You're late! Let me guess—dallying with women again."
The man was Maxmen's disciple, Fourth General McCully Kuhn. The woman was Bekavia's First Princess, Sophia Veron, who had risen to Supreme Commander through her strategic genius despite being a woman—an unprecedented feat.
Maxmen glanced at the battle map they'd laid out and burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahaha! Forgive me, Princess. Knowing you'd have everything ready made me slack off a bit."
"Still as shameless as ever. So? What's the plan?"
"You know my style. You're already prepared and pretending otherwise."
Maxmen pointed to the battle map, where multiple simulations had already been run.
The strategy was clear.
Exploit variables arising from a full-frontal assault. That was Maxmen's favorite tactic.
Sophia growled.
"I'd be cautious if it were Juras or Creeper Nolak. But a mercenary Wade? I'll crush him in the opening move."
"Hahaha! The Princess is properly fired up."
As Maxmen said, Sophia didn't hide her displeasure.
"Juras Pamilion... Deploying a mere mercenary against me? That's not just underestimating—it's insulting. This attack will drag him to this front!"
Bekavia was supposed to be on the defensive.
Yet when war broke out, they struck first.
The first day of hostilities.
Noon on the day Crossing formally declared war on Albad and Bekavia.
"Wade!"
Illya burst into Als's tent, shouting.
"The enemy is advancing!"
"Hmm. You're this worked up, so is it a full army advance?"
"Uh... Yeah, exactly."
"No need to panic, Master. This seems to be Kal Maxmen's signature full-force tactic."
Maxmen was the type of general who instinctively sniffed out the battlefield's scent.
'Exploiting variables born from brutal combat.'
He deliberately forced full-frontal clashes to create chaos, then reaped the benefits.
Yet he also had orthodox tactics.
Thanks to Bekavia's Supreme Commander, Sophia Veron.
A masterful blend of instinct and orthodoxy. That's why Bekavia's First Legion had real presence.
"Even so, they underestimated us badly."
"Underestimated?"
"If I weren't here—if it were Juras or some famous general—they wouldn't charge on the first day like this."
Time to make them regret that choice.
Als donned his gear, exited the tent, and shouted.
"Anton!"
The Red Knight Anton approached and bowed.
"You called?"
"Deploy the troops as discussed. We'll meet the enemy."
"Yes, sir!"
Bekavia versus Crossing forces.
Thus began the Carrington Battle, later known as Strategist Als's debut war.
*
*
*
Bekavia's army advanced in lockstep.
They split their 65,000 into 20,000, 10,000, and 20,000, weighting the flanks.
The remaining 15,000 formed the main body in the rear, advancing south in a protruding wedge formation.
Choosing full frontal on day one.
Possible because Carrington was open plains.
No terrain advantages—just pure tactical clash.
Thwack! I tapped the command baton gifted by Fergie, forming a counter-formation.
"Form the goose formation!"
The goose formation was a V-shape that could absorb a charge, naturally shifting to a U to encircle.
Crossing's troops formed up crisply.
Divided into 3,000-man units, they took positions in the goose formation.
'Impressive training level.'
Juras's elite guards, no doubt.
Excellent tactical execution.
Soldiers well-drilled, officers sharp on strategy.
'Alright, opening moves set. Your response?'
I decided to observe the enemy.
Als's goose formation.
Supreme Commander Sophia Veron nodded, amused.
"Mercenary Wade, huh? Knows basic formations. But...!"
She promptly detached 4,000 cavalry into two 2,000-man wings to flank the field.
To strike the V's sides into ↪V↩.
If the flanks crumbled, the front would isolate instantly.
Bekavia would then mop up the isolated vanguard.
"Sever the waist, and it's over," Sophia smirked.
Als scoffed just as derisively.
"Ha! They took the bait?"
Thud! Bekavia's flanking cavalry hit unexpected obstacles.
Log barricades hidden along their paths. These makeshift barriers couldn't fully stop the charge but blunted momentum and narrowed lanes plenty.
Paths constricted, cavalry tangled, speed plummeting visibly.
"Now! Archers, fire!"
Rear archers loosed arrow storms on the clustered riders, thinning them rapidly.
Sophia gritted her teeth but stayed optimistic.
"Doesn't matter—we severed the waist! Go, Maxmen!"
"Hahaha! As you wish, Princess. Charge, lads! Ravaged the enemy!"
Bekavia's weighted flanks advanced.
The armies clashed fiercely on the wings, plunging into full frontal melee.
*
*
*
Chaos erupted in the melee.
I surveyed the entire field, plotting the board.
Enemy moves, our moves. The war's flow.
Calculated it all in seconds, paving to checkmate.
'First, handle that.'
Kal Maxmen prowled the melee's currents for openings.
Instinct-driven, intuitive—whatever the label. This freakish general hunted prey amid the chaos.
'To him, key points look aflame or shining bright.'
I tested with a feigned gap laced with traps, but Maxmen didn't bite.
Sensed the trap instinctively.
'Unreal type.'
He only tore into easy prey, dodging traps.
Seemed invincible at a glance.
'But he has a weakness.'
His erratic moves left troops unable to keep up.
Tail-end soldiers died pointlessly.
Sure, he gained from the vanguard, netting even overall.
"Als, I'll step in. We need to stop him fast."
My alarmed master gripped his weapon, but I shook my head.
"No, Master stays here."
"...Tactical decision? Or just worried about me?"
"Yes, exactly. Worry for you outweighs tactics, though that's a factor too."
Crossing versus Bekavia—nations unrelated to me. No desire to risk Master.
Better to leverage Crossing's assets.
I summoned waiting Red Knight Anton.
"Anton, now. Collar that one."
"Yes, sir! As ordered!"
Anton raced to Maxmen, swinging his massive cleaver.
"Haaah!"
"...!?"
Clang!! The clash echoed afar.
Maxmen was pinned facing Anton.
His prowess around 90-95—Master or Eonia's level, maybe a touch higher.
Fitting for a nation's Grand General. But Anton's 99 strength overwhelmed.
"Hup!"
"Damn!"
Clang!! Maxmen struggled defensively.
Pinned, he lost his flash. Instinct dulled to futile thrashing.
Foot bound, his forces thinned rapidly.
This let me finalize the checkmate plot.
*
*
*
Sophia swallowed dryly at Crossing's disciplined army.
Composed even in melee, countering calmly.
Beneath lay intricate tactics.
'Unbelievable...!'
Opponent's maneuvers were off the charts.
'Controlling all units in this chaos...!?'
Als's 3,000-man splits.
Unit division tactic.
He treated each as chess pieces, directing fluidly.
Easy to say—only top generals or strategists could manage in melee.
"Supreme Commander! Red Knight has Maxmen pinned! Delay means he'll be isolated!"
"Urk!"
Sophia struggled to match Als's tactics, but Maxmen's solo ramp was discord.
Proof of Als's effective counters.
Bekavia rarely had such disharmony elsewhere.
Their instinct-orthodoxy blend.
Als sneered, "Think that'll work?" and exploited gaps.
'Wade... His intent's clear.'
Isolate and annihilate pinned Maxmen.
All moves pointed there.
Bekavia's main force was Maxmen's—lose it, field lost instantly.
'Only one play.'
Sophia shouted.
"Amarti! Take 5,000! Pin the Red Knight!"
"Yes! On it!"
From main body, she dispatched 5,000 forward.
To free Maxmen by peeling Anton off.
Enemy commandos leaped from our main to grab Anton.
I felt strength drain.
'Had hopes...'
Opponent's Supreme Commander Sophia Veron.
Game heroine aiding protagonist in Bekavia conquest as strategist.
Like Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei, she shone with divine stratagems amid protagonist's flubs.
SSR rank.
But firsthand? Nothing special.
'Ends this anticlimactically.'
Her commandos from main to free Maxmen.
I'd anticipated.
Moment freed—snap! Tactical feint: exposed path to our main.
Maxmen bit. Flames! Light! He charged gleefully.
"Kaha! Prime prey. Charging!"
Perfectly hooked.
Why did trap-sniffing Maxmen follow my lead?
Not a trap. Genuine blunder. Officers dismayed, troops confused.
Exposing main was fatal.
Starved for action while pinned, irresistible bait for Maxmen.
"Wade! He's charging our way fast!"
Master yelled urgently. Tactically outplayed.
But one ploy reversed it all.
Boom!! Enemy right flank shattered.
"Wha...!?"
Maxmen finally sensed doom, eyes bulging toward it.
There stood Anton, rallying our left flank's 10,000.
Thought pinned by their commandos?
Per my orders, he'd gathered left forces.
"Charge! Annihilate their main—no mercy!"
Straight for Sophia's position.
"What!?"
Sophia could only gape.
She'd free Maxmen by pinning Anton.
Als had read that from the start.
Turned it against her.
Perspective flip.
Freeing Maxmen freed Anton too.
And freed Anton gained clear path to their main.
Her dispatch thinned their main defenses.
"Princess! Fall back!"
Fourth General McCully Kuhn rallied main body against Anton, but his might wasn't easily checked.
"Raaagh!"
"Eek!?"
Crunch! Bekavia troops quailed as Anton bulldozed defenses.
"Insane..."
Sophia muttered blankly.
To her, Als's tactics were like chess with lives.
Sacrifice pawns, ignore losses—ruthlessly target the king.
'Made that gap for Maxmen on purpose...!'
Maxmen, deep in our lines on the bait, couldn't wheel to block Anton.
Yet the field wasn't lost.
Maxmen could target our main too.
Elimination game.
Chicken race to wreck mains.
Als warned, "Chicken out and die."
'Take the hit now—retreat!'
Sophia wanted no chicken game.
Pull Maxmen back despite losses, regroup, neutralize threat.
'Intel says Eonia Mirabel and Illya Anpei likely in enemy main!'
One: Kurabel Holy Kingdom's Guard Captain. Other: S-rank mercenary.
Maxmen and aides could handle, but risk reversal.
Uncertain field.
'But Maxmen's nature—he won't retreat now...!'
Opponent knew, chose this.
Meant they were confident defending their main.
'Something else. Signal Maxmen retreat now! It's a death trap!'
But as predicted, Maxmen didn't retreat. He pushed to our main.
Boom!! Escort troops scattered.
Breaking through guards, Maxmen reached me, panting raggedly, eyes blazing.
Around us, his aides clashed with our main defenders in melee.
Our main gave numerical edge.
"That gray helm. You're Wade...!"
"And you must be Kal Maxmen. Pleased. How's the deep end feel?"
"Ha! Not bad."
Maxmen eyed Master Illya and Eonia flanking me, grinding teeth.
Both could match him one-on-one.
Reason Master stayed: best guards for when enemy hit main.
"One question: how'd my main look? Flames? Light?"
"Started tasty glowy. Turned black abyss-like. First time since Jemuto."
"Hm, courage entering knowingly deserves praise."
"Even if I hadn't, you'd chase. Right?"
"Spot on. Pursuit-annihilation prepped assuming escape. You came—saved effort."
Him charging here might even be optimal.
Slim win chance.
Maxmen grinned.
"Kaha! Blood's pumping. How 'bout it, Wade? Man-to-man duel?"
"No such romance. Surrender? Spare your life."
"Refuse."
Wordless stance.
Judged he and aides could handle Master and Eonia—but we had two more, including me.
Whirl! I spun my spear, aiming.
Behind: Master, Eonia, Ymir.
Maxmen gawked at Ymir's aura.
"Your mistake: underestimating me. In war, no overconfidence, no contempt. Basic doctrine."
"Long tongue! Come on!"
Desperate fight for Maxmen.
No variables. No bridging our power gap.
His five aides fell instantly to Master and Eonia.
Maxmen dueling Ymir ate a pincer—while blocking them, crack! Ymir severed his head, dead.
Day one clash: Bekavia lost Grand General, fatal blow, routed.