Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Decisive Night Raid
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Our army held a banquet from morning until well past noon.
There were various reasons for throwing the banquet, but the first was to account for the troops' fatigue.
When a feast like this unfolds from morning onward, the soldiers naturally doze off in the afternoon, stuffed full and their tension released.
I had granted the troops the sweet bliss of a morning nap.
“There are other purposes too, but this is an important factor.”
Red Knight Anton let out an exclamation at my words.
“I see. So you’re planning a night battle!”
“Exactly. The ten thousand reinforcements heading this way will try to link up under cover of darkness.”
They were convinced we’d interfere if they attempted to join during the day.
With Sophia Veron’s army hunkered down in one spot, reluctant to emerge, merging forces in broad daylight carried significant risk for Bekavia too.
“They’ll worry we’ll smash the reinforcements piecemeal, so they’ll use their own march route to join at night. Likely at this point here.”
The officers nodded automatically at the spot I indicated on the command map.
“Rohaden Crossroads. It’s a considerable detour, but the road’s wide, making it effective. It makes sense.”
“Yes, it does. And that’s precisely why the enemy will anticipate it.”
“…Pardon?”
“It means Sophia Veron knows we’ll try to raid Rohaden Crossroads.”
“Then won’t those reinforcements avoid Rohaden Crossroads?”
“From here on, it’s psychological warfare. The banquet was preparation for that.”
The feast stretching from morning to afternoon.
Seeing it, Sophia would brace for a full-scale night battle. In that scenario, launching a large-scale clash in rough terrain risked command chaos and heavy losses.
Especially with reinforcements to merge, stragglers would be inevitable in a rugged night fight.
So they’d likely prefer a night battle in the open expanse of Rohaden Crossroads.
Understanding the enemy’s mindset and reading their moves ahead—that was the foundation of how I commanded the army.
“What’s your plan? Head to Rohaden Crossroads? Or…?”
“We go to Rohaden Crossroads. Right here… the war’s direction will be decided.”
This operation was the decisive stroke I’d prepared to deliver checkmate.
Rohaden Crossroads was a highway Bekavia had paved for efficient trade.
It led southwest to Albad, south to Caliper, and southeast to the Crossing Republic—a broad thoroughfare ideal for army marches.
Bekavia’s ten thousand reinforcements were advancing along it toward Carrington.
And as they neared the Carrington sector…
“Enemy raid! Foes approaching!”
Panic erupted in the Bekavia reinforcements.
Third General Teltail, who held command, shouted as if he’d been waiting.
“Don’t panic! Units, confirm your night battle markers and engage the enemy!”
Teltail frantically tried to assess the enemy’s numbers.
“Damn it! Too dark to see clearly…!”
Clouds veiled the moon, making the night even blacker than usual—a hindrance.
But it ceased to matter soon enough.
The enemy force was vast enough to gauge even in that gloom.
Roughly forty thousand.
“Crazy bastard…! Committing the whole army to a night raid?!”
It was boldness beyond measure.
Throwing every last soldier into such an assault?
This raid spot lay north of the Carrington front—inside Bekavia territory, no less.
Once in enemy lands, resupply was off the table.
The foe had plunged into hostile soil, utterly ignoring their supply lines.
Had Sophia exploited this by marching on the Crossing Republic to sever supplies and threaten her homeland, Crossing would’ve been thrown into uproar.
But in the end, she hadn’t.
That was the crucial point.
‘He’s read Princess Sophia’s psyche to perfection… Mercenary Wade. A terrifying man.’
Still, Sophia’s countermeasures weren’t poor.
“Save our brothers──!!”
Under Fourth General Macully Kuhn’s lead, twenty thousand troops arrived as support.
Sophia had dispatched that massive force, accounting even for the punch Als would pack into his raiders.
A meticulously calculated maneuver.
She’d even foreseen Als striking her main camp in the gap left by the absent twenty thousand.
Should that happen, she planned to flank them with the thirty thousand after merging reinforcements.
Sophia’s flawless command, prepared for every contingency.
“They’re finally here!”
Color returned to Teltail’s face.
He promptly signaled retreat.
Sophia had anticipated a fierce raid and sent twenty thousand, but the enemy was even more unhinged than expected.
“Macully! We’re at a disadvantage here! Fall back and link with main camp!”
“Yes! The princess said the enemy won’t pursue if we enter the mountains!”
“Gariton Mountains! Good! I’ll carve open the retreat path that way!”
Teltail began directing the full withdrawal.
And at that moment…
“…There you are.”
Als pinpointed Teltail’s position as if he’d been lying in wait.
Boom! Als, Iliya, and Eonia’s trio punched through in a single thrust.
Teltail clenched his jaw.
‘Fooled…! They were waiting for me to start the retreat command!’
For Als, who’d foreseen the retreat to Gariton Mountains, reading Teltail’s orders was child’s play.
He’d grasped it in an instant, deducing Teltail’s exact spot from the unit’s commands and the soldiers’ movements.
“General! We must retreat now!”
Macully urged desperately, but Teltail shook his head.
“No, I’ll hold them here to buy time.”
“Yes!?”
“They’re fixated on me alone. That means the other escape routes are wide open. Macully, what matters now isn’t one officer—it’s saving as many soldiers as possible. Our mission is to deliver maximum forces to Princess Sophia! Go!”
“Urgh!”
Biting his lip until it bled, Macully pulled away to withdraw the troops.
And before long…
Crunch crunch crunch! Soldiers swept aside.
Teltail now faced three spearmen radiating overwhelming prowess.
Spotting Als in the gray helm among them, he snarled.
“So you’re Wade…! Does wagging your tail for Crossing feel that good?”
“No tail-wagging here. But more importantly… you’re Third General Teltail, right?”
“Indeed—this is Bekavia’s Kasola Teltail! What say you, Wade? Got the guts for a man-to-man duel? Fell me, and you’ll claim fame that shakes the continent.”
“Always the same… If you’re stalling for time, why not get creative about it?”
“…”
As Als said, this parley was mere delay.
All to buy time for the other soldiers to escape.
And Als…
“Hmm. Hmm. Hmmm.”
He knew full well it was a stall tactic—yet watched the scene unfold leisurely.
Only then did Teltail feel a chilling dread.
“…You. What exactly are you plotting?”
“No need for you to know. Anyway, looks like it’s done. Eo, finish him. No wounds to the face, as discussed.”
Eonia, astride her mount, leveled her long spear at Teltail.
Teltail, likewise mounted, thrust forward his halberd—its crescent blade gleaming—as he measured the distance.
“Ha! The last Valkyrie of Kurabel Holy Kingdom reduced to a mercenary’s mongrel—surely the Holy King in heaven stamps the earth in grief!”
“Mercenary mongrel? You lack vision. My liege shall become emperor.”
“Such drivel’s so absurd it’s not even amusing! Hiyah!”
Clang! A halberd swing infused with full might.
Yet Eonia parried effortlessly, pressing Teltail back. The gap in their levels was plain.
Soon—stab! The spear pierced his heart.
Eonia, a cold smile fit for a queen upon her lips, proclaimed.
“Your death was not in vain. It paves my liege’s Royal Road—close your eyes in joy.”
“Cough!?”
Teltail’s eyes rolled back as he breathed his last.
Als approached Eonia on horseback.
“Royal Road this, emperor that? I told you not to say things like that.”
“Ah, yes! It slipped out… I’ll be careful.”
Her queenly ruthlessness vanished; Eonia shrank like a startled turtle, at a loss.
*
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The Crossing army’s night raid with forty thousand strong.
Hearing the report, Sophia swallowed hard.
“Crazy bastard—not right in the head…”
Forty thousand meant committing their entire force to a night raid—an illogical choice, even for the aggressors.
“So? How far did the enemy pursue?”
The ragged Macully replied in a feeble voice.
“They chased us into the mountains. Gave up around midway through. They seem to be regrouping in Gariton Mountains now.”
“As expected…”
“Princess, just to be safe, we should send reinforcements to the supply lines. Veer right from Gariton, and they could strike our supply route straightaway.”
“Who do you think I am? I’ve already fortified supply defenses. Concentrated scouts there too. If they target supplies, word will come instantly.”
Should they truly descend on the supply lines, it’d be time to counterstrike.
The enemy had ignored resupply to invade Bekavia soil. Drag it out, and annihilation was possible.
When the moment came, she’d smash them utterly.
“More pressing now is rooting out the sneaky rats who slipped in.”
Sophia suspected Als had seeded the camp with spies amid the night battle chaos.
Stragglers from the clash were still trickling in like sausages, one beat late—prime chance for infiltrators to blend.
She gathered her officers and barked.
“We’re reorganizing the entire camp! Vet every soldier’s identity thoroughly. Isolate and reassign anyone suspicious!”
The process would cost Bekavia’s army a full day.
And at dawn the next day, Sophia faced a report that beggared belief.
“Urgent dispatch──!!”
The soldier, face ashen, began his report.
“Kesilian Fortress and Gekson Castle have fallen to the enemy!”
In that instant, Bekavia’s camp fell into murderous silence.