Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Collapse of the Northwest Front
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The northwest front, where the Crossing Army faced off against the Albad and Bekavia Allied Forces.
Kaien, who was commanding the allied forces, squeezed his eyes shut.
"Mercenary Wade... It seems he's far more exceptional than I anticipated."
"Teacher? What do you—"
As he spoke, Kaien directed words of praise toward Juras's army straight ahead.
"You got me good. What a sly fox. To maneuver so cunningly that even I didn't notice a thing."
The intelligence about the fall of Gekson Castle and Kesilian Fortress had only just arrived, which made it clear. Juras had launched a frontal assault while secretly disrupting Albad's intelligence network without a trace.
There were only a handful of people on the entire continent capable of pulling something like that off against Kaien.
"Gillas, order an immediate full retreat for the entire army. We'll retreat fast, even if it means getting pursued."
"W-Why all of a sudden, sir? The battle situation here is still..."
But at that moment.
"...!"
Gillas whipped his head around, sensing some kind of presence.
"What in the world...!?"
"It looks like we're a step too late."
Gillas rushed out of the tent and looked toward the rear of the army.
"This... can't be happening."
There, Als's army of 30,000 was advancing in perfect formation.
"Our army's been flanked!?"
"General! Juras Pamillion's forces have begun a full advance again!"
"Damn it all!"
The Albad and Bekavia Allied Forces, now caught from behind.
Gillas shuddered at how completely their intelligence network had been breached.
'No matter how compromised our intel was, we shouldn't have been flanked this perfectly. They must have taken a massive detour around the northern battlefield...!'
He knew better than anyone just how far that detour was.
"Then what the hell was Carrington's army doing all that time!?"
The allied forces, now flanked.
With Als's 30,000 joining the fray, the numbers stood at 60,000 against 90,000—a massive disadvantage for the allies.
"General! General Yussis is requesting orders!"
"Tch!"
Gillas dithered, unable to decide.
From behind him, Kaien spoke up.
"What are you hesitating for? If we fight here, we're all dead. We have to retreat, even if it means taking losses."
"But Teacher! That would mean...!"
"Yes, this war will end in defeat."
"Damn it! Those incompetent Bekavia bastards...! Some genius princess they have! Can't even handle a single mercenary scum!"
The full retreat of the allied forces under Kaien's command.
This wasn't just the collapse of one front line.
The northwest front was the central pillar of the allied forces. If it fell, the other fronts would crumble simultaneously.
That included the Carrington battlefield, defended by Sophia.
A scheme that transcended mere strategy.
Against Sophia, who had declared an absolute defense, Als had used a battlefield detour to seize Carrington without spilling a single drop of blood.
"Hmm, the mercenary Wade who toyed with the genius princess. You've piqued my interest."
"...Teacher?"
Thwack! Kaien slammed his staff down and said,
"I'll leave the vanguard's retreat to Yussis. Gillas, you and I will command the rear guard."
The rear. In other words, facing Als directly.
"There's no need for you to step up personally, Teacher! I'll handle it alone! That mercenary just got lucky...!"
"There's nothing uglier than a man's jealousy, Gillas. If you want to prove yourself, do it with results. Hurry now, or Juras will devour us."
"Tch... Understood."
Gillas rallied the rear guard.
Kaien glanced toward Als's position and smirked.
"Well then, shall we see what this hidden dragon is made of?"
The Albad rear guard formed up to counterattack.
Als felt a chill run down his spine at their formation.
"Feels like they're testing us. It's unsettling."
Victory was already sealed the moment the enemy decided to retreat. His job was done.
But for a complete victory, he needed to eliminate any variables here.
If the retreating enemy preserved too much of their force, it could lead to an unnecessary second front.
So, he had to whittle down their numbers somewhat.
"Wade, what do we do?"
Illya asked, looking worried.
The enemy's formation included the living legend, Strategist Kaien.
Even Illya was intimidated by his reputation.
But Als replied nonchalantly.
"No need to worry, Master. We're in the superior position. And we're the ones who get to test them."
"Test...? You mean test Strategist Kaien!?"
"Why not?"
Als positioned his troops and then employed one thing—not a tactic, but a strategy.
He decided to intentionally open a retreat path for the enemy.
With retreat decided, the allied forces had only one path: to the rear.
The biggest obstacle to that retreat was, naturally, Als's 30,000 troops positioned there.
In that situation, Als shifted his army slightly to the side, opening a path.
"Hah! That fool must be terrified of Teacher's reputation!"
Gillas sneered, but Kaien let out a gasp of admiration instead.
"What an entertaining fellow. To think he'd try to test me!"
"T-Teacher...? Test you?"
The bizarre act of deliberately opening a retreat path.
It was Als sending one message: He, in the advantageous position, would dictate the battlefield's flow.
By opening the path like this, the allied forces had no choice but to move toward it.
That would shift the battle from a head-on clash to a pursuit.
Naturally, in a pursuit, the pursuers held the advantage—Als's army.
"He wants to see how I'll respond."
"You're overthinking it. The best move for the enemy right now is to push hard from front and back. He's made a huge blunder."
"Not necessarily, Gillas."
Kaien pointed out the army's fatigue.
"They've marched here with an unconventional forced march. Their troops must be utterly exhausted. Engaging in a full battle in that state is too risky. In that sense, a pursuit is a good choice. It naturally boosts troop morale."
"He calculated that far...?"
"That's how it looks to me."
Kaien nodded and continued.
"When I heard Juras entrusted command of a large army to a mercenary, even I was skeptical... but he's got skill."
"What do we do now, Teacher?"
"This time, it's better to play along with his intent. We'll take the path he opened and slip away fast."
Once retreat was decided, the best policy was to flee without looking back.
Kaien shot one last glance at Als's position and retreated swiftly.
"Wade, the enemy commander is fleeing."
"Let him go. Chasing blindly will land us in a trap. We just need to nip at their heels."
And so, Als harried the enemy's rear, inflicting 5,000 casualties before leisurely rejoining Juras.
Juras, pursuing the vanguard, racked up about 10,000 kills of his own. The allied forces suffered nearly 20,000 losses and routed.
With the Crossing side fully pacifying the northwest front, the Three Lions War effectively came to an end.
*
*
*
After driving off the allied forces, reorganizing the camp, and merging with Juras, I suddenly faced changed gazes.
"General Wade enters!"
Soldiers bellowed at the top of their lungs.
The atmosphere in the command tent had shifted too.
"......"
They eyed me like they were wary of a predator.
Even Second General Creeper Nolak, who had once looked at me with disdain, now watched me with somber eyes.
Only Juras burned with fervor.
"Could you drop that lovesick gaze? It's honestly creepy."
"Hah, sorry. Anyway, take a seat. We'll start the after-action report."
Juras's adjutant, Kisler, began the briefing.
The key point was that this victory had allowed them to secure the targeted regions.
"With their front collapsing, the enemy has lost influence over Carrington and several other areas. We'll occupy them, fortify, and begin armistice negotiations."
That process would take about three months. Then came bone-chilling winter, leaving neither side able to wage war. Another three months, and spring would bring planting season—meaning roughly half a year without fighting.
"In that case, my role ends here. Pay the remaining 20 million silan? So I can leave right away."
At that, bam! Nolak shot to his feet, slamming the table.
"You think you can just walk away like that?"
"What do you mean?"
"We know your skill all too well now. And that's exactly why we can't let you go."
"...You mean there's a chance I could side with Albad or Bekavia."
"Mercenaries do anything for money, right? Am I wrong?"
The other officers nodded in agreement.
I turned to Juras.
"Isn't this breaking our agreement?"
"Haha, my adjutants' hot blood has gotten the better of them."
With that, Juras nailed it down firmly.
"On my name, I swear: No interference with Mercenary Wade will be tolerated."
"Commander-in-Chief! What are you saying? Given his skill, Albad and Bekavia will surely try to buy him off, no matter the price!"
"Doesn't matter. Show your own skill then. Or Nolak, are you saying you couldn't beat him?"
"That's...!"
"Our contract with Wade is over, and we have no right to bind him further. End of story."
"Then renew it with a new contract!"
Nolak promptly offered a new deal worth 20 million silan.
This guy, who used to scorn me, now tossed out 20 million like it was nothing.
It felt good to be acknowledged, but...
"I'll pass. I wasn't all that keen on this job to begin with."
"You..."
Nolak acted like refusing to stay in Crossing meant death.
I could understand his feelings, so I offered to swear an oath.
"That said... for this war only, I swear not to get involved with any other nation."
"And the penalty if you break it?"
"Who knows?"
"Are you joking!?"
"It's not a joke—just that I don't have anything to offer as penalty."
Juras stepped in with unasked-for help.
"Leave that to me. If Wade breaks his word, I'll exact a fitting price."
"You're talking like you know who I am."
"Not exactly. But if I wanted to, I could find out."
"..."
This guy was still suspicious. My instincts recoiled from him.
"With that settled, I hope you'll let it slide for my sake."
With Juras putting it that way, the others shut up.
He smirked, lifting the corners of his mouth.
"Looks settled. Heh, you're free to go, Wade."
Juras showed a straightforward attitude.
Wanting to know his and Crossing's true intentions, I secured one additional promise.
"I mentioned before, on top of the pay, I wanted spoils of war."
"Did you? What do you want?"
"Arrange a meeting with someone later."
The king of Crossing, Pharaine Mallorn—described in the game as the root of all evil. I demanded a private audience with him soon.
Juras looked genuinely surprised for once but coolly accepted, saying it sounded fun.
*
*
*
Somehow, the mercenary job wrapped up.
Once out of Crossing and confirming no tails, I removed my helmet.
"Whew! Finally feels like I can breathe."
Wearing the helmet all day was pure torture.
"Eo, you can take yours off too."
"Is that so..."
Eonia gazed wistfully at the discarded helmet, inwardly disappointed.
"Als, are you sure this is okay?"
Master Illya still worried Juras might pull something behind the scenes.
I shared her concern but decided to trust him for now.
"I don't know what that guy's thinking, but it seems like he doesn't plan to do anything to me."
"...I felt that too. If anything, he seemed friendly."
"An unpleasant kind of friendliness."
He still held the reins—the sword hilt.
As he said, if he wanted, he could uncover my identity.
'That's why I asked for the Pharaine meeting.'
Securing that promise meant he wouldn't act until then, or so I judged.
"Now we return to our normal lives. While staying vigilant, of course."
"Yeah, worrying won't change anything."
Exactly. Powerless as I was, if he decided to mess with me, resisting would be tough.
'I need to speed up recruiting the Seven Retainers.'
That way, I could at least cope with whatever he threw at me.
"Anyway, shall we talk about something else?"
To change the subject, I jokingly brought up merits among the trio: Eonia, Ymir, Illya.
But it escalated beyond expectation.
"Naturally, first merit goes to me, right?"
Eonia fiercely claimed the top spot and started arguing her case.
She loved formal praise more than anyone, throwing a childish tantrum.
"In the first clash, I led the cavalry and cut off the enemy's fleeing waist. In the night raid, I took out enemy commander Kasola Teltail! First merit is mine for sure!"
Meanwhile, Master and Ymir didn't care about merits, so giving it to Eonia was fine—but I worried it'd go to her head, so I awarded it elsewhere.
"Hmm... First merit to Ymir."
"No way!?"
"Don't be shocked. This is objective."
Ymir had beheaded enemy Grand General Kal Maxmen in the opening battle and quietly eliminated scouts in later ops, greatly aiding success.
"And crucially, she was always by my side assisting. Without Ymir, I couldn't have endured the fatigue."
"Young master... You're too kind."
Eonia ground her teeth in jealousy—grrr! How obsessed was she with formal praise?
Unable to watch her pitiful display, Master spoke up.
"Eonia, second merit is still yours. That's a great result, so accept it this time."
"...Fine. Ymir! Next time, first merit is mine—get ready!"
Eonia was genuinely upset.
The enlightened image from the game kept shattering.