Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Kalon Mountains Frontline
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The number of officers stationed in the barracks was around ten.
'The officers are few in number.'
That was because there were no senior officers to command our cadet units.
Ironheart, the general serving as Delbadova's adjutant and participating in the battle, explained the reason.
"Our military has decided to leave field judgments to you in this war. Overall command will be under General Delbadova, but in situations where that command is absent or quick decisions are needed, you're free to act on your own."
"On our own...!"
"I won't tell you not to feel the pressure. It's true we've made this decision because our expectations for you are high. But I believe you'll do well. You have the skills for it. Use this opportunity as a stepping stone to break out of your shell and rise higher."
The cadets finally steadied their nerves. It was more a sense of relief from the war situation than encouragement.
Ironheart nodded in satisfaction and unrolled the battle map.
"The area we'll be responsible for in this war is the Kalon Mountains here. If the enemy crosses them and strikes to the right, they can cut off the supply lines Crossing has established toward Bekavia."
"Kalon Mountains...."
It was the first place I'd gone to meet Lutger.
This was the border region between Bekavia and Albad. Following the mountains to the right led straight into Crossing's territory.
"So, our primary role is to defend the Kalon Mountains."
Though called defense, the Kalon Mountains were located away from the main frontlines, so actual combat was unlikely.
This was why the reinforcements were more for show. That was also why they entrusted unit command to greenhorn cadets.
"Here is the basic topographic map of the Kalon Mountains. Memorize it all."
I'd roughly checked the paths when heading to find Lutger before, but I didn't know everything.
I scanned the topographic map, marking key points.
'The mountains are pretty rugged.'
It wasn't for nothing that Lutger had hidden Estelle here. The higher you climbed, the more complex the terrain became, and it was easy to get lost.
On the flip side, if you knew the terrain well, you could use it for agile maneuvers.
Overall commander Delbadova nodded and spoke.
"There's no intelligence yet of the enemy advancing here, but this is a battlefield. You never know when something might happen. We must prepare for every contingency. To that end, let's confirm unit compositions. First, 2nd Archery Unit—Dorothy Grimwood!"
"Yes, sir!"
"In this defensive battle, your unit's role is more crucial than any other. If combat begins, due to the terrain, you'll often have to judge and proceed on your own."
"That's...!"
Dorothy despaired. Ironheart, a vassal of the Grimwood family, seemed to understand her situation and turned to me.
"Als Ilrain. Have your 6th Infantry Unit accompany and protect the 2nd Archery Unit."
"Understood."
Delbadova ended the strategy meeting only after explaining tactics and deployments.
The cadets left the command barracks with weary expressions.
They let out stale sighs.
"Whew! First time in a top-level meeting!"
"The atmosphere is no joke."
Denian Gegglysh and Joshua Herald groaned.
"No way we'll actually see combat, right?"
"Of course not. Neither the Westerners nor Tunkai have reason to come all the way here. Right? Casper. Right? Casper?"
Casper had looked uncomfortable ever since Delbadova, whom he found disagreeable.
He seemed to want to say something dignified, pondered briefly, then spoke.
"Don't get complacent. This is a battlefield. You never know when you might lose your life."
"Y-yeah. You're right."
Ruan Chase shrugged and added.
"If they come, let 'em. We'll win in the end anyway."
With that, Ruan returned to his unit. The others also sorted their excitement and anxiety before heading back.
I supported the leg-weary Dorothy and returned to our unit.
Camp setup was just finishing, and soldiers were preparing to bed down.
'If Eonia were here, she'd have night snacks ready.'
Ymir would have given a thorough leg massage.
'Master probably wants me to overcome these things on my own. Ugh, better just sleep.'
As I headed to my tent,
"Wade, sir."
It was a man in Caliper uniform. I recognized his face.
One of the Crossing officers Juras had sent during the previous Chimera War.
"...Sent by Juras?"
"More precisely, by Sir Anton. He said you'd need information on the battlefield too."
"Good. I was curious anyway. How's the front over there?"
Moving to a secluded spot, I synthesized the information Anton had sent.
Juras's 100,000-strong army had taken position half a month ago and entered full combat a week ago.
"The supreme commander divided the forces into 30,000, 40,000, and 30,000, stationing them at key points to retake strategic locations seized by the enemy. In response, the Western tribes split their forces into three as well."
A massive battlefield spanning five areas.
Two where Tunkai's 60,000 faced Bekavia's 80,000. Three where Crossing's 100,000 clashed with the Westerners' 100,000.
"100,000? Didn't the Westerners assemble 130,000? Where's the remaining 30,000?"
"We can't tell. Their numbers are so vast it's hard for us to tally accurately. They might be guarding rear supply lines, or we could have miscounted."
"Any chance of guerrilla units?"
"Unknown, but no guerrilla sightings in intelligence yet."
"Hmm. How does Juras plan to win?"
"That's..."
"I get it. That guy's always scheming something. Is that all?"
"One more thing. About the enemy commander."
"Finally identified. Who is it?"
The Western tribes' supreme commander.
"Hanneman Noiers."
"Hanneman...!?"
"Does that ring a bell?"
Of course.
Hanneman was the politician who suddenly appeared in the Buran Union in the game.
That was all I knew. Later content hadn't been updated.
'A Western traitor infiltrated Hanneman into Buran. Seems the traitor's influence in Buran is stronger than expected.'
With the Buran king assassination making shadowy operations difficult, he'd stepped into the open.
"Any info on him?"
"Not much known yet, but the Westerners call him 'Thousand Guests.'"
"Thousand Guests?"
An odd moniker for a general.
*
*
*
In Bekavia's western city of Bilark.
The Western tribes occupying it were discussing countermeasures to Crossing's intervention.
Their military conference was held in the city's lord-owned grand banquet hall.
Not out of vanity or luxury.
They simply couldn't fit everyone otherwise.
Over 200 officers attended the military conference, most senior ones.
"Hmm, all present? Just waiting for attendance takes forever."
Though he said that, Hanneman's face showed satisfaction at the number of retainers.
"Now, shall we discuss how to crush the Crossing bastards together?"
Thousand Guests Hanneman.
He had more the air of a politician than a general. With over 10,000 clients indebted to his clan, "thousand guests come" fit him perfectly.
"The Crossing fools split into three armies. And we outnumber them, so if we push with force, they'll have to retreat."
"Hmm, I like the bold approach, but Juras Pamilion is no ordinary man, it seems. I don't know much, but according to Lord Jemuto, he's a monster beyond human. He even predicted—not just predicted, but lured us into invading Bekavia."
"N-no way..."
"I didn't believe it either, but with Crossing actually intervening, it must be true. Don't underestimate him."
The 200-plus officers pooled ideas for the best strategy.
Too many cooks spoil the broth. Many opinions often led to mediocre conclusions, but Hanneman was different.
That insight was why a mere politician could lead the military.
He had the ability to pick the right answers from the barrage of tactics, strategies, and schemes.
A control tower of sorts.
"Your Majesty, I have a stratagem."
"Your Majesty? I haven't ascended the throne yet, Barrett."
"It's only a matter of time."
"Hah, fine. What's the stratagem?"
"Using the Caliper forces."
"The Caliper forces?"
Barrett proposed a scheme to turn the showy Caliper support against them and seize the tide.
Hanneman's lips curled at the idea.
"Looks good. I'll entrust this to you, Barrett. Fisher as your adjutant. Bring victory."
"Yes, sir!"
The battlefield began moving in earnest.
Its dynamics boiled down to Hanneman vs. Juras, and Als vs. supreme strategist Barrett.
*
*
*
Entering the Kalon Mountains, we established a camp at the center. With combat unlikely anyway, it felt like field training to us cadets.
But on the 18th day of the war—and 3rd day of our Caliper forces garrisoning the Kalon Mountains—
An alert suddenly hit our peaceful camp.
As unit commander, the info came straight to me.
"Enemy group spotted at scout point! 6th Infantry, prepare for battle immediately!"
"Enemy group...?"
It was baffling.
No reason to poke our cornered, observing force.
"W-what do we do, Als?!"
Dorothy asked, pale-faced.
"Gather the troops first. Since you're attached to us, we'll deploy together."
"Thanks! G-Grimwood Archers! Assume positions!"
Soldiers swiftly formed up.
We advanced to the mountain entrance to meet the enemy force. I observed with Dorothy's archers.
Step! Step! Soldiers approaching in unison. Their uniforms were unfamiliar.
'I see. That's the Western tribes' uniform from the scouts.'
They advanced unabated into our mountains. Delbadova sent a herald demanding they halt, but their pace didn't slow.
They even shot arrows at the herald, driving him off.
Delbadova didn't hesitate.
"Entire army, battle stations!"
Enemy numbers roughly 20,000. Even with ours.
'As expected, they formed guerrilla units.'
With the main Western-Crossing standoff cautious and no big clashes, guerrilla tactics were an easy guess.
I shouted in Dorothy's stead.
"All archers, ready fire!"
Archers drew arrows.
"Rows 1 through 5, fire!"
Pew-pew-pew-pew! Arrows scattered. Enemies raised shields, but our high ground gave them real power.
"Rows 6 through 10, fire! Rest, reload!"
Then I called for our unit's Dilas.
"Dilas, prepare the crossbow unit as I mentioned before."
"Yes, sir!"
Under Dilas's command, 200 soldiers positioned in front of the archers.
100 prone, 100 kneeling, loading crossbows.
Crossbow units were rarely in regular armies.
Powerful firepower, but costly and inefficient.
Worst was reload time.
Bows maxed at 5 seconds; crossbows could take over a minute, minimum 15 seconds.
Plus frequent jams unlike reliable bows.
Flaws shone in cavalry fights. Gaps between shots failed to check charges.
Same against infantry. No rapid fire meant quicker close range.
Expensive, hard to supply, terrain-dependent efficiency.
In Europe, crossbows were "devil's weapons" for knights in plate, but small-scale battles.
Inefficient for tens of thousands.
Thus, used as auxiliaries or by mercenaries.
Our mercenaries had them.
"Concentrate on their vanguard! Crossbows, first volley! Then archers rows 1-5, fire!"
Ting-ting-ting-ting! Crossbow bolts flew first at the vanguard.
Unlike arrows blocked by shields—thunk!—bolts pierced, embedding in flesh.
"Argh!"
Arrows followed into the shield-dropping soldier.
Vanguard faltered.
"Keep it up! Crossbows reload! Archers 6-10, fire!"
"We won't lag! 1st Archers, fire!"
Delbadova's direct 1st Archers joined, slowing the enemy noticeably.
"We did it! Als! We held them!"
Dorothy yelled excitedly.
But then the enemy began a bizarre maneuver.