Chapter 140
Chapter 140
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: Chapter 48: To the Edriger Kingdom! (2)
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The Philius Empire's forces racked up victory after victory against the Edriger Kingdom's army.
As they seized more territory, Raymond gradually regained his dominance over the world through indirect interventions in its narrative.
Once he judged he had amassed enough dominance, the first group he chose to awaken was the Emperor's Cult troops.
He prioritized awakening the Emperor's Cult troops among all those he could revive.
"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!"
The fanatical devotees who offered blind loyalty to the emperor had awakened once more. This time, their numbers swelled to a full four thousand.
They were all deployed to the occupied territories to spread the emperor's greatness, swiftly purging dissenting elements in their own ruthless way.
With the occupied zones stabilized, Count Acon's Philius Imperial Army linked up with Marquis Kreayer's mercenary force, which was relentlessly assaulting the Edriger Kingdom's capital defense line.
Reinforcements from the rear also arrived in Edriger territory, forming a massive army of one hundred thousand that bore down on the capital's defenses.
In stark contrast, the Edriger forces guarding the line had scraped together barely forty thousand troops, including private soldiers from nearby domains.
Edriger had never been a kingdom renowned for its military might. Their fearsome reputation stemmed from the existence of the Hashashin.
But after the massive assassination plot against the Philius emperor failed recently, they'd lost most of their elite assassins—a tiger stripped of its fangs.
With the situation this dire, King Calbern of Edriger urgently convened the High Council of Nobles.
"Your Majesty, we must declare a total mobilization order across the entire kingdom immediately."
Livingsman spoke up, his striking white hair and clear blue eyes gleaming brightly. He was Edriger's sole Sword Saint and the supreme commander of the Royal Iron Knights, the kingdom's most elite fighting force.
He strongly advocated for the total mobilization, but King Calbern remained silent for the moment. His lips pressed tight, he rolled his eyes about with a conflicted expression.
Edriger had issued a mobilization order not long ago, but a total one was unprecedented. It was a decision that demanded deep deliberation, as it meant committing every ounce of the kingdom's strength.
Not only would every able-bodied citizen be armed, but every facility in the realm would shift to wartime production.
It would allow them to pour everything into the war for a time, but at the cost of exhausting national resources.
The tripartite alliance with the newly formed Jaist Magic Kingdom—born from the Free Isirian Kingdom's defeat—was especially precarious, forcing King Calbern to consider the postwar landscape.
"Your Majesty, Sir Livingsman's counsel is sound. We must declare total mobilization at once."
Another military noble commander growled his support in a rough voice.
Several in the military couldn't fully grasp why the king was fixating on the future rather than the enemy at their gates.
The Philius Imperial Army was marching right toward them.
"Please declare total mobilization, Your Majesty."
"We cannot guarantee how long the capital defenses will hold."
As the military officers pressed harder, King Calbern had no choice but to relent. His face hardened as he spoke.
"Total mobilization is hereby declared."
He had decided to prioritize repelling the enemy horde closing in over unstable diplomatic ties.
His heavy voice echoed lowly, and the waiting heralds bolted from the high council chamber to spread the king's decree.
"Total mobilization!"
"Mobilize every soldier and resource!"
The news spread across Edriger via magic communication and riders.
Armed militia streamed to the capital defenses, while every production facility churned without rest.
Word of Edriger's total mobilization reached Raymond almost immediately through Central Intelligence.
"They're going all-in, pouring every last drop of national strength into this."
Late afternoon, during a leisurely tea time with Silvia in the garden, Raymond received the report from Count Potas and let a cold smile curl his lips.
"Silvia."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"What's the status of the Golden Grass Clan's ranger unit? Are they ready for combat deployment right now?"
Raymond asked. Unlike him, who'd been somewhat neglectful amid his busyness, Silvia had maintained steady contact with the Golden Grass Clan.
The elves of the clan held the noble-blooded Silvia in high regard.
"The Golden Grass Clan's ranger unit is prepared for battle, as far as I know. They still remember being saved by Your Majesty's grace. If you give the order, every ranger will join the fray."
The capital defense line was arrayed in the Central Forest. Knowing the world setting, Raymond was well aware of its features and judged the elf rangers would be ideally suited to it.
Satisfied with her response, Raymond smiled faintly.
"Send the message."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Silvia bowed and withdrew. Raymond turned to Marquis Blizzard, standing at attention to his right.
"Marquis Blizzard, relay orders to Sir Cassias to ready the Imperial Army."
"Will you be leading them personally?"
"Yes. Prepare the Royal Guard."
"Understood."
She didn't even try to dissuade him anymore. Raymond's personal expeditions had become routine for the Royal Guard.
This time too, Marquis Blizzard merely sighed inwardly at his declaration, offering no protest.
Upon receiving the emperor's decree via Blizzard, Cassias swiftly assembled one legion of the Imperial Army—six thousand strong.
The Golden Grass Clan's elf rangers finished preparations and joined them. Raymond led the force straight into Edriger.
Count Donitz remained at the Isirian Governor-General's office with Bishop Gustav to manage the occupied territories.
By the time they reached the Central Forest front, Edriger's capital defenses teetered on collapse despite the total mobilization.
Marquis Kreayer, de facto commander of the fifty-thousand-strong mercenaries and the assault on the capital line, visited the emperor's field office that very day.
"Your Majesty, Marquis Kreayer requests an audience."
"Let him in."
Raymond replied calmly to the Royal Guard's voice from outside. The door opened, and Kreayer entered, clad in a crisp uniform rather than the armor he'd worn that morning.
"Your Majesty."
"Report on the front."
"Edriger forces have fortified a defense line across the Central Forest. It's on the verge of total annihilation, but small Hashashin and assassin detachments have linked up with the main army for guerrilla actions, making a breakthrough difficult."
Kreayer laid out the situation plainly, without exaggeration.
"We'll deploy the Golden Grass Clan's elf rangers into the Central Forest. Once they neutralize the enemy detachments, the main force advances."
"An excellent plan, Your Majesty. Their numbers are few. The elf rangers should make short work of them."
Kreayer voiced his strong approval.
The next day, the Golden Grass elf rangers entered the Central Forest, and the Philius Imperial Army resumed its march on the capital defenses.
Edriger's detachments moved to harass as before, but this time was different.
"In the name of His Majesty the Emperor! Death to all who bar the Philius Empire's path!"
The Golden Grass elf rangers charged forth. Fierce clashes erupted between them and Edriger's detachments.
The Hashashin-led groups excelled in stealth, but facing forest-savvy elf rangers was another matter entirely.
Moreover, Central Intelligence supplemented the elves' intel gaps, all but ensuring victory from the start.
"Arrrgh!"
"Aaaagh!"
Screams echoed nonstop through the Central Forest battleground. Outnumbered to begin with, Edriger's detachments crumbled swiftly under the rangers' onslaught.
With the detachments wiped out, the path to the capital defenses lay open. The hundred-thousand-strong Philius army surged forward.
"The enemy is advancing, Commander."
Defending the line with fifty thousand—including ragtag militia—against one hundred thousand elite troops was a nightmare. Messengers rushed in and out of the command post with grim faces.
"Where the hell are the detachments?!"
"Wiped out. This defense line is all that's left to stop the Philius Empire."
"Damn it! Reinforcements?"
"Ten thousand militia from the south, but it'll take over a week."
The commander swallowed a curse at his adjutant's reply, letting out a heavy sigh. He had no confidence holding against one hundred thousand Philius troops.
"Commander, magic comm from Sir Livingsman of the Royal Iron Knights."
"On my way."
"Second comm station."
The commander hurried off. Livingsman, captain of the Royal Iron Knights and Edriger's only Sword Saint, was effectively the kingdom's top commander. His call suggested reinforcements might be coming.
He arrived at the second station. Inside, Livingsman's image flickered in the communication orb.
-Are you the defense line's commanding officer?
"Yes, Sir Livingsman."
-I've heard the situation there is dire. Things are no better here in the capital.
No reinforcements after all—the conversation took a bad turn. The commander swallowed hard, face stiffening.
"The capital's in trouble as well?"
-Indeed. We're conscripting militia and summoning forces from nearby domains, but we haven't gathered enough yet.
The capital's garrison had been sent to the line to buy time, allowing recruitment from surrounding nobles and militia.
"That means..."
A chill foreboding hit him. No reinforcements—in fact, they might even be ordered to hold without retreat.
-Commanding officer, I need you to buy us more time.
His dread proved right. The commander gulped but couldn't respond easily.
Holding off one hundred thousand Philius troops was suicide.
He knew it well, leaving him speechless at Livingsman's cold order. But he had no choice—he was an Edriger soldier.
"We'll hold the line with everything we've got."
-I'm counting on you, Commanding Officer.
The comm ended. The commander sighed deeply and returned to the command post.
Southern reinforcements were a week away and mostly militia—low combat quality.
Edriger relied on elite Hashashin and assassins to decapitate enemy command, not raw military power.
But after losing most to the failed emperor assassination, the survivors guarded the king and nobles, with none to spare for operations.
Edriger wasn't a military powerhouse to begin with. The Hashashin had been their pillar, and that advantage vanished with the dead assassins.
They needed to hold a week for reinforcements, but Philius gave no such mercy.
They hammered relentlessly, and Edriger's capital defenses finally shattered.
"The capital defense line has been annihilated."
Marquis Kreayer reported. Raymond nodded with satisfaction.
"Surround the capital's central city. Don't let a single ant escape."
The central city was besieged. The ten thousand southern militia, rushing to aid the line, had no choice but to turn back.