Chapter 61
Chapter 61
Iron Emperor — Chapter 61
Until a century ago, Roselin had been a single, undivided nation. But the invasion of the Henesia Holy Empire had stripped it of its western territories bordering the Haian Kingdom.
The Empire kept pressing the isolated Roselin, but when the Malin Kingdom entered the war by way of the Haian Kingdom, the situation grew unfavorable. The reason was that the Ameri Empire had thrown its support behind Malin.
When the Slegian Maritime Empire began its southward advance in the midst of this, Henesia backed the pro-Holy Empire faction and fomented a civil war within Roselin. In the end, Roselin lost its vast territory and was split into north and south.
"Hmm."
"Afterward, South Roselin fought localized border actions against North Roselin, but North Roselin consistently held the upper hand thanks to aid from the Holy Empire. Conversely, South Roselin—as support from the Malin Kingdom gradually became difficult—has barely managed to keep offering intermittent resistance thus far."
As Risel finished his explanation, Jin-cheon nodded.
"In a word, the Holy Empire finds it too uncomfortable to swallow Roselin directly... so it's using North Roselin to absorb South Roselin first."
"Yes, that is correct. However, the Roselin people are innately so fiercely combative that they haven't been easy to overrun. Moreover, the border they face is short, so a southern advance is no simple matter."
"Hmm."
Jin-cheon's eyes remained fixed on South Roselin.
While Go Jin-cheon kept silent, seemingly deep in thought, Yeon Hwi-garam and Risel quietly watched him at his side. After a brief silence, Jin-cheon's lips finally parted.
"Hwi."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
At Jin-cheon's call, Hwi-garam answered at once. Jin-cheon raised his head and began speaking to Hwi-garam, who was awaiting his orders.
"How stand the preparations to sail?"
"They are nearly complete. We will be able to move in about fifteen days."
"Move the date forward. You have three days."
"Yes."
At Jin-cheon's firm tone, Hwi-garam merely acknowledged the command. And Jin-cheon's voice went on.
"Among the new soldiers, select men to dispatch into the cities. Use them to thoroughly establish an intelligence network and link it to Gye Ung-sam."
"Yes!"
"And open a new road through the mountains on the South Roselin side."
"Yes!"
"Excuse me?"
Hwi-garam's answer and Risel's questioning reply mingled together.
The route they were currently using was one that had formed naturally over a long span of time. To Risel, the order to open a road toward Roselin was not something that could be accomplished in a day or two, and he could not fathom why such a command was being issued in the present circumstances.
"Risel, it is a matter of preparing in advance."
"To what aspect, precisely, do you refer...?"
"Opening a new road invariably takes time. But if we are to settle here, we need a route that others do not know and that we do. However, the road we currently use has become known to some degree through the slash-and-burn farmers fleeing the Haian Kingdom. Under such conditions, what would happen if we came under enemy attack?"
"W-well, that would..."
At Jin-cheon's words, Risel could only stammer. He had grown accustomed to seeing only the confident bearing of Jin-cheon and his commanders, and because of that, he had erased such thoughts from his mind. Jin-cheon addressed Risel once more as he stood at a loss.
"Of course, if it were only us, there would be no problem. But now, I have people I must protect."
"Ah!"
A sound of realization escaped Risel's lips.
"From now on, we will continually attempt to expand the surrounding area. That is the path to survival for the Gauri who have settled here."
"Be that as it may, the monsters..."
Risel's concern was understandable. Their current road was, in plain terms, a boundary line drawn at the edge of the monsters' territory. A new road, however, could not even be confirmed as such a boundary, and even if they simply forced a breakthrough, it was bound to become a hazard when considering the future.
Jin-cheon pushed the map toward Risel and pointed at the mountain range.
"We shall do it through force. We will drive out the monsters by force and construct a mountain fortress."
"I do not doubt the skill of our soldiers, but driving them out may collapse the monsters' territorial boundaries."
Despite the apprehension in Risel's voice, Jin-cheon continued his explanation as if there were no problem at all.
"Let them collapse."
"Pardon?"
"That is precisely the point we are aiming for. What was the reason the orc swarm attacked the slash-and-burn village before?"
At Jin-cheon's question, Risel's bewildered expression cleared. He was beginning to grasp Jin-cheon's intent.
Risel could see that what Jin-cheon envisioned was not a temporary offensive against monsters but a fundamental restructuring of the monsters' territorial ranges themselves.
If the monsters were displaced from here to the outer regions, their density would increase, bringing the advantage of a tighter natural defense. The problem, however, lay in the very fact that they were monsters. Unlike humans, these were races governed by instinct.
"If we do so, they might leave the mountains and attack the outlying lands."
"Correct."
"By 'correct,' you mean..."
Risel asked back as if to confirm Jin-cheon's true meaning. He nodded and added to his words.
"Incidents will occur. The monsters will raid cities situated on the outer edges of the mountain range."
"That is so."
"Those busy keeping one another in check—how many of them will come all this way to deal with monsters infesting this particular outskirt? They will be more inclined to avoid it. Naturally, the perception will take root that no matter how many humans try to live here, it cannot last long. Doing so buys us more time."
"Yes."
Risel slowly bowed his head at Jin-cheon's words.
What Jin-cheon said was correct. If rumors of the war over Roselin had already spread as far as Baron Gowin's domain, then the kindling had begun long ago. Naturally, the Holy Empire would also begin concentrating its efforts there first, and it would not devote its utmost to quelling monster disturbances.
Because the perception of the monsters here had been long established, and because Jin-cheon's reasoning was also sound, the security of this place could be further ensured.
"Hwi. All troops are to enter final training immediately, and the naval forces are to begin preparations to move."
"As Your Majesty commands, it shall be done."
Jin-cheon's unhesitating commands passed through Hwi-garam and on to Risel.
"Risel!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Confer with Dae Mu-deok and establish the budget, and organize a support structure for the remaining surplus personnel. The situation is a wartime footing. It will be good practice to rehearse it now."
"As Your Majesty commands, so I shall do."
The Reganza Mountains.
Within them, a nation unknown to anyone—Gauri—had been built, and now it was beginning to stir and twist like a dragon, poised to gradually advance through the continent's chaos. But for now, no one had yet detected their existence.
"An emergency training recall has been issued!"
"Huh? What's that about?"
"All troops are to arm themselves and assemble at the Central Training Ground!"
Not long after Yeon Hwi-garam and Risel had left the Imperial Hall, the Central Lake of Reganza began to grow noisy. Perhaps because the system was closer to a military collective than a nation, every soldier began arming themselves and gathering.
"Fall in, quickly. You new recruit there, move properly!"
"Yes!"
Perhaps due to the abrupt assembly, the newly inducted soldiers floundered for a time, but under the shouts of the veterans, they began finding their places. Yet anyone watching could see at a glance that the number of troops assembling around them was practically all the forces that could be mobilized.
"What's going on right now?"
"More to the point, isn't it rare for every branch to muster?"
"It is."
The soldiers gathered by branch murmured among themselves, wondering what was happening. Unlike the anxious look of the new soldiers, the original Gauri troops were instead busy murmuring with expressions as if they were heading off on a picnic.
"Huh?"
"What is it?"
When one soldier looked toward the lake with wide eyes, another asked in a curious voice. But the reason for his shock soon became clear. Sailors and naval combat troops were also racing over in a mass from that direction.
"Good grief, they really are all gathering."
"I know. Is it really war?"
A single soldier's passing voice sent an even greater ripple through the new recruits' anxious hearts.
A total of five thousand soldiers—a considerably oversized force for a nation of just over thirteen thousand—had converged on the Central Training Ground. Perhaps because this was the first such occurrence, even the common people had set aside their work and flocked to watch, wholly absorbed.
Pushing through the crowd of onlookers came Dae Mu-deok and Yeon Hwi-garam. Behind them followed Eulji Buru, Eulji Uru, and then Risel and Gerard. Hwi-garam, stepping onto the platform, gazed out at the soldiers arrayed below.
The established troops, sturdy with sharp military discipline, and the new soldiers—still awkward yet plainly bearing the marks of having been trained in their own way—looked up at Hwi-garam.
"Salute!"
"Hm."
When Buyeo Gi-yul stepped forward, dropped to one knee, and rendered the military salute, Hwi-garam nodded and advanced.
"All forces, receive the command!"
"We receive the command!"
As Hwi-garam cried out in a mighty voice, Giyul answered as the representative. Hwi-garam unfurled the scroll in his hand and read aloud.
"From this moment, all Gauri forces enter a wartime footing!"
A stir ran through the crowd.
The moment Hwi-garam's voice cut across the air, murmuring broke out among the common people who had gathered in large numbers. Even so—perhaps owing to their training—outwardly no sign of disturbance showed on the new soldiers' faces. But not entirely without agitation: Hwi-garam could read the tremor in their eyes.
"Daesaja Gerard and Fleet Commander Jang Bogo are to complete all preparations with the objective of deploying in three days' time!"
"As commanded!"
As the order fell, the two men named went to one knee and echoed it at the top of their voices.
"Daehyeong Buyeo Gi-yul is to carry out a final inspection of all training troops' armaments and make ready to undertake the opening of the northeastern Reganza Mountains in one week!"
"As commanded!"
Giyul's voice rang out as a reverberating echo, no less than those of the two before him. Rolling up the scroll, Hwi-garam shouted out toward the assembly.
"Peace does not come merely by crouching in hiding. To merely live concealed is no different than when we were slash-and-burn farmers! Now is the time for us to prepare to advance. We may be feeble now, but when our descendants set foot upon the world, then this very step we take today will remain as a glorious memory."
Having spoken thus far, Hwi-garam turned and dropped to one knee toward the Imperial Hall.
"Your Majesty, Supreme One of All Heavens, who embraces all peoples and all things—deign to watch over these men, become a sword in their hearts upon the road ahead, and a steadfast shield in their hearts against the spears and blades of the enemy!"
"Grant it be so!"
The commanders' voices caught the tail of Hwi-garam's words and chanted in unison, echoing high into the sky.
The whole of Gauri was moving at a frantic pace. From the transport preparations for all existing supplies to the final combat-readiness inspections of the new soldiers—every facet of preparation was being undertaken simultaneously, and not a single person standing idle could be seen.