If You Want Peace, Prepare for War (2)
Dear my operations staff officer, Karl.
Karl had muttered something like, "Does it really look that bad? Like I've been possessed by that Führer's evil spirit?" upon seeing my grimace at his mustache. Then he stepped out to shave it off. And sure enough, he returned with a clean-shaven face. Yeah, now he looks the part—tall, handsome, the whole package.
"Haha."
Karl laughed awkwardly. Seeing him with the mustache had sparked a bad idea in my mind for a moment. His speech drafts combined with Maximilian's oratory skills, which had captivated the rangers while reading those drafts aloud. Put them together, and you might birth a twisted underworld duo straight out of hell—a light novel isekai version. Yeah, no, that's a hard pass. Even preaching humanistic propaganda needs a more refined touch.
Instead, we shifted to something more productive.
"I'm planning to expand our cavalry forces. From my personal recon, the terrain around the snow mountains is suitable for cavalry operations without issue."
"That won't wrap up in a day or two, sir. Even setting aside costs, it'll take time in the long run."
"True enough. Riding skills only improve with years of practice."
It was a valid point. Unless you're nomadic folk born and bred on horseback, you can't just snap your fingers and produce cavalry on demand. Infantry? Conscript some guys, hand them spears, and you've got the basics covered. But horsemanship? That's a whole different league. Not only is training cavalry tough, but it costs a fortune.
"Even if we tackle the tough process over time, the real bottleneck is money," Karl said, eyeing the quartermaster coolly.
The quartermaster hemmed and hawed before sighing. "We have some budget leeway, but factoring in maintaining our current forces... large-scale cavalry expansion is tough."
"But if we need it, we do it," Karl said firmly. "Assuming orcs as the enemy, we won't fold easily in a straight infantry slugfest on open fields. But an anvil alone won't beat them. The hammer that delivers the decisive blow is always cavalry."
"And the stronger the hammer, the better. That's the idea?"
"Precisely."
Cavalry is god. The Iron Fang Knights are invincible. In a world without gunpowder and where orcs lack mage towers or equivalent magic support, this holds true. Karl and I were in full agreement there. No wonder I called him the grand duchy army's top brain. The line between theory and real battlefields is stark, but Karl still reigned as a god of strategy. His tactical genius was nothing short of innate.
Last time, he'd straight-up recreated a Hannibal-style encirclement annihilation. And now, our visions aligned perfectly.
"To save time, we'll rebuild the Great Wall while expanding cavalry. But that'll double the costs. Wall work gets imperial capital funding, but it's not free, and cavalry's all on us."
"Gasp."
The quartermaster's face turned ashen at the mention of doubled expenses.
"Quartermaster."
"Yes, Your Grace."
I patted his shoulder encouragingly. I absolutely did not make that Cao Cao face squeezing the supply officer. Oddly, he straightened up with resolve and raised his voice. "To equip the cavalry Your Grace envisions, what scale of costs should I budget for?"
"Our current knights include squires, but if we just account for riders and spare mounts, it should be a quarter the cost per knight, right?"
"I'll calculate accordingly!"
I could almost hear his brain whirring into overdrive. Of course, even that was massive spending. Adding a thousand heavy cavalry would match maintaining 250 knights. Light cavalry might trim it a bit, but the breed's pricey no matter what. The sheer scale made me wince just thinking about it, and the quartermaster, crunching numbers furiously, looked troubled.
"Even at a quarter, five hundred is the limit. In my view, that many heavy cavalry would exhaust our budget. No reserves left. Any sudden extra military spending would be a problem."
"Does that include training costs?"
"Yes. Maintenance drops post-training, but it's still hefty. Plus, we'd need more warhorses."
"Five hundred. Not insignificant, but underwhelming."
Squeezing every last coin—and soul—from the budget barely hit five hundred, with zero reserves. Far from trivial, but I wanted more. Ideally, proper horse archers and heavy cavalry. Harass with horse archer swarms, then shatter them with a thunderous charge from heavies and knights spearheading the assault.
But horse archery isn't easy, even if useful. Reality's hurdles had me pondering.
Light cavalry can be covered by knight squires already filling that role, but if we could cut training costs...
Why no nomadic tribes up north who live on horseback? Goguryeo made great use of subjugated Malgal cavalry as light horse. I'd gladly treat and integrate any such nomads like that. Pity this world wasn't so convenient. Can't conjure nomads out of thin air, so I licked my chops in regret.
At that moment—
"Hmmmmm..."
Hold up. A sudden idea hit me.
"What if we shorten the training to cut costs?"
"Shorten training? That'd give a bit more budget leeway when squeezed."
The quartermaster thought it over and replied; Karl immediately voiced concerns.
"Your Grace. But shortening training undermines combat effectiveness. Even average folk take ages to master riding. Cutting that leads to weaker fighters."
"I've got that covered. What if we exclude training costs and just calculate for maintenance, horses, and gear?"
"That'd free up a few hundred more, surely?"
"Good. I've got just the solution."
A breakthrough idea dawned.
I briefed Karl on the NCO system draft, then ordered the General Staff to flesh it out properly. With discussion wrapped, I summoned Billaine.
"What you call me for? Your Grace. No campaign planned."
"Something to discuss with you."
"Discuss?"
Billaine perked up his ears.
"Where exactly does the Silver Mane tribe live? Far from here?"
"Our tribe, far southwest from empire capital. Near western woodlands."
"Not as far as I thought. If I promise fair treatment, what do you think of your tribe—and other beastkin—serving in my army?"
"Join Your Grace's army?"
"Yes, enlist in my army."
This was my breakthrough: beastkin cavalry.
I'd seen Billaine ride with the rangers—impressively skilled for a total novice. Beastkin boast superior physiques, flexibility, and horse empathy compared to humans. Perfect for man-horse unity in cavalry. Sure, as a great warrior, Billaine might be exceptional, but...
"You said all beastkin are hunters."
"Yes. We all hunters."
All beastkin are hunters—warriors. The best become great warriors. So why not recruit these physically superior, combat-savvy beastkin for cavalry? Tough, but easier than turning northern farmboys into riders.
Billaine pondered before answering. "Hmm... Fair treatment, then yes, volunteers. No problem. We need big money."
"Perfect. Billaine, I have a crucial mission for you."
"Crucial mission?"
"Extremely important. I'll write a personal letter. Tour your tribe and other beastkin tribes, recruit volunteers for the army."
"Ooh..."
"Serving our army means glorious duty battling monsters nonstop. Just like you now."
No nomads? Use beastkin instead—superior builds, cavalry-ready. If unhorsed, they'd still fight fiercely and nimbly.
"Got it. I recruit great warriors. Your Grace no worry."
"Excellent. I count on you."
Beastkin, born warriors all, get good pay and monster-slaying action. I get easy cavalry training plus fierce beastkin troops. Win-win. No teeth? Use gums. No horse archers? Fur riders it is.