Chapter 126 - Chapter 21: Barbarians #5 (1/2)
Chapter 126 – Chapter 21: Barbarians #5
The barbarian king departed from the fourth base and headed toward the fifth base, but it was literally just for a moment.
The fugitives joined up with the barbarian king, and he headed towards the north again. It was a move that showed indifference to the second base.
“It is an unexpected move.”
Vandal, who was lying in bed, raised his upper body and greeted In-gong’s group. He was four meters tall, so despite lying down, In-gong wasn’t eye level with him.
The barbarian king was ignoring the troops stationed at the second base and heading north. The fifth, sixth and seventh bases were already empty, so Vandal could only presume that the barbarian king’s destination was Takar.
It was truly an unexpected move.
However, Vandal didn’t share Felicia’s and Caitlin’s quandary. Of course, the barbarian king’s policy of leaving troops behind him and going to the north was strange, but he understood it.
Vandal noticed the two people’s confused states and explained,
“The barbarian king destroyed my army before heading north. There are two reasons for this. One, he was concerned about a rear attack. The other is to buy some time in order to block the road.”
“Block the road? Is it the way back over the Eastern Limit Line?”
Vandal nodded at Felicia’s question.
“That’s right. It is due to geographical reasons. It is impossible to cross the Eastern Limit Line toward Takar without going through Evian. There is something blocking the way beyond the limit line.”
An unknown land was beyond the limit line. They could guess based on the barbarians they saw, but there was no clear reason.
This time, it was Caitlin who asked,
“General Vandal, the barbarians fear… Are they worried about the reinforcements from the Demon King’s Palace?”
“That’s right. The barbarians are afraid the captains will interfere. Burning Takar means that Evian’s defenses have been breached. The captains are more likely to intervene.”
The Demon World was very wide, and the army captains were generally stationed in the north. Therefore, the captains rarely appeared at the boundaries, but there were incidents where it had happened. If Evian were broken through and Takar were taken, the captains were likely to move.
Vandal thought the barbarian king would lead the army and advance to the second base.
Only then would it be possible to create an easy situation to fight or escape the later reinforcements from the Demon King’s Palace. From the standpoint of the barbarians, it would be the worst situation if the troops of the second base joined with the reinforcements of the Demon King’s Palace.
Nevertheless, the barbarian king left the troops of the second base and headed to Takar.
“They aren’t lured here…”
In-gong muttered in a small voice. It was almost a knee-jerk thought.
The second base was a solid fortress. The walls were high, and there was even a moat. It wasn’t easy to occupy the fortress, especially when the old defense forces, Vandal’s army and the troops led by In-gong, totalled to almost 8,000. Therefore, it was the best for the demon king’s side to fight at the second base, while it was the worst from the standpoint of the barbarians.
Carack grasped In-gong’s words and frowned.
“Indeed, is this them taking the initiative in a big fight? Instead of going to a disadvantageous battlefield, they are forcing us to make a choice.”
The barbarian king was in the north. The intervention of the captains or reinforcements from the palace were all future events. When looking at the second situation alone, the troops of the second base were placed at a crossroads of choice.
Felicia frowned and said,
“We have abandoned three bases… It isn’t an exaggeration to say that the fourth base isn’t far from Takar. If we leave this alone, Takar really will be captured by the barbarians. We can’t allow that situation to happen.”
“But if we leave the second base in order to fight them, they would force us to fight in a place that is suitable for them.”
Currently, it was estimated that the barbarian king had between 13,000 and 14,000 troops. It was almost twice the size of the troops stationed at the second base. Moreover, the elite cavalry, which the barbarian king led, exerted great power when fighting on the plains. Fighting on the plains should be avoided as much as possible.
It was a dilemma.
If they let Takar fall, the Evian defense mission would fail. However, if they moved north from the second base, they would have to fight the barbarians in disadvantageous terrain. The barbarian king couldn’t let the initiative slip away. Instead of being dragged by In-gong’s momentum, he headed north to Takar first.
How should In-gong respond to this?
Vandal didn’t given an opinion. He just gazed at In-gong with calm eyes which didn’t seem to belong to an ogre. He seemed to be waiting for In-gong’s answer.
Felicia and Caitlin also looked at In-gong. Then all the people in the room, including Alita and Kaparang, focused on In-gong.
What would be his choice? How would 9th Prince handle this situation?
In-gong exhaled, then he answered in a quiet voice,
“Fight.”
“Shutra?”
In-gong laughed at Caitlin’s surprise. He raised his eyes higher and gazed into Vandal’s eyes.
“We can’t let Takar be captured. If they want to make it difficult for us, then we just need to overcome it.”
The basis of the strategy was to make it difficult for the opponent. The more difficult they made it, the less of an advantage the enemy would have.
“9th Prince, the plan?”
Vandal asked. Alita and Kaparang also made interested expressions. It was because in this situation, In-gong couldn’t just come up with a simple solution.
“Don’t let the barbarian king take the initiative. Force the opponent to make difficult choices.”
In-gong replied in a calm tone.