Vol 2 Chapter 13 (1/2)
Chapter 13
Chapter 2, Episode 13: Struggle
The Fourth Imperial Army had set up a cae in which Hiro was staying
The tents were set up in various geometric formations and there were three layers of fences around their perihout the site
In the center of the camp site was headquarters, and the coht in the middle of a war council
General Kielo sat at the head of the table and Liz could be seen slightly to his right
One of the staff officers raises his hand amidst the tense air
「May we enda?」
「Hin」
After receiving General Kielo’s confiro ahead, he stood up with a scout’s report in hand
「A rebel army has appeared in the southern part of the Lichtein Dukedo north and it see towards our direction」
The aide turned his head and looked at General Kielo
「What would you have us do? We can not avoid a clash at this rate」
General Kielo snorted uninterested
There is a lances at a piece placed atop it
「How big is the rebel army?」
「Approximately 4,000 men They routed the Lichtein Dukedom’s defense forces It see in slaves fro areas They may have over 6,000 men by the time they encounter us」
「H?」
「According to an inforathered soldiers and are holed up in the capital We’ve received the same report from a spy, so the infor to hold their castle」
「Have they lost their nerves? But it’s decided then」
「Your decision?」
General Kielo calmly held his hand over the map
「First, we destroy the bothersome rebel army Let us add them to our own army But all the slaves will be executed After that, let us assault the capital, then have a grand and triumphant return to our country」
There is no objection to be heard from the staff officers General Kielo nodded satisfied
But Liz was not satisfied as she glared at the map
Noticing this, General Kielo decided to call out to her,considerate of the fact that she was an Imperial princess
「Was there perhaps so?」
「The soldiers and horses are exhausted after all these blitzes」
They fell a nuht down
Thus far, it’s been victory after victory It’s al And thanks to that, the h
However, even if the forts were brought down easily, they did in fact put up a resistance, even if slight
Riding theirspeed
The battles will still continue Even if they do defeat the rebel army, if they are to take down the enemy nation’s capital, they need rest
It’s fearso about what could result froue
「If we can’t rest, we should capture the oasis city of Bruno in the north and negotiate, as initially planned」
General Kielo shrugged his shoulders and spoke
「You don’t understand, do you, Princess?」
There was a hint of conteh Liz noticed this, she kept quiet and continued to listen
「You can not treat the Fourth Imperial Army as the soldiers of another country It is for times like this, that they train all day, every day, and build their endurance They will not tire frons」
「But they’re still hu to no end」
「According to our plans, ill only fight two ion, but half of the Lichtein Dukedom’s territory」
「His Majesty the emperor does not wish to destroy the Lichtein Dukedom」
「The downfall of a capital does not necessarily mean the downfall of the country Do not worry We will leave the south for them」
With hatred in her voice, Liz voiced her rebuttal to General Kielo as acting victorious
「If we do that, the Fourth Imperial Army will be forced to stay here If the defense in the south thins out, who knohat the Schteizen Republic will do? Also, the Lichtein Dukedom will become desperate to reclais will turn disastrous」
「If that ti?」
Then, as if he re, the corners of the aze at Liz
「It see such tio rest We will be departing early in the 」
Liz wanted to tell him off, but she clenched her fists and restrained herself
But anger does not subside so quickly The aide saw it on her face and chastised her
「You are currently a staff officer Here, your position as the Imperial princess is irrelevant I do not approve of you showing your emotions You should be careful with your words so as not to cause his Excellency any concern Tread carefully」
「Enough Her Highness is still young and she hasn’t been a soldier for long It would be cruel of us to tell her to know the ways of a war council It’s fine if she learns slowly from here on out」
The staff officers nodded in agreement to General Kielo’s words
「Rest at ease, your Highness I will be sure to give you a place to play a role」
General Kielo saze to the map
It was probably his way of showing that he was done talking to her
「I see… Then I’ll take you up on your offer and get some rest」
If she lost her patience here, it would only put her in a worse position
She has no allies here There are only staff officers ai to please their commander
After looking around at each of the staff officers, Liz stood fro strides
A cold wind hits her cheeks and quickly drops her body temperature
After blowing into her hands, she starts towards her own tent
As she does, a large man— Tris came over with an escort in tow
「Princess Is the war council over?」
He’s sranddaughter
Liz voiced her co her anger on him
「General Kielo isn’t thinking ahead at all It’s like his head’s full of nothing but gaining merits」
「He his mind, will he?」
「Yeah, he said he’s going to move forward and destroy the rebel army then attack Azbakal」
Tris furrowed his brows and began to walk beside Liz
「He’s just briht he was a cautious man」
Liz laughed sarcastically at Tris’s words and let out a sigh
「More i?」
「I’d say about 60 complete」
「I see I’ll write more letters, so hand them to each unit’s leader」
「Understood」
Liz parted ith Tris in front of her tent She goes inside, looks at the open space, and sighs
She did not bring Cerberus along for this battle because he’s unable to handle the heat
And of course, Hiro isn’t here either She doesn’t even knohere he is right now
She hopes he coed as a descendant
「I wonder where he is right now…」
Her body shi+vers in the cold so she covers herself with a blanket Liz closed her eyes while seated
She has 「Laevateinn」 by her hand so she can fight at a moment’s notice
A two days distance from the Lichtein Dukedom’s capital of Azbakal is a fort called Azba
There are currently 2,000 camel cavalrymen and 3,000 infantrymen here
There’s a possibility the Fourth I in the capital
Having coather soldiers from various areas and summoned them to Fort Azba
Marquis Ranquil watched the final unit walk through the gate from atop a tower
Fro
He had his guards stand down, then stood next to Marquis Ranquil
「Marquis Ranquil, what are we going to do now?」
「They are bothas planned」
Marquis Ranquil smiles
His eyes were burning so hot with passion that it et about the cold
He spread his arht sky Below hi themselves warm
「First, we lead the rebel army and have them clash with the Fourth I this part?」
「Yes I received word as well I was relieved that it ell But even if ere able to lead the rebel army, do you think it will be so simple to do so with the Fourth Imperial Army?」
「That is e area path for them If we show the out the defenses of our forts, I’eneral will bite Then, we just have to lead them deep into our territory」
Even with those confident words, Count Karl’s face still looks worried
Count Karl voiced his concern as he rubbed his arms
「Will it work out like that? Even if only in nah a plan like this?」
「People are like lule bait in front of them, they will bite We just need toAn enemy who creates their own momentum is fearsome, but an enemy army which you provide momentum for can be dealt with in any number of ways」
「Is that so…?」
「Because the avarice of man has no bounds」
Marquis Ranquil sneered and let out a white puff of air
「After atch the outcome of the battle, ill attack the exhausted victor」
「Okay」
「I’ this far After that, it will depend on the soldiers whether or not we can win, but… there is one thing that bothers me more than that」
「What is it?」
「It seems the Schteizen Republic and the Grand Duchy of Doral have called for a truce Part of it rand duke is likely a cause as well」
「… That too is problematic」
「The fight for the heir has already begun in Schteizen I can’t say that there is zero possibility of theain merits」
They lost many soldiers with their last two losses
Even now, they forcibly gathered soldiers from various areas, and their defense is thinned out in nonessential places
「The rebel army, the Grantz Grand Empire, the Schteizen Republic… Despite the fact that they normally despise us as a slave nation and keep their distance, only at times like this do they swarm and try to use us Our country really is so popular」
After hearing Count Karl’s self deprecating re, 「you’re absolutely right」
Then, he looked earnestly at Count Karl
「This battle will be settled quickly」
Bandits and es
If the building resentment of the people bursts, there will be a second and third rebel army
It would be hard to maintain their statehood if it came to that
Whether it’s an invasion from the outside, or a collapse from within, if either happens, the Lichtein Dukedom will likely be erased from the maps
In order to avoid that, theyit out
「Can we do it?」
「It’s possible, so I’d like you to leave everything to me」
「… All right」
「Now, it’s cold out here Please head back inside」
He pats Count Karl’s shoulders and urges him to return
It seems his anxiety is still there, but Count Karl nods and turns around
After watching his his head low
There were two reasons why he did this
One was that he did not mention the zorosta
The other was that he did not mention 「Valdite」
(This is an extremely difficult situation for battle)
He looked down below at the assembled soldiers
There are 5,000 of them Half the number of the Fourth I rebel arh different areas
「I’ll draw in a victory no matter what」
Though it is a barren land, it is the country in which he was born and raised, and so owes a great debt to
He wants to do whatever it takes for it’s survival Marquis Ranquil looked up at the night sky and muttered
「The stars seeed」
Even if the country falls to ruin, the stars will likely shi+ne on for all eternity
Even if all of mankind on the surface die out, they will continue to look down undisturbed
「I’ve taken every measure I can Only the Gods knoill succeed or not」
With those as his final words, Marquis Ranquil goes back inside the tower
All that was left were the strong, freezing winds grating the air
Iust 3
Twelve sels (36 km) away from the Lichtein Dukedom’s capital of Azbakal
The winds are strong today Clouds of dust impair the vision and it is impossible to see far into the distance
Within such conditions, the Fourth Imperial Army of 10,000 encountered the rebel army’s advance unit of 1,000
The Fourth Imperial Army had sent out patrols numerous times and were aware of the advance unit
It see advance unit Unrest could be felt from the enemy soldiers
Seeing this, General Kielo sneered at the, 「I suppose they’re just a rebel army after all」
「We have no obligation to let theo」
「You are correct」
「Are the preparations in order?」
「There is no need to worry about the supply unit It has been entrusted to someone who is reliable, and the members of the escort are all elites」
After finishi+ng his stateht flank where a flag with a crest of red soil and a lily was fluttering It was a unit of slightly disarrayed ranks of soldiers entrusted to Liz
They were in disarray because she had the riderson foot to allow the horses to rest
「It looks like the right flank will reach them soon」
As General Kielo turns his gaze in the same direction, a staff officer shouts
「The rebel ar!」
「What?!」
General Kielo turned back to look at the rebel ar up
The advance unit— 1,000 caht flank where the Sixth Imperial Princess is attached
The aide spoke in a shaky voice
「Absurd Without waiting for their main unit, the advance unit alone is…」
「Colect the security on our perimeters」
Said General Kielo, but it wasn’t that he didn’t have his own s in his mind
If they lose 「Laevateinn」 here, his head would go flying for sure
He doesn’t think the Sixth Imperial Princess, a possessor of a spirit sword, would be defeated by the likes of a rebel army, but he needed insurance just in case
General Kielo turns to the flag bearer and raises his hand
「Have the reserve cavalry head to the right flank and the archers provide cover fire」