Chapter 106: Twelfth Episode: Chapter 6 (1/2)

Chapter 106: Twelfth Episode: Chapter 6

Translator: EndlessFantasy TranslationEditor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Snowfields, snowfields as far as the eyes could see. Two red pines covered in frost and a house that was practically buried in the snow were the only decoration on this land. The national highway winding through the snowfields appeared to go on forever. The distinct greyish black surface of the road was the only way for the people to differentiate between the highland and gorge.

Close to noon, the winter sunlight appeared dim and feeble. Without the warmth of the sun, the snow radiated a dazzling light of its own and a chilly winter air. There were no signs of life, for the Northerners were reluctant to leave their houses during the mid to end of the second month. However, there were still wagons of traveling merchants shuttling along the national highway. These traveling merchants, who were transporting the North’s specialties, were probably the most diligent group of people during the winter. If they wanted to secure their profits, then they had to endure through all the sufferings brought on by the wind, snow and frigid temperature.

The rays of light reflected on the snowy grounds caused the distant mountain range to be draped in a misty outer layer and made the outlines of the horizon to appear extremely fuzzy. It was as if the people could touch the mountains by stretching out their hands and could pluck a cloud if they jumped.

The order to halt that came from the front of the procession took a full minute to spread all the way to the rear. It was evident that this group was extremely huge. It consisted of the entire infantry brigade of the Steinberger Family, the entire infantry division of the Imperial guards and the entire cavalry division of the Narcissus knights. Lastly, in order to accomplish their mission smoothly, the Sukhoi Family, the Empire’s first arms dealer, gave ten Fortress cannons allocated to a division level. Of course, this did not include the technical staff and who set out together with the procession. Torry always thought that even if the temporary artillery soldiers were to freeze to death, it still could not compare to a firearms expert or engineer’s life.

Marching in the snowfields was an arduous task! It was still manageable during the day; if they did not encounter any blizzards, then there wasn’t any condition that could defeat the soldiers who were used to living in the North. However, when night fell, this mixed army would have to take caution as the surface temperature could hit as low as thirty degrees below freezing point and if there were strong winds, it would not be a surprise if it went as low as over forty degrees below freezing point. The soldiers spread out a good few layers of thick palliasses into the tent. These palliasses were an essential for the march on snowy grounds. It could shield against the wind and snow, and prevent the tent from getting wet. When the horse feed was insufficient, one only had to tear open these palliasses and dry them, then they could be used to replenish food for the warhorses.

Speaking of warhorses, these creatures were perhaps the most pitiful group of warriors in the procession. They did not have a tent, but only a temporary stable. The stables were very crude and played no role in sheltering against the wind, but this could not be helped, as the knights really couldn’t find adequate wooden materials. Thus, the knights could only add on a few blankets for their companions by day while they themselves huddled in their tents beside the brazier, with their cloaks wrapped tightly around them.

Food was apparently a topic that the knights in the group were most unwilling to bring up. Most of the coal brought by the procession were used for warmth and the remainder was already insufficient for the rest of the journey. So, each time before retreating to their camps, the procession would send out a group to search for dry firewood, but as one could imagine, in a plain that was frozen for a thousand miles, their findings were scarce. Thus, the soldiers could only have one warm meal per day and these warm dishes would only appear at night. In the morning and afternoon, Titan’s soldiers could only chew on frozen bread and extremely salty marinated meat.

The result of continuously eating cold food was that most of the soldiers fell ill from severe dysentery. Since it was not known whether these unfortunate men carried the dysentery pathogen, to avoid its spread, the medical officer of the procession could only leave these poor souls who had relentless diarrhea at the church or relay station along the way.

Torry despised this because his temporary artillery soldiers kept dropping out. Although the ten tractors were carrying immense objects of more than six thousand over kilograms, there was not much difference with the other units who were carrying heavy supply wagons, rations and all sorts of military essentials. So Torry kept losing his temper and complained that these weaklings who could not even walk properly were a disgrace to his family.

Each time this happened, General Endorph from the Steinberger Family would come over to console the young Major. The General would go ”It’s fine, if we’re slow, then let it be. The important thing is our cannons, if they are fine then being late by ten days or half a month is also worth it.”

Although it was put that way, His Imperial Highness Prince still kept expressing his dissatisfaction. He was also complaining, complaining about the weather, the speed of the march, the materials used to set up the tents and also the Raytheon that were picky eaters. Raytheons were the noblest creatures on the battlefield. It refused the soggy straw in the manger and would rather go hungry than to even touch those. Without a choice, Oscar could only resort to gathering his followers and taking a few sausages and flour from his and their fixed amount of meals. Then he would entrust the master chef of the camp to combine the flour and sausages to make flatbread. Each time that moment arrived, the Raytheon would put on their most noble manner and appear at the entrance of the cooks’ campgrounds. It would bask its own glory while waiting for the appetizing food.

”Beloved Sasha, today is already the 21st of the 3rd month! I already have enough of this! The other areas of the Empire probably already have the spring breeze blowing through them, but at Lidlebain Province, we are being bathed all day in the great snow of winter and the icy-cold wind and frost brought about by the low temperature.”

Having written up to here, Oscar again became fidgety. This is seriously absurd! He just started his letter!

”Sasha, I am really at my wits end! Torry’s artillery team is like a dying bride when they move, they are like one who is shy and ridden with incurable diseases! I do not wish to comment on the quality of the Sukhoi Family’s soldiers, but I dare affirm that if these soldiers were born a peasant, then they can only be the laziest among them who cannot even endure hardships.”

”Perhaps... My demands are too harsh, but it is necessary to make a journey of twenty-five kilometers a day! If it weren’t for General Endorph’s exceptionally precise grasp of the characteristic of the weather, I believe that my procession will have long been trapped in the blizzard. Blizzard, Sasha! Thank heavens! You have never experienced it. A few days ago, I watched the disaster at the edge of the storm. Dark clouds appeared in the sky that formed into a cyclone. A large amount of snowflakes froze together and smashed onto the ground, producing a loud boom. It is said that the wind force at the core of the storm could easily destroy houses and huge trees, but I have never seen such a scene. I only hope that at least before I arrive at Blackwood Fortress, I will not encounter such a disastrous climate.

”Is everything okay at home? I apologize for dropping so many complains. I guess now I should ask about my beloved and friends! In your last letter you mentioned that Annie’s lung infection still recurred in the end! Ola! How should I say this? My Sasha, I have to say that this is part of your responsibility. I have told you to be mindful of Annie’s health status on more than one occasion, but did you? You have really disappointed me!”

”It’s only natural that you will feel extremely wronged by my saying this, but you have grown up! Do not forget that you are the mistress of Swan Hill Castle. When I am away, you should be responsible for the people and matters there! I am not putting pressure on you, but just reminding you. I want to instill awareness in you as a mistress, for managing a family is not an easy task. Do you still remember Lady Vijdeline whom I mentioned before? She is an expert in this field and I have never met any other girl who does it as outstanding as her! So, if there is an opportunity, you must really consult her properly. My Sasha, when will you only truly grow up? Annie mentioned in her letter that you hurt your shoulder when you were on the sleigh at Swan Lake, and you even dislocated it! You still dare hide it from me?”

”Sleighs are for children, shouldn’t you... you do a little... Oh sorry! I also don’t know what you should do. I deeply appreciate your missing me; I know that you are just trying to distract yourself from the loneliness and silence. However Sasha, promise me that you will not scare me like that again and will not disappoint me anymore!”

”Okay, this should do it! My hands are almost frozen! I reckon that we will come across a relay station tomorrow, then I will send out this letter. Oh goodness gracious! Even the relay stations are scarce in this province.”

”Lunch break is already over Sasha. The military bugler has already sounded the bugle horn to set off. It seems that my lunch will go to waste, but don’t worry, my stomach is a little upset and going on an empty stomach once in a while is necessary. After a few days, the army and I will arrive in Butan Fortress. One of the corps of the Empire’s seventeenth region is defending there. I believe that we will not have to fret over supplies and cold food there.”

”Church’s year 797, 21st day of the 3rd month, midday, the Western section of the national highway at Lidlebain province, 170 kilometers from the Steinberger Family’s territory. Your loving brother, O’Neil Andrew Morisette!”

”Percy!” Oscar unfolded the letter for his doctor, ”Look, what do you think? Do you think Sasha can detect a problem?”

The poison doctor scanned through the letter then eyed His Imperial Highness Prince’s bloodshot eyes and shook his head with a sigh.

”My Imperial Highness, to be honest, this letter appears as if it is written by a blind person. You should wait for your eyes to recover before doing this.”

Oscar rubbed his red, swollen, and sore eyes, but no one could blame him, for no one ever told him that a disease such as snow blindness existed in this world.

”Ola! That will not do! I have mentioned in my letter that my illegible handwriting is because of my freezing hand; Sasha will not suspect a thing!” Oscar shook the letter, seemingly very pleased at his cleverness.

”Okay, okay! The procession is about to set out and I need to wrap a bandage around your eyes!”

Oscar frowned, ”Is this needed? Don’t tell me that you don’t know! Murat and my division commanders are making fun of me.”

Percy rolled his eyes, ”My Imperial Highness, you are actually still concerned about this? Let your eyes heal before considering other things! Snow blindness, as the name implies, can really give rise to permanent blindness. You must be careful by all means. As for Murat and the others, believe me, no one will dare mock you for they do not wish to die.”

This mixed army resumed their journey swiftly. The aftertaste of the lunch still lingered in the soldiers’ mouth. To be honest, that was the most ice-cold meal in the world. However, little did these warriors who were hastening on their journey know that the same problems beset another army larger than them up ahead.

***************

The origin of the name of Black Woods goes back a long time! It was said that the first batch of ancient Romans to have arrived on Westland’s most vast and primitive forest gave it its name. The Western part of the Black woods starts from the Northeastern part of Riel Kingdom then cuts through the whole Northwestern border of Titan Empire. It extends southward until the vicinity of Dulin capital and eastwards until the common border of the Steinberger family and the Empire’s seventeenth region.

This deep and vast forest has a wide expanse of uninhabited region. Aside from more than ten forest fortresses and large timber bases operated by the Steinberger Family, basically no one else was willing to spend their lives in a forest where ferocious beasts lurked.

There was not much difference between the woodland in Titan Empire that was close to the border of Riel Kingdom and the Blackwood Fortress. It was winter now and Blackwood was even more worthy of its name. The sunlight appeared even more pale and feeble in the hidden, deep woods. The snow accumulated on the trees exerted pressure on them and occasionally the crisp sound of branches snapping in the woodland could be heard; this was more or less the only noise in the woodland. Most of the time, this place was deserted and moreover it was still, like a silent ghost realm where only those from the domain of the King of Hell or specters would visit.

A flock of birds suddenly soared up from the woods. These birds that were resistant to cold shot up into the sky, cawing. After they circled above for a period of time, they settled down in the other end of the woodland.

The northeastern wind churned up snow powder and in the white mist covered woodland, a soldier in full armor suddenly emerged. The soldier had a thick animal fur wrapped around himself. The fur has not been processed and still retained the look of a beast.

At a rare spot of the woodland that was bathed in sunlight, the mist thinned out remarkably. The soldiers walked into the light and the military boots that were also wrapped in fur produced a squelching sound as they left deep set footprints on the snow grounds.

The soldier came to a halt and gazed behind him, baffled. His face broke into a gratified smile. His companions have caught up with him; initially it was a platoon, followed by a company, after that, a group and following that, another group! In the end, it was division followed by division and corps followed by corps. Soon, soldiers equipped with all sorts of weapons thronged the whole woodland. The sound of footsteps sinking into the snow grounds, combined into one and it continued to advance forwards.

In the middle section of this peculiar procession, an officer draped in beautiful fur came to a halt. A young knight with a dainty face spread open a massive map. He looked at it carefully and ascertained the position of the Sun in the sky.

”I reckon... We have penetrated about sixty kilometers into the borders of Titan Empire!” The knights gave a figure cautiously.

”Sixty kilometers?” A burly knight in front of the group frowned, ”This is not good news for we are already behind on our journey by half a day more than initially planned.”

”Your distinguished Marshal!” An officer approached the bulky knight. It was difficult to fathom why that knight was actually a Marshal! But, whose Marshal was he?

”My distinguished Marshal, you need not worry, the daylight hours are short now so it is only natural that we should not travel too fast! Although it is unlikely that the Steinberger Family’s patrol will show up in this wretched place, it is hard to say though that certain unfortunate soldiers won’t discover our enormous army along the way. So, let us wait until we’ve entered a hundred over kilometers deep into Titan’s borders then we can rest during the day and march during the night. That way, we can speed up and conceal our procession.”

”Concealing the procession is of utmost importance and we need to assign more hands in the reserve group to clean up the footprints and traces of the march. As for speeding up...” The Marshal with a knights appearance shook his head, ”Forget about speeding up, as long as we aren’t discovered, we can arrive at the twenty first district sooner or later! To accomplish this great strategy for His Majesty Emperor, I am willing to sacrifice my all.”

”Marshal, we came here for the objective of the strategy. But I should remind you that the group of knights and infantries should rest. We have already skipped lunch and if the soldiers still do not eat anything, I fear that they cannot endure until nightfall.”

”Very well! Messenger!” The Marshal twisted his head around ”Order the procession to halt the advance and rest for twenty minutes in our current location. One more thing, the scouts and reconnaissance detachments are to extend their search to a five kilometer radius.”

”As you wish Marshal!”

Within the forest, the enormous procession quickly came to a halt. Numerous messengers bustled to and fro among each unit. They notified the infantries, and the cavalries. Evidently, this enormous army that attempted to cross the entire Northwestern part of the Black woods possessed commendable military branches and organizational structure.

Marshal Veron Blundindt, commander of the Deiss Teutonic Cavalry Group led his group of officers to convene in a temporarily built tent; he was immensely pleased with the results of the patrol party. The Kingdom’s most elite force and warriors were all gathered in this vast forest! The march of two months and a half has brought on enough suffering to the tenacious Yaran soldiers. Not only do they need to march secretly along the road opened up by the Rielese, they still had to exercise restraint over the use of fire after entering Titan’s borders. They could not warm themselves by night and could not cook or heat up food by day because the smoke and fire they produce will alert the people of Titan more than ten kilometers away of their presence. Upon the third day of entering Titan, the soldiers fed on frozen bread and snow water. Although within the three days, the numbers exceeding what was initially estimated succumbed to those conditions, the Yaran warriors from Deiss endured through without resentment or complaint

The Marshal looked around at the soldiers there. Since the force has infiltrated enemy territory, His Majesty King and the Kingdom’s commander-in-chief’s secret order could be commenced.

All the officers were anticipating it and they subconsciously grasped the sword at their waist firmly. They heard that it took up a year’s time to scheme this secret combat plan. Now, they can finally witness it.

The Marshal beckoned with his head to the stunning young lad beside him. The youngster beamed and opened up long scroll.

”This, is the detailed map of Titan Empire’s Steinberger Family territories. Each of the family’s border sentry posts, fortresses and pillboxes’ precise locations are marked out here.” Despite trying his hardest to conceal it, the young lad still failed to repress the immaturity in his voice.

”Thanks to the DeKTer’s2 spying and investigation work for half a century, our secret agents managed to produce a map of such precision. They even specified every possible patrol routes of the Steinberger’s border guards that we may come across. This is also the reason why our Kingdom paid such a heavy price before they obtained the right to pass through Riel kingdom. Only our current marching routes can successfully evade our enemies in the forest.”

The young lad tactfully concluded his explanation, having noticed that the officers were getting impatient.

”So... Fellow officers of the Teutonic cavalry group and commanders from all over the Empire!” The young officer announced while hanging the gigantic map onto a frame. He then indicated a location on the map. ”Here is the region at the edge of the Black woods that is less than forty kilometers away from the Steinberger Family’s ninth military camp, which is the destination of our secret march, and also the target that we aim to destroy!”

”Colonel Opal! What’s over there? Is it a military base?” An officer voiced the question that everyone harbored. Due to stringent confidential measures, the officers participating in this operation were not yet clear about the specifics of the advance.

The dainty Colonel Opal stroked the hair on his forehead. The few sensitive officers noticed that this was a highly feminine gesture. The high-ranking military officers’ curiosity for this elite combat staff officer from the commander board burned!

Colonel Opal glanced at the supreme commander and Marshal Veron Blundindt nodded towards him.

The combat staff officer colonel cleared his throat, ”Soldiers! Attention! This narrow lowland ravine is the twenty-first Region in Titan Empire’s battle sequence. In other words, all members of Titan guards’ twenty-first region are the targets that we will annihilate!”

The group of officers broke into an uproarious discussion. It was the officer who first voiced the question who once again stood up in agitation.

”Your distinguished Colonel, Titan Empire’s battle sequence only has a nineteen established Regions. If the capital garrison is taken as the twentieth Region, then that will be all of them! This twenty-first Region you mentioned, where does it come from?”

”That’s right! Isn’t this making a joke out of the Kingdom’s valuable military strength?” Another officer jumped up, delivering his opinion more aggressively than the last.

The officers’ debate made Marshal Veron, who already has strands of white hair, scowl.

”Everyone shut up! Is this a flea market? Colonel Opal isn’t done speaking yet!”

Seeing the Marshal’s sour face, the officers present all obediently fell silent instantly.

”Okay, so that officer ask where does Titan Empire’s twenty-first Region derive from? Well I can tell you that the informants of the DeKTer used countless lives in exchange for it!” Colonel Opal’s gaze scanned the astonished officers. He then started to elaborate.

”Titan Empire’s history dates all the way back to the end of the mythical age. The Roman Empire of once upon a time left an astounding amount of wealth for this powerful nation. Without having to mention those jewelry made of precious stones, fine masterpieces and the vast array of precious hand scrolls; just the gold reserves itself are an unimaginably astronomical amount. Titan’s rulers assigned their most elite forces to watch over this colossal amount of treasure!”

”Based on the DeKTer’s probing, the Titan Empire Security Division reserved a top secret archive called ‘ELF’. ‘ELF’ refers to the Empire’s Last Fending force, a division constituting of a brutal force of paladins!” Colonel Opal once again indicated the point marked out on the map, ”This unknown ravine, is the location where Titan Empire trains and nurtures paladins! Which also happens to be the group of paladins’ encampment and the site where the Imperial Household of Morisette hides their gold reserves.”

”The goal of our strategy is to completely obliterate the armed paladins called ‘Last Fending Force” and seize the tremendous wealth!”

”Isn’t this just robbing?” A person from among the officers muttered.

Colonel Opal caught the comment and shot an icy glare at the officers seated there, ”Do you know what kind of change this wealth can bring to a Kingdom who puts on a powerful front but is actually weak at the core? Do you know the true significance of eliminating the paladin division?”

No one dared utter another word! The officers of Deiss already considered a staggering amount of problems. The people of Titan has maintained their strategic dominance over the Kingdom for half a century and it was time that this structure changed! And speaking of robbing, the ancestors of the Yarans relied on this method to achieve the structure of today. There isn’t a need to mull over it anymore; the officers at the scene quickly accepted this method of plain robbing.

”So, Your Distinguished Marshal, the code name of combat!”

Marshal Veron acknowledged, ”Now I announce the commands!”

All the commissioned officers rose.