Chapter 78. Divergence

"We're departing!"

The Red Dragon Corps began their march along with a huge supply train following behind.

"Are we finally going to use them?"

"Won't they all just run away after one bang?"

"Right. They probably haven't even used these properly before."

The soldiers had clearly felt the power of the new weapons introduced on a large scale throughout the army during months of firing practice.

Soldiers already accustomed to war didn't fear heading to the battlefield, but instead looked forward to seeing the might of the new weapons in actual combat.

Even those still with some fear took comfort in the fact that they could fight from a distance with guns instead of spears, knowing that archers had lower casualty rates than regular infantry.

"...I wonder how General Volker Rommel will react."

"Hah... He's not a general that's easy to fight alongside. My head spins every time I see his stubbornness and unpredictable actions."

"I'm not sure, but won't Corps Commander Viktor handle it somehow?"

"...Hmm. Actually, I wonder if we even need them."

"Hahaha! That's right too!"

The officers were also filled with confidence.

The officers only discussed General Volker Rommel of the 5th Corps, not even mentioning the Esperia Kingdom, their immediate enemy.

They exchanged hopeful conversations as they marched towards Mannzheim in the west, where the 5th Corps was stationed.

"...The Red Dragon Corps has begun moving."

Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the 5th Corps' meeting room, upon receiving this news, wasn't very good.

"Her Majesty said she wants to switch to an offensive."

"That's right."

"All 10,000 men are armed with new weapons, that number is enough to frustrate the Esperia Kingdom at least..."

"New weapons?"

Count Volker Rommel, who had been tapping the desk with a displeased face, shot a glare at the messenger who brought the news.

He was technically a pro-empress noble, but not one to nod at all of the Empress’ orders.

"They've brought weapons that use expensive gunpowder to poke for a few minutes and then shoot tiny metal balls, calling them new weapons? All of them?"

"Yes, General. By exchanging with craftsmen from the Anchester Kingdom..."

"Hah..."

Volker didn't like that the Red Dragon Corps, the Empress’ direct corps, was being treated as if it were a great force.

Interrupting the messenger's words with a long sigh, he shook his head and looked at the officers with similar expressions.

"What do you think?"

At Volker's question, the officers who had been watching each other's reactions for a moment,

"...Active offense is expected to be difficult."

"We acknowledge their power, but the limitations are also clear. The siege cannons they're bringing along will certainly be meaningful, but the guns..."

"It's not like there haven't been mercenary groups who charged in believing in guns before. Now, they're probably buried somewhere in that plain."

Cautiously expressed negative opinions.

"Aren't guns just long-range weapons similar to bows and crossbows after all? Unless they can kill dozens with a single shot, troops are needed to face approaching enemies. But to send 10,000 of just such people..."

"That's enough. Hmm, hmm."

Volker nodded, seemingly satisfied with such reactions, and the officers secretly let out sighs of relief.

"Baron Kai Schuch spoke well. Guns are not new weapons. They're just one of many weapons whose limitations have already been proven in several battles. Weren't gun troops the ones who collapsed without even proper resistance as soon as they faced our proud cavalry?"

"..."

Encouraged by the officers' support, he continued speaking.

"Even if we put aside such points, it's a fact that their use can only remain auxiliary to our forces. Who forms a corps with just archers or crossbowmen? Anyone who has properly fought a war wouldn't think of doing so. Although it's Her Majesty's will, I find it difficult to accept this order to start an attack."

"...!"

Despite the officers being flustered by words that seemed to express insubordination, he didn't stop his intense statements.

"Her Majesty ordered us to attack the Esperia Kingdom in cooperation with the Red Dragon Corps, but all I see is a future where the Red Dragon Corps eats up the merits and our 5th Corps bleeds. In fact, this is only if we win. What happens if we clumsily go on the attack and are defeated?"

"..."

"Viktor, was it? The corps commander leading them doesn't seem like a trustworthy enough person to entrust our rear to yet. It might be different if the Grand Marshal came personally. Even generals who have experienced war for decades make mistakes, yet we're told to trust a general who hasn't been on the battlefield for even 10 years."

Volker, who had been stating his opinion, took a short deep breath.

"...The enemy has about 20,000 men holed up in various fortresses, and 20,000 or more mercenaries might be reinforced in the future. We shouldn't recklessly attack them, but wait for them to attack us."

"General. If we don't move, the Paris Kingdom and San Bastian Kingdom might gain momentum and move first."

One staff member stood up and bravely refuted those words, but,

"Are you saying we should sacrifice ourselves for other imperial armies, is that it?"

"..."

Volker didn't yield at all.

To him, safely and surely accumulating merits was far more important than things like the Empress’ orders.

And in his thinking, switching to offense was not a safe direction at all.

"I can't stand by and watch the soldiers of the 5th Corps being used as tools for the Red Dragon Corps. I won't interfere if they want to go on the offensive themselves, but until they prove their independent operational capability, our 5th Corps will not move."

He always preferred defense over offense, and he only chose to attack when he felt the enemy showed a clear weakness.

"General..."

"That's right. They shouldn't just fiddle around in the back, they should fight together at the front!"

The officers, who had already experienced failure in breaching the Esperia Kingdom's fortresses, greatly responded to Volker's words that seemed to be considering them.

"Hmm... Still, if the power of the Red Dragon Corps truly corresponds to what Her Majesty said, we might not be completely unable to help them. If they can properly prove themselves, that is."

"That's right."

"The recruitment and deployment of mercenaries isn't finished yet. If the Red Dragon Corps is really strong, this is an opportunity to strike a blow against the Esperia Kingdom."

Having thus swayed the officer corps, he thoroughly prepared insurance in case the situation changed.

If the Red Dragon Corps really broke down the Esperian army, he intended to advance faster than anyone else.

"Right. Increase the scouts, and make sure not to miss any enemy movements."

"Understood!"

The officers who received the order didn't know, but Volker had no intention of providing the information he collected to the Red Dragon Corps.

Because he wasn't afraid of the Esperia Kingdom, he was preparing to check the Red Dragon Corps even though they hadn't arrived yet.

---

On the day the Red Dragon Corps departed.

Five nobles from the Esperia Kingdom gathered separately in one room for a meeting.

The common point among those gathered for the meeting was that they were wealthy and powerful high-ranking nobles, but the main reason they gathered separately was,

"...Did you receive it too?"

"I did."

Because they had received Theodore's letter containing information about the empire.

They each took out identical envelopes from their bosoms.

Theodore had sent a total of 6 letters, and 5 of them had arrived properly.

The shabby letter envelopes and paper were a new stimulus to nobles who usually only received fancy and formal letters, and because it was a turbulent time preparing for war.

"I burned it because its contents were suspicious, but if all of you received it too..."

"...It means there's something to it."

Two of the nobles who received the letter had confirmed its contents, and they had urgently called other nobles who had received such letters to hold this meeting.

"...It's strange that Count Gonzales isn't here."

"I tried bringing it up, but there was no reaction. It seems he really didn't receive it."

One noble wondered about Count Sancho Gonzales, who had been in charge of commanding the Esperian army for over 20 years, not receiving this letter, but the topic quickly moved on as the situation was urgent.

"What do you think? The sender is unknown, and the contents are very suspicious."

Duke Francisco Casas, the most powerful among the Esperian nobles, opened the conversation.

"Hmm, it's hard to believe. That 10,000 men armed with guns are marching towards us..."

"There were rumors that they had made some deal with the Anchester Kingdom, so it might be true, but..."

As the nobles gathered here were also influential figures, they exchanged information and verified the contents of the letter, and,

"At least we need to consider it."

All agreed that most of the contents were likely true.

"...Guns, huh."

"They're excellent weapons, but it's suspicious that they filled an entire corps with just gun troops."

"Wouldn't they go to the battlefield combined with the corps at the border?"

"Well. I don't know what they're thinking. Are guns such great weapons? To the extent that spears, swords, and bows are unnecessary?"

"Since that much wasn't written..."

The discussion afterwards was about countermeasures, but Theodore's letter, which lacked detailed content, wasn't much help beyond providing certainty about the enemy's attack and determining the expected direction of attack.

"Should we acquire guns too?"

"It's difficult. The Anchester Kingdom hasn't been releasing quantities recently, so the price has more than doubled."

"More than the original price? Hah..."

As a result of trading with the empire, the number of guns flowing out of the Anchester Kingdom had greatly decreased, and,

"Guns need to be reloaded for a long time after firing once. If we aim for that gap..."

"There must be a reason they brought so many guns!"

"No matter how many archers or crossbowmen there are, arrows ultimately couldn't penetrate shields and armor. If it's heavy infantry with shields, couldn't they block mere metal pieces?"

There was too little battle data using guns, so even knowing this fact, there wasn't much the Esperian nobles could do specifically.

"...We'll need to discuss detailed tactics further, but in field battles, it seems that side attacks utilizing cavalry mobility will be important after all."

"We'll have to make good use of existing tactics... Well, what battle isn't like that?"

"For now, we need to solidify our defensive posture until the recruitment of mercenaries is complete."

"That seems the most realistic for now. ...Hmm. I wonder if our fortresses can withstand siege cannons."

"..."

As they were nobles without the wealth or knowledge to transform an entire army into a next-generation army like Viktor, their responses didn't go beyond the level of reinforcing existing tactics such as ambushes, lures, and surprise attacks.

"When I saw mercenaries using them, they didn't seem that impressive."

"Even if they're holding guns, aren't they still people? They'll die too if hit by arrows or pierced by spears."

"...Right. That's true."

In the end, the nobles' emergency meeting concluded without any special results.

They forcibly ignored the rising anxiety, reminding themselves that guns had never shown great results before.