Chapter 6
The preparations for the expedition ended quickly.
From the beginning, we were in the midst of packing up all the equipment and supplies onto carts for a Full Retreat.
It was enough to simply change the purpose of the materials and take down the tents that had been used as barracks.
The soldiers had already finished their meals and had plenty of rest, so they should have enough stamina for a long March Forward. Now, all that was left was to depart.
"I will select the units that will remain. First, the 1st Division, 2nd Division, and 4th Division."
However, not everyone was going. If all the troops were withdrawn, a huge gap would be created on the Front Line.
Even with a small number, they had to leave enough forces to maintain the current Front Line and defend against the enemy Offensive.
In other words, they had to simultaneously achieve two goals: maintain the Defense Line, which had been defended by 70,000 troops, and dispatch troops to subdue the Royalty/Nobility in the Capital and the Central Region.
"Wouldn't we need cannons as well? I'm worried about leaving only Infantry and Cavalry."
"Two Artillery Battalions and one Mage unit. Wouldn't that be enough?"
"It's a little lacking....but it seems like it will be okay. If it's just holding out, that is."
To this end, after putting their heads together with his subordinates, they decided that the optimal balance was 3 to 4.
According to the current organization of the Kingdom's Army, one Division consists of approximately 10,000 men.
And the Northern Army currently consists of a total of seven Divisions.
Of these, four Divisions will be dispatched, and three Divisions will remain in the Northern Region. And some auxiliary units, including Artillery, will be left behind for support.
Then, even if they can't Counterattack, they should be able to defend somehow.
"Mauer, I'll leave this to you. I'll send Reinforcements as soon as possible, so just hold out until then."
"Don't worry, Lieutenant General. I'll keep it shut tight as iron."
Just in case, Lieutenant General Mauer, the most experienced and reliable among his subordinates, was appointed as the temporary commander.
With this, he was able to complete the arrangements so that he wouldn't have to worry about the rear after leaving.
After saying goodbye to the personnel who were decided to remain, I gave my subordinates a final exhortation.
"Remember, speed is of the essence. We set out to overturn The Kingdom, if we delay, we'll get nothing."
"Understood!"
What we are trying to do is essentially a power struggle within The Kingdom.
It's not a story about justification or morality. Even if the cause is the Royal Family's foolish mistakes, that's what it looks like from an objective point of view.
It's no different from us overthrowing the existing establishment, the Royal Family and the Central Region Nobility, and seizing power ourselves.
So we had to hurry.
The longer we take, the more the national capacity of The Kingdom is diminished.
The enormous national power, military power, funds that allowed them to withstand the Empire's long-term Offensive. All of it.
For the future, we had to achieve what we wanted in the shortest period of time with minimal damage.
"Are we attacking the Capital immediately?"
"We have to clear the way first. Where is the nearest military unit stationed from here?"
"Are you including the Private Soldier of the High Nobility?"
"No. Those are like Reserve Forces that are conscripted in emergencies. Among the regular Kingdom's Army."
"Then it's this unit in the northeast of the Great Plains. The 19th Division led by Major Heinburg. Based on marching speed, we'll meet them in three days."
"Of all people, a die-hard Royal Family loyalist...."
Therefore, we had to quickly clear the way and March Forward.
Unfortunately, we ran into a troublesome opponent from the start.
Major Heinburg was a general from a rather venerable noble family and was known for his strong patriotism.
I remember avoiding him at a Medal award ceremony before because he endlessly praised the Monarch, thinking he was crazy. I never thought I'd meet him again here.
"How about suggesting surrender or defection?"
"Forget it. He's the type who would absolutely refuse. He'll probably try to stop us until the end, talking about Desperate Battle and Royal Guard."
I was about to reject my subordinates' suggestion to negotiate, saying that it was bound to fail, when I suddenly had an idea.
If the head is the problem, wouldn't it be possible to attack the body below?
I mean the soldiers who make up the main force of the army. The 19th Division is surely mostly composed of soldiers from the Great Plains.
"No, send a messenger. It would be good to send about three or four of them as a group."
"But you just said the conversation wouldn't work."
"The goal isn't to negotiate with Heinburg. We need to target the other guys in the unit."
I took a cigarette out of my pocket and lit it. The cigarette tasted bitter as ever today.
"Have them reveal our objective to everyone there. Tell them everything about what the Royal Family was trying to do to us."
"To the soldiers too...? You intend to demoralize them."
"Yes. Oh, and add that if the Negotiation fails, we won't stop anyone who surrenders when they leave. There's no need to shed blood between fellow compatriots of the same country."
"I'll make sure to instruct the messengers well."
It's a fight between people of the same nationality and hometown.
The conditions are already perfect for morale to be shattered, and the troop size difference is several times greater?
I expected that there would definitely be a flood of deserters and those fleeing during the Battle. I'm just adding psychological comfort to that.
Honestly, how many people would bother fighting if they're guaranteed good treatment if they surrender?
An army whose mentality has been completely shaken is bound to crumble quickly when a battle occurs. This is true anywhere in the world.
"We'll walk for another three hours today and then build a camp. Inform each unit accordingly."
"Understood."
Since we departed in the afternoon, it was already getting late.
We stopped before the sun completely set, built barracks, and rested.
I wondered how the 19th Division would react to our proposal.
* * * * *
"Have you ever seen such disloyal traitors! You dare rebel against the Royal Family?!"
Sure enough, Major Heinburg flew into a rage when Major General Carolus suggested he surrender.
He insisted that those who dared defy the orders of the Monarch, the Goddess's representative, should all be hanged.
For him, who had lived his entire life as a die-hard royalist loyalist, the Monarch's orders were absolute.
No matter how unreasonable they seemed, there must be a deep meaning, so they should be followed unconditionally. Even if it wasn't true in reality, it was right in his way of thinking.
"Major, how will you respond?"
"What is there to respond to! Hang all those who brought this nonsense to me! No, shoot them! Public Execution!"
"What?! Even so, executing messengers is...."
Therefore, he wanted to kill all the messengers who were at the Vanguard of these traitors, but his staff expressed their disapproval.
This was because they were already outside, interacting with the soldiers and chattering excitedly.
"The Royal Family has already abandoned the Northern Region! They intend to give the entire Snowfield to the Empire!"
"If we lose that place, where will be next? There's only our hometown, the Great Plains! This place, where we plow the fields and sow seeds, will become a battlefield!"
"If you have any sense, don't fight! Loyalty to those who abandon our hometown for luxury is nothing but a dog's death!"
Numerous soldiers had already gathered around them, listening to the news that was hard to come by within the Military Camp.
Everyone had heard about the terrible treatment the Northern Army suffered and the reasons why they had to do this.
What would the soldiers and lower-ranking officers think if they were captured and killed now?
They would think, "Ah, so what they said was true."
Instead of eliminating the traitors, it would only result in imprinting the rumors in everyone's minds. Even in the best-case scenario, it was a choice close to self-destruction.
"Then chase them away! Get them all out so they can't delude my soldiers anymore!"
In the end, at Major Heinburg's insistence, the messengers were driven out of the Military Camp, but one truth had already been imprinted in the soldiers' minds.
The truth that 'the Royalty and Nobility of this country are people who absolutely cannot be trusted.'
'Damn it. The Queen abandons the Front Line to buy jewelry? What kind of crazy....'
'If that's true, my house is in danger?! My sick mother is there too....'
For hundreds of years, the Royal Family and the Nobility had lost the trust of the common people.
They had experienced generations of tax increases and forced labor under various pretexts. Could trust possibly remain?
Rather, after hearing about what happened in the Northern Army, many people inwardly accepted it, thinking, "Those bastards are capable of that."
If he didn't want to disturb the morale of the troops, he shouldn't have let the messengers into the Military Camp in the first place.
He should have kept them outside and only received written messages, or he should have killed them right away without any conversation.
He shouldn't have exchanged stories, or even words. He should have done one of the two, so that Military Discipline could be maintained.
But since he didn't. Since he left them to spread the word to everyone in the 19th Division.
It was a perfectly natural consequence that the Military Discipline and fighting spirit of the 19th Division virtually vanished.
And therefore.
"Push through at once!! Charge towards the gap in the enemy formation!"
"R, Run away! We've already lost, so run for your lives!"
Three days later, in the ensuing Battle, the 19th Division being unilaterally beaten by the Northern Army was also close to an inevitable sequence of events.