Chapter 73

General Sevan was being forced to make a decision.

If they continued to hold out, the foolish nobles of the Western Noble Alliance had already lost a large amount of provisions in the first battle, and their supplies would be completely depleted in about five days.

Originally, they had enough supplies to hold out for over sixty more days, but General Sevan felt like cursing the foolish nobles for their incompetence.

If they could hold out for a few more dozen days, the Bossam Empire's army would withdraw.

Initially, as a defensive battle, they could have stayed in the Beldez fortress with minimal losses to their allies, while the enemy would have worn themselves out.

"Really, if they want to fight in the open, why don't they commit all their forces..."

The Western Noble Alliance had over 150,000 troops.

If they had committed at least 100,000 soldiers, General Sevan would not have opposed fighting in the open.

However, the nobles had only brought 60,000 troops, preserving their strength.

General Sevan thought it was absurd for them to advocate for open battle.

The main force of the Bossam Empire's army was cavalry, known to be the strongest in the central continent.

Fighting an open battle with equal forces against such an army would be the height of folly.

Of course, if there were no other options, General Sevan would not have opposed an open battle, but this was a defensive battle, and with the Beldez fortress, which was easy to defend and hard to attack, there was no need to fight in the open and waste soldiers.

"What about reinforcements?"

A commander waiting for reinforcements that might not come has to make a tightrope decision.

If the reinforcements don't arrive, the provisions will run out, and the ability to continue the war will plummet.

Before that happens, the commander must decide whether to engage in a decisive battle, retreat, or surrender.

"If the reinforcements are coming, they should be here soon."

The situation where the Bossam Empire's army surrounded the Beldez fortress, making communication with the outside impossible, had not changed.

On the other hand, the western nobles, frustrated with General Sevan's response, were preparing for another open battle.

General Sevan was in a situation where he could not control the western nobles.

"If only they had committed suicide earlier, we wouldn't have lost so much food."

This was said by General Bitters, the deputy commander of the Black Army.

In the first battle, for some reason, Duke Brennan, the western governor, had taken a lot of provisions out of the Beldez fortress, and most of them were seized by the Bossam Empire's army in the chaos of the defeat.

General Sevan understood General Bitters' frustration and did not reprimand him.

"Those people are probably afraid that if they continue like this, they will lose the battle, and the lack of provisions will cause the Beldez fortress to fall. Especially Duke Brennan has no other options."

"I wouldn't mind cheering for the Bossam side on this matter."

"That's not something to say lightly."

General Sevan reprimanded him, of course.

The next day, Duke Brennan, frustrated, led the Western Noble Alliance out of the Beldez fortress to challenge the Bossam Empire's army in an open battle.

The Bossam Empire's army, which had been surrounding the Beldez fortress, was outnumbered when the Western Noble Alliance appeared from the south gate.

The Bossam Empire's army had 10,000 troops at the south gate, while the Western Noble Alliance had 35,000 troops. Duke Brennan and the other western nobles began a fierce attack with more than three times the force to break the encirclement.

"Chargeeeeee!"

"Oooooo!"

The Western Noble Alliance, overwhelming in numbers, pushed back the Bossam Empire's army, which gradually retreated.

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"Maintain formation! Retreat slowly!"

General Krum, a commander of the Bossam Empire's army, calmly gave orders to retreat while receiving the attack from the Holy Bandam Kingdom's army.

However, this retreat was part of the original plan, with the goal of drawing the Holy Bandam Kingdom's army as far away from the Beldez fortress as possible.

Another unit was supposed to attack the rear of the Holy Bandam Kingdom's army if they held out.

"The enemy's morale is low. There's no need to rush! Just follow the training, and there will be no problem!"

General Krum was a seasoned warrior who had risen from the commoner class to command an army.

He had been through many battles like this.

Being a commoner, he had often risked his life to save the lives of noble-born soldiers, and dealing with the Holy Bandam Kingdom's attack, which was numerous but low in morale and training, was no big deal for him.

"Lower the left flank slightly."

He had already sent out several messengers, and the Holy Bandam Kingdom's army was playing out exactly as General Krum had scripted.

"It's too easy. Could we be falling into a trap?"

"I think you're overthinking it. The lackluster movements of the Bandam troops are probably not just due to Duke Brennan's lack of command ability but also because they are in a state that can hardly be called an army."

For this campaign, the Bossam Empire had prepared seven armies for the eastern front.

General Krum commanded the 5th Army.

General Iizuka, who had been working under General Krum for four years, was the chief of staff of the 5th Army and a seasoned strategist.

"If you say so, then it must be true."

General Iizuka had turned the tide of many battles with his wisdom, and General Krum trusted his abilities.

He also believed that no one could see the battle situation better than General Iizuka.

The 5th Army, under General Krum's command, skillfully lured the Holy Bandam Kingdom's army into a trap, and the Bossam Empire's reinforcements attacked their rear, dealing a significant blow to Duke Brennan's Western Noble Alliance.

However, seeing this as an opportunity, General Sevan attacked the rear of the Bossam army, causing considerable damage to them as well.

The Western Noble Alliance, caught between the Bossam army and the Black Army, managed to retreat, but many nobles were killed.