Chapter 57

"Alright, let's discuss how to drive away King Dorgal's army. Let's start the meeting."

Yuria declared to the gathered nobles.

They already knew that I would inherit the throne and had accepted it.

King Rosais' health had suddenly deteriorated, so Yuria would lead the proceedings.

The ones I brought were Boros and Tera.

I really wanted to bring Ron and the others, but due to their status, I couldn't.

"The enemy has 15,000 troops. Let's assume we have 7,500 and proceed with the discussion. Do you have any opinions?"

The nobles looked at the map spread out in front of Yuria and the pieces placed on it.

One of the nobles took a piece representing King Rosais' side and placed it on the Tera Fortress, which is the border fortress between the As territory and King Dorgal's country, now that the construction has been completed.

"Wouldn't a siege be the best option when defending with a small force? When King Berberdil's country attacked, we were able to hold the fortress and force the enemy, who had three times our numbers, to retreat."

This was said by a noble with the surname Ordvis.

The Ordvis family is a branch of the As family and has a marital relationship with the Rosais royal family.

The Ordvis territory is located on the border with King Berberdil's country.

Although there has never been a direct war with King Berberdil's country, there have been many skirmishes, so they have a lot of combat experience.

"Indeed, a siege can prevent us from losing with a small force, but we can't win either. The enemy won't think of continuing a small skirmish for a long time, so they will retreat... but this time, King Dorgal is advancing south with full force. They won't retreat."

"Then, would a field battle be better... Can we break through with the diagonal formation, Lord Balthro?"

This was asked by a noble with the surname Perum.

The Perum family is also related to the As family.

The Perum territory borders the Diber territory, so if there is an internal conflict, they can be relied upon.

There is a small-scale rock salt mine in the territory, and they have considerable economic power.

However, they have little combat experience.

"That diagonal formation requires repeated training. Last time, it was only the Rosais army and my private army, so it worked... but this time? This time, there are many, but they don't work well together. The diagonal formation will be difficult."

"The enemy has an army of over 10,000. Their food consumption will be high, and the supplies they brought will run out quickly. Since they need to bring siege weapons for a siege, they can't transport many supplies. Therefore, they will have to gather food locally or bring it from behind. We can lure the enemy deep into our territory, adopt a scorched earth policy, and wait for them to exhaust themselves. Then, we can cut off their supply lines with hidden troops."

Tera proposed a fairly specific strategy.

But, if we do that, our territory will become a scorched earth, right?

We've just rebuilt, and now we have to turn it into a scorched earth again?

"Wouldn't the morale of the soldiers conscripted from the As territory drop?"

Yuria pointed out the biggest flaw in Tera's plan.

A scorched earth policy means burning our own fields and poisoning or contaminating our wells.

It could even mean being responsible for destroying our own village... the morale will drop significantly.

"Almus, do you have any opinions?"

Here it comes...

I'm the supreme commander, so it's natural.

Hmm, opinions.

The best option is a field battle, but considering the difference in numbers, it's impossible.

A siege is advantageous, but its purpose is to buy time.

There's no hope for reinforcements...

Wait, I remember...

"Didn't the truce agreement only involve King Dorgal's country and King Gilbed's country? The countries of King Faldarm and the Rosel Kingdom are not involved... Can we make these two countries our allies?"

If they are attacked from behind, won't they retreat?

We can buy time with a siege until then.

"I think King Dorgal has left a considerable force behind, so even if they are attacked from behind, they won't immediately retreat from our country. Besides, the Rosel Kingdom and the country of King Faldarm are currently at war."

That's not going to work.

What other plans are there...

"To be honest, I think cutting off the supply lines is a good idea. If we can overcome the issue of morale, it will work."

Balthro said.

I also think cutting off the supply lines is not a bad option.

That's the problem.

The scorched earth policy will be carried out in our territory. Can we do it in the enemy's territory?

Wait, that's it... We can do it in the enemy's territory.

"What about this?"

I proposed the plan I came up with.

The nobles' eyes widened.

"That's a curse... but you don't need to worry about that. I think the surprise attack will be successful."

Raimond agreed with my suggestion.

"Interesting. After pursuing the retreating target, we can attack from the front and rear. Not bad. But if we take too long, we'll be finished quickly."

Balthro pointed out the flaw while agreeing.

That's the problem.

The biggest challenge of this plan is mobility.

"I think it can be done with the mobility of cavalry. It's not impossible with light infantry, but if the cavalry from the center attacks, it will be a different story. With cavalry, we can thoroughly disrupt them."

The problem is that I only have a hundred cavalry.

King Rosais has about fifty, I think.

That's too few.

"How many do you have?"

The nobles stated the number of cavalry they had.

A total of fifty.

So, the number of cavalry in King Rosais' country is two hundred.

That's still too few.

Originally, riding a horse is a special skill, and not many can be gathered.

That's why they can't be the main force in war.

They can be used for messengers or reconnaissance, but in this world, there are hawks, which are superior to horses.

Hawks can fly to places that would take horses hours in no time.

Horses have low value.

"I would like at least two hundred more. I can't feel secure."

Ordvis said.

"Then, what about hiring Alva people?"

Yuria suggested.

Who are the Alva people?

"Alva people... they are barbarians, aren't they?"

Perum made a face as if he had bitten into a bitter bug.

"I don't want to deal with them."

Ordvis also made a face of dislike.

So, who are the Alva people? Please explain.

"The Alva people are the descendants of the flat-faced people who invaded the Germanis, Gaul, and the Adelnia Peninsula about five hundred years ago. They live beyond the mountains to the east of King Rosais' country. They have now fully assimilated with the local Adelnia people."

According to Tera's explanation,

About five hundred years ago, the flat-faced people invaded the Adelnia Peninsula on horseback and almost conquered the entire Adelnia.

They created a large empire spanning Germanis, Gaul, and the Adelnia Peninsula.

However, after the death of the great king, the flat-faced people split into dozens of tribes.

They were driven out of the peninsula by the Kirisians and Pofenians who had invaded the Adelnia Peninsula and the Adelnia people who rebelled against the flat-faced people's rule.

After that, the flat-faced people could no longer maintain Gaul and Germanis and returned to the east.

It is said that the flat-faced people brought horse riding skills to the west.

However, not all the flat-faced people returned.

Some of the flat-faced people settled in the Alva region beyond the Alva Mountains to the east of King Rosais' country and assimilated with the local Adelnia people to become the Alva people.

"The Alva region is a dry land in the Adelnia Peninsula where it doesn't rain. Livestock farming has been thriving. That's why it was easy for them to assimilate with the flat-faced people."

I see. It's hard for rain to fall on the east side of the mountains.

I haven't particularly thought about whether there are westerly winds in this world, but let's assume there are.

Rain falls when moist winds come from the west.

However, the Alva Mountains block these winds, so it doesn't rain.

Is that how it works?

Of course, there are many other factors affecting the climate, so it's not that simple.

"But why are they called the flat-faced people?"

Is it because of their low noses?

"That's one reason. But the fundamental reason is that they had a custom of tying and flattening their noses in childhood."

They really are flat-faced...

No wonder they are treated as barbarians.

"But they have assimilated with the Adelnia people, right? So, the Adelnia language should be understood. I don't think there will be any problems."

"Yeah, yeah. They don't flatten their noses anymore. Also, the flat-faced people were not that numerous. It seems that only about a thousand remained in the Alva region. Now, they are completely Adelnia people. Their language is accented, and their lifestyle is different, but I think it's fine."

Yuria and I agree to hire the Alva people.

"The Alva people have been trading wool and other goods with us, albeit on a small scale. We haven't had much conflict because we are separated by the Alva Mountains. I think there won't be any problems if we approach them in a friendly manner."

"Yeah. If we have Alva cavalry, we won't have anything to fear. They probably think King Dorgal's southward policy is troublesome. I think it's a good idea."

Tera and Balthro also seem to agree.

"Hmm... I agree that Alva cavalry could be reliable... but we don't have formal diplomatic relations with them..."

"They are nomads. Their concept of a state is different from ours. It's hard to know who is in charge..."

"There is also the issue of who to negotiate with."

Raimond, Ordvis, and Perum seem to oppose it for these reasons.

I see, we need a mediator for the negotiations. Is there anyone suitable... I know one.

"There is a Kirisian merchant named Eyns. When I bought horses from Eyns before, he said he also sourced from the Adelnia Peninsula. He might have sourced from the Alva people."

"Indeed, he would know. Shall we call him and ask?"

Thus, the meeting for the day ended.

"Alva people? I know them."

A week later, Eyns was called, and the meeting was held again.

King Rosais also attended this time.

By the way, the matter of my succession to the throne is kept secret.

"That area is divided into three kingdoms: the Equus, Aries, and Lupus tribes. Among them, the Aries tribe is weak and is under the control of the Lupus tribe. It's a two-power structure with the Equus and Lupus tribes."

I see, two powers.

That makes it easier to deal with.

If there were many small tribes, it would be impossible to negotiate.

"Which one can we negotiate with for mercenaries?"

"The Equus tribe. The Lupus tribe doesn't want to interact with the outside world. On the other hand, the Equus tribe is proactive. Some of the Equus tribe are also engaged in agriculture."

Even if it doesn't rain much, there are rivers.

Agriculture is possible in such places.

Agriculture is more productive than nomadism. It's natural for them to switch to agriculture, but it's usually too scary to change their lifestyle suddenly.

The Equus tribe seems to have a fairly advanced mindset.

"Can you mediate the negotiations?"

When I asked, Eyns nodded with a smile.

"That's not a problem. ...But let me have a piece of the action, okay?"

Thus, it was decided to send an envoy to the Alva region.

Brown represents the mountains, blue represents the rivers.

Red represents the As faction and the Rosais royal faction, purple represents the Diber faction, and green represents the neutral faction.

The Tera Fortress is located between the forest and the mountains.