In the aftermath of the Battle of Brathurst-Fulkliem, the casualty toll for the Luxenberg army was 35,000 infantrymen, 4,000 cavalrymen and 50 guns. The majority of 4th Corps had been slain, including the commanding general, General Kienmayer. After the battle 4th Corps was dismantled and the remaining men were spread across the other corps to make up the numbers.
In comparison, the Maldenberg army lost 70,000 infantrymen, 7,00 cavalrymen and 150 guns. This also included the Duke Lothar Braun or as the Luxenberg soldiers called him, the Duke of Death. All the remaining soldiers were taken captive, along with Adrian Maldenberg and Duke Jasper Gundenvarg.
Immediately after clearing the battlefield, a funeral for the fallen began. It was an emotional affair, especially for Victor. Not only had a corps been pushed to the utter brink of annihilation, but for the first time Victor lost a general.
General Kienmayer was a seasoned commander who appeared in famous battles such as Austerlitz and Aspern-Essling. Losing a man with such experience and versatility was a huge blow for Victor. Kienmayer was a proud Austrian general who was an exemplary figure for Victor's army, he was also a calming voice for Victor and the others in the war room when they were in heated debates of strategy.
General Kienmayer's body was prepared and was given a small escort back to Hannover. Victor had planned to create a war memorial centre for all the fallen commanders of his army. If he was going to inspire a rich military culture in Luxenberg, there needed to be a place to recount famous battles and prominent figures of the army.
Victor stood over the mass graves of his men and offered a few quiet words of mourning for them. "Rest well my soldiers, for your bravery and sacrifice shall not be forgotten. To this, I swear. I will carry on this army's legacy to uphold the standards of you fine men who bled and died for me." With that done the burial took place and shortly after Victor asked for Duke Jasper Gundenvarg to be brought to his tent
Within a few minutes, guards brought in the Duke of Gundenvarg. The senior-looking fellow who wore a monocle was now before Victor, his bald head almost showing Victor's reflection. With a warm tone, Victor addressed the captured duke. "It has been a while Duke Gundenvarg, I am happy to see you in good health."
Victor's sincere smile sparked a tiny bit of ease into the captured duke's mind. Jasper replied in a tone matching Victor's. "Thank you, Grand Duke Luxenberg, I am happy to see you in good health. I must congratulate you on the birth of your second son." The tension that was present from when he entered had evaporated.
"I will not waste your time Duke Gundenvarg, my men tell me that you and your artillerymen surrendered relatively quickly before my cavalry engaged your location. I also hear that you stood up to Adrian Maldenberg and stopped him from firing on us as well as your own troops. What I want to know is why?" Victor questioned.
Jasper was quick in his reply, "Simply because I know when a battle is lost. If we fired on our own men we would be renowned as terrible commanders and men would not follow us. I ordered my men to surrender because there was no point in needlessly throwing their lives away. You would have massacred them had they not surrendered."
Impressed by his answer Victor retorted, "I see well I appreciate your efforts, as someone who values the lives of his men above Victory, I commend you. It is a shame that we had to be enemies, I thought after our meeting a while ago that you were definitely someone who shared the same ideals and vision as me. Truthfully it is a shame we had to be on opposite sides."
Quick to respond Duke Gundenvarg spoke in a serious tone that left Victor stunned. "You are right, Grand Duke, it is a shame that we had to be on opposite sides of this war but it does not have to continue like that. I am an old man who is an ally to a tyrannical psychopath whose son will follow in his footsteps. Before I die I would like to serve a man who is worth serving and I believe that is you."
Victor sat in his chair, completely taken aback by what Duke Gundenvarg was implying. During his stay in the Dukedom of Gundenvarg, Victor thought he had begun to form an understanding of Duke Gundenvarg. He had thought of Jasper as someone who valued pride and loyalty. To imply swearing loyalty to Victor was a bold step to make when the Gundenvargs had been allied with the Maldenbergs for at least 5 decades.
"Duke Gundenvarg are you sure that you are willing to switch your allegiance? Doing so is a momentous step and given that your territory is far away from the borders of mine, you are sure to face trouble. I will happily accept you but I hope you think this decision through," Victor stated calmly but excitedly.
With no hesitation, Jasper Gundenvarg nodded eagerly and began to swear an oath of loyalty. His oath was sincere and nothing grand but the sentiment is what made Victor beam a bright smile. Gaining a new vassal was huge and being able to release a few prisoners lightened the prisoner and supply train.
Victor called for all his commanders to plan their next course of action. It was clear that the next target was Archenshien, the city was nearby and did not have a huge garrison thanks to Grand Duke Maldenberg mobilising almost all the soldiers in his realm. The only issue was the massive walls of the city.
A constant barrage of the walls would take days and lots of supplies would be depleted in the process. If Victor wanted to reap the maximum benefits of this war and conquer the Maldenbergs, he had to be quick and take cities quickly with minimum losses.
It helped that 12,000 infantrymen, 2,000 cavalrymen and 75 guns were released from their prison and now served them under the command of Duke Gundenvarg. But it did not change the current situation of taking the city. Ladders and climbing hooks were useless in the face of the towering walls protecting the city.
While brainstorming ideas General Rapp suggested something that could guarantee success.
"We trade a boy for a city."