"How did it come to this?" Marquis Stuart, commander of the Land Kingdom army, muttered the words he had already spoken hundreds of times.
This was, in a way, a form of punishment. It all began when the king demanded that my wife Mary be brought into his harem. Of course, being completely unreasonable, I firmly refused.
I had thought the king was foolish, but not to this extent. Trying to take the wife of a loyal retainer shows a degree of stupidity beyond measure. Apparently, not a single courtier advised against this foolish act. Perhaps this country is already doomed.
After that, I received orders to attack the Burg Kingdom. The castle at the border with the Burg Kingdom belongs to that renowned knight. It's absolutely impossible to capture with an ordinary army. Besides, the season is autumn, and winter will be here soon. War will become impossible. Yet I was ordered to go.
It's the same as being ordered to go to my death. If I die, it's obvious what will happen to my wife and children. Under the pretext of protecting the children, my wife will be taken into the harem. I absolutely must return alive.
Nevertheless, the western army was mobilized, totaling about five thousand men. I had planned to march as slowly as possible and return once winter came.
Just before winter, we reached the knight's castle and made a perfunctory attack. However, a military inspector was present who scolded me to fight more seriously.
With no choice, I earnestly besieged the castle, but the knight's fortress was incredibly sturdy, and we made no progress whatsoever.
Rather, we suffered more casualties. I couldn't understand at all what we were doing this for. We were just sending soldiers to their deaths. The king's foolishness made me dizzy.
Then winter came, and snow fell. Taking advantage of this, I tried to retreat, but a letter arrived from the king. It stated not to return until the new year. It made no sense at all. How were we supposed to fight in this cold? It would only cause more needless deaths. I felt nauseous beyond dizziness.
I had no idea what to do. I could only think that the king wanted me dead. Already more than a thousand casualties had occurred. Those with frostbite were increasing, and those capable of fighting properly had decreased to about three thousand. The military inspector followed the king's orders, and retreat was impossible.
In this helpless situation, the Burg Kingdom raised an army and came to aid the castle.
I didn't want to fight, but now there was no choice. There is no justice in this battle. How did it come to this?
"Wow, I slept well," I said to Ryu beside me. "This tent and blanket are truly warm. I slept well too. With these, winter battles won't be a problem." "Well, let's have breakfast and then go to the meeting." "This kitchen car is well-made too. Spectators from other armies keep coming to see it." "If there are requests, I'll make as many as needed." "But winter battles aren't that common, I think." "Well, true, but there might be situations like this again."
Then Stein came over, his eyes shining. "Lord Han, this is great! I slept well and am full of energy!" "We were just talking about that. If you're full of energy, I'll count on you in battle." "I can eat warm food too, and I'm overflowing with power," Stein said, swinging his battle axe around. "Hey, that's dangerous. You don't need to do that here." "Hehe, sorry," Stein returned to his unit, still swinging his battle axe as if he truly had excess energy. "He's the same as always." "It's good to have energy."
Everyone gathered in yesterday's meeting room. Lord Schwartz said, "This battle will follow orthodox methods. We'll use the Unicorn formation." Everyone remained silent, waiting for the explanation. In this country, there's a custom of naming formations after magical creatures. The Unicorn formation refers to the most common lateral formation in battle.
"The enemy is exhausted from a long winter encampment. According to scouts, their forces have decreased to around three thousand. We'll fight normally and win normally. My forces will be in the center, Edel on the right wing, and Han's cavalry on the far right. The left wing is entrusted to Angel and Kreutz. While the infantry holds the line, the cavalry on both wings will defeat the enemy cavalry and surround them from behind. We should win with this." "The enemy should have had five thousand men. It would be troublesome if they have troops in ambush somewhere," Count Angel pointed out.
"Where could they hide ambushers in this vast, snowy plain? You can see far ahead," Baron Edel boasted.
"I was merely pointing out a danger."
"We've sent scouts everywhere, and there are no reports of ambushes. I understand Angel's concerns, but this is a plain without undulations. If ambushers appear, we'll know immediately and deal with them." "Understood. So Unicorn formation it is. That's the safest option. Battle is a living thing, so the Unicorn formation, which can adapt to any changes, is indeed best." "That's my thinking as well."
"Then our cavalry has a heavy responsibility," I commented nervously. "Me too," Kreutz hastily added. "That's right. I'm counting on you." "Yes!" And so tomorrow's strategy was decided.
I returned to my unit and held a meeting with Ryu, Yan, Stein, and Kim. "Thanks to the winter gear and warm meals, the soldiers' health is completely fine. Their morale and physical strength are excellent," Kim reported first.
I explained the strategy I had devised since the expedition was decided. "A combination of Dragon and Phoenix? That's innovative," everyone was surprised. "I'll be the Dragon, I'll do it!" an enthusiastic Stein declared. "..." Yan nodded silently. "Then tomorrow."
Tomorrow, my first battle begins. I hope it goes well.