Chapter 140 – Adria Battle (1)
Adria Battle (1)
When Juno’s majestic army reached the outskirts of Adria, the whole of Adria was naturally put on alert.
“Is the return of the 8th and 9th Corps that went to attack Kent still far away?”
Secretary Marquis García, standing under the throne, trembled and answered Henry’s question.
Originally, this was something that the Minister of Defense or his subordinates would have to answer for, but since Henry kicked out all the nobles except for a few of his favorite ministers from the State Council, only a few of his subjects remained, leaving the royal palace empty.
“Yes… Unexpectedly, we received a message that it will be difficult to return on time due to the rebels in Kent not responding to the truce negotiations and persistently demanding… There is still 15 days left, but the pursuing army continues to chase, and that too. They say they don’t know if they can protect it!”
“Really, they are all incompetent!! I, the emperor, am I trying to lead and develop this Balkan country, but these subjects are nothing but useless people, so they are holding me back while I try to run!!!”
“Your Majesty… Please fix it. If your Majesty the Emperor shows his might, those traitors will soon curl up and retreat back to the east.”
The Marquis García, who was barely calming down the enraged Henry, became angry when he saw the Marquis Dietrich entering the palace.
“Prime Minister!! How are the preparations going? Your Majesty is very concerned.”
“Don’t worry, Your Majesty. The formation of the citizen army has already been completed. Your Majesty’s subjects volunteered to arm themselves. However, in case there were traitors in the mix, we organized them mainly from citizens with children and took hostages.”
Haha. You are the prime minister after all. Even if I had a hundred useless nobles attached to me, they wouldn’t even be compared to you. And… I guess you are ready for the polite thing I mentioned last time, right?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. They have already arrived in Adria and have completed preparations.”
“Well done. If you get over this crisis, I will kill that guy Prinz and that guy Yuno, seal the Windrage spirit to your territory, and put you on the dukedom.”
“I am the Emperor. Your Majesty!!”
Heinrich, who had already lost his anger at Dietrich’s words, chuckled and headed to his harem in search of his new mistress.
When Chancellor Dietrich also left the room, saying he had to finish his preparations, the Marquis García, who was left alone, walked towards his mansion, feeling a feeling of anxiety filling his heart.
Next day. Juno’s army appeared in front of the Adriatic gate.
The morale of Yuno’s army, which numbered as many as 40,000 men, was sky-high.
The Imperial Army Legionnaires, who pride themselves on having grown into much stronger soldiers than before thanks to their hellish training, the Prinz Army, who fought on the Eastern Front to rival such legionnaires, and the Legionnaires, who are proud of having the highest level of elite even though their numbers are small. Since all the soldiers of Sidanikana territory had gathered, they were confident that they could win no matter what enemy came.
In addition, Adriatic Castle only had low walls that were not suitable for defense, and fortification facilities such as spires were not prepared for defense.
Since Juno had absorbed the entire capital corps, there was no army left for Henry, and it was obvious that there would be only about 1,000 imperial palace defenders at most, so they looked at the battlefield with extreme optimism and raised the tip of their spears towards the Adriatic castle.
Prior to the full-scale battle, Baron Derian led his horse to the castle gate to announce the Yuno army’s declaration of war and inform the citizens to prepare.
“Listen to Henry II, you traitor who murdered the previous emperor and took the throne illegally! His Highness Prince Prinz, the rightful crown prince of the empire, has brought his troops here to restore justice to the empire and regain the throne!! So, you kneel immediately. Surrender and ask for forgiveness! If you do that, His Majesty the Merciful Prince Prinz has said that, out of respect for your brotherly love, he will forgive you by honorably committing suicide on the tomb!!”
Despite his declaration of war, which was full of provocative phrases, there was no response from the gate. Baron Derian, who was nervous, expecting to hear jeers or arrows flying at the defenders standing on the castle wall, continued speaking as he felt his blood drain.
“Citizens and defenders inside Adria, listen!! We know very well that there are currently no troops inside Adria that can withstand our army’s forces!! So, don’t throw away your precious lives in vain, and defenders, please quietly open the gates!! In that case, The fight can end peacefully without anyone dying!! And the citizens inside Adria, please stay in your own homes. Our troops will also be careful not to attack citizens, but if they wander around on the streets, they may be mistaken for assassins or enemy soldiers. You may be harmed, so please wait at home until this situation is over!!”
Baron Derian’s words rang loudly throughout the city of Adriatic through Isabella’s loudspeaker magic.
Not long after his voice was heard, the gate opened, and Baron Derian, who thought his defenders had fallen for his words, smiled brightly at the thought that the gate had opened earlier than expected.
But the smile quickly disappeared from his face.
The castle gate opened, and armed soldiers were coming out inside. Baron Derian, who was worried that the army’s morale would fall if he was attacked and lost his life, retreated to the main camp.
Meanwhile, soldiers were constantly flowing out of the Adriatic gate, and the size of the army had already reached 50,000, surpassing Juno’s army.
“Ah… No, where did so many soldiers come from… Apparently, the scout cavalry led by Lord Cordelia reported that the 8th and 9th corps are tied to the Kent rebels… Hmm?”
Baron Derian was embarrassed to see such enemy soldiers, but soon he discovered something strange in Heinrich’s army and ran to Prinz and Juno at the command post.
“His Majesty!! His Majesty!!”
Prinz looked pitifully at Derian, who was trying to catch his breath from running so fast, and patted him on the back to calm him down.
“Baron Derian! You can calm down and speak slowly. We have already heard that Heinrich mobilized an unidentified army. There must have been a hidden trick that we were not aware of. He may have hired many mercenaries…”〈 Br〉
“That’s not it! A member of the enemy…”
Baron Derian explained that most of the members of Henry’s army consisted of citizens of Adriatic, and the leaders of Juno’s army, surprised by his words, all headed to the front.
“Ugh~ What Baron Derian said is true. Most of the soldiers on the front line are made up of Adriatic defenders and imperial palace defenders… But after that, they all appear to be ordinary citizens.”
“There are even women mixed in! I guess they bundled them up with their husbands and sent them out. Then, they would have to protect each other, so they wouldn’t be able to desert and run away.”
“You’re mobilizing citizen soldiers in a civil war that wasn’t even an invasion by a foreign enemy!! This is ridiculous! What on earth are the nobles in the capital doing, not stopping Heinrich from doing such a thing!!”
“Heinrich, you bastard… Are you sure you would do something like this? I would have shown you some mercy if you would kneel down and apologize to your father right now!!”
Seeing Prinz, the corps commanders, and nobles venting their anger, Yuno clapped his hands to brighten up the surroundings.
“Come on! Getting angry now won’t change the situation. Let’s first come up with a plan to overcome the current situation. Mayer. How is the morale of the soldiers?”
“Whew, that’s not good. Our Teshidanikana Army, whose base is the Monster Mountain Range, and the 3rd Corps, whose base is the eastern part, have no acquaintances or family here, so it doesn’t matter at all, but the soldiers of the 1st, 4th Corps, and the Capital Corps are extremely shaken. There is”
“In particular, the soldiers of the Capital Corps are anxious to check on the safety of their families right away. If a battle breaks out in Adriatic Castle, they are willing to desert even if it means deserting.”
Upon hearing Baron Derian’s report following Mayer, sighs came from the staff.
“Of course, if we risk an all-out war, we can crush them regardless of our military superiority…”
“Public opinion will explode that the citizens were massacred, and the cause of our military, which stood up to punish the corrupt emperor Henry and establish justice in the empire, will be greatly weakened.”
Mayer opened his mouth as he saw Prinz groaning and holding his head.
“If an all-out war breaks out, Heinrich knows well that the citizen army will suffer a crushing defeat. Nevertheless, the fact that he sent the citizen army out must be seen as having some scheming.”
“Hmm? What’s the plan?”
“Yes. If we send a messenger, there is a possibility that they will propose a short-term decisive battle. Over there, now that Count Cassus has died, Count Speyer, who can be called the strongest master in the empire currently, excluding Count Liechtenauer, is there. Because it remains”
“But Count Kashu was also defeated by us. Will they propose a short decisive battle?”
Mayer continued to answer Yuno’s questions.
“I would probably name His Highness Juno instead of Count Liechtenauer. I spread the rumor that the person who defeated Count Cassus was Count Liechtenauer, who came under His Highness Juno’s command.”
Everyone nodded at Mayer’s words.
“Of course… Since Yuno is the core force of our army… I guess he thinks that if Yuno falls, both Count Liechtenauer and Princess Eliza will leave.”
“Yes, that’s right. Of course, there is a possibility that we will not propose a short-term decisive battle, and it will turn into an all-out war… But in that case, we also have a plan to propose. If you propose a short-term decisive battle to reduce unnecessary sacrifices, we will also respond.”〈 Br〉
Everyone nodded in agreement with Mayer’s strategy, but suddenly one person stood up and pointed out Mayer’s plan.
“Wait!! Isn’t there a possibility that Your Highness Yuno will be defeated in the decisive battle proposed by Commander Mayer? Your Highness Yuno. Your Highness is not yet at a level where you can guarantee that you can definitely defeat Speyer!! Speyer is someone who has been with me for a long time. As a subordinate and colleague, I know his level very well. In fact, he is a much better swordsman than Count Kashu!!”
He was Count Liechtenauer, and he tried to stop Mayer’s plan out of anxiety that Juno might be defeated.
Juno knew that Count Cash was the second-in-command of the empire, and had the experience of blocking his sneak attack with all his might in the last decisive battle, so he was thinking of an easy victory against Speyer, who was inferior to Count Cash, but when he heard Liechtenauer’s words, his face changed. It hardened.
“But… As it is, it’s really just an all-out war. And then our plans will be completely shattered. So I think it’s better for me to have an adventure here.”
“Your Majesty!!!”
Juno approached Count Liechtenauer, who was getting angry, grabbed his shoulder, and quietly headed to the back of the command barracks.
“Sir. Please trust me. No, please trust Brother Prinz, the commanders, and my subordinates and soldiers who believe in and support me. I will not die easily. I will never lose, even for the sake of my women.”
Liechtenauer ended up laughing as he watched Juno emphasizing his women.
“You crazy idiot… Do whatever you want. However, Speyer will not be easy. Although he is below me, he is a knight who has been protecting the Guard Knights with me for a long time since I took over as leader, and is currently leading the Guard Knights. Because I’m the leader”
“But don’t you know very well that I am not easy?
“Well… With your current skills, you won’t lose easily. Except for technical skills and sense, you are actually overwhelming me in every way. However, if it’s a life-threatening battle, it’s unlikely that we will encounter strength versus strength. You know it well, right?”
“Yes, I know very well. And it’s been a while since you’ve been with me properly, right? I’ve gotten stronger in the meantime. Hehe… Ah! And you never know. I might even be able to persuade Director Speyer to take our side. It exists, right?”
“Tsk… That stubborn guy will never betray. Since it is true that Heinrich was crowned emperor, he will remain as a knight of the royal guard fighting for the emperor until the end.”
“Well, in that case, you have to use your skills to overcome them. Isn’t the most important factor in persuading your opponent a strong force?”
“… If you can do it, that’s best…”
Patting the back of Liechtenauer, who was still looking at him with untrustworthy eyes, Juno went back into the command barracks and told his staff to write a letter proposing a short decisive battle, and the letter was sent to Henry’s camp through a messenger.〈 Br〉
