novelraw Chapter 100: Revolutionary Defense War - Grand Duke Leopold (1)
Chapter 100: Revolutionary Defense War - Grand Duke Leopold (1)
I quickly rode south with Gaston and joined the main force.
They must not have wanted to be fooled again, as they had spread the Hussars over a wide area. The Chasseurs struggled to conceal our army's movements, forcing us to take a rather wide detour south, but we succeeded nonetheless.
Immediately after ordering rest for the cavalry, exhausted from the forced march after battle, I convened a meeting without a moment to recover.
“We attack Grand Duke Leopold’s army immediately.”
As the commanders tensed up at my words, Chief of Staff Berthelot spoke.
“Grand Duke Leopold’s forces still outnumber ours. The battlefield is open plains, unfavorable to stratagems, so the outcome will depend on a direct clash. I have some concerns.”
Our army numbers roughly 50,000. Grand Duke Leopold, even after sending 30,000 with Duke Gunhild to the east, still has 60,000.
Numerically, we are indeed still inferior, but…….
“But this is the closest we’ve managed to narrow the gap in strength. There won’t be another chance like this.”
Although we shattered and dispersed Count Baden’s army, it isn’t completely annihilated. Given time, they will regroup.Damien will buy us time, but he only has 10,000 troops. No matter how skilled Damien is, he cannot hold off Duke Gunhild’s 30,000 for long.
“We retreated to buy time to defeat Count Baden’s army. If Duke Gunhild’s forces join Grand Duke Leopold’s and push just a little further, the trade route with the Kingdom of Alps will be completely cut off.”
“In short, it’s a race against time, Your Excellency.”
I nodded at Dejean’s words.
“Yes. We’ve painstakingly narrowed the gap from 120,000 versus 60,000 to this point. This is the moment with the highest chance of victory for us.”
“Let me lead the vanguard!”
Nicolas, belligerent and apparently bored while I engaged in guerrilla warfare with Gaston, Morelle, and the cavalry, shouted determinedly, his eyes gleaming.
Well, in a situation like this, where we must launch an offensive despite being outnumbered, someone like him is perfect.
“Good, that’s the spirit. A difference of 10,000 can certainly be overturned. We also have Her Majesty the Queen with us.”
“Ah.”
Eris herself was slightly flustered, but as everyone’s gaze turned to her, she cleared her throat and spoke.
“Leave it to me. I will protect the revolutionary army.”
“That’s reassuring, Your Majesty!”
“Just having the Saintly Queen with us will boost the soldiers’ morale to the heavens.”
Eris just smiled awkwardly at the commanders’ admiration.
I feel bad selling her like this, but the mood can’t drop when we’re launching an offensive while outnumbered.
“Now, compared to the battles we’ve fought against overwhelming odds so far, this situation is much better. If we can just defeat Grand Duke Leopold here, we can end this war with our victory.”
Everyone swallowed dryly.
“If we secure the trade route with the Kingdom of Alps, additional troops will continue to be replenished. And in a war initiated by the Germania Empire’s unilateral justification, if even their war hero is defeated, there’s no way they can maintain morale.”
Victory against the overwhelmingly powerful Empire, something that seemed impossible at first. It felt within reach now.
“I expect everyone to fulfill their roles. As I will fulfill mine.”
*
Germania Empire Army Headquarters.
In the dim light of early dawn.
Grand Duke Leopold, already fully armed in his uniform, gazed at the operational map, relying on the mana lamp.
The Grand Duke had not yet received a messenger from the north.
However, he had already predicted that the main force was bait to buy time, and the supposed bait was actually the main attack, leading to Count Baden's army's rout.
That was why he immediately halted the pursuit and urgently sent Duke Gunhild north with 30,000 troops.
But just two days later.
Roughly 10,000 cavalry joined the enemy main force yesterday afternoon.
Grand Duke Leopold let out a hollow laugh.
The enemy force that attacked the occupied territory was the main attack disguised as bait, and simultaneously, bait disguised as the main attack.
If the Grand Duke had known the enemy heavy cavalry was absent, he would have attacked the fleeing enemy main force, even if it meant committing all his cavalry. However, the enemy Chasseurs prevented him from accurately assessing the composition of the enemy main force.
It was too late to find out now.
Marquis Lafayette would likely launch his offensive today.
The Grand Duke had numerical superiority, but his soldiers' morale was in tatters, and he knew that Lafayette also recognized this was the moment the power gap was smallest.
After abandoning the offensive towards the capital and heading south, only to suffer another defeat in the occupied territory, the Imperial army could not retreat.
The Grand Duke slowly closed his eyes.
He was a general of the Germania Empire, a powerhouse of the central continent, yet even he had not always fought from advantageous positions.
Against King Karl II, the Great King of the Kraft Kingdom, the Grand Duke had always fought defensively.
Facing him, the Grand Duke had keenly felt the helplessness of battling an overwhelming genius.
He didn't want to admit it, but the Grand Duke now felt a pressure similar to that of the Great King from someone he had merely considered a young, competent enemy general.
“Excuse me, Your Highness. The enemy is preparing an offensive.”
At the officer's report, which confirmed his prediction, the Grand Duke slowly opened his eyes.
Before him lay the operational map and his distinguished military cap.
The objects most familiar to him throughout his life.
And originally, objects he intended to put aside before this war began.
But he was still on the battlefield.
He still had a duty left.
“……Your Highness.”
The officer’s concerned voice reached him.
Fear and doubt now tinged the voices of his subordinates, who once believed and followed his words as absolute truth.
He knew rumors were circulating among the troops that the hero of the Germania Empire was now too old, being manipulated by the young Marquis Lafayette.
But such things mattered little.
Before being hailed as the hero of the Germania Empire.
Before countless commanders looked up to him with eyes of respect.
There were moments when he, too, faced numerous defeats yet refused to yield and challenged again.
He remembered the grace of the Kaiser, who trusted him with the army until the end, despite his repeated losses against a mere Elector Prince.
The Grand Duke slowly picked up his cap, put it on, and spoke.
“……Prepare for battle. Victory for the Kaiser.”
*
The sun, just entering summer, illuminated the battlefield with brilliant light.
Grand Duke Leopold observed his army defending behind hastily erected obstacles and barricades, and the wave of blue uniforms surging across the horizon towards them.
Continuous cannon fire echoed across the battlefield.
But shells flying towards the enemy army were blocked by a golden barrier and simply fell. Shwiiik-
“Ugh, Uwaaah-!”
Shells tearing through the air towards the Imperial lines struck unfortunate, screaming soldiers.
Grand Duke Leopold watched the scene with hazy eyes, then raised his telescope to view the enemy formation.
Unlike the last decisive battle where the Storm Witch was defeated, this time, the enemy’s deployment was standard.
Infantry line in the center, cavalry on the flanks, artillery in the rear.
He wasn't foolish enough to try the same tactic twice, and the battlefield was completely open plains.
On the surface, it looked like a fair fight of strength, but... Grand Duke Leopold’s forces were more numerous.
Grand Duke Leopold scanned the flanks with his telescope.
Chasseurs openly detached from the formation, scattered and armed with carbines, hovered around the Grand Duke's forces at a distance, while the Grand Duke's cavalry hid in the center of the formation, avoiding those Chasseurs.
Slightly superior in the number of cannons, but the enemy Saintess unfailingly blocked any shots that seemed likely to hit, while the Grand Duke’s army had to rely on meager cover, inevitably taking hits.
Normally, the attacking side holds the initiative, but this was too extreme.
“At this point, this is a pitched battle, but not quite one. Despicable Francia scum……”
At Duke Heinrich’s lament, the Grand Duke gave a wry smile and replied jokingly.
“We have more troops, so it’s fair.”
The Grand Duke turned his gaze back to the approaching enemy infantry, then noticed that the uniforms of the very front infantry unit were different from the other revolutionary soldiers.
Unlike the standard caps, they wore elaborate fur hats adorned with feathers, and even golden sashes reminiscent of a guard unit.
“What unit is that? I don’t think I’ve seen them before.”
“Hmm. I see them for the first time too, Your Highness. Judging by their attire, they seem like an elite unit, somewhat different from the regular soldiers. However, placing them at the very front from the start of the battle suggests they aren’t that important.”
Line infantry battles inevitably involve accepting sacrifices, and typically, the most elite units like the guards were kept in reserve, so Duke Heinrich's assessment was logical.
However, once the engagement between the approaching armies began, it didn't take long to realize that this was a grave miscalculation.
A frontline Germania Empire officer shouted at the approaching enemy forces.
“Hold, hold!”
He could see his men, taking cover behind flimsy, hastily made barricades, swallowing dryly as they aimed their muskets.
Line infantry fire is ultimately more accurate at closer ranges.
Firing after the enemy halts their advance is not too late.
The revolutionary troops, approaching in orderly ranks and files, finally stopped, and he saw them raise their muskets in response to the officer’s shout.
While the Imperial officer offered a prayer to God, gunfire erupted, and bullets rained down.
“Keok!”
“Aargh-”
The protection offered by the poorly constructed barricades did not save many soldiers.
Fortunately, the officer was unharmed. Thanking God, he raised his sword.
“Aim-!”
The enemy fired, so it was only fair for his side to fire back. Such was the rather gentlemanly combat of line infantry.
“Fire-!”
However, the Imperial troops, firing their muskets in unison, had to witness the sight of bluish mana barriers forming in front of the enemy soldiers, deflecting the bullets.
Almost all of them had one.
Although a few fell, the sight of the enemy soldiers withstanding a volley with mana and reloading plunged the Imperial troops into shock and terror.
“Re-, re-, reload-”
The Imperial officer’s command trembled uncontrollably, and the half-panicked line infantry struggled to reload quickly.
Unlike their line, now riddled with gaps, the revolutionary line, almost perfectly intact, reloaded and raised their muskets again—
“This is im-, impossib-”
Gunfire erupted again, and the Imperial officer, unable to finish his sentence, collapsed, spewing blood.
The first battle of the Revolutionary Guard, destined to become synonymous with terror for Francia's enemies, began.
*
Meanwhile.
Eastern Francia, Nancy.
Count Baden tried his best to defend Nancy, but the Imperial forces were just remnants of a collapsed army. They couldn't stop Millbeau's revolutionary army, whose morale was high from a recent victory.
“The enemy is fleeing, Count Millbeau, sir!”
“Waaah! Nancy is retaken!”
Damien laughed as Francia’s flag fluttered over Nancy once more.
“Hahaha, this is a piece of cake, a real piece of cake!”
Duke Gunhild’s 30,000 troops were on their way, but it would be a while.
As ordered, Damien was rampaging through the Imperial occupied territories to draw Duke Gunhild's attention and, just in case, prevent Count Baden from regrouping the remnants and launching a pincer attack with Gunhild.
“As expected of Count Millbeau, sir! There’s truly a reason Marquis Lafayette entrusted you with such an important task!”
Damien’s ego inflated even more at the words of his trusted subordinate, Peter de Cassel.
“……Tsk, well, I’ve done this much, maybe it’s time to bolt?”
However, his instinct for self-preservation overcame that inflated ego.
“What? Already?”
The spark of respect in Cassel’s eyes died down, but Damien ignored it.
“Honestly, taking Nancy should be enough to draw their attention. What if I push too far and get pincered? Count Baden will be hell-bent on catching me.”
“Well, the Chasseurs are currently scouting, so it wouldn't be too late to decide after their report.”
“Well, yeah. They should be here soon. Oh, speak of the devil, here comes one.”
Damien turned to greet the approaching Chasseur.
“Count Millbeau, sir! Reporting!”
“Yes, good work. How far has Duke Gunhild’s army advanced?”
“Apologies, sir. Duke Gunhild’s army is nowhere in sight!”
“Huh?”
“Their army is not in the vicinity, sir!”
“Eeeeh?”
Damien stood bewildered—
“What do you mean! Duke Gunhild’s 30,000 troops were supposed to intercept us, weren’t they?”
While Cassel pressed the Chasseur, Damien became lost in thought.
“Th-That’s right, but, well. They’ve disappeared.”
“What kind of nonsense is this!”
What? A detour?
But how could an army of 30,000 detour past the Chasseurs unnoticed?
If the Chasseurs couldn't find them, they really aren't here.
“...Perhaps the Grand Duke recalled them upon seeing the cavalry rejoin the main force?”
“That would be fortunate, but if the order was sent after seeing the Marquis's cavalry return, the Chasseurs should have observed them turning back given the distance.”
A cold sweat trickled down Damien’s spine.
What is going on?
If I completely annihilate Count Baden’s army here and retake all the occupied territories, the Grand Duke’s army will be cut off from its supply lines.
Unless the Grand Duke completely crushes Marquis Lafayette’s army and returns, it’s basically game over for him.
“Huh?”
“Count, sir?”
Damien narrowed his eyes slightly.
Conversely, is it a gamble worth taking if it’s possible to annihilate Marquis Lafayette’s army?
Nah, the ever-cautious Grand Duke Leopold?
Would he really make a gamble that would lead to all his men starving if Lafayette doesn’t attack?
No way—
“Ah, whatever. It’s good news they’re not coming. Let’s just focus on our mission~”
“I-Is that so? Just in case, shouldn’t we join Marquis Lafayette, sir……?”
“Stop, stop. By the time we get there now, the battle will be over. Just send a messenger, and let’s go deal with Count Baden.”
Damien waved dismissively and turned away, then muttered softly.
“……That should be the right move, right?”
Surely, just because I finish my mission here as planned, Marquis Lafayette won’t end up saying something like, ‘Where the hell is Millbeau!?’ Right?
*
“Your Highness, the first defense line is collapsing!”
Grand Duke Leopold looked away from his routing troops, who were falling to the Revolutionary Guard-led army, and turned his gaze to Marquis Lafayette’s banner, still distant with the reserves.
Duke Gunhild would have feigned moving slightly north, then started returning.
Normally, this would have been impossible with the Chasseurs dominating the battlefield. But seeing the enemy preoccupied with screening their own retreating main force, the Grand Duke grew suspicious.
For the Chasseurs, with their superiority over the Hussars, to be so preoccupied with screening their main force meant something significant was absent.
So, Grand Duke Leopold also took a gamble.
Marquis Lafayette likely believed the widely spread Hussars were tracking his unit’s movements. But in reality, they were screening Duke Gunhild’s waiting army from the Chasseurs, while only pretending to advance north.
Fortunately, Marquis Lafayette was too busy concealing his own cavalry’s return to notice, and now, even if he tried to confirm, it was too late.
A deception utilizing deception, jeopardizing the lives of his men if Lafayette hadn’t acted as expected, or if he fails to achieve victory here against Lafayette.
A path the Grand Duke of the past would never have chosen.
However, just as Lafayette had read Grand Duke Leopold’s tendencies, Grand Duke Leopold predicted Lafayette would seek a decisive battle now that the force difference was minimized, and thus threw the dice.
Grand Duke Leopold glared at the revolutionary army assaulting his position with burning eyes, then murmured lowly.
“To fight a devil, one must become a devil.”