novelraw Chapter 115: Revolution Defense War - Collapse (2)
Chapter 115: Revolution Defense War - Collapse (2)
Cleaning up the scene took far longer than I expected.
I had sent Damien De Millbeau’s Southern Army to advance on Nancy, but Shandra, leading the pursuit, kept sending a steady stream of prisoners.
The Imperial Army would surrender if they thought they’d be caught by the pursuit unit, surrender if they were hungry; in short, they surrendered far too easily.
Later, perhaps because she ran short on troops, Shandra even sent surrendered Imperial soldiers to our garrison without any escort, and they obediently walked all the way to our main force and quietly became prisoners.
What is this farce…….
As a result, with the number of prisoners exceeding 30,000, nearly matching the size of our remaining forces in Valois, Desaix and I were swamped trying to manage them.
If prisoners of that scale were poorly managed and a riot broke out, there would be no greater disaster.
As for the one responsible for this whole mess, her reaction was...
-Your Majesty, isn't this a bit much? It's not just effective, it's excessive!
-Hmm……. Isn't a good thing a good thing?-Except for the fact that we're so swamped managing prisoners that we can't even advance. We’ve already treated them generously once; if we take it back now, it’ll be chaos, so we have to feed and house them properly. Do you have any idea how hard this supply management is, Your Majesty—Ah, look at the time. I'm busy treating the wounded, so I must be off!
-Your Majesty! Where are you going, you damn Saintess! Eris!
-Do your best, Marquis!
And with that, she ran off.
While I was busy sighing heavily and working overtime with Desaix and Berthier, Gaston opened his eyes.
*
I placed a basket of oranges beside the sickbed and looked at Gaston.
“Your Excellency Marquis Lafayette.”
“Gaston.”
Gaston, who had become a little thinner, was lying in bed, then sat up and bowed his head to me.
I gently pushed him back down and said,
“Francia's finest knight is in quite a state.”
'According to Eris, it was the same poison that affected Christine and Baron Charon. Were those two able to recover faster because Eris focused all her power on one of them?'
Perhaps the demons have further improved that poison.
“I apologize, Your Excellency. It was due to my inadequacy…….”
“No, anyone would have been caught in that situation. It’s not your fault. Rather, we were able to win thanks to you assessing the situation and reporting it until the moment you fell.”
If I had been unlucky enough to be hit in the first surprise attack, it could have directly led to defeat in the battle.
Rather, he was remarkable for managing to halt the enemy cavalry and return alive even in such a situation.
I looked down at Gaston, who still wore an apologetic expression, and spoke.
“I'm glad you're safe.”
“……Thank you, Your Excellency Marquis.”
I met Gaston’s gaze for a moment.
I recalled the face Gaston showed me in the final battle before my regression.
Why Gaston of that time followed me to the end, ultimately dying in battle, I do not know.
But I can be sure that the face he shows me now is better than the one he showed me then.
So, relieved, I said,
“Then rest well and take care of yourself. You'll have to help me a lot in the future.”
And I will repay Gaston just as much.
“Understood, Your Excellency. I apologize for causing you concern.”
“I told you, there's nothing to apologize for. Ah, still, since you seem to be in decent shape, I suppose the two of you can eat this.”
When I pointed to the orange basket, Gaston looked puzzled.
“The two of us…… you mean?”
“Yes.”
I immediately opened the door, and Shandra, who was standing in front of it, grinned broadly.
“Ah, Your Excellency Marquis. Are you finished with your business?”
“Yes, I am. Then I must go and finish dealing with the mountain of work that piled up because you did too good a job in the pursuit.”
Who would have imagined there would be far more prisoners than enemy soldiers killed or wounded on the battlefield?
Shandra replied with a cheerful smile, saluting.
“I’ll leave it to you!”
“Yeah, well…….”
I glanced at Gaston and then replied to Shandra.
“I hope you have a good time.”
As I left the room and walked down the hallway.
“Hahaha! You said you’d be back, but I’m the one who came back!”
“Ahem, ahem.”
Shandra’s laughter, echoing all the way down the hall, and Gaston’s embarrassed clearing of his throat could be heard.
I chuckled and turned away.
I miss Christine too.
Ah, how much longer do I have to deal with these damn prisoners.
……Maybe I should write a letter.
*
Another three days passed after that.
The frantically busy task of organizing the prisoners was somewhat finished.
And in the meantime, the letter I wrote had summoned its recipient here.
“The prevailing opinion this time is not to release the prisoners.”
“Hmm, so it’s come to that, has it.”
It seems the number of prisoners is too large to use the tactic of lowering enemy morale by releasing them, as we did last time.
Besides, as the countless prisoners prove, rumors of our lenient treatment have spread sufficiently among the Imperial Army, so there's no further need for it.
“However, the supplies needed to feed those prisoners are no joke. Does the National Assembly intend to keep providing them?”
The Imperial Army prisoners number almost half of our total forces.
If I had my way, I’d feed them just enough to keep them from dying, but Eris wouldn't like that, and they surrendered trusting in our generous treatment.
If they don't receive the treatment they expect, they could rebel that much more easily, and we don’t have the facilities to confine that many, nor enough troops to manage them.
So, it’s more effective to keep them docile with treatment they find satisfactory, but the money issue…….
Christine slowly crossed her legs and replied.
“So, the National Assembly is expecting you to quickly defeat that Imperial Army and conclude a peace treaty.”
“It’s easy for you to say, as if it’s someone else’s problem.”
When I replied, slightly dumbfounded, Christine chuckled.
Feeling her body move with her laughter, I subtly averted my gaze.
“So, Christine?”
“Yes?”
“How long are you going to stay like this?”
Christine was currently perched on my lap, her arms around my neck, leaning against me.
Hearing my words, Christine looked at me quietly, then a slight smile played on her lips, and she asked.
“You don't like it?”
Her soft breath on my chin—
“No, it's not that.”
If anything, I quite like it…….
It’s just that this is my Command Center, it’s broad daylight, and my subordinates are outside—those minor details are what concern me.
Christine tilted her head slightly, then spoke with a low laugh.
“Reading your letter, it seemed you missed me terribly, so I was trying to express how much I missed you too, but perhaps-”
I immediately reached out, held her face, and pressed my lips to hers.
Sharing a kiss that seemed to devour each other's breath, feeling Christine's ragged breathing, I said.
“On second thought, this is incredibly nice.”
Christine’s face turned completely red, and she ducked her head.
She seems bold, yet she gets shy at the strangest things.
That too is cute, so I hugged her and whispered.
“You must have been busy, but I’m very happy you came all this way for me.”
“It’s just that someone was needed to convey the National Assembly's opinion, so I volunteered.”
Despite this lack of honesty, my unbelievably lovely fiancée had come all this way. What did it matter if it was daytime or the Command Center?
I should just enjoy this precious time to the fullest-
Just as I was thinking that, there was a knock at the door.
Christine tried to get up quickly, and for a moment, a mischievous urge arose to greet my subordinate while she was still in this position—but I resisted, as I might truly be resented for it.
“Come in.”
“Messenger! Your Excellency Marquis! A dispatch from the Southern Army Command!”
“Hmm, let me see.”
As I took the dispatch from the saluting messenger, I glanced sideways. Christine, as if nothing had happened, had a calm expression, her lips hidden behind a black fan.
I tore open the dispatch and my eyes widened.
“They've captured Nancy? An unopposed entry?”
“Yes, Your Excellency Marquis! Grand Duke Leopold's Imperial Army seems to have retreated to Metz!”
That Grand Duke Leopold would give up a key strategic point like Nancy without a proper fight suggests the Imperial Army’s condition was far more serious than I thought.
Or perhaps Damien moved much faster than I expected, not even giving the Grand Duke time to regroup.
“Yes, good work. You’ve done well for Count Milbeau. Tell him this side will depart as soon as the situation is under control.”
“Understood, Your Excellency Marquis!”
The messenger saluted immediately and withdrew.
I wanted to secure Nancy before the Imperial Army recovered from their losses, but I didn't send Damien expecting him to take Nancy single-handedly before the main force even finished reorganizing?
Is that bastard really going to have paved the way for my arrival and be waiting for me?
This is absurd. This is completely—
“……You've made Count Milbeau a hero, haven't you?”
At Christine’s words, I put a hand to my forehead.
“It’s because that man, uncharacteristically, accurately read my intentions and finished preparations for the move, so I entrusted it to him. I didn't particularly intend to promote him…….”
Knowing Christine hadn't thought highly of Count Milbeau before, I spoke defensively, but Christine gave an unexpected reply.
“That wasn't Count Milbeau's idea; it was Giselle Davy's counsel.”
“……Is that so?”
Indeed, I had thought something was strange.
Am I that easy to read? I wondered, but then again, if I were, Count Milbeau wouldn't have suffered so many consecutive defeats against me.
But if a newly assigned officer assisted him as staff officer, then it makes sense.
I knew Giselle Davy received high marks for tactics at the military academy, but I didn't realize she was that competent. If I had known, I would have used her myself rather than assigning her to him.
No, wait.
Pausing for a moment, I slowly turned my gaze to Christine.
“But, how do you know that?”
Christine smiled, fanning herself gently.
“Because one must understand one’s allies as thoroughly as one’s enemies.”
At her calm reply, as if stating an obvious fact, I was at a loss for words.
“…….”
It had seemed strange when Christine, who hadn't thought well of Damien De Millbeau, recommended him as the Southern Army Commander, but now I see she had him properly leashed and under surveillance.
I let out a dry laugh, and suddenly a different thought struck me.
“……Christine?”
“Yes, Pierre. Go on.”
“……Perhaps you have your eyes in my Command Center as well?”
Christine blinked, then smiled deeply.
……She only smiled.
Hey, why no answer?
Looking at Christine, whose jet-black eyes gleamed as she smiled, I truly understood what Kroxx had said.
It seems my beloved fiancée is even more dangerous than I thought.
And the fact that I find it reassuring rather than scary means I'm not normal either.
I let out a light sigh and spoke.
“Well, very well. Christine, are there any locals hired in Alsace-Lorraine with whom we still maintain contact?”
“Yes, there are still some. Not many, though.”
“Good. Then, I have an idea. May I ask for your cooperation?”
Christine replied with a bright smile.
“Of course, anything I can do to help.”
If we persecute those excessively numerous prisoners now, we’ll lose the justification Eris painstakingly built. Yet, if we send them back, there are too many.
The National Assembly's demand for a swift conclusion isn't unreasonable.
But we’ve already suffered countless sacrifices, and Grand Duke Leopold, having retreated after ceding even Nancy, must have bought some time to reorganize his troops.
Now we are the attackers, and a frontal assault on a prepared defensive position would be unwise.
Especially since that place is the Imperial Army's last stronghold, Grand Duke Leopold will desperately try to defend it by gathering all his remaining troops and resources.
Defeat there would mean the Empire's total defeat.
Still, they are already cornered, and their morale is at rock bottom. If so, we must use what we can.
I recalled my conversation with Eris and smiled.
-Very well, Your Majesty. Since you’ve said this much, I’ll try to think differently.
-That they are people, just like us?
-……Well, it seems it can be used to shake the Imperial Army.
-You have no romance.
'I've entrusted romance to Eris, so it's my role to use the results of her goodwill in my tactics.'
'War doesn't always have to be fought honorably and fairly with only swords and guns, right?'