novelraw Chapter 408 : Supply Line
Chapter 408 : Supply Line
Chapter 408: Supply Line
After inspecting the research of the new ships and cannons, Hughes devoted himself wholeheartedly to the work of organizing the Expeditionary Army.
The Holy Guard was very strong in combat, but the Northlands were indeed far too distant from Castel.
Thus, how exactly to set out had yet to be decided.
At this moment, inside Hughes’ office, a massive map was spread out across the center. A few people were gathered around it, arguing heatedly.
“In the end, traveling by ship is more suitable.” Nini crossed all six of her arms and nodded toward the Storm Ocean.
“Traveling by ship is fine, but it depends on which ship. If it’s those Ironclad Warships that sink three in two days, I think we should forget it—You may be able to swim in the sea, but I can’t last very long.” Alexei said calmly.
Nini’s eyes widened. “How could that be? Once the new ships are launched, things will definitely improve!”
Alexei curled his lips. “Launched or drowned, who can say? I have to be responsible for my lads. I can’t have them feeding Devil Fish while they’re asleep in their bunks.”
“Then what do you suggest we do?”
Alexei rose unhurriedly, reaching out his finger toward Blood Harbor. “From here—”
His finger traced the map, skirting a mountain range in the north, before pointing toward the Earl Bazel’s domain in the Northlands. “—to here, all the way across.”
Nini’s eyes widened further. “How do we get there? Walk across?”
“Of course not. We ride by Airship.”
Having said this, Alexei turned to Hughes. “My lord, how many people can our Celestial Behemoth carry?”
“If it only transports soldiers, its maximum capacity is about five hundred—though that’s after discarding all equipment.” Hughes rubbed his chin. “If we want a fully armed unit, with both light and heavy weaponry, then at most just over a hundred, maybe two hundred with difficulty.”
“In other words, if we transport two hundred men, this unit would have combat capability upon landing and could be directly thrown into battle.”
Alexei tapped the Earl’s domain on the map.
Nini gave a cold laugh. “And what about logistics? Don’t forget, we don’t have a foothold in the Northlands. With the Airship’s support, those two hundred men could easily resist the enemy, but the Airship must eventually return to transport the next batch. Relying only on the ammunition and food they carry, how long could those men last?”
“Small Airships could accompany them, providing aerial support. The enemy doesn’t have much anti-air capability. Defense should still be possible.”
Nini frowned in thought, but Hughes suddenly interjected: “That might not be reliable. Small Airships handle severe weather very poorly. They’re suitable for reconnaissance, but not as a main air force.”
“Moreover, small Airships can’t fly high. In battle, that would be dangerous.”
Muskets lacked accuracy, but a large target like an Airship needed no aiming. If flying low, a musket squad firing volleys might really be able to bring one down.
“I have an idea. I’m not sure if it should be said.” Monica suddenly spoke up. She had Hughes’ permission to attend the meeting, mainly because things were still in the planning stage, and her endless stream of ideas might just be useful.
“Speak.”
“If traveling by ship is dangerous, we could recruit more Banshees. Then the ships could sail close to the shore. That way, even if the ships sink, the Banshees would be enough to rescue everyone.”
Hughes covered his face. “And then our army would wait on some nameless beach for rescue? Are we here to fight a war, or are we going on a picnic?”
Richard, standing nearby, also spoke: “Miss Monica, our ships won’t only carry the Holy Guard, but also the Extraordinary. Even though sea pollution has greatly decreased, the waters are still forbidden for the Extraordinary. Falling into the sea would be extremely dangerous—I certainly cannot fly.”
“Alas, if only we had a reliable ship.”
The group sighed together. Castel was clearly an island, yet its shipbuilding industry was so abysmal. It was somewhat shameful.
Reaching Blood Harbor was still manageable. Whether with ocean liners or Ironclad Warships, the task could be accomplished. After all, it was close to the mainland, with fewer extreme weather patterns and a shorter voyage.
But an expedition to the Northlands meant nearly crossing the entire Storm Ocean. Without a reliable ship, they truly lacked confidence.
Seeing that no plan could be agreed upon, Hughes clapped his hands. “Then let’s hear my solution.”
Hughes stood up, pointing to Blood Harbor as well. “My route is similar to Alexei’s—straight from Blood Harbor to the Northlands. Only, not by Airship.”
“Not by Airship? You mean on foot?”
“My lord, th-that won’t do!” Alexei stood with a worried expression. “The Holy Guard may be powerful in battle, but in logistics they are no different from any other army. Such a long supply line would be extremely dangerous!”
Alexei had already spoken tactfully. At the Royal Army Academy, if anyone dared to propose such a long overland supply line, the instructors would have berated him harshly.
This was a supply line spanning across three Dukedoms!
If it was cut, the Holy Guard at the front would immediately starve. Defending it would be nearly impossible due to the sheer length.
The only solution would be to assign massive numbers of soldiers to guard the supply lines, which meant logistical efficiency would plummet. Even with Castel’s industrial growth, its population was only ten thousand. A supply line this long might well collapse the island’s strength.
But Hughes confidently waved his hand. “No, this supply line isn’t long—not for Castel.”
From Blood Harbor to the Northlands, an ordinary person on foot would take nearly a month. For the Holy Guard carrying equipment, the time would be even longer—at least forty days.
And Hughes called this “not long”?
Everyone turned to him, waiting for his explanation.
“We’ll build a railway.”
The group gasped.
“A railway? That far?”
“How long would that even take?”
Only Alexei froze for a moment before his eyes lit up.
The difficulty of supply did not correspond directly to distance. At the Army Academy, there was an entire discipline of logistics management, with a whole set of complex formulas used to calculate logistical difficulty under various conditions.
Overland supply was the most difficult. But if it could be done by sea, the burden would be greatly reduced.
A hundred kilometers by sea was far easier than ten kilometers over land—provided one had enough ships.
And if tracks were laid across the land, it would be the equivalent of artificially creating a “sea,” forcibly reducing the difficulty of overland supply to nearly that of maritime supply.
Such a thing had never been taught in the academy. Railways did not yet exist in this era. Even horse-drawn trams were only barely seen in parts of Rhine, far from widespread, and no one had ever thought to use them for military supply.
To build railways and push forward with Armored Trains as the core—if successful, it might rewrite the very shape of war itself!
A battlefield thousands of miles away could become as near as one’s doorstep!