“Gothberg, do you have a way to solve frostbite and altitude sickness?”
“I do. I’ve already developed the medication.”
“Ohhh!”
At my answer, the first regiment commander perked up. Heike also showed interest and eagerly asked me.
“Do you have enough for the entire first regiment?”
“Wait a moment, Heike.”
Acella slipped in front of Heike.
“Of course, Moonlight Palace came as allies to assist with the barbarian subjugation. But the agreement was only for military support, right?”
“Um.”
“If you want to borrow my attending physician, then there’s a price to pay.”
At Acella’s audacious stance, Heike nodded.
“Now, the important thing is to defeat the enemy at hand. Acella, what do you want?”
“I share your desire to subjugate the barbarians. If we let them rampage, those good-for-nothings will freely ravage the Empire’s land.”
Clip-clop, clip-clop.
Acella strolled leisurely around the conference room.
“However, Heike, I don’t want to lose a precious knight due to unnecessary disagreements in the process.”
“Hmm.”
Thud.
Acella stopped her footsteps and nodded assertively.
“I will take full command of this battle. If that’s the condition, I will heal your knights.”
“What do you mean, Your Highness?”
The first regiment commander immediately protested.
“Our first regiment has extensive expedition experience under the command of the first royal princess. Meanwhile, I heard it’s the first time Moonlight Palace is taking part in actual combat.”
“So?”
“The thing is….”
As Acella glared at him domineeringly, the first regiment commander fell silent.
It was indeed a nonsensical proposition. Essentially, it was akin to saying, ‘If it’s going to be useless anyway, I’ll take it.’
If Acella takes over command, should we succeed in the subjugation, all the glory will fall to Moonlight Palace.
That’s Acella’s aim, but it also comes with immense responsibility.
“Acella, the terrain here is unconventional and it’s a difficult battlefield that favors the enemy. Can you give appropriate commands?”
Acella calmly looked down at the map.
“Can you brief me on the situation?”
Heike pointed at the map with a baton.
“Um. Count’s territory has double fortifications with castle walls and fortresses along the mountain range, and there are scattered civilian villages in the area.”
“We are at the central point of the final line, the Southern Fortress.”
“Right. Between the northern fortress at the northern tip and our southern fortress was the central fortress where Count Blücher resided.”
“It was?”
Heike, with a serious expression, delivered the grim news.
“It was occupied. It seems they broke through before our reinforcements arrived.”
“Then what happened to Count Blücher and the civilians?”
“Fortunately, we were able to send a few messages without being spotted by the barbarians. The survivors, including the Count and civilians from nearby villages, are said to be hiding in the underground storeroom of the central fortress. Detection is only a matter of time.”
Thanks to Heike’s considerable combat command experience, he quickly summarized the situation.
“Fortunately, there is a deep cliff between the central fortress and this southern fortress. They cannot easily cross over. To move south into the Empire, they will have to go through the western or eastern fortress.”
“We need to block both entrances, weaken the enemy’s forces, and then retake the central fortress.”
Acella assessed the situation accurately even in her brief explanation. She pointed at the map.
“We’ll seize the eastern and western fortresses and cut all the bridges connecting to the outer defense line to deal only with the remnants at the central fortress. If we drag it into a small-scale close combat, we can overwhelm them with our superior skills and equipment.”
“How do we occupy both fortresses?”
“Did you forget, Heike?”
Acella raised the corner of her mouth.
“I am a rank five ice-type mage. Luckily, there’s a lot of snow here.”
“Are you prepared to join the combat directly?”
Heike rubbed his chin and asked me.
“Gothberg, can you prepare the medication? We have about two hundred injured.”
“Two hundred doses, huh?”
Additionally, I would have to account for the expected casualties from our side, around four hundred.
Once the Moonlight Palace main forces join, my healers will also arrive.
As long as I just alter the component makeup, I can leave the mass production to them.
“What’s the expected time for battle?”
“One day.”
“One day will suffice if it’s half a day. We can prescribe warmth and ointment for frostbite, and for the knight suffering altitude sickness, a diuretic, while those with milder cases can just take aspirin.”
“Um.”
After hearing my answer, Heike began to analyze.
If we force weak knights to fight in unfamiliar terrain, the casualties will only increase.
Looking at the future I came from, where the Rock Tribe was still standing strong, Heike likely did not expect a great victory in this battle.
Heike is wise, so she might have anticipated that such a result awaits.
On the other hand, with my healing, the odds of victory would definitely increase.
But that meant I would have to give all the credit for this subjugation to Acella.
Victory and responsibility—where should the emphasis lie?
Heike’s contemplation was brief.
“Gothberg, I’m counting on you.”
“Leave it to me.”
I immediately wrote a letter to the communication sphere and sent it out.
It was a message to secure a bulk of materials on the way and finish preparing the medications.
“Is it under the command of the Third Royal Princess?”
“Uh-huh….”
The first regiment commander and the Mokhwi Palace knight commander seemed somewhat skeptical.
It made sense since young Acella with no battlefield experience was set to take full command.
However, I actually trusted her. The Acella I knew was someone who could flawlessly manage military operations.
Well, she might still be figuring things out based solely on theory, so there could be errors.
That was something I’d have to step in and fix.
“Heike, I’d like to devise a strategy right away.”
“Sounds good. Go ahead and suggest.”
Heike, handing over the baton to Acella, seamlessly entrusted the authority to her.
“Moonlight Palace will take the eastern fortress, while we at Moonlight Palace will take the western fortress to disperse the enemy’s forces and then enter. If we can strike before the reinforcements arrive…”
Acella’s formulated strategy was orthodox and without fault.
Both the first regiment commander and Mokhwi Palace commander began to immerse themselves into Acella’s proposition, nodding their heads as they listened.
“Indeed, excellent strategy.”
Heike also acknowledged Acella.
However, I thought there could be a minor supplement.
“Gothberg, do you have any objections?”
Having read my expression, Heike asked.
“May I express my humble opinion?”
“What is it? Go ahead.”
Acella seemed a bit miffed but handed me the baton.
I aligned the forces, which Acella had evenly divided, to the right side.
“Why not keep the first and second regiments as they are without mixing them?”
“The coordination among our forces would improve. However, if the troops are concentrated on the east, the assault on the western fortress will be delayed. There’s a risk that enemy reinforcements might arrive sooner.”
“We need only one pathway to advance into the center.”
“What do you mean?”
I emphasized.
“The east serves as a decoy, while we can enter through the west. That strategy is somewhat more efficient.”
The notion of using themselves as bait caused some stir among the first regiment.
On the other hand, Acella appeared intrigued by my proposal, slightly lifting the corners of her mouth.
“Go on.”
“First, the first regiment enters the eastern fortress and lures all the enemy. Once sufficient forces are amassed, the second regiment takes the western fortress. Afterward, we’ll follow your Highness’s operational rules.”
“The enemy isn’t foolish. They won’t vacate all their positions just to defend one fortress.”
“Actually, they’re just that foolish.”
My claim drew puzzled reactions from everyone present.
“The barbarian tribes are divided into factions. The Rock Tribe we’ll be dealing with are relatively less intelligent, behaving closer to demons with no awareness of the entire battlefield.”
“Rock Tribe? I haven’t heard of tribal divisions before.”
Even Heike, who had faced the barbarians a few times, tilted his head in confusion.
“The northern barbarian tribes are mainly four factions. If the chieftain is the wise Thunder Tribe, it wouldn’t be an issue. However, the Rock Tribe acts based on instinct, behaving almost like monsters.”
I freely shared the knowledge I’ve learned from my experiences.
“While your Highness’s strategy is indeed magnificent, it presupposes that the opponent is a typical army that deploys conventional strategies. Right now, we can easily grab the advantage as if facing monsters.”
“Then, why do they have troops stationed evenly across all the fortresses? If they are not intelligent, would they still be arranged in such a fashion?”
I provided a plausible answer to Acella’s valid question.
“They’re simply full from looting each fortress and are currently sleeping it off.”
“Indeed. I haven’t detected any signs of troop maneuvers from the enemy.”
Heike accepted my argument.
Other knights nodded in agreement.
“Then, Gothberg, do you mean that while the first regiment draws their attention, the second regiment will rescue the hostages in the central fortress?”
“Exactly. We’ll then sever all bridges and isolate the enemy for a complete extermination.”
“That method is certain to yield fewer casualties than engaging in a full-scale confrontation.”
“That makes sense. The royal knights are also more accustomed to defensive combat in strongholds.”
Heike and the first regiment commander seemed to understand and accept the rationality behind my strategy.
“What do you think, Acella?”
Acella glanced at me and then lifted her chin to respond to Heike.
“Excellent suggestion. We’ll adopt it.”
“That’s incredibly flattering.”
Acella might think I interrupted her, but I bowed my head to her as politely as possible.
“Gothberg, you’re skilled in strategy. Have you any battlefield experience?”
“To a certain degree, yes.”
“Were you not just studying healing magic? You’re quite the intriguing fellow.”
Heike chuckled, giving my shoulder a friendly pat.
His strength surprised me, and I stumbled forward.
“Then let’s proceed with detailed planning based on this operation. First, the first regiment’s first battalion is…”
“Hey, Heike.”
Acella interrupted Heike as he was speaking.
“What’s wrong, Acella?”
“There’s something you need to pay attention to in this subjugation. I’ll give you a warning.”
Acella emphasized with a clear voice while pointing at me with her thumb.
“Don’t touch him. I won’t forgive it twice.”
*
Two days later, our main forces arrived.
The Moonlight Palace knight order, one battalion from the second regiment, and my faction of healers.
“Have you been well, teacher? The materials you requested are here.”
Hugo arrived, arms full of large bundles. His complete absence of altitude sickness symptoms proved his resilient constitution.
“And Eri?”
“I entrusted her to a nice girl at the fountain square bakery. She’s someone who often takes care of Eri.”
“Ugh. That, that’s not a— achoo!”
Chloe was about to say something unnecessary, so I pinched her thigh.
“Considering the ratio of symptoms, we need to produce near five hundred doses of the diuretic and the frostbite ointment. You understand we’re short on time, right? We need to start right away.”
“Yes, sir!”
My healers replied energetically.
The healers participating in this expedition were twelve in total.
All dressed in matching white gowns, they began to look the part of doctors.
“Then let’s move, Moonlight Palace healers.”
I murmured as I led the way.
The troop of healers, draped in white gowns, followed closely behind me.
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