The White Mountain, where the Bohemian army and the Palatinate army were stationed.
With war looming, the place was busier than ever, and it was easy to see people training or taking a break here and there.
And at this moment, I was with Cazerose, who had volunteered to accompany me, leading a group of soldiers given to me by my father, working on something.
“Is this about good?”
“Yes, please set one there too.”
“Understood.”
As my orders were given, about ten soldiers began unloading something from the cart.
It was a massive iron pillar, around 7 meters long, topped with a glowing red stone.
This glowing stone, known as luminescent stone, was an artificial substance made with a bit of magic, capable of shining brightly when exposed to a certain level of humidity.
Thus, it was often used to illuminate the dark and damp mines underground, functioning as a conditional light source.
The soldiers were setting up these poles with the luminescent stones in the plains in front of the White Mountain, while simultaneously marking their locations on the map they were holding.
Seeing this, Cazerose asked me, her face full of deep questions.
“Um… Mr. Santana?”
“Yes?”
“If it’s not too much trouble, may I ask why we’re doing this?”
“Hmm… Well, that’s…”
It was reasonable for Cazerose to wonder about why we were attaching the luminescent stones, considering they wouldn’t emit light without sufficient humidity.
In other words, unless it rained, the luminescent stones were practically useless on the surface.
And with that thought, I responded with a smile.
“You’ll understand everything later. Right now, it’s a secret.”
“Hmm…”
At my words, Cazerose looked slightly sulky. Watching her, I thought she looked quite adorable, but I decided not to say more.
As I mentioned to her, she would eventually learn everything, and it was better for me to keep the related secrets to myself for now.
*
Santana’s incomprehensible actions left Cazerose feeling both curious and worried about whether we could truly overcome the current situation.
‘The strategy seems well-planned, but can we really win? The Imperial Army led by General Tilly is no easy opponent…’
Cazerose was well aware of the Great Mage Tilly’s reputation.
A 9th-grade mage capable of single-handedly taking down thousands of soldiers.
On top of that, the Imperial Army accompanying him was made up of numerous mid and high-level mages, and even when excluding mages, the Bohemian army was outnumbered.
Of course, if we successfully launched a surprise attack on the tired enemy as Count Turun planned, it could yield some results, but there were many shortcomings in terms of basic strength.
‘Moreover, General Tilly is definitely not a fool. He must anticipate that we’re trying to take advantage of the Imperial Army’s fatigue. By now, he might already be spreading a magical circle as he moves.’
A magical circle.
One of the magic types that mid-level mages could use, which allowed them to detect everything within a widespread range by expanding their magic.
Although using this magic had the downside that the caster couldn’t use other spells, it had the remarkable advantage of accurately sensing even the opponent’s hand movements within the range.
However, the effective range varied greatly depending on the mages’ capabilities.
A mid-level mage could be praised for using one with a diameter of just about 1 meter, while a high-level mage like Count Turun could easily manage around 400 meters.
As for General Tilly, a 9th-grade mage, he could possibly extend it up to 1 to 1.5 kilometers.
If General Tilly maintained such a large magical circle in preparation for a surprise attack in the lead-up to war, there was a considerable chance our cunning ambush could be thwarted.
‘In the worst case… we could suffer a counterattack, increasing our losses for no reason. But surely wise Mr. Santana must be aware of this. What on earth are you planning?’
With questions swirling in her mind, Cazerose couldn’t help but wonder what this bizarre set of pillars truly meant.
Yet, aside from her curiosity, Cazerose was fervently wishing in her heart.
Regardless of the tactics used, she desperately hoped the Bohemian army…
No, to be precise, that Mr. Santana would win this war.
‘If we lose… I guess I will meet my end here with Mr. Santana. But if we win…’
Determined, Cazerose observed Mr. Santana, who was busy setting up the pillars with the soldiers, a wistful smile beginning to form on her lips.
*
“Really? They’ve come that far?”
“Yes, it seems they’ll arrive within a day.”
The Emperor’s army quickly made its way through the Bohemian territory and was beginning to reach their target.
With this realization, a deep sense of tension and determination settled in the hearts of the nobles present.
Immediately, Count Turun issued a command.
“The enemy is approaching. We will proceed with the operation as prepared.”
“Yes, Count.”
“We will follow your orders!”
In response to Count Turun’s words, the Bohemian nobles lowered their heads in unison, their faces filled with confidence and expectation of victory as Count Turun nodded in satisfaction.
“It’s important to reiterate, the key to this war is to ambush the weakened enemy and bring it to a swift end. They’ve got a much larger army than ours, and I’ve heard they have plenty of mages as well. This is our first and last chance. We need to throw everything into this one attack.”
“I will remember that, Count.”
“I’ll fight with resolve to the death.”
As the nobles reignited their determination at Turun’s words, he smiled contentedly and nodded slowly.
Then, his gaze turned to Friedrich, who sat behind him as the overall commander, and to Anhalt, who stood next to him.
“Then, as scheduled, we will launch the attack. The Palatinate army will fulfill their promise and take care of the enemy’s flank.”
“Understood, I will arrange that. Anhalt, I expect the Palatinate army to display their bravery in this war.”
“Yes, understood, Your Highness.”
Anhalt bowed deeply at Friedrich’s words.
Despite his lack of war experience, he stubbornly took command of the Palatinate army in this war.
With a formidable force of 7,000 troops, which was certainly not small, Anhalt began to cultivate a determination to lead them to victory.
‘Winning the war is a given, but moreover… the Palatinate army must achieve great exploits in this battle. Only then can I think about the future.’
With a feeling of obsession named resolve, Anhalt fixed his eyes firmly on the position of the Imperial Army marked on the map.
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