The Strongest Dull Prince’s Secret Battle for the Throne

Chapter 114: The Small Hope

I, who entered Gers as a wandering military strategist, asked the young lord Alois to explain the situation.

For the time being can you tell me why it is so restless around here?

You are not aware?

I was stalling the covert unit sent out by the army. I flew here afterward but the army looked unusually restless thats why I came here to ask about the situation. Thats where I caught you earlier.

I seeto put it shortly, someone from our side sniped at and assassinated an imperial armys general.

So he has a backup plan huh. This kind of plan is too much for Gordon and for Sonia, it is too rough. This must be suggested by his other aides.

However, forcefully pushing for war wont earn any praise from Father.

His intention after the war is over is clear with this.

Thats an interesting situation you are in. Was that sniper prepared by your uncle?

Most likely.

In that case, the blame is on this side.

Since their general got assassinated, they have to retaliate. Well, it was quite forceful but it allowed them to act according to their discretion on the field. Moreover, once they break through this city, it will turn into an all-out war with the South.

If that happens, theres no way back. The only option left will be to seriously crush the South.

That is probably the best scenario for Gordon.

However, if this city doesnt fall, it will be a different story. We have to limit the conflict to this place. The information about this will soon reach Duke Kruger. By then Leo and the others should have already arrived and settled the matter.

If we can hold out for a few days and confine the battle here it will be somewhat manageable.

If the information reaches the capital theres no doubt that Gordon would be told to stop immediately so he probably wouldnt report this. Like us who have to safeguard our information, he is now in a similar situation.

The armys movement was too well ordered. That was probably because things went the way they expected. Battle is now unavoidable. How many men do you have here?

500 knights and 500 soldiers, we have a thousand men in total but.our soldiers didnt receive any proper training

Conscripted soldiers huh. Well, thats better than nothing..still, the enemy has 10,000 elites of the imperial army while we only have a thousand men that were assembled in a hurry. They have ten times our number but their individual strengths are probably worlds apart from us too.

Even if our winning condition is to hold out for a few days, the odds they have against us are despairingly high.

If they seriously try, they should be able to siege the city in a few days.

Can we really win?

Alois asks anxiously.

I pat his head to reassure him.

There is still a chance. Of course, it will require you to do a lot of things as well. Are you up for it?

I, its alright! I will show you!

Good. First, introduce me to your vassals. What you must do first is to convince them.

Yes!

With his lively reply, Alois and I started walking.

-

I understand the situation now.

Said an old knight.

Still, for an old knight, his eyes are sharp and he doesnt move like an old man at all.

This old man who has the atmosphere of a veteran is the Knight Commander of Earl Simmel, Foct.

If that sniper truly belongs to the Simmel house then offering an apology is no longer possible. No matter how much Alois-sama is going to plead, the imperial army will never be convinced. Your will to fight for your esteemed mother and the people of the South is truly splendid. However, who is that suspicious man beside you?

Foct stared at me as he said that.

The same is true for others. They are his loyal vassals who have been in the service of his house for a long time.

They were unrelated to Aloiss uncles action and were standing guard at the city wall.

It is only natural for them to fight for Alois but they cant fully accept the situation with a suspicious person like me standing beside him.

Grau saved me. You can trust him.

Even if he did save you, trusting him is a different story, my lord.

Hmm, so we are going that route huh.

In a situation where we must band together, there is no time for infighting.

Knight Commander Foct. can I say something?

What? Wandering strategist.

From your perspective, how do you see the current situation?

This is the end of the Simmel house.

Hmphnaive. Your perception of this situation is too naive, Knight Commander.

What?

When Foct said that, I pointed at the map that was spread on the table for our strategy meeting.

Gers is at the forefront of the South. To let the army through here would mean that the war will spread to every part of the Southern region.

If we let them through here, the imperial army will immediately push deep into the South. The war front will surely spread and it will greatly weaken the Empire. And what is the trigger for that? Yes, it is none other than the Simmel house. Even if you survive the battle, the Emperor will surely execute your entire family for it.

Th, that is.

Still, surrender is no longer an option. You will be faced with the charge of assassinating a general and getting executed. Simmel house is only a step away from destruction. Moreover, your soldiers will doubt the reason why they have to fight the imperial army in the first place. Even if the lords mother got taken hostage, that is the problem of the lords alone. It will be hard to convince them to fight for you, you know? Our force is weak while the enemy is strong. The problems only pile up. Still, that is our reality. You must know the value of someone who offers you their help in this situation, correct?

.even so, I can not trust you immediately.

Then you can keep a watch on me. The imperial army will commence their attack soon.

.fine. If you offer us your help while realizing how hopeless the situation is then it means that there is still a chance for us to win right?

I nod to Focts question.

I then shifted my gaze toward everyone here.

There is no situation that fits the words absolute despair better than this. However, we still have a little ray of hope. The imperial army is in the middle of concocting their plan. Within a few days, Duke Kruger will be caught in a surprise ambush. In other words, we will be fine as long as we hold them back until then.

I have never heard of such a thing before though?

Its a secret after all. Returning to the topic. The Simmel houses situation may be absolute despair but if we can hold out for a few days, the situation will completely change. Holding back 10,000 men with only 1,000 to prevent the war from intensifying is surely an action that even the Emperor cant overlook. Moreover, with the matter about your mother that has been taken hostage by Duke Kruger coupled with the fact that this war has many ties with the succession war that has been going on in the capital, your situation will definitely change if you can overcome this crisis.

..to be honest, the survival of Simmel house is already a secondary concern to me. Whats more important is to keep this war from intensifying. Thats what I think. I understand that you all cant immediately trust in Grau and that he has no credit to back him up but we have no choice but to trust him and cooperate. We will simply lose if we fight this by ourselves after all.

His vassals showed a look of hesitation for a moment but they all hung their head as if they gave up.

Seeing that, Alois shifts his gaze toward me.

Now, please tell us your strategy.

Understood. When the imperial army launches an attack on a fortified city, it is a common practice for them to concentrate their force at the main gate and send out another group to attack another gate with less fortification. If they act according to my expectation, they will surely use such a conventional means to attack us.

Then should we distribute our force to all four gates?

No, the difference between our force and theirs is tenfold. If you want to hold back the attack on the main gate, you will have to allocate an appropriate amount of force to defend it.

The attack on the main gate should be a decoy but the scale of our forces are too different in the first place. That decoy might turn out to be an actual attack from them so it is unwise to move our force away from the main gate.

Focts eyes squint at my words.

So you have a plan to defeat the flanking unit?

Indeed. Our enemy is a large army and a well-trained one at that. On the other hand, ours is small in number and not even a proper army. They will definitely let their guard down against us. Even if they are veterans, that is unavoidable. Thats why they will be vulnerable to our trap.

No matter how vigilant they are, their perception of us is but a rural city.

As the difference in our force is clear, they will not waste much time to be cautious against us.

Their purpose is to break through the city as soon as possible to take control of the Southern front.

If that happens, the Emperor will no longer be able to stop them.

The army will definitely come at us with all their power using conventional strategy.

Alois-sama. Can you lend me a hundred soldiers?

A hundred?can you defeat the flanking unit with only that many?

The army will be aiming for a gate with less defense. We dont need to defend all three so 100 men will be enough. And one more thing.

You can ask for anything. I will prepare it immediately.

Its not anything big but there should be oils that were prepared for a defensive battle. Can I borrow a little of it?

Attack them with fire huh. But, I dont think a simple fire attack would defeat the flanking unit though?

I have a plan for that. Dont worry.

I said so and lightly smiled.

They cant see my face but they should be able to tell by the atmosphere.

Feeling a chill, Foct took a step back.

Thus I joined the fight against the imperial army.