Episode 69: The Defense of Valhart’s Western Fortress (2)
—
Not long after, we arrived at the fortress.
The outer walls of the fortress, which had been hastily constructed of wood, were now surrounded by sturdy brick walls.
It seemed they had thought this fortress important enough to undertake expansion work.
Indeed, the fortress had a significant presence for both the Brans and Aeshers armies.
The red flag fluttering atop a high spire declared this place firmly under the control of Aeshers army.
“Welcome, Airen.”
A few soldiers standing guard recognized Airen and greeted her.
The armor they wore bore the emblem of Aeshers army.
These people, like us, had changed the sun they served.
“Hmm. You’ve worked hard.”
We immediately headed to the meeting room where Epinel was.
Upon entering, we were greeted by her, her teal hair tied in a ponytail.
“At the command of our lord, I, Airen Juliet, have just arrived at the fortress.”
“Welcome, Airen. And the strategist has come too.”
She looked around at us and then, seeing me, said,
“You’ve come too, Swen. I’ve been waiting for you.”
I bowed my head silently, and without waiting for a reply, she turned her gaze to all of us and began to explain the situation in a serious tone.
“Now that reinforcements have arrived, let me explain once more. The Brans army, with Chel Brans leading their vanguard, is marching towards this fortress with 53,000 troops.”
Seeing Chel coming, it seemed they were pulling in forces from the south.
Having been part of the Brans army until recently, I had a clear picture of the situation.
“Currently, this fortress houses a total of 48,000 soldiers. With an additional 3,000 arriving, that makes 51,000. Though it’s a fortress and not a castle, I believe we have enough forces to hold them off.”
Listening quietly, Jinor asked in a very serious tone,
“…Epinel. You’re planning to continue defending this fortress?”
“Yes. That’s the plan.”
“It’s an unreasonable decision. It would be wiser to abandon the fortress now and retreat to the castle.”
“Strategist. Our forces are nearly equal. Though it’s not a castle, we have the fortress. It seems premature to assume defeat in a fightable situation.”
“I understand General Epinel’s intentions. However, I doubt the Brans army’s invasion will end with just 53,000 troops. We might manage to hold them off, but we will surely suffer significant losses. If it turns into a war of attrition, our army, lacking a solid foundation, will inevitably lose to the superior Brans army.”
Jinor bowed as he spoke.
It was unusual to see a state’s strategist bowing to a general.
Especially someone of Jinor’s stature.
“General Epinel. Please reconsider. Concentrating our forces at Valhart Castle and using its defensive advantages is the best strategy. Once we’ve dealt with the Charlam and Alephel armies, a path will surely open.”
Honestly, I agreed with Jinor’s opinion.
Not just because of his intelligence of 99, but his argument made more sense.
No matter how much the fortress was expanded, defending there versus a castle had a huge difference. With 53,000 troops, combining the fortress and the remaining forces at Valhart Castle would be sufficient.
Plus, once the soldiers deployed to fight the Alephel army returned, we could establish a much stronger defense.
But,
Epinel spoke with unwavering determination.
“Strategist. I understand your point. However, losing this fortress would mean reverting to an endless standoff with the Brans army. We must confront them eventually, and I believe now is the time. If we continue to avoid open conflict, our army will achieve nothing.”
Indeed, the location of this fortress was quite strategic.
From my perspective, it was just a place to station Airen’s troops, but for both Aeshers and Brans armies, it was a strategically valuable position.
Epinel seemed to think losing the fortress, given the slight difference in troop numbers, would be a greater loss, considering the prospect of a prolonged war.
I could somewhat understand her judgment.
It wasn’t a blatant miscalculation like Kalintz Brans’, as there was some rationale behind it.
“And also, regarding the continuous invasion by the Brans army, I have a slightly different view. According to intelligence, they’ve signed a truce with the southern countries. Most of the troops coming here are likely from the southern border. If they pull additional forces from the northern border, Serpina’s army won’t just stand by, right? What do you think?”
“If we consider the population of the Brans’ territories, there’s also a possibility of further conscription. And if they bring forces from the western front instead of the north, the situation changes. Considering everything, retreating to Valhart Castle as a stronghold is the best way to block the Brans’ invasion.”
“It may be true that it would effectively block the invasion, but as I said, blocking doesn’t open a path. If we can suppress the Brans army in this battle, capturing Raclain Castle wouldn’t be just a dream.”
“I understand, but now is not the time. The right moment will come.”
Epinel slowly closed her eyes in response to Jinor’s words, then spoke cautiously,
“Strategist. I don’t want to bring up the past, but I still remember when you confidently promised to plant Aeshers’ flag in Raclain Castle. But what happened?”
“…!”
Wow.
To see Epinel making such a point to the strategist showed she indeed had significant influence.
By the way, the person who thwarted that ‘confident promise’ was me.
But revealing that fact wouldn’t do any good here, so I decided to stay quiet.
“This battle could be a golden opportunity for Aeshers army. As you said, targeting Raclain Castle now might seem unlikely. However…”
Epinel’s voice grew nostalgic as she spoke.
“Since you’re new here, you might not be aware, but Aeshers army started by gathering to discuss a cause, evading Serpina’s vigilant watch in the northern continent, and raising troops by planting our flag in Valhart Castle in the central region. None of it seemed likely at the time. But we did it. The siblings who share Yuri’s blood have always seized opportunities in crises to develop to where we are now.”
“…”
“And no one in our army considers retreating from this fortress and falling back to Valhart Castle as an option.”
Epinel then turned to us and raised her voice.
“Am I right? Raise your hand if you think retreating to Valhart Castle is the best option!”
As no one raised their hand-
I breathed a sigh of relief.
Her performance was a toast to the ‘question.’
“Is retreating and giving up the fight the best option?”
I quickly input Epinel’s question into my mind.
Regardless of their opinions, both had plausible reasons.
An ordinary person couldn’t side with either. Without the ability to foresee the future, no one could confidently say who was right.
But I was different.
Just by inputting the question, I could always get the correct answer.
Would Jinor’s opinion, boasting an intelligence of 99, hit the mark?
And the result was.
[It’s somewhat close.]
“…???”
Huh?
Somewhat close…?
Not the answer, but somewhat close?
I’ve seen “somewhat close” before. During the Brans army’s regular meeting, Airen’s opinion was “somewhat close.”
Then, this was strange.
If retreating is somewhat close, does that mean we should still withdraw the troops?
Why?
My mind became momentarily cluttered, but Epinel continued her speech undeterred.
No one raised their hand, which seemed to please her greatly, as her tone grew more forceful.
“Strategist. We must achieve victory in this battle. That’s the only way to advance into the central continent. Our siblings can surely accomplish this. I’ve been granted full authority by Yuri for the command of this fortress. My words are, in essence, the words of our monarch, Yuri. I have no intention of yielding now, so I hope you can cooperate, Strategist.”
Jinor, after a moment of contemplation, nodded and said,
“…Understood.”
No matter how much of a state strategist Jinor was, the absolute ruler and leader of this nation was Yuri.
And Yuri trusted Epinel immensely. Even if it seemed like she was being led around.
Anyway, that wasn’t important right now.
If Jinor’s opinion was “somewhat close,” what about Epinel’s opinion-
That is, “not retreating from the fortress and fighting against the Brans army”?
“Is there a way to naturally bring up that question?”
Just then, at the perfect timing, Epinel turned to me.
“Right, Swen. I’d like to see your ability with my own eyes this time.”
“My ability, you mean?”
“No use playing dumb now. I’m talking about the miracle you performed. You prayed to the heavens and made stones fall, didn’t you?”
Indeed, she had said she was waiting for me.
Was she asking me to use that ability?
“Epinel, about Swen’s ability…”
I stopped Airen with a gesture, meaning to leave this to me.
She understood immediately and kept quiet.
“I regret to inform you, Epinel, that communicating with the heavens is not something I can do at will. I merely read the energy of the heavens, understand the flow of the stars, and guide that flow favorably. I wish I could help, but the pathway is currently blocked.”
“Is that so? How about we perform a ritual like last time?”
“We could, but… there’s no guarantee the heavens will respond. It’s not a bad idea to confuse the Brans army’s eyes, but I’m afraid I can’t assure you of its practical efficacy.”
A ritual might serve as a bluff, especially against the Brans army, but if nothing happens, the problem would follow.
“Hmm… alright.”
Epinel seemed slightly disappointed but then shook her head and said,
“Well, even without relying on your miracle, our army can still win here against the Brans army. Right?”
Epinel’s timely question allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief.
“Good!”
Though unintended, I managed to extract the question I was curious about.
The second question. “Can Aeshers army win this battle against the Brans army?”
The outcome of this would determine my actions.
And again,
My intellect of 100, as casually as if introducing the evening’s dinner menu, simply spat out the result.
[It depends on the will of the heavens.]
“??????”
Once more, I faced an utterly unexpected outcome.
