Chapter 272 - Episode 265: The Battle of the Military Personnel
By lining up wooden dolls made to resemble golems, Noein and the Western Army of the Lordberg Kingdom succeeded in temporarily halting the offensive of the Betumia Republic Army, and were proceeding with preparations for future battles, such as reorganizing units and refurbishing defensive positions.
It was not only the soldiers who were working. Various military personnel of different professions, who had joined the army to utilize their special skills and knowledge, were moving to support the Western Army.
"This person's arm is already gone. It's starting to rot from the wound, so it must be amputated... Please prepare the 'Angel's Honey' for anesthesia, and get ready to cauterize the cut surface to stop the bleeding."
"Y-yes!"
"Ah, soldier over there, are your hands free?"
"I'm fine. What is it?"
"We're running low on the magic potion used for severely injured patients with fevers. There should have been more stockpiled at the collection point. Please have someone who is free go and get some. If they tell the officer in charge of management that they need antipyretics, they should understand."
"Understood, leave it to me!"
At the very rear of the Western Army's camp, amidst the rows of medical tents where the wounded were treated, Liris, a doctor from the Arqvist territory who had joined the army, was working busily.
Liris was still in her teens, but for several years she had learned from the experienced doctor Selfers, worked daily at the clinic, and had even accompanied the army to the battlefield as a doctor when the Arqvist territorial forces intercepted Cadne's personal expedition. In recent years, she had also been providing guidance as a senior apprentice to the newly appointed apprentice doctors under Selfers.
Having accumulated much experience, she could now be called a veteran, and she treated the wounded while giving instructions to nurses, nuns, and assisting soldiers who were older than herself.
Her parents had been terribly worried about her heading to an unknown battlefield, but she could not bring herself to stay shut away in the territory while the people of the Arqvist territory—and the lord, Viscount Noein Arqvist, who had opened the path for her as a doctor—faced battle.
"Liris-sensei, are you sure you don't need to rest? You haven't slept since yesterday, have you?"
An elderly nun, who was tending to the wounded and assisting the doctor, asked Liris, whose face showed signs of fatigue.
"I'm sure it will stay busy for a while longer. I have to make sure I don't let fatigue build up as much as possible right now. It would be terrible if a doctor like you collapsed."
"...I understand. In that case, I will handle this person's arm amputation. Once that procedure is finished, I'll take a short rest."
Liris answered the nun with a tired smile.
.....
"Now everyone, please kneel, clasp your hands in front of your chests, and close your eyes. We will now begin today's prayer to God."
At the vanguard of the Western Army's camp. When the priest Hasel called out from amidst the ranks of crossbowmen, some of the devout soldiers followed his words, kneeling and closing their eyes.
The other soldiers, perhaps because they had witnessed many deaths over the past few days, also closed their eyes or lightly clasped their hands with solemn expressions.
"...Father of the Great Sky, and the one and only absolute God who is the Mother of the Great Earth. We are children granted life within the cycling world under Your protection and benevolence. You are the light that guides us. The righteous path exists only where You illuminate. Within Your hand—"
The soldiers surrounded Hasel as he recited the words of prayer, and some repeated the prayer softly under their breath.
In other parts of the camp, scenes of priests reciting prayers while surrounded by soldiers unfolded in several places; the soldiers took turns having prayer time, while the other units continued to stand by or maintain vigilance.
Many citizens of the Lordberg Kingdom, to varying degrees, held faith in the "one and only absolute God" of the Milleon Holy Religion. The priests went around preaching to the soldiers that the protection of that God was with them, and reciting the daily words of prayer had a certain effect on maintaining morale.
Furthermore, in this battle, General Noein had seen that it would be effective for the priests to tell the soldiers that "this battle, in which we face the invaders using the 'Angel's Honey' granted by God to the mission, is a holy war promised victory." Because of this, the role of the military priests became even more important.
"—With that, today's prayer is finished. May God's protection be upon you all."
When Hasel spoke, the surrounding soldiers released their prayer posture and returned to standby. Passing through them, Hasel went to offer prayers to the next unit of soldiers.
Even after this prayer time ended, Hasel's work continued. He had to offer prayers to the wounded in the rear, and if there were severely injured people with no hope of recovery, he had to stay by their side and recite holy verses so that their souls could reach the presence of God.
Priests from other noble territories were also serving in the army, but their total number was less than thirty, and amidst the shortage of manpower, everyone was reciting prayers incessantly. This battlefield was a harsh place for Hasel and the others as well.
Moreover, from the perspective of the Betumia Republic, the Milleon Holy Religion was a heresy, so if the Western Army were defeated, the lives of the clergy would be forfeit.
Still, Hasel believed in the victory of Viscount Noein Arqvist, who had accepted the Milleon Holy Religion into his territory and provided land and churches, and he continued to remain on this battlefield according to his own faith.
.....
"Hey you there, no time to be sitting around chatting! The preparation of the fodder for the horses this afternoon isn't finished yet, so go help over there!"
"S-sorry!"
"I'll do it right away!"
In the temporary stables placed at the rear of the Western Army's camp, Henrik, a retainer of the House of Viscount Arqvist, shouted at his subordinates who were sitting on the ground.
Henrik himself had accumulated a fair amount of fatigue, but since he was in the responsible position of a retainer, he moved nimbly without letting it be felt in the slightest.
In this battle, several hundred horses had been deployed to the Western Army. From the Arqvist territory, about twenty horses, including warhorses and pack horses, had been brought along.
Since horses are living creatures, they must be cared for by being given food and drinking water. The physical condition of each individual must also be managed, and if an individual was injured in mounted combat, they had to be treated, even using magic potions if necessary (considering only the cost, the life of one warhorse was heavier than the life of one peasant soldier).
However, for the twenty horses, there were only a few caretakers from the Arqvist territory serving in the army, with Henrik at their head. Since there were only the minimum necessary personnel, the workload per person naturally increased.
"Henrik-san, it looks like the horses' drinking water is starting to run low... It seems the supplies for the horses are delayed overall, and the water probably won't last until the night after tomorrow."
While making rounds to check on the horses, Henrik was called out to by a stable hand from another territory, and he let out a wry smile.
Because he was a retainer serving the General of the Western Army, Henrik had somehow been placed in a position like the representative of the Western Army's military stable hands, and the number of consultations thrown at him by stable hands from other territories was increasing.
"I see, that's bad... I'll tell my Chief Retainer and have him assign soldiers to the water supply operation."
"Sorry about that, I'm counting on you."
Waving his hand to tell him not to worry, Henrik walked toward the main camp tent where Chief Retainer Yuri was. Regarding supplies, he truly couldn't do anything on his own. If he told Yuri, who handled the practical affairs as General Noein's aide, such field problems should be resolved quickly.
After passing through the rows of temporary stables where stable hands from other territories were caring for their respective horses, Henrik reached the main camp—only to have his path blocked by two soldiers who raised their spears at the entrance of the main camp, which was enclosed by a simple fence, and was questioned.
"Halt. This is the main camp where His Excellency General Noein Arqvist resides. Some random stable hand is not permitted to enter and leave as they please."
"I'm a retainer of that Excellency Arqvist, so could you let me in? I have business with Lord Yuri, the Chief Retainer of the Arqvist house."
When Henrik asked, the two young soldiers looked at each other with slightly troubled expressions, and the soldier who had questioned him earlier spoke again.
"...Do you possess something that can prove that status?"
"No, I came straight from the stables, so I have nothing."
The retainers of the Arqvist house were given copper plates inscribed with the main house's family crest as proof of their status. However, to prevent losing or damaging it during work, Henrik had hidden it under the double bottom of his luggage bag along with other valuables.
"Then, I cannot let you through."
Facing the soldier who spoke with a stubborn expression, Henrik thought that it couldn't be helped. Right now, he was wearing clothes stained with earth and mud, and the smell of beasts was soaked into his body. No matter how you looked at it, he was nothing more than a young stable hand.
He could go back to retrieve the copper plate, but he thought it would be faster if there was someone he knew inside... and when he peeked into the main camp, he saw Pence, the Deputy Chief Retainer and Guard Captain, standing with several subordinates.
"Pence-san—"
He hadn't raised his voice that loudly, but Pence noticed Henrik. He didn't seem to be particularly busy, and walked toward the entrance of the main camp as he was.
"Hey, that guy is a retainer of Excellency Arqvist, so there's no problem. Let him in."
"...My apologies. Please, go ahead."
Told by Pence, who was the person responsible for the security of the main camp, the young soldier apologized to Henrik while correcting his tone and lowered his guard.
Having successfully entered the main camp, Henrik spoke to Pence with a friendly smile.
"Pence-san, you saved me. I'm sorry for calling out to you suddenly during your work."
"It's fine. To be honest, main camp security when the battle situation is calm is mostly boring... By the way, what's up? For you to go out of your way to come all the way here."
"Actually, I want to meet the Chief Retainer. It seems the supply of drinking water for the horses is lagging, and the water for the Western Army's horses as a whole is likely to run short. We have to deal with it while we still can."
Well water and beer for human hydration (since drinking raw water that hasn't been boiled carries the risk of falling ill, very thin beer is often used as a substitute for water) are transported from surrounding cities and villages, but drinking water for horses is supposed to be drawn from a river a few hours' journey to the rear.
If the water were to run out by the day after tomorrow, Henrik thought he wanted the supply team to be prepared by today if possible.
"I see, understood. The Chief Retainer should be in the headquarters tent with Lord Noein. I'll go call him for you."
"That helps... I'm honestly too scared to go into the headquarters myself."
"Hahaha, I imagine so."
As Henrik let out a wry smile, Pence also gave a slight smile and walked toward the largest tent in the main camp.