Chapter 446 - Episode 429: Preparations
By the time Noein, having finished the meetings at the royal castle, returned to the Grand Duchy of Arqvist for the time being, the season had shifted to February.
Once the basic strategy for the entire Kingdom of Rhodeberg and the role the Grand Duchy of Arqvist would play in its execution were decided, it was time to hold discussions with the high-ranking vassals within the Grand Duchy. Upon his return, Noein gathered his high-ranking vassals at the mansion.
The gathered faces, in addition to Noein, Matilda, and Clara, included Yuri, Pence, Radley, Rick, Dant, Gustav, Bart, Mai, Anna, Edgar, Christy, and Kimberly. They were the military vassals and the heads of each department.
With this group of long-serving vassals, there was no worry that the confidential information regarding Betumia's re-invasion would be leaked to others. The summons had been made based on that judgment.
"...A rematch with Betumia, is it? The soldiers will surely face it with great enthusiasm."
After Yuri, who had been informed of the circumstances by Noein beforehand, finished explaining the overview of the situation, Dant spoke while crossing his arms.
"Moreover, this time we won't be receiving a surprise attack; we can lie in wait knowing in advance that the enemy is coming. It likely won't be as grueling a battle as last time."
"Yeah. We learned a painful lesson last time. This time, we'll crush them completely."
Radley nodded at Gustav's words. Rick laughed at those rough words.
"If the enemy attacks in roughly half a year from now, does that mean we'll start concrete preparations regarding supplies and equipment next month or the month after?"
Pence, who already grasped the specific details of future movements, asked this intentionally so that those gathered here could hear it.
"That's right. With a great war of this scale, I think a considerable amount of weaponry will be consumed. Spare weapons and armor, spare parts for crossbows and ballistas, explosive flame arrows, spare parts for golems... I want to increase production further to ensure we have plenty of leeway. I believe I'll leave the coordination of that to Christy."
"Please leave it to me. Both the direct-managed workshops and Daphne-san's magic tool workshop should be able to operate without issue."
Christy, having been addressed, answered immediately.
"Although the Grand Duchy of Arqvist is strictly in the position of reinforcements, it will be a large-scale deployment mobilizing a total of four to five hundred people, including the Claymores, the magic tool unit, the regular army guarding them, and the Reserve Corps' crossbow unit. From departure to return will likely take several months, and if post-war processing is included, it might take about half a year. Since the number of working men will decrease, I think it will be hard on everyone in internal affairs, but..."
"Please do not worry about that point. We will show you that we can keep the territory's operations running perfectly."
"Regarding agricultural affairs, we have already planned how to manage things during wartime, so please be at ease."
"It is also the role of the Women's Association to support society at times like this. We will handle the shortage of men."
As Noein turned his gaze, Anna, Edgar, and Mai answered.
"I am also accustomed to the work of the acting lord, so there will be no problem."
From beside Noein, Clara also spoke with a smile.
"The situation where manpower decreases in the Grand Duchy of Arqvist should be understood by the northeastern part of the Kingdom of Lancel, the northwestern part of the Kingdom of Rhodeberg, and the Kingdom of Reveland. I will handle the groundwork now, so there is no need to worry about diplomacy or trade."
Furthermore, Bart spoke before Noein could ask.
"...Thank you, everyone. You're reliable."
Noein looked around at the attendants of internal and external affairs and smiled.
They were not combat professionals, but they played an important role in maintaining the peace of this land's society during wartime. Having prior experience, they were accustomed to the transition to a wartime system. To Noein, their sovereign, every one of them was an irreplaceable talent.
"And one more thing. This time, the Grand Duchy of Arqvist army will not join the armies of the northwest or southwest, but will merge and fight with the army of the southeast."
When Yuri said this, everyone except those who had already heard the story, such as Pence, showed surprised expressions.
"That's... for what reason?"
As Rick asked, speaking for everyone's doubts, Yuri began a detailed explanation.
First was the balance of military power between east and west.
When striking the Republic of Betumia army, which would land at Ostrich and march to Lichthagen, from three directions, the forces of the kingdom's center, northwest, and northeast, including the royal lands, would receive the enemy head-on, while the forces of the kingdom's southwest would strike the enemy's flank from the west, and the forces of the southeast would strike from the east.
Since they planned to request reinforcements from the Kingdom of Lancel to the west for this battle, it was expected that the kingdom's southwest could secure more than sufficient military power.
On the other hand, the kingdom's southeast must strike the Republic of Betumia while simultaneously securing the border with the Empire of Pallas to the east, with whom they were still in conflict. While some forces would be diverted from the northeast, they wanted to increase the military power further if possible.
Therefore, the Grand Duchy of Arqvist, which could be equivalent to thousands of soldiers with only a few hundred people, would go to the kingdom's southeast.
If an army of thousands made a great migration to the kingdom's southwest, it would be conspicuous, but if a few hundred people moved divided into several more units, it would not be noticeable. There was no worry of showing large-scale movements in advance and being noticed by Betumia's spies.
The other reason was the Republic of Betumia army's way of fighting.
According to information brought by emissaries like Norman, in this re-invasion, the Republic of Betumia army would take clear countermeasures while targeting the Grand Duchy of Arqvist army. Because they had been tormented by the forces including the Claymores in the previous invasion, they would reflect those reflections in their tactics.
Specifically, they would bring in weapons called crossbow-cannons similar to the Kingdom of Rhodeberg's ballistas, use weapons similar to explosive flame arrows, and further assemble fire arrows and fire mages, directing them toward the western side of the Kingdom of Rhodeberg. The story was that they were poised to thoroughly strike the golems, which were weak to fire.
That was exactly why the Grand Duchy of Arqvist army would take the enemy by surprise and be deployed on the east side. It was to maximize the power of the Claymores, the strongest close-combat force.
"I see. That makes sense."
Rick muttered, again speaking for everyone's thoughts.
"It takes a little over a month from the Grand Duchy of Arqvist to the southeastern part of the Kingdom of Rhodeberg. Since we will move in divided units, the early units will depart in mid-May."
"The last unit will depart by the end of May, so we will be taking the men of the Reserve Corps before the wheat harvest season. In that regard, I'll be causing trouble for everyone in internal affairs... I'm sorry."
Following Yuri's detached explanation, Noein spoke with a faint, wry smile, and the internal affairs attendants, starting with Anna, answered again that he should not worry about it.
After that, Yuri continued to explain the fine details and finally turned toward Noein.
"Then, Excellency Arqvist. If you have any final words, please."
In response, Noein stood up. He looked around at the faces of everyone gathered, one by one, and wore a gentle smile.
"...Once this war ends, there will be no more threats around the Grand Duchy of Arqvist. I believe the Grand Duchy of Arqvist will obtain a long peace."
The Kingdom of Rhodeberg to the east, the Kingdom of Lancel to the west, and the Kingdom of Reveland to the north. The Grand Duchy of Arqvist had built friendships with every one of those countries. While eternal friendship between nations is impossible, looking at the current situation, they had likely obtained bonds that would not break for probably the next two generations. Even if some cracks appeared in those bonds, there was a relationship of trust sufficient to repair them.
Those neighboring countries had also obtained stable positions within the regional society.
The Kingdom of Lancel had built power that could be called the leader of the western side of the southern Adleon continent, and the Kingdom of Reveland was strengthening its power in the region where small countries lined up in the northern part of the continent, expanding alliance relationships with surrounding nations.
The Kingdom of Rhodeberg, while increasing its national power day by day, was deterring the enemy nation, the Empire of Pallas to the east, by deepening relations with the great power far to the east, the Green Dragon Empire. Although there were skirmishes and clashes once every few years with the Empire, the possibility of a great war occurring to the extent that the Grand Duchy of Arqvist would have to go as reinforcements was extremely low.
With this, the threat of the current government of the Republic of Betumia would be eliminated, and if the country with the changed administration and the Kingdom of Rhodeberg restored friendly diplomatic relations, the surroundings of the Grand Duchy of Arqvist, and even the surroundings of those surroundings, would obtain peace.
If that happened, there was probably almost no possibility that the Grand Duchy of Arqvist would be embroiled in a major war under Noein's reign. The Grand Duchy of Arqvist would make the tranquility of the next several decades certain.
For Noein, and for the first-generation vassals of the Grand Duchy of Arqvist here, this would probably be the final great war.
"So that the Grand Duchy of Arqvist, our utopia, continues to be a land of eternal happiness for us. Let us each fulfill the roles we must... If it's us, we can definitely do it."
Noein and the others had overcome any crisis. Desperate differences in military power, unexpected sudden battles—they had cut through everything and won everything.
Compared to those, this battle, where they knew the enemy was coming, where they were coming, and when they were coming, was not something that could even be called a crisis.
At Noein's words, some had fighting spirit flicker in their eyes as they looked toward the battle, some nodded with quiet smiles, and some tightened their expressions.
The time was about to arrive to fight with everything they had accumulated until now, in order to protect everything they had accumulated until now.