Chapter 156

Aegir POV

After our victory at the Nord Plains, there is no longer any army in the area who can stand up against us . It should be just like an uninhabited wastelandor so we thought .

This was unexpected .

It doesnt delay us much but this isnt good .

Leopolt and Myla have a sour look on their faces .

Irijina and the 300 troops assigned to her come back to us from the side . They were dispatched to a farm village near the road to make them submit to us .

The rising black smoke and the womans sullen look tells me something happened though .

That village was the same as well?

I told them I wouldnt get violent as long as they surrenderedbut all the villagers pointed swords as me so I had no choice but to burn everything down .

I cant blame Irijina for doing so . If the villagers ignored her advice to surrender and even wielded weapons against her, then theyre nothing but enemy soldiers . Its natural for them to be exterminated, but I hope very few women and children got caught up in the mess .

All the villages on the way from Port Randel were like this . Their forces were nothing special but this doesnt really feel good

Its exactly as Myla says . We burned each and every town and village we encountered on the way to the capital . We didnt plunder or loot the places, but the citizens took up their arms against us . It wasnt just towns with a few thousand people, but even the small villages with a few dozen people formed their own army of volunteer soldiers and attacked us at night or ambushed us . Of course, theres no way the most amateur of amateurs could slow us down with their surprise attacks and got routed instead .

Thinking about ruling over them in the future with so much hostility towards us really makes my head hurt .

Theres no way we can rule over those guys .

I did unusually get a woman over and had her suck on me, but apparently it was all a ruse and she bit down as hard as she could . Fortunately, she was a pretty nice woman and my dick was hard enough that her teeth didnt go all the way through, only bringing me more stimulation and causing me to ejaculate all over her . She went wild, screaming Ill kill you, enemy of my husband while covered in my semen . I resignedly handed her a few gold coins and let her go, but she threw it back at me .

I wonder why they hate us this much .

Magrado was originally ruled by the state . Their animosity towards Goldonia was probably stirred up even before that earlier conflictThey might also consider the dead soldiers they dispatched to Treia as foul play on our part .

This is annoying, but it doesnt change what we have to do bring down the capital and crush Magrado . We can leave the problem of how to deal with these citizens to the person who will rule this area .

Myla is a pure soldier so she isnt familiar with politics . But what she said is absolutely correct . Rather than worry unnecessarily, first take down the capital .

Fortunately, the acquisition of supplies will be easy .

Leopolt speaks with a cold tone .

Its well known that we need to pay to obtain things like food if the villages were to surrender and come under our control, but we can take everything for free if they resist .

Enemy attack in the rear! It looks like theyre militia .

Aiming for the transport unit, are theyhow foolish .

Its the correct move to target the transport unit which is lightly guarded, but because my army has more cavalry, they can respond quicker to attacks . The cavalry will definitely gallop to the area faster than the villagers can accomplish their mission on foot .

There isnt a particular need to deal with them . 500 bow cavalry are over there and can easily wipe them out .

I know . Lets pay them no mind and continue on .

Haah, I wanted to have a taste of some Magrado women .

We continue to march on while repelling the resistance of the farmers and remnants of the defeated Magrado army until we receive notice from Erich that he encountered the other half of the enemy army and defeated them with the first division corps .

Apparently, in order to deal with the enemys heavy infantry tactics, he lured them to muddy areas soaked with the heavy rain and used siege weapons like us to defeat them . They engaged with the enemy several more times after that and used the momentum from their victory over the heavy infantry to push the enemy army around until finally cornering them into a certain city and wiping them out .

As expected of someone of his caliber .

I havent had many chances to fight alongside Erich recently, but I know hes an excellent commander and general . I wonder what would happen if I pit Leopolt against him .

Is there something you need?

No, its nothing .

In any case, we shouldnt encounter anything else on the way to the capital besides those trivial attacks .

It seems the second division corps successfully completed their landing operation but are having trouble taking down the city where the vassal lord holed himself and his army in . Considering the size of the city, the enemy shouldnt have more than 5000 forces .

I really want to find out how on earth he could struggle against a motley crew of 5000 .

Erich told me just to treat them as if they dont exist .

It looks like well reach the capital first . Lets set up camp before they get here .

We brought our engineers this time around too . Theyve been doing nothing but building even during peaceful times so there is no group better in constructing camps than them .

We let about 5000 soldiers escape while the first division corps didnt really let any run away so there should be about 10,000 soldiers left in the capital in total . Looking at it now though, they might proactively use the citizens in their defensive battle .

Magrados capital, Odoros, has a population of 20,000 making it a little hard for us to overpower them with brute force even if we dont include the young children and elderly in their military force . With that said though, we can still crush them if they sortie on their own .

I guess its better to surround them and wait .

Fortunately, we were able to establish our supply route over the river thanks to the Federation . We wont have a problem even in an extended siege .

I would rather finish up quick and return homewell, Im sure it wont take too long .

I feel it in my gut .

Well, Im going back to the carriage for a bit .

Please watch the volume of your voices . The soldiers are forbidden to rape after all .

It irks me when I get told by Leopolt with such a straight face .

Ahem, w-well, Im going to take a little break too

Myla follows me .

Do you wanna do it in your armor?

I-Im not that improper!

Then how about pleading me to stop while riding on top?

Im not a dirty women like that!

I think Leopolt just sighed behind me .

Third Person/Malt POV

At the same time, Malt Kingdom: Biado .

All units sortie!! Our destination is the city of Rafen in Hardletts territory! Well attack as quick as wildfire spreads and as furious as a strong gale!!

Its normally the other way around . What a fool .

Pablo yells loudly to motivate his unmoved soldiers .

On the other hand, Hilario is dressed in formal attire and cursing him on the side .

Shut up! Why are you here in the first place? Im the one who handles everything military .

Invading is a national issue, and since we are ruling over the kingdom together, we cant have one of us stay back . You dont need to worry, I wont interfere . Ill just be watching from the back .

Then you didnt have to come

Hilario is completely ignorant about military affairs .

Normally when Pablo is absent from the palace, he would think about making progress with winning over the vassal lords .

But what would happen if Pablo manages to lead soldiers and carve out a large portion of territory for himself?

The trust of the vassal lords and nobles would instantly upsurge and any petty tricks of his would be blown away . In order to avoid that, Hilario needed to sortie himself to attain his own merits as well .

Of course, he wouldnt be entering any dangerous battlefields and only watching the outcome from the rear . On the off chance their plan fails, he would escape immediately and he can pass responsibility to Pablo .

I dont think Pablo can do much without Brutus, but I heard Lord Hardlett is away because of the war between Goldonia and Magrado . That guy might be incompetent but his army of 10,000 isnt an illusion .

Did you say something, brother!?

No, nothing . More importantly, what do you think about sortieing immediately? The soldiers dont look like they want to listen to your boring speech . Also, if you take too long, theres a chance Lord Hardleet will come home .

Hmph, the messenger from Magrado said that the battle was progressing in their favor . He wont be back for the time being! Plus, Im personally leading the invasion operation this time and things are progressing in secret . By the time he realizes whats going on, well have Rafen surrounded!

That would be nice if it were true .

The signal to invade is given and the army composed of Malt Kingdom soldiers and temporarily conscripted soldiers slowly depart from Biado .

Third Person/Tristan POV

Half a day later

Urgent news from the spy . The 10,000 soldiers of the Malt Kingdom has finally departed . Theres no doubt about it, they are heading north towards our territory!

AaahI thought so .

Tristan heaves a sigh long enough to make the messenger who delivered the report uneasy . He already knew about their gathering of forces way in advance and has already prepared countermeasures . Even so, the endless echo of his loud sigh makes him seem like he really dreads actually going into battle .

Is the scout still following them? How long until they reach the border?

The scout is staying hidden while tailing the Regent . Their invasion is quite slow so itll take about 10 days for them to reach the border .

Tristans only savior is the web of secret scouting and information network established by Leopolt . The enemys movements are being read perfectly .

Haahthen well proceed as planned and evacuate the residents near the border . Naturally, please transport the food supplies too .

The messenger is already on the way! Things are progressing smoothly .

Haah, theres nothing we can do now that its come to this . I guess Ill just lead the soldiersand set up in Zan Dora . We cant completely prevent them stepping into our territory, but Lord Hardlett might get upset if that city falls .

Then lets have you, the defense commander, delivered there as quick as

I cant ride a horse . Please let me get on the fastest carriage you have .

The messenger stares blankly at Tristan . The top supervisor of the defense of the territory or really any soldier not being able to ride a horse is like a merchant who cant do math .

Im just a freeloader, not a soldier . Its just if I dont do it, I wont get any money to buy books and Ill be sent to the minesaaah, just thinking about it gets me upset .

Tristan packs his favorite books in a bag and when he grudgingly stands up, the door opens .

Tristan! Is it true the enemy is coming!?

Nonna comes rushing in with her large breasts swinging about . To prevent herself from falling while pregnant, she has several maids supporting her body . Having thoroughly experienced the womans selfish whims, Tristans expression becomes a little bit gloomier .

Unfortunately, it seems so . I will be going to intercept them now .

The way he said it made it seem like he was just going out shopping, prompting Nonna to ask uneasily .

Will things be okay!? Aegir-sama is not here, you know!?

With her beloved husband here, she would have absolute trust that things will be fine and even have the luxury to relax, whereas by no means can she feel comfortable with this seemingly carefree man in front of her .

Haah, well things will probably be fine? Its more or less within my expectations after all .

Probably? More or less? Please get a hold of yourself! The lives of all of us here and the children in our bellies are on the line! If for some reason you fail and Im not able to give birth to this child, Ill resent you for my entire life! Even if I die, Ill become a ghost and follow you until you perish!!

I get it . Ill do my best .

Haah~ Tristan lets out the biggest sigh of the day and heads to the south .

Aegir POV

One Week Later, Magrado Capital: Odoros

Fire!

Each commander gives the signal and catapults launch boulders and pots of oil altogether . The projectiles fly in an arc over the high walls of the city of Odoros and lands in the city . Black smoke accompanies the loud crashing sounds .

We cant lose to them . Fire!

Following right after us, Erichs first division corps similarly begins launching their attack .

Right now, Erich and I are together in the same place . Our objective is the same so theres no reason to split up into two headquarters . Once reunited, our total number of forces is over 70,000 so it would be nice if the enemy could come out of their city .

Its been a while since I saw your face on the battlefield .

Yeah . By the way, I heard you earned a huge victory the other day .

Haha, youre the impressive one . Wiping out the enemy in one battle on the plains . I just cornered them after fighting them multiple times .

Erich sighs after we compare accomplishments .

What is Marquess Hoover doing with the second division corps . He was put in charge of the north, which was supposed to put up the least resistance, but this is the result . The 30,000 soldiers are not being put to use at all . Even if hes just giving face to His Majesty, this is too much .

When the King had to decide the three people to become the army commanders, he couldnt avoid appointing Hoover the role despite it being just a reserve role and despite Hoover being influenced by the conservative faction of the army nobles even now . The King is also departing with the Kingdoms army so he probably wanted to avoid any unnecessary drama if possible .

Even so, Erich couldnt imagine him being this useless after such long years of service in the military . If those 30,000 were here right now, it would be possible to consider brute forcing our way in .

Theres no use grieving over the ineptitude of an old man . Once the battle is finished, Ill ask him to retire to a place with nice weather .

Youre quite toxic arent you .

A smile creeps on Erichs face .

Thats right, wars should be done while smiling .

Anywayswhere on earth did you get those things there?

Theyre imitation products created using an item from the Federation as reference . They breakdown right away so its hard to count on them though .

Eight cannons fire away in front of Erich .

The iron balls shot out from the barrel crash into the stone walls sending the archers stationed on top flying and creating large fissures in the surface .

Obviously, I cant let him know the source of those products is from Claudia who attained them through some illegal channels .

Couldnt you demolish the entire wall if you shoot those?

It isnt that simpleaah, it seems another one just broke .

The cannon is powerful but it doesnt have enough precision to consistently strike the same place multiple times and its durability is too low to deal a decisive blow to a proper wall like this . Of course it would be a different story if we had way more cannons .

It takes too much effort and money .

I see . Then it might be better if you used catapults .

It would be the best case if we could improve the cannons, but the craftsmen in my territory dont have the skill to reproduce the product made in the Federation .

Doesnt it look like the battle is just about settled though?

There are close to 100 catapults flinging objects into the city and over 10,000 archers continuously firing flaming arrows including the bow cavalry . Both ally and enemy alike should understand that the end is approaching . Plus, I heard the enemy isnt getting any reinforcements .

Youre right . Its just a matter of time . But this would mean the city would be like hell right now . The citizens will surely hate us quite a bit .

Its a little late to care about that now .

Erich must have encountered rebelling citizens along his marching route . Hes looking at me with a bitter look on his face .

In any case, we should bring the city down quickly . Kenneth was probably the one who called the Federations fleet here . If things continue at this rate, hell act all self-important .

After the Federations fleet destroyed Magrados navy, they moored at Goldonias port and the commander even garrisoned his troops there . It certainly looks like they want to cut in and see the end of the war . They might take advantage of us if we handle things poorly and struggle in our fight .

Just when orders were about to be given to increase the intensity of the attacks, the city gates suddenly open .

The gates opened?Are they going to charge at us?

The nearby soldiers are making a fuss about it .

However, Erich and I wait before making a decision .

Its natural to believe that opening the gates in this situation signifies their surrender .

A single messenger runs forward and calls out in a loud voice .

If you surrender, I swear there will be no further attacks on you . Abandon your weapons and line upgugyah !!

But the answer to the messenger comes in the form of a rain of arrows, as well as a group of heavy cavalry charging out from the gate . There are around 2000 enemies rushing at us, aimed towards the headquarters where Erich and I are situated .

Assaulting us? No way, have they gone madyou cant go, got it?

Muu

I unconsciously reach for my spear but Erich stops me .

Its true we have dispersed our forces, but theres no way 2000 cavalry could pass through the headquarters, the most heavily guarded area, with about 40,000 soldiers packed together .

They are instantly met with a shower of giant bolts and arrows, some of it coming from even the unique repeating bow, causing over half the cavalry to fall faster than they came rushing out .

Have they gone insane?Well, theyve been getting their ass handed to them, of course theyll get desperate .

The soldiers deployed on all fronts are sneering at how they dont even need to move to defend the headquarters .

Not even half the enemy remains as they continue to close the distance . It was quite the reckless charge .

Yet they dont stop .

Even as they get shot by bowguns and get sent flying by the giant arrows, the enemy maintains their ranks and not a single one of them runs away . They push their horses closer and closer towards us until the moment they get skewered .

If their horse gets shot down, they run on foot and if the rider is shot down, their horse continues running forward . The soldiers in the headquarters is gradually losing their composure too .

What are you doing!? Concentrate all your arrows on them!

Order the cavalry to attack them from the flank!

As the enemy charges at us, cavalry and spear units approach from the side and finish off a couple of the enemy cavalry . However, it didnt matter how many were killed by the flank attack . The enemy focuses only on advancing forward, regardless of how many casualties they suffer .

Anti-cavalry defensive formation! Get your spears up!

At last, the soldiers under direct command of the headquarters get into defensive positions . The enemy broke through the unit performing the siege attacks .

Well, its more like they forcibly pushed their way past them, but their forces have been reduced to a mere 500 while our allies have practically taken no damage .

But there are still 10,000 soldiers directly under the command of the headquarters, so how are they going to get past them?

Which side are you supporting?

A defensive formation with no gaps is set up in front of the enemy, which can be taken out in two ways by cavalry destroying the formation from long range like the bow cavalry, or slowing down and brushing away the spears but if they choose the latter option, our allies would catch up, surround them from behind and wipe them out in an instant .

It was then that the enemy took another option .

No way! Theyre going to charge in anyways!?Not good, the trailing units are going to break through!

The heavy cavalry continue charging forward into the defensive formation, using the momentum and weight of their heavy equipment to crush the spear units and opening the path for the cavalry following behind them . Naturally, there was a terrifying collision between the enemy and the spears and the enemy suffered great casualties, dropping their unit count to a few dozen in number .

Nevertheless, they press on .

They run past the archers who intended to support the spear unit and hurriedly rush straight at us, ignoring the other soldiers in the headquarters . The enemy units continue to get taken out one after the other, becoming 50, then 30, then 20 .

Even so, they only look to push forward .

The man leading the pack bellows loudly .

My name is Radgalf! Hardlett, if you are a true brave general, then you will come out and fight me!

It seems he has designated me by name .

He swings his spear around to remove the soldiers blocking his path and cuts down the fence so his horse can advance . His horse eventually gets stabbed by spears and hes forced to dismount but the fallen man recovers quickly and continues to run at me while waving his spear . His mud-covered appearance and desperate actions dont look unsightly in the least to me .

Aegir, you better not be thinking of doing something stupid . We can deal with this guy just by shooting him down .

Its been a while since hes called me Aegir .

I guess hes lost a certain amount of composure too .

The Supreme Commander should stay back . Ill stay here .

I raise my spear to let that Radgalf fellow know where I am .

But Im not going where he is . Ill challenge him only if he can make his way past the allies in front of me .

So youre over there!!

As Radgalf brandishes his spear, the spear unit thrusts their weapons at him while the bowgun unit fires volley after volley, but he remains undefeated .

His last subordinate rushes to his a