Volume 1 Chapter 65 Genderbend Female Knight, Marching West
"Look, it's the land of Loriengita."
The Ashreach army, after taking the land of Loriengita in the Tyria Peninsula through some hard talks and soft deals, finally stepped onto the Empire of Loriengita's mainland, crossing the mountains.
"If we go back far enough, Ariga—a colony of the old Maro Empire—belongs to Tyria, so it belongs to Ashreach too, right?"
"Talking about stuff from almost a thousand years ago..."
Prince Cesare frowned at Eleonora's crazy laugh. If that was true, then the eastern Tzvinza Empire, meaning the eastern Maro Empire, would also belong to Ashreach.
"Stop joking. First, we must take the nearby towns and villages."
"You mean... the bay city, Seryuima?"
"Yes, Your Highness. It's a port we can use. If we bring supplies from home, crossing the Suapuru Mountains every time wastes time and lives."
"Marshal Eleonora, sorry, but can we win with this army?"
Baron Vidilva asked, and Eleonora just shrugged.
"I'm a merchant at heart. There are many ways."
"What do you mean?"
"Removing taxes, no inspections when sailing in Ashreach waters."
"Isn't that too much?"
"We'll set a limit—ten years. If they profit, they won't care who rules them."
The reason was simple: to keep 3,000 soldiers fed and armed, they needed fast supply lines. They'd take Seryuima and use it as a base to take nearby Eperinmo and Yonri.
"If we take Yonri, it's a straight line to Jodin. We can block Parisess."
"What about the Suno people, Marshal?"
"Your Highness, they're probably busy plundering and raping. Better to think they're stuck at the borders of the three regions."
"Will they fight alone?"
"No. Parisess will be bait. The fight will start even if we do nothing; a delay is good balance."
She wrote "Parisess" on the ground and circled it. Around it, she wrote "Suno" three times.
"Loriengita's general is like a commoner trying to face Fortress Parisess."
"Not much of a general, then?"
Eleonora thought about Orlando's words.
"If it were me, I'd attack the field."
"Nine thousand soldiers. If Loriengita goes over ten thousand, damage would be big."
"No, they'll be twice that, then whittled down to eight thousand, then five thousand... crushed in piecemeal battles before they can regroup."
She traced sharp lines in the dirt, mocking the battlefield.
"Loriengita's troops run wild, without order. Easy to crush if we hit fast."
Excited, Eleonora drew battle lines and mocked the battlefield, then looked up.
"Loriengita will test their luck—can they fight a smaller army first? Is there another army nearby? Can they win while saving troops? Will the Suno people retreat honestly? Low dice rolls mean luck."
Baron Vidilva cleared his throat. "What's your verdict, Marshal?"
"Loriengita did well so far, but now they're falling. When that happens, they will fail no matter what. There's a saying: war has mysterious wins and mysterious losses."
Loriengita soldiers thought it was easy, but the Suno people, just rampaging without proper fight and terrifying now, meant morale was dropping.
If the war was after beating Ashreach, it'd be different. "Protect your homeland!" is said only by a strong leader or when common people share the idea of nation.
"The worry is heroes who can lift morale—the Twelve Sacred Blades."
"Four are dead. Are you sure it's enough?"
"Because four are dead. No pride now. I want them to fight the Suno people a little, lower their numbers, maybe have the Suno surround us halfway so we finish the trap from behind."
"Good, it looks winnable."
Eleonora smiled cruelly.
"War is uncertain. Winning or losing depends on how hard everyone tries and which way the scale tips."
* * *
After that, the balance was almost tipped to Loriengita.
But fighting 5,000 Suno soldiers and losing 20% was the worst part. Even the Twelve Sacred Blades had losses.
They withdrew and were safe for now, but the 4,000 soldiers were split and would take time to reunite.
For now, Loriengita reached a shaky peace.
It's been 4 months since third prince Louis died. The war, which should've been quick, dragged inside the empire, eating money, resources, and people.
In a dimly lit war tent, Lord Guillaume stood among council members of empire, maps and reports scattered across the table.
"Can we take back the three lost regions?"
"No... Lord Guillaume. Suno is gathering forces. If we attack somewhere, Parisess will be attacked back."
"What about the east?"
"Ashreach took Rorch and Avoisa. They're near Seryuima."
"Then should we split our troops?"
"Fool. Even now, focusing forces, we barely have the numbers. You want to scatter strength?"
The Loriengita council argued fiercely. Everyone knew the situation was bad but no one found a way out.
"I wish I could beat them all..."
"You said Huskarls fight fiercely but leave corpses on the field... Soldiers are scared."
Around Netoriaus, soldier corpses rotted, left to animals, flies, and maggots.
Holy Cross followers were angry. Corpses can't enter Heaven without proper burial and purification.
"...Then, we will return to Parisess."
"Lord Guillaume, but..."
"Suno got hit hard and left the three regions for now. Ashreach will use them for peace talks."
"Peace?! No revenge for Your Highness?!"
"Look at reality... two-front war numbers dropped. Morale is low. Time to act. Revenge comes after power returns."
"Will the Emperor agree?"
"Lord Lilac and Count Lysia died. Half the Twelve Sacred Blades are gone. No offense possible."
Even skilled spear fighters died in fierce fights, but the war continues.
Guillaume felt trapped in a muddy swamp of bad luck.
"SO, we retreat. Tell Lord Bertrand to guard the rear. Lord Georges distracts Ashreach."
Guillaume's army retreated safely to Parisess without fighting the Ashreach vanguard.
But they lost Netoriaus, Kenranf, Nyubtarl. Seryuima fell without bloodshed, leading to fast Ashreach capture of Eperinmo and Yonri.
If Parisess is the head, the regions are limbs. Limbs fall one by one.
The Empire of Loriengita, losing power, was like a squid eaten slowly along the coast.
When Jodin fell, Emperor Raimont knew losing Parisess was near and prepared himself.
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