561

Episode 561 I always trust your judgment. (1)

Even while waging war against the Kingdom of Grimwell, Count Biffenveld continued to monitor the movements of the Allied Forces.

"The royal palace of my country has been occupied."

Count Biffenveld nodded at the news the messenger brought.

The sea was as expected. It was occupied faster than expected, though.

He asked the adjutant next to him.

"You said the consciousness was completely over?"

"Yes."

Count Biffenveldt also could not understand what Gator was doing. Nevertheless, he was loyal to the Duke of Leinster and had no choice but to follow Gator's stubbornness.

Even though the war continued to drag on unfavorably because of that.

I've been spending too much time here because of that damn relic or something. I need to get moving.

Count Biffenveldt went straight to Gatros to ask what to do next.

Gatros greeted him and asked.

"Oh, Count Biffenveldt. What will we do now?"

"… … ."

Up until now, I had been strategizing and moving to achieve the purpose of the Salvation Church. But, instead, Gatros was asking himself.

Count Biffenveldt, who had gathered his thoughts, opened his mouth.

"Is there anything else urgent that you need to do?"

"Now that we have obtained the holy relic, we must find our king."

"How can I find it?"

"We don't know that either. We haven't found a guide in the Kingdom of Rutania."

"… … ."

"But don't worry too much. Now that the relics are in our hands, we will eventually find the king. All we have to do is wait for that day."

"If I wait… … will it work?"

"Yes, whether we seek it or the king seeks us, it will come true someday. That is the prophecy and the promise."

Count Biffenveldt, sensing a contradiction in those words, hesitated for a moment and then asked.

"The Kingdom of Grimwell and the Kingdom of Rutania had the holy relics. They had the holy relics for a long time, but they could not meet Him. Is it really something that we can just wait for?"

Then Gatros smiled kindly.

Anyone else would have had their head smashed in for such an impudent question, but Bifenbelt was the one who was qualified to ask.

"Haha, firstly because the time wasn't right, and secondly because they weren't qualified."

"When and… …qualifications?"

"Yes, they are not believers of our religion. What qualifications do they have when they cannot even properly awaken the light of the holy relics?"

"… … ."

"And the king has appeared in this age, so now it remains only for him to meet us."

"… … ."

"I know it's hard to understand. Leave the church affairs to me and you just worry about the war."

"Then… … can we focus on the war now?"

"Yes, that's right. We need to reduce those reckless Allied forces as much as possible until we find the king. Now do as you wish."

"Okay, I'll get ready now."

Count Biffenveldt took a deep breath.

Up until now, it was obvious that the war was headed in a bad direction, but we had no choice but to lead the war in that direction.

But seeing Gatros say that, it seemed like there was no need to do this incomprehensible thing anymore.

Even if the Salvation Church had presented another purpose, they could not have wasted any more time on that matter. After all, the Allied Forces were advancing here.

Count Biffenveldt immediately summoned his staff.

"What's the situation?"

"The remaining lords of Grimwell are currently camped quite a distance away and waiting."

"Why don't they move?"

"They are probably waiting for the Allied Forces."

"Yeah, I guess so."

Since they only moved towards the royal palace, there were still quite a few local lords in Grimwell. When they gathered, they became a considerable force.

They could have stormed the capital at any moment, but they didn't move. They had received word from Giselle that they should not move hastily.

They were also reluctant to fight the Artrode army directly since the royal army was pushed back in an instant.

Count Biffenveldt, who had been staring at the map for a long time, said:

"The Allied Forces will be here soon. We will prepare and move before then."

"What should I do?"

"Is the Duke of Fenris really that fast?"

"Yes, it is rumored to be the best on the continent."

"The best on the continent… … That's an exaggerated nickname."

Count Biffenbelt continued, his lips twisting.

"Except for the Rutanian army, the enemies are nothing more than a rabble. From now on, we must completely destroy the enemy's spirit."

Count Biffenveldt informed his staff of a new operation.

Duke Fenris was now one of the most accomplished strategists on the continent, so much so that he had earned the nickname of the Invincible Monarch.

Mobile warfare, which emphasizes speed, was the Duke of Fenris's forte.

Count Biffenveldt intended to exploit that confidence.

"There is no need to fight against the enemy's large army. Even if we win, we will inevitably suffer great losses."

He was with the Salvation Church, but his intentions were somewhat different from theirs. The object of his loyalty was not the Salvation Church, but the Duke of Leinster, who had ascended to the throne.

"This is an army for His Majesty. We cannot waste it unnecessarily."

In order to conquer the continent, it was necessary to preserve as many troops as possible.

"I guess I should start using my 'hidden sword'. This war will probably be the last."

He had been preparing for a long time. That was why the Salvation Church was able to lead numerous rebels to fight against the continent.

Now it's time to risk it all and really fight the Allies.

Count Biffenbelt gave off a cold look.

"Duke Fenris, let's see how fast you are."

* * *

The Allied Forces marched as one into the Kingdom of Grimwell, their confidence skyrocketing.

After the Rutanian army joined, the chaotic command structure was reorganized and the army continued to advance.

Arriving at the Kingdom of Grimwell, Giselle frowned as she looked around the area.

"It looks like they scraped everything together because they knew the supply would be cut off."

The place where the Artrode army passed through became hell. They committed massacres wherever they went and confiscated all the resources.

It was possible, since I had no intention of occupying and ruling the Kingdom of Grimwell right away.

There were corpses of those who died of starvation everywhere. Thanks to Giselle, they had overcome the plague, but they could not endure the military's exploitation.

The expressions of the Allied commanders also became heavy.

"This is too much."

"They are truly devilish."

"I should have caught him and killed him a long time ago."

Most nobles live by squeezing the people of their domain, but not to this extent.

If we do this, it is no different from saying we want to die together.

Giselle clicked her tongue and said to Claude.

"Distribute food to the survivors."

"All right."

The remaining lords of the Kingdom of Grimwell were in no position to take them in. They too were short on resources due to the constant war.

While doing relief work, Giselle constantly called Claude to check on the situation. She had to be very alert once she entered Grimwell territory.

"The remaining lords of Grimwell?"

"They have created a separate base and are waiting for us."

As it was a powerful nation, the military power of the lords was also quite strong. That was why they were able to almost drive out the rebels who joined hands with the Salvation Church.

But now the situation was not good enough to be resolved by the power of the lords alone.

"Don't wait, tell them to come this way. We're on our way too."

There was no benefit to them fighting the Artro forces first. It would have been much better for them to join us and move together.

If that happens, the Allied Forces' power will increase further. They will be able to push back the Artro forces with overwhelming power.

But the Artrode Army moved faster than them. New news reached the advancing Allied Forces.

"The Artrode Army has moved! They have divided their forces and spread out in about ten directions. Each unit is estimated to have between 20,000 and 30,000 soldiers!"

"The Lords of Grimwell who had been waiting were taken by surprise and annihilated in an instant!"

"We don't know their exact destination or intentions! They're all moving at incredible speeds! Our scouts are currently tracking them!"

Jiselle frowned at the continuous reports, and the Allied leaders fell into confusion.

"No, what is this all of a sudden?"

"They are dividing their forces in the face of this great army! Aren't they crazy?"

"They must be running away! Great! Let's catch them and kill them one by one!"

The Allied commanders shouted in excitement, but Giselle did not think so simply.

'Count Biffenbelt, what are you thinking?'

After staring at the map for a while, Jiselle soon realized something.

'The supply route... has become too long.'

The reason the Allied Forces were able to maintain a large army even in this war was because of the support from kingdoms that still had the resources, especially the highly productive Rutania.

Most of the surrounding kingdoms were in Allied hands, so there was no threat to their supply lines.

Still, for safety's sake, we've created three supply routes, and the recently conquered Kingdom of Artrode will also serve as a new supply route.

But as the Allied Forces advanced, the supply routes had to become longer.

Jiselle also thought about that part.

'There's no way Count Bifenbelt would miss this weakness. Could this be what he was aiming for?'

The supply shortage is also increasing on the other side. So, they don't have many strategies to choose from.

Jiselle closed her eyes and thought about what she would do in this situation.

'We want to end this in one fight, but… … .'

Both the Allied Forces and the Artroad Forces are confident in each other's main forces.

As an Artroad Army, it would be better to decide the outcome in one go rather than suffer from insufficient supplies.

But the enemy did not make that choice. They had already divided their forces and started fighting.

Count Biffenveldt enjoys similar tactics to himself. We must take that into account.

'If I were in this situation… … .'

Jiselle always moved her enemies in the direction she wanted them to go. She did this by creating situations where they had no choice but to do so.

Having multiple supply routes means the Allied Forces can eat their fill, but it also means there are more places for the enemy to attack.

"Claude, what do you think our current weakness is?"

Claude said haughtily, shaking his head.

"If you and I are together, we are 'invincible.' There is no such thing as weakness. Ah, war is so trivial."

"… … ."

When Giselle glared at him, Claude quickly lowered his head and rolled his eyes.

It's strange to find a weakness in this level of power. But if you must find one,

"Our army is large and slow. It will be difficult to catch up with the divided enemy. And… …the supply route is too long, which is also a weakness."

"What do you think the enemy's intentions are?"

"It seems like they're avoiding a head-on confrontation. We're a large army, so if all our supply lines are cut off, we're at a disadvantage."

Jiselle nodded. It was a strategy that the weaker side would employ. However, Count Bifenveldt would not have been aiming for 'only' that much.

To begin with, the Salvation Church's main force was not that weak. If they fought head-on, it would be impossible to be sure who would win.

In other words, their movements had other intentions.

"Do you think that's the end?"

Claude immediately shook his head.

"They are acting so blatantly. No one but an idiot would know this. It seems like they are trying to split up our forces and fight local battles in each region."

Jiselle nodded again. Her thoughts were the same.

It is not a one-shot battle, but rather multiple victories achieved through multiple battles.

'There are a lot of superhumans over there, so it's definitely possible.'

If they reunite later, the Artroad Army will become a much stronger force.

The Allied Forces were not a very strong force, except for the central Rutanian forces.

'They created a situation where we had no choice but to be dragged in.'

It was a strategy that could easily lead to individual defeats if not done right. In reality, commanders who command the army are reluctant to fight against a large force with a small force.

Although it was such a risky strategy, Count Biffenveldt carried it out boldly. That showed how confident he was.

'You're going to lure me so blatantly.'

If this side failed to respond properly, Count Biffenveld would certainly take it one step further, causing confusion and division among the Allied forces.

It's obvious what method they'll take. They'll just attack the Allied homeland, where they're missing a significant number of troops. That'll cause a real mess.

So this was a war where the key was how fast each side could move.

After thinking about it, Jiselle smiled ferociously.

'You dare to fight me in mobile combat?'

Instead of using any other strategy, he's trying to win with his most confident maneuvering strategy, Jiselle.

This was both a lure and a provocation. I'll show you my weaknesses openly, so try to stop me if you can.

It seemed like the other person's confidence was too much.