Chapter 12 Pelosonian War (III)

As a rule of thumb, an attacking force needs to be three times the size of the defending force. The reason is that, to put it simply, "Defenders hold an advantage over attackers."

Nevertheless, attackers are able to choose favourable time and place to strike so they have more leeway than defenders. Even in board games like shogi, beginners who take the initiative to attack usually fare better than the ones fixated on defense.

Hercule's opinion was thus:

You ought to attack strategically and defend tactically.

"Didn't Your Majesty keep stressing on the initiative just now… Should we really get into the defensive position?"

"Don't be silly, Carolina. Waiting is also a great way to gain the initiative."

The Lemurian Army led by Hercule had deployed on a hill a short way from the city. On two sides of the hill were rivers, so they only had to watch the front and the rear… It was an ideal place to set up a defense.

That's right, a defense.

"But doesn't being forced to defend mean losing the initiative? Won't we be at a disadvantage…"

"That is if we are forced to. Don't you see, Carolina? I'm defending, but that doesn't mean I'm being attacked. I'm forcing the enemy to attack me."

Darios was very unpopular on this peninsula. The locals were fed up of the barbaric mercenaries' rule.

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That's why Darios had to remove Hercule as soon as possible. If he appeared weak even for a second, the mercenaries he employed might run away. No mercenary would want to waste his life fighting a war with no hope of victory.

War was a business.

Darios had to defeat Hercule at all costs. He had no choice but to attack, no matter how unfavorable the battleground was.

Evidently, Hercule was having plenty of initiative in this war. And his soldiers didn't have to exhaust themselves from marching over a long distance.

"Don't you see, Carolina? This hill can only be attacked from the front and the rear. I had the soldiers dig ditches and set up stakes on our front and behind. This is plenty enough to offset the disadvantage in numbers."

So far, Hercule had maintained the initiative and led Darios by the nose. But it was doubtful that he could hold onto the initiative forever. There was no arguing that Darios was an excellent general; Hercule was a hundred percent sure that he would lose in a head-on engagement in the open field.

That was why he drew the enemy to a favorable battlefield. A spot that could nullify the number difference, shut down the enemy's strength, and let his own army display its maximum capability.

"Your Majesty!! Tens of thousand enemy troops are coming from the southwest! Flag of the enemy general Darios has been confirmed!"

Hearing the scout's report, Hercule sneered. Then he flashed a smile towards Carolina and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Ah!"

"I will present you a victory. Look forward to it."

"…Is he really that Hadrianus's son? Who was it that said the new emperor was a snot-nosed brat?"

Right, I said that, thought Darios as he looked upon the enemy defensive position from high ground.

The enemy army had firmly entrenched on a hill. From afar, he could clearly see the fences and stakes set up to deter horses. Although he couldn't see them, he was sure that there were many ditches dug on the hill as well.

"Shutting down the enemy's strength while capitalizing on your own. Looks like he knows the basics of warfare."

Darios's army far exceeded Emperor Hercule's army in size. Hence Emperor Hercule chose to deploy his army on a hill. The hill was hugged by rivers on two sides so Darios couldn't strike Hercule's flanks. The only possible directions to attack were from the front and the rear.

In other words, the terrain made it impossible for Darios to make use of his numbers to encircle Hercule.

Furthermore, there was a longbow corps in the Lemurian Army led by Hercule. Longbowmen were more difficult to train than Darios's crossbowmen, while not nearly as powerful… But in exchange, longbowmen had a farther range and could fire much more rapidly.

The crossbowmen who were bad at high-angle fire could do nothing against the longbowmen on the hill, while the longbowmen could freely rain down arrows. The hill completely shut down the strength of Darios's army while allowing the Lemurian Army to make full use of its strength.

Frankly speaking, there was no way Darios's army could emerge victorious.

Emperor Hercule already had 90% chance of winning.

But if Darios surrendered here, he would surely be put to death. And there was still that ten percent chance of victory.

Then…

"How would I enjoy life any more if I pulled back from here? Watch me struggle, Emperor Hercule."

Darios let out a fearless laugh. He was savoring the greatest predicament of his life.

Darios's personal troops were 4,000 infantry and 3,000 crossbowmen for a total of 7,000 men; in addition to that were 28,000 infantry and 5,000 barbarian cavalry hired from outside.

His army was 40,000 strong.

Meeting that would be 8,000 clibanarii, 15,000 infantry and 5,000 longbowmen under Hercule's command.

His army's total strength was 28,000.

Mercenary Captain, "Black Panther" Darios. Versus the Lemurian Emperor, the one who would later be known as "Hegemon of Three Continents".

The battle between the famous mercenary general and the young emperor who would become an illustrious general in his own right began at that moment.

Darios immediately made preparations to attack.

The 28,00 infantry hired from outside would lead the front. The 5,000 barbarian cavalry were arranged on two flanks. The 7,000 elite troops who were his 4,000 infantry and 3,000 crossbowmen were positioned in the rear.

Darios's strategy was clear and simple.

Brute-forcing his way forward.

That said, it wasn't like he had any other choice. Taking his time to cross the rivers to flank the enemy would expose his troops to a hail of arrows.

Darios was not a fool.

The ones who would have to bear the brunt of enemy attack would only be the guys he hired with gold… He didn't care how many mercenaries and barbarians would end up kicking the bucket. And to prevent them from fleeing the battlefield, he stationed his loyal subordinates on the rear.

By sacrificing the mercenaries, he would be able to penetrate Emperor Hercule's defense. Then he would deliver the coup de grace with his elite troops.

With the present state of affairs, that was the best move Darios could think of.

"He probably saw this coming, though. If Emperor Hercule is as gifted as I am, then even my best move should be within his expectations."

Not only that…

Hercule must have deployed his army on the hill, fully confident that he could win against Darios's best move.

Which means, Darios had no chance of winning with this strategy.

"A battle that has been lost strategy-wise is going to be difficult to salvage with tactics… To press on even knowing that, I don't know when to give up, do I?"

Once again, Darios tried putting together another strategy. His back-up strategy.

"The rest depends on how good my opponent is."

The die was cast.

Positioned on the hill with his 28,000 troops, Hercule saw the mercenary infantry approaching from straight ahead. He muttered.

"I see… That's how he's playing."

According to Hercule's conjecture, there were four tactics that Darios could employ.

First was to use his crossbowmen to exchange fire with Hercule's longbowmen, hoping to take Hercule's longbow unit off the table.

But there was no way Darios would do that if he was even a bit aware of what those weapons could and couldn't do.

Darios once lured a Lemurian clibanarii unit to a swamp and massacred them with crossbows. It's unlikely that he, the general who defeated the late Emperor Hadrianus by making use of various type of troops and terrain, would do something so idiotic.

The second possibility was Darios forcing an encirclement. After surrounding the hill where Hercule's army stationed, he would slowly shrink the circle until Hercule's troops were annihilated.

But that was the worst of plans.

Because there were two rivers running alongside the hill, crossing the rivers would sap away his troops' stamina. The encirclement would surely break apart. Through the openings, the clibanarii charging downhill could easily penetrate the encirclement. Then they would keep assaulting from behind until Darios's army crumbled.

And the third scenario. Darios might split his army into two parts and place them in the front and back of the hill, then push his way up.

That wouldn't be such a bad move, but… Who on earth could Darios entrust the second army to? A general who wouldn't betray him, could coordinate with him from afar, and most of all, could command an army of over 20,000… If someone like that existed, Darios wouldn't have been so forced against the wall.

It's because he could only lead his army personally, because he could not entrust the job to anyone else, that Hercule managed to catch him off-guard.

Moreover, splitting an army into two would also mean dividing up its fighting strength. It seemed unlikely that Darios would split up his forces when it was already doubtful if he could break through Hercule's defensive position.

That left the fourth option—Darios brute-forcing his way up from the front.

But that was also…

"Expendable mercenaries in the front, and trustworthy elites in the back… Just as I expected."

What kind of tricks did Darios have under his sleeve, and how much could Hercule see through them?

That's what would decide the battle's outcome.

"Let's bet on the soldiers' struggle."

The die was cast.