As Prophet - Chapter 20



Only Krnovel

Episode 20. The General Headquarters

“They say your martial arts skills are very strong. I’m curious.”

“It’s just a little better, my lady. It’s just a little better than the average person who hasn’t studied swordsmanship.”

“Oh my, aren’t you being too humble? They say you flew high on the battlefield during the last Imjin War… … With one swing of your sword, they say a dozen or so men fell like straw.”

“It’s an overestimation. If you hit one lady and the people around you are surprised and step back, it may look like you killed them all. The Japanese tend to think that all of them are samurai, but most of them were resident people. They were merchants, so to speak. They had swords, but they were for self-defense. They didn’t have much armor, and they weren’t trained in formations or group combat.”

The old lady’s eyes sparkled. What did she see?

“As I grow older, my thoughts become cloudy and my memories become hazy. As a result, I really enjoy having someone around to tell me stories, and I would like to hear about war stories this time.”

Only then did Baek Sa-ban step forward.

“No, mother, that’s not true. The battlefield is a truly terrifying place. People die, and you fight over the corpses of the dead. It’s hell on earth. Don’t say that.”

“Oh my! An adult is speaking.”

“Mother, I am an adult now.”

“Ah, I guess that’s true. I guess I worded it wrong.”

“We’ve come a long way. It must be tiring for a bachelor to do this. How about we call it a day?”

“Ugh. I tried to hear some war stories, but my grown son is talking nonsense.”

“I’m sorry, Mother! Okay, let’s take Mother inside.”

The meeting ended with Baek Sa-ban coming out, but that wasn’t the end.

* * *

The next day, Baek Sa-ban and Baek Ui-hyeong headed to Hanyang. They had to finish the procedures related to the report of resignation and, if circumstances allowed, they had to see His Majesty. He wore the official uniform he rarely wore and rode on a horse, and his face looked handsome. They escorted him to the place where Dalcheon met the main road.

“Why don’t you go together?”

“I plan to get used to this place first.”

“And you’re thinking of going around the nearby mountains and rivers?”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

The conversation between the two brothers always caught Baek Sa-ban’s attention. It was because of their strange talent for turning things that cannot be experienced in everyday life into everyday life. He asked Dal-cheon, who was holding the reins, for no reason.

“Are you trying to dig up some ginseng?”

“If necessary, and if it catches your eye, I’ll bring it.”

“This isn’t a deep mountain.”

“It’s not that high, but it doesn’t look like anyone has ever set foot on it.”

“Don’t go too far. There are some places that are off-limits.”

“Is it forbidden?”

“Your Majesty has hunting grounds and pastures, and there is also a place where timber for construction is stored.”

“Oh, are there any guards? It seems quite spacious.”

“Don’t wander around. It’s better not to bump into anyone. What’s scarier than power is those who rely on power. They talk like they have some kind of high office. It’s just that they’re uneducated, but it’s quite annoying if you get entangled.”

“this.”

“To poor farmers who go to collect firewood, they are truly like yakshas.”

“Okay, I won’t go far.”

Baek Sa-ban gave me a rough idea of ​​where the ranch and hunting grounds were. But that was really strange. If you tell me not to go, I want to go even more. It’s human curiosity. There seems to be a large building in the ranch, and small curiosities like “What would the royal stables look like?” and “What would the trees do if they let them graze?” gather and gather to feel like an unavoidable duty.

As expected, Dalcheon, who was seeing them off, turned around when he saw the two disappearing beyond the distant mountain ridge. It was the exact direction he had been told not to go.

* * *

Baek Sa-ban and Baek Ui-hyeong went straight to the Samgunbu and reported what had happened. They reported it as a report and the investigators investigated, but there was nothing more detailed than the account of the person who was there. The high-ranking generals of the Samgunbu greeted the two as if they had been waiting for them, and they moved to the large main hall and listened to the two people’s explanations.

“Why is the armor of the Whygu weak?”

“Well, rather than being weak, there were many who were not fully equipped with armor. This was because the army was a combination of the residents and the Tsushima Island army.”

“What is the ratio?”

“I think there were about 2,000 residents. The number of troops on Tsushima Island was 500 to 700.”

“So you’re saying it’s three thousand?”

“Yes.”

The one asking the question was a white-haired general who commanded one of the five ranks.

“That means he defeated half of the enemy with a bow.”

“It was.”

“How was the main force? They must have been inside the castle?”

Baek Sa-ban looked back at Baek Ui-hyeong. Baek Sa-ban didn’t know much about the battle in Seongan. He introduced himself first and then answered.

“I am Baek-ui-hyeong, who participated in the battle as the magistrate’s chief. The troops of Daemado were fully equipped with armor and weapons. After crossing the castle, I went inside to block their counterattack and, when the opportunity arose, to cut down the enemy commander. The Japanese army was skilled in combined combat using bows, spears, and swords.

The lower-ranking samurai were called hira samurai, or shogun. Their infantry group warfare was very powerful. They combined various types of troops, making attacks based on distance effective. Their long spears were very long, and they also had small swords. They would strike with their long spears to knock down their opponents, and then they would cling to them and roll around, and finish them off with their short swords. It was a very fierce fighting style.”

“Couldn’t they have ended it with a bow?”

“The generals were armed with full body armor and even wore visors on their faces. The infantry samurai wore similar armor, but had separate upper and lower parts and wore triangular, conical helmets. They carried two swords as a reserve weapon, but it is not known whether this was because the swords were weaker or because they were afraid of losing them in battle.

If what you are asking about is the fighting power of the regular army in the form of the Waegu, then you should see them as very strong. They are trained, good at group warfare, and in close combat, they fight viciously by rushing in, grabbing, and rolling around. They stick close to you to a scary degree.”

“Ahem, yeah. I was wondering about that. How did you react?”

“We kept our distance and kept advancing and retreating. Oh! What was strange was that I wish I had prepared in advance, but many of them were barefoot. It would have been helpful to spread barbed moss, but I found out too late.”

“Ahem, this is valuable information. I should let Busanjin know about it.”

The audience nodded and the man in charge continued asking questions.

“I heard that Waedo is scary, what was it like?”

“They raise their two-handed swords, the waedo, high and then slash down with a shout. The movements are large and monotonous, exposing weak points. That’s why they look dangerous, but they display their power by cutting through one-handed swords and wooden spears. It’s called the Satsuma sword technique. A samurai wielding a long waedo covers a space of about 18 feet. The gap is quite wide. A skilled warrior can rush into the tight formation of his allies alone and cut through spears, shields, swords, and human torsos all at once.”

“Oh, is it that scary?”

“If you fight one-on-one from the perspective of the unmanned, there are many weak points and the attacks are monotonous, so there is not much to worry about, but if you face those who swing their swords powerfully in a group infantry battle, it is not easy. The basis of our army is the peasant soldiers conscripted from the peasants. On the other hand, they are soldiers, warriors, and swordsmen. It is difficult for the peasant soldiers to fight the samurai one-on-one.”

“Yeah, how did you do it!”

“We blocked the front with traditional phalanxes and single-legged formations and attacked with long spears. When they broke through the formation and dug in, the long swordsmen responded. When there was some distance, the archers behind attacked with bows. We repeatedly advanced and retreated while responding with bows, shields, long spears, and long swords.”

“Hoo! Have you by any chance read 『Gyechukjinseol』?”

* Gyechukjinseol: A Korean book on formations written by Ha Gyeong-bok, Jeong Heum-ji, Jeong Cho, Hwang Bo-in, and others in the 15th year of King Sejong’s reign. It is the first military book compiled by a warrior in Korea. It is a book on military strategy with strong practicality, reflecting the opinions of military officers with actual combat experience.

“Of course.”

“What should we do in the future?”

“Well… … . In a battle between an army of peasant soldiers and professional warriors, the peasant soldiers have little chance of winning.”

Baek Ui-hyeong paused for a moment and looked around. It was difficult to agree with that, but it was something he couldn’t exactly deny.

“To illustrate, let me tell you about another previous battle.”

“Please speak.”

“Before we could attack the castle, they crawled out towards the west gate. They were hundreds of soldiers from the main camp. Our cavalry, which had been preparing to attack at the south gate, rushed out. We caught them with the mobility of the cavalry and the firepower of the archers. We killed about half of them, and quite a few of them fled. We charged the remaining troops in a sharp formation and annihilated them.”

“Oh, I heard that! I can’t believe it. I never thought it would happen.”

“You mentioned how to deal with the Waegu. If you control them with cavalry and then charge with spearmen or circle around the outskirts and attack them, you have a good chance of winning. They don’t seem to have a cavalry unit. I don’t know what their home country is like. I don’t know if it’s because they don’t have horses, but even those who come on horseback dismount and fight.”

“Are you saying that training powerful cavalry is the solution?”

“Yes. And secondly, I think we can defeat them if we attack with the combined forces included in the typical single-line formation and square formations in the 『Gyechukjinseol』.”

Everyone in the audience agreed with Baek Ui-hyeong’s words. Who could say anything? It was the story of a general who had been in actual combat, and the judgment of a general.

“The key is training the cavalry and their formations?”

“In my humble opinion, yes. Oh, and the one who commanded the cavalry battle was not me, but my priest.”

“Oh, I heard about that boy, General.”

“He’s a little young.”

“How old is he?”

“I’m not sure, but I’m 15.”

“Oh!”

The audience was amazed.

“But did you say you were a priest?”

Baek Ui-hyeong hesitated. They say that there are three military units with generals, but this country is the Confucian state of the aristocrats. They will not have good feelings toward those who study Taoism in the mountains.

“I studied in the mountains for a while when I was young. At the request of my family, I served as a secret officer to the county magistrate, but before that, I studied swordsmanship.”

“The priest?”

“He is young, but his martial arts skills are superior to mine. He also has a profound understanding of military strategy.”

“But why doesn’t he have any reward?”

Baek Sa-ban answered on his behalf.

“It was requested and brought up, but was omitted because the person was too young.”

“I told you that in this world, you shouldn’t discriminate and categorize people like that.”

Baek Sa-ban bowed his head deeply from where he was sitting.

“He helped me out by studying the world. He was the main character who led this battle to victory, but I was worried that if the truth about this child was revealed, the scholars and officials would think badly of him, so I concluded by saying that I did not give him a separate award because of his age.”

Sweat formed on Baek Sa-ban’s face as he dared to speak out about the discrimination that was openly practiced in Joseon society.

“How did you end things like that?”

“Since the founding of the country, Buddhism has been suppressed. In addition, the sages have also become estranged from the world. Just citing Jeonjo as an example makes my heart tremble and I am afraid of what others will say, but that child is a mountain man and a sage. He practices martial arts, but underneath, he is a sincere sage who seeks the Way. You may remember the sages of Jeonjo who shaved their heads and wore black clothes. They are no longer in the world. Ahem! That is why I covered up, substituted, and omitted the child’s achievements. It was my intention not to cause unnecessary trouble. There is no other meaning.”

Sighs came out from everywhere.