Lord of Training - Chapter 137



Only Krnovel

137. War is not fought alone.

[Lacrosse Empire Army General Headquarters]

The highest commanders of the Imperial Army were gathered here now.

The atmosphere inside the command tent was not good.

“Is His Highness the Second Prince very angry?”

“Call that a lie. Two named knights are dead! I can tell without even looking at them.”

“Ha! Our central army is in trouble. How are we supposed to advance through the jungle without an aerial magic knight?”

The central army corps commanders and commanders were frowning.

They had already started to advance their troops, but the aerial magic knights who were supposed to protect their heads had suffered damage that was close to being annihilated.

“That’s not the problem now! The morale of the army is low. Don’t you know how important morale is in war? And because the central army failed to properly defend its forward base, our armored units and the units on the southern front were tied down. How on earth did they manage to raid the place that was like our home!”

Major General Heinz Holt, commander of the armored unit, raised his voice.

“Oh my! Even so, we are the superiors, aren’t we speaking too loudly?”

“That’s right. Since His Highness the Second Prince trusts you, is there no hierarchy?”

“And please address the two of you properly. It’s not His Highness the Second Prince, but the Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Field Army.”

“Hmm······.”

“Oh my!”

Three-star corps commanders were being scolded by Major General Heinz.

“Commander-in-Chief Erwin Modus, please.”

Chuck! Chew chew chew!

The commanders all stood up.

This time, Prince Erwin Modus, who was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Southern Field Army in charge of conquering the southern continent, came in.

Erwin glanced at the commanders.

“What kind of funeral have you all come to? Why do you all look so deadly?”

“sorry.”

General Hermann, commander of the Central Army, bowed his head.

Then, the central army commanders all bowed their heads.

“sorry!”

“sorry!”

Marshal Erwin Modes chuckled.

“Everyone, take your seats.”

As the commanders took their seats, Marshal Erwin also took his seat.

He looked at the commanders and slowly tapped their shoulders with the baton in his hand.

“We suffered considerable damage this time. But the war is just beginning. Losing once or twice doesn’t mean we’re losing the war. And we’re fighting hard on the northern front and pushing back the enemies little by little, so there’s no need to be so disheartened.”

Fortunately, everyone was relieved when Erwin, who was expected to get very angry, spoke in a calm voice.

“However, if we continue the war in this state of low morale, our troops will suffer even more casualties. So we must thoroughly analyze the cause and create an opportunity to raise the morale of our troops.”

The commanders nodded.

At that moment, General Hermann of the Central Army raised his hand.

“This time, the unit that attacked our aerial magic knights and destroyed their forward base was the Atlan Kingdom Army’s Special Aerial Magic Squadron.”

“I’ve heard of the special forces. The youngest lieutenant general in Atlan is the commander of the force, right?”

“That’s right. That Commodore Alain Bombard is the one who killed our named-class aerial magic knights this time.”

“So does that mean he’s risen to the level of a named person?”

Marshal Erwin turned his head to one side.

There was a knight of the Empire’s named class, Major General Erance.

“Didn’t you say you saw it?”

“Yes! I met him before at the S-rank labyrinth gate. He was young and smart, and he was an elite and had quite outstanding skills. However, I don’t understand why he killed two named-rank knights.”

“Really? Are you saying that you went from elite level to named level in just two years?”

Marshal Erwin’s brow furrowed.

Another named knight standing nearby, Brigadier General Gargin, raised his hand.

“I remember him too. He must have been a lieutenant colonel two years ago. He flies very fast and doesn’t flinch at all even among the named-class aerial magic knights, so I thought he must be something out of the ordinary. And I heard that the special squadron cleared the A-class labyrinth gate that occurred in Lutes alone a while ago. He must have risen to the named-class at that time.”

Marshal Erwin nodded.

“It wasn’t a coincidence that our air magic knights suffered.”

Central Army Commander General Hermann said.

“Yes. It’s not that I’m trying to cover up our mistake, but the number of knights in the special squadron that fought against our Imperial Airborne Magic Knights was similar. But they said they were unilaterally defeated in the air battle. Many soldiers in the jungle saw it, so it can’t be a lie.”

“Haha! Weren’t our empire’s aerial magic knights the best in the world?”

Erwin had a serious expression on his face.

Brigadier General Gargin said.

“It’s true that they are strong, but I heard that the weather was bad that day with a lot of rain and a lot of variables. And they probably fell for their trick and were taken by surprise.”

“The battle result is a thing of the past, so it doesn’t matter. However, if our aerial magic knights are pushed back by the enemy, wouldn’t the orbital giant units on the desert front be in danger?”

At Marshal Erwin’s words, the command tent suddenly became quiet.

This incident was not only because the Empire’s strongest aerial magic force was pushed back, but also because the orbital tank force on the ground was exposed to a major problem if it did not receive proper support from the sky.

“That’s right. The enemy’s aerial magic knights will focus their attacks on our orbital tanks. And to begin with, our aerial magic knights were 100 fewer than theirs. Now that we’ve reduced that number by a quarter, we don’t have many cards to effectively counter enemy air attacks in the future.”

The one who just spoke was Major General Heinz of the Armored Corps.

“Then we should either increase the number of our aerial magic knights or reduce the number of their aerial magic knights.”

Marshal Erwin looked troubled.

It was impossible to increase the number of aviation magic knights immediately.

Because this wasn’t the only battlefield of the empire.

This time, there were quite a few Imperial Aerial Magic Knights who had awakened at the S-rank Labyrinth Gate, but they needed more time and experience to exert their power on the battlefield.

He also had a mercenary aviation unit from the Duchy of Schweiz assigned to him, but he could not withdraw his troops as they were currently preparing for a large-scale airborne operation.

Marshal Erwin opened his mouth.

“Where is that special flyer?”

“Stationed in the central jungle.”

“Then who is in charge of the air magic unit on the desert front?”

“This is Major General Wandike Connell of the Atlan 7th Mobile Corps.”

“Ah! I know him too. Does anyone know him?”

Director Erance raised his hand.

“I have fought on the Lutes front. I am a skilled and courageous knight. And after the retirement of Archduke Harry Russell, he took charge of the 7th Mobile Corps’ Airborne Magic Squadron.”

“Really? What’s your personality like?”

“His personality is also revealed in battle. He is not the type to fight while observing his opponent, but rather the type who has considerable confidence in his own strength and skills. However, he is not reckless either.”

“Since you’ve fought, I can tell you’re skilled. Do you think you can win against Kyung?”

“I fought for about 10 minutes, but I couldn’t decide the winner.”

“Then it’s a close match.”

Marshal Erwin gathered his thoughts and opened his mouth.

“If they used bait, we should use bait too.”

Erance told his commanders his plan.

“Ah! So you’re saying we should use Wandike’s personality?”

“Yes, they are lower in rank than you. The special forces that are your rivals have made a big contribution this time. You can imagine how anxious they must be.”

“Oh! That’s a good plan.”

“It’s a brilliant plan. They’ll definitely fall for it.”

The commanders nodded.

“This plan is for Major General Heinz to work well with the Aerial Magic Knights.”

“all right.”

“And Major General Heinz will be appointed as Lieutenant General, and General Hermann, the commander of the Central Army, will be relieved of his post and sent to the forward area to guard that place.”

“yes!”

“And I will command the central army for the time being.”

Captain Hermann, who lost his position in an instant, looked at me in a dazed state.

As Marshal Erwin left, General Hermann followed him hurriedly.

The remaining commanders inside began to panic.

“Wow! You’re so merciless.”

“If you make one mistake, you’ll just get fired. You need to get your mind straight!”

“But was His Highness Prince Erwin originally such a resolute person?”

“No. You used to be a timid person. But I heard that your personality has changed drastically in the past two or three years.”

“Honestly, I just felt like I met His Majesty the Emperor Karl.”

“Huh? I thought so too, but I guess there’s something about the royal bloodline.”

***

Colonel Bradrick and a scout party were sent to the Kingdom of Hispania.

He was ordered to continue reconnaissance there, looking for any possible enemy aircraft or Imperial troops.

I wish it was just me, but it can’t hurt to be prepared.

I could easily have detected the large-scale movement of imperial troops on this southern continent just by reconnaissance alone.

The northern front was still in fierce fighting.

It is 5km wide, from the coast to the mountain range that borders the jungle.

The road was like a highway, with small hills and forests here and there, but mostly flat ground, so there was little advantage to fighting along the terrain.

Because of this, both the Empire and the Allies were suffering great losses and were gradually being pushed back by the Empire’s firepower.

The trenches were a great help, as the tanks were in the southern desert.

‘If it were me, I would have sent the tram north······.’

Of course, this route would be food for the airborne magician, as there was no place to hide the tram.

But they could also use the aviation magic knights······.

Even if our special forces suffer damage, bold decisions are necessary to win the war.

Fortunately, the imperial army moved cautiously.

On the central front, too, the enemy advanced.

The enemy pushed forward, but the 150,000 strong Potlien Kingdom army held off the enemy while guarding the important route through the long and wide jungle.

Since important facilities were well hidden in the jungle here, there was little movement by enemy airborne magic knights, and since neither our special forces nor our special forces had any specific areas to attack, we would just go out and bomb the enemy in formation when we saw them nearby, then return.

It seemed that now was the time to withdraw troops from this front and support the northern front.

I wish the Imperial Army would continue to move as expected like this, but something feels off······.

Chi-chik!

– Brigadier General Alain! Are you there? Brigadier General Alain!

Commander-in-Chief Bugsley’s urgent voice was heard.

Chi-chik!

“This is Brigadier General Alain. What’s your problem?”

– Chief Wandike is seriously injured!

“yes?”

What is this all of a sudden?

Why did the person who was guarding the front line get hurt?

Chi-chik!

– Yesterday, the Imperial orbital tank force attacked our forces. However, the orbital giants and aerial magic knights were immediately dispatched and stopped them.

“Surely you were chasing them?”

– Yes. They discovered a fleet of orbital tanks hiding in the canyon, and Major General Wandike led his aerial magic knights out on a sortie. However, they were ambushed by the Empire as they attempted to destroy the Imperial orbital tanks.

For a moment, a curse came out.

I told you to just watch it!

That’s what I said every time I met Commander Bugsley.

And Commander Bugsley promised to do the same.

Then, the Imperial Army would continue to waste troops, and the opportunity for a counterattack would come on the southern front. But······.

Chi-chik!

“But how did Chief Wandike get hurt?”

For a moment, I couldn’t understand why a named person was injured.

– I heard that Major General Erance and Brigadier General Gargin collaborated.

Are you saying that two named knights were on the desert front?

No matter how good the reconnaissance was, it was impossible to detect the movement of a small number of troops.

So, what I was asking was for me to just guard our camp.

They were unable to cross over to our camp without warning because they lacked aerial magic knights.

But how long must he have been waiting for a counterattack!

“How much damage is there?”

– Commander Wandike is seriously injured and undergoing surgery, and 33 of our airborne magic knights have been killed or are incapacitated. I think your special forces will have to come this way.

“Ha! Okay. I’ll go right away.”

What the hell is going on!

As expected, war was not fought alone.

However, I thought that the battle would proceed smoothly because Commander-in-Chief Bucksley listened to me well, but a single wrong judgment by a frontline commander resulted in great damage.

This would have canceled out the small victory the special forces had gained.

No! The morale of the army was transferred to the imperial army, so we suffered a great loss.

‘Damn, life never goes by so easily······.’

I headed to the southern front with the 1st Battalion.

***

[Desert Front Command Tent]

“The Imperial Army is pushing down from three directions, with the tracked tanks at the forefront. The upper route is well-blocked by the tracked giants, and the center is mine-laden and has artillery, so we can delay them for a while. However, the desert below is being pushed forward by tracked tanks and aerial magic knights, so we can’t block it with artillery alone.”

The news I heard from my adjutant was not good.

In several offensive and defensive battles, our forces effectively blocked the enemy’s advance and reduced the Imperial forces considerably.

Already, more than 20 trams have been destroyed.

But one misjudgment put him in danger.

“Colonel Audrey, gather all the aerial magic knights.”

“Yes, Captain!”

We’ve gathered together 40 aerial magic knights who can fight directly against the 1st Special Forces Battalion.

We had to stop the enemy airborne magic knights and tracked tanks first.

This would allow the artillery and infantry behind to halt the Empire’s advance.

“You guys have to stop the Imperial Aerial Magic Knights.”

Commander Tolip said.

“I will do my best.”

Chi-chik!

– Chong! This is Colonel Bradrick of the Information Corps.

It was nice to hear a voice after a long time.

I came out of the command tent.

Chi-chik!

“This is Brigadier General Alain. Speak!”

– I’ve figured out the Empire’s plans!

“what?”

– A few moments ago, hundreds of large transports and bombers took off from the southern airfield of the Kingdom of Harmonia. There are tens of thousands of troops inside. And they are escorted by about 50 air magic knights of the Duchy of Schweitz.

“Oh! Well done. If we win this war, you will be the first to receive the award.”

The Empire’s plan was a large-scale airborne operation.

If I hadn’t known this, I would have been caught off guard.

But now that I know, it was a huge opportunity.

If we can destroy them from the air, the war will be ours.

I went straight back into the command tent.

“Retreat all forces to the next defensive line now!”

“What do you mean? We haven’t even been pushed yet, so you’re telling me to just give this place to you?”

“Yes! There is a bigger attack! And if we stop it, the battle will turn much more favorable for the Allied Forces.”

“okay?”

The Tollip Corps Commander and the commanders opened their eyes wide when they saw my reaction.

I guess I got a little excited.

End