Episode 173 Krafte War – City of Fire (4)
The fighting, which had entered a lull for a moment as the sun went down, began again as soon as morning came.
Gunfire, gunfire and gunfire.
As the howitzer’s shells flew in and out, the air-tearing noise they made was repeated countless times, reaching a point where it became impossible to distinguish between what the enemy had fired and what our troops had fired.
“Damn it’s on fire! “Quickly turn it off!”
“water! “Bring water here!”
I glanced at the soldiers running around frantically as the barracks were on fire, then looked back down and looked at the map.
The headquarters building I was using was also shelled and set on fire, so I am now in command from the field command barracks.
“All sides have withdrawn from the second defense line and are engaged in combat on the third defense line!”
“Confederate casualties are serious! We desperately need Her Majesty’s support!”
“The northern army is no slouch either! “The number of casualties due to simultaneous attacks from all directions-”
A chaotic situation with cries coming from all directions.
There was no such thing as a main attack.
From the beginning, they launched a fierce attack from all directions, pushing back all of their main force, the standing army.
If you focus your attack in one direction, you can deploy Eris for concentrated defense, but if you attack in many directions at the same time, you cannot.
The enemies clearly understand that Eris only has one body.
After a fierce battle from the beginning, the losses have piled up considerably, and Eris and the priests are running around frantically protecting and treating the soldiers, so much so that they barely have time to catch their breath.
“…the enemy’s losses cannot be ignored.”
“That’s right. The pellet bombardment that was applied while retreating after abandoning the first line of defense would have caused quite serious damage to the enemy’s main force. The bombardment of the Eastern Empire forces that continues even now is causing enormous losses…”
Alexandre Werther looked at me and shrugged his shoulders.
“They may be crazy, but they are still going on the offensive.”
“No matter how much Krafte you are, you can’t keep doing that. “There will be a limit to our offensive capabilities.”
Shot bombardment, mines, howitzers of the Eastern Empire, obstacles lined up to fill the city, and endless defense lines.
The key to our defensive war is to shake their morale through mass killings and delayed warfare.
No matter how great an elite army they are, as long as they are made of cloth, they are bound to falter as their comrades continue to die and become exhausted.
Even if the opponent is a great king, the limit is to launching an all-out attack and pushing us at the same time without the main attack and avoiding concentrated defense through Eris.
In the end, in the melee situation that has led to this point, there is no other way than to push forward with morale and spirit.
“Now we have no choice but to endure fiercely. They are also a human army. If you hold on, the moment will inevitably come when they collapse.”
Maybe I’m just trying to convince myself that it will happen.
I prepared so thoroughly. We have accumulated a lot of experience from the fierce past battles, and we are fighting in the most advantageous way in the most advantageous position.
“The only thing left is to believe in the revolutionary army.”
In any case, unlike the field battle, the battle continued for more than a day thanks to the deployment of a defense line aimed at delaying the battle.
Perhaps a day or two would not be enough to completely break the Krafte army’s momentum.
“From now on, it will be a physical battle. “Tell the commanders of each unit to rotate the units and give them at least a brief rest.”
“I understand, Commander! But I’ve already used up a quarter of my ammo reserves. “Is that okay?”
Unlike field battles where volleys of fire are exchanged, the nature of urban warfare involves continuous firing sporadically behind cover, which consumes a lot of ammunition, and since the entire city is under siege, there is no supply.
It’s not strange to be worried, but…
“That’s no problem. “The supply will be insufficient over there anyway.”
If the conditions were the same, they would have suffered more than us, who had planned a long-term war and stockpiled ammunition.
Moreover….
“It is unlikely that the Krafte army, which does not normally prepare enough ammunition, would have prepared enough ammunition for such a long-term urban battle, and even if it did, there is Morel.”
The cavalry, which is useless in urban warfare, would have been kept on the outskirts from the beginning and would continue to harass the enemy’s supply routes.
The morels are already mature there, so they must be doing well.
I looked at Karokh, the one-eyed orc with his arms crossed next to me and a solemn look on his face.
Now all that remains is when to put in the final card.
* * *
The outskirts of Bahua City, which was occupied, became the Krafte army’s camp and barracks.
“Your Majesty, nearly half of our ammunition has already been used up.”
“The enemy chasseurs are continuing to attack the supply unit! “It would be better to withdraw some of the troops and protect the supply route-”
“Even if that were not the case, the losses would be enormous, so where are the troops to withdraw from here?”
Now that the hussars suffered heavy losses in the skirmishing of the last battle, there is a limit to responding to the Frangian chasseurs with cavalry alone.
Cuirassiers are suitable for hunting chasseurs only if they can be driven into the support of hussars, and it is difficult to catch light cavalry that runs around and shoots with only heavy cavalry.
Thanks to this, the Krafte army was suffering terribly from Jerome Morel, who was keen on destroying supplies throughout the fierce street fighting.
The Krafte army, which quickly accepted the lessons of the previous battle, significantly increased its ammunition possession, but even this was not enough in a situation where fierce street fighting continued day and night.
The great king, who had stayed up most of the night and watched with a tired face the sight of the generals with bloodshot eyes debating among themselves, slowly opened his mouth.
“There are already many casualties. “It is impossible to withdraw troops here to protect the supply route.”
“Your Majesty, if things continue like this, we will soon run out of ammunition.”
The great king was silent for a moment and then opened his mouth.
“Continue the offensive until evening and let all soldiers rest during the night. “If you do that, you’ll have a small amount of ammunition left over.”
“That may be true, but that is not enough to continue the battle the next day.”
The Great King sighed softly.
The momentum that had been shaken by the enemy’s defense line, which used massive artillery fire and even mines, was somehow able to be restored by his adventure of marching with his soldiers.
However, even after recovering from the initial blow, the enemy continues to engage in delayed battles in the heavily fortified city, to the point of exhaustion, and continues to advance further into the city.
No matter how disciplined the Krafte army may be, it cannot maintain its ranks and organization even in a battlefield full of obstacles and chaos.
And in such a melee situation, the gap between the Krafte army and the revolutionary army eventually narrows considerably.
Isn’t this a truly brutal battlefield prepared for them? I, the Marquis de Lafayette, understand very well how to harass them effectively.
But that doesn’t mean we can slow down the offensive.
“Then should we stop the offensive, protect the supply routes, and wait? In the meantime, their saint king and priests will be causing the enemy’s wounded.”
“…I am so sorry, Your Majesty.”
The decisive difference between the Krafte group and the Frangian group stems from that.
Their Saint Queen can not only protect them on the battlefield, but also heal a huge number of wounded people if given time.
She alone is an absolute advantage that Krafte does not have, but Franzia is even mobilizing a considerable number of priests into battle thanks to the cooperative archbishop.
However, Krafte, which has already lost many of its elite reserve forces in the first line of defense, cannot expect such replenishment.
“The loss of the standing army is already serious. “The longer the battle lasts, the more overwhelmingly the situation becomes unfavorable to us.”
The great king spoke while pointing to the center of the city on the map with his staff.
“The Marquis de Lafayette is a cautious person who cares about the sacrifices of his subordinates. Even if we were to stop the offensive in the evening and let our troops rest, we would have taken turns strengthening our guard, but we would not have hastily abandoned an advantageous defensive base and launched a counterattack.”
“That is a valid judgment, Your Majesty.”
“So, we will rest our soldiers as much as possible and launch an all-out offensive the next day. When the ammunition runs out…”
The Great King laughed.
When he retreated from the last battle, he never thought that Krafte would be driven this far with just one defeat.
So I stepped down. But what would it have been like if the game had been decided at that time?
Nowadays, it is a meaningless assumption.
The Great King slowly opened his mouth.
“…Once we run out of ammunition, let’s engage in close combat.”
In a sporadic shooting battle in a city full of such messy obstacles, their eliteness will fade significantly, but in close combat, the Krafte army with high training and discipline will have an advantage.
The cuirassier cavalry, a strength of the revolutionary army, was not very helpful in urban warfare.
I am concerned about the existence of Francia’s unique knights, but even so, their small number is not enough to deliver the decisive blow in a battle involving tens of thousands of troops.
Moreover, they also have their own cards.
The High King slowly turned his gaze to look at Count Albert von Wittelsbach, who had a serious expression on his face.
“When we engage in close combat, we will also involve the imperial army. “You also had business to see the Marquis de Lafayette, right?”
“Of course, Your Majesty. “The knights of the empire will stand at the forefront and destroy them.”
The High King nodded lightly in response to Count Wittelsbach, who responded with a bright look.
“Good.”
The imperial army they brought with them is not something to be expected as they are only common soldiers that were destroyed even by the barbarians of Iberica, but the knights, including Count Wittelsbach, are useful as they provide the resources to stand against those Frangian knights.
The great king slowly twitched the corner of his mouth and said.
“This is a watershed moment, gentlemen. Either gain everything or lose everything. Truly a battle site worthy of Krafte. “Isn’t that right?”
“That is so, Your Majesty!”
In front of the generals who were repeating the song in unison, the Great King smiled and answered with satisfaction.
“Let’s roll the dice, gentlemen.”
* * *
Bang-Kwaang-
Louis Dakiten opened his eyes in horror from the heavy drinking that almost drove him into neurosis.
Then, realizing that it was night and the sky had just darkened, I tiredly raised my hands and pressed the corners of my eyes.
At the front, I used magic until I was exhausted and was ordered to take a break.
I vaguely thought I wanted to be helpful.
He believed he could be of help and wanted to join in the glorious fight to protect Francia for his sister.
The battlefield he actually encountered was very different from the glorious and wonderful place he had imagined.
It was a horrible, cruel, blood-drying space.
Although he was single-minded about his sister, Louise, who had been reluctant to look at Pierre de Lafayette’s somewhat bleak eyes, was now able to understand why his eyes were like that.
More precisely, many of those standing on this battlefield have eyes like that.
…including him.
From a young age, he saw his mother and the retainers who cared for him die before his eyes.
That’s why I thought I had lived a rough life and was strong, but it was all a child’s illusion.
“Haaa…”
Lewis was trying to get up while washing his face, but
was shocked when he realized that someone was watching him.
“Huh?!”
“Oh, I’m sorry. “Did you surprise me?”
And the person who surprised him handed him a cup in a calm voice.
“Take it, it’s your favorite cocoa.”
“Oh, thank you. “Major Darby.”
Louis took the glass given to him by Giselle and immediately put it to his mouth.
The sensation of a warm and sweet taste spreading in his mouth quickly calmed his startled heart, and Louis smiled naturally.
“Oh, thank you. “I feel this every time, but this is really good.”
“I just took the one that came out as a supply.”
“But it tastes even better when the Major rides it, haha…”
After both of them soaked their bodies warm with cocoa in an awkward but acceptable atmosphere, Giselle slowly opened her mouth.
“I came here once because they were on standby, but since they were resting, I thought I’d just leave. But you woke up just in time.”
“That’s lucky. “It would have been a shame if I couldn’t eat this.”
Giselle laughed and opened her mouth.
“But you’ve improved a lot. At first, I felt like I was from a noble family-”
“It’s so big… I learned a lot.”
There was a short silence.
Still, thinking it wasn’t a bad time, Giselle opened her mouth as Louis drank the slightly lukewarm cocoa.
“I’ve been thinking about it quite a bit.”
“yes?”
“I think we have to come to a clear conclusion.”
What do you mean?
As Louis was feeling a little embarrassed, Giselle opened her mouth.
“Do you know Ellen Darby?”
Lewis was dazed, as if he had been hit on the head.
He flinched unconsciously and the cup fell from his weakened hand – the liquid that flowed from the cup fell on the floor and wet his feet.
Lewis thought blankly at the sensation of the lukewarm, sticky, blood-like liquid.
What kind of expression am I making right now?
Giselle, who was staring at Louis with a bitter expression, said,
“I was hoping it wasn’t true.”
He smiled and muttered softly.
“…I guess it’s true.”
