Episode 97 Revolutionary Defense War – Delayed
War Garrison of the Imperial Army of Germania, Nancy, eastern Francia.
Archduke Leopold drove out the Frangian army from Metz and Alsace in just three days after the start of the battle.
Although the Marquis de Lafayette retreated too appropriately and failed to pursue the remnants and expand the battle, the Frangian army retreated again and the imperial army was able to occupy Nancy, the capital of Lorraine.
Naturally, the home country was very encouraged, and minor issues such as the unfavorable cost of fighting even with more troops or the indecisiveness of Duke Gunhild, who went to Alsace, were immediately buried.
However, Archduke Leopold, the commander on the scene, was feeling impatient.
“We must go on the offensive right away.”
The imperial commanders expressed disapproval at the Archduke’s remarks.
“I apologize, Your Majesty the Archduke. To advance from here, we must attack their fortress at Verdun, but the soldiers are somewhat exhausted from the forced march and heavy rain.”
“Your Highness, the capture of Nancy less than a month after the start of the battle was a significant achievement, so it would be a good idea to let the soldiers rest for a while…”
However, the Archduke was adamant.
“There are three reasons why we must attack now.
first. This is the enemy’s home country. Just because the enemy lacks equipment doesn’t mean they don’t have manpower. The more time we give, the more the enemy’s forces will increase.
second. If we waste time here, when spring is over, we’ll end up having to launch a siege in the summer.
third. The Marquis de Lafayette did not lose many men in the last battle. Nevertheless, the fact that they gave up on a major city like Nancy and retreated means that they have a reason to avoid battle now.”
After the Archduke spoke like this, the others were also at a loss for what to say.
Especially Duke Gunhild, who had never fought a meaningful battle while the Archduke was capturing Nancy, and Count Baden, who was only hindered by a hasty duel.
In reality, the Archduke’s judgment hit exactly the point that Pierre wanted to avoid.
“Get all units ready to go. “We will launch an offensive as soon as supplies arrive from our home country.”
“I will follow your orders, Your Highness!”
Archduke Leopold strengthened his resolve by glaring towards the west, where the Frangian army would be.
They evacuated most of the residents throughout Alsace and Lorraine in advance and disposed of not only the supplies that could be requisitioned but also the fields.
They had planned to step down from the beginning. Otherwise, there is no way he would have prepared a clear-the-field tactic.
What the Marquis Lafayette was aiming for was obviously a delay, and Archduke Leopold had no intention of getting caught up in his intentions.
Although Francia’s territory is relatively large, its border with the Empire is close.
The Archduke also prepared ample additional supplies in advance to prepare for any emergency, so simply transporting them would solve the problem quickly.
Thinking that there would be no major problems, the Archduke looked at the operational map and began making plans to achieve a decisive victory before summer no matter what.
“Your Majesty the Archduke!”
However, the Archduke’s thoughts were interrupted by the shout of an officer who urgently entered.
“What’s going on?”
“They say the supply unit heading here from the border was attacked by the enemy’s cavalry!”
Archduke Leopold held his head as he felt a pain in his head.
* * *
“Khaaagh!”
A carbine gun rang out and a galloping Imperial Hussar fell from his horse, bleeding, and sparks flew from the eyes of his fellow Hussars.
“You vile bastards!”
“Hahaha, thank you for the compliment!”
The revolutionary army’s pursuit cavalry scoffed and ran away with all their might. The hussars chased after the cavalryman who shot and killed their comrade, but realized too late that he was merely a decoy.
“Hey! Supply corps!”
“Eight rotten!”
While the hussars were desperately chasing the decoy crew, another cavalry unit that had been hiding came out and began attacking those transporting supplies.
“Hee hee!”
“Please help me!”
The helpless supply troops were all quickly wiped out or surrendered, and Jerome Morel, who led them, smiled cheerfully and gave orders.
“Burn it down!”
“ancient!”
The pursuing cavalry started a fire with skill, and the supplies that the imperial army had been waiting for began to burn entirely.
The Alsace and Lorraine regions, the border region between the Frangian and Germanian empires, have many large forests and hilly or mountainous areas.
There were no better conditions for a small light cavalry unit to sneak around and launch a surprise attack, and Jerome Morel, who loved to toy with the enemy, was having a blast harassing the imperial army.
Jerome Morel, who had succeeded in burning the supplies, took out a telescope and observed the hussars being one-sidedly hunted rather than engaged in an engagement with the pursuing cavalry from afar.
“Hwiyu~ It’s so easy?”
The imperial army also tried to block Morel and the chase cavalry by dispatching its own hussars, but they had the advantage of basic weapons and carbines, and they also knew the geography, so they had no chance.
Even so, the hussars, who have seen blood from the reconnaissance battle in the early stages of the war, are piling up sacrifices as they try to block the pursuit cavalry that is randomly sweeping through the supply detachment.
“General Morel! “The enemy heavy cavalry has arrived nearby!”
Archduke Leopold was not an easy person, so he tried all sorts of things, such as patrolling with cuirassiers and reinforcing the escort of the supply corps, as the hussars were not enough.
“Oh yeah. “The mission is accomplished, so let’s get out quickly.”
Of course, it is basic to get rid of something if it doesn’t seem right, and the fact that Morel, who has the upper hand in basic cavalry quality, is taking the lead has not changed.
Jerome Morel’s pursuing cavalry, under the command of the Marquis de Lafayette, had already delayed them for nearly fifteen days, and the amount of supplies they burned was absolutely negligible.
“If this were to be the case, I would have been on fire.”
Morel licked his lips with his tongue as he rode. It is a large army of over 100,000 people.
The military is fundamentally a group that only consumes without producing anything.
The burden on the empire that maintains it must not be that light, and the supplies to feed its countless soldiers have already been destroyed several times.
Economic issues are also a problem, but since their occupied territory is occupied by horses and there is nothing left except for supplies and food to be commandeered, the enemies must have slowly reached their limit.
Sure enough, a few days passed and during the next supply march, Archduke Leopold also responded proactively.
“Hiya-what is that again?”
Jerome Morel hid in the forest with his men and watched the supply caravan moving along the road through a telescope.
The uninterrupted procession along the road is not just a simple supply detachment, but also a huge number of line infantry marching together.
“haha. “Have you removed troops from the front lines?”
At most, troops are withdrawn from the front lines that have advanced and dispatched to guard the supply troops.
This is an inefficient use of troops that should be avoided as much as possible, but the situation is such that it is impossible to engage in combat due to lack of food right now.
The Franzian army does not have the capacity to launch a counterattack, so they are conducting a delayed war, and they have enough troops anyway, so it would be possible.
“I guess so, General. What should I do?”
“What can I do? What can I do?” Are you going to hit there with the light cavalry? “We’ll all die.”
It will be difficult to move the small number of troops who are already suffering from a serious food shortage, but the soldiers will perform their mission more desperately than anything else to protect their own food.
Morel was satisfied, but it would be impossible to attack him with light cavalry like that.
“It looks like we had too much fun.”
Morel looked at the procession with a telescope in his hand, feeling a little lingering, and narrowed his eyes when he saw the wagons forming the procession.
“what.”
The wagons were painted to resemble the flag of the Germanian Empire.
It’s a paint job that would be overlooked by the Imperial Army, who would simply assume that those who delivered the supplies showed fervent patriotism.
However, Jerome Morel remembered what he had been told beforehand and twisted the corner of his mouth.
“Haha haha….”
“…General?”
The adjutant looked like he didn’t understand, but Morel just smiled and turned his head.
“I’m returning. “You can just hand it over.”
* * *
The imperial army, which had been holding on to their hungry stomachs, let alone going on the offensive, as less than half of the supplies had arrived safely over a period of more than 15 days, was in a happy mood, welcoming the supplies that had arrived safely for the first time in a long time, and in huge quantities.
“Finally…”
Normally, the supplies were supposed to arrive on time without any problems, but Duke Henry, the Imperial Army Chief of Staff, was very happy just because the supplies had arrived safely.
“…I guess I can finally take a breather now.”
Next to him, Archduke Leopold, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Army, whose face was heavy with fatigue as he had not been able to sleep properly for several days, also breathed a sigh of relief.
The soldiers may all be weak because they haven’t had enough to eat, but everyone is carrying supplies with a smile on their faces without saying a word.
A bitter smile appeared on the lips of the Archduke, who had to curse the incompetence of the supply corps and order those who were holding starving ships to go back to the border and escort the supply corps back.
Even in the last war, he had to watch his men die pointlessly, but now he never thought it would be so hard to even feed them a proper meal.
The Archduke shook his head.
This is an opportunity that was received with great difficulty after asking the home country, which had been screaming as to how they could steal so much supplies, by begging them to protect them at all costs this time.
“At this rate, we won’t have to worry about supply, at least for the time being. “After feeding the soldiers their fill and resting for a day, we will immediately begin the offensive.”
We must not buy Franzia any more time than this.
We must defeat the Marquis de Lafayette and end this war as soon as possible.
For the sake of the Kaiser who believed in him, and for his men to return home with even a little more life.
But it didn’t take long for that sense of relief to be betrayed.
* * *
A few days later.
The supply officer of the Germanian Empire faced Archduke Leopold, trembling like an aspen.
Archduke Leopold’s eyes were dark under his eyes and his cheeks were sunken, making the supply officer suspect that what he was facing was not a famous general of the Empire but an envoy.
“What on earth happened?”
“I am so sorry, the Archduke-”
“I am sorry. Apologies? Should I shoot you!”
The person in charge kneeled down in front of Archduke Leopold.
I had no choice but to do so.
The Archduke begged the home country, which was reluctant to provide supplies to feed an army of over 100,000 people, so they prepared as much as possible and even escorted it with soldiers, so the supplies were barely delivered.
They all looked fine on the outside. However, much of the food received was seriously contaminated.
It is clear that it was not simply something that was old and corrupted, but was done to secretly poison the soldiers.
Many of the imperial troops, who were delighted with the abundance of food they had received after starving for a long time after being plundered for supplies, were caught defenseless as they filled their hungry stomachs for the first time in a long time.
Tens of thousands, if not hundreds, of troops were poisoned and suffered from severe vomiting and diarrhea.
Among the soldiers who had been starving for a long time and suffered from malnutrition, many even died from dehydration while complaining of pain.
Archduke Leopold had no choice but to watch the scene without any response.
The sight of soldiers not bleeding to death while fighting on the battlefield, but just waiting to die miserably at the end of weakness, complaining of hunger and thirst.
Even as we speak, the reality that the barracks outside are full of such soldiers made even the Archduke, who was experienced on the battlefield, lose his composure.
“How could something like this happen in the great army of the Empire!”
The Archduke scolded, blood forming in his neck.
Even he might have ended up like that if he, as a high-ranking commander, had not eaten a different meal than the soldiers.
“I’m so sorry! majesty! The place where the supplies were delivered had already proven its trustworthiness for over several decades, and the inspection procedures were clearly carried out, but everything was my fault…”
The supply officer bowed his head, shedding tears.
There was no precedent for something like this happening in the first place, and the enemy deliberately used methods that were unrecognizable just by looking at it.
It was not entirely incomprehensible that the supply officer could not capture them, but they could not feed them with peace of mind even with the supplies sent by their home country.
“How on earth did this happen….”
“I apologize, Your Highness. We will immediately prepare new supplies and make sure that this time-”
“How can we be sure that sending it this time is safe?”
The supply officer shed tears at the Archduke’s empty question.
Who would have imagined that something like this would happen with goods obtained through a business that had been supplying the imperial military for decades?
How can we restore trust once it has been broken?
“We will inspect it thoroughly before sending it to you!”
“While this is going on, our soldiers will have to suffer and starve.”
The Archduke muttered in despair.
I have never experienced a war like this.
Could it be that it was the Marquis de Lafayette’s intention to steal the residents and supplies from the occupied territory and even cause this to happen?
The Archduke lamented in despair, bit his molars, and gave an order.
“…At least requisition from the border principalities. “Get the supplies by any means necessary, even by force.”
* * *
Capital Lumiere.
Christine was reading the report given by her maid Lina.
A report on the operation carried out using people planted in the Germanian Empire and the results of the operation.
The agents of the Germanian Empire, who had invested a huge amount of money to find people they could bribe, had to escape in order to avoid arrest and destroy evidence, but they succeeded in the end.
It was a cruel and heartless measure, but in the end, the Duke of Christine most definitely slowed down the imperial offensive without shedding Frangian blood.
-I will do everything I can to help you while you are on the battlefield.
Christine kept her word to Pierre, so now the rest is up to him.
“great job.”
Christine said so dryly and immediately threw the report into the bonfire and burned it.
“…As expected, I’m a little reluctant, but I didn’t think something like this would succeed.”
Lina, who had actually followed Christine’s orders, is also confused.
Naturally, the military does not receive supplies from anywhere. Use a place that has been thoroughly verified and has built trust over a long period of time.
However, even in places where trust has been built up over decades, the members are constantly changing. In a place like that, there are bound to be gaps.
Moreover, many of the people who were bribed and involved in this matter cooperated without even knowing how big of an incident their involvement would lead to.
However, it is nearly impossible to regain the trust once broken, and since the empire does not know the full story, they will waste even more time and national power by overturning the entire supply system.
Christine said with a dark sneer.
“There’s nothing that money can’t do. If it doesn’t work, you probably don’t have enough money.”
