298 - First Joint Operation
"The right wing of the central force is retreating. I believe we should pull back the left wing as well."
Listening to Monica's voice, I watched my allies desperately holding the line ahead. The center under General Broa's command was solid. However, the wings of the central army—both right and left—were being broken.
Combined with the fierce attacks of the Walt family and their tenacity, a grueling battle of attrition had continued. With the left and right wings retreating, the battle had entered its tenth day with the center protruding forward.
It was rare for a field battle, but in a sense, we were in a situation similar to a siege. For now, we had no choice but to endure.
"Send a messenger. Continue the retreat and send the wounded to the rear."
The units and soldiers sent to the rear were reorganizing. Even though reinforcements arrived one after another, there were currently more wounded than reinforcements.
Monica spoke to me.
"...Chicken coward, I suggest a withdrawal. I believe any further effort is futile."
I clenched my fist.
――The Walt family camp.
Near the tents, Maisel stood overlooking the battlefield. The tide of battle seemed to be leaning heavily in Maisel's favor.
Even if reinforcements continued to arrive from the rear, so many enemies were retreating that it was only a matter of time before the opponent exhausted their strength.
And yet, something about it didn't sit right with Maisel.
"Strange. I don't feel the same level of toughness as I did on the first day."
As Maisel muttered while sitting in a chair, Bale, who served as an adjutant, responded to Maisel's opinion.
"Perhaps their will to fight was greatly diminished by the second day? Besides, on the right wing, the Foxuz families are fighting among themselves. They are clashing violently and continuing to retreat, and since the enemies on the left wing have also pulled back, the center is protruding."
Maisel nodded.
"In a sense, it's a fortress. Because they built it, changing formations is difficult. On top of that, they've become unable to move. I understand that, but something still bothers me."
An army that fought by flexibly changing formations and moved exactly as ordered under Maisel's command. The title of the strongest in Banseime was not for show, the army truly moved like a single living organism.
Because of this, everyone thought victory was near. They thought so, but Maisel felt a lingering doubt. If Gerard of the Foxuz family were here, he might have offered advice, but he was currently fighting his own daughter on the right wing and could not leave.
Bale sensed Maisel's anxiety.
"True, the detached force was crushed by the enemy, but looking at the whole, it is only a small problem. If we keep pushing the enemy, they will be forced to flee from the positions they built. Once we enter a pursuit battle, victory should be easy, shouldn't it?"
Maisel nodded while resting a hand on their chin.
(That's right. That should be enough. But after reading our hand and responding so well on the first day, this level of fighting... It is certainly difficult to make soldiers fight exactly as ordered, but if that's the case, they should have collapsed much sooner.)
Feeling as if they were attacking an enemy fortress rather than fighting a field battle, Maisel suddenly remembered their father's face.
(...Come to think of it, when it came to capturing castles and fortresses, no one was superior to my father.)
Why... why did they remember their father's face now? Maisel was slightly curious—.
Night.
Watching my own army begin its withdrawal, I looked up at the night sky.
Then, Eva approached.
"Sorry to interrupt your stargazing, but I have several reports. I'm not sure if they were the enemy's strike force or scouts, but I've driven those sorts of people back."
Eva was an elf, and her legs and waist were stronger than those of an average soldier. Moreover, she led dark elves, and those dark elves were elves who lived in the forest. They were strong in the dark of night, fast on their feet, and excelled at this kind of work.
"...Sorry for pushing such a busy job onto you."
"It's fine. I'll be asking for something in return. The dark elves cooperating with us are doing this for their own sake as much as they are for Lariel's."
I laughed a little.
"Well, it would be suspicious otherwise. It's about the forests near South Banseime, right? If you manage them properly, I'll give them to you. However, being too closed-off is not allowed."
Eva shrugged and looked at me with half-closed eyes.
"These days, you can't make a living just by shutting yourself away. South Banseime is close, so interaction is necessary. But are you sure? Adele said that considering South Banseime, it would be better to clear and develop the areas around the water sources?"
According to Adele-san, if I were to give it to the elves, any other forest would have been fine. The reason was that it might become a hindrance to the development of South Banseime.
From my perspective, South Banseime needed a hindrance.
"It's fine. It's a problem if you only look at Banseime, but it's necessary if you look at the entire continent. Besides, I'm a man who keeps his promises."
Hearing my words, Eva said,
"You only make promises you can keep, right? Well, if that's the case, it's fine. The village chief seemed concerned, so I wanted to confirm."
Everyone acts in pursuit of their own profit. I don't say that's a bad thing. However, when using people, one must know what the other party is seeking.
If I weren't aiming to be Emperor, I probably wouldn't have needed to rack my brain over such things. However, I couldn't turn back.
"...Eva, do you have a moment?"
"What? I'm on break now, so it's fine."
I turned back to Eva and said,
"I want to talk a bit about the Seventh Head—Broad Wolt. You know, providing information for the song."
When I said this with a smile, Eva laughed a little. Rather than looking displeased, she looked amused. At first, she seemed to think I was just bragging about my ancestors, but since she could hear about the good and bad points of the successive heads, Eva seemed to enjoy it.
"Sounds good. I'll finish it for you someday. But in that case, the remaining ones are... Lariel's father who is fighting now, and the third person, right?"
I nodded.
"Yeah, that's right. I'll talk about the Third Head some other time."
――It was on the day Lariel was heading to the battlefield.
The scene projected in The Room of Memories of the Seventh Head was of Maisel and Claire holding a baby. Claire had a tired expression but looked happy, and Maisel had dark circles under their eyes.
『Well done, Claire! And it's a boy!』
Maisel was overjoyed. And Claire was the same. Being able to give birth to a boy had that much meaning.
『Yes! But for now, if only this child can grow up safely... Ah, thank you so much for being born, Lariel.』
Lariel—it was the scene when Lariel was born. The aged Broad and Zenoa were also there, moved by the moment.
『M-my grandson. To think he's this adorable. H-however, a grandson is still a child of the Walt family! He must be raised strictly!』
『...You, having bought all sorts of things for your grandson, have no persuasiveness saying such things. What is this? You even bought toys and clothes up to age three. Those are things you buy after consulting with the family.』
『Zenoa, please don't be so angry. Look, I just happened to go to Central and they were selling them.』
『...The merchants heard a grandson was being born and made sure they caught your eye! You were completely fooled.』
As Broad and Zenoa spoke, Maisel, perhaps having not slept a wink until the birth, collapsed on the spot. The maids in the room and Broad panicked.
『Maisel! Pull yourself together!』
As Broad grabbed their shoulders with both hands and shook them back and forth, Zenoa hit the back of Broad's head.
『You are the one who needs to calm down! To do such a thing to my Maisel... I will carry them to the room immediately.』
Claire was also flustered while holding the baby, but only the baby being held was leisurely letting out a small yawn.
Watching this scene, Lariel smiled somewhat sadly.
"Thinking about it now, it's a bit surprising. To think there were times like this."
Then, Broad snapped his fingers. Immediately after, the surrounding scenery turned gray and projected a different scene.
It was the Walt family estate, and a small Lariel was running around. Around Lariel were rugged-looking knights—.
『Young Master, please wait!』
Maids and knights were chasing after Lariel, who was running around laughing. Then, a still-young Bale caught Lariel and lifted them up.
『Lariel-sama, you mustn't trouble everyone.』
『Beiyu!』
『Ahahaha, it's Bale, Lariel-sama.』
Lisping. However, considering it was a child not even two years old, running around like that was impressive. The Seventh Head spoke to Lariel with a smile.
『You grew quickly back then. You were energetic, running about, and full of curiosity, racing through the estate.』
As Lariel looked embarrassed, they became a bit sad looking at the surrounding scenery. The people of the estate were directing smiles toward them.
『...When I was alive, you were certainly the heir. And everyone had expectations of you. And you had the qualities to match.』
The Seventh Head turned to Lariel.
『Now then, Lariel... shall we get to the main point?』
As Lariel and the Seventh Head faced each other, the surrounding scenery stopped time, turned gray, and crumbled away—.
――The next day.
"The enemy forces have abandoned their main camp and begun to flee!"
Maisel, who leaped up at the messenger's words, immediately issued orders while putting on equipment.
"Prepare for pursuit! I was careless. To think they would flee during the night... but if we push through to Lufence as we are, it shouldn't be a major problem... No!"
As subordinates hurriedly helped Maisel into their armor, the preparations were complete and Maisel stepped out of the tent.
Subordinates quickly gathered under Maisel.
"Maisel-sama, it seems the enemy has not yet managed to escape."
As Bale approached to report, Maisel shouted.
"Prepare my horse as well. The entire army will pursue them."
"B-but! Even if Maisel-sama does not personally join the pursuit..."
Maisel shot back at Bale's words.
"The enemy is this well-prepared. Once they return to their territory, they may have their defenses solidified. We cannot afford to pursue blindly. I don't believe we will lose, but our casualties would be great. We will pursue, and then withdraw."
Judging that any further would be dangerous, Maisel believed Lariel preferred formations biased toward defense. In fact, even after fighting, an offensive posture was rarely seen. If that were the case, they might have prepared extensively in their territory.
"If we get too far apart and my skill no longer reaches them, we will be the ones in danger. Do not forget that the enemy specializes in skills. Don't worry, it's just a light skirmish. I leave the guarding to you."
"Yes, sir!"
Under Maisel's orders, the army began to move for the pursuit. Horses were prepared, and as Maisel mounted, the vanguard entered the enemy camp and destroyed fences and the like. Defenses like fences and boards, which offered no resistance, were destroyed and burned.
And so, the Walt family army began the pursuit battle. The units that broke through the fortress and set out in pursuit found the fleeing enemy units.
Seeing the army fleeing in one direction from a distance, the forces began to move toward them. Fortunately, there were no shortcuts, so the commander judged that the opponent was not a decoy, and the army began to move.
Maisel also advanced, protected by guards.
However.
"Strange."
Maisel muttered this while looking at the surrounding scenery. The road, which was gradually narrowing, had been intentionally prepared. Additionally, the fleeing enemies showed no sense of tragedy. And there were few of them.
Turning to Bale, who was nearby, Maisel said,
"We're retreating. Any further is dangerous. Also, have the Magic Shields deployed."
It was the moment Bale was about to issue the order. A nostalgic sound of gunpowder exploding was heard. The sound that shook the air reminded them of their father, Broad. Furthermore, an explosion occurred behind Maisel and the others.
"What is happening!"
When Maisel looked back, the allies seemed unable to control their horses and could not stop. At this rate, they would be cut down if they tried to stop and change direction. Just by looking back, what they saw were two units stationed on high ground, firing guns at the rear of Maisel's forces.
"Guns!"
As Maisel shouted, Bale also shouted.
"Maisel-sama, please be careful—they've even brought out cannons!"
"Cannons? Why can't those be stopped!"
There was no one who could answer Maisel's question—.
――The hidden units.
Those two units were positioned to sandwich the path the enemy would pass. And they were firing guns so that the lines of fire intersected.
To avoid hitting their own allies, and to ensure the enemy was trapped on the intersecting lines of fire and unable to move. Magic Shields were deployed, but they continued to attack with cannons brought from Beim and improved guns. Moreover, it was a rain of bullets.
Gradually, they could no longer block everything, and casualties were increasing.
One of those units was commanded by Alette, who was happily set to be married.
Having borrowed a unit from Lariel and received guidance from her future husband, Baldor, she was commanding the unit armed with guns.
"Did you see that, soldiers of Banseime! This is the joint operation between me and my... husband!"
Then, the unit's adjutant sighed beside Alette. He was a squire of the Landburg family brought by Baldor, a man who had recently been promoted to knight. The reason such a man was beside Alette was that Alette was to become his master's wife.
"My lady, many of the soldiers you are currently leading are from Banseime, so please be careful with your words."
"S-sorry! N-no, that's not what I meant."
The adjutant shook his head and looked forward again.
"The division was successful. The cavalry's horses seem to be ignoring orders, startled by the noise. They couldn't stop suddenly and have pushed further ahead."
Alette cleared her throat ostentatiously and straightened her posture.
"Indeed. Just as planned. The enemy underestimates guns and cannons. By utilizing that, we'll pinch them—"
"That's incorrect. They only show effect if operated skillfully. Even now, we haven't defeated as many opponents as I thought."
Because Magic Shields were deployed, they weren't dealing as much damage to the enemy as expected. However, as a surprise attack, it was a huge success. The confused Walt family army began to recover and started dispatching soldiers toward Alette and Baldor's units.
"They're coming!"
As Alette tried to draw her sword, Eliza, mounted on a horse, rested her staff on her shoulder.
"You all continue the attack. We will ensure the enemy cannot approach."
On the opposite side, Glacia was protecting Baldor. And that was convenient for Lariel and the others.
Lariel's main force was about to charge the protruding, divided unit.
Eliza said,
"We'll keep the enemy divided. If we can take the head of the enemy general, this battle is our victory. Besides... I won't let anyone get in Lariel's way. Now, shall we begin?"
As Eliza pointed her staff toward the approaching enemy, arrows of ice generated around her. Their number exceeded several hundred, and when fired all at once, they pierced through the enemies' Magic Shields and stabbed into them one after another.
The counterattack of Lariel and the others had begun—.