Chapter 136: A Chaotic Battlefield (1)

Rick and Tommy soon occupied the fortress after defeating the defenseless Northern garrison. They quickly established their presence and began to descend south; they were aiming for the Capital of the Hildes Republic. 

This news shocked the Hildes Republic and was, naturally, passed on to Fuhrer Bahasten on the battlefield. He insisted that they should immediately send reinforcements at once to save the Republic. The enemy appeared in the North; that was the same thing as the enemy appearing right by the Capital.

However, the other two Fuhrers didn’t agree to sending the reinforcements. They believed it was the perfect opportunity to occupy a territory of the Strabus Kingdom now that the Northern Front had been destroyed. How could they agree to splitting the forces when they had been struggling and just barely managed to eke out a victory?

Fuhrer Schheimer of the Kobrook Republic in particular was vehemently against it. When the Eastern Front had been broken through and nearly destroyed, Fuhrer Schheimer had also insisted that reinforcements should be sent; however, that pleading hadn’t worked then. Although Siegfried managed to persuade the other two Fuhrers and led the reinforcements to deal with the situation, by then, it was too late and the Kobrook Republic’s defense line had almost all collapsed. There was already a precedent. There was no way Fuhrer Schheimer would allow reinforcements to be sent to deal with the crisis in the Hildes Republic when his own country’s crisis had been ignored. 

“Didn’t Siegfried save your country?”

“That’s because Siegfried argued that it was necessary to do so for the war. It’s a completely different situation from now!”

“How could it be different? My country has been invaded by the enemies!”

“Didn’t you say it was just a bit more than 5,000 men? You can’t even deal with that?”

“Don’t you know that my country has mobilized most of its forces for this war? In such a situation, 5,000 men is dangerous enough.”

Fuhrer Bahasten of the Hildes Republic and Fuhrer Schheimer of the Kobrook Republic seemed like they wanted to kill each other. Even if they were both Republicans, they were still ultimately, different countries. The most important thing was the safety and benefit of their own country and because of that, in such a serious situation, it caused a division between them. So far, whenever something like this arose, Siegfried had mediated and maintained the balance between them. But Siegfried was currently in the East dealing with Milton. Is this what they meant by too many cooks spoiling the broth? 

From the beginning, this alliance, in which all three of them had equal footing, had been shaky. No matter how much they argued, they couldn’t come to an agreement, until in the end, they decided to not send reinforcements. It wasn’t that Fuhrer Bahasten accepted that decision, but it had been decided through a majority vote. Fuhrer Bahasten had been the only one insisting that reinforcements should be sent, the other two Fuhrers didn’t agree with it. He couldn’t accept the decision, but there was nothing he could do. 

Fuhrer Schheimer said if Fuhrer Bahasten insisted on reinforcements being sent, then the entire army of the Hildes Republic might as well return back. Fuhrer Painheim of the Hanovirtue Republic agreed with Fuhrer Schheimer. But Fuhrer Bahasten couldn’t choose to do that. They had just broken through the Northern Front and were about to take over the Strabus Kingdom. If the Hildes Republic were to leave now, what should have been divided into three parts would be divided into two parts. It was clear that’s what the other two Fuhrers were aiming for, so how could he retreat now?

‘Those damn bastards…’

Fuhrer Bahasten gritted his teeth, but he had no other options. He quickly sent a message back to his country ordering to somehow defend the capital with the troops left behind. He also sent a messenger to Siegfried in the East explaining the current situation. 

‘It’ll be okay. Even if they’re occupying the back of the country, they only have 5,000 men. My country will be able to defend against them.’

Fuhrer Bahasten was drowning with anxiety but he tried to calm himself down. 

***

“What did you just say?”

Siegfried trembled when he heard the situation back in his homeland from the messenger sent by Fuhrer Bahasten. 

“Repeat that for me again.”

“Yes, sir. The enemy appeared in the back of our country. Information was delivered that the Capital is in danger.” 

Siegfried clenched his teeth in anger. He knew that the messenger in front of him was innocent, but for a second, Siegfried wanted to cut off his head. Usually, he was cold and logical, but right now, he felt a limit to his patience as he felt extremely angry. 

“What about reinforcements? How many reinforcements are they sending?”

If it was possible, it would be good to send the newly recruited O’Brian and deal with the situation back home. It was dangerous that the country had been invaded from the back; the Capital may even be temporarily captured. However, if they send just an additional 10,000 men with Duke O’Brian, then even if the Capital was captured, it would be possible to recover it. It was impossible not to suffer any damages, but Siegfried felt that this was the only way to lessen the damages. But, the messenger’s reply was like a bolt out of the blue for Siegfried. 

“It was decided not to send any reinforcements, sir. Instead, to use the troops still in the country to deal with…”

“Just who the hell gave that kind of an order!!”

The messenger’s knees buckled when Siegfried burst out of his seat shouting angrily. 

‘I’m… I’m gonna die.’

The messenger stopped breathing when he was faced with Siegfried’s, a Master, murderous intent. However, Jake managed to calm Siegfried down from the side. 

“Please calm down, My Lord.”

“……”

Seeing Jake standing in his way, Siegfried managed to find his deeply buried patience again. He knew it wasn’t like himself, but the current situation was as bad as it could get that it was difficult to maintain his composure. 

“Hoooo….”

Exhaling deeply, Siegfried calmed his rage down as much as possible. 

‘Let’s be rational. I have to be rational here.’

Considering his situation, even if he spat out blood, it was iffy whether his rage would calm down. But as long as it didn’t help the war, Siegfried had to continue to be rational.

“Messenger.”

“Sir? Hiccup please hiccup speak.”

Siegfried spoke calmly to the messenger who was stumbling over his words as he hiccuped. 

“Explain to me why they’re not sending reinforcements. And what exactly happened back in our country?”

At Siegfried’s question, the messenger told him everything he knew. By this point, the entire Republic knew that the three Fuhrers fought over this issue. Not only the officers, but rumors were spreading even amongst the regular soldiers. 

Siegfried gave a moan of distress once he had heard the explanation. 

“Ughhh…”

What exactly had gone wrong? How had it turned out like this? Upon consideration, Siegfried knew the answer. 

‘It was my mistake. I knew the Fuhrers could fall into disagreement and I…’

Even if their ideologies were  the same, the Republic Allied forces were still ultimately made up of three heads of states from different countries. Truthfully, Siegfried had wanted to lead this war himself, but Fuhrer Bahasten had wanted to participate in the war and the other two Fuhrers also expressed their intent to participate in the war. The other two Fuhrers feared that if Fuhrer Bahasten joined the Allied Forces alone, then their own authority would be reduced within the alliance. 

As long as Siegfried had been with the main army, it hadn’t been a problem.Even though Siegfried belonged to the Hildes Republic, he managed to control the three Fuhrers and avoid disagreements by giving them appropriate justifications, making lovely speeches and a common goal. And even before heading to the East in order to fight Milton, Siegfried had left behind instructions with his aide, David, to plan a counterattack on the Northern Front in case there was an issue with the main army. Even though it was a card in his hand, it all depended on how it was used. He had added the card to his deck just in case, but it worked out better than he had expected. Thanks to that, he had been able to create a dagger to carve out the heart of the Strabus Kingdom. 

In fact, Siegfried’s plan had destroyed the Northern Front of the Strabus Kingdom. He had thought that as long as he threw prey right in front of the three Fuhrers, then they wouldn’t fight with each other. But who knew that the enemy would appear from the north of the Hildes Republic? Even if he was peerless, Siegfried had never thought this would happen.

‘Just what kind of a crazy bastard thought up of that operation, no, that isn’t an operation. It was a gamble. A gamble that had a low probability for success…’

Even if the probability of success was low, as long as it succeeded, the results would be incredible. This was the third arrangement that Viscount Sabian had spoken of before. Milton had aggressively implemented that plan and left Rick and Tommy in charge of it and the two of them hit the jackpot and succeeded. Although the forces left behind in the Hildes Republic were only 5,000 men, the destructive power that those 5,000 could exert in the war was more than 50,000 no, even more than 100,000 men. Why?

“You said the orders were to have our country respond on our own?”

“Yes, that’s right, sir.”

“What was that?”

“They gave that order just as I left, sir. So about…”

“It’s too late to turn them around now.”

Siegfried looked solemn. Currently, the Hildes Republic had devoted most of its forces to the war. The only forces remaining within the country were the border guards facing the Lester Kingdom in the South. 

‘If Fuhrer Bahasten gave the order, then the border guards would be on the move by now. They’re an army that should never be moved…’

Even before this war had started, Siegfried had put in a lot of effort to defend the border from the Lester Kingdom. He had put in a lot of effort because Duke Sean Palan, a Master of the Lester Kingdom, was on the border. Duke Palan wasn’t someone who could be ignored, that’s why Siegfried had tried so hard to defend against him. But for the troops to leave…

Fuhrer Bahasten probably made that move hoping the enemies wouldn’t notice, but…

‘That idiot…’

A miracle like that would never happen. The army that appeared in the Northern part of the Hildes Republic were most likely the Lester Kingdom’s. In that case, it would have been discussed in advance. Duke Palan most likely led his entire army and began to attack the hildes Republic. Without the additional troops that had been moved to defend the Capital, would the border guards really be able to handle it?

‘They can’t. They really can’t…’

Even under normal conditions, the Northern Army led by Duke Palan was a strong enemy. There was no one left in the country who was talented enough to win against the enemy in the harsh conditions now. A smart person could see the future rather quickly. Whether that was a hopeful future or a future of despair…

Siegfried quickly realized something. 

‘My country can’t be saved.’

It wasn’t that he gave up easily. This was a conclusion that he had quickly come up with after accurately understanding the situation. If it was possible to save his homeland, of course Siegfried would have chosen the option to save it. However, there was no way it was possible. Although there were a few ways, rather than saving the country, they were the most foolish methods out of all the foolish methods. 

‘My country can’t be saved. And the outcome of this war will be very different from what I originally envisioned.’

Siegfried’s head suddenly cooled. Anger wasn’t helpful in this situation. He coldly got rid of his answer; this situation could only be overcome with reason. 

Tap tap tap tap tap

Siegfried quickly calmed down and sat tapping his fingers on the table. He sank into his thoughts.

The messenger was amazed as he looked at Siegfried. Not too long ago, he had thought he was in danger because of Siegfried, but now, Siegfried was calm. He was doubtful whether that Siegfried and the current Siegfried were the same person. That’s how much the atmosphere had changed.

‘He has amazing self-control.’

Jake subtly admired Siegfried as he watched from the side. Siegfried was a person who possessed miraculous resourcefulness and matchless strength.  But to Jake, the greatest thing about Siegfried was his willpower. Hiding his strength, his intellect, and his ambition while putting up with the humiliation. All of that was evidence of Siegfried’s willpower transcending that of a normal human. 

‘Willpower that can completely restrain and control him. My Lord was born with it.’

Although sometimes Siegfried seemed inhuman because of his cold-heartedness, Jake was convinced. Siegfried. Siegfried was the only one. Siegfried was one and only true king who could lead this chaotic world. Whether it was republicanism or monarchy, it didn’t matter. As long as Siegfried could rise to the peak of this world, such ideology wasn’t important. 

At least, that’s what Jake believed.