Chapter 561
I Always Trust Your Judgment. (1)
Count Biphenbelt had been closely monitoring the movements of the allied forces, even as he waged war against the Kingdom of Grimwell.
"The royal capital of our homeland has fallen."
Upon hearing the news brought by the messenger, Count Biphenbelt gave a nod.
It was expected. Though, the fall had happened faster than he had anticipated.
He turned to his adjutant and asked,
"Has the ritual been fully completed?"
"Yes, it has."
To be honest, Count Biphenbelt couldn't comprehend Gartros' actions. However, as a loyal vassal of Duke Leinster, he had no choice but to follow Gartros' stubborn insistence.
Because of that, the war had continued to drag on unfavorably.
That damned relic or whatever it was had already cost them too much time here. It was time to move.
Count Biphenbelt immediately went to see Gartros, intending to ask about their next course of action.
Gartros greeted him warmly and asked,
"Oh, Count Biphenbelt! What shall we do now?"
"……."
Until now, they had been strategizing and acting in order to fulfill the Salvation Church’s objectives. And yet, Gartros was now turning the question back on him.
After organizing his thoughts, Count Biphenbelt finally spoke.
"Is there nothing urgent left to do?"
"Now that we have the relic, our next step is to find our king."
"How do you propose we find him?"
"That, even we do not know. We failed to find a Guide in the Ritania Kingdom."
"……."
"But do not be too concerned. The relic is now in our hands, which means we will inevitably find the king. All we have to do is wait for that day to come."
"You're saying… we just need to wait?"
"Yes. Whether we find the king or the king finds us, it will happen eventually. That is prophecy, and it is what has been promised."
Count Biphenbelt sensed a contradiction in those words. After a brief moment of contemplation, he asked,
"The Kingdom of Grimwell and the Ritania Kingdom both possessed relics. Yet, despite having them for so long, they never met him. Can we really afford to simply wait?"
At that, Gartros chuckled amiably.
Had anyone else asked such an impertinent question, he might have crushed their skull on the spot. But Biphenbelt was one of the few who had the right to ask.
"Haha. Firstly, because the time had not yet come. And secondly, because they were unworthy."
"Time… and worthiness?"
"Indeed. They were not followers of our faith. Those who cannot even awaken the light of the relic have no right to meet him."
"……."
"And now, the king has finally appeared in this era. That means it is only a matter of time before we meet."
"……."
"I understand that it is difficult to grasp. Leave the matters of faith to me. You need only concern yourself with the war."
"Then… does that mean I can now focus solely on the war?"
"Yes, that’s right. Until we find the king, we must reduce those insolent allied forces as much as possible. Do as you see fit."
"Understood. I will begin preparations immediately."
Count Biphenbelt took a deep breath.
Until now, he had no choice but to steer the war in a direction that was clearly unfavorable.
But seeing Gartros speak like that, it seemed there was no longer a need to continue with such incomprehensible actions.
After all, even if the Salvation Church had presented another objective, they could no longer afford to delay matters. The allied forces were advancing toward them, regardless.
Count Biphenbelt immediately convened his strategists.
"What’s the situation?"
"The remaining lords of Grimwell have set up camp at a considerable distance and are standing by."
"And why aren’t they moving?"
"They’re likely waiting for the allied forces."
"Yes, that makes sense."
Since the enemy had focused solely on advancing toward the royal castle, many of Grimwell’s provincial lords still retained their forces. And as they gathered, they formed a considerable army.
They could have marched on the capital at any moment, but they remained still. That was because they had received word from Ghislain, instructing them not to act recklessly.
Given that the kingdom’s army had been swiftly overrun, they were hesitant to engage the Atrodean forces directly.
After staring at the map for a long moment, Count Biphenbelt spoke.
"The allied forces will be here soon as well. We must complete our preparations before then and move."
"What should we do?"
"The Duke of Fenris is said to be incredibly fast, isn’t he?"
"Yes, to the point that he’s rumored to be the fastest on the continent."
"The fastest on the continent… quite an exaggerated title."
Count Biphenbelt twisted his lips into a smirk before continuing.
"Aside from the Ritania forces, the rest of the enemy is nothing more than a ragtag bunch. We need to throw them into disarray."
He then revealed a new strategy to his strategists.
The Duke of Fenris had earned the title of the ‘Undefeated Sovereign’ and was now recognized as one of the most formidable strategists on the continent.
Mobile warfare, which relied on speed, was his specialty.
Count Biphenbelt intended to exploit that confidence.
"There’s no need to confront the enemy’s large army head-on. Even if we win, we’ll suffer heavy losses."
Though he was cooperating with the Salvation Church, his goals differed slightly from theirs. His loyalty was not to the Salvation Church but to Duke Leinster, who had ascended to the throne.
"This army exists for His Majesty. I will not waste it needlessly."
To conquer the continent, they had to preserve as much of their forces as possible.
"It’s time to reveal the ‘hidden blade.’ This war may well be the last."
He had been preparing for a long time.
It was thanks to those preparations that the Salvation Church had been able to wage war against the continent with so many rebel forces under its command.
Now was the time to stake everything and truly fight against the allied forces.
Count Biphenbelt’s eyes turned cold.
"Duke of Fenris, let’s see just how fast you really are."
* * *
The allied forces advanced toward the Kingdom of Grimwell as a unified front, their confidence soaring.
Ever since the Ritania forces had joined them, their once-chaotic chain of command had stabilized, and their victories had continued without interruption.
Upon arriving in Grimwell, Ghislain surveyed the surrounding area and frowned.
"They must have known their supply lines would be cut they stripped everything clean."
Wherever the Atrodean army had passed, they had left only devastation in their wake. They slaughtered indiscriminately and seized every resource available.
Since they had no intention of immediately occupying and governing Grimwell, they could afford to do this.
Corpses of the starving littered the land. Though many had survived the plague thanks to Ghislain, they could not withstand the military’s relentless plundering.
The expressions of the allied commanders darkened.
"This is too much."
"They really are demons."
"We should have hunted them down and slaughtered them long ago."
Even nobles, who often exploited their own people, did not go to such extremes.
To push people this far was no different from inviting mutual destruction.
Ghislain clicked his tongue and turned to Claude.
"Distribute food to the survivors."
"Understood."
The remaining lords of Grimwell were in no condition to take in refugees. They, too, were suffering from severe resource shortages due to the prolonged war.
As the relief efforts continued, Ghislain repeatedly called on Claude to assess the situation. Now that they had entered Grimwell’s territory, they needed to remain alert.
"What about the remaining lords of Grimwell?"
"They’ve established separate bases and are waiting for us."
Since Grimwell had once been a powerful kingdom, its lords still retained significant military strength. That was why they had managed to drive out most of the rebel forces that had sided with the Salvation Church.
However, the current situation was no longer something they could handle on their own.
"Tell them not to wait. Have them move toward us. We’re on our way as well."
There was no advantage in having them engage the Atrodean army alone. It was far better for them to join the allied forces and move together.
That way, the combined strength of the allied forces would grow even greater. They would be able to crush the Atrodean army with overwhelming force.
But the Atrodean army moved faster than expected.
As the allied forces advanced, urgent news arrived.
"The Atrodean army has made its move! They’ve split their forces and spread out in approximately ten different directions! Each unit is estimated to be around 20,000 to 30,000 strong!"
"The Grimwell lords who had been standing by were caught off guard and annihilated almost instantly!"
"We cannot determine their exact objectives or movements! They’re advancing at incredible speed! Our scouts are continuing to track them!"
Ghislain frowned at the continuous reports coming in, while the allied forces' high command fell into confusion.
"What the hell is going on all of a sudden?"
"They’re splitting their forces in front of an army this massive? Are they insane?"
"They must be running away! Perfect! Let’s hunt them down one by one!"
The allied commanders shouted in frustration, but Ghislain did not see things so simply.
‘Count Biphenbelt, what are you thinking?’
After staring at the map for a long time, Ghislain realized something.
‘Our supply lines… have stretched too far.’
The only reason the allied forces had been able to maintain such a large army amidst the chaos of war was because Ritania, with its high productivity, and the other still-functioning kingdoms had continued to support them.
Most of the neighboring kingdoms had already fallen under the allied forces’ control, so there were no enemies threatening their supply lines.
Still, to ensure security, they had established three separate supply routes, and the recently conquered Kingdom of Atrode was also expected to serve as a new supply hub.
However, the farther the allied forces advanced, the longer their supply lines inevitably became.
Ghislain had also been concerned about this issue.
‘Count Biphenbelt wouldn’t overlook such a weakness. Could this be what he’s aiming for?’
The enemy was facing the same supply difficulties. This meant their strategic options were limited.
Closing his eyes, Ghislain contemplated the situation. If he were in their position, what would he do?
‘Our side wants to end this in a single decisive battle…’
Both the allied forces and the Atrodean army had confidence in their main forces.
For the Atrodean army, suffering through a prolonged lack of supplies would be worse than forcing a swift, decisive battle.
But the enemy had not chosen that path. They had already split their forces and begun fighting.
Count Biphenbelt was someone who favored strategies similar to Ghislain's. That had to be taken into account.
‘If it were me in this situation…’
Ghislain always forced his enemies to move the way he wanted them to. He created situations where they had no other choice.
Having multiple supply lines meant the allied forces could keep their army well-fed, but it also meant there were more vulnerable points for the enemy to attack.
"Claude, what do you think our biggest weakness is right now?"
Claude swept back his hair and smirked arrogantly.
"If you and I are together, we’re ‘invincible.’ We have no weaknesses. Ah, war is so boring."
"……."
As Ghislain glared at him, Claude quickly bowed his head and started thinking more seriously.
With this level of military strength, finding a weakness seemed absurd. But if he had to point one out…
"Our army is massive, so our speed is slow. We won’t be able to chase down the divided enemy forces easily. And… our supply lines have become too long."
"And what do you think the enemy’s goal is?"
"They seem to be avoiding a direct confrontation. Since we’re an enormous army, if all our supply lines were cut off, we’d be in serious trouble."
Ghislain nodded. This was a strategy the weaker side would typically use.
But there was no way Count Biphenbelt was only aiming for something that simple.
From the start, the Salvation Church’s main forces were not weak enough to be dismissed. In a head-on clash, the outcome would be uncertain.
That meant their movements had a deeper purpose.
"Do you think that’s all there is to it?"
Claude immediately shook his head.
"They’re moving too obviously. Anyone who isn’t a complete fool would notice it. It seems like they’re trying to divide our forces and fight separate skirmishes in different regions."
Ghislain nodded again. It was exactly what he had been thinking.
Instead of a single decisive battle, they aimed to win multiple engagements over time.
‘They have plenty of superhuman warriors, so it’s a feasible plan.’
Once they regrouped after those victories, the Atrodean army would be even stronger.
Aside from the Ritania forces, the allied army wasn’t particularly strong.
‘They’ve set up a situation where we have no choice but to play along.’
It was easier said than done. If they weren’t careful, they could be defeated in detail, taken down one group at a time.
In reality, commanders were always reluctant to engage a larger force with a smaller one.
That alone made this strategy incredibly risky, but Count Biphenbelt had executed it without hesitation. That meant he had absolute confidence in its success.
‘To think he would bait us so openly.’
If they failed to respond correctly, Count Biphenbelt would take it one step further by throwing the allied forces into chaos and internal conflict.
The method was obvious. He would strike the allied forces’ homelands, where many of their troops had been pulled away. That would cause absolute mayhem.
This war would ultimately come down to who could move faster.
Having reached his conclusion, Ghislain smirked viciously.
‘You dare challenge me to a war of mobility?’
Of all possible strategies, they had chosen to challenge Ghislain at his greatest strength maneuver warfare.
This was both a trap and a provocation. They were laying all their cards on the table, daring him to try and stop them.
It seemed the enemy’s confidence had become excessive.