Chapter 6: Miscalculation
Translator: Skythewood
Editors: Darkdhaos, Ruzenor, Seir K
Pa.s.sing through a vineyard, they entered the forest.
This road that was covered spa.r.s.ely by trees ran through several hills, leading all the way to west Langobalt.
Stones and dried branches were scattered on the ground, twisted roots formed cracks on the tough surface of the ground.
For normal knights, the legs of the horses would be p.r.i.c.ked and they would fall easily. That’s how the road was.
However, as expected of the Belgaria Imperial First Army elite escort knights. They could move like the wind even on road conditions as terrible as this.
In the beginning, Regis was still worried.
— Is it fine for me to grab the Field Marshall Latreille, who is going to be the Emperor?
“Uwahh!?”
— I’m going to fall! I’m going to fall!
He felt it was terrifying when he rode on Altina’s horse… But that was nothing compared to this.
They maintained top speed.
And they were shaking intensely.
He couldn’t spare the effort to think. If he didn’t grab on tightly, he would fall.
If he fell onto the stone covered ground at this speed…
There were also many knights following behind. Will he fall to death, or get trampled to death?
There were several times when Regis felt that he couldn’t go on.
His hands were tired, and he was losing his grip.
— Ughh… Is this… the end?
When he was with Altina, he would sit in front of her most of the time. He could grab the head of the horse and hold on to its mane.
Although the horse might feel pain if he grabbed their mane.
As he was sitting behind, he could only hug onto Latreille tightly.
— So big.
Was it because of his armor? It made Latreille’s body feel larger and stronger than usual.
— So this is… the man who will become Emperor?
And this was an opponent he had to face.
Even though they were fighting on the same side now, once the Grebauvar campaign ends, Regis would revert back to his ident.i.ty as Altina’s strategist.
Since their political ideals were in conflict, they would have to stand on opposite sides.
Klang! His body was airborne.
“Uwah!?”
His body was floating up, and almost fell off the back of the horse.
He held on for dear life.
Even though he wasn’t running, his heart was pounding wildly. He kept panting as his body shivered.
Latreille kept his eyes to the front and said:
“Don’t fall now, Sir Regis.”
“Uwah!”
“There are several roads to the west of the fortress. From the intelligence we have on hand, there are routes to Langobalt, West Langobalt, and to the sea through the mountains.”
Seemed like Latreille had memorized the map of the surrounding area.
As expected of him. Regis wish Altina could learn that too.
“So why did you think it’s this route? The direction of escape is…”
The Queen of High Britannia definitely escaped through here — Regis thought
“I-It must be this road leading to West Langobalt.”
“Why?”
“Only this road is wide enough for a carriage to pa.s.s through.”
“It’s true that the other routes are pa.s.sable with horses, but not carriages. But what is going on here? They are using carriages?”
“Yes.”
“The queen needs to ride in a carriage? It’s difficult to understand. Even if the Queen can’t ride a horse, they could still bring her along anyway.”
“T-That’s right… But Queen Margaret must ride in a carriage.”
“Why are you so sure!?”
“During the battle with the Seventh Army, the Black Knights a.s.saulted them from the rear. The headquarters where the Queen of High Britannia had been positioned was in grave danger. Despite such a situation... She still sat in a prominent black carriage.”
“Maybe it will be different this time.”
“No…”
“Her staff officers will suggest that she should escape on a horse!”
“... If she was a Queen that could accept such suggestions, she wouldn’t have followed the army on this campaign, or occupied Grebauvar city.”
“Maybe her personality changes frequently, and she will willingly get onto a horse.”
‘That, is impossible.”
“How can you be so certain!?”
“... Even if she wants to ride a horse out of stubbornness, the people around her won’t think so.”
“Hmm!?”
“... They will think she is so afraid of the Imperial Army that she abandoned her carriages during her escape… That’s why.”
“Her pride huh. But that doesn’t change the fact that she is fleeing?’
“If there is another goal, it can be called a different approach. For example, they had to attack Fort Bonaire even though the Imperial capital was right before them… It was the same for their retreat.”
Latreille turned silent.
Regis was conjecturing the personality of the High Britannia Queen from past events.
She was someone who would never escape by herself on a carriage alone.
And if her staff officers could persuade the Queen, she wouldn’t have occupied Grebauvar city, but returned straight to High Britannia.
“If it is for her principles, it might be possible for her to stay in the fortress right? Even though the command authority is held by the King of Langobalt.”
“... If that is so, then our action this time will just be wasted.”
“Fu, you made me go so fast, only to return empty handed?
“The odds of capturing the Queen of High Britannia is equally high though?’
“That’s true.”
An earth shaking sound came from behind them.
Latreille merely glanced back for a moment.
“Hmm!? What happened!?”
“... That should be the activation of the final device.”
“Unleashing the flood? What kind of effect would it actually have? Is it really powerful enough to decide the battle?”
“... Probably.”
Regis only read about it from a book and was enacting this tactic for the very first time.
If the things recorded in the books were different from the real thing, maybe the amount of water held back by the dam won’t be enough to defeat the enemy completely.
And at that point, even though they have the high ground, the exhausted knights corps would probably have a hard fight before them.
That was why they built a wall downstream too.
If the water flooded the first level of the fort, it would be impossible for the enemy to hold on for long. So in the end, they could definitely take back Grebauvar.
A sharp whistle came from the front.
That was something used by the First Army.
“Found them!”
That was the whistle of the scouts who moved ahead.
Latreille spurred on his horse to go faster.
There was a right turn in front. The body of the horse tilted completely to the right, so far they even touched the branches to the side.
“... Uh!?”
Pip, the leaves. .h.i.t Regis in the face.
He wanted to twist his body to the left out of fear, but he would probably lose his balance and fall if he did that, it was very dangerous.
When he rode with Altina, she mentioned ‘Don’t move if you don’t want to die’.
Regis grit his teeth and steadied his body.
His field of vision widened.
In front of the narrow strait of road—
He could see the figure of soldiers who had their rifle at the ready.
It was the High Britannia riflemen!
Regis exhaled from shock and froze.
Latreille drew his sword.
“Break through!”
He sped up instead.
The knight escorts roared and charged after him.
At the same time, gunshots rang out.
“... Huff.”
His breathing was ragged.
Oswald Coulthard swung his blade.
The Imperial Knights were wearing armor. The sword went through the gap under the armpit and pierced his heart.
“Arghh!?”
The Belgarian Knight twisted, and fell off his horse.
Oswald pulled his reins and drew near the black carriage.
“Queen Margaret, please come this way!”
The High Britannian Queen was sitting in a light carriage for two. It wasn’t a box type, but closer to a couch being covered on the sides and front, and wheels mounted onto it. It was small enough for a human to pull it, but a horse was drawing it. This was called a cabriolé, a two wheeled carriage drawn by one horse.
Queen Margaret Steelart curled her knees and sat on the couch.
She flicked her hair a little unhappily.
“Ara ara, Oswald, can you help me? My hair is a mess. Where did I leave my comb?”
“... My deepest apologies. Can the elegant Queen Margaret please bear with this?”
“You are always like this. Always. You are going to become Mr Fish again okay?’
“... I am very sorry… The knights that attacked us are probably scouts… I think their main forces are pursuing us.”
“Fufu… How troubling? Is this the end of the road?”
“It is just as the wise Queen Margaret says. Please ride on the horse over here!”
Margaret smiled.
She crossed her arms, pushing up her bountiful b.r.e.a.s.t.s. As her clothes were rather thin, the round shapes could be seen clearly.
“I refuse.”
“... I understand.”
Oswald backed down, he probably expected such an answer.
Normally, even if the two of them shared a ride, there was no telling that they could escape. That was how fast the Belgarian riders were.
Oswald wasn’t wearing armor, Margaret probably weighed less than the full plate armour worn by the Imperial hors.e.m.e.n.
However, the horses were different.
Even the best horse in Grebauvar couldn’t match the horses of his adversary.
Or rather, as expected of the Imperial First Army.
Gun reports rang out behind him.
This was the ambush team he deployed along the route firing.
— They got here so fast.
This was a mean of stalling for time. If this could stop the enemy, make them wary and advance slowly, maybe he could escape…
What little expectation Oswald had was shattered so simply.
The sound of the hooves drew near.
“... I know war doesn’t always go as we wish… But this is it. Everyone, please hold them back.”
They were being hunted, and it seemed he had braced himself for the fact that they couldn’t escape.
He couldn’t surrender.
If the horse that was running at full speed gets. .h.i.t, it won’t end so easily with just a heavy injury. He couldn’t let Margaret take any risk.
And since he couldn’t escape, it would be better to issue an easy to accomplish task to the escorting guards.
Oswald issued one order after another quickly.
“The twenty soldiers behind get down from your horses and go into the forest! If anyone comes near Her Majesty, shoot him! But don’t shoot the enemy commander!”
The soldiers at the rear rank obeyed the order, dismounted and hid in the forest with their rifles.
“The soldiers further back are to form road blocks, three to a team! If you see any pursuing enemies, aim for the horse head!”
The heavy armored knights stood to the side. She was First Lieutenant Glenda Graham.
“Sir Oswald! I will buy us some time!”
“My deepest thanks, Glenda. But please don’t push yourself.”
“Yes Sir! But how did the Imperial forces notice us?”
When Oswald realized the scheme of the Belgarians, he estimated the time when the citizens would escape, and use that chance to withdraw.
This should be the time when the enemy’s attention on the fortress was the weakest.
As they had travelled quite some distance before the enemy caught up, the chances of them noticing right at the start was low.
They only noticed after the fact.
And there were several routes to the west of the fortress.
Why did they notice that we picked this route? Or did they send soldiers down the other paths too?
— If the pursuers are few in number, we can fend them off…
The Imperial knights appeared behind them.
They were in a single file, so Oswald couldn’t tell their exact numbers. But from the sound of the hooves, there were quite a number, not just a dozen or two.
— Which meant the opponent saw through the fact that Oswald would choose this route.
It was going to be a melee battle.
The Imperial riders thrust out their lances.
“Hyaaahhhh——!!”
The guards started to engage.
The one shooting from on top of the horse was Glenda who was wearing heavy armour with several rifles on her back and on the horse.
“How can I let you b.a.s.t.a.r.ds reach Sir Oswald!”
The bullet pierced the breastplate of the Imperial soldier.
He fell with a scream.
However, Imperial soldiers emerged from behind him one after another.
She shot the loaded rifle, dropping it after she fired and picked up another loaded rifle to shoot.
The bullets flew out.
And hit.
But the enemy didn’t stop.
The Belgarian hors.e.m.e.n weren’t stopping. They came closer and thrust their lances.
“Woahhhh—!!”
“Ugh…!?”
Glenda ditched her rifle and held a pike.
And thrust.
She dodged her opponent’s attack and thrust at the same time. Aiming for the side of the rider’s abdomen.
She hit!
“Gah… Glory to the Empire… Ah.”
With a slurred sound, he grabbed onto his enemy’s pike — Glenda’s pike. And from behind this man, another rider appeared.
— I can’t pull the pike back!
Glenda let go and drew the sword on her waist.
“Die!!”
She slashed.
She knocked away the Imperial soldier’s lance — and stabbed his throat — Or that was how it should be.
She hit the lance with enough force to break the sword, but her opponent’s lance kept thrusting at her.
The personal combat ability of the Imperial First Army was higher than Glenda expected.
“What!? … Guu!?”
The side of her abdomen was hot.
As if her organs were burning.
— But I can still fight!
She slashed at her opponent’s neck.
But her opponent was going far away from her.
“Eh?”
She finally noticed, it wasn"t the enemy pulling away, she was the one who fell.
Her vision tumbled.
Glenda gripped her sword and fell to the ground. Head first.
A dull crunch came from her neck. She wouldn’t move ever again.
The Belgarian hors.e.m.e.n stepped over the fallen bodies and charged at the carriage where the High Britannia Queen was.
Latreille’s horse was in the middle of the formation.
Regis gave out instructions:
“There should be an ambush in the forest! Stop them from firing!”
Some of the riders dismounted and entered the forest.
Gun shots were fired.
Followed by death throes.
The soldiers ambushing in the forest were subdued quickly.
They just needed to capture the High Britannia Queen and the mission would be accomplished.
Even so, twenty Imperial soldiers still fell.
Latreille spurred his horse forth.
Onto the road in the forest.
The sun was about to set, and the surroundings were dark.
All the High Britannia troops hiding in the forest had been dealt with by the Belgarians.
With the advance and retreat path blocked, the High Britannians were completely surrounded.
In the middle of the encirclement was a black two wheeled carriage that appeared very high cla.s.s. As the path ahead was blocked, it had stopped.
And before that carriage were the corpses of several Imperial soldiers.
One man was standing in front to protect the Queen.
“Huff… Puff…”
He even lost his horse.
His sword was full of c.h.i.n.ks.
But that man was still standing.
He was the de facto commander of the High Britannian forces, Oswald Coulthard.
A faint smile was on his face.
Latreille rode forth from the midst of his knights.
He looked down from his horse.
“Fu… You actually defeated so many of my elite soldiers… Looks like High Britannia has excellent knights too.”
“... And you are the Field Marshall of the Belgarian Empire, Prince Allen Deux Latreille de Belgaria, correct?”
“Yes.”
“I am humbled by your presence. I am Colonel Oswald Coulthard of the High Britannian army.”
Regis was still seated behind Latreille.
He leaned to the side of Latreille and looked at Oswald.
— So this is Colonel Oswald Coulthard.
He was thinner than Regis imagined. He was about Regis’ height. Maybe it was his gentle smile, Regis couldn’t tell that he was that strong.
There was no doubt that he was an extraordinary swordsman.
Latreille nodded.
“Oswald Coulthard… I heard this name many times during this war. So you are the right hand man of Queen Margaret, and the de facto commander of the High Britannia forces?”
“... Preposterous. The perfect Queen Margaret doesn’t need any right hand man, and Her Majesty is not a soldier. And it is impossible for a mediocre person like myself to command an army.”
“Fu… Then who devised the numerous vicious schemes?”
“You are calling them vicious? On the battlefield, those with powerful sword and spears using strength and techniques to slaughter those weaker than them are undoubtedly just… But for the weak to devise plans to defeat one’s foe is wrong, inhumane and unscrupulous… Is that what your Highness wants to say?”
Even though Oswald paused often during his speech, he kept on going.
Latreille shrugged.
“I am not refuting the use of tactics. But forcing your subordinates to blow themselves up and using citizens as shields are too vicious.”
“In that case, issuing the orders to charge where people will definitely die, imposing heavy taxes where many will starve to death, what about them? Are they vicious?”
No matter what, both sides would result in casualty.
But Latreille answered unhesitantly.
“Wrong — Those who die in a charge were not good enough. It was neither the training nor the talent, but they’re just not lucky enough. It’s the same for the citizens. The world isn’t so gentle that you can die happily on your deathbed if you work seriously. Farmers, merchants and soldiers are all the same… Doing all they can and squeezing all their wits to live on, but they couldn’t survive without luck. That was what living means — But issuing suicide missions to soldiers and holding captured citizens as shields, what else can you call it other that vicious?”
“I see… As expected of the brilliant Prince Allen de Latreille. I am convinced.”
“I answered your question though? So you should answer mine. Were you the one who devised all those unscrupulous tactics?”
Oswald nodded.
“It was all planned by me.”
“... Is that so. Your morales might be vague, but your brilliance does shine. It will be a pity to kill you here. Why not work for me?”
The soldiers around him were in an uproar.
It was rare to see someone recruiting the de facto commander of an enemy nation.
Oswald smiled faintly.
“... I am fortunate enough to serve Queen Margaret the glorious. It brings me the greatest joy, and I have never thought about letting this go.”
When they heard that name, Latreille and the other soldiers all cast their gaze behind Oswald.
The person sitting on the two wheeled carriage was Queen Margaret.
Such carriages should have attendants, but they have either abandoned the carriage and ran, or got killed in battle. In any case, Margaret was seated there alone.
After meeting the eyes of Latreille, Margaret tilted her head.
“Oh… You are like a young lion, Prince Latreille.”
“I am standing before you as the Field Marshall of the Belgarian Army, Queen of High Britannia.”
“Fufufu, what a frightening look. Are you going to kill me? I am about to be killed… How scary.”
“I would have ordered for the arrows to be loose if I wanted to kill you. I will imprison you. That way, the High Britannia Kingdom would be more inclined to negotiate.”
Margaret pouted.
“Ara ara, a great nation like Belgaria would do something like holding hostages? How small minded. I am disappointed.”
“Making a fool disappointed can be considered a compliment.”
“... A fool? Perchance, are you referring to me?’
“Compared to the surrounding countries, High Britannia possessed such overwhelming technological advantage. Despite holding such a good hand of cards, you ended up like this. You will go down on the list of foolish monarchs.”
“Fufufu… Ara, that’s right.”
“Surrender if you cherish your life. If you wish for an honorable death, I advise you to surrender instead. If I have to cross swords with you, I guarantee you will have a horrible ending that befits your foolish ways.”
“... Pfft… Pfft ha… Ahahahahaha!”
Margaret laughed shrilly.
Why was she laughing?
Even Latreille was baffled.
“... What happened? Is she…? Has she gone mad?”
The knights took a step back as if they just saw a monster.
Regis muttered.
“No, she is just névrose du narcissistic.”
“Huh!?”
Latreille turned his head.
With the powerful Oswald before him, turning his head is really dangerous — Regis thought.
“Can I come down?”
With the help of the Knight escorts, Regis got down from Latreille’s horse.
He was just ten paces away from Oswald.
It was a bit far to hold a conversation, but when he thought about the fallen knights at his feet, Regis didn’t want to go closer.
“... Queen Margaret yearned to be a ‘special existence’. And is deeply convinced that she is ‘special’. I think that even in such a situation, you are still hoping sincerely to be ‘special’.”
He twisted his b.u.t.t as he said that. Because of the intense ride for an hour, his b.u.t.t felt a stinging pain.
Margaret smiled wryly and said:
“Fufufu… You said something interesting. Who are you?”
“... Nice to meet you. I am Fifth Grade Admin Officer Regis Auric—”
“He is the strategist Regis d’Auric.”
Latreille corrected him.
Regis scratched his head fearfully.
“Well… That’s my position. I am seconded temporarily to the First Army as the Fourth Army’s strategist.”
Oswald looked surprised.
Regis’ appearance must look surprising to him.
He was a famous strategist in the Empire after all, so Oswald was probably expecting a more imposing figure.
“I see… So it’s you… No wonder our escape route was seen through.”
“... Yes. By a.n.a.lyzing the personality of the High Britannia Queen, this would be the result.”
As the possibility that they escaped by other routes weren’t zero, several soldiers were dispatched down those paths too.
It appears they would be making an empty trip.
Margaret said very happily:
“Ara? Since this is the first time we met, what do you know about me?”
“... As your authority over High Britannia is strong enough to declare war on other states, I can deduce the character of the ruler from the country’s policies. On top of that, I could tell from the movement of the unit in this war too.”
“Oh, and so?”
“... The actions of Queen Margaret… thinks of herself as special, believes deeply that she is extraordinary, all these are based on her narcissism. The tendency of such a person is to speak in overconfident tones, and always seeking praises from others. For example, she would keep someone who always compliments her by her side.”
“......”
Margaret looked Oswald’s way.
Regis continued:
“As she is always seeking praise from others, she is not concerned with the feelings of others. She will easily think of extremist ideals and set unrealistic goals. — Using the forces of an island nation to attack the Empire that is the strongest of the continent.”
“Fufufu… How fascinating. Are you saying I have an illness?”
“Yes. In other words, Queen Margaret’s personality is a ‘common’ thing in the discussion of scholars. You just happen to be royalty.”
“... What did you say?”
The smile vanished from Margaret’s face for the first time.
Regis shrugged.
“Although research in this field is just beginning, it will take some years before such a branch of study is recognized.”
And if it is not acknowledged as academia, it won’t be widespread as a discipline among the n.o.bles.
“Someone like me… is actually… common!?”
“Correct. However, even though this is an illness, it doesn’t require treatment… It’s just that your action, speech and values will have a certain tendency— just to that extent. The serious cases will have trouble in everyday life. It’s written in the books, for example, the symptoms include a huge gap in understanding the situation, or inability to hold a conversation with others.”
Margaret averted her eyes.
“I’m thirsty. I want to have some tea.”
“... Eh?”
The topic changed suddenly.
She chuckled.
“I am tired of such long talks. This should be enough right? The conclusion has been reached.”
“...No, the conclusion isn’t out yet. Diverting your attention elsewhere in a middle of a conversation isn’t proof of a brilliant mind and quick wittedness. This is simply the lack of ability to think. As your thinking is too shallow, you won’t be able to discover new ideas, and will reduce the stimulation to your brain.”
“What!?”
“If you desire more knowledge, you can deduce more things from one example, and raise more questions that are worthy of contemplation. If you are tired of it after such a short time, it just proves that you are lacking in your studies.”
“Tch! You are… treating me like a fool again…”
Her voice was quivering.
Margaret who was lying elegantly on the couch all this while had a scowl of anger on her face.
She gritted her teeth.
Regis didn"t back down.
“... Ostracizing those who don’t acknowledge your value… Refusing to put in the hard work and always craving for simple compliments. Bestowing an unrealistic ideal to the citizens, flaming their delusion and starting a reckless war… And the result is the death of many lives.”
“Is that so? It’s a war that would be recorded in the history books after all. It’s only natural that people will die.”
“... Recorded in history? Well, maybe a line or so.”
“Ehh?”
Margaret looked shocked.
‘... Have you studied history properly? Not recent history, but the books chronicling the founding of your nation until present times. Although High Britannia will restart the count whenever a new monarch is coronated, but we still know that it has been 300 years since the current government system has been formed. Do you know how many wars were waged during that period? Exactly 100 years ago, there was a war. You remember who the opposing nation was?”
“H-How can I remember all of that?”
“It was the Belgarian Empire.”
“...!?”
“The Belgarian Empire back then expanded its front lines, and even started a war against High Britannia beyond the ocean. In the end, they retreated with the worsening of the eastern front lines. Even though the territory didn’t increase or decrease, and the sovereignty didn’t change… It was still an important event for the people back then… However, the history books barely made any mention of this incident, and would just write a couple of lines when it is mentioned occasionally. Ah, I haven’t read too many history books on High Britannia, so I don’t know how your nation treated this incident… Looks like Your Majesty didn’t know either?”
“A-Are you saying that this war will be treated like that in the end too?”
“If you had learned history properly, you wouldn’t even need to ask this.”
“But… How could it be… Because… I started the war!”
“For the long flow of history, this is just a common scene. Even approaching it from the military perspective, the High Britannia Kingdom still lost, so the argument that ‘this war was the key to the era of knights changing to the era of rifles’ will not be convincing. After all, the Empire won— Many leaders would think that way. In order to change archaic values, a major event with no room for debate will be needed.”
“......”
Margaret turned silent.
Oswald sighed.
“... You are really harsh.”
“You already know all this, right? Because you knew, that’s why you could manipulate Her Majesty. Is this all for your desire to make it big?”
“Not at all. I just want to serve Her Majesty.”
“... Why are you doing this? Fulfilling her misguided wish would just worsen her immature thinking, you should understand that.”
“Even the parts of her that are broken are lovely in my eyes.”
His smile remained unchanged.
Regis felt a chill on his back. When he thought of the fact that this man is the commander of a national army, his back felt even colder.
“For that to actually…”
Regis could only sigh.
Latreille stepped forward.
“I understand the reasons now. I admire your competency in military strategies… But I can’t recruit a deviant like you who leads your nation to ruin. If you will not back down, I will not show mercy.”
He dismounted and drew his treasure sword.
The knight escorts around him were in an uproar.
“Field Marshall, leave this to us!”
“This guy is too dangerous!”
“Please let us handle this!”
Latreille went closer to Oswald.
“In the war with High Britannia, many soldiers died because of my immaturity in tactics. I can’t let good men die anymore.”
Latreille faced off against Oswald.
“That’s what you want, right?”
“Although you know that, you are still indulging me with a duel… As expected, the personalities of Belgarian royals are all very interesting.”
Regis sighed.
Even though Latreille was calm and acted maturely, he was Altina’s older br