Chapter 626

“Transporting infantry with wooden carriages?”

Upon receiving the report from the mobile siege unit’s messenger, Orhan realized his first strategy had failed.

The eastern siege strategy, which aimed to create localized superiority by leveraging mobility differences, had its premise undermined as the gap in mobility had drastically narrowed.

While carriages and cavalry couldn’t move at the same speed, making immediate responses difficult, it was now fast enough to deploy reinforcements while the existing defensive forces held the barrier. And indeed, that’s what happened.

‘They’ve already countered… faster than expected. I never thought the Empire’s cavalry tactics, so rigid and outdated, would come up with such an idea.’

The idea of dismantling cavalry units, useless in defensive warfare, and repurposing them as transport units.

A simple tactic, but not one the Empire, obsessed with the notion of cavalry as a grand charge force, would typically conceive.

‘Is this Hasarl’s doing? That kid always carried slaves in carriages before.’

Orhan pinpointed the mastermind behind the tactic. The Hasarl he knew and the current Hasarl were entirely different people, so it was more like a stroke of luck than anything.

“The primary plan has failed… Ludwig doesn’t seem interested in a full-scale battle. What shall we do, Kagan? If this continues, our soldiers and horses won’t last long without starving.”

Giran Glar, the war chief of the Black Army, calmly reported the unfavorable situation.

As Ludwig had guessed, the Ai-shan’s supply capacity couldn’t sustain tens of thousands of troops without plunder.

While there were still reserves, if this turned into a prolonged war, maintaining the army would become difficult.

This wasn’t due to Orhan’s lack of capability but a fundamental limitation of the Ka’har civilization.

A culture that excessively idolized the warrior class, despising men who wielded farming tools instead of weapons, and viewing agriculture as slave work, leaving no room for large-scale farming development.

Even for Orhan, who unified the grasslands, changing the Ka’har’s centuries-old mindset was impossible.

“No problem.”

However, Orhan smiled, dispelling Glar’s concerns. Though it was more like a predator baring its teeth than a smile.

“They’ll either die in battle before starving or become victors, filling their bellies with the enemy’s provisions.”

“Are you saying…!”

Understanding Orhan’s meaning, Glar smiled similarly to his lord.

“Indeed. It’s time to end this lukewarm skirmish.”

Orhan never considered a prolonged war. He knew well that the longer it dragged on, the more disadvantaged they’d become.

‘So the mobile siege strategy failed? So what? It was a strategy that anticipated Ludwig’s countermeasures from the start.’

What surprised Orhan was the Empire’s unexpectedly swift response and its peculiar method, not the fact that they countered.

“They see through us. They must know we’ve dispersed sixteen thousand troops across the barrier. To stop them, they’d need to deploy over ten thousand elite soldiers.”

Dispersing over ten thousand enemy troops across the barrier. That was Orhan’s true aim. There was another plan, but that was only a contingency in case of defeat.

In a war where numbers directly equate to combat power, such a strategy might seem foolish, but times have changed, and old strategies are now mere outdated theories.

Heroes capable of slaughtering thousands alone. Their emergence has bizarrely altered the nature of war, and Orhan, as Ka’har’s strongest hero, felt this more clearly than anyone.

“As the scale of combatants shrinks, the influence of the strong grows. When both sides are reduced to about twenty thousand, this war becomes a battle of heroes, not soldiers. The Empire’s heroes and the grasslands’ heroes will decide the war’s outcome.”

If the enemy numbered forty thousand, even defeating all the Empire’s heroes would leave them overwhelmed by the remaining forces. But with only twenty thousand, defeating the hero-level forces would suffice.

After twenty-eight thousand Imperial troops and twenty-three thousand grassland troops clash, the remaining forces would be less than eight thousand. That’s a number hero-level forces could overwhelm with their remaining strength.

“Inform all troops. The time has come to decide the grasslands’ fate. Prepare for death with swords and spears in hand.”

“Yes!”

Glar saluted Orhan and left the barracks to relay the Kagan’s orders to the waiting officers. Prepare for a total offensive.

An hour later, twenty-three thousand grassland troops marched toward the center of the Berengeiria Wall.

======[ Hasarl ]======

“Orhan will mobilize all remaining forces for a decisive battle. No, he has no other choice. Without a miracle, he can’t sustain tens of thousands of troops for long.”

Truly, as he said.

I looked down at the tens of thousands of troops swarming toward the barrier like clouds, recalling Ludwig’s words. He said the enemy’s total offensive would begin within days, so be prepared.

And indeed, it did. Just three days after Ludwig mentioned it, Ka’har’s total attack began.

“Advance! Keep moving forward, keep killing! Show the westerners hiding behind stone walls the power of the grasslands!”

“For the glory of Ai-shan!”

“The conqueror of the Great Plains, the Kagan of the Sky, Ai-shan Gi-or Orhan is with us!”

Eighteen thousand White Army troops, about three thousand Blue Army troops, and two thousand of the personal guard. The entire enemy force was charging, shouting for the grasslands to part.

Instead of the cavalry symbolizing Ka’har, they marched on two legs, holding round shields above their heads to block the rain of arrows.

Behind them came the siege engines they had built. Catapults, siege towers, and mobile ladders.

The siege towers were particularly impressive. Dozens of meters high, they slowly approached, feeling like wooden apartments moving toward us.

I couldn’t even begin to guess how much timber was used to build them.

‘This is ridiculous. Weren’t you a horse-riding people?’

[The grasslands have trees too.]

…That’s not the point. As a horse-riding people, you should charge on horses, not bring siege engines like this. I couldn’t help but laugh.

Though the siege towers were made of wood, they were covered with water-soaked leather, making fire arrows useless. Only magic could burn them down…

Unfortunately, that was impossible. Ludwig had tied up all the magical forces for other tasks, so not a single drop of mana could be wasted. Me too.

‘Even if we defeat Orhan, the losses will be huge…’

[Save the unnecessary worries. We can’t even be sure of defeating Orhan, so why worry about troop losses now?]

…Fair point.

I spat out the cigarette I was chewing over the barrier and stretched. The Winter Armor’s scales clinked, emitting a metallic sound.

The Black Iron Scales damaged in the last battle were replaced with steel, so the defense wasn’t as good as before, but it was better than nothing.

When fighting in armor, higher defense is always better.

—-

– Kwaaaaang!

The battle that would decide the east’s future began with the roar of both sides’ catapults.

During the skirmish, Ka’har’s catapults had launched corpses, but now, with the real battle starting, they hurled massive boulders.

Each time a rock projectile arced and struck the barrier, thunderous sounds shook the ground beneath us. Despite the immense impact, the Berengeiria Wall showed no visible damage, but I doubted that would last.

No matter how unbelievably sturdy, it was still a wall made of cut stone. Continuous impacts would eventually start breaking it. Unless Orhan’s body was used to build the wall.

Moreover, with each catapult strike, the troops’ morale visibly dropped.

The 3rd Corps, having experienced the Einfeldt battle, merely frowned, but the 2nd Corps, with many new recruits, turned pale and trembled.

“Do not fear! The blessing of Berenger will not break against such attacks! Centuries of history prove this!”

Knights in charge shouted everywhere, rallying the troops.

“Do not kneel! Soldiers of Kal Ros kneeling before the enemy? I’ll kick anyone who shows such disgrace off the barrier myself!”

Some even resorted to threats rather than encouragement.