When I was working as a civil servant, I was found out to be a muscle-brained knight by the princess knight and got sent to the front lines - Episode 36

Episode 36

“What? Elliot is dead?”

On the night when the advance of the monster army was halted by the cavalry charge of the finally engaged 10th Legion, a military council was held in the tent of the field encampment constructed along the highway from Bastiona to Kohane.

During the daytime battle, the assault cavalry unit of the 10th Legion, which had attacked the enemy’s massive force, broke through the enemy lines as if piercing through the heart of the enemy. In response to the chaos caused by this assault and the division of enemy forces, the infantry units of the 10th Legion, along with the 7th and 9th Legion, simultaneously unleashed magical attacks. As a result, the enemy’s front line temporarily fell into complete disarray. Furthermore, the cavalry unit led by Serena, which crossed through the heart of the enemy, launched another assault, completely halting the advance of the monster army. Seizing this opportunity, the Tashman Kingdom forces retreated in an orderly manner towards Kohane. They successfully regrouped their troops in the field encampment previously constructed by the 10th Legion.

And so, the night’s military council commenced. Present at this council were Maria Valenti, the interim commander of the 9th Legion, Ethan Morris, the commander of the 2nd Regiment of the 7th Legion, and senior officers including Serena Castillo, the commander of the 10th Legion. Serena received a detailed briefing from Maria on the situation of the past week and was shocked by Elliot’s death.

“Yes. We have received reports that Commander Elliot fell in battle against the Orc Emperor after slaying the Orc King. At that time, he also destroyed the Orc Emperor’s arm and weapon,” Maria explained in detail once again, causing Serena to exhale deeply and offer silent prayers. Observing her, the other senior officers also offered their prayers silently.

After a while, with a firm expression, Serena opened her eyes and gazed at the assembled generals with a strong gaze. “Let’s mourn later. We can’t waste the time Elliot has bought us.”

They proceeded to discuss their future strategy. There were three main issues at hand:

The first was allowing the enemy’s advance to reach near Kohane. If this continued, there was a risk of the enemy’s massive army penetrating deep into the Tashman Kingdom. Currently, due to the terrain of the highway, the enemy forces were relatively cohesive in their actions, but allowing further intrusion would make the sweep operation much more difficult.

The second issue was the number of enemy forces. Currently, with the three corps of the 7th, 9th, and 10th totaling about 8,500 soldiers, they were facing an enemy force of approximately 90,000. Even considering the advantage of terrain, the force ratio was dangerously close to even. While the possibility of victory was high, continuing the battle as it was would lead to a war of attrition for both sides. If Serena could use her strategic-level magic, this difference in numbers would not be a problem.

The third issue was the Orc Emperor. After Alex of Elliot’s suicide squad confirmed its presence, the whereabouts of the Orc Emperor became unknown. Even if Serena could use strategic-level magic to annihilate most of the enemy, if she and the 10th Legion were ambushed by the Orc Emperor after exhausting their magical power, it would spell disaster. Usually, there was no need to consider such tactics against the usual monster army, but considering the reports so far, the Orc Emperor that appeared this time was highly likely to employ such tactics.

Given this, they couldn’t use strategic-level magic casually. They couldn’t afford to show any openings to such an opponent. Serena, feeling somewhat frustrated, thought, “If only I could use strategic-level magic, I would wipe out this horde of monsters in half a day. However, no matter how I simulate it, with the current strength and disposition, I can’t find a way to suppress the enemy’s large army while defeating the Orc Emperor, or conversely, annihilating the enemy army before defeating the Orc Emperor.”

Maria, Ethan, and the others participating in the military council proposed various ideas, but none of them were sufficient. If they continued like this, they would have to face the enemy’s massive army head-on again tomorrow, leading to further attrition.

Serena considered calling in the 3rd Regiment of the 7th Legion, which was the last remaining in Kohane, but it was unthinkable to completely evacuate Kohane, a key city in the south. Moreover, there was a possibility of enemy flanking movements and other factors to consider. Wondering what to do, Serena ultimately asked, “You’ve also sent a message to Graysian, right?”

And after confirming once again with Maria and Alex, Serena, seeing their nodding, said, “Then we have no choice but to wait for René. If everything goes smoothly, will they arrive by tomorrow evening at the earliest?”

Considering the positions of Bastiona, Graysian, and the current location where Serena and her group were deployed, messengers who had left towards Graysian after participating in Elliot’s suicide squad would have delivered urgent reports to Graysian. If René swiftly deployed her troops and even sent ahead a cavalry unit, they should arrive in this vicinity by tomorrow or the day after.

Despite numerous uncertainties, Serena’s decision was based on her trust in René and the fact that the 10th Legion had just joined the battle and was still in good shape, capable of holding out for a while longer.

“Let’s hold out in this field encampment until the day after tomorrow. While continuing reconnaissance for the Orc Emperor, let’s avoid attrition as much as possible and buy time with delaying tactics. If reinforcements from Graysian don’t arrive by the day after tomorrow, we’ll consider alternative measures.”

Maria and Ethan also agreed with this approach, and the battle entered a temporary lull. People call this the calm before the storm.