Ch.226Rotaring Punishment War (6)

“Huh…”

When thinking rationally, excluding the realm of emotions, a monarch doesn’t need to go to the battlefield even during war.

A monarch is just a monarch, not a general with military expertise.

Of course, occasionally there are monarchs with exceptional military knowledge, but those are truly exceptional cases. As feudal systems deepened, monarchs who dabbled in military science while already busy managing nobles and domestic affairs gradually disappeared.

Above all, if a monarch goes to battle and is captured by the enemy after a defeat, wouldn’t that lead to a catastrophe?

For these overlapping reasons, monarchs who personally lead armies today fall into one of two categories:

Either they possess tremendous military knowledge backed by actual fighting power, or they simply lack worldly wisdom but have courage.

And I am neither of these.

I do have military knowledge, but I lack the fighting power to back it up, and without that power, I don’t have the courage to go to the front lines and swing a sword.

Yet I had to lead the army like this.

I stirred up the people to clamor for war and made the terrible decision to assassinate, becoming the very cause of this war.

If I incite war and provoke citizens to go to the battlefield, but then lock myself away in Dijon Castle… how would that look? Extremely disgraceful, wouldn’t it?

I wanted to at least show my face to boost the morale of the soldiers on the front lines, but… I didn’t expect it to come to this.

“Your Majesty, shall I send an order rejecting General Simon’s proposal and sticking to the original plan?”

Reading my bewildered expression, the minister assumes I dislike Simon’s proposal and jumps to conclusions.

“No, even I can see it’s worth trying. Follow General Simon’s proposal.”

I had positioned myself with the reserve forces at a reasonable distance from the front to boost the soldiers’ morale, but suddenly I’m about to head to the battlefield.

Of course, I won’t be at the very front wielding a sword and cutting down enemy soldiers. I’ll just be showing my face to prevent the Imperial army from retreating, but still, the fact remains that I’m going to the battlefield.

I’ve been through many wars, but this is my first time actually going to the battlefield.

“Raise the banner! Let’s sweep away all the Imperials who have invaded Lotharing’s territory!!”

“””Hurrah!!!”””

The soldiers who had been disgruntled about being placed in reserve and unable to join the battle cheer loudly.

In modern times, the honor and romance of the battlefield disappeared with the advent of barbed wire and machine guns, but here, where knights still live and breathe, it’s completely different.

It’s common sense for people of this era that honor and romance naturally accompany battles and warfare. As such, the soldiers are overjoyed at the upcoming battle, seeing it as an opportunity to gain honor.

As a modern person, it’s a difficult sentiment to grasp, but for people of this era, honor is something more precious than life itself. Moreover, for commoners, gaining honor is no different from advancing in society, which is why they seem so happy.

Some of them will surely die there, yet they’re not thinking about that at all.

Sigh… it pains my heart. I should try to send them back alive as much as possible, even if it means fewer military achievements.

“Ah, the reservoir under construction—Simon sent people to destroy the construction site, right?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. By the time the messenger arrived, General Simon would have already crossed the river, so Your Majesty just needs to go and meet those trying to bypass the river.”

“I see, understood.”

……….

“If we stay like this, we’ll be isolated in the forest! Give orders quickly!”

“Stay calm! The enemy’s numbers are less than a quarter of ours. If we act calmly without panicking, we can handle this!”

Why… why did it turn out like this?

To think the side that needed to buy time would attack first, and with a force difference of more than four times!

“Any word from the units following behind? What were they doing instead of stopping those bastards from crossing the river and appearing at our rear?!”

I divided the army into units with good mobility and those without, concerned about the Lotharing main force moving while also wanting to quickly support units in crisis, but it was useless.

“No word has come. And judging by how perfectly fine those enemy troops look, it’s clear they didn’t fight with our following units. Either enemy forces suddenly intervened between our units, giving no chance to block them, or our following units, concerned about their reduced strength after separating from the main force, avoided battle altogether without fighting. It must be one of these two.”

“Damn it, I hope it’s the former.”

If it’s the former, then staying put would allow the units appearing from behind to strike the Lotharing forces in the back, making our retreat easier.

But if it’s the latter… if I make it back alive, I won’t let those rear units off easy.

“The enemy is coming from the west and east. Before we’re completely surrounded, block the Lotharing advance and move north!”

“””Yes, sir!!”””

The plan to bypass the river is already ruined. We need to get out of this half-burned forest as quickly as possible.

If we get isolated in the forest? Then something truly terrible could happen.

Forests are good for defense due to their many obstacles, but this only holds true assuming supplies are flowing smoothly.

No water, no food, difficult to set up camp due to obstacles, and dense undergrowth making surveillance hard.

Above all, the obstacles scattered throughout the forest restrict not only enemy movement but our own as well. If surrounded in the forest, we’d be blocked by obstacles, unable to escape, and left to await starvation.

Damn it… I should have just advanced slowly and crushed them with our superior numbers—

“Hear me, invaders who have trespassed on Lotharing’s territory!”

My racing thoughts are interrupted by a thunderous shout.

The sound of rain and soldiers’ voices fills the air everywhere, but strangely, that shout carries a peculiar pressure that drowns out everything else.

“…Huh.”

Turning my head toward the sound, I see a figure in extraordinarily splendid armor beyond the blackened charcoal. It’s too far to see clearly, but the overall shape and colors show this is no ordinary person.

I thought that Lotharing royal flag was just a shallow trick to lower Imperial morale from someone who always uses underhanded tactics… but to think he really came. Is he trying to demand our surrender?

‘What… what should I do?’

Things have gotten complicated.

If the bastard king hadn’t appeared here, I would have focused solely on retreat without looking back. There would be nothing more to gain by continuing to fight.

But suddenly, a potential gain has appeared right before my eyes.

If we capture that bastard king, even if we lose the battle, if we succeed in capturing him alive… the war ends that very day.

‘…No, I mustn’t be swayed.’

Why would the bastard king suddenly come forward? He’s using himself as bait to prevent the Imperial army from retreating safely.

If we take that bait, it could lead to the terrible result of losing the entire Imperial vanguard.

“…There’s no way the bastard king would be here. That’s an impostor! Ignore the fake and everyone move quickly!!”

“””Yes, sir!!”””

The soldiers, nobles, and knights who had been cautiously watching snap back to attention at my shout and resume the retreat.

They too know that capturing the king would end this war, which is why they were acting that way.

Yes, this is fine.

Even if we don’t capture the king, there are many ways to win this war, so first we need to get out of here and—

“Did you come all this way believing the ugly lies of a senile emperor who’s gone to hell!”

“…What?”

What is he saying now?

Senile? Lies?

No, more than that, how can such vulgar words come from the mouth of someone with the noble status of king?

“You invaded believing the dying words of a senile emperor, and now, as invaders, you can’t even fight to the end. Instead, you shamefully flee just because your plans went slightly awry. How pathetic!”

This is bad.

I must endure.

It’s just provocation, isn’t it?

Yes, I must endure somehow—

“The Empire is truly a collection of cowards! Well, I suppose it’s inevitable for those who serve someone who assassinated his own father out of lust for the throne!”

“Y-you…”

—Ugh.

I must… I must endure…

“Seeing how you attack like children and flee like children, it seems neither you nor your leader has grown up. If you manage to return alive, drink more of your mother’s milk to become adults! Oh, if your mother is dead, dig up her grave and lick her ribs at least!”

“…”

“After you’ve licked all the ribs, tell that loser sitting above you! I will punish him on behalf of the gods for the sin of patricide!”

Snap—

Something breaks in my mind.

Raindrops fall on my helmet, making the metal ring, but strangely, that sound is loud enough to drown out all other noises.

“…I apologize to all of you.”

“…Sir.”

Looking around to apologize, I see that all the soldiers, knights, and nobles have stopped in their tracks, not retreating at all.

They all have the same look in their eyes.

…From their perspective, I must have the same look too.

Even if death awaits at the end of this, the satisfaction of not fleeing before this devil seems quite sufficient.

“Everyone, charge!! Let’s go sew shut the mouth of that devil who defiles His Majesty the Emperor and His Late Majesty!”

“””Hurrah!!!”””

The Imperial army, which until just now was nothing but tired, defeated soldiers, changes direction as if they had never been so, charging toward Claude, toward honor.