episode_0046

What is the most necessary thing in war?

Strategy? Tactics? Technology?

Of course, all are important. But if I had to pick just one, I would say people, without a doubt.

Because you can’t wage war if you don’t have people to go to the battlefield and fight with guns and swords.

‘There have been cases of poor countries winning wars, but never a country without people.’

But all the participating countries on the continent had consumed a tremendous number of lives.

Artium lost 100,000 in the expeditionary force alone, and quite a few units were destroyed by counterattacks.

Navre is suffering from serious inefficiencies in conducting the war due to the three-front war, and they are constantly short of people.

Elaine lost a large number of territories and people because she was beaten to death in the early stages.

Helvetia even created the National Assault Corps to overcome its inherent weakness as a small nation.

Kram is pretty much the same as Navre.

Except for Hispania, which runs the country by exporting goods and mercenaries, there is virtually no country that is intact.

With even the operation of the Majok forced labor camps, there is no way they have enough manpower.

“At this rate, we won’t have enough people to conscript from next year…”

“Wouldn’t it be possible to bring in young men who are just coming of age?”

“Do ancestors farm for us? Only women and the elderly are left in the countryside, and the army has suffered so much because of food shortages.”

“We need to leave some labor force in the rear. Not only for the war effort, but also for the future after the war.”

Moreover, the national conscription system and the conscription system played a role.

The high-ranking officials, who were so fond of the advantage of being able to easily obtain large-scale troops, recklessly formed armies.

They gathered people without considering the essential labor force and essential manpower in the rear, thinking that the war would end quickly if they operated a large-scale army.

As a result, the number of lives lost at the front lines skyrocketed, and there was a crazy situation in the rear where there was not enough population to run industry and agriculture.

“If I had my way, I would immediately return the troops on the front lines. If I could send back just 40,000 people, the country would be much more stable.”

“You know that’s not possible. If you reduce the number of people on the front lines, which are barely maintaining balance now…”

“I know that too. I just said it because I was frustrated.”

As the war went on for more than a year, these side effects became more pronounced. The harvest season was ruined and stockpiled supplies began to run out.

Fortunately, they quickly realized this problem and changed the conscription method, but the problem of manpower shortage itself was not resolved.

“I wish we had just 200,000 extra people.”

“I agree. I wish the Goddess would send down some free labor.”

In an era without proper modern industrial facilities, technology, or administrative systems, overcoming these difficulties was a daunting task.

Should women be conscripted? Or an army of old men? Should underage children be put in uniforms and sent to the battlefield?

After reviewing and considering all sorts of opinions and ideas.

Each participating country found its own solution.

“Hey, I heard you guys need people?”

“So?”

“We have a lot of slaves, want to buy them? I’ll give you a good price.”

“Oh.”

Countries close to Hispania bought slaves from the New World that they were selling.

Even if they couldn’t understand the language, they could still be put to work, and the price was reasonable.

They bought sturdy ones and made them slave soldiers, and the rest were used to run industries in the rear.

“Wouldn’t creating units with these guys reduce the loss of our people?”

“But if they don’t understand orders, it’s hard to use them as soldiers.”

“You can train them. Just teach them to advance, retreat, and turn right, and they’ll be useful enough.”

Hispania did not discriminate in its exports.

Even to the Helvetian Republic, which had overseas territory issues, they did not block exports themselves, even if they charged extra.

Thanks to this, Elaine, Kram, and Helvetia were all able to receive large-scale external manpower.

There was no need to save them, and it didn’t matter if they were consumed recklessly. They were convenient manpower that could be used as expendable pawns as much as needed.

“But I think we exported too much. At this rate, there won’t be any slaves left in the market.”

“What are you worried about? We can just catch more in the New World.”

“We’ve already swept the coast and nearby areas.”

“Then we should explore the deep interior. I’ll give you funds to organize an expedition. There must be plenty of reserve slaves that we haven’t discovered yet.”

The sudden surge in demand changed Hispania’s colonial policy to meet the supply, but that’s another story.

From the perspective of buying and using people as disposable consumables, it wasn’t a particularly important fact.

Like what endemic diseases might be hidden in the depths of the New World, or what unforeseen threats might be waiting.

“Slave imports… I’m jealous. It takes us a long time to travel back and forth with them, so trade itself is difficult.”

“If we import through the Kram Empire, the passage fee will be incredibly high. But if we use the sea route, the Helvetians will interfere.”

On the other hand, Navre and Artium, which were far from Hispania, were in a different situation.

They were too far away to trade with those guys on the western edge of the continent.

Their geographical location was not good for relying on external suppliers.

“Then we have no choice but to get them ourselves…”

“Where do we get them? Barbarians who aren’t strong and can be plundered at will… Ah!”

“Come to think of it, there was a suitable area right next to us.”

Therefore, they decided to kidnap manpower directly. From the Great Plains, which bordered both countries.

“Can you spare a cavalry unit?”

“About one regiment is possible. If it’s infantry, we can somehow manage up to a division.”

“That’s enough. And prepare plenty of carts. If we’re going to capture people, we need a way to transport them.”

The Great Plains, which was separated from the Artium Empire by a huge mountain range, had long been the homeland of nomads.

Because the land was vast but the climate was harsh, farming was not possible.

As a result, many nomadic empires rose and trampled the world… but now it’s a story of the distant past.

In the age of line infantry and gunpowder, nomads were no longer a threat.

In other words.

Even if only a small number of troops were sent, it would be good to burn, capture, and exploit them all.

“Kill all men and women over the age of 40. Kill all the disabled too. Only select and deport those who are still young and can work.”

“Wow, these wanderers’ clothes are unnecessarily fancy. Even if we take them, they won’t sell.”

“Take all the livestock too! If we take these to our country, we won’t have a shortage of military horses until the year after next!”

They wouldn’t normally do this. Because it was an act that yielded little practical benefit compared to gaining a bad diplomatic reputation.

Even if they conquered a barren land where farming was not possible, it would only create an unnecessary burden on the country.

But Artium and Navre’s purpose was not resources or money, but people themselves.

For this purpose, it was worth plundering the Great Plains.

“What if we meet the Navre guys?”

“Avoid direct conflict first. It’s only a loss to fight them here.”

“Understood.”

It’s hard enough to fight to the death at the border, so let’s not fight even on the plains. We can’t even get our money back.

In that tacit calculation, the two countries watched each other and diligently plundered the nomads.

…..And of course.

The professional ideological criminal living in Elaine was watching all of these situations.

* * * * *

I’ve seen this situation in history books.

Was it Russia’s southward expansion in the 19th century?

After the Napoleonic Wars, the Ivan guys massively attacked and swallowed Central Asia.

The structure was exactly the same as that incident.

Outdated nomadic groups and powerful military powers targeting them.

Then you can say that the ending is virtually determined.

“This is a bit ambiguous for me to intervene in…”

The balance of power must be maintained. But in my opinion, this was closer to balancing the situation.

Since others are having fun with slaves, these guys are trying to do something similar by capturing prisoners.

If you want to reduce the gap in physique between the two camps, it might be better to leave it alone.

“But I think it would be good to help them.”

However, Kalia’s thoughts seemed to be different from mine.

“Why?”

“That is…”

Unlike usual, she hesitated to answer.

She stopped stroking my head as I lay on the lap pillow, and opened her mouth hesitantly.

“Our organization’s headquarters is on the Great Plains. This is information that is only shared with branch managers and above…”

“Then there’s nothing we can do.”

If the main base is being raided, there’s nothing we can do.

It would be a disaster for me if the organization collapsed.

“We need to help the nomads resist or stop the external invasion itself. Isn’t there a good way?”

“There is.”

I had a plan.

It’s a bit dangerous, though.

To be honest, I didn’t think I would ever reveal this… but since this is the situation, I’ll just have to do it.

It’s not my world anyway.

“Miss Kalia. Please find a scholar who is excellent in nomadic beliefs. I need to write a new book.”

“A scholar? It’s not difficult, but what are you going to use him for?”

“I think I’ll need advice on doctrine.”

If you mix Wahhabism, Maoism, and guerrilla warfare, you’ll get a pretty interesting work.