When Lorraine Hill returned to Crancia, it was already late July, and then the whole country began to mobilize for war.
In early September, when the weather turned slightly cooler, Frost Rose's army crossed the border of New Verga and advanced westward. Hopeland was in danger.
Carites headquarters, meeting hall.
The lacquered night flower pattern with black petals and purple stamens is printed on the center of the hall wall, with a large oval table underneath.
A representative read the report from above.
"According to the information we have obtained, the opponent's vanguard this time is about 200,000 people, of which 30,000 are cavalry. There are also 5 golem legions with about 800 golems accompanying the army. The combat effectiveness of the golems is in the order of 4-6.
No wait.”
"The leader of the army is the former general of Lurna, Jenkins. He is 57 years old. He graduated from the National Military Academy of Lulna. He has served as a border defense officer and commander of the raiding corps. Now he has been promoted to the rank of major general."
"Our current standing army in New Verga is only over 50,000 people. Together with the private soldiers and temporary mercenaries of the major chambers of commerce, we can probably gather 100,000 people. Thanks to the year-round trade needs, our horse reserves are quite good.
There are enough, if we recruit them temporarily, we can gather 50,000 cavalry."
After listening to this analysis, the people below started discussing quietly, and then a representative asked.
"That is to say, we have sufficient military-trained soldiers here. The number is only 150,000, of which up to 50,000 are cavalry, right?"
"Yes, but when it comes to the equipment of ordinary soldiers, there is no obvious difference between the two sides."
"Due to our trade with Lurna in the early years, the armors, swords, etc. we obtained were all made of fine steel, which is superior to other countries among the Seven Snow Flower Kingdoms."
"Today, in terms of ordinary soldiers, there is not much difference between us and the opponent. We also have the advantage of local combat. The 150,000 and 200,000 are about the same."
"But when it comes to extraordinary beings, golems, and airships, the other side has obvious advantages."
"In a regular battle, the opponent can rely on golems to resist long-range shots such as bows and arrows, and then advance the front line, destroying walls and towers. At the same time, the bombing of mages and airships can also mass-kill dense troops. Once there is no equivalent countermeasures, our
The morale of the army will collapse quickly after the battle."
After listening to this analysis, someone asked: "Have the Clancia and Hinyue Council sent additional assistance now?"
"Krancia has been mobilized, and it is said that the army has marched towards the border. On the other side of the Young Moon Council, Frost Rose has dispatched maritime warships and cruise airships to patrol and intercept the Jingyue Strait to prevent the other party from assisting us.
"
"Considering the size of Frost Rose, the Young Moon Council may not make a decision to completely stand with us in resistance. Because the other party is a country of islands, it is difficult to completely unify domestic opinions. If the other party is not attacked,
, it will be very difficult to stand completely with us."
"Previous assistance only required a small number of extraordinary beings to achieve, but now Frost Rose is a nation-wide battle. If we continue to assist us, it means becoming mortal enemies with Frost Rose. This is something the nobles in their country do not want to see."
"Although the mages of the Young Moon Council occupy many seats, the nobles of the Cranberry Principality still retain a lot of power. They will not make decisions that are extremely risky and have little benefit."
"The previous support was only easy to achieve because the mages from the Chuyue Council were mainly members and the scale was not large. Now, it is not so easy."
"It seems that we have been alone for a while this time." A representative said with emotion.
"Yes, it will be at least two weeks before Crancia's reinforcements arrive, and even if they arrive, the dilemma we are facing will not be lifted immediately, because the follow-up troops of Frost Rose will gradually enter the battlefield."
"Airships and golems are still problems we have to face."
"However, this is all we can do now. Fortunately, the Chuyue Council has secretly left many mages on our side to help resist the opponent's attack."
"Hoplan'er's city wall is not high. Due to continuous expansion over the years, many of the city walls have been demolished. The newly built city wall is not very thick. Once the opponent bombs it with golems, it will only take half a day to knock it down."
"So, it is best for us to fight in the wild, rely on the mobility advantage of the cavalry, interfere with the opponent's supply, delay the opponent's march, and then wait for the opportunity to launch a surprise attack."
"That's all we can do now." Everyone present gradually came to a unified point of view.
"In addition, I have some questions to add." A representative raised his hand.
"Within the New Verga Alliance, many forces or large chambers of commerce do not have a firm sense of resistance. They are very likely to surrender suddenly during the battle. This is something we need to be vigilant about."
"The ones who are really standing with me now and have a strong sense of resistance are the Helis family, the Yagtilin family, and the Lamia family. The other families are not reliable."
Someone let out a long sigh and said, "This is internal and external troubles."
"Things never go as planned, so we can only do our best."
——————
Frost Rose Border, a small town formerly known as Verga.
The usually lively town was particularly quiet today. Some guards wearing iron-clad armor could be seen on the streets to maintain order. They were all locals, and they didn't do anything evil. They just wanted to prevent some abnormalities from happening in the town. After all,
This is an extremely critical moment.
Many townspeople stood on the roadside, watching the army advancing on the land in the distance.
These soldiers carried long guns, forming a long line with no head or tail visible in the field of vision. As they advanced, bursts of dust rose from the ground, making the field of vision gradually blurry.
On the side of these teams, a demon statue about ten meters high was also advancing.
Frost Rose learned lessons from the previous transportation difficulties. This time they made large steel frame transport vehicles, let the golems lie in them, and then a few golems pulled them in front.
By rotating each other in this way, not only can a large amount of magic crystal fuel be saved, but also the golems that have been paralyzed due to damage can be brought along for repairs on the way, instead of being completely abandoned on the roadside.
There are airships floating every few hundred meters in the sky. They monitor the situation below and are always prepared for possible surprise attacks.
Most of the young mages who have just graduated from the academy are now being recruited. Some are used to drive and maintain the golems, while others stay in the airship to support the battle below at any time.
Among Frost Rose's army, a general wearing strong armor and a dark blue cloak was also riding among them.
His speed was not fast, and he occasionally looked around at various situations he encountered during the march, and then gave orders to the soldiers on standby around him.
"Why is Master Jenkins so worried? Didn't we have the upper hand in this battle?" A high-level mage accompanying him asked the general.
"It's best to be careful in everything. This is not an experiment for you mages. If you fail, you can do it again. Missteps in war can mean the lives and deaths of tens of thousands of people."
"This time, although we have many advantages in terms of weapons and extraordinary beings, Crancia... I have studied several battle reports of its founding battle. Their opponent, the Kingdom of West Wind, also has several times the
The extraordinary person of Crancia was still defeated in the end."
"War is not just a war, sometimes it is a violent collision of determination and will on both sides, rather than a simple pile of data."