I Was Mistaken as a Great War Commander

The next day.

All troops at the outpost, except for the minimum guard personnel, climbed the western mountain ridge as soon as they woke up.

This was because orders had been given by Battalion Commander Daniel Steiner to conduct reconnaissance and trench construction training.

The troops, who had brought not only sandbags but also 12 mortars and 4 heavy machine guns for realistic trench construction, were able to hear new orders from Daniel.

Construct the trenches in a way that surrounds the outpost.

In other words, they were to conduct training to form an encirclement after assuming their own outpost was an enemy outpost.

Although the troops couldn’t understand it at all, they decided to follow it as it was the battalion commander’s first order.

After leveling the ground, they set up mortar positions and installed heavy machine guns.

The unit’s snipers climbed up to the side cliff and took their positions, while the Special Operations Company, which was originally in charge of guard duty at the outpost, was ordered to block the retreat routes.

Thinking that those who knew the terrain around the outpost well would be perfect for the role of blocking retreat routes, Daniel had given this order.

As there was nothing wrong with the order itself, Bernhard decided to follow it, and after joining up with the headquarters direct unit company, he set up positions on the retreat routes and concealed himself.

After that, a standby order was given, so Bernhard and his troops were resting between the trees.

Bernhard, leaning against a tree with his arms crossed, sighed and looked to the side.

Lieutenant Meckel was sitting on the ground, studying a map he had spread out.

“Hey.”

As Bernhard called, Meckel raised his head.

“Did you call, sir?”
“Yeah. There’s something I want to ask.”

Bernhard scratched his head once and said,

“What’s the point of this training? I don’t understand the idea of surrounding an enemy outpost in the first place.”
“Hmm. Could you explain in more detail?”
“It’s an outpost, right? A base that’s most focused on surveillance, you know? So does it make any sense to surround such an outpost from all directions? Are they idiots or something?”

It wasn’t wrong.

But Lieutenant Meckel just laughed it off.

“Certainly, if this were training to surround an enemy outpost, there would be discrepancies.”
“See, you think so too, right? I thought he was an amazing person, being called a genius staff officer from headquarters, but it seems the rumors were exaggerated.”
“Please take back your words. The rumors are not exaggerated.”
“…What are you saying? Didn’t you just say with your own mouth that there were discrepancies?”

Lieutenant Meckel folded the map and said,

“I said there would be discrepancies if this were training.”

As Bernhard, still not understanding, blinked blankly, Lieutenant Meckel put the map in his chest pocket.

“I participated in the Nordia invasion operation with the Battalion Commander. If you knew how the Battalion Commander conquered Nordia, you wouldn’t see this as mere training.”
“…Are you saying this isn’t training?”
“That’s right. He must be preparing for something.”

Looking at Lieutenant Meckel, who spoke with confidence, Bernhard said glumly,

“If he’s preparing for something, why didn’t he tell us? And what was the point of doing nothing for nearly two weeks since we came here?”
“The Battalion Commander extremely dislikes his strategies leaking through the mouths of others. Also, do you really think the Battalion Commander did nothing during those two weeks?”
“Then, could it be…”

Lieutenant Meckel nodded.

“There’s a saying that a move is made after long deliberation. In my view, the Battalion Commander was just holding his breath like a predator waiting for an opportunity.”

Lieutenant Meckel stood up and turned his gaze towards where Daniel was.

Daniel could be seen frowning with his hand on his chin, separate from the troops.

Seeing his contemplative look, he must be formulating numerous detailed strategies in his head.

Watching Daniel, Lieutenant Meckel murmured with reverence,

“Now… it seems he’s finished preparing to reveal his claws.”

Of course, contrary to Lieutenant Meckel’s expectations, Daniel Steiner currently had no particular thoughts.

‘I’ve seen this bird somewhere before. What was its name again…’

He was simply trying to figure out the name of the bird that was grooming its feathers on a tree branch.

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Bleff of the Kingdom of Velmore was leading a battalion of elite troops towards the outpost where Daniel Steiner was said to be.

He wanted to bring more troops, but due to the mountainous terrain, having too many numbers could make control difficult, so he restrained himself.

Moreover, as he needed to move stealthily to capture Daniel Steiner as a prisoner before he could escape, he insisted on a battalion-sized force.

Bleff, who had set out early in the morning leading the battalion, was only able to reach the Imperial outpost located in the basin halfway up the mountain by nightfall.

Although the troops were somewhat tired from climbing the mountain, they were still in condition to fight, so Bleff ordered an attack without hesitation.

The soldiers who heard the Crown Prince’s order began to infiltrate the Imperial outpost after stealthy maneuvering.

There were Imperial soldiers on guard, but as their numbers were few, they could be easily subdued.

Seeing the soldiers enter first, Bleff waited for a moment before entering the outpost.

Thanks to this, Bleff thought he had secured an easy victory.

They had quickly dealt with the guards and entered the outpost, so all that was left was to slaughter all the Imperial soldiers who were sleeping and capture Daniel Steiner.

Feeling elated at the thought of achieving great merit, Bleff ordered to kill all enemy troops except Daniel Steiner.

The soldiers who heard Bleff’s order went around the outpost to carry out their mission, but strangely, no gunshots were heard.

After about ten minutes of silence, Bleff, feeling puzzled, summoned his officers.

He needed to check how things were going.

“I’m sure I ordered to kill all enemy troops except Daniel Steiner. Why aren’t we hearing any gunshots?”

The officers didn’t answer.

They were just as clueless about how things were unfolding.

While everyone maintained their silence, Colonel Gallevalt, Bleff’s direct staff officer, spoke up with difficulty.

“Your Highness. I apologize for reporting this, but…”

Gallevalt’s voice trembled slightly.

“We can’t see any Imperial troops here right now.”
“What?”

One of Bleff’s eyebrows furrowed as if he had heard something absurd.

It was incomprehensible that there were no enemies in the enemy outpost.

“No Imperial soldiers in an Imperial base? Did you search properly?”

As Bleff reprimanded, the battalion commander who had been listening nearby chimed in.

“Colonel Gallevalt’s words are true. I ordered the troops to conduct a search, but…”

The battalion commander bowed his head as if ashamed.

“We couldn’t find any sign of Imperial troops in any location, including the command post, barracks, mess hall, infirmary, warehouse, communications center, restrooms, maintenance shop, watchtower, training ground, and underground facilities.”
“What do you…”

Sensing that the situation was taking a strange turn, Bleff swallowed dryly.

“Are you saying that the Imperial army vanished overnight?”
“I apologize, but I’m merely reporting the facts.”

Of course, there was no way the battalion commander would lie to him, the Crown Prince.

Despite knowing this, it was a fact that was hard to accept.

“Then where on earth did the Imperial army go…”

A sense of unease began to creep up his spine.

The elation that had been swirling in his body disappeared, and fear began to rear its head.

Just as he felt the night air was unusually cold, a non-commissioned officer came running.

The NCO, wearing a sergeant’s insignia, stopped in front of Bleff and prostrated himself flat on the ground.

“Your Highness! We’ve discovered Imperial army footprints leading to the western ridge area. So we sent out scouts, and…”

A bead of sweat on the sergeant’s forehead dropped down.

“…The reconnaissance results show that they’ve constructed positions armed with mortars and machine guns.”

The uneasy premonition turned into certainty.

As the flustered Bleff’s hands trembled, the sergeant closed his eyes tightly and said,

“Your Highness! It seems we’ve been surrounded…!”

Sighs could be heard from here and there.

Everyone had been imagining the worst-case scenario since learning that no enemy troops were visible in the outpost.

However, Bleff alone, unable to admit his mistake, turned to his staff officer.

“Colonel Gallevalt! Is what he’s saying true!?”

Gallevalt could only bow his head while gritting his teeth.

“It appears so based on the circumstances. They’re probably blocking our retreat routes by now. That’s what I would have done…”

His voice, heavy with the signs of defeat, settled heavily.

Having heard confirmation from his staff officer, Bleff shook his head as if in disbelief.

“It can’t be. It’s impossible. Did our information leak somehow? The person who gave me the information was bought by the Allied Nations. But how…”

Bleff’s complexion turned pale.

“How could Daniel Steiner know all of our plans!”

Gallevalt gritted his teeth and then exhaled softly.

“It seems there might be an informant in the Kingdom of Velmore who follows Daniel Steiner. It’s possible that Daniel Steiner… came here targeting Your Highness from the beginning.”

Daniel Steiner had set a trap by reversing the information that Crown Prince Bleff possessed.

That was the only way to think about it now.

“Ah…”

Bleff, understanding the whole situation, staggered with a sense of powerlessness.

A nearby officer quickly approached to support him, but there was no life in Bleff’s eyes.

Bleff, thinking he had been played by Daniel Steiner’s scheme, let out a dejected sigh.

“The one being hunted…”

A hollow voice flowed from Bleff’s mouth as he hung his head.

“Was not Daniel Steiner, but me.”

Only then could Bleff realize.

That a mere human can never hunt a devil.