The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

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Chapter 510: Let’s Settle This Here. (1)

Recently, Amelia found herself in quite a dilemma. She had been fretting over the stabilization of her territory for days after the Duke’s family retreated.

It was a side effect of gobbling up six Count territories at once. Instead of preparing gradually, the opportunity for quick territorial expansion led to a mountain of problems.

On top of that, having gone through a rift and war, the economic power of the East had plummeted severely, making matters worse.

Every day, she nagged her retainers. If you eat, you must take responsibility.

“Is the food transport finished?”

“Uh, um… There are just too many places to send to.”

“I told you to concentrate all efforts on that immediately!”

“The territory expanded so suddenly that we can’t even assess the current situation yet.”

“Tsk, we’ve bitten off too much at once.”

Under normal circumstances, she’d have given her retainers a thorough scolding for whining like this, but even Amelia couldn’t help but understand this time.

Six Count territories may not sound that huge on their own, but they had only picked the juiciest, most fertile regions in the East.

In terms of Baron territories, it amounted to over dozens, and in terms of size, it was comparable to the Seiron Kingdom. Although a small nation, its size could rival that of an entire country.

Just increasing a territory by one takes quite some time to stabilize. Hence, Ghislaine had been so focused on stabilization after the conquest.

No matter how talented she might be, swallowing this much all at once was bound to cause indigestion.

In the midst of it all, yet another problem arose. It was an issue that no one could have foreseen.

“What? Marquis Branford fell from grace?”

“Yes, Your Majesty has regained some strength. All the lords who lost their territories have rallied to his side.”

“Hmm…”

“The agreements have been canceled, and commands have been given to return the territories to their original lords. What shall we do?”

Amelia snorted at that.

She hadn’t gone through all this trouble to seize the territories for nothing. Such an opportunity wouldn’t come again, allowing her to gain so much at once.

However, the retreat of the nobles who orchestrated the agreements was a headache for her.

The royal family was constantly pressuring her to return the territories and renew oaths of loyalty to the King.

When Amelia ignored their messages, they blocked the transport routes connecting Raybold to the East. They didn’t have the guts to extend their reach to the North, so they just blocked the paths.

“Those jerks…”

Amelia ground her teeth. To stabilize her territory immediately, she needed to draw heavily from Raybold’s resources.

Marquis Branford’s fall and the fractured Kingdom Army could be dealt with easily.

But the King teaming up with the Duke’s family was the real issue. She had already betrayed the Duke’s family and became their enemy.

In the end, she would have to choose either to fight or concede.

As she was lost in thought, a surprising piece of news arrived.

“Marquis Perdium… has started a rebellion?”

“Yes, he’s currently marching towards the capital alongside Count Penris. The other forces, including the Northern Army, are heading to the Southern front to fend off the Duke’s family.”

Amelia’s eyes lit up with a smirk.

‘This is an opportunity.’

If both sides started fighting again, she could take advantage of that situation for her benefit.

But before she could decide what to do, Ghislaine’s contact arrived.

Flapping!

“Hello, I’m here.”

“……”

Seeing the crow come in so openly was a sign that Ghislaine was about to demand something again.

“Alright… what’s up?”

“Of course, I’ve come to relay my master’s orders.”

“Get on with it.”

“I’ll connect you directly to my master’s consciousness for communication.”

“……Hmph.”

Putting aside everything else, it was genuinely tempting to have such a spirit. Not only for scouting but also for communication.

If she possessed something like this, she’d surely make the most of it, so it was quite a pity.

After a moment, the crow’s tone changed.

“Hey, Amelia. Long time no see. Been doing well?”

“Are we on friendly terms? Just get to the point.”

“Who’s being picky… I’m currently on my way to take the capital, and I need you to head to the Southern front and lend some support. Make sure the Duke can’t get up here in a hurry.”

“……”

“Why the silence? Hey, Dark. Are we connected properly? Oh, you are connected!”

“……”

While Amelia watched the crow talking to itself, she slowly opened her mouth.

“Why should I help you?”

How ridiculous. After a few favors, he was now mistaking her for an ally.

Ghislaine, with a playful tone, replied, “Oh, I’m not asking for free help. Didn’t I give you a generous reward last time? I’ll make sure to give you a satisfactory compensation again. I don’t like doing things for free either.”

That remark piqued Amelia’s interest slightly.

“Alright, if we block the Duke’s family, it shouldn’t be a problem to take the capital. What will you give me as a reward?”

“I’ll assist you in stabilizing your territory. It’s a headache, isn’t it? Once we take the capital, I’ll send you plenty of food and supplies.”

“Hmm…”

That was certainly an enticing offer, but it felt a bit lacking.

“I can handle that on my own if I have time.”

“If the Duke’s family moves north, there won’t be any time. Even if the Northern Army manages to hold them off, it’ll be hard to gather that quantity as the war drags on.”

Amelia twisted her lips with a cold gaze. He certainly understood her weaknesses well.

But still, she was curious why he was so intent on pulling her in like this.

“With just the forces at the Southern front, you could buy enough time. Why exactly do you need my help?”

“Well, the first reason is to minimize damage. Your abilities would be a huge help.”

“And you mean there’s a second reason?”

“I don’t want you playing tricks from behind. That makes things troublesome for me. You’ve probably been thinking of how to use this situation to your advantage too.”

“……”

Amelia silently chuckled again. As expected, he knew her too well.

Ghislaine continued in a slightly more serious tone.

“My targets are the Duke’s family and the Salvation Society. I don’t want to waste time on anything unnecessary and take losses.”

“So?”

“If you refuse, this time I really will take your head. Once I conquer the capital, I’ll head straight to the East.”

“You… how dare you…”

“Choose. I know fighting you will only tire me out. We’ll both take some losses. But I can’t just let you be while facing the Duke’s family with full force.”

Crack.

Amelia clenched her teeth. This guy was threatening her again, trying to use her strength like last time.

She understood the meaning behind Ghislaine’s words. Now that the Kingdom’s Greatest Sword was in play, it was time to settle things. And Ghislaine had deemed her a variable.

In other words, this meant that Amelia’s chance to ally with him was now or never.

“……”

Amelia stayed silent for a long time. Her expression had already frozen like ice.

Ghislaine also remained quiet. Dark turned away, feeling uncomfortable under her glaring gaze.

‘What is this intensive stare-off…’

Even while Amelia’s anger was rising to the top, she was trying to think. How could she turn this situation to her advantage?

‘Despite what he says, coming this way is burdensome for him too.’

Ghislaine would be itching to head down to the Southern front first. Fighting her here would only benefit the Duke’s family. There was no way he’d want that.

However, she couldn’t keep dragging her feet. Just as Ghislaine knew her well, she understood him just as much.

‘He has many things he needs to protect now, but… he might do anything if he feels cornered.’

He could very well storm in here, even if it meant taking losses. A compromise needed to be reached appropriately.

The relationship between the two had been connected like a tightrope. It meant her strength was indeed needed.

‘Could it be…?’

Amelia suddenly realized something and slowly nodded.

With the forces present at the Southern front alone, it would be enough to hold back the Duke’s family. Even if she tried some tricks, Ghislaine would likely stop her. After all, the Perdium army and the Kingdom army still remained in the capital.

Yet, what could be the reason he wanted her to lend him strength? There’s a sense that he wanted to avoid losses, but perhaps it was more that he still had more uses for her.

Amelia vaguely grasped what Ghislaine wanted.

Which meant…

“You must have more to offer, right? This doesn’t feel like the end.”

At those words, Ghislaine smiled. She was truly sharp-witted.

“Of course, there’s more. Shall we discuss the future plans a bit?”

The two continued their conversation, and after Dark departed, Amelia quickly gathered her troops and headed for the Southern front.

With new ambitions swelling in her heart.

*

“I shall take command.”

“……As you wish.”

Gillian, having received prior notice from Ghislaine, willingly handed over command to Amelia.

Her abilities were already proven, so there were no dissenters.

From this point on, the battle began to flow a bit differently.

“Baron Valua, take charge of the right castle wall.”

“Understood.”

Amelia first redeployed all defensive forces. She brought along Baron Valua, who had surrendered after Davin’s death, for this very reason.

His defensive abilities were unmatched, and he admirably held off the Delphine Army.

Of course, she wasn’t just thinking of holding positions. The opposing army was far too numerous and strong. She needed to trim down their forces a bit more to mitigate losses and buy time.

“You’re the dwarves who set up those strange stakes before, right?”

At Amelia’s inquiry, Galbarik and the dwarves scrambled their eyes, averting their gazes. They had previously planted stakes that hindered her advance.

[Made by the Great Blacksmith and Friends.]

They even went so far as to write such phrases.

They were afraid of being bullied over that incident. It turns out people shouldn’t provoke someone.

However, Amelia merely smirked and issued a new order.

“From now on, start digging tunnels. Raybold’s forces will fill in the manpower gaps.”

“What?”

“Just do as I say.”

With reinforcements arriving, there was no issue in construction. The dwarves diligently began digging tunnels everywhere.

Kaiyen, commanding the Delphine Army, also realized something had changed.

“The enemy’s tactics have altered.”

As time passed, both the attacking and defending sides would inevitably tire. Losses would accumulate in such an exchange.

However, the opposing side seemed to be suffering less damage.

Unlike before, when they gave a rough and brutal impression, they now operated like a finely-tuned machine. This method was proving more effective for defense.

“This is problematic.”

Though we have over ten superhumans, the abilities of the enemies’ superhumans were unbelievable and hard to overcome.

Continuous waves of powerful divine power erupted, healing the allied forces, while spirits appeared to disrupt enemy attacks.

Even as superhumans, they focused solely on defense alongside soldiers, making it difficult for the attackers to break through.

Amidst all this, news kept filtering in that the Kingdom Army was surrendering to Perdium. It couldn’t help but make their hearts race with urgency.

While they were merely in a contest of strength, a wizard finally spoke up.

“The visibility inside the fortress is obstructed. It seems the magical forces have been entirely deployed to hide the vision.”

In a battle of this scale, there would naturally be hundreds of wizards. Of course, some among them would be using spells to monitor the enemy positions.

Even with interference spells, perfection was unattainable, so sparse spaces were usually visible. But now, they could hardly see the enemy’s position.

“Hmm.”

After a moment of thought, Kaiyen spoke.

“Be on guard for a nighttime ambush.”

The reason for the defenders to obscure visibility is limited. The most probable cause will be a nighttime ambush.

Sure enough, as Kaiyen had anticipated, archer cavalry secretly crept out at night to target the side of the Delphine Army camp.

“Strike!”

The forces that had already been waiting chased them down. The cavalry fled in panic.

In order to ensure their retreat, they weren’t focusing entirely on that, only for another commotion to arise from the opposite side.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“What is happening?!”

Kaiyen was startled by the noise coming from behind. Moments later, a soldier rushed in to report the situation.

“Enemy wizards have appeared in the rear!”

“What? How?”

“It seems they dug tunnels!”

Kaiyen was dumbfounded. When does the defending side dig tunnels for the attacking side?

The forces waiting in the rear were caught by surprise from the enemy’s sudden assault. Though they retreated immediately after the ambush worked, the fact they took damage itself was problematic.

“Those bastards…”

Now that the enemy had started moving so boldly, they’d have to watch the rear defenses more carefully.

Out of caution, they tried using the enemy’s tunnels but found them blocked tightly. Even if they tried to dig again, the enemies would catch on quickly.

“Ha… Who would have thought they’d act so boldly while defending?”

With similar forces, generally, the defenders held the upper hand, but since they were even aggressively attacking, the fatigue level among the Delphine troops increased.

Amelia operated her forces to the point of danger. At night, she would use a hot air balloon to shoot arrows and spells while sometimes casually roaming around.

Amazingly, it worked. The Delphine Army’s focus sharpened increasingly. She truly was a woman skilled at tormenting people.

Kaiyen wasn’t just sitting back and taking it either. He restructured their formation efficiently and placed improved lookout units.

With that, the enemy dared not even engage in hit-and-run tactics. But the problem was that they had dragged on too long.

“The capital has been taken!”

Upon hearing the newly arrived news, Kaiyen clenched his teeth. Now Count Penris, the Mobile Army, the Perdium Army, and the Kingdom Army would be advancing southward.

If they all joined forces, the situation would turn against them. They had to settle matters before that happened.

He spoke to Gathros.

“We must make contact as quickly as possible, even if it means taking more damage.”

“Very well. I’ll tell the priests to stake their lives on it.”

The tactics of the Delphine Army shifted. All forces adhered closely to the castle walls. They didn’t care about casualties.

Especially, all their efforts were concentrated on breaking down one castle wall. Catapults and magical forces focused on a single point.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Even as they tried to fend off that side, soldiers were climbing up like evil spirits, making it hard to pull any troops back.

When the opponent strikes this hard, the defenders must endure significant losses. But Amelia made a slightly different choice.

“Move all the stones, timber, and other large and sturdy materials behind the wall receiving concentrated fire. Just think of them as discarded.”

She had piles of materials set aside to temporarily shore up defenses, allowing the remaining troops to support the other side, thereby reduced losses and making it easier to hold.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Of course, the now abandoned side’s defenses had become weak and were bound to crumble slowly. Even the magical forces guarding that area had been pulled back.

Boom!

Ultimately, the wall completely collapsed under the enemy’s concentrated attack. Fortunately, the Delphine Army couldn’t advance further due to the secondary piled-up materials, but that too would fall eventually—it was only a matter of time.

Kaiyen shot a chilly glance at the piled materials.

“It looks like they’ll breach it by tomorrow. I’ll kill them all.”

There seemed to be a considerable amount piled up, but if the superhumans joined in, it wouldn’t take long to clear it out. Without walls, they’d have the upper hand.

Amelia knew this point well, but the reason she abandoned the walls was different.

“We’re abandoning this fortress and retreating. We’ll hold the next fortress. The goal is to draw the enemy in deeper.”

Following Amelia’s order, all forces silently exited the fortress at night. The next day, Kaiyen found out about the retreat and cheered.

“Good! Chase after the enemy!”

The next fortress was quite small. It was enough barely for the opposing force to enter.

That meant they wouldn’t be able to defend properly. It would crumble after a few attacks.

The Delphine Army was busy rushing to catch up with the Northern Army moving ahead. They ultimately managed to encircle the retreating Northern Army at the small fortress.

“What about the enemy’s movement?”

“They are currently moving south. Since they have a large army, their speed is slow, and we expect it will be at least a week before they arrive.”

“In two days, we will capture this place and slaughter the enemies.”

It wasn’t an easy task. The enemy inside the fortress had a formidable force as well.

But they had more superhumans, and their soldiers were stronger, so it was worth trying. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that more than half of the opposing army was just a rabble.

“Attack!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Truly, the enemy was now too busy to defend. The fortress was so small and weak that they couldn’t manage a proper counter.

At this rate, they would soon be able to engage in an all-out battle.

Amelia nodded in agreement while observing the situation.

“They’re not just outstanding in brute force. Their troop management skills are remarkable.”

Kaiyen had unexpectedly chased them down faster than anticipated. Though they suffered setbacks from the first few ambushes, the damage hadn’t been severe.

They responded quickly to the changing situation and knew exactly when to seize the opportunity for a fight.

If they continued to battle like this, they would inevitably suffer great losses.

Yet, Amelia smiled.

“I think I’ve done all I needed to do.”

She had bought sufficient time, just as Ghislaine wanted.

Although it would be a while before the Perdium Army and the Kingdom Army arrived… the tale was different when it came to the Penris Mobile Army, renowned for its unrivaled mobility.

As she gazed upward, a crow was circling above.

“That certainly makes communication convenient.”

She wanted something like that too but had no way. What a pity.

As Amelia leisurely watched the situation unfold, the Delphine Army continued to attack the fortress like a storm. If this kept up, they could bring down the fortress in two days.

While Kaiyen, with a fiery gaze towards the fortress, was approached by a dusty messenger.

“What is it? What’s happening?”

“Count Penris…”

“Count Penris? Has the Mobile Army arrived?”

“Ah, no.”

“Then what is it? Speak quickly.”

Under Kaiyen’s intimidating gaze, the messenger panic-stricken shouted.

“Count Penris has… circumvented the frontline and headed for Count Mobray’s territory! They’re currently advancing directly towards the Duke’s territory!”

Ghislaine had freed Dark from Count Mobray’s son, Edwin’s body. Count Mobray had, as promised, cleared a path for Ghislaine.

Kaiyen’s expression froze at the unexpected news.

With all his forces now out in the open, his main force would be under attack.