Chapter 281 – What’s the Pig’s Aim?
What is Motoki aiming for? Is he a genuine idiot ― or is his goal to lure the enemy forces into attacking us?
Whether it’s former or latter, he’s the worst ally you could have. I’d love to rip our alliance apart at this very moment, but seeing how we’ve announced it to the entire world, revoking it from my side would be a blow to our reputation.
I suppose I’ve got no choice but to revoke the alliance as soon as its limited time period runs out.
Learning about a being like Motoki for the first time…I start to appreciate the value of Kaoru. I should choose my allies more carefully.
I didn’t plan for us to launch a surprise attack, but the enemy’s defense preparations will probably be flawless under these circumstances. It’s to the point that I’d love to redo things from scratch, but since that dumb pig announced it so loudly, Aster Empire would be blamed if we were to cancel the attack at this point.
As such, it’s pointless to regret things at this point.
“We’ll begin our attack on the Nanto Fortress at the appointed time! You can expect the enemy’s resistance to be harsher than usual! To all commanding officers! Proceed with the invasion carefully while making sure to not waste the lives of your men!”
I encourage my subordinates after resolving myself.
“Hmm? Did something happen?”
Rina has apparently felt that something was out of place with my inspirational speech.
“Our attack at 6 p.m. has been leaked to the enemy.”
“What happened?”
“That retard Motoki proclaimed it loudly.”
“――?”
“He announced it publicly while impertinently attacking Tateyama Fortress ahead of time. He’s even been so kind to the enemy as to announce it on the Internet.”
“Haah? What for?”
“That’s what I’d like to know. I suspect he’s catering to his desire for being in the limelight…”
Or he’s doing it for the sake of trapping me. I keep the latter reason to myself for the sake of preventing a drop in morale.
“Are there any changes to our strategy?”
Reviewing our strategy, huh…? That said, there’s no time left since it’s already 5.45 p.m.
“I guess we’ll adjust our battle formation to being defensive, despite being the attackers.”
“Haah? Defendin’ in spite of attackin’? What’s dat!?”
Takaharu jumps at my words.
“We’ll make today’s objective to decrease the enemy’s combat forces.”
“Wouldn’t it be just fine to attack all out then?”
“No, we’ll take up position in front of the fortress, and face the humans coming out to defend.”
“What’s with dat passive approach!?”
“What are we going to do if the humans seclude themselves inside the fortress?”
Takaharu is clearly unhappy with the new strategy while Rina points out a problematic issue.
“We’ll shower them with spells and arrows to our heart’s content. If they remain inside despite that, we’ll deploy a bait unit to lure them out.”
“You’re awfully careful this time, aren’t you?”
“There’s simply too many uncertain elements.”
Some people are worse to have as an ally than as an enemy. Speaking of right now, that’d be Motoki. I can probably call it a silver lining in an otherwise dark cloud that Motoki is currently on another battlefield.
Things started under a bad star, but since it was about time, we began our advance on Nanto Fortress.
◆
“They’re on high alert, obviously.”
I’ve launched many attacks on human lands. However, all of them happened suddenly, following our side’s convenience.
What would happen if you start an invasion after first declaring war on the other side?
The answer to that is the scene visible in front of my eyes. Humans with long spears and big shields have formed ranks in front of the fortress. Looking up the wall, I can also see humans with bows among the fortress defenders.
So it’s going to be a phalanx, huh? It’s not like they’re going to launch an attack with a cavalry unit, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’ll be tough to attack them.
“Sarah, how far do we need to go for your magic to reach the enemy?”
“If we’re talking about me alone, 100 m is a breeze.”
“And everyone else?”
“Like 50 m?”
How far is the range of the archers?
I choose 50 random living mails and have them advance with their shields held up.
They’re not attacking them?
――Everyone, make some noise! Clank your weapons and stamp your feet!
My subordinates follow my order, resulting in the surroundings being enveloped in a cloud of dust.
Oh?
I heard a hollow clank, and an arrow fell to the ground in front of the living mail walking at the front. So their range is around 200 m, huh?
Because of the amplified power of this broken world and the locational advantage of being on a high ground, the arrow was fired at a range surpassing any spell while drawing a parabola.
“Sarah, can your magic reach the enemy from over there?”
“Like no way,” says Sarah with a flat, indifferent voice.
“This is going to be a pain…”
So far we’ve also confronted humans who had holed themselves up in buildings. But, those buildings were schools, public offices, or other buildings unrelated to battle. But, this time we’re facing a fortress with an emphasis on defense.
I wonder, would it be possible to destroy the gate with a truck attack?
Nanto Fortress looks like an impregnable stronghold to me.
If we had come at them through a surprise attack…that phalanx unit and the archers on the walls would have likely been less.
Now then, how should we crack this nut?
I racked my brain on how to take the fortress in front of my eyes.
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