The part of the Hyloh state that was annexed was quite large but far too deep. Despite that, it would be a risky move to ignore the soldiers camped in the dungeon town. Unless they left some garrison along the way to cause them trouble in case they decided to attack any of the other cities and towns under the enemies control, even if they do that, there would be any point since they would destroy the lands and kill the people that were being controlled.
In any case, Jean and the guild masters couldn't see the enemy's target. At that point in time, it was clear that they split up their forces. Billy had no answer to that question either. However, after thinking for a while in the enemy's place, he would target either Jean, Aura, or Rosalie. Those were the closest targets they could try to kill using an army.
"... We have to send a message to Aura to make her army return, she might be targeted," Jean said.
"This might also be a trick devised by the enemy to split out forces even further," Gustav said.
"It might be… But we can't risk letting them capture or kill Rosalie or Aura, they would be able to attack us from two sides and use the armies of four states," Jean said. "Tell her to keep her troops ready to move near the border. If something happens, we will inform them and ask for reinforcements."
Just when Billy decided to stop holding back, the enemy decided to use some mind games as well. It was annoying, but war was like that. In any case, Jean told his captains to prepare their battalions and be ready to move at a moment's notice. After that, he dismissed everyone. When Billy found his friends, they wanted to hear the news, but he just shook his head. He couldn't openly talk about it. After that, he had dinner with his friends.
"Where is everyone?" Kate asked. "At the very least, Kate and Pierre would usually hang out with us."
"They are busy keeping their troops ready to move, you also will receive orders to do the same soon enough, don't ask why, though," Billy said.
His friends realized that there was some reason behind it, so they followed his instructions. Besides, any extra time to keep their recruits training was welcome at that point.
Billy had memorized the map, so he began to analyze it once he had the chance to rest. He was hoping that he would find something that the others had missed. Unfortunately, Billy wasn't much of a strategist, so he couldn't see anything at first glance. During his youth, the previous one, Billy played his fair share of chess, but it was a bit hard to imagine the enemy's forces like pieces on aboard.
"Jean probably will make some spies move and look for the enemy's army, it was crazy to think that they would move without leaving traces…" Billy thought. "Still, it was hard to say if they will find anything in time."
Billy kept looking at the map in his head while feeling that something was off, but he couldn't quite pinpoint what was wrong with it. He felt like everyone and himself were forgetting something important… The hard part was figuring out what that was. In the end, Billy fell asleep without finding what that was.
The next day, Billy woke up just when the sun was raiding, and then he got up only to find that a lot of people were already up and others kept working throughout the night. He decided to check things in the guild. Still, then he stopped when he saw Gerald, Gustav, and Marie heading to the building… coming from three different directions and at the same time.
"Ah… so it was that," Billy said.
Billy didn't find many people inside the guild master room. Only those three and Jean were actually there so early in the morning. It seemed a bit soon, but Billy shared his thoughts with them. He asked them about the location of the ordinary soldiers of the former Toles state and Neles state. He had only heard about the barbarians disappearing. The truth was the fact that they didn't move… until now. It would be hard to find them now since all the spies were following the barbarians.
"So, you think that they are planning to attack us here from three different directions?" Jean asked.
"Yes," Billy replied while nodding.
"This seems like a rather dangerous move…" Jean said while checking the map. "What do you three think?"
"Facing three armies here will make things pretty bloody, but it is what I would do in their place," Marie said.
"If their goal is to bring an end to our forces as fast as possible, that is probably their best option," Gerald said. "We will be overwhelmed against three armies, even with the walls on our side."
"Not to mention, you are here… you represent our state in one way or the other," Gustave said. "If they take you down or manage to manipulate you, our state is as good as gone."
There was also the possibility that the enemies wanted to surround them in order to prevent help from other states or even new soldiers reinforcing the dungeon town. If they had three armies around it, they could essentially prevent all the enemies from escaping, and they would be able to take down the remaining towns and cities with a much smaller force.
Jean realized that it was a possibility, but there wasn't much they could do to prevent it, even if it were. Billy also realized that he just prevented them from getting surprised once that happened.
"We have reinforcing this place to make sure that the beast tamers wouldn't take it back that easily, so we can only count that our preparations will suffice," Jean said. "Stay on your guard and prepare to move.. The enemy will arrive in a few days and we will strike them once any army shows even a small opening."
