<h4>Chapter 281: War of Attrition</h4>


    Eckhard gazed upon the remains of the battlefield; corpses littered the valley, belonging to both sides of the conflict in the thousands. Hussites and Catholics alike lie dead for the sake of their religious convictions. The battle was bloody and brutal, yet in the end, the Hussites had won.


    During thisst year of conflict, the violence that had urred in Bohemia was on a scale truly fitting of a religious civil war. Eckhard as the chief military advisor tasked with providing support to the Hussites, had witnessed the cruelty of man at its full scale, and for what? Minor religious differences? The sheer level of savagerymitted by both sides of the conflict was enough for a man to question his faith.


    Did God genuinely desire such death and destruction in his name? Probably not, but if the idea of such actions reviled him, why did he permit it? These were thoughts going through the field marshal''s head as he stood by his lonesome, observing the despair that resulted from the chaotic battle. Eckhard sighed heavily as he voiced his innermost thoughts on the issue.


    "I have seen enough of death and destruction in my lifetime..."


    Despite saying this, the veteran Field Marshal would continue his duties serving as Berengar''s lead General, for war was an inevitable result of man''s actions. It was also the only thing the man was any good at.


    After praying for the souls of the fallen, Eckhard returned to the other officers of the Grand Army of Austria who had apanied him during the Hussite campaign. Berengar''s strategy had been to stall the conflict for as long as possible and dragged as many Catholics to their deaths to dy the uing crusade against the Berengar Heresy.


    Eckhard did not disappoint on this matter; he advised the Hussites to slow down their forces and consolidate their gains over the past year. As such, the Hussites had lessnd than they could have seized. However, thesends were well fortified and defended.


    Several months ago, the pope dered a Crusade against the Hussites because they were bing increasingly close to overall victory. As such, the Crusading Orders of the world had gathered what few men they could spare to put down the Hussite Heresy before they could cause any further damage.


    Among these Catholic military orders was the Bohemian Order of the Dragon, which had made a name for itself for the sheer acts of brutality they engaged in against the Hussites, and especially the people who supported them.


    At the moment, the banner of the Ordery tattered and broken alongside the thousands of corpses of their fallen soldiers. The Hussite force had thoroughly crushed thetter under the guidance of Eckhard and his military advisors.


    Eckhard gazed upon the once proud banner of the Chivalric Order who had lost their lives in battle, particrly that of the Grand Master whose lifeless eyes gazed towards the heavens as blood dripped from his mouth onto his beard.


    In this single battle, the main force of the Order of the Dragon was crushed, snuffed out before they could make a name for themselves like the outstanding orders established centuries ago. Despite this, Eckhard knew this would not be the end of Bohemian Knights.


    The Order of the Dragon was not to be confused with the Welsh Order of the Red Dragon, which the Vatican recently established to counteract the Berengar Heresy. This was a much older Chivalric Order found in Bohemia, Hungary, and Wachia.


    They would return in time with more significant numbers to attack the Hussites; Eckhard was sure of this. After taking onest nce at the blood and bile that filled the field, Eckhard shifted his attention to his officers nearby before speaking to them with a voice filled with determination.


    "This is just one of many battles that await us; this war will not end any time soon. Steel yourselves, for we have much work to do."


    After saying that, Eckhard approached themand tent where Alexej and the other Hussite leaders were gathered. Having stepped inside the dwelling, the Hussite leaders nced over at Eckhard. They held much respect for the Austrian Field Marshal; after all, if not for him and his officers, they could have suffered substantially more casualties throughout this war.


    The leaders of the Hussites who were standing in the tent were encircled around a table filled with a map of Bohemia and the forces that represented both sides. Under Eckhard''s guidance, the Hussites had taken a firm defensive stance, and as such, mainly was engaging in battles within their provinces.


    At the moment, the Hussites held four out of seven provinces of the Kingdom of Bohemia. Through their best efforts and the advice of Eckhard, the Hussites had gained significant ground. This battle that had just urred was fought in the fields of Plzeň, where the Hussites had defeated an army of Catholic soldiers.


    Plzeň was a region owned by one of the Hussite factions, and the Kasparians had responded to their aid after a Catholic army was spotted in theirnds. Through much hardship, a victory was achieved defending the ground, but it came at high costs.


    Ultimately, the Kasparian armies arrived and drove their enemies out, ughtering all who dared to attack the peasants of Plzeň and their farms. Alexej, who had personally led his forces into the fray, was currently disying thetest report from his scouts about the enemy''s movements.


    "The main force of the Order of the Dragon has been defeated; they will probably crawl back to Hungary to lick their wounds until they can fight once more. However, news from the other side of the world is troublesome. The Hospitallers have cut off support from the Byzantine armies in Egypt and Libya.


    They have withdrawn from their Crusade in North Africa and pledged support to the Catholics in Bohemia. As such, tens of thousands of crusaders now march towards ournds. The army is meant for a single purpose, to destroy our movement and massacre every man, woman, and child they deem to be a heretic!"


    Eckhard observed the map closely, with the Hospitaller Knights entering the fray; this meant things would be difficult. They were arge and prestigious order and were also battle-hardened from the decades of warfare in North Africa. He would have to readjust his strategy if such a quantity of Crusaders were to pour into the war.


    The veteran field Marshal approached the map and began to shift the pieces around without permission from the others. He moved several wooden pieces that represented Hussite troops into positions near the borders and the various fortifications that guarded them. After doing so, he spoke with determination and authority.


    "The Hospitallers have entered Bohemia, which means we will be fighting thousands if not tens of thousands of more men. To put it simply, gaining any further ground is unlikely; what we need to do is defend our borders to the best of our ability and wear down the Catholic''s numbers through attrition.


    As of now, we are fighting a defensive war! Our best course of action is to maintain the ground we have gained while sending operatives into the enemy territory to sabotage their fields and food stockpiles. It may take months or even years, but sooner orter, the enemy will break their backs against our defenses and starve into submission!"


    There was not a single voice of disagreement at the conference. The Hussitemanders were all well aware that the arrival of the hospitallers represented a shift in the bnce of power, and as such, fighting on these terms was their best solution.


    The war in Bohemia began to take a turn for the worse; the Hussites decided to engage in a series of protracted sieges while meeting the enemy in the fields of their territory to protect their citizens. The Catholics, overzealous and eager for vengeance, would slowly use their newfound strength to push into Hussitends.


    When this war of attrition waged, the Hussites would further import weapons, munitions, and food from Austria, racking up an enormous debt. Therger the debt, the morend Berengar would demand as a form of repayment.


    The silver mines of Bohemia were a valuable resource, and as Berengar''s economy grew, it also began to stagnate due to ack of currency. Thus, he needed the mines in Bohemia to stimte his Nation''s growth until he could start his colonization of the new world and Africa.


    Unknowingly the Hussites had begun to trap themselves in debt to Austria, in doing so sealing their fates. Berengar had not only sent his advisors to aid the Hussites but to ensure that the Hussites incurred more significant debt, One that could only be repaid with valuablend.


    If the Hussites refused to surrender Bohemia to Austria after the war, Berengar would use the debt as a valid casus belli to take what he wanted. To him, the war in Bohemia was of great importance to funding his future campaigns to unify the German people.


    ---


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