The contents of the enemy''s force have already been divvied up.
The cathedral directly commands about half of them.
The rest are small lords from the periphery of the capital who did not take kindly to my presence, and a group of cities with their own armies.
Some of those who were driven from their lands by my arrival have come back to seek their restoration. They''re probably sheltered in the cathedral, waiting for the right moment.
Or they may have encouraged the cathedral to fight against the regent. For those in the vicinity of King''s Landing, there is a sense that the ruler of this land is always in front or behind the scenes. That is why the royal line was so changeable and the regent fell even faster.
Even if a regent emerged temporarily, he or she would be replaced by someone else soon anyway. It is not strange to think so. That is the way it is if we learn from the past history. This time, too, it is supposed to be a battle against the regent, not the king.
Such people are on the other side of the shore on the not-so-deep Soreto side.
In a word, it is an anti-regent coalition.
Rayon, the captain of the White Eagle Corps, was looking at a map of the enemy general''s lineup.
We have a big map at our feet. In the center is a map of the river. It is not blue or green because there is no time to color it.
Looking down at the map, all the generals stand and talk. I am standing as well. If we all stand around the map, we don''t have to worry about the difference in status.
It''s no big deal. It''s not a big deal. We have a good number of professional soldiers.
An Orcus of the Red Bear Squad smiles, showing his double teeth. Rayon immediately glared at him.
"The people, the followers of the cathedral, are all martial people," he said. With a weak army, they will not be able to overpower the other lords. And not 70% or 80% of us are pure soldiers. It is the arrogant ones like you who will be the first to perish!
"It''s all right, if you''re strong, you''re strong. You can''t be successful unless you''re strong. And no matter how strong they are, they don''t have the resolve of a warrior. They''re just wrapped up in the long game."
I thought Rayon would deny it again because of the abstract expression, but he still did not interject.
"I guess you could call it the will of a warrior. Only our regent has it. As long as we have this, no matter how many enemies there are, no matter how brave they are, we will win. That''s what I''ve been fighting for, believing in it.
"I''m sorry to lift you up, but I''m not fighting in the dark either. ....... I''m not just being stubborn, I''m being rational."
If you could win on bravery alone, you would have no trouble. Well, it doesn''t matter as long as a great man like Orcus believes so.
The map shows a large grouping of the cathedral army, but its position on the map is ambiguous. In some places, the detailed positions of the enemy forces have not been confirmed. This is a little bit troubling, since the cathedral army accounts for more than half of the total.
Well, we should know this by now.
Mistletoe has slipped into the strategy meeting. The general, who had not noticed it, was startled because it did not make a sound of footsteps. This time he is not a wolf, but a lycanthrope from the start.
"The army seems to be working fine," he said.
Mistletoe''s report made me loosen up a bit.
"Okay. Then I can give it my all."
"Also, I checked with the commander of the Cathedral Army on my way back here."
Mistletoe wrote down the names as he went.
Sure enough, there are names of lords in the cathedral army.
The enemy is a mixed force. They are recruiting the same people who have fallen.
"All right, boys, I''m going to make a final check on the lineup now, but target only the big guns in the cathedral army. Leave the outsiders alone. They are the strongest."
Isn''t it usually the other way around?
Olks looked at me as if he didn''t quite get it.
"The natural way is to attack the zakos and disrupt the enemy line. If you go out of your way to hit the stronger ones, you''ll just end up in a tough fight.
"If it''s a struggle, fine. If you don''t lose, it''s okay. Reinforcements will be here."
"Reinforcements? Is Brand Nahum, whom Master Altia married, coming too? It seems too far from the other side of the land.
Exactly too far. Even if we send an army out from the castle of Maust, like this time, it will not be in time.
"Then I don''t think there is anything left around here.
"I don''t think so. There''s something special coming. Protect it anyway. As soon as the reinforcements arrive, we''ll have the upper hand, so we''ll attack as much as we can."
The reinforcements will march slowly anyway, so we''ll have to be patient. Let''s leave everything to Kerala.
--You''re a fool to entrust such a serious matter to a woman whose profession is Mitsuhide Akechi.
Oda Nobunaga called me a liar again. Is "imprudent" a habit of his?
Then an urgent messenger arrived.
"Sir! The enemy army is preparing to attack! I think they want to cross the river and hit us!"
They''ll waste their rations, and they''ll move first. If I escape, High Priest Kamito will win. He''ll outrank me in political power. And the city''s trust in me will be safe.
"Okay. Hold fast, all of you. Just hold them back, that''s all I ask."
Well, this is the moment of truth.
Let''s sow the seeds for the harvest.
"I assure you. If we can hold them off, we win."
●
Soon a strong force commanded by the cathedral rushed in.
Our troops blocked them with long spears. Roughly, just this side of the center of the river. The river is at most knee-deep.
If we can hold the spears, we won''t be able to break through. Anyway, we will defend until the enemy retreats.
Even if they retreat, they will be attacked by the next force soon, which we will also defend.
If it is only deaths, the enemy forces attacking you are more numerous, but they will not stop attacking you.
Come as many times as you like. We''d rather have our main force exhausted.