Before long, we arrived at the fortress.
The outer periter, which had once been a hastily constructed wooden palisade, was now surrounded by solid brick walls. It seed they had placed considerable importance on this stronghold and had been reinforcing it accordingly.
It made sense—this fortress held significant strategic value for both the Brans and Aishus armies.
Atop the high towers, crimson banners fluttered in the wind, boldly declaring this as Aishus Army territory.
"Welco, Lady Airen."
Several sentries standing guard recognized Airen and offered their greetings. Their armor bore the insignia of the Aishus Army.
Like us, they had simply changed the sun they swore allegiance to.
"Hm. You've all done well."
Without delay, we made our way to the war council chamber where Epinnel was waiting.
Inside, she greeted us, her teal hair tied back in a ponytail.
"By the lord's command, I, Airen Juliet, have arrived at the fortress."
"Welco, Airen. And I see our tactician has joined us as well."
After scanning the room, her gaze settled on .
"You’re here too, Swen. I was expecting you."
I simply lowered my head in silent acknowledgnt.
She didn’t seem to be waiting for a response, shifting her attention back to the room as she began explaining the situation in a serious tone.
"Since reinforcents have arrived, I’ll go over the details once more. The Brans Army is advancing on this fortress with fifty-three thousand soldiers. Their vanguard is led by Chel Brans."
So they were pulling troops from the south.
Having once been part of the Brans Army myself, I could already picture the overall strategy.
"As of now, we have forty-eight thousand troops stationed here. With the three thousand reinforcents that just arrived, our total force stands at fifty-one thousand. While this isn’t a proper castle, I believe we have enough troops to hold the fortress."
Jinor, who had been listening intently, asked with a grave expression.
"…General Epinnel. Surely you don’t intend to hold this position?"
"Yes. That is exactly my intention."
"That is an irrational decision. The best course of action would be to abandon the fortress and regroup at Valharat Castle."
"Tactician, our forces are nearly equal in number. While this isn’t a castle, we do have fortifications. It is not inevitable that we lose. There is reason to fight."
"I do not misunderstand your reasoning, General Epinnel. However, do you truly believe the Brans Army’s invasion will end at fifty-three thousand troops? Even if we manage to hold them off, we will suffer considerable losses. This will not be a clean victory. And once this turns into a prolonged conflict, we—whose territory is limited—will inevitably lose to the Brans Army’s overwhelming resources and endurance."
Jinor bowed his head as he spoke.
A state tactician bowing to a general.
And not just any tactician—Jinor, of all people.
"General Epinnel, please reconsider. The best strategy is to consolidate our forces at Valharat Castle and use its defenses to our advantage. Once we have secured our position and dealt with the Charam and Aleffel forces, opportunities will present themselves."
Honestly, I agreed with Jinor.
Not just because his intelligence stat was 99, but because his reasoning was sound.
No matter how much they had reinforced this place, a fortress and a castle were fundantally different in defensive capability.
While fifty-three thousand was a considerable force, if we combined our troops here with those at Valharat Castle, we could hold out. And once the soldiers deployed against Aleffel returned, our defenses would be even stronger.
However, Epinnel’s response was firm.
"Tactician, I am well aware of what you are saying. However, if we abandon this fortress now, we will be locked into a perpetual stalemate against the Brans Army. Sooner or later, we must confront them. I believe that ti is now. If we continue to evade direct conflict, we will never accomplish anything."
The fortress’s location was, indeed, valuable.
When I first had it built, it was rely a convenient place to station the troops Airen would lead.
But whether for the Aishus Army or the Brans Army, it was positioned in a way that made it an extrely useful stronghold.
From Epinnel’s perspective, with troop numbers relatively even, abandoning this position out of fear of a prolonged war seed like the greater loss.
Her reasoning wasn’t without rit.
Unlike that ti when Chel Brans made a reckless mistake, her argunt at least had a logical foundation.
"Furthermore, regarding the continued invasions by the Brans Army, I have a different perspective. Our intelligence suggests they have signed ceasefire agreents with the southern nations. That ans most of the troops being deployed here are those that were previously stationed at the southern borders. If that is the case, then they will need to pull reinforcents from the northern border next. And when that happens, Serpina’s army will not remain idle. What do you think?"
"Considering the population of the Brans-controlled territories, they may resort to additional conscription. And if they mobilize forces from the western front instead of the northern front, the situation will change once more. When assessing the situation as a whole, retreating to Valharat Castle and holding our ground there remains the best strategy for repelling the Brans Army’s invasion."
"You may be correct that it is an effective defensive strategy, but as I just said, there is no way to break through by rely blocking their advance. If we defeat the Brans Army here, capturing Raklein Castle will no longer be just a dream."
"I understand your sentint, but now is not the ti. If we wait, the right mont will co."
At Jinor’s words, Epinnel slowly closed her eyes before speaking again, her tone cautious.
"Tactician. I hesitate to bring up the past, but do you rember when you confidently declared that you would plant the Aishus Army’s banner atop Raklein Castle? And what happened in the end?"
"…!"
Wow.
To think she could push back even a tactician like that—Epinnel's influence was clearly imnse.
For the record, I was the one who had prevented that disaster from happening.
But there was nothing to be gained by bringing that up here, so I decided to keep quiet.
"This battle is a golden opportunity for the Aishus Army. I acknowledge that aiming for Raklein Castle now is unrealistic. However…"
Epinnel’s voice softened as if recalling sothing from the past.
"Tactician, you may not fully understand, as you joined us more recently, but our Aishus Army was forged in hardship. We first gathered under a shared cause, eluded the ever-watchful gaze of Serpina’s northern forces, and finally raised our banner at Valharat Castle.
We have overco countless challenges to get here.
Not a single one of our achievents seed likely at the ti.
Yet, we succeeded.
We, the siblings who share Yuri’s blood, have always found opportunity in adversity. That is how we have co this far."
"…"
"And besides, I doubt anyone in our army has even considered retreating and abandoning this fortress."
After saying that, Epinnel finally turned to the gathered soldiers and raised her voice.
"Am I wrong? If anyone here believes that withdrawing from this battle and retreating to Valharat Castle is the best course of action, raise your hand!"
No one moved.
I let out a sigh of relief.
That performance of hers—it was phrased as a question, and I almost wanted to toast to that.
"Is retreating from this battle truly the best option?"
I quickly input the question into my mind.
Both argunts had their own logic.
To an ordinary person, there was no clear answer.
Without the ability to see the future, how could anyone say for sure who was right?
But I was different.
As long as I could phrase a question properly, I could always obtain the correct answer.
Would Jinor’s reasoning, backed by his formidable intelligence of 99, be correct?
The result ca imdiately.
[It is sowhat close.]
"…???"
What?
Sowhat close?
Not a definitive answer, but rely close?
This wasn't the first ti I had seen this kind of response.
Back during the Brans Army’s war council, Airen’s assessnt had been labeled as "almost correct."
Which made this strange.
If retreating was sowhat close to the correct answer, then did that an we needed to withdraw so of our troops?
Why?
As confusion swirled in my mind, Epinnel continued speaking without hesitation.
She seed quite pleased that no one had raised their hand, and her voice carried even more confidence.
"Tactician, we must seize victory in this battle. It is the only path for us to advance into the central continent.
Our brothers and sisters will once again prove themselves.
I have been granted full authority over this fortress by Yuri herself. In other words, my words here are the words of our sovereign.
I have no intention of yielding on this decision, so I hope you will cooperate with ."
Jinor remained silent for a mont, eyes closed in deep thought.
Then, he nodded.
"…Understood."
No matter how skilled Jinor was as a state tactician, the absolute authority of this nation lay with Yuri.
And Yuri, for better or worse, placed imnse trust in Epinnel.
Trust might not even be the right word—dependence would be more accurate.
But that wasn’t the issue at hand.
If Jinor’s answer was only "sowhat close" to the truth, then what about Epinnel’s?
In other words, "Is standing our ground and fighting the Brans Army the correct decision?"
"Is there a way to naturally bring up this question?"
Just as I pondered this, Epinnel turned to with impeccable timing.
"Well then, Swen. This ti, I’d like to witness your ability with my own eyes."
"My ability, you say?"
"There’s no point in pretending now. I've heard about your so-called miracle. That you called upon the heavens and made stones fall from the sky."
Ah, right.
Earlier, she had said, "I was waiting for you."
So this was what she had been referring to.
She wanted to use that power again.
"Um, Lady Epinnel. About Swen’s ability—"
I raised a hand to stop Airen before she could finish.
I was telling her to leave this to .
She understood imdiately and closed her mouth.
"My sincerest apologies, Lady Epinnel. However, my communication with the heavens is not sothing I can summon at will.
All I can do is read the celestial energies, observe the movents of the stars, and guide that flow in a favorable direction.
I would gladly be of assistance, but at present, that connection remains closed."
"Hmm? Then what if we conduct a ritual, like last ti?"
"That is possible… but there is no guarantee the heavens will answer.
If it’s rely to cloud the judgnt of the Brans Army, it could serve as a useful distraction.
But I cannot in good faith assure you of its effectiveness."
A ritual, huh?
It wasn’t a bad idea.
Since we were dealing with the Brans Army, such a spectacle might serve as a bluff.
But if nothing actually happened… the consequences would co later.
"Hmm… I see."
Epinnel looked a little disappointed but soon shook her head.
"Well, even without relying on your miracle, I believe our army can still win against the Brans Army. Don’t you think so?"
She delivered the question with perfect timing.
I barely contained my relief.
"Yes!"
It wasn’t intentional, but she had unwittingly given the opportunity to ask what I needed to know.
Second question: "Can the Aishus Army win this battle against the Brans Army?"
The answer would determine my next course of action.
And once again…
With the nonchalance of a god announcing the evening’s dinner nu…
My perfect, 100 Intelligence mind spat out the result.
[It depends on the will of the heavens.]
"??????"
Another unexpected answer.
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