TL: Rui88
“Is it that serious?”
Paul took the telegram from Bernard’s hand in so disbelief.
After a quick scan, his brow furrowed deeply.
He imdiately ordered, “Summon all supervisor-level officials to a eting at the lord’s manor!”
Thomas bowed to Paul. “Lord Grayman, I won’t disturb you then.”
The Chief Justice excused himself, and a somber mood fell over the room.
“It seems my earlier words have co true.”
Mariana broke the silence.
Paul nodded. “Yes, they have co.”
Mariana’s expression was very serious. “The orcs of the plains, led by a new generation’s King’s Tent, have beco stronger than ever. If I rember correctly, Watcher’s Fortress has never been breached since its construction, but now it has fallen into orc hands. Paul, even so, are you still going to get involved in this ss?”
Paul raised an eyebrow. “All my efforts up to this point were not made for the orcs.”
In the conference room of the lord’s manor, the military and political leaders of Lakeheart Town were gathered.
“We have already obtained Duke Ferdinand’s consent to build a series of fortresses on the eastern border of the ducal territory of Manda, to serve as a defensive line against the orc onslaught.”
Army Chief of Staff Schroeder pointed to a map hanging on the wall, explaining the army’s preparations to the assembly.
Paul interrupted him, “The ‘bastion fort’ design I gave you, has the army studied it?”
Schroeder nodded. “Yes, Lord Grayman, we have studied your design. But…”
“Just say what you need to say. It was only a suggestion of mine anyway…”
“After careful study, we ultimately shelved your plan. Of course, it is only shelved.”
“Ah, why?”
Although he was ntally prepared, Paul was still a little displeased that his “genius idea” had been rejected.
Schroeder patiently explained, “Judging from the shape of the bastion fort, it is designed to defend against an enemy with a similar level of firepower to our own—the enemy should at least be equipped with cannons or similar weapons. However, in reality, apart from us, no other army in the world currently possesses cannons, including the orc army. If we build a large number of bastion forts to defend against the orcs, it will add many unnecessary construction costs. Therefore, we still prefer traditionally designed fortresses. There are many old castles on Manda’s border that we can make good use of by repairing and improving them.”
“Uh… you’re right.” Paul had to admit that Schroeder had a point.
But he didn’t want to give up completely.
“We must consider the possibility of technology spillover. Our future enemies might also be equipped with cannons. So, I hope we can first build one or two bastion forts at transportation hubs to accumulate construction experience and evaluate their effectiveness through drills.”
Schroeder nodded. “The army will follow your instructions.”
After the topic of the eting returned to dealing with the orc invasion, the head of the Administration Council, Sir Ford, proposed a suggestion.
“Shouldn’t we send an army to support the retreating Royal Knights?”
As soon as this proposal was made, a lively discussion ensued.
The majority were in favor.
Firstly, the Grayman family was already allied with the royal family by marriage. As the princess’s fiancé, Paul could not remain indifferent.
Secondly, according to the traditional obligations of a vassal, as the most powerful lord in the Northwest Bay, the Grayman family should support the royal army.
After listening to everyone’s speeches, Paul was also eager to try.
The Alda army had not experienced a large-scale battle for a long ti.
“In that case, we shall send troops to the Blackstone Plains to assist the royal army and the local lords in repelling the orcs!”
According to the telegram, Catherine intended to establish a defensive line in the Blackstone Plains.
He cursed inwardly. Damn Duke Bradley. That fellow’s betrayal had greatly reduced the buffer zone.
Paul looked at Schroeder. “How many troops do you think we should dispatch?”
Schroeder estimated, “Four full battalions, and we’ll form four transport companies and two thousand laborers through the reserves.”
“We’re sending half of our army’s strength?”
“This already takes into account the ongoing expansion of the army, leaving half of our forces behind.”
Paul thought for a mont and nodded in agreent with Schroeder’s plan.
The army expansion Schroeder ntioned had begun as soon as news of the impending orc invasion was received.
In fact, a comprehensive expansion plan had always existed within the army; the orc invasion rely triggered it.
The Alda army was still “weak” in terms of size, consisting of only four full battalions and four half-strength battalions, plus an independent transport company and an independent artillery company.
Although the new situation prompted Lakeheart Town to imdiately restore the four half-strength battalions to full strength, this was still not enough. Thus, the plan to expand the army’s size began in earnest.
In previous military etings, a larger tactical unit—the regint—had been established as the new formation. A regint would consist of three battalions, and the regintal headquarters would have its own direct artillery, transport, and communications companies. A regint would have about 2,500 to 3,000 personnel.
The initial goal was to establish six army regints according to the above standards, which ant the size of the Alda army would reach nearly twenty thousand n.
To cope with the orc invasion, economic work supporting the military buildup was also carried out simultaneously.
Under Alda’s leadership, the mbers of the customs union, after consultation, placed materials such as steel, animal feed, saltpeter, and sulfur under control.
The weapons and armor produced by the Northwest Industrial Company would also be prioritized for the armies of the various northwestern territories.
And the firearms factory in Area 51 was also undergoing a large-scale expansion. In the future, it would continuously produce guns, cannons, and gunpowder.
During the eting, Schroeder solemnly requested of Paul, “Lord Grayman, I hope you will agree to let personally command this expedition!”
Paul was shocked. “How can that be? You are the army’s chief of staff!”
In fact, although Schroeder was only the chief of staff, he also bore a responsibility similar to that of a “commander-in-chief of the army” to a certain extent.
As the lord, Paul did not have enough energy to actually lead the construction of the army. He could only offer suggestions on the general direction to ensure that the army’s developnt did not deviate from what he considered the “correct path.”
“Please forgive my willfulness, Lord Grayman. You should know that I was once one of the defenders of Watcher’s Fortress.”
The old knight’s eyes blazed with desire and… hatred.
Paul nodded.
“I agree. Schroeder, go and get your revenge!”
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