“Good evening General Hudson” I say entering into General Hudson’s new office. I see maps all over the room's walls. Many of them of Allonia but a large minority is also of Arria. I then look to the table taking over the center of the room. It has the largest map with a large amount of troop markers laying on it.
“Good evening Your Majesty. Can I ask what brings you here?” He greets me placing another piece on the map. He then takes another piece and places it onto the map.
“I was going to see how you are doing but it seems that you are busy. I assume that Goldwell finally got around to giving you the list of nobles that voted against the army centralization proposal.” I respond. I see a notice that the markers have a bunch of different colors. It seems to be troop numbers on them as well. I haven’t ever seen such a thing before. I wonder where it came from.
“Yes, I've been busy using the surveys to put up a realistic estimate of the troops in Allonia. Afterwords I'll get an estimate of other countries. Sadly, it will not be as accurate but it will give me a big picture of what is where.” I see. It makes sense since we don’t have the same amount of information on other countries.
“What do the colors represent?”
“I have green as the imperial forces. Blue is currently allied, and yellow is enemies within Allonia. Red is for the Arrians. Purple for the Felworth and orange for the Koryo. I’ll probably change the color meanings afterwards but for now this will work.” I see. That is a simple system. Quite innovative as well.
“Did you get this system from my father?”
“No, during the war I had captured an arrian officer. After months of torturing him I finally learned how they conducted war. This was one of their inventions. I must say for how backwards they can be at times; they are quite innovative in the art of war. There have always been wargames but turning it into an absolute simulation of what is happening into war has never been done before. At least at such a detailed level.”
“I see, can you tell me of the situation as of this moment?”
“In troop numbers we hold the advantage but due to being spread thin they have a higher concentration. I have been putting the highest concentration of troops into Tonsia and Merey. I have also moved the imperial navy to the port of Bruryeone. While they aren’t as protect as in the Selis Bay it isn’t of any concern since we hold a monopoly on military ships. They are prepared to strike Widewich and Rochin at any time.” I see. I notice imperial troops have been posted in the cities of Witley, Tonzan, and Roclesham. It makes sense, we need to keep them from taking Tonsid.
“Keep up the good work. What about Wonsan, I noticed that there aren’t many troops in that area.”
“That isn’t a concern at the moment. If need be, we can move some troops from the east and Silton to keep order. Right now, I need as many troops on the western border as possible.” He answers my question. It is true, we are stretched too thin. It will be vital for us to shorten the front as soon as possible. Having said that, we can’t lose Tonsia so we should send the bulk of our forces to reinforce our position.
“What about the quality of our troops?”
“That is the problem. We lost a lot of knights in the war with Arria. However, the troops that have survived the war are the most experienced troops in Allonia. I’ve decided to send them to Tonsia.” I agree with this assessment.
“What is the course of action for the southwest?”
“Well, I think a lightning campaign to secure it will open up more troops for us to reinforce our line. Everything is about shrinking the front line as much as possible.”
“When will we be ready? I honestly don’t know when the war will begin. All it will take is lighting one match and everything will go up in flames.”
“We are ready as of this moment. However optimally we will be fortified by the end of the month. When the war starts the eastern lords will send troops to help the war effort. It would take only 2 months for us to fully mobilize our entire army.”
“Good, I want you to continue the reorganizing of our army.”
“As you command.” He answers. I leave the room on to my next meeting. How many generals in this empire have seen war? Duke Whyte was involved in the civil war. Goldwell was as well. I recall Earl Collingwood did well for himself as well. On my side I have Golldwell but other than him the only one who fought directly on the battle field is General Hudson. I wonder if Duke Whyte has received my letter yet. I wish I could see his face when he reads it.
A/N: Not much to say about this chapter. I'll talk about religion. Specifically for the Altons and Riens. They both believe in one god. The Arrians however believe that the emperor is a divine being. Perhaps better to say a divine human. The Altons aren't very religious but the city of Wargdon is considered to be the holiest place on the continent by them.
