Rented bungalow in Val Royeaux. Dining room.
"This is pretty tasty. It’s too soft to eat with a fork though...... eei." The tall girl, Irijina was gobbling muttons.
"Miss Irijina, it’s vulgar to use your hands! Are you a barbarian!?" Gretel chided in half-polite manner.
"Hihi.."
Suzy sniggered as the unladylike Irijina got an earful by the noble daughter, Gretel de Montfort.
"Mirai has a small mouth so it’s fine to go slow. If you push yourself, you’ll choke." Another noble heiress, Clarice de Doucy told off the youngest in the group, Mirai.
"We added lots of delicious ingredients so help yourself.」
"Thank you. But I’" a little concerned with my belly fat~ just kidding. Ahaha."
The maids, Eli and Lucy cooked another dish outside of the normal breakfast menu.
The warm soup had a milk base and also contained plenty of vegetables and bread.
Irijina ignored Gretel's scolding.
"Aah gosh, use a knife to cut up the mutton. Hey, Don’t swallow it whole!" Gretel was still persistent.
"What a glutton...... haha." Suzy laughed off.
"So vulgar......" Clarice shared Gretel's concern.
"I’m losing my appetite just watching her. It’s hard to believe she’s a knight." Gretel still gave Irijina a roasting.
Myla was also a noble heiress but was still friendly, while Clarice and Gretel who were well-versed in etiquette looked away in disgust.
"Mirai, you’re leaving out the spinach."Gheyna lectured the young kunoichi.
"You’re going to push it to the edge to avoid it, aren’t you! Finish all your food!" Clarice added.
"Oh, shut it......" Mirai looked annoyed but still adhered to their nagging.
Claire, Myla and Mirellia were also making a fuss.
Malty didn't talk much.
Sekrit was the only one eating silently because she didn’t have anyone to talk to.
This scene wasn’t a common one for nobles during breakfast, however I felt a lot calmer when it’s like this.
I always felt like I was suffocating when the other nobles invited me to eat with them.
"Apologies for interrupting during your meal, but an urgent report has arrived from a spy."
The door swung open and Leonheardt stepped in.
Gretel and Myla furrowed their brows, but I urged him to go on.
"It’s about Orlais-Fanoss Union, right?"
Leonheardt nodded silently while everybody else focused their attention on me.
The girls accompanied me here already knew about the matter, however it should be surprising news to the the servants, like Lucy and Eli.
"Count Rikat Guiscard had retreated to his last bastion after another lost skirmish."
Guiscard army was not our allies yet but we shared the same cause as he was one of the factions that were fighting Saxon-Fanoss troops.
"We found out that they had the same military formation as former Olga federation. A Olga-style army formation and skilled active commanders...... no, having a well-regulated army doesn’t really change the marching speed much and the importance of resupply remains the same. If I had more detailed information on the branches within the army and the number of squads, I could make some predictions."
"Saxon-Fanoss’s counterintelligence network is rapidly being strengthened. It’s hard just to find out the exact numbers let alone the composition details. The only thing we can examine is what they don’t intend to hide."
Silence and gloominess enveloped the dining room.
Sekrit came over and gently rubbed my shoulder.
"Let me put this simply. When there is someone you want to kill no matter what.."
Sekrit pulled the knife at my waist and got into a low stance.
"This woman!"
Mirai responded quickly by drawing her own knife and staring Sekrit down.
"There will be lots of resistance even from just looking at each other like this"
Sekrit dropped the knife and raised both hands.
The tension in the air seemed to disperse a bit.
"I’ll hold her down!" Mirai yelled but restrained by Myla.
"First lower their guard, and then.."
The moment Mirai approached the unarmed Sekrit, Sekrit pulled out a knife hidden on her thigh and pointed it at Mirai’s throat.
Mirai relaxed after seeing the blade fell to the floor and couldn’t deal with Sekrit’s speed.
"Killing this way is much easier, no?"
Sekrit released Mirai for real this time.
I see, now I understood.
"Uuuu...... she tricked me. How frustrating! It’s so frustrating!"
Mirai pounded the floor feeling mortified after the demonstration. Meanwhile Sekrit left the room laughing.
"In any case, don’t slack in the preparations. We should get ready for war." Myla spoke.
***
Meeting room in University of Orlais.
Gretel's elder brother, Gabriel De Montfort stood at the blackboard and wrote using chalked while explaining,
"According to the spy positioned near the border, an army composed only of a large number of cavalry and carriages are surging forward. This unit doesn’t bother to gain control of every village, rather they are simply taking out the Guiscard army as they run through."
An assault with just cavalry? They must have completed the withdrawal from the borders as promised while a fully prepared squad of cavalry waits on standby at the back.
Mounted troops could greatly reduce the restrictions of distance after all.
"Now then, a rapid assault with a cavalry composition is a strategy I heard somewhere before."
"It’s the same tactic we used in the past. They must have copied us!" Lothair de Doucy, Clarice's father hit the table.
"I would need to wait for further news to be sure of the specifics, however I can imagine the Guiscard army is in disarray after being attacked from behind during their retreat. The moment the soldiers withdrew is the moment they were the most relaxed."
"Which means the rout should still be on. How far do you think they’ll run?" Gretel's father, Cyril Dr Montfort asked.
"Their military strength is unknown, but the fleeing soldiers won’t be useful until they organize themselves again at a fort or city. Realistically speaking, I think they will stop when reserve troops get added, although considering the speed of Saxon-Fanoss’s invasion." Gabriel wrote something on the board.
"In other words, they’ll keep falling back as far as possible?" I asked.
Gabriel shook his head.
"No, a squad of purely cavalry cannot bring down a fortress or a large city. An encirclement to temporarily neutralize them is possible...... but it will take time for the infantry to catch up after needing to retreat from the borders to the rear. In that case, they can’t resupply."
That’s right.
While cavalry were quick and convenient, they needed more resources than infantry like water and fodder.
"Guiscard should understand that too. They will definitely make a counterattack after running for a while. When that happens, cavalry alone won’t be enough to maintain the offensive."
"I think Saxon-Fanoss is acting too reckless. Isn’t it too forward of them to aim for a surprise attack?"
Gretel drew a conclusion of her own, which Gabriel responded to while his eyes were fixed on me.
He replied, "Looking at this from the other side, if Saxon-Fanoss somehow secures a solid supply point...... Guicard’s defense line will be cut and they will have to fight against the enemy deep in their own territory."
I pondered for a while.
If Guiscard was defeated, their next target could be us. There were other small factions that were fighting against Saxon-Fanoss but Guiscard was nearly as big as Doucy-Montfort coalition.
I guessed we had no choice but to go there and help Guiscard.
