Rebirth in a Ruined Nation! The Life of a New Strategist Starting From Now - Chapter 25

The Battle of Hakusha Plain (8) – The Escape

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After we finished our conversation with Raimaru-san, I asked Captain Luzel to deploy his unit to the upstream, and practically the whole captain’s unit hurried to the upstream.

The north bridge was our goal. I wanted to inspect the bridge’s condition. We needed to hurry since the river was about to flood, and the bridge was rather far away.

We needed to get to the north bridge for two reasons.

Because I couldn’t stop Wickharlt-sama, the only thing I could do now was send reinforcements. 

The reinforcement army had to take a detour to avoid being seen by the Gorber army.

For starters, we couldn’t get to the south bridge right now. We had to travel through the 6th Division camp to get to the south bridge. The 6th Division would undoubtedly stop us if we headed to the south bridge now, while the surprise attack unit had not yet left. In the worst-case scenario, it might spark an internal conflict between us and the 6th Division.

The second reason was to inspect the bridge’s condition. I wanted to make sure we could utilize the bridge even if the river was flooded. We were headed to the Gorber camp from the north, so once we rescued General Wickharlt’s troops, we would most likely flee to the south.

If we were successful. But I also wanted to plan for the reinforcement army’s line of retreat in case we failed, so I needed to inspect the condition of the north bridge to ensure that if we failed to rescue the general’s troops, we could leave by the north bridge even though the river was already flooded. In other words, if we escaped by the north bridge, that meant we have failed.

The conclusion of the north bridge inspection was that the north bridge was extremely unreliable. Because there was a village nearby, the villager likely repaired the bridge every time it was carried away by the river. The villager knew that the bridge was going to be swept away again, so the way they rebuilt the bridge was pretty basic.

“It took longer than I expected,” Captain Luzel muttered.

When I first requested Captain Luzel to die with me, he just asked what my plan was. After hearing my idea, the captain asked no further questions and silently prepared his unit for departure.

“Wickharlt-sama might have started crossing the river from the south, so we need to hurry.” (Roa)

“I know. Still, I have to say that I’ve changed my mind about you, Roa.”

“What do you mean?”

“We didn’t get to fight properly on your first expedition in Eren Village, so I can’t really call it a war, but this time, we’re going to a real war where people died. Nonetheless, you appear to be calm.”

Calm? I was about to puke and piss my pants even now. The only thing that kept me going this far was the thought that I couldn’t die here.

When I told Captain Luzel of my real feeling, the captain and the men around me burst out laughing.

“It’s already quite amazing that you didn’t puke or pee your pants. Few soldiers can do that on their first battle.”

We crossed the bridge and hurried south while still chatting that way. In this rescue attempt, speed was critical, but timing was also crucial.

We needed to grasp the moment when the enemy’s attention was drawn to General Wickharlt’s troops and when the enemy relaxed their guard because they were of their success. At the same time, It must also be when the general was still alive and had the energy to flee.

If Frankurlt…no, if Sakuri devised a plan that closed off the general’s route of retreat, I would outsmart him by creating an unthinkable reinforcement.

The battle had already begun by the time we got on the battlefield. I discovered Wickharlt-sama and his unit in a camp illuminated by the lone bonfire in the whole Gorber army camp. What were they doing?

“When do you want us to start rushing in?”

In response to Captain Luzel’s question, I turned my gaze to the south. Did Raimaru-san arrive on time?

I also asked Raimaru-san to gather his people and rush into the enemy from the south once our side began to move. But I also told him to leave if we didn’t make any movement.

Raimaru-san and his people departed after Wickharlt-sama, so they should have less time to prepare and fewer men than us.

“If we’re too slow, we may miss the opportunity. In the worst-case situation, we may have to cut through the enemy’s entire army to save Wickharlt-sama.”

“To be honest, I’m not sure when the best time is for us to attack. I’ll leave it up to you, captain. You have a lot more experience than I have in situations like this.”

“Then, let’s go. Right now.”

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The military operation went off without a hitch. The confused Gorber army couldn’t put up much of a fight, so we easily cut through their formation.

Captain Luzel instructed me to cling to the horse and run through the enemy line, so I did as he said.

With that, I could quickly approach Wickharlt-sama. The Luzel unit relied on their previous momentum to continue driving back the Gorber army. From here on out, it’d be head-to-head combat between the Luzel unit and the Gorber army, but the Gorber army was in a state of confusion, so we have the upper hand. We might be able to pull it off!

I shouted to the stunned Wickharlt-sama.

“I’ll explain later! Please follow me! If we miss this chance, we are all going to die!”

The people that Wickharlt-sama brought with him were all veterans. They could see right away that this was an opportunity, so they followed me.

“MOVE! IF YOU DON’T WANT TO BE KILLED BY ME, LUZEL, MOVE!”

Captain Luzel’s fighting spirit was palpable. He was like a different person on the battlefield, even though he was usually someone who barely changed his expression.

“I, Delize, will be your opponent!”

There were also Gorber soldiers who started to announce his name, but Captain Luzel ignored them. We were not in the situation to care about them right now.

“Strategist! It’s finished!”

Captain Luzel yelled, but I was unsure who exactly he was referring to, until I realized he was referring to me. There was a tremendous cheer in the direction Captain Luzel pointed his spear. That had to be Raimaru-san’s unit.

Then, out of nowhere, a route through the enemy line appeared. It had to be Raimaru-san’s doing.

“Thank you!” Captain Luzel said to which Raimaru-san replied, “My pleasure.”

“Raimaru-san, you escape too,” I said as we ran along the path Raimaru-san’s troops had cleared for us.

“Leave the rear to us,” Raimaru-san said.

We had finally escaped the enemy’s encirclement.

Wickharlt-sama appeared beside me as I turned around.

“Are you okay? We’re going to keep running south like this, so please held out until we arrive.”

“Thank you,” Wickharlt-sama responded, “and sorry for the trouble.”

Then we all continued running south. Our success in escaping would be determined by our luck and that thing I had prepared.

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“A surprise attack!? From where!?”

General Frankurlt said as he stood out in surprise, causing the chair he had sat on to fall.

“Both from the north and the south!”

“The enemy successfully regroups and now they succeeded in breaking through our formation!”

Unbelievable information came to General Frankurlt in rapid succession.

“How did this happen!?” Frankurlt shouted, causing the aide to tremble.

“L…Let’s immediately pursue them! We should be able to attack their rear!”

The aide advised the general in a panicked voice, but just a moment later, another messenger rushed into the tent.

“A massive flame is raging on the opposite shore’s north side!”

“What now!? What is going on here!?”

“I don’t know. The flame just kept burning…”

“What is our enemy up to this time?”

General Frankurlt mused.

“General…We should go after them…”

The general responded with a single word, “No.”

“But…”

The aide spoke nervously.

“The river is currently flooded, so they shouldn’t be able to cross it, but they are here. That means just one thing. They…predicted our strategy and have been waiting for this opportunity to strike. They took a detour to avoid our notice long before we succeeded in trapping that greenhorn’s army and have been waiting for the right moment to strike… and there’s that flame. Has Rays’s army truly not arrived?”

“General Rays? The 10th Division’s General? But the advance party for the 10th Division only arrived yesterday, so how could the general…”

“What if that’s a trap to let our guard down? f we chase them, there’s a chance we’ll be attacked from behind again, or worse…they may even strike our vacant headquarters.”

“But…That’s impossible…”

“We will not pursue them. I can’t risk the fate of my entire army to chase that greenhorn. This battle…is our loss.”

Frankurlt spoke with difficulty, then dropped weakly to the ground like a puppet that had lost its string. 

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T/N: and….that’s the end of Roa’s rescue mission *drum roll*. Since it’s clear in this arc that Rays’s title was also general like Wickharlt, rather than a lieutenant general, I’ll continue to address him as the General of the 10th Division.