Rebirth in a Ruined Nation! The Life of a New Strategist Starting From Now - Chapter 94

Zetta Great War (9) – The First Night

“Luzel, good work. I’m glad you’re safe,” I greeted Luzel as he returned to the fortress.

“Good work to you too. We suffered minimal damage, as expected of Nidhogg-sama. It was a valuable experience,” Despite the clear fatigue on his face, Luzel said with satisfaction.

Nidhogg-sama chimed in, “It’s only the first day~ I’ll keep working you hard, so prepare yourself~” Luzel straightened up at Nidhogg-sama’s words.

“Hogg-san, thank you for your hard work.”

“Enough about me~ Tell me about the damage in the fortress~”

“We suffered some damage, but it’s within our expectations.” 

In total, 200 soldiers, including the injured, became unable to fight. That’s a pretty low number.

“I see~ But don’t let your guard down~ Still, one thing bothered me~”

“Loderite, right?” Hogg-san nodded in satisfaction at my response.

The main reason for our minimal damage on the first day was Loderite’s movement. Despite leading 5000 soldiers to attack the east gate, his movement was dull, almost unmotivated.

It seemed as if Loderite’s army’s role was not to break through the east gate but to respond to any of our reinforcements from Rudek.

However, that show-off wouldn’t obediently accept such a low-profile mission. If anything, he would ignore his supreme commander’s order and attack us gleefully.

Both the 2nd Division and 4th Division commanders had faced Loderite many times. They knew better than anyone how strange Loderite’s movement today was.

Boltras-sama also said he wanted to hold a military council to discuss Loderite when Hogg-san returned.

“Alright~ Let’s hold the council now~”

“Hogg-san, you should get some rest,” (Roa) 

“If I get tired just from this, there’s no way I can become the 2nd Division Commander~ You don’t need to worry about me~ Let’s go~” Hogg-san said as he quickly walked toward the central building.

***

“He’s planning a night raid, isn’t he?”

“Most likely~” 

Boltras-sama and Hogg-san said at the start of the council.

“A night raid? Sacrificing the day’s battle, on the first day when his soldiers’ morale is highest, just for a night raid?” Wickharlt asked, tilting his head.

“Well, Loderite is the type of general who will do anything to stand out. For him to be quiet during the day can only mean he’s preserving his power to attack us at night,” (Boltras) 

“I agree~ Though I don’t know exactly what he planned, there’s a high chance he will make a move tonight~” (Nidhogg) 

“The problem is, we don’t know when he will make a move. Will it be in the middle of the night, early morning, at dawn, or now?” (Boltras) 

“I don’t think he will move at dawn~ That guy doesn’t have that kind of patience~” (Nidhogg) 

“Right. Then, he’s probably going to attack soon,” (Boltras) 

To think that one of Gorber’s most famous generals was this easy to read…

“Since we knew he would launch a night raid and even know when he will do it, doesn’t that mean it’s not that serious of a problem?” 

The 4th Division’s knights shook their heads at Wickharlt’s question.

“That’s the scary thing about Loderite~ When you think you’ve completely figured him out, he always manages to pull something off. Standing out in the battlefield should be dangerous, but he always manages to stand out, survive, and succeed. He’s somehow always in the perfect place at the perfect time in the battlefield~” (Nidhogg) 

“I know you all must be tired, but we can’t relax yet. Have the soldiers alternate between rest and guarding the fortress.” (Boltras) 

As we finished the discussion, a soldier rushed into the room.

“An army of unknown affiliation is attacking us!”

That’s definitely Loderite’s army.

***

Loderite attacked with 5000 men.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Loderite attacked from the north and the south. Loderite’s soldiers used siege ladders and fired flaming arrows, but when our soldiers tried to attack back, Loderite’s soldiers disappeared into the darkness.

Loderite’s army also attacked the gate.

When our soldiers tried to focus on defending the gate, Loderite’s soldiers started to climb up the fortress wall. When our soldiers tried to drive down Loderite’s soldiers that were climbing the fortress wall, powerful arrows would attack our soldiers from the darkness. It was mentally exhausting.

It was dark, so it was hard to tell just how many soldiers Loderite used to attack the wall and how many soldiers he used to attack the gate, making it difficult for us to make an appropriate response.

He was really skilled in controlling the tempo of his attack. So, this was how Loderite fought. It was no wonder people found him a troublesome opponent.

No, this wasn’t the time for me to get impressed. Our biggest problem right now was the length of the battle. We were on the defensive, making it hard to inflict a major blow to Loderite’s army. We were forced to endure prolonged attacks from Loderite’s army.

We also couldn’t use cavalry. It was so dark that, if we opened the gate to let our cavalry out, enemy soldiers might come rushing in.

Nevertheless, after midnight, Loderite’s army finally retreated, giving us twice as many losses as the day’s battle.

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