Becoming a Swordmaster by Reading Chapter 69

Chapter 69. Rear Disturbance (4) Thud! Latif Vayta, the leader of the Imperial vanguard battalion, slammed his fist on the desk, unable to contain his anger. Everyone fell silent at the sound, startled. And for good reason, as Latif was a 6-star knight. “Didn't you say you sent the elite of the elite?” “Th-that's right.” “Then why have we suffered another major defeat!” As Latif roared, no one dared to step forward, keeping their mouths shut. They knew they could face dire consequences if they spoke carelessly. Latif sighed at the pathetic sight of his subordinates. Then, he singled one person out and demanded an answer. “Archery Company Commander. You explain.” At Latif's command, a man named Thaddeus Bazenov stepped forward. “After cross-referencing the testimonies of the remnants, it appears that the enemy commander, who dares to roam our territory, overwhelmed the pursuit commander in a one-on-one duel.” “Overwhelmed?” “Yes. Therefore, we must consider the enemy commander's level to be at least that of a 4-star knight. Not only that, it is said that there were five men who appeared to be 1-star knights in their infantry.” “Ha? Five of them?” “Judging by the circumstances, it seems the Allied Forces have gone to great lengths for this operation.” Latif nodded at Thaddeus's words. Even in his own mind, if they hadn't gone to such lengths, there was no way such a force could have suddenly appeared. “Then there must be a hole somewhere in the Aequor Plains. Would it be better to find and exploit it, or to directly punish those insolent bastards?” “I believe both would be good options. However, the former would require some time. The Allied Forces will have hidden that hole well.” “Damn it. What is the command doing, not giving us information at a time like this.” Latif muttered and fell into thought. Then, as if he had made a decision, he opened his mouth. “Relay what we've found to the command. Then, even if it takes some time, they will find the hole.” “Then what should we do about the nuisance? Just leave them be?” “Tsk. Send scouts to just ascertain their location. If they show any suspicious movements, we will take action then.” Latif was not pleased, but he decided to let it go this time. The opportunity for revenge, after all, comes to those who wait and endure. *** A week later. Roden asked Liviano. “Still no particular movement?” “No, sir. There are occasional instances of scouts watching us and then leaving, but no large-scale movements have been detected. What do you think they're planning?” Roden thought for a moment before answering Liviano's question. “It seems that after receiving the report from the remnants, they've judged our forces to be more formidable than they thought. So they've decided to approach with caution.” “With caution?” “They're probably thinking one of two things. One is that since our forces are stronger than expected, they should form an appropriate force to crush us. The other is that there must be a hole somewhere, and they should find and exploit it.” After hearing Roden's explanation, Chevalier, who was also there, spoke. “Then wasn't it a bad move to let the remnants live? What we wanted was for the angered enemy to move a large-scale force.” “It wasn't a bad move. The best outcome didn't happen, but it's not like the worst outcome happened either. If I had to put it somewhere, it would be in the middle.” “The middle?” “In any case, we've bought time to reorganize our unit. Imagine if the enemy had formed a unit of 100 heavy cavalry to crush us and had immediately pursued us. What do you think? Isn't it dizzying?” For the Special Task Force Company, which was a mix of infantry and archers, there would have been no way to escape if 100 heavy cavalry had pursued them. In other words, it meant they would have to face the enemy without having secured time to recharge their shields and shortbows. But the Imperial Army did not choose this option, and for that reason, Roden said they had avoided the worst outcome. Although they hadn't finished recharging completely, there would be no problem now even if 100 heavy cavalry attacked. They had already bought that much time. In fact, with just a few more days, it was possible to finish recharging completely. “The Company Commander is right. Thanks to letting the remnants live, we seem to have avoided the worst outcome. Even if the remnants' information didn't anger the enemy, it at least made them cautious.” Chevalier readily admitted that the current situation was not bad. However, admitting this was not the end. Olinto, who had been listening to their conversation, asked Roden. “Then what should we do now? Should we wait here until the enemy makes a move?” “No, now that we've grasped the enemy's intentions, it's time to move. If the enemy, having assessed our strength, forms an appropriate force and attacks us, that in itself will be tiring. Not only will it be hard to win, but even if we do win, we'll have to fight another battle.” “Another battle? If we win anyway, the enemy won't be able to contain their anger this time and will form a huge force. Will there be another fight?” “If we win by a narrow margin and only a few of us are left, would they really bother forming such a large force?” “Ah.” “The key is for us to continue to win overwhelmingly. That way, the enemy will form a force larger than our actual strength. If such a large force pursues us, then the situation is over.” Making the Imperial Army move a large force so that they couldn't deploy it where it was really needed. Just like last time, this was the key to the rear disturbance operation. For that reason, the Special Task Force Company had to lure out a large force somehow. This was also the reason why Roden suggested moving to another location. Waiting here would only lead to a slow death without completing the mission. They had to move to another location and carry out additional operations. Only then could they draw out the enemy's large-scale force. “We will move cautiously, avoiding the eyes of the scouts. Then we will strike the enemy where it hurts the most.” Thus, Roden explained the plan he had thought of in advance in case a result like this came about. After hearing this explanation, Chevalier, Olinto, and Liviano nodded. *** “Waaaah! We won!” “We are victorious again!” Chevalier nodded as he watched the members of the Special Task Force Company rejoicing after seizing the Imperial Army's supplies. ‘As expected of the Company Commander.’ The plan that Roden had explained to Chevalier, Olinto, and Liviano. That plan was to attack and seize the Imperial Army's supplies. Originally, in this war, it was always the Imperial Army that attacked supplies. The Allied Forces, whose cavalry was relatively weaker than the Imperial Army's, had no choice but to be quite passive in attacking supplies. For that reason, the intention was more to disrupt the supply line rather than to conduct a real raid. But Roden had succeeded in actively attacking and seizing the supplies. And it wasn't just once. He had plundered supplies in succession a total of three times. The reason Roden had continued to succeed in these supply raids was none other than this. The scouts, who had to acquire information about the raids in advance and report it. He had effectively eliminated these scouts, blinding and deafening the Imperial Army. ‘At first, when the Company Commander said he would deal with the scouts himself, I was half in doubt.’ But Roden had dealt with the scouts without much difficulty. He had detected and tracked the scouts' movements in advance using the 3rd Circle magic, Location Detection Magic. So the scouts had to suffer helplessly, not even knowing how their positions had been discovered. Thanks to this, the Special Task Force Company was able to hide without difficulty and succeeded in attacking the supplies at the right time. And when a battle broke out, the Special Task Force Company was able to easily deal with the Imperial transport unit. It was only natural for the Special Task Force Company, which had already achieved a great victory against the elite of the Imperial Army. ‘The reason our army is weak at raiding supplies, unlike the Imperial cavalry, is because our cavalry charge is weak. But the Special Task Force Company doesn't need a cavalry charge.’ After sufficiently reducing the number of enemies with the Archery Platoon's arrows. While the Infantry Platoon, which included five 1-star knights, engaged in a frontal confrontation, the Light Cavalry Platoon would strike the flank and finish the enemy off. Therefore, from the perspective of the Imperial transport unit, they had no choice but to be defeated helplessly. “Everyone, don't be too greedy for food and take a moderate amount. And burn the rest.” “Yes!” After giving orders to the soldiers, Chevalier approached where Roden was. “I think we can finish cleaning up and move within an hour.” “Is that so? Then let's move out.” It was as the two were conversing. “Company Commander.” Someone spoke up and walked toward them. When they turned their heads, it was Nedhab who was there. “Yes, Deputy Platoon Leader. What is it?” “I have found a book like this on a knight I just dealt with in battle.” “A book?” Roden, who had been standing leisurely, was startled and accepted the book Nedhab handed him. Surprisingly, the cover of the book had the name written on it. Roden spoke as he traced the gold-leafed name with his hand. “It's a swordsmanship manual…. Judging by the quality of the book and its name, it's probably a Superior Swordsmanship manual. Congratulations. You've obtained a fine item.” Roden spoke as he returned the book to Nedhab without any lingering attachment. It was a coveted item, but this Superior Swordsmanship manual belonged to Nedhab. It was an item he had obtained by personally defeating the enemy. ‘A shame. I've personally executed quite a few knights so far, but there haven't been any more cases of them having a Superior Swordsmanship manual.’ Roden, who had once obtained the on the battlefield, had secretly hoped every time he went into battle. That he might be able to obtain a Superior Swordsmanship manual. But obtaining a Superior Swordsmanship manual was not that easy. Even the 4-star knight Muhib, whom he had dealt with not long ago, only had a few coins in his pockets. ‘It can't be helped. From now on, I shouldn't hang back, but actively participate in battles. The more knights I kill, the higher the probability of obtaining a Superior Swordsmanship manual will be.’ As he was having these thoughts, Nedhab did not take the book back from Roden. Instead, he waved his hand and spoke. “Ah. You don't have to return it. I brought this to give to you, Company Commander.” Roden was at a loss for words at the unexpected event. It was that shocking of a statement.