After a brief ceasefire, our Imperial Army remained still for a while.
Well, to be more precise, we were unable to move.
Trapped within our encirclement were a whopping 40,000 troops who had all surrendered.
Not only that, but the commander himself came forward to personally offer their surrender.
In such a situation, there’s no way you can just say, “Yeah, sure. I get it, but I’m busy, so let’s make this quick.”
First things first, we had to uphold the pride of Paelus, a commander surrendering at such a high rank for the first time.
Sure, it might seem random, but this is how we highlight the Empire’s mercy.
If a commander who resisted so tenaciously can surrender with his dignity intact, others get the message.
And when others, who were sizing us up, follow suit, it’s a win-win for the Empire.
And let’s go big, with flair, because this would shake Dedolant to its core.
Look at this—your army, calling itself the honorable Deo people, has surrendered.
What about those from Artria? Or those who came from Dugal? Aren’t they the same proud Deo people? Why the change of tune now?
”Commander Paelus Gusthagen of Dedolant respectfully requests an honorable surrender to the Empire’s Chief of Staff.”
”That surrender request is accepted. Commander.”
”This sword represents my command. Please accept it as a token of our surrender.”
”It isn’t necessary to hand over your sword. We’ll allow you to keep it.”
”I am greatly impressed by the Empire’s mercy and wisdom.”
The finale of Dedolant’s official surrender came with this dialogue between Paelus and me.
Mid-conversation, the princess turned all red, declaring that phrase about keeping his sword was absolutely suave.
Apparently, it was a masterstroke showing both the Empire’s mercy and majesty.
Yeah, that line just came to me from somewhere in my past life, but yeah, it was a little embarrassing.
Anyway, halting the advance due to such a grand surrender wasn’t the only reason.
The primary issue: We suddenly had 40,000 prisoners of war.
POWs aren’t immediately usable troops. Just yesterday, they were enemy soldiers trying to k*ll us.
If you don’t manage them carefully, who knows what might happen.
We had to disarm them and keep a close eye for a while.
Then there’s the matter of how many troops we’ll need to guard them, what facilities we’ll use to house them, and how we’ll feed an extra 40,000 mouths.
This alone was enough to make the General Staff and War Ministry scream.
Oh, and the Treasury too since we’ll need more funds for provisions.
“Not to mention, the supply lines are already getting a bit stretched, you know.”
Exactly. Problem number two: the increasing supply burden as the Empire advances.
Sure, we have teleportation arrays, but they’re only good for transporting a handful of people.
When it comes to supplies, we’re only allowed to bring what can be carried by those few.
You can’t possibly use them to transport the massive quantities needed to supply hundreds of thousands of troops.
Which means transporting supplies is, and always has been, an old-fashioned, manual job.
People carrying loads. Oxen and horses pulling carts full of supplies.
Mistakes along the way and you’ll have command officers ready to rip their hair out.
If supplies arrive late, the entire army can be immobilized.
[We at the War Ministry are doing our utmost to secure supply capabilities, Chief of Staff.]
[Nevertheless, we recommend adjusting the advance pace as a precaution.]
Now, opinions were being voiced from my fully-staffed General Staff team.
With such a large force mobilized, even a small gap in supply could be dangerous.
I agreed, so after Paelus’ surrender, we decided to pause the advance.
Giving Dedolant a chance to counterattack would just cause headaches.
We need to push forward capitalizing on this momentum to barely stay in the black.
The Empire didn’t start this mess just to break even.
“Chief of Staff. Reports from Artria and Benito.”
“What’s the situation?”
“They’ve started a massive conscription in Artria. Roughly confirmed numbers already exceed 30,000.”
“30,000? That’s… quite the number.”
“If I recall, Artria’s original military strength was slightly over 70,000, right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And they’ve conscripted over 30,000 new recruits already?”
“Yes, and interestingly, it’s not Artria’s nobles orchestrating this—it’s Dedolant.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. Sure, they’re close, they’re both Deo people, but they’re still separate nations, each with their own rights.
Without the Artria royal family, it should be the nobles managing internal affairs.
Yet Dedolant is directly sweeping up everyone in Artria.
“Benito is in a similar situation. They’re conscripting heavily and sending them across the border to Dedolant.”
“And the 5th Division stationed there?”
“They’re still in position, but the southern border troops have been redeployed to the central regions.”
Are they just keeping Benito as leverage? Or is the 5th Division gathering more human shields since they don’t really have anything else to do?
Judging by numbers alone, more than 50,000 new recruits have already been amassed, enough to recover from Dedolant’s surrender, with some left over.
But that’s just numbers. Restoring their morale and elite status is impossible.
Dedolant knows this. Sure, numbers matter, but they’re not invincible.
Even if they start arming and training them now, it’ll take at least a year to produce capable soldiers.
Why are they biting their lip, willing to let public sentiment fall so dramatically?
“Chief of Staff, we’ve received news about Dugal through Ross Tannika.”
“Are they asking for more weapons?”
“No, they’ve begun conscription, on an unprecedented scale, brutal even.”
“…Are these people insane?”
This isn’t a game. Taking over a country isn’t the end. It requires even more delicate care.
It’s harder to incorporate a former enemy into your own fold than to defeat them outright.
If things go awry, it could lead to more resistance or even cost more money than a war.
This is why the Empire hasn’t expanded its territory in a long time.
We’ve been focusing on fully integrating the lands we’ve already absorbed, transforming them into true parts of the Empire.
So that over time, no matter what happens, there’s no going back to the old ways.
Dedolant was very mindful at first, taking only what Dugal could afford to lose.
Even among the Dugal troops under Paelus’ command, most volunteered.
But now, they’ve thrown off that mask, collecting anything and everything they can see.
Who cares if Dugal starves? If there are no men left to work?
At the same time, they’re also steadily working to remove any justification for resistance.
“They’ve declared that whenever the Dugal resistance causes trouble, the remaining citizens of Dugal will suffer. It’s been reported that after Dugal resistance forces killed 30 Dedolant soldiers, 300 Dugal citizens were executed.”
“No way…”
“They’ve also announced they’ll stop taking resources if the resistance stops. This has caused much dissent among Dugal’s resistance groups.”
That makes sense. Though they receive supplies through Ross Tannika from our Empire, it’s ultimately Dugal’s own people providing most of the support for the resistance.
But if every action they take means more hardship for their fellow citizens, it will naturally hinder their resolve.
To reiterate, Dedolant’s people are truly crazy.
Sometimes, they seem pretty impressive, but when you look at this, they’re clearly the world’s biggest morons.
Yet somehow, it’s working, and it’s maddening.
Amidst all this, we get news of Prince Georg III ascending the throne.
What? King Cassius II, the beacon of the Deo people’s glory?
Now with a true king, the Gods themselves will surely guarantee Dedolant’s victory?
“Have they all collectively lost their minds?”
Apparently, we won’t need to change our master strategy from the start.
While there was some opposition within the General Staff, they’ll understand once they see the situation.
Dedolant is different, not just from Nobogorod, but from the eastern kingdoms, the southern kingdoms, and everyone else too.
There’s no benefit to leaving them dangling by a thread or trying to make them allies.
“I’ll need to return to the capital briefly.”
“Going to Jedo?”
“Yes. I need to report the Empire’s next moves directly to His Majesty.”
“Will you be going alone?”
“Uh….”
Hmm. While I’m at it, it might be better to take the princess along.
I’ve heard both the Crown Princess and the First Prince are in Jedo too.
I’ll make my report, she’ll see her family. Sounds like a good plan.
“I’ll be traveling with Her Highness the Princess.”
“Understood. I’ll inform the War Ministry and Palace Administration accordingly.”
After giving instructions to my aide, I went to meet the princess.
On our short return trip to the capital, I’ll ask if she’d like to come too.
“Hey, did you realize something, Kael?”
“Pardon?”
“This is the first time you’ve come to invite me personally, rather than saying you’re sending me somewhere.”
“Er… did I?”
“Yes, and very often.”
I’ve committed a mortal sin, Your Highness…
“So, you get it, Kael?”
“Yes…?”
“You don’t send me anywhere. You invite me along.”
“Of course, Your Highness…”
