Elsewhere, Isabel, the Second Princess of the Empire, had finally arrived in the south.
The moment she set foot there, the Ghost Legion, who had been waiting in advance, greeted her.
“His Highness the Princess, salutations!”
A man who looked like a commander shouted loudly, and thousands of burly men saluted in unison.
It was an impressive sight at first glance, but if you looked closer, it was hilariously ridiculous in so many ways.
First, the man with the ridiculously dramatic voice and movements wasn’t even the real commander. Just until recently, he was a middle-aged theater actor known for playing commanding roles—ones oozing with authority. And guess what? He was absolutely killing it with his performance this time too.
And those soldiers who were saluting with extreme precision and sharp discipline? You’d think their military pride was so high that they must be a top-notch legion. But no, they were just ordinary conscripts who had joined the army not too long ago. Their training wasn’t even for combat—it was purely focused on mastering perfectly synchronized drills.
‘And this so-called Ghost Legion? These few thousand soldiers here are all there is, huh?’
It’s common sense: maintaining tens of thousands of decoy troops costs a lot of money. Fooling the enemy ends up becoming a logistical nightmare for your own side, making it a self-defeating operation in many cases. From Kael’s perspective, trying to fight a smoother war, it was definitely a situation where the costs outweighed the benefits.
Thus, instead of tens of thousands, the deception force was kept at a much smaller scale: only a few thousand well-trained amateurs.
So, how do you make the enemy think it’s tens of thousands? How do you pull off the illusion of overwhelming numbers?
That’s where the specialists from across the Empire came in. With their skills, they made one man’s voice sound like ten; one man’s movement look like an entire platoon. From afar, it would appear as if tens of thousands were shouting and marching.
And to top it all off, the armor, weapons, and banners the soldiers were carrying? All fake! The dazzling, almost too-dazzling flags fluttering proudly? Also fake! The Empire’s painters, sculptors, and makeup artists had poured their hearts into crafting these deceptions—more lifelike than real, shinier, more majestic.
“Thank you for your effort.”
Isabel smiled as she glanced at the “commander,” then the soldiers lining up before her. At a distance, you’d think you were witnessing one of the Empire’s mightiest new legions. But in reality, these were conscripts who had never experienced a real battle. The likelihood that they’d be scattered and defeated in the battlefield was astronomically high. Yet at that moment, they looked invincible.
“The Chief of Staff’s plan seems to be working perfectly.”
“Yes, Your Highness. We’re doing our utmost to appear as an unstoppable army.”
What Kael had wanted from all this was simple: to instill fear in Dedolant regarding the southern front. The southern kingdom’s forces and the Empire’s Fourth Legion had already begun their maneuvers, keeping a close eye on Dedolant’s Fifth Legion stationed in Benito.
In this tense situation, if they were to detect the presence of tens of thousands of enemy troops behind them? Or get the impression that nearly 100,000 imperial soldiers were gathering nearby to the south?
Even Dedolant wouldn’t stand a chance. They would have no choice but to split their main army.
‘I need to subtly spread the news of my arrival here. Having the Ghost Legion’s visit become public knowledge would be ideal too.’
Sure enough, somewhere in the south, spies from Dedolant were probably lurking in the shadows, trying to uncover any valuable information. Isabel silently prayed that the news of today’s events would reach them soon. After all, the easier things were for her, the easier they would be for Kael.
Before she headed south, Kael had given her a more detailed rundown of his master plan.
“There’s going to be a fortress in the central area that we’ll use to drive the Dedolant bastards into a frenzy. It’ll get under their skin so much that they won’t be able to focus on anything else until they capture it.”
“What? Is that really possible? From what I’ve heard, Dedolant’s troops are no joke.”
“It HAS to be possible.”
Kael had proposed naming the fort they had just captured after Seton, one of the Empire’s legendary generals. This was something the Dedolantians would NEVER let slide.
Upon hearing this plan, Isabel couldn’t help but exclaim in amazement. From the perspective of the Dedolantians, this was an affront they couldn’t possibly ignore. If they stood by passively, it would shake the loyalty of their own people. The military would undoubtedly grow restless, questioning why they were allowing such provocation to stand.
“They’ll have to redeploy their forces at some point after reorganizing them, and by the time they do, even their best strategies will already have been weakened. We’ll ensure that they can never retreat, nor can they achieve victory without attacking. Slowly, they’ll be worn down until they break themselves.”
While everyone, including Dedolant and possibly even some within the Empire’s high command, thought that the northern forces were imperial, they were actually Nobogorod’s troops. Half the army in the south belonged to the Southern Kingdom, and the other half was the Empire’s Fourth Legion, which, coincidentally, was originally stationed in the south anyway.
The “tens of thousands” of soldiers behind them? Also fake. Just a few thousand actors putting on a grand performance.
But things WERE changing for the Empire in reality. The massive supply lines were being prepared, the reserve troops were being mobilized, and concentrated units were moving forward steadily.
As we speak, the two wings of the Empire’s First Army—the Eastern Legion and the Southern Legion—were growing stronger by the day.
Meanwhile, Dedolant was fixated on the battered Western Legion in front of them while growing increasingly anxious about troubling reports coming in from both the north and south.
They would eventually realize that their only option was one: to respond accordingly.
“All I want is to completely eliminate all the variables. When, where, how, and in what condition will the enemy fight? Once we prune away all the choices, I’ll ensure they fight exactly where and how I want, and in the manner I intend for them to be annihilated.”
Listening to Kael’s words, Isabel couldn’t help but think: this is the man who had claimed he was not a strategician. If anyone saw him now—or rather, anyone who saw him ever—clearly he was nothing but a master tactician.
—
Gruber, a subordinate officer of Prince Georg III from Dedolant, had entered Dugal’s territory upon receiving a crucial mission.
He needed to gather as many additional reserves as possible to cover any gaps that might weaken their army. This would give them more room to maneuver during the second wave of attacks. And if necessary, they could even be used as bait without much hesitation.
The recruitment process in Dedolant was strategic. Right now, they needed experienced soldiers who’d been through wars. The surviving Dugal forces seemed like a pretty attractive option.
“Former soldiers of Dugal! Join the auxiliary forces in our newly formed Dedolant Foreign Legion! High wages and promotion guarantees!”
“Your previous actions against Dedolant won’t count against you. If anything, we’ll value those who posed a challenge!”
“Your king has fled, and the nobles have surrendered. It’s time to join Dedolant and find a new future filled with glory!”
Though he desperately wanted to round them all up by force, he had to tread carefully so as not to ruffle the locals too much. Just because the Dugal royal family had fled and the nobles had surrendered didn’t mean the hearts of the people had changed overnight.
Hence, instead of resorting to a full-scale draft or recruitment drive, he framed it as an opportunity to join Dedolant’s Foreign Legion.
It was tempting. Money, especially for people who needed to survive day-to-day, always was.
When a few decided to sign up, Gruber personally welcomed them, even granting higher ranks to those with command experience. He didn’t stop there; he offered tax breaks to the regions these recruits came from.
As awareness grew that sending more soldiers could actually benefit entire regions, the Dugal remnants began cooperating more actively.
Is it right for those who fought Dedolant just a little while ago to join forces with them now?
Sure, it seemed odd, but honestly, wasn’t it just the “elite” fighting their battles? The high lords weren’t exactly saints either, and the king they were supposed to d*e for already ran away while the nobles surrendered.
“We’ve got to survive. Why keep waiting around?”
“The pay’s better than what we used to get in Dugal!”
“d*mn Dedolant troops may have some experience, but they treat their soldiers pretty well, right?”
Of course, not everyone was so enthusiastic. Gruber decided to switch to threats in such cases, warning that villages failing to meet their recruitment quotas would face penalties.
This process of recruitment and conscription continued cautiously… until one particular piece of news reached even Gruber while he was in Dugal.
“Setongrad?”
That crazy Empire is finally stirring up trouble.
In front of their proud prince, the Deo people were rallying wildly in support. Every soldier and commanding officer in Dedolant believed in their inevitable victory.
And yet, they had to stick Seton’s name on one of Dedolant’s oldest fortresses. What a travesty.
“…We’ll need to change our tactics a little.”
Looks like they needed even more troops. Definitely. And from that day onward, the recruitment drives in the Dugal region accelerated, growing increasingly brutal in their methods.
