Ouroboros Record ~Circus of Oubeniel~

But that's as far as we get from talking about who's responsible for this situation. Now we have to think about how to fight.

As for that…

"Excuse me. I have brought Opus-02 Due Schwarzer and Margrave Doldran with me."

Uni returned with the two men who had been outside taking stock of the military equipment.

"Well, well...what a mess you've gotten yourself into, master."

"Excuse me."

Due's expression showed concern for the seriousness of the situation, but nothing more. St. Gallen was his home country, but that country was also a combination of the lands of different lords, so it was probably not the kind of place that stimulated a sense of belonging. In the first place, he was originally a rootless adventurer.

I'm more concerned about the sour look on Doldran Margrave.

"How is the situation here?"

" ‘Bad’ is not even the right choice of word. It's the worst."

The words of the noble who had continued to protect the western part of the kingdom were heavy.

Due scratched his head gingerly and then continued the conversation.

"First of all, we don't have enough troops, no matter how we look at it. The total number of soldiers here in Marlan alone is at most a thousand. I'd say five thousand for the entire province."

"Oh, I knew it was lacking."

It was a hopeless number.

I remember that the average mobilised force of a count-level noble in this country was about eight thousand. The number that Due gave was about a little over half of that.

But it was still too early to despair.

"In addition, we've lost so much in the first battle. In the worst case, we might be down to about two thousand men. Of course, that's including Marlan's troops."

The real despair was yet to come.

"We don't have enough men, but I think the problem is not so much the number of men, but the skill level. Our predecessors seemed to have given priority to internal affairs, and our military equipment is almost unmaintained. Their morale, experience, and even their equipment are second-rate. We can barely use them to fortify the rear. I can't trust them with the front line."

Margrave Doldran let out a sigh. This wasn’t particularly my brother's fault. The cause of this problem lies even earlier than that.

"So the bill from your father's squandering the family’s resources is coming due now, of all times. ......"

Yes. Our father lived and enjoyed himself in the royal capital. He was a useless noble who left the administration of his domain to his deputies and spent as much as he earned. Volden must have been in shambles when my brother took over — when my father collapsed — and began to take over the administration. I'm amazed that he was able to restore it to the point where it was no longer a visible problem, even if only just for internal affairs. Although he sacrificed the strengthening of the military, I would say that it was a good job.

Also, my brother would not have taken military matters so lightly if he had known that there were roads in the bordering mountains for an army to pass through. If that was the case, then either my father or the head of the family before him failed to pass on to his successor a secret, putting the territory in danger. What were they doing, really.

"Your brother was really not blessed with good relatives, was he?"

"Completely not......"

I nodded in agreement with Due's words. As for me, even though I was trying to protect myself, I still felt a little guilty and wasteful for having kicked him down. If I hadn't become a count, I wouldn't be standing in the crosshairs of war like this too.

"Which means we have to go to war with the worst possible preparations.."

Uni returned to the subject with her usual blank expression and a faint hint of melancholy.

"On top of that, the opponent is St. Gallen, known for its elite soldiers. Furthermore, we need to achieve enough results during the war to prevent the people in the royal capital from making unnecessary accusations against us."

"There’s a limit to how unreasonable they can get…"

Victor and Laubert also raised their hands and shook their heads in desperation.

With an army that has no troops, no equipment, no skill level, and no morale, we must go to war with the most meathead of a nation on the continent, and we must achieve a certain level of success. Just winning in these circumstances alone was unreasonable. It's no wonder that it's a dark night before the battle.

"And as a bonus, I'm the commander."

"It is as you say......"

I said jokingly, but Margrave Doldran gave me a blank stare.

To be frank, I don't think I have the military talent to say that I could pull a miraculous victory in my first battle against a strong opponent. I have some modern knowledge that I brought with me from a previous life, but I don't have the military education to make effective use of it, nor do I have experience in leading an army.

An amateur running an army with half-understood knowledge was bound to end up like a man who cries and backs his horse. The most I could do was reenact Zhuge Liang crying for Ma Su. Ah, no, no, even Ma Su who was wise enough to hold a conversation with Zhuge Liang for a full night ended up like that in a battle. I couldn’t even completely remember the 36 stratagems, so I doubt I even measure up to that.

A flock of sheep led by a wolf is better than a flock of wolves led by a sheep. This was a phrase that clearly expresses the importance of commanders in war. Unfortunately, the troops in Volden were like sheep, and so am I, who stood above them. And the people who were coming to attack us were really strong soldiers like wolves, and probably couldn’t be led by sheep. I could see defeat miles away before it even began.

As the highest-ranking military officer, Due was also the type of person who would rather fight on his own than command the troops to do so. He was a wolf, certainly, but a lone wolf. He was not suited to lead a pack.

"Well, that's why I'm counting on you, Margrave Doldran."

"However, you can't rely on me—"

The person who was probably the most militarily gifted of all the people here now had an uncomfortable look on his face. Well, he came here to celebrate my appointment as the head of the family and as a new Count, but unfortunately got caught up in the war. I couldn’t help but lament the bad fortune.

"—even before we fight, let me make this clear. If we fought a normal battle, the chances of victory are nil."

And even more so when it's a battle we can't win. I knew what I was doing, so I gave my approval.

"As expected."

"Whoa, whoa, hold on."

It was Due who interrupted me. He said fighting was his reason for living, so maybe he couldn’t stand to be told that he had to fight a fierce battle?

"It's not like we can't win. If we, the entire Opus series, take a shot, even an army—"

"No. It's not impossible, but no."

I held out my hand to interrupt him. It's true that my "masterpieces" were immensely powerful. If I put all six of them into play, they could kick the army that came from over the mountain with back where they came from.

However…

"Just think about it. What would happen if such a force...... that could win a war with only six people were made known to the public?"

As Uni's matter-of-fact point suggests.

If the true value of these children were to be discovered, the whole world would be in an uproar like a hornets' nest. Countries would probably order us to hand them over, saying that they were too powerful for a single Count to possess, and if we were not careful, they might use that as an excuse to destroy us. It would be like a small country having nuclear weapons. In the previous world, the freedom and justice believing police of the world, would rain gifts from the sky.

If we could blow up the enemy with the Opus series, we can certainly stop the invasion of the St. Gallen army. However, the next thing that awaited us would be pressure from all over the continent. The royal court of this Kingdom won't be able to protect us. If you think about it from their point of view, they would never trust a lord who was holding such a powerful force without telling them. In addition, I have modified Uni and the rest so that only I or someone I delegated could give orders to them. As soon as the war is over, we would just say our goodbyes. Hmm, somehow this sounds like something an animal rights group would be upset about.