Royal Road of the Extra Scribe

22

As I left the military council chamber, my mentor, in a frenzy, asked me.

“Alz! Why did you accept that proposal?”

If the mentor’s subordinates were not an issue, it would have been fine to step back.

Yet, there were several reasons for accepting the proposal.

“Even if I release the mentor’s subordinates now, I can’t predict what they might do later.”

“That’s the same even after the mission is over. I might try to deal with you after the job is done!”

“That’s true.”

Strictly speaking, that was no longer the reason.

The decisive reason for accepting this task was to increase the power to check Marious Hujak and to understand the purpose of Crossing.

In the game, depicted as an evil nation, Crossing Republic constantly hindered the protagonist.

“I suspect that in the upcoming story updates, their true intentions will be revealed. And that might be closely related to me.”

That was precisely the moment Alz was destroyed.

There was a strong possibility that Crossing was behind the traitor who trapped Alz.

“The fact that the protagonist was once a slave of Crossing is suspicious. There must be something I don’t know.”

I wanted to gauge that part through this war.

Having received the outline of the operation, I gathered the necessary items and headed to Carington.

Carington in the North.

Surprisingly, as I arrived where a 60,000-strong army was stationed, a familiar face came to greet me.

“Welcome, General Wade. I am Anton Kyros, the adjutant of Lord Julius.”

A young man in reddish-brown armor.

“Anton, the enemy knight…!”

This guy had been a tormentor as Julius’s henchman throughout the story.

Not a general but merely a warrior, he wasn’t part of a group of ten or twenty heroes, yet he had gained fame through his unmatched prowess.

His individual strength ranked among the top 99 in the game.

Although not obtainable through gacha, if he were to appear, he would be a confirmed UR grade character. Such a person was now declaring absolute obedience to me.

“Following Lord Julius’s orders, I swear to strictly obey your commands in this war, General Wade.”

“Very well, Anton. Shall we start the military council immediately?”

“Yes.”

A promptly convened military council.

I was inwardly worried about friction with the military officers, but such a thing did not occur.

The 60,000 soldiers gathered here were all loyal soldiers of Julius.

“They seem to have shown some consideration…”

These guys seemed to worship Julius like a god.

Any command issued by Julius was followed without question, even the orders of mercenaries who suddenly appeared.

“Well, this situation is convenient for me.”

I only needed to focus on the war without worrying about other matters.

—

On the other hand, at the Beccabia camp in Carington.

“Huh? Mercenary Wade? Who’s that?”

A middle-aged man inside his tent furrowed his brow while holding a spear.

The soldier who was reporting frantically glanced at the naked swords lying around and shouted.

“Yes! That mercenary who repelled Gileas Melben’s guerrilla forces in the friction between Albad and the Caliphar Kingdom near the Foldic Mountains!”

“hahahaha! Ridiculous. Entrusting the command of a 60,000-strong army for such minor achievements? That Julius lad. He’s going too far.”

“The Chief of Staff is asking how to proceed.”

“What’s there to hesitate about! Unless Julius or Noluck is involved, there’s no need to hold back. We must let the rabble know the difference in rank! I’ll convene a staff meeting right away!”

“Yes.”

In this Beccabia camp, there were three key officers.

The man who called for the staff meeting was Karl Maxman, the first general and grand marshal, a seasoned warrior of war.

And two young men and women welcoming him at the top military tent.

“You’re here, Master.”

“You’re late! Well, you were probably chasing after a woman.”

The man was Macsmun’s disciple and the 4th General, Macelly Coon, while on the woman’s side was Sophia Veron, the first princess of Beccabia, who had risen to the position of General unusually due to her talent in strategy.

Upon seeing the battlefield map they laid out, Macsmun burst into a hearty laugh.

“hahahaha! Forgive me, Princess. I know you have everything prepared, so I can’t help but act carefree.”

“You’re as reckless as ever. So, what’s the plan?”

“You know my tactics, don’t you? The Princess is also ready and waiting to strike.”

The battlefield map pointed out by Macsmun had undergone numerous simulations of the battlefield.

The strategy was clear-cut.

Utilizing variables stemming from a frontal attack. That was Macsmun’s favorite tactic.

Sophia speaks with a growl.

“If Jurass or Creeper Norlak had appeared, I would have been cautious. Mercenary Wade, was it? I’ll crush them in the initial skirmish.”

“hahahaha! It seems the Princess is thoroughly enraged.”

True to Macsmun’s words, Sophia did not hide her displeasure.

“Jurass Pamilion… to assign a mercenary as my opponent is not just disrespectful but quite a severe disrespect. With this attack, I will draw Jurass himself to this front line!”

Beccabia was originally in a defensive position.

Yet, it was they who initiated the first move.

The first day of the battle.

At noon, Crossing officially declared war on Albad and Beccabia.

“Wade!”

Ilya hurriedly rushed into Albs’s barracks, shouting.

“The enemies are advancing!”

“Hmm. Judging by the commotion, could it be an all-out attack?”

“Um…! That seems to be the case.”

“Don’t panic, Master. It seems this is what General Karl Macsmun’s main strategy is all about.”

Macsmun was a type of General who intuitively sensed the smell of the battlefield.

‘Utilize variables emerging in fierce battles.’

That’s why he deliberately engaged in full-frontal combat to provoke chaos and gain an advantage.

He also possessed conventional tactics.

Thanks to Beccabia’s General, Sophia Veron.

A delicate balance of instinct and convention. Hence, Beccabia’s 1st Division carried considerable prestige.

“Even so, they underestimated us greatly.”

“Underestimated?”

“Perhaps if it were not me but Jurass or another renowned General in this position, they wouldn’t have rushed in on the first day of the battle like this.”

That thought would make them regret their choice.

Albs equipped himself, stepped out of the barracks, and shouted.

“Anton!”

Soon, the enemy knight Anton approached and saluted.

“You called, Sir.”

“As discussed, deploy the troops as planned. We will meet the enemies head-on.”

“Yes, Sir!”

The showdown between the armies of Beccabia and Crossing.

In the history books, it was the Carlington Battle, known as the Alse’s strategic war, that raised its curtain.

* * *

The Beccabian army marched forward in unison.

With a force of 65,000 troops, they allocated 20,000, 10,000, and 20,000 on each wing to strengthen their flanks.

The remaining 15,000 formed the rear, shaping the Beccabian formation into a 凸 shape as they advanced southward.

The opponent chose a head-on confrontation from the first day.

This was possible due to Carlington’s expansive open field terrain.

Both armies clashed solely based on tactical elements, without any geographical advantage.

Thud! I tapped the command post given to me by the brilliant strategist Fugee and established a formation tailored to face the enemy.

“Create the Goose Formation!”

The Goose Formation, a V-shaped formation, could seamlessly transform into a U-shape to encircle the enemy when under attack, utilizing the opponent’s force.

The Crossing Army swiftly organized their formations.

Divided into units of 3,000 soldiers, they formed the Goose Formation.

‘Their training is indeed top-notch.’

The battlefield unfolded with a full-scale confrontation, a chaotic scene of warfare. I observed the entire battlefield and entered the fray.

Analyzing the movements of the enemy, our own forces, the dynamics of war. Calculating everything in an instant to lead to checkmate.

“I should deal with that first.”

In the chaos of the battlefield, Karl Maxman waged war, searching for vulnerabilities.

Instinctive, intuitive. No matter how you label it, he was a general of a deviant type, seeking prey in this chaos.

“They say the focal points of the battlefield appear engulfed in flames or shine brightly to the authors.”

I deliberately created tactical vulnerabilities with traps to test that, but Maxman did not fall for them.

Instinctively sensing the traps, he did not walk into them.

“What an absurd type.”

Only preys that suit his taste are devoured, never falling for traps.

He appears invincible at a glance.

“But there are clearly weaknesses.”

Because he moves too erratically, the soldiers at the rear of the formation cannot keep up, resulting in meaningless deaths.

Of course, by prioritizing the forefront, he was not suffering losses in the end.

“Alz, I’ll go. We need to block the enemy quickly.”

Feeling the urgency, the master gripped his weapon, but I shook my head.

“No, please stay here, Master.”

“…Is that a tactical choice? Or are you just worried about me?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’m much more worried about you. There are tactical reasons too.”

In the war between Crossing and Beccabia, unrelated to me, I did not want to endanger the master. Instead, I planned to actively utilize figures from Crossing.

I called upon the enemy knight Anton who was waiting and said, “Anton, now’s the time. Restrain Maxman.”

“Yes! I will act as ordered!”

Following my command, Anton swiftly approached Maxman, swinging a massive sword.

“Whoa!”

“…!?”

Clang!! The sound of weapons clashing in the distance.

Facing off against Anton, Maxman found his feet rooted to the spot.

It seemed Maxman’s personal strength was around 90 to 95. Comparable to the master or Eo, perhaps slightly higher.

Truly a commander fit to lead a nation’s army. Yet, even so, Anton, with a strength of 99, was unbeatable.

“Ugh!”

“Darn it!”

Clang!! Maxman struggled to hold his ground.

With his feet bound, he lost his agility. The instinct that had been guiding him was now just futile struggling.

As Maxman’s feet were tied, his army was rapidly losing its strength.

And thus, I was able to finish the game of chess leading to checkmate.

* * *

Sophia swallowed dryly as she watched the Crossing army moving relentlessly.

Maintaining discipline even in chaos, calmly countering the opponent.

Within that, there was a meticulous tactical design.

‘It’s unbelievable…!’

The opponent’s tactical moves were beyond the norm.

‘Controlling all units in this chaos…!’

Alz divided his army into groups of three thousand.

It was a kind of unit division operation.

Alz treated each of these three thousand as individual pieces, moving them tactically.

Easier said than done, controlling all of this in such chaos was a task only a remarkable general or strategist could handle.

“General! General Maxman’s feet are entangled by enemy knights! If we delay, the general will be isolated and in danger!”

“Grr!”

Maxman, acting independently amidst Sophia, who was somehow keeping up with Alz’s tactical moves, was causing dissonance.

This indicated how effectively Alz was dealing with the situation.

In other wars, such dissonance rarely occurred with the Beccabian army.

A combination of instinct and textbook tactics achieved by the Beccabian army.

Alz scoffed, digging into the gaps as if to say, “Do you think you can get away with that?”

‘Wade… His intentions are clear.’

Slowly isolating Maxman by entangling his feet to annihilate him.

All current tactical moves were pointing towards that.

The main force of Beccabia was undoubtedly Maxman’s army. If that was annihilated, the battlefield would immediately lead to defeat.

‘Then there’s only one thing I must do.’

Sophia shouted immediately.

“Amarti! Deploy 5,000 troops! Capture the enemy knights!”

“Yes! Right away!”

Sophia dispatched 5,000 troops from her headquarters to the front lines.

To detach Anton and give freedom to Maxman.

The enemy’s special forces that rushed out from their headquarters to capture Anton.

I felt my strength draining away.

‘I had quite high hopes…’

The opponent’s general, Sophia Veron.

She was a character who appeared as the heroine in the game.

She assisted the protagonist, who was frustrated by Alz’s blunders like a newly gained strategist, showcasing inspired tactics.

Character grade: SSR.

But the actual experience of confronting her was nothing special.

‘To end so trivially like this.’

Special forces dispatched from the headquarters to give freedom to Maxman.

I was aiming for this moment.

The instant freedom was granted to Maxman, he fell for it! Through tactical movements, I set a decoy. I showed him the attack route leading to my headquarters.

Maxman falls for this decoy. He rushes in, saying it’s great that flames are rising and a glimmer of light is seen on the battlefield.

“hahahaha! A good prey awaits. Let’s go!”

Maxman, falling beautifully.

He, who even sensed the scent of a trap, moved according to my intentions for one simple reason.

Because this wasn’t a trap. It was truly a tactical masterpiece. Officers looked puzzled, soldiers were in disarray.

Exposing the headquarters to that extent was an absolutely unacceptable move.

To Maxman, frustrated with his feet tied by Anton, this must have been an irresistible prey.

“Wade! He’s swiftly coming this way!”

The mentor shouted urgently. Completely outmaneuvered tactically.

But with just one move, the situation completely reverses.

Crash!! The enemy’s right-wing army breaks in an instant.

“What…!?”

Only then did Maxman catch an unmistakably ominous scent and open his eyes to look in that direction.

There was Anton, who had gathered the left-wing army.

Anton, who had been thought to be entangled by the enemy’s special forces.

Assembled only the left-wing army as per my orders.

“Let’s go! We will annihilate the enemy’s headquarters without leaving a trace!”

They began to storm the enemy headquarters where Sophia was.

“What!?”

Sophia could do nothing but jump in surprise.

By Anton untying his feet and granting freedom to Maxman, she knew from the start how she would judge the situation.

That’s why she used it in reverse.

It was a kind of strategic breakthrough.

Granting freedom to Maxman also meant granting freedom to Anton.

And with freedom gained, Anton obtained an efficient assault route to the enemy headquarters.

Because the defense line heading towards the headquarters was weakened due to Sophia dispatching the special forces from the headquarters.

“Princess! Please retreat!”

General Mackelly Koon tried to command the forces at the headquarters to stop Anton, but Anton’s momentum was uncontrollable.

“Uwoooah!”

“Eek!?”

Crash! The Beccabia soldiers defending the headquarters were petrified as Anton broke through the defense line.

“This is insane….”

Sophia muttered in bewilderment.

To her, Al’s tactics seemed like playing chess with people.

In pursuit of capturing the opponent’s king at all costs, like saying it’s over once you capture the king, Al was boldly aiming for the headquarters, even at the cost of soldiers’ significant sacrifices and tactical losses.

‘So, he intentionally created an opening for Maxman for that purpose…!’

With the decoy taken and deeply entrenched in enemy lines, Maxman found it impossible to regroup to stop Anton.

However, that didn’t mean the overall situation was bad.

Maxmun was in a position where he could also target the enemy’s main base.

An elimination game.

It had turned into a chicken game to finish each other’s main bases.

Alss had a determined look, saying, “If you’re scared, you’ll lose.”

“Even if we suffer serious damage now, we must retreat!”

Sophia was in a position where she didn’t want to participate in that chicken game.

Despite the losses, she wanted to force Maxmun to retreat, tidy up the threat to their main base, and reorganize their setup.

“If the information is correct, there’s a high possibility that Eonia Mirabel and Iliya Anfay are in the enemy’s main base!”

One is the commander of the Kurabel Kingdom’s royal guard. The other is an S-rank mercenary.

Maxmun and his subordinates could be a match for them, but on the flip side, they could also be overwhelmed.

It meant the situation was uncertain.

“However, given Maxmun’s nature, he won’t retreat now…!”

The opponent knew that and chose this strategy.

In other words, it meant they were confident from the start in protecting their main base.

“There’s something else. Send a retreat signal to General Maxmun immediately! It’s a trap!”

However, as she predicted, Maxmun did not retreat. He broke through and aimed for Alss’s main base.

Bang!! Guard soldiers springing out.

Defeating the guards, Maxmun who stood in front of me gasped roughly and glared at me fiercely.

Around him, Maxmun’s aides and our forces defending the main base were engaged in a fierce battle.

Nevertheless, since it was our main base, we had the upper hand in terms of troops.

“That ashen helmet. You must be Wade…!”

“And you must be Colonel Maxmun. Nice to meet you. How does it feel to have walked into a trap?”

“Heh! I don’t feel bad.”

Maxmun glanced at Iliya’s master and Eonia standing beside me and snarled.

These two were skilled enough to hold their own against Maxmun in a one-on-one duel.

Having the master by my side was a tactical choice. Even if the enemy reached my main base, the best guards were protecting me.

“I have one question for you. How did my main base look to you? Did you see flames? Or did you see light?”

“At first, it seemed like a bright light. But gradually, it turned black. Like an abyss. This experience is unlike anything I’ve faced before, except when I dealt with Nemuto.”

“Hmm, I commend the courage you had even knowing what you were getting into.”

“Even if I hadn’t come in, you would have pursued me, right? Am I wrong?”

“You’re not wrong. We have already prepared a pursuit and annihilation operation assuming you would try to escape. So, your coming here was just saving us the trouble.”

From Maxmun’s perspective, coming this far might have been the right move.

Because there was a slight possibility of victory.

Maxmun says to me, “Keh! Your blood is boiling. What do you say, Wade? How about a man-to-man showdown?”

“Unfortunately, I have no such aspirations. Don’t you plan to surrender? You might be able to save your life.”

“I refuse.”

Maxmun took a resolute stance, ready for action with his subordinates. He seemed to think that with his aides, he could handle the master and Eo, but we had equal or greater force on our side, including me.

I swiftly turned the window and aimed at him.

Behind me were my master, Eo, and Yumir.

Maxman blinked at Yumir’s unsettling gaze.

“Your mistake is underestimating me. In war, do not be overconfident and do not belittle your opponent. It’s the basics of warfare.”

“You talk big! Come on, let’s fight!”

Maxman entered a desperate battle.

There was no variable. No matter how exceptional a general he was, he couldn’t overcome the difference in forces.

His five adjutants were swiftly dealt with by my master and Eo.

Engaged in a one-on-one duel with Yumir, Maxman was soon ambushed, blocking the attacks of the other two, when suddenly, Yumir struck his neck, causing his demise.

On the first day of the war, Beccabia suffered a severe blow losing their general.