EP.166
“I wish I could continue chatting with you, who saved my life. Because the situation is not very favorable. “Let me do the rest of the chatting over dinner at the Yeager family mansion.”
“Yes, Your Highness. Now, let me give you a plan on how to deal with this situation.”
“Please. “Major Jaeger.”
To sum up the current situation, the Duke of Switzerland almost gave up an earl as a hostage and made a plan to capture His Royal Highness over the course of 2-3 years, but it failed.
Moreover, in the process, we met a variable named Major General Peter Jaeger and failed to annihilate the 50,000 members of our expeditionary force even though they were completely isolated in Switzerland.
No, the expeditionary force, including me, set up camp on Richen Hill and held on until the end, succeeding in killing the enemy force, which was nearly twice as large as ours.
“Before that, I would like to ask you a question, Your Highness. Did our Swiss Expeditionary Force lose this war? “Have you achieved victory?”
Strictly speaking, it is correct to say that the war was lost because it failed to occupy three cantons, including Liechtenstein Castle, which was a strategic goal.
However, when limited to battle, we killed many more of their soldiers and did not give up a single inch of the empire’s territory.
We can declare that we have won the battle.
“We failed to achieve our strategic goal, but thanks to you and your soldiers’ dedication, we were able to achieve a narrow victory. So how can it be called a defeat?”
“Yes we are not defeated. Even though no land was captured during the expedition, the majesty of the Reich Empire was fully demonstrated to the Duke of Switzerland.”
“Just as you said, they came after you and our expeditionary force for revenge after suffering a huge loss of troops. “The limit is not to take even a single step on the empire’s land.”
The fact that the crown prince and I say these things may seem like we are achieving a mental victory in some way.
No, to be honest, he lost to a certain extent and said, ‘Even though we lost, we fought well, so it was okay.’ Although it is right to make an excuse like this.
There is only one reason why I am paving the way with words like this.
“This war is not over yet. So, to be more precise, we neither won nor lost. However, they took away even the slightest chance of victory from the Swiss. In other words, we can make them pay more for killing our soldiers.”
If what someone else said, the only thing we can do with the rest of the expeditionary force led by the crown prince is to make them retreat.
You may think it is a bit absurd, but His Majesty was looking at me with eyes full of curiosity to see what kind of plan I would come up with.
“First of all, in this war, the Duke of Switzerland lost a huge number of soldiers, failing to achieve both conditions that had to be achieved in order to win the war. And this fact will naturally spread throughout Europe, and his reputation and that of the Swiss mercenaries will fall to the ground.”
The two conditions the Duke of Switzerland needs to win the war are simple.
The purpose is to capture His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and annihilate 50,000 soldiers from the entire empire for the expedition to Switzerland.
And if he succeeded in capturing the crown prince alive, the duke could receive about one duchy of the empire as ransom.
If he had used chickens instead of pheasants to annihilate the 50,000-strong expeditionary force, he would have been able to save face by receiving one or two earldoms from the Emperor.
So the Duke of Switzerland may have put our expeditionary force in the most unfavorable position, but since no results were achieved, public opinion about Switzerland will change within Europa.
‘A country that was good at war and a country that lost even after completely cornering the enemy in the cradle of mercenaries.’
“Furthermore, this war is a carefully planned battle that the Duke of Switzerland has been preparing for several years, even risking the life of an earl. So the duke will not want to retreat without achieving anything. Because the moment he admits defeat, his standing will fall to the ground.”
The duke’s current situation is the same as that of a stock investor who lost a lot of money after putting all the money he could muster up to take a chance.
Therefore, if you organize everything here, you can minimize the loss and return, but if the investor cannot admit that he lost money.
Just as the duke has to bear more losses every day when the stock price falls, the duke only incurs losses day by day.
However, because the reality before his eyes is so miserable, it will take some time for him to stop escaping from reality and come to his senses.
Well, even if we are facing reality properly, it is already too late.
“Even if the duke is wiser than I thought and is preparing to retreat when we arrive here. You won’t be able to escape right now. Because if the soldiers who ran from Richen Hill to Dolfino Castle where we are now return without recovering their stamina. “Swiss soldiers who were exhausted during the march would die of exhaustion on their way home.”
“As you said, Major General Jaeger, the soldiers of the 7th Division who came on horseback from Richen Hill via Tishno Canton are too exhausted to go into battle. Moreover, the Swiss soldiers who ran a long distance on their own feet probably don’t even have the strength to fight properly now.”
“Yes that’s right. They must be very exhausted. But they also know full well what kind of situation they are in, so deception is necessary.”
The crown prince was looking at me with great anticipation to see what kind of plan would come out of my mouth, but it wasn’t a particularly great idea.
However, in this situation, it is a secret tactic that will be more effective than I expected.
“As the head of the Swiss Expeditionary Force, since our Reich Imperial Army won, urge us to pay compensation and threaten to go to war if it is not accepted. Then, the Duke of Switzerland and his nobles will feel relieved that, contrary to what they claim, they have no intention of fighting immediately.”
“If you want to stab them in the back, wouldn’t it be better to advocate for peace?”
“Normally, that would be the most effective, but now we went on an expedition and failed to take over the enemy’s territory and lost quite a few soldiers. In such a situation, if we try to moderately conclude peace negotiations, the enemies will be suspicious and think we are hiding something.”
The Duke of Switzerland and the Crown Prince are both people who are in a position where they cannot admit defeat.
This is because if the person in the position of ruler admits that he or she lost, he or she will lose his or her power base in return.
So, in most cases, it is more natural to shout like a dog barking and say that you did not lose.
Because even though it seems very ugly to do so, it is humane.
‘Ah, that guy thinks he’s already been defeated deep down, so he has no intention of fighting right now. ‘You’re saying such nonsense to protect your pride.’
Think of it this way and you will feel relieved.
“And when they are relieved, you can launch a night attack by mobilizing all the troops that can be mobilized for battle right now within the castle. If you temporarily block the enemy’s retreat with cavalry and push back with infantry, you can easily win against the army led by the Duke of Switzerland.”
The crown prince looked intrigued by the plan I suggested, nodded and asked.
“I understand, then are you planning to go to war?”
“It’s difficult for me to be active on the battlefield because my body is like this right now. Even if my body is fine, it would not be good for Your Majesty to be active here again. Because your Majesty must take all the credit for this surprise operation.”
After hearing my words, His Majesty looked moved again and responded in a voice filled with tears.
“Hey, Major General Jaeger…”
“However, the false information that I participated in the war will come as a huge fear to the Swiss infantry. So, dress the young officer with the best swordsmanship in my armor and uniform and make him look like Major General Peter Yeager has participated in the war. No, until the war is over, you must spread the rumor that I personally participated in the war.”
“Yes, you have often said that. In order to properly deceive the enemy, you must also deceive your allies. “I understand. Now rest in peace.”
After saying that, the crown prince touched both of my hands with a warm hand and walked away.
“Now, although His Majesty the Crown Prince is defeated with this, he will be able to avoid suffering a very serious blow in the competition for the throne. “My work is done.”
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