There had been rampant rumors that the Anatolia Empire was dispatching an army of two hundred thousand, even three hundred thousand strong.
Even so, three hundred thousand would be excessive. At absolute maximum, they could squeeze out two hundred thousand. And they wouldn't be sending them all at once—they would come in waves. Well, as always, war was something you had to face head-on to truly understand. Even then, half the time you still couldn't tell what was going on.
"Our army's grand strategy is to seize the ports."
I gathered the supreme commanders and laid out the operation.
"The Republic is not a formidable foe in terms of numbers alone. The enemy's main force is the Anatolia Imperial Army. However, the Anatolians have no choice but to cross the sea. If we seize the key coastal ports, they won't be able to send reinforcements even if they want to."
The Demon Lords nodded. It was an exceedingly obvious point.
"——The Republic's forces will certainly be thinking the same thing."
But then I overturned my own statement.
I smiled.
"We leave the ports alone for now."
Declaration of war.
That word surfaced unbidden in my mind. From this moment on, war had begun.
For someone of Elizabeth's caliber or my own, war was not purely a matter of 'fighting it out on the battlefield to find out.' Long before actual combat erupted, an intense contest of strategy and positioning had already been underway between us. In that sense, war truly commenced the moment my lips parted.
"Leave the ports alone? Why?"
"We exploit the friction between the Republic and Anatolia."
A dimly lit command tent.
The Demon Lords—each one a living testament to history—turned grave expressions toward me. The mood among them was relaxed, yet it was precisely that ease that made the air inside the tent suffocatingly taut. This was not a place where careless words could slip out unchecked.
"The enemy has a critical weakness. The Anatolia Empire has far too many troops."
"Too many troops is a weakness? Because of supply lines?"
"Provisions are certainly a concern, but the more fundamental and far more insidious weakness lies elsewhere. It is…."
"Our numbers are far too small compared to Anatolia."
Elizabeth said.
The operations war room was filled with every senior military officer the Republic had to offer. Kurz Schleiermacher, Captain of the Consul's Guard; Charles Richthofen, Commander of the Knight Order; Maximilian Wittenmaier, Chief of Staff—each one a figure who could command on any battlefield.
"The more Anatolian troops make landfall, the narrower our Republic's position becomes. Anatolia will try to monopolize operational command. In the end, we'll be reduced to nothing more than their puppets."
At least on the surface, the Republic was extending its hand to Anatolia.
If Anatolia abandoned the Republic, the war would be over then and there. Allied nations or not, it was a relationship in which one side had no choice but to be dragged along by the other.
"If the enemy concentrates on the port cities, that actually works in our favor. The harder Anatolia's forces struggle to land, the greater our voice becomes—since we've already committed to this war. But…."
Elizabeth smiled.
"Dantalion couldn't possibly be ignorant of this fact."
She continued in a tone brimming with conviction.
"Dantalion will maneuver us into a clash with Anatolia. He'll leave the coastal cities untouched for now, and only make his move once enough Anatolian troops have landed. Any questions up to this point?"
"Consul."
Kurz Schleiermacher carefully raised his hand. He still wore a puzzled expression.
"So you're saying they would deliberately allow Anatolia's massive army to cross the sea?"
"That's correct."
"But that seems like a textbook case of penny wise and pound foolish."
Kurz Schleiermacher said.
"We're talking about two hundred thousand men. Even if only half cross, that's a hundred thousand. A hundred thousand troops will be a decisive variable in this war. No matter how much the enemy aims to exploit our divisions, they wouldn't be eager to shoulder the risk of a hundred thousand troops, would they?"
"Of course they would—if victory in the war is their goal."
Elizabeth's lips curved upward softly.
"But their objective isn't to win the war."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Gentlemen. Dantalion's goal is not to win the war—it is to defeat me."
The Consul's low voice echoed through the meeting room.
"Suppose we somehow manage to win this war with the Anatolia Empire's full support. A win is a win, of course. But what becomes of our Republic's fate? At best, we'd be reduced to a satellite state of Anatolia."
"Indeed… they wouldn't even need to win the war. All they'd have to do is crush us."
Elizabeth nodded.
"The very purpose of their strategy is different. Dantalion does not fear the Anatolia Empire. He is only wary of me—of the Republic."
"……."
A statement so brazen it bordered on arrogance.
Yet Elizabeth's voice carried a conviction that made people truly believe it. She had the track record to back it up. In the previous Second Chrysanthemum War, she had seen right through Dantalion's intentions.
"The question is: under what circumstances do we end up in the worst possible position? Dantalion will certainly be aiming for that scenario. If you think about it even a little, the answer becomes clear…"
"They'd besiege the port cities?"
"Correct. A full-scale siege is the answer."
I tapped the map with my cane. One perk of having lost a leg was that I didn't need to carry a separate cane-like object. A small black joke, if you will.
"First, we seize every stretch of coastline except for the largest port city. After all, there's only one viable landing point for an army of a hundred thousand."
"Marina City—Venice, then."
I nodded at Marbas's words.
"Our army's strategy is as follows. First, we secure the entire coastline. Then, we move swiftly to encircle Venice. We establish a powerful fortified position so that the Anatolia Empire's forces cannot move an inch from Venice."
Marbas furrowed his brow. It seemed he still hadn't fully grasped my intentions.
"The Anatolian forces won't be eager to break through our encirclement rashly. They know full well that facing the Demon Lord's army in open field is practically suicide. To improve their odds even slightly, Anatolia will make a request of the Republic. To attack the rear of the encirclement."
That's right.
Anatolia takes the front, the Republic takes the rear. If they strike from both ends simultaneously, they'll win the battle almost certainly—that's what the Anatolian forces will conclude.
"In other words, whether the Republic wants to or not, it gets its ankles tied down."
"...I see. So you can predict every possible course of action the Republic's forces might take."
Marbas slowly nodded his chin.
"Furthermore, the Republic has its operational authority completely stripped away by Anatolia. It'll have no choice but to move in strict accordance with Anatolia's demands. For Consul Elizabeth, who wants to lead the entire nation on her own terms, this will be nothing short of torture."
Therefore, I said.
"Consul Elizabeth won't throw her full strength into saving Venice. If she marches her entire army to Venice, Anatolia will eat up her command authority. But if she sends no reinforcements at all, she'll worry about Anatolia's disapproval... There's only one answer."
In this situation, Elizabeth's options would be limited.
I surveyed the Demon Lords' eyes one by one. My voice settled into the dim tent.
"A two-front war."
"Split our total forces in two."
Elizabeth scanned the faces of her generals.
"From our army of forty-five thousand, draw out thirty thousand. Send them as reinforcements toward Venice. However—they must never be persuaded by Anatolia to attack the encirclement. They are merely to play at helping."
Elizabeth pointed a finger at the map spread across the command table. Her green eyes surveyed it without missing a single detail.
"The remaining fifteen thousand are to stay behind under the pretense of defending our homeland. And then we wait."
"Wait? What exactly are we waiting for, Madam Consul?"
"Isn't it obvious? We're waiting for Dantalion to come."
Elizabeth declared.
"Dantalion will divide his army in two. He'll commit the bulk of his forces to the Siege of Venice. As for himself, he'll assemble a separate strike force and march on this city — toward the capital of our Republic."
Elizabeth tapped her own chest. Right where her heart sat.
"As far as Dantalion is concerned, capturing me alone is as good as victory. He'll pick his finest elite and come attacking, no question about it. We need to meet him with our own elite. General Wittenmeier."
"Yes, Consul."
The young man with graying hair rose from his seat. This was Maximilian Wittenmeier — the so-called Sleepless General.
"I'm entrusting you with the First Army, thirty thousand strong. Coordinate with the Anatolians and encircle the main body of the Demon Lord's forces. Holding the enemy in place is your one and only objective."
"I humbly accept the order."
"Colonel Schleiermacher."
Kurz Schleiermacher sprang to his feet with brisk energy. Yet the movements still carried a trace of irrepressible playfulness as he saluted.
"Yes, Consul."
"Colonel, you and Commander von Richthofen will accompany me with the Second Army. Fifteen thousand."
"I will devote my every breath to following your command."
"This is no joke."
Elizabeth smiled — a thin, sharp smile.
"A moment will come when you truly have to give your life. More than once, in fact."
"...Well, I must say, I'm looking forward to it."
A chill ran down Kurz Schleiermacher's spine. The Consul was smiling, but her eyes held absolute sincerity.
There was a high probability he would die in battle. That instinct flashed through Kurz's mind. To die still an unmarried old bachelor... Bitter as it was, he also felt he could accept that as simply the way things were.
"Gentlemen. Let Dantalion have what he wants. Our objective is the same as his — catch the Demon Lord Dantalion, and this war is ours. Both sides will collide fully prepared, at the height of their strength."
Chapter: The Road to Munich
Elisabeth surveyed the room.
"Let us put a final end to this long and bitter feud."
"Leave Elisabeth to do as she wishes."
I wore a faint smile.
"Our main force will indeed be pinned down. But the same goes for the enemy. The great army of Anatolia and the Republic's main body will be held up in Venice, wasting precious time. Seizing that opening, the mobile strike force led by myself and Duchess Laura de Farnese will burn the Republic's capital to the ground."
In other words, dividing the army in two.
There was no reason — nor any need — to drag the war out. We would advance straight for the Republic's capital in a single decisive stroke. Recover Barbatos and capture Daisy. A swift, decisive engagement.
"Lord Marbas. I humbly ask that you take command of the First Army. Once Anatolia and the Republic join forces, their combined numbers will reach a staggering one hundred and fifty thousand. No one but you, Lord Marbas, is capable of holding off a force of that magnitude."
"I shall gladly accept my role."
I bowed my head in gratitude.
"This war will be decided in a single clash. Either Consul Elisabeth dies in battle, or I do. There can be no other outcome."
"Dantalion — which side do you think has the better chance?"
I smiled.
"I have never permitted the word 'defeat' to exist within my empire."
By the time the final days of May were upon us, I turned my march toward a new objective alongside Laura, leading fifteen thousand Helvetic mercenaries. This army was called the Second Corps, but every soul in the Demon Lord's forces knew that the fate of the entire war hinged on them.
The destination was Munich.
Needless to say, it was the capital of the Habsburg Republic.