Plain Girl Hero of Darkness
Battle of Iris - (5)

"Your Majesty, shouldn't you rest in your tent?"

Otto asked out of concern. Paul gently waved his hand, and sat down on the chair he had prepared for him.

"Silent. Otto, you know I didn't sleep much during the battle. Blood instantly rose into my brain, and it didn't change even at my age - So, how was the number of victims? "

Paul turned his head with a sharp gaze, showing a flash of his past when he was called a demon. Despite his advanced age, his nature remains unchanged. Otto felt a little nostalgic, and reported the information he had gathered all along to Paul.

"- They took down the ferocious General Lambert, huh. Full Metal Knight lives up to their name. "

"Indeed. The First Army stops the enemy's attack by panicking their warhorses with fire arrows, but ... "

Otto stopped here, and looked up at the sky. The bright moon hanging above the plain of Iris just now had been covered by dark clouds. Paul looked up and said:

"... The weather's changing."

"Yes sir. If it rains, the effectiveness of the fire arrows will drop. This would have a devastating impact on the First Army's battle. "

"Well, this is Lambert we're talking about, he's gonna find a way. When can the detachment unit be in position? "

"As per their schedule, they should already be where they are now..."

The plan, the detachment unit will send smoke signals if the surprise attack is successful. With that signal, the entire army will launch an all-out attack. When Paul heard Otto's reply, he muttered, "Is that so." He then picked up the cigar and lit it. The purple smoke then rose slowly into the night sky.

There was still a few hours before dawn.

******

[Second day of battle, Sky overcast]

Learning from their failures the previous day, the First Army of Lambert prepared fire archers well in advance. In order to survive the Full Metal Knight's attack, they adopted a defensive formation. On the other hand, the Full Metal Knight who achieved outstanding results yesterday did not prepare any precautions against the fire arrows, and their attacks were more protected than yesterday.

So, the battle in the center line was not as strong as the previous day, with occasional battles here and there. The battle has shifted to the wings.

In charge of the left wing of the Royal Army is Major General Elman Hark. He was a commoner from birth, but caught Paul's attention, and rose to the rank of Major General. A rare talent that masters defensive battles.

"Your Majesty, the enemy's calvary is attacking us!"

His adjutant, Captain Louis shouted. As a fierce battle raged, five hundred strong cavalry charged towards them recklessly.

"Stay calm. The enemy is in a crescent moon formation, clearly they intend to split our defensive line. Give my orders to the archers on both sides, and tell them to attack with a volley. "

The envoys ran away with Elman's orders, and sent him to the archer commander. The archers prepared their arrows with trained movements, and shot as a unit. His arrows tore through the air and rained down on the enemy horsemen.

The warhorse neighed and raised their front legs, throwing its rider to the ground. But Calvary did not break their invasion, as if they were being chased by something from behind.

"Hiye! M-The enemy did not stop! They're still after us! "

An archer said, and seemed to be almost crying.

"Shut up and keep shooting!"

At the captain's furious command, the archers fired the second and third shots. Each shot created many bodies, and when the casualties at Calvary increased by more than 50%, the riders turned around and fled.

"Your Majesty, the enemy has been defeated, we must pursue them."

Louis suggested, and Elman murmured after hearing that:

"- Indeed. If we don't chase now, the enemy will become suspicious ... "

Normally, Elman would order a chase before Louis gave any advice. But this time he hesitated.

"Hmm? May I ask what you mean by that? "

"Yes sir! I'll arrange it! "

Louis quickly issued a pursuit order to the messenger. Elman looked at the movements of his subordinates and recalled the contents of this operation. The key to this plan lies with Olivia, and few people know the details. Since the success of the plan depended on a surprise attack, this was a necessary measure to avoid leaking information to the enemy.

Their strategy was not to be too aggressive before the surprise attack was successful and all commanders had to follow this game plan strictly. This was a consideration Paul made in order to save their troops in the raid on Kaspar castle.

But, it would be suspicious if they acted too passively. So they had to fight with all their might to fend off the enemy, and not raise any suspicions from the enemy when attacking. Elman sighed how difficult this was, and scratched his thinning hair.

(Because Lieutenant General Paul trusted the girl, it's okay ... But a 15-year-old girl will decide the fate of this battle. I wonder what the enemy will think when they know this.)

Elman thought of the silver-haired girl he was walking along the corridors of Fort Gallia, and gave a follow-up order to Louis.

*******

[Imperial Army, Right Wing Headquarters]

"You dare show me your face, you shameless fellow!"

A man wearing flashy accessories that looked out of place on the battlefield scolded with a shrill voice. He was Major General Minits O'Stocks, a grand noble who was famous for showing off. He was a coward and did not dare to take personal action. He would reprimand subordinates when they made a mistake, and take their praise when they succeeded. Minits was not someone who could be trusted to lead the Flank unit, but since she was a distant relative of the Emperor, she was assigned to the commanding position of the Right Wing.

"Your Majesty, that's enough. He was also frustrated with the loss of his men. "

His adjutant, Major Reoness begged the man whose head was stepped on by the Minits. The raid to break through the enemy's left wing resulted in the loss of 70% of the attack power, and this fellow somehow survived. But it's not fair to blame him.

After all, the Minits' plan to break through the enemy with just 500 cavalry was foolish.

"Shut up! If I can't get war merit in this battle, my father will scold me hard. Send more cavalry to attack them! "

"Y-Your Majesty! A reckless attack would only result in the same failure! You should understand after seeing this."

"Disturb! Lieutenant General George's attack was stopped, so it's a good chance to get the war merit! If you understand, send more cavalry. You hear, this is an order! "

Minits said hysterically while holding her head and repeating "Strike, attack!" He couldn't explain it, but since Osborne asked the Reoness to keep an eye on the Minits, the Reoness couldn't just let him.

Reoness sighed heavily in her heart, then suggested Minits:

"Your Majesty, how about this. Let's divide the 3,000 cavalry into three groups, and send one of them to attack the enemy's left wing as before. "

Reoness placed the map on the table, then took out three chess pieces. He placed one of them in the center of the enemy's left wing.

"... Didn't I just order that now."

Minits said furiously. So he hasn't completely lost it. Reoness smiled wryly in her heart, and continued:

"You're absolutely right, but the following is different. The enemy would become careless if he saw the same attack. After all, they've already defeated us once. "

He then placed the other two pieces on either side of the enemy.

"When their guard goes down, we'll send two more units to assist in the attack."

"So the first cavalry unit will be the bait, and create a gap for the other two groups? So we're going to storm three positions at the same time? "

"Yes, Your Majesty. But not only that, the next step is the real deal. "

Reoness raised the corner of her lips and explained slowly to make Minits understand.

...****************...

...To Be Continue's...