Black Iron’s Glory

Chapter 277: The Annihilation of the Principality of Limodera

Though Claude wanted to be a saltfish in the army, he survived the war. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have a sense of crisis. Although the area in question was voluntarily renounced by the nobles of the territory of the Principality of Kanas and remotely located relative to the Kanas prairie, this does not mean that it can remain so calm.

There is always a feeling in the mind that the territorial nobles of the Principality of Kanas will return, and that they will return with the troops of the Principality of Kanas, where there will be a war sooner or later. It was this intuition in his heart that prompted Major Skerry to stockpile all kinds of armaments and prepare for the war. At the same time, he urged his soldiers to build Castle Landers into a solid defensive fortress.

Fortunately, Major Skerry has maintained an unconditional belief in Claude and is very supportive of his defensive preparations. How can it be said that loneliness penetrates an enemy country and occupies such a large area that the rear supply delivery relies only on that narrow, dangerous and difficult mountain path, which is somewhat nervous for any sober commander?

The geography of the area makes it enough for the enemy to send a light cavalry regiment to trap a battalion of guerrillas inside the four castles, while also cutting off traffic between the hillside and the fortified castles. So there is no objection to Claude's proposal to accelerate stockpiles, and everyone understands that if there is no food and ammunition in the manned castle, then the defensemen will either surrender or perish.

The entire attention of the Royal Auveris Army in July was focused on the Principality of Rimodra, with the Front Line Command deciding to destroy the Principality by the end of August. They mobilized four or five second-line regiments, led by the AUC, to launch a fierce offensive against the coalition forces of the AUC in preparation for the demise of the Principality of Rimodra to be handed over to the AUC.

Meanwhile, the Blue Feather Corps, which had defended the border between the three southern counties and the Principality of Rimodra, had been replaced and relocated to the former capital of the Principality of Eskirin, the Grand Duke of Braviso, for rest. Once the fighting in the Principality of Rimodra is over, the Blue Feather Regiment will lead two second-line regiments into the Kanas Prairie and force them into the northern bay of the Principality of Kanas.

The situation is very good for the Kingdom of Ovieras, and everyone knows that the successive demise of the Duchy of Siddins, the Duchy of Eskirin and the Duchy of Rimodra has made the so-called anti-Olympic alliance false. Neither the remaining Duchy of Kanas nor the Kingdom of Nasseri can stop the strength of the kingdom of Ovilas. This war, which has swept the entire eastern part of the continent for almost four years, has already felt like a mountain of poverty in all the participating countries, the only difference being that the Kingdom of Ovieras is in a victorious position and that it is easier for them to persevere until the final victory is achieved.

“We have now stockpiled enough food for one and a half months, and ammunition can also be used for three months in defensive combat. The soldiers who are transporting now complain that it's too hard, and the melons are harvested, which greatly alleviates the food shortage. Do you think we can take a break and let the soldiers relax?” Major Skerry asked Claude.

Claude came to the battalion mainly to get some news on the front line. Major Skerry was a close deputy to Prince Hansburg and met a lot of friends at the front line command, so he used the hawk message to quickly get some news and information on the front line. For Claude, this is very helpful for keeping up to date on the progress of the war.

Looking at the battlefield message from the hawks over the past half month on the table, Claude shook his head: "We also need to boost our stocks of food and all kinds of armaments as soon as possible, at least enough to keep us going for three months. Don't you think it's strange that these wars are all news of victory, but all the targets of the fighting were armed regiments formed by the Principality of Rimodra, while none of the soldiers of the other countries of the anti-Olympic alliance appeared on the battlefield...”

This Major Skerry did not notice that he picked up these wars and found something strange: "Yes, I recall that among the anti-Olympic forces of the Principality of Rimodra there was a standing army from the Kingdom of Nasri, three light cavalry regiments from the Principality of Kanas, four regiments from the former Principality of Eskirin, and the rest were armed regiments formed by the Principality of Rimodra.

That standing legion in the Kingdom of Nasseri is the close guard unit of the Allied Command and is not easily on the front line. The three Corps of Light Cavalry of the Principality of Kanas are very active on the front line, although the war has damaged the strength of only about two corps left at present. The four former armed regiments of the Principality of Eskirin were the mainstay of the front-line defense, causing heavy casualties. Although they were composed of four regiments, the actual strength was two and a half regiments. Following the surrender of Grand Duke Eskilin, the soldiers of these four regiments mutiny surrendered to us, reportedly with fewer than one regiment at the end.

Although the Principality of Rimodra has formed more than a dozen regiments, most of them have been temporarily formed by forced conscription, with poor combat power and poor treatment. Hardship, which has always been seen as the front line, and the role of cannonball, is not at all an opponent of those second-line regiments in our kingdom, and is generally rarely tasked with independent defence. Now all these wars are short stories of the collapse and annihilation of an army in the Principality of Rimodra. There is no news of the armies of other countries. It seems that the enemy has begun to move. I have to write to the Front Line Command immediately to remind them... ”

At first glance, it became clear that the only way the enemy could be transferred was by sea vessel, with a clear destination, which could only be the northern bay of the Principality of Kanas, the nearest anti-Olympic port, only to stick to the coastline of the former Principality of Eskirin and be reached on a three-day and three-night voyage.

“Let me take charge of this shipment.” Claude was brave enough to take the opportunity to go to the Witch Forest and meet his little lover, Sheila. Anyway, the convoy arrived in Squirrel Village for an evening's rest before leaving the next day, just one evening to see Sheila: “As for the soldiers in charge of transport, we can rotate and send a new team each time, just in time to relax in the Squirrel Village tavern. ”

“Okay, you can make up your mind about this.” Major Skerry said yes with one mouthful.

Only when Claude came back from Squirrel Village with the Horse Squad, he found Major Scully's face grumpy.

“What's wrong with you?” Claude asked.

Soon Claude became aware of the commission, and the former Front Line Command staff officers discovered the change in the Front Line of the Principality of Rimodra vis-à-vis the enemy, who likewise concluded that the enemy had been transferred. The problem is that they have no way to stop the enemy's actions. In order to gradually approach the three seaport cities of the Principality of Rimodra, the Allied Command of the Anti-Olympic Alliance pushed those temporarily formed regiments of the Principality of Rimodra to the front line, which was used as cannon ash to slow down the offensive speed of the Royal Auveras Army.

Anyway, the Principality of Rimodra would rather end up using these temporarily formed regiments as cannon dust for their positions than surrender to the army of the Kingdom of Ovilas as prisoners. Instead of expecting these makeshift regiments to defend the FDN coalition, it is hoped that the Royal Auvellas Army will cause more casualties to these makeshift regiments as they seize their positions. The simpler it is, the greater the casualties, the greater the cost to the kingdom of Ovilas to govern the place and the longer it will take to develop.

This is a masculine plot, and even if it is discovered, it is difficult to decipher. These makeshift regiments in the Principality of Rimodra have suffered heavy casualties as a result of heavy artillery shelling and the assault capability of soldiers by the Royal Auvellas Army on the front-line for more than half a month. Although the Front Line Command has instructed the enemy to lay down his arms and reduce casualties, it will take time and allow the coalition against the Olympic Alliance to use the slow pace of the offensive to speed up the transfer of forces.

Standing on the coast of the former Principality of Eskirin, it is said that vast numbers of sea-going vessels can be seen sailing along the coastline towards the northern bay of the Principality of Kanas, a fleet of anti-Olympic coalitions escorting the combined forces of the Principality of Rimodra to the Principality of Kanas, made up of carriers and merchant vessels.

Major Skerry was in a bad mood because he heard from a friend of the Front Line Command that Prince Hansburg had completely broken out, publicly cursed the Royal Navy Department's corpse vegetarian meal, and watched such a good opportunity to wipe out most anti-Olympic allies was wasted. If the Navy Department could allow the Dauntless Fleet to roam the waters of the Principality of Rimodra, the enemy would never dare to sway such a large transfer of troops! The Angry Big Prince also smashed his own office. The new close deputy didn't know as much about the Big Prince's integrity as Major Scully did. None of them had the nerve to go forward and persuade the Big Prince to be angry...

Major Scully said that if he was next to the great prince, he would stop the big prince from having such a temper. As a king of kingdoms, the great prince cannot expose his love and hatred to others in such a way that he does not create opportunities for those with a heart. In addition, the Grand Prince's opinion of the Royal Navy is likely to affect his successful ascent to the throne. Although the Grand Prince has the support of the Royal Army, the Ministry of the Navy has a large presence in Wangdu, forming a vast network of interests and people in power with the proceeds of smuggling between the two continents.

This is the first time Claude has heard about contradictory interests in the upper echelons, but Major Skerry is just passing by. After spending six years as a close deputy to the Grand Prince, he insisted that the interests of the upper elite should be dealt with more, so he feared that this time the Grand Prince would have any negative consequences if he became angry in front of everyone in the Front Command.

“You, as the commander of the first battalion of the Rangers, fuck the heart of the great prince with his deputy, so you might as well go back to the great prince.” That's the only way Claude can beat Major Funkley.

Before the end of August, the Principality of Rimodra was extinguished, but before the withdrawal of the anti-Olympic coalition forces, a mess was left for the Kingdom of Ovieras. All the nobles of the Principality of Rimodra left with their property and their families, and the coalition forces withdrew. The coalition fleet also bombed three seaport cities of the Principality of Rimodra into ruins. All the kingdom of Ovilas has received is a piece of land that was burned by war and nearly three million war refugees who are waiting to feed themselves. Most of them are old and weak women and children, many of them young and disabled, who became disabled in this war.

Prince Hansburg now thinks it would be better not to attack the Principality of Rimodra. The destruction of the Principality of Rimodra is only better in name. It has no merit at all for the Kingdom and carries a heavy burden. The Kingdom does not yet know how much money and material will be invested in this land that has been devastated by war in order to restore its people to their lives.

Almost all pre-planned offensives were delayed by the appalling reality of the Principality of Rimodra, so that a battalion of guerrillas occupying an entire remote area on the Kanas Prairie was forgotten by the Front Line Command. The most important task now for the Front Line Command is not to plan an attack on the Principality of Kanas, but to carry out relief and rehabilitation efforts in the Principality of Rimodra. Moreover, the Principality of Rimodra has been incorporated into the territory of the Kingdom of Ovieras, and it is a great responsibility that cannot be ignored by the Kingdom when the winter comes and countless victims will die without food.

After a brief respite, anti-Olympic coalition forces quickly resumed their scouting operations on the prairie after transferring to the northern bay of the Principality of Kanas. Claude was connected at the end of August to reports of reconnaissance cavalry discoveries of enemy scouts, and even minor clashes. Twenty-four reconnaissance cavalry troops lost nine in just one week, and three others fled with injuries, almost reimbursing the strength of a battle team.

“A week ago, our reconnaissance cavalry reported the whereabouts of enemy scouts found here.” Claude stuck a tiny red paper flag on the map: “And only a week later, we found an enemy surveillance team here, just a day's ride from us. As you can see, the enemy is expanding their reconnaissance, and their team is getting closer and closer to us. I'm guessing in less than three days, enemy scouts will come to our area for reconnaissance. Once it is discovered that we have only one battalion stationed here, it is likely that troops will attack. ”

Major Skerry looked at the position of Claude's little red flag on the map with some concern, and the position of the little red flag representing enemy scouts was indeed approaching the area: “What do you think we should do about these enemy scouts? ”

Claude laughed: "Have you forgotten what our parade camp was built for? It was in response to the Duchy of Kanas' light cavalry reconnaissance that the Grand Prince formed this guerrilla battalion and used ambushes against these easy-going light-handed scouts. Now we can do it again so the enemy can't get away with it. ”