Claude stood at the midpoint of a cliff, surrounded by a few dense pine trees.
He raised his binoculars and carefully observed the Shiksan camp a thousand metres down the mountain.
It was the border between the northern mountains of nikancha nation and Cape Loducus colony. He wanted to see the situation of the three Shiksan corps with his own eyes, which was why he snuck there.
It was already the middle of August and the Shiksans had finally transported the 4th and 5th corps to Cape Loducus.
After the arrival of these two standing corps, the three standing corps that had been resting in the Cape Loducus Colony for nearly three months set up camp at the mountainous border of the nikancha country.
The Shiksans stationed two standing corps at the northern border of the mountains, but only one at the eastern border.
It seemed that the Shiksans were focusing their attack on the northern mountain border. However, Claude felt that the situation wasn't quite right.
Because compared to the camp of the Standing Army at the border of the Eastern Mountains, the camps set up by these two Standing Army Regiments were more defensive than offensive …
"General, we should go," Myjack reminded him.
Myjack reminded, "The Shiksan scouts have been very active recently. They often go deep into the mountains to scout.
There might even be some hidden outposts nearby. You're the frontline commander, so you can't put your life in danger so easily. "
Claude put down his binoculars. He had seen everything he needed to see, so he couldn't stay at the frontlines any longer.
He had to go back and discuss it. The Shiksans would soon launch an attack on the nikancha nation, but Claude didn't quite understand their deployment. Logically speaking, the two standing corps in the north should be the main force while the one in the east would act as a feint to restrain the enemy.
But what was up with the defensive barracks set up by the two standing corps in the north?
Were they going to be used as a supply base when the war started?
Beechlin's HQ was set up at the border between the northern and eastern mountains so that he could easily grasp the situation in both directions.
The command center was located in a huge karst cave halfway up the mountain. The entrance of the cave was very flat, and there were four rows of wooden huts that were half-hidden underground. The wooden huts that were exposed above the ground were covered with many vines. This kind of climbing plant with lush branches and leaves was very good for concealment. It was easy to miss the wooden huts from afar.
There were also two trenches dug into the ground in front of the huts. That was where the sentry posts and HQ would be used in case of an enemy attack.
When Claude brought his men over, General Beechlin came to greet them and asked Claude with concern if he had found anything …
When Claude told him about his suspicions, Beechlin didn't find it strange at all.
He said that the Shiksans were probably suspecting that the theatre had sent troops into nikancha nation. Perhaps the Shiksans believed that if they sent troops into nikancha nation, they would be tasked with defending the northern mountains. That was why they stationed two standing corps in the north and set up a defensive camp in case they were attacked by the theatre's corps.
Beechklin's words made a lot of sense. Claude believed that if he were the Shiksan commander, he would make the same judgment as Beechklin.
As for the eastern mountains, sending a standing corps was already overestimating the nikancha's combat prowess. Everyone knew that the nikancha were weak and couldn't even take a single hit.
"Do you have any intel on the Shiksan chief commander?" Claude asked.
During this period of time, he had traveled all over the border mountains of the eastern and northern regions and had been camping outside for nearly twenty days. He did not have much contact with the rear war zone and the frontline command in Monknad Castle. He did not know if the spies in the Cape Loducus Colony had sent him any valuable intelligence.
Beechlin nodded. "Yes. The spies sent an eagle message saying that the Shiksan chief commander is a hereditary count and a general of the Shiksan army.
It's said that he played a great role in quelling the rebellion of the nobles and is trusted by Majid III.
He's 68 years old this year and was sent to be the chief commander. His name is Norberton Pang Belundi. "
"That's it?" Claude shook his head in disappointment.
Perhaps that was the inconvenience of losing contact with the kingdom. What he wanted to know was the Shiksan commander-in-chief's personality, what kind of battles he had participated in, how he commanded troops and so on. Only by understanding the enemy could he make a countermeasure.
The intelligence reports sent by the spies, other than knowing their names and ages, they didn't know anything else …
Sixty-eight years old. He should be steady at that age and wouldn't like to advance recklessly. It would be hard to lure him in with benefits.
At the same time, an old general like him would fight by the book. He liked to make plans and have his troops carry out his orders step by step. He would also be more meticulous when it came to logistics. Usually, he wouldn't like winning by surprise. It seemed that the three corps of Shiks would fight to the death at the defensive line after the attack.
"Are our defensive lines and frontlines set up?" Claude asked.
Beechlin nodded. "They're ready. Take a look here. I've already had someone make a sand table based on the terrain."
This was a large room separated from the cave. A chandelier with 18 candles hung from the ceiling, illuminating the entire room very brightly.
In the middle of the room was a large table with a sand table on it.
It was a sand table of the northern and eastern mountains of the nikancha nation. Perhaps due to the rush of work, the mountains on the table were rather crude. There weren't even any trees or other decorations.
Beechlin used a slender stick to point at the mountainous region on the edge of the sand table. "We've surveyed the terrain of the border and believe that the Shiksans can easily find a passable path between the mountains.
After the nikancha became independent, they weren't interested in going to Cape Loducus. While there were nikancha there, there weren't any settlements.
So, the two sides didn't have much contact.
The main reason was that the people of Fochs didn't like the nikancha settlements. In their colonies, they chased them away and didn't allow them to exist.
For example, the Nikancha people in the Cape Loducus Colony were all young women captured by the colonists from the Nikancha settlement. The children were born after the colonists used them to vent their lust, and they were raised to be servants. They had nothing to do with the Nikancha settlement.
"That's why, apart from the Shiksans, the nikancha hated the descendants of the Kramers even more. That's why they didn't have much contact with the nikancha settlements in the western colonies after they became independent.
"If it wasn't for us leaking information, the nikancha probably wouldn't have sent people to the western colonies to ask their brethren for help. That way, when the Shiksans arrived, they wouldn't know they were in big trouble.
"Now, the nikancha are putting in a lot of effort to help us set up three defensive lines in the central mountains. They even offered to help us set up three more defensive lines at the back to defend against the Shiksans.
"I told them that it wasn't necessary, because there's only one possibility for the Shiksans to take over those three defensive lines. Monolith's folk stationed there would be wiped out without a single survivor.
"When that happens, even ten defensive lines won't be able to stop the Shiksans' advance, let alone three. Without us defenders, the defensive lines alone would be useless.
Half a month later, the nikancha sent us a hundred thousand young and strong soldiers. They had all received basic military training from the instructors sent from our war zone. They knew how to use a gun.
"That day, a lot of nikancha chiefs and elders came. The leading elder even grabbed my hand tightly and told us that their nation's survival hinges on the three defensive lines we have. So, according to our agreement, they sent me a hundred thousand elites in hopes that I can defend the defensive lines and defend against the Shiksans' advance."
General Birkin pointed at the middle part of the sand table with a thin wooden stick. There were three red woolen lines pasted on the top of the clay hill, which represented the three deep defensive lines in the front and back, forming an irregular L shape. "I will disperse and distribute the 100,000 strong Nikancha soldiers. According to the plan made in the theater of operations, one soldier of our Monolith Corps will lead two strong Nikancha soldiers and have the right to supervise the battle and enforce military law.
There are also forty thousand young and strong Nikancha soldiers. I have organized them into forty battalions and put the staff officers of the Monolith Regiment in charge. They are stationed on the forty hills with the little red flags on them.
"That's the route we believe the Shiksans might launch an attack. Those hills can give us a warning at the first sign of trouble and block the enemy's path of attack.
"Of course, I don't expect the nikancha to be able to stop the Shiksans' advance, but at the very least, they can make the Shiksans think the defenders are nikancha. At most, we'll send instructors to instruct them on defense.
I believe the Shiksans will be able to attack boldly and the forty nikancha battalions we stationed at the front will be able to fight and retreat at the same time. While delaying the enemy's advance, they'll also wear down their ammunition and rations until they're all drawn to our defensive lines. "
That was part of the war theatre's original plan. Once the Shiksans reached the defensive line set up by Birkin, it would be Thundercrash's turn to take the initiative to attack.
They would cut into the mountainous area behind the Shiksans and seal off their supply routes.
As a result, the Shiksans would be faced with a sturdy defensive line while Thundercrash would surround them from behind. Coupled with the lack of rations and ammunition, they would have no choice but to surrender.
The difficult part of the plan was how to get the nikancha to take the initiative to defend against the Shiksans' advance in the mountainous area.
This plan was kept a secret from the nikancha people, but with a strong defensive line at the back that could be relied on for defense, the nikancha people might misunderstand that the warzone was trying to get someone else to do their dirty work, which would cause the cooperation between the two sides to be unhappy and not smooth …
However, only by having the nikancha stationed there would the Shiksans be able to push in without any worries until they reached Monolith's defensive line.
In other words, the nikancha stationed there were only cannon fodder to bait the Shiksans into taking the bait.
However, Claude didn't think the nikancha elders and chiefs would be so tactful as to hand over a hundred thousand nikancha youths to Birkin. That solved the biggest problem of the theatre's plan.
With Monolith's strategists in charge of the nikancha camps, the nikancha's fighting prowess would increase. At the very least, they would put up a serious fight before retreating.
Birkin said proudly, "From July to August, our soldiers in this defensive line have been training the nikancha youths on how to rely on their defensive lines.
Even though it's only been a short time, the nikancha have learned to obey orders and fire stealthily.
"Based on the enemy's three corps deployment, I have stationed a line in the eastern mountainous area, two in the northern one and one in the rear as a reserve.
With one soldier leading two nikancha, the defensive line is well-staffed.
"Coupled with the nikancha camps stationed at the border, we can definitely delay the Shiksans for a month.
"Without the nikancha on the frontlines, the Shiksans will only need 15 days to reach our defensive line.
"With the nikancha retreating at the front, I believe the Shiksans will be too exhausted to launch another fierce attack by the time they reach our defensive line.
This will greatly reduce the pressure on our defences and allow us to deal more damage to the Shiksans.
By then, your Thundercrash will surround them from the back and the Shiksans will be like fish caught in a net. They can only wait for their deaths. "
Claude looked at the layout on the sand table and found that Birkin wasn't exaggerating. The defensive line in the central mountainous area and the border area were well-organized. At the very least, he couldn't find any flaws in it.
"Didn't the defensive line headquarters arrange for the soldiers to train with the nikancha youths?"
Claude asked. He didn't see any nikancha youths near the headquarters when he arrived.
"No." Birkin shook his head.
"The reinforced battalion directly under my division is fully equipped with the new rifles, so it's not convenient for them to train with the nikancha.
That's why the northern and eastern units have nikancha with them. Only the headquarters here doesn't. "
"Alright, I'll return to Monknad Castle then.
I suspect the Shiksans will launch an attack in the next few days. You have to be careful.
If we're certain that the Shiksans won't be able to reach the defensive line within a month, you can have the reserve line at the back come with me.
Blackstone already has 6,000 new rifles. Bolonik said that we'll equip the frontline troops first. "
Birkin was delighted. "Really? I'll order that line to go with you.
With the new rifles, the line's fighting power will increase by at least three times. "
"Alright. Thundercrash has also just equipped a line. Your line will come with me and equip them with the new rifles. After seven days of short-term training, the soldiers will be able to grasp the new rifles' capabilities. That should be enough to form a fighting force.
It'll take more than 20 days to go back and forth. Coupled with the short-term training, it'll take a month. Can you guarantee that the frontline will be fine? "
Claude felt a little uneasy, but he couldn't think of anything he had missed out on. He could only attribute it to the nervousness of the impending war.
"I promise. Don't worry. Even if the Shiksans attack tomorrow, it'll take them at least a month to reach our defensive line. That'll be just in time for the line to be equipped with the new rifles and we'll be able to teach those despicable Shiksans a good lesson." For the sake of the new rifles, Birkin didn't plan on keeping Claude for dinner.
He couldn't wait for Claude to bring Monknad's line back so that they could be equipped with the new rifles.
When Claude returned to Monknad Castle, Eiblont informed him that the war had broken out. "Seven days ago, the Shiksans launched an attack at the northern and eastern border."
That was a report sent by Birkin via hawk messenger. Claude wasn't able to receive it on the way back. It took him ten days to return to the mountainous region, so he couldn't travel quickly even if he wanted to.
The attack had only started seven days ago, which was the third day after he left. Claude breathed a sigh of relief. That meant the Shiksans would need at least twenty days to reach the defensive line. That would be enough for Monknad's line to be equipped with the new rifles and undergo short-term training before returning to the frontlines.
He planned on returning to the frontlines with Thundercrash after the line was equipped.
What he didn't expect was that in less than five days, Birkin would send another urgent hawk messenger from the frontlines.
The Nikancha armed forces deployed in the mountainous area at the border could not even withstand a single blow. Forget about delaying the enemy's attack, they could not even defend and counterattack. All they knew was that the defensive line at the rear had collapsed …
The most troublesome part was that the nikancha who had retreated from the mountains didn't even see the enemy's face. Seeing the nikancha in front of them retreat, the ones in the defensive positions behind them also ran back. The staff officers sent by the Monolith Army were powerless to stop their escape. Some officers who were about to enforce the law were shot by the nikancha's young and strong soldiers.
The Shiksans would appear in front of Birkin's defensive line in another three to four days.
However, the nikancha youths at the frontlines were extremely nervous from the defeat of the nikancha forces. Perhaps they would scatter the moment they saw the Shiksans appear. Beechlin could only hope that Claude would hurry and bring reinforcements.