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Vol 04 Chapter 109: The One-Eyed and the Hawk I

「Is that the enemy’s base?」

Alexios gazed down at the fortress of King Belvedire’s Country on the top of the mountain. This location was within King Belvedire’s Country’s territory and served as the first line of defense against the Lezado.

In front of the fortress lay a reasonably wide river, with extensive forests stretching from the side of the fortress across the river to this side. It was impossible for a large army to march through the forest, so the soldiers guarding the fortress needed only to be vigilant against enemies coming from the front. The terrain and fortress combined formed a sturdy stronghold.

「Even if we try to cross, the enemy occupies the other side of the river. Our country has attempted to cross many times, but all efforts have failed.」

Ainz, who was sent as Alexios’ supervisor, explained.

「I see. This is troublesome.」

Alexios responded while observing the fortress with his uncovered eye.

Currently, the total number of troops led by Alexios, of the Lezado-Gehenna coalition, was two thousand. The composition included three hundred Germanis cavalry and seven hundred Gallian infantry completed by a thousand Kirisian heavy infantry.

The common language for the army was Kirisian.

The Germanis cavalry and Gallian infantry brought by Lezado were mercenaries. They could communicate in Kirisian to some extent. For the countries around the Tethys Sea, the Kirisian language was akin to English on Earth.

「Alexios. I’ve checked the enemy’s numbers.」

Said Melia, approaching him. Their child had been left in the care of a trustworthy Kirisian senator.

「The enemy currently has five hundred troops, and by tomorrow, fifteen hundred reinforcements will arrive, making their total two thousand. I’m still looking into the terrain.」

「Thank you, Melia. I love you. Please check the terrain carefully. There might be a point upstream where we can cross.」

Alexios replied, as he took the detailed report from Melia and reviewed it.

The report included information about the enemy commander and the specific types of weapons the enemy was using.

「Do we really need to go into such detail?」

「It doesn’t hurt to know more. We can’t predict where the enemy’s weaknesses might lie,」

Alexios replied to Ainz’s question. He believed that intelligence was crucial in warfare.

「The enemy currently numbers five hundred… Could we not attempt a crossing now and defeat them while they haven’t regrouped with the reinforcements?」

Ainz suggested to Alexios.

However, Alexios shook his head.

「No, it would fail. Crossing the river is difficult. Besides, we’ve just arrived. We don’t even have boats. The river is shallow enough to cross without boats, but it would exhaust the troops too much.」

「But if the enemy reinforcements arrive, the enemy forces will equal ours in number, wouldn’t storming the fortress become more difficult?」

「Don’t worry, I have a plan… it might be unusable depending on the terrain though.」

Alexios said with a shrug.

◇

Five days passed.

「Report! There has been no significant movement in the enemy camp!」

「They’re probably building boats to cross the river.」

The general of King Belvedire’s Country wasn’t too worried.

For about five days, the Lezado-Gehenna coalition hadn’t moved—or more accurately, couldn’t move.

「Even if they’ve built boats, crossing the river will be impossible. We’ve prepared ballistae to destroy any boats they might use. Even if they manage to cross, I doubt they will be able to conquer the fortress with their numbers.」

This fortress had long prevented the incursions of the Kirisians. In a battle of equal numbers, it could certainly hold out. There was no need to defeat the enemy outright; they only needed to endure until King Rosais’ Country was destroyed by the encirclement and their victory would become rock solid.

「Moreover, I hear the enemy commander is just some kid under thirty. Our victory is certain!」

The general of King Belvedire’s Country declared confidently.

「General, shouldn’t we consider the possibility of the enemy crossing the river at midnight?」

「What are you talking about? It’s too dangerous to cross the river with a large army at midnight. It might be possible with a small group, but… well, keep watch anyway. You should be able to see them by the flames of their torches.」

The flames of torches at midnight would stand out prominently. They could be easily seen from a distance. A small group might go unnoticed, but such a small force wouldn’t necessitate much attention.

Ideally, having a magician who could control an owl would be helpful, but unfortunately, there were none at this fortress. Magicians who could control owls were rare.

「Just stay vigilant.」

◇

The next morning…

「General! It’s serious! The enemy has set up camp!」

「What? That’s absurd…」

Muttered the incredulous general. His eyes clearly saw the enemy troops encamped before the river.

◇

About five days earlier…

「Well, it’s simple. Crossing is dangerous because the enemy holds the other side. So, we’ll just build a base on the opposite bank before we cross.」

「How would we do that?」

Ainz asked, and Alexios’s single eye gleamed as he answered.

「We’ll send small groups of soldiers across at night, about twenty each night. They’ll cross the part of the river that runs through the forest extending east to west on two different sites. That’s forty people a day. We’ll repeat this over four days until we have a total of 160.」

「But won’t 160 men be easily overwhelmed even if they secure a position?」

Even if they could build a base on the opposite bank, it would be meaningless without the ability to maintain it. It would only result in reducing their troops needlessly.

「That’s why we build a fortress. Well, it’s not a grand fortress, just sufficient with fences, ditches, and arrow towers,」

「How will we build it? I doubt they’ll just let us construct it that easily…」

「We’ll build it all at once during the night. We can prepare the parts here and transport them. The fences can be easily made by disassembling rafts. Oh, and don’t worry about the 160 people; I’ll use my slaves. I’ll oversee the construction myself.」

However, Ainz was still doubtful about the feasibility of conducting proper construction work at midnight. But Alexios responded with a laugh.

「Just watch. I’ll make sure it succeeds. Also, I have another plan, I would like to use Lezado’s cavalry for something.」

Thus, on the fourth night, the last group of forty people, including Alexios and Melia, set sail in the darkness with only the minimum necessary torchlight.

They relied solely on the light of the stars and the moon to reach the opposite bank.

Alexios and his group headed for a pre-arranged rendezvous point. There, the 120 people who had successfully crossed earlier were already assembled, making the total 160.

All of them were Alexios’s slaves. They worked on Alexios’s farmland, but now they accompanied him to the battlefield. All were skilled slaves trained in civil engineering.

「Now, I’m going to use my blessing. Don’t talk carelessly about this to others… Well, I trust you guys won’t betray me.」

Alexios said, glancing at Melia.

Melia then chewed on soul drift grass and used her soul to possess an owl.

Alexios then spoke to the owl Melia possessed.

「Then I will borrow your sight.」

He removed his eyepatch and activated the [Blessing of Borrowed Sight]

This blessing allowed him to borrow the vision of someone he was close to. Now, Alexios’s right eye shared the vision of Melia’s right eye.

「Next, I will lend you my sight.」

Alexios said to the slaves as he activated the [Blessing of Lent Sight]. This blessing allowed him to lend his vision to another, though he did not share all his vision. The sight he lent to his slaves was the one from the right eye he shared with Melia.

Now, the slaves’ right eyes could see as well in the dark as an owl’s.

「Let’s get to work on the construction immediately. Try to make as little noise as possible.」

「Yes!!!」

The slaves responded in hushed tones.

Thus, a strong position was established overnight. The Lezado-Gehenna coalition forces began crossing troops at dawn, once the construction of the fortifications was confirmed.

By the time the Belvedire army noticed, three hundred troops had already successfully crossed the river. This brought the total number of troops who had crossed to four hundred and sixty.

The general of the Belvedire army quickly organized his forces and marched out. He left only the minimal necessary troops at the fortress. Now, he needed to focus all efforts on destroying the enemy’s new base.

「Hurry!! It seems there are about five hundred of them! We can crush them now. Moreover, the enemy has set up camp with their backs to the water. This is our chance to crush them!」

The general ordered a full assault on the Lezado-Gehenna coalition. About two thousand troops surrounded and attacked the five hundred garrisoned soldiers.

Despite having four times the number of troops, they could not overcome the enemy’s defenses.

「Damn it! Hurry up! Why can’t we take them down!!」

「I apologize! The enemy’s resistance is stronger than expected… and their position is very fortified…」

There were four main reasons why the Belvedire army couldn’t take down the enemy base.

First, the strong fortifications. The position Alexios directly oversaw and constructed was incredibly robust, and not easily breached. Even though shallow, it was surrounded by ditches and multiple fences and even had proper arrow towers.

Second, Alexios’s command abilities and blessings. Borrowing Melia’s sight while while she was possessing an eagle, Alexios could oversee the battlefield from above and command accordingly. No matter how much the general shifted his focus and tried to find openings, Alexios was able to respond immediately.

Third, the desperate situation. The rafts that had carried Alexios’s slave soldiers had been transformed into fences, and additional rafts that brought more troops were burned. Thus, the five hundred soldiers had no escape route and fought desperately. Furthermore, reinforcements were continuously arriving from the opposite shore, giving them hope that if they held on, they could be saved.

Fourth, the presence of reinforcements. Fresh soldiers were constantly crossing from the opposite shore to join Alexios. He strategically placed these fresh troops where the fighting was fiercest. As time passed, Alexios’s defensive line became increasingly stronger.

The Belvedire army ceased its attack when the sun was high in the sky. By then, seventy percent of the Lezado-Gehenna coalition had successfully crossed the river.

「It can’t be helped. We’ll retreat. Even without the protection of the river, there is still the fortress. The fortress is protected by a moat and walls. It won’t fall easily. We’ll just hole up and wait for new reinforcements.」

The general reassured himself as he began the retreat.

However, just a few minutes after the retreat began, smoke started rising from the fortress.

「What’s going on?!」

He sent a messenger back to the fortress and increased the pace of the march. The response from the returning horseman was as follows:

「It’s urgent! The Lezado cavalry has detoured and is attacking the fortress! It seems they crossed upstream and circled around!」

「What?! Hurry up! What were the lookouts doing?!」

「(His Excellency had ordered to focus on the front…)」

「Did you say something?」

「No, nothing at all!」

The general hastened the march, but it was already too late. The flags of Lezado and Gehenna were being raised over the fortress.

The castle gates slowly opened, revealing the cavalry. Behind them, the infantry of the Lezado-Gehenna coalition began their advance toward the Belvedire army.

「We’re… trapped…」

The Belvedire army quickly surrendered. The total casualties in this battle, including both enemies and allies, numbered two hundred.

Thus, Alexios’s first battle on the Adelnia peninsula concluded brilliantly.