144 – Battle of the Jungfrau Plain (1)
Tishno Canton Leven Village, the village chief’s house and village meeting hall.
A desk and chair roughly made of wood, a wall evenly smeared with dirt, and a fireplace the size of a human body.
It’s not very spacious, but it looks like a house where you’ll hear people say they’re buying a little wherever they go on Europa.
Originally, it was a place where the family members who served as village chiefs for generations resided, and it was only used occasionally during village gatherings.
Now here, the ruler of the Ticino canton, Count Ticino, and those who have led reinforcements from other cantons are meeting in a serious voice.
“Count, the order given to us by His Highness the Duke is to take a position in an appropriate place and engage in a delayed battle. In the current situation, it may be difficult to launch a delayed war.”
“Too many soldiers died. During the surprise attack to kill Director Yeager, 300 people were killed and nearly 350 were injured. “It’s dangerous.”
“They think we can’t attack anymore. Thanks to this, they have already taken over several of our castles. Tal, Reichnek, Lutzenburg, and Heinel fell, didn’t they? “Something needs to be done, Count.”
In a feudal country where the lord holds both military and administrative authority, the barons, who are all vassals of the earl even though they belong to different affiliations, openly protesting may be tantamount to risking their necks.
Switzerland has many mountains due to its geographical characteristics, but it is also high and rugged, so it is difficult to implement centralized policies and is a country with strong autonomy.
A count was a being with as much power as two or three barons combined.
Therefore, in a situation where his fault was obvious, it was impossible for the count to silence them by asserting only his authority within the duchy.
Count Gorotisino seemed sorry for their words, but he thought about how he could overcome this situation.
When a good idea occurred to him, he slammed his desk and spoke forcefully.
“Stop! Stop! I was the one who proposed this surprise operation in the first place, but didn’t you also actively agree that a surprise operation would be effective, just like Switzerland’s great victory over the imperial pigs 200 years ago? Men have so much to say about the decisions they make! Moreover, this operation was in line with His Majesty the Duke’s wishes.”
When the barons heard those words, they lowered their tails and kept their mouths shut.
Because it is true that they also actively agreed with the opinion of the count who proposed a surprise operation.
Therefore, Major General Jaeger, who predicted this surprise attack and marched through the difficult roads of Switzerland while wearing full military gear and maintaining strict vigilance to the point of myelopathy, is a monster.
If he were an ordinary imperial general, he would have been on strict alert, but he would not have been prepared for immediate battle like a full military commander.
He launched a surprise attack with the confidence that it would yield sufficient results.
So they started clearing their throats as if they were a little embarrassed.
The Count decided to give them a chance to vent their shame, as if he were comforting a crying child.
“Of course, as you said, it was Count Bonn who had the greatest influence on making the wrong decision. Anyway, it was a decision we all made together. From now on, I will make sure I don’t push for something even if I think it’s the right thing to do. “Let’s all put our heads together and come up with a good strategy.”
Then, the atmosphere that had been tense until just now could not be said to be friendly, but it relaxed and eased to the point where each person could present their own opinions.
Count Ticino placed his map on the table and continued his speech quietly.
“For now, let’s just assume that the failure of the surprise operation was inevitable. “So how many troops do we have left now?”
Viscount Liechten, the second-in-command of the Bern Canton, responded to those words.
“About 9,000 people.”
“One division of the Reich Empire has approximately 8,000 troops, so we are more numerous.”
“But the opponent is Major General Jaeger of the Reich Empire. Also, the enemy has a lot of cavalry.”
If the opponent has cavalry, including knights, and the ally does not have cavalry, it is common for them to give up the battle and run away.
It is true that the presence of cavalry wearing heavy armor acts as a huge factor in determining victory or defeat in battle.
However, Viscount Liechten, who was advising the Count, responded as if the fact that the enemy had cavalry was not such a big deal.
It was a good sight for other people to misunderstand that the commanders were drinking and taking drugs together…
“We in Switzerland have always led the way to victory by fighting with infantry against knights who rode arrogantly on horseback. “There will be no exception this time.”
“It has been 200 years since we fought against the Reich Empire, but we have fought against the knights of the Czechoslovakia and Austrian principalities several times in the meantime, and have emerged victorious each time. At least in flatland battles, where knights are most confident.”
“Isn’t that why our mercenaries are renowned throughout the continent of Europa?”
In fact, Swiss mercenaries were people who fought without fear of death to protect the lives and livelihood of their families living in this harsh land.
They were strong warriors from the continent of Europa who could even block knights’ lance charging provided they were in the right formation.
Of course, the sacrifice that must be made in exchange for blocking the charge is something that cannot be ignored.
“However, what His Highness the Duke has ordered us to do is delay the war, so we must focus on stopping them. “I plan to station 6,000 troops on the road between Lindenhof Hill and wage a defensive battle.”
“That’s a great idea. Then where do you plan to put the remaining 3,000?”
“The plan is to let them rest behind Lindenhof Hill and then attack the enemy’s rear when the battle intensifies. The goal is to launch a joint attack and delay the war. “This delayed war will be a battle to properly avenge the Reichs.”
In some ways, it is a very simple tactic, but most master commanders are people who achieve victory by putting the enemy in a disadvantageous position and using simple yet efficient methods.
The operation proposed by Count Ticino was exactly that type of operation.
This is because it was virtually impossible for the Reich Imperial Army to choose to return without passing through the Lindenhof Hill where they were waiting.
This means that even if Director Yeager takes a detour to avoid conflict with them, he overlaps with them even a little.
This is because the Swiss army can cut off the supply line behind the Jaeger unit.
Therefore, Director Jaeger will eventually have no choice but to pass through the wide road between Lindenhof.
Also, the Swiss nobles, including the Viscount, spoke with evil smiles.
“Furthermore, it has been years since Count Bern pretended to betray Switzerland. And I heard that he actually passed over a lot of secrets about this operation in order to deceive the crown prince.”
“hahahaha, thanks to you, the rest of the divisions except for the Jaeger Division will reach Liechtenstein Castle very comfortably.”
“And the Crown Prince will hear the news that Major General Peter Yeager has been annihilated by us, and the morale of the Imperial Army will plummet. Also, if we hit the back of the expedition led by the crown prince at that time…”
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Count Ticino, who had heard about it, cut the Lindenhof Hill with a dagger and then spoke.
“Our infantry is the strongest on the Europa continent. And the road between the hills we will face is not very wide, so the enemy will not be able to use his knights properly. “This battle, where the knight cannot move, is as if we have already won.”
Then he took a breath and spoke.
“However, the opponent is Major General Jaeger, who saw through our surprise attack. So, don’t let down your guard and prepare as thoroughly as possible.”
**
A week later, the Swiss military completed preliminary work to thoroughly protect the road passing next to Lindenhof.
“Just come here, you damned wild boars.”
“If you dare invade our precious land, I will punish you with heaven.”
“The response to the surprise operation was excellent, but our Swiss soldiers are stronger at fighting from the front. “I will kill them all.”
Soldiers who had suffered from endless work and senior soldiers serving as non-commissioned officers or junior officers were grinding their teeth.
Count Ticino looked at this scene and said, enjoying the feeling of his heart pounding in anticipation of cutting off Director Jaeger’s head this time.
“I will kill the evil Reich Empire with my own hands.”