Tonino. Do you think we can win this war?
　Carlo Domorgal, the first prince of King Domorgal's country, asked General Tonino.

　"Of course, Your Majesty. 'Of course, I will bring you victory,'
　Okay. All right. It's all yours.

　Carlo threw the entire command of the operation to Tonino.
　Carlo is twenty years old.

　Carlo is the first prince, but he is the child of a side room, and his position is not very flattering.
　But he is the child of the king's most favored princess, and he is adored by his father, King Domorgal, because of his mother's likeness.

　This war is not only about territorial expansion, but also about giving Carlo credit for his achievements.

　Carlo's abilities are not flattering.
　He is not strong by nature and his temperament is quiet, so this is his first war.

　So, is he capable of domestic politics?　Not so much.
　He's not very smart either.

　But the only thing that can save me is that Carlo is an incompetent man who knows he is incompetent.
　That's what makes him different from someone else.

　That's why he basically leaves the work to his best subordinates.
　Carlo's job is just to drink, look at the furniture and flirt with his s*x slaves.

　The man who wants to take advantage of Carlo is Tonino.
　Tonino is Carlo's mother's younger brother - in other words, Carlo's uncle.

　Originally, Tonino's family wasn't a great one, but when Carlo's mother rose to the court, Tonino got a great deal of backing.
　He had his own extraordinary talents, and in no time at all, he was able to rise through the ranks, and eventually was appointed to the army.

　Tonino is heavily used by Carlo.
　He is used by Carlo for two reasons: because he is one of his own people and because Tonino is purely competent.

　Carlo has promised to make him a great general when he becomes king.
　However, Tonino does not feel comfortable with this level of security. It's not funny if and when he reneges on his promise.

　Tonino intends to address his daughter to Carlo.
　That way, he will have an even stronger connection and his position will be absolute.

　'What are you smirking at?'
　No, I'm sorry.

　Tonino hurriedly stops fantasizing about being a great general.
　He then ponders the strategy for this time.

　The objective this time was to take the Asu territory.
　If we could only take the Asu territory, it would be easy to bring down King Rosais' palace. This is because the territory of Ass and King Losais' palace is just a stone's throw away.

　
　King Rosais' country has a population of 170,000.
　If we mobilize our roots, we'll be able to gather more than 10,000 troops.

　If that happens, it will be quite difficult.
　Tonino's strategy is to take the As territory first and make peace.

　Then, during the peace period, he will force the rich and powerful families of King Loseys' country to secede and take King Loseys' country away.
　Once he tried to persuade the great families of King Rothais' kingdom - the Dibelites - to secede, but they refused. If he ties up with King Domorgal's kingdom, he can certainly win, but if that happens, the only future is that of a puppet.
　It was probably unacceptable to the self-respecting Rigal Dibel.

　But once you hit it big, there's a chance it will move.

　King Rosais' country was the largest country in the southern part of the Southern Adelnian Peninsula, with many plains and high wheat production.

　In other words, it's as if the hegemony of southern South Adelnia was decided once we got this country.
　So this country needs to be dropped carefully.

　This war is also a battle against King Gilbed's country.
　It all comes down to who will succeed in moving south first.

　I've heard that Princess Julia from King Rosais' country is quite a beauty. I'm looking forward to it.
　Carlo blurted out, shaking poorly.

　'If you win, all the people in King Rosais' country are slaves. So they're yours.
　Tonino, who was secretly thinking of getting Princess Julia as a reward, replied with regret.

　In the Adelnian peninsula, it is common to enslave the citizens of a losing country.
　But it doesn't mean that they are enslaved unconditionally.

　Those who stop resistance early or cooperate are not enslaved.
　Only about 40% or so of the people on the losing side are enslaved.

　There are no takers for enslaving hundreds of thousands of people in the first place.

　''Don't look so disappointed. How about the Lord of As territory's wife instead?　Pretty, huh?
　You're a married woman...

　Tonino looks unhappy. It's all in his face, which is a bad thing for Tonino.
　Tonino is a virgin kitchen (unicorn) and he doesn't like married women.

　'Hmm. You're still the same. You don't give a shit about those membranes.
　'No, it's not the membrane that's important. It's the fact that you've been through it once that's the problem.

　While we are talking about such menial matters, the fortress comes into view.　
　As reported, it's very robustly built.

　According to a report by a rat, an army of about eight thousand troops are showing their readiness for a siege.

　Then let's set up a camp after advancing for a while. Shall we immediately launch an attack?
　Mm. You're in charge.






　A large mountain range lies between the country of King Rosais and the country of King Domorgal, the Adelunian Mountains.
　This makes it difficult for a large army to invade.

　There is one place, however, where the mountain range is broken. According to legend, it was ripped open when the earth shook, crushed by giants, or formed when the Gryphon and the divine dragon fought a duel.

　That's where the As territory meets the country of King Domorgal and the Forest of Romano.

　The plain, which is as wide as a cat's forehead, is said to be the Terrier Plain.
　Whenever King Domorgal's country invades King Rosais' country, it passes through the Terrier Plain.

　Even though it is called a plain, there is a slight difference in elevation.

　The Terrier Fortress exists on top of a small hill in such a plain.


　The Terrier Fortress has two walls.
　The first one is the inner wall.

　It is a wall made of wood and it has existed for a long time. It is very fragile.

　The most important thing is the outer wall.
　It is a newly constructed stone wall.

　The wall is one meter thick and five meters high.
　On the outside of the wall, there is a water moat and a drawbridge between the digging and the gate.
　Incidentally, there are two gates, a south gate and a north gate.

　Both sides of the gate are protruding, and the protruding part is not a wall but a tower-like structure. The height of the gate is about seven meters.
　In short, it is easy to concentrate archery attacks around the gate.



　Almus was in the command center of such a terrier fortress.



　''The total force here is eight thousand of King Rosais' country and three hundred of the Equus race. Total eight thousand three hundred.
　The great families sent out more soldiers than I expected.
　Their numbers are higher than expected. But..........

　"The enemy's total strength is 25,000...
　You're ready to get your shit together.

　Tetra says while reading the report.
　Furthermore, the rats report that the enemy is bringing in a lot of siege weapons.

　It's tricky.


　But there's one good thing.
　"The more siege weapons the enemy is bringing with them, the less food they are bringing on board. That's convenient.

　The Terrier Fortress is on the border of the territory of As and King Domorgal's country.
　In other words, the north side of Terrier Fortress is King Domorgal's country.

　Since it's the harvest season now, it would be enough to send the troops to the battlefield as soon as the wheat is reaped.

　Even if we don't bring food, it's not difficult to transport it. In other words, they plan to rely mostly on the supply lines.

　After the fall of the fortress of Terrier, they will be able to secure food after advancing deep into King Losais' country, as long as they reap the wheat from his country.

　Therefore, there's no need to march while carrying a large amount of food.
　For that reason, it is more economical to bring siege weapons and drop the fort in a short battle.

　Although we have signed a truce with King Gilbed's country or the truce agreement, we are still on bad terms with King Domorgal's country.
　There's also a race to see who can secure more and faster in the south.

　This time I've placed Ron and his men as captains of a thousand men.
　They'll have to build on their accomplishments. That's the problem with my old vassals being centurions.


　''Well, we can win,'' he said. ''Well, we can win, but we have enough to last for three days.

　I chuckled.




　The war, later known as the Seven Day War, was about to begin.




　The first day of the siege war

　Well, I guess we'll just have to surround them first.
　Tonino ordered his entire army to surround the fortress.

　'Hey, Tonino. It's strange to ask now but can't we just ignore this fortress?
　It's tough. Our army is around 20,000. We have only brought in three or four days' worth of food. We can secure food by looting, but there is a possibility that the enemy will bring in scorched earth tactics. So it is imperative that we have a supply route. Then this fortress will have to be dropped. Also, not all of King Rosais' country's forces are gathered in this fortress. They can be raked up even more by conscription. If left unattended, they could be caught in a pincer movement. And I don't like to think about it, but when we are defeated, there is a difference between having a place to retreat to and not having one.

　Tonino politely explained to Carlo.
　Carlo seemed to agree and nodded with satisfaction.

　'What's next?'
　''Well let's do a power reconnaissance for now, shall we? I'll send out my slave soldiers.

　The battle slaves form up in formation under Tonino's direction.
　They were slaves acquired in the war against the Gilbed King's country.

　A thousand slaves assaulted the fortress.





　'First wave you're wearing a collar and chains. Are they slaves?
　Perum muttered.

　If you ask me, they certainly wore collars and chains.
　Their equipment was also very poor, with some soldiers wearing only a single loincloth and others whose only weapon was a club.
　So it's completely disposable.

　The thousand slave soldiers split into two groups and launched an attack on each of the southern and northern gates.
　Naturally, they couldn't walk on the water moat.

　The slaves jumped into the dugout and tried to swim and close in on the city gate.
　Fortunately for the poorly equipped slaves, not many of them drowned.

　But .....

　Look. There's no need to aim. Set up a perimeter.
　Ha, that's good. Let's show him what you've been training for.

　Gram and Bartolo give the archers the order to attack.

　Basically, a bow in war is not something you shoot at.
　It is shot to put up a barrage of bullets.

　In short, the idea is that if you shoot a few times, it will hit.
　If you aim and shoot poorly, you will give the opponent an opening.

　This time the enemy is swimming in a water moat.
　Their movements are slow, so they can hit as many as they want.

　Enemy slaves are shot through one by one, and they sink into the water.

　But they are desperate to build a bridge over the water moat.
　The slave-soldiers ran over it and climbed up the wall with a ladder.

　'And yet it's poorly equipped.
　Gram's bow pierces the slave soldiers.
　The slave soldiers are naked on top and have no shields to protect themselves. One after another they are shot through and sunk.


　'Oh, they're retreating.
　Bartolo looks at the soldier as he drinks and turns his back.
　Bartolo stops the archer who is trying to shoot him in the back.

　There's no need to consume arrows in vain.
　Their fate is already decided.




　''Haha, you incompetents.
　Tonino watches the returning slaves.
　Then he gives instructions to the archers.

　'Shoot them.'

　In less than ten seconds, the slave who had escaped and returned was shot dead.

　Now, find out their faces and names. We'll kill this man's family. The one who didn't have a name was a warrior who died bravely in battle. Send out a hawk stool so that I can free their families.

　Tonino makes good on his promises.
　Even if they are slaves.



　Well, slave soldiers. Your sacrifice will be remembered!　So the bridge was built over the water moat. The march begins........Huh?

　Tonino could not believe his eyes.
　The bridge over the water moat was suddenly blown off.

　The reason is incomprehensible.

　''Ah, that's the rumored fire elixir.........that's not fair!

　Thus the siege was back to square one.