Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Is it that serious?"
Paul took the telegram from Bernard with some disbelief.
After quickly scanning it, his brow furrowed tightly.
He then ordered, "Summon all department heads to the Lord's residence for a meeting!"
Thomas gave Paul a bow. "Lord Grayman, I won't disturb you any longer."
The Chief Justice exited, leaving the room in a heavy silence.
"It seems my previous words have come true,"
Mariana broke the silence.
Paul nodded. "Yes, they are here."
Mariana's expression grew serious. "The grasslands orcs, under the leadership of the new generation of their chieftains, have become stronger than ever. If I remember correctly, the Watcher Fordress has never fallen since its establishment, but now it's in the orcs' hands. Paul, even so, do you still intend to get involved?"
Paul raised an eyebrow. "All my efforts so far have not been for the benefit of the orcs."
At the Lord's residence conference room, the senior military and political officials of Alden Town gathered.
"We've obtained Duke Fraule's approval to establish a series of fortresses along the eastern border of the Duchy of Manda to defend against the orc invasion," said the Chief of Staff, Schroder, pointing to a map on the wall, outlining the military preparations.
Paul interrupted him. "Has the army looked into my [Bastion] proposal?"
Schroder nodded. "Yes, Lord Grayman, we've reviewed your proposal. But..."
"Say it clearly. After all, it was just a suggestion of mine..."
"After careful consideration, we decided to put your proposal aside. Of course, it's just been postponed."
"Why?"
Though he had prepared himself, Paul still felt a twinge of displeasure at the rejection of his "genius idea."
Schroder patiently explained. "Looking at the shape of the [Bastion], it seems designed to defend against enemies with firepower at a similar level to ours—enemies that should at least have cannons or similar weapons. However, at present, no other army, including the orcs, possesses cannons. Building many bastions to defend against the orcs would incur unnecessary construction costs. Thus, we prefer the traditional fortress design. There are many old castles along the Manda border that we can refurbish and improve."
"Uh... you're right." Paul had to admit that Schroder had a point.
But he wasn't ready to give up entirely.
"We must consider the possibility of technology spillover. Our future enemies may well have cannons, so I hope we can build one or two bastions at key transport hubs to gather construction experience and assess their effectiveness through drills."
Schroder nodded. "The army will do as you instructed."
The meeting then shifted back to dealing with the orc invasion. Sir Ford, the head of the Government Affairs Bureau, proposed a suggestion.
"Shouldn't we send a detachment to assist the retreating royal knights?"
The proposal sparked much discussion, with most people inclined to support it.
First, the Grayman family had already formed a marriage alliance with the royal family, and as the fiancé of the princess, Paul could not remain indifferent.
Secondly, according to the traditional feudal duties, as the most powerful lord in the Northwest Bay, the Grayman family should assist the royal army.
After listening to the speeches, Paul felt eager.
It had been a long time since the Alden army had participated in large-scale combat.
"Since that's the case, we'll send troops to the Blackstone Pass to assist the royal army and local lords in repelling the orcs!"
According to the telegram, Catherine intended to establish a defensive line on the Blackstone Pass.
He cursed, "Damn Duke Bradley, his betrayal has significantly reduced the buffer zone."
Paul looked at Schroder. "How many troops do you think we should send?"
Schroder estimated, "Four full battalions, with four reserve transport companies and two thousand laborers."
"Half of our army's strength?"
"This considers the ongoing expansion of the army, leaving half of the forces behind."
Paul thought for a moment and nodded, agreeing with Schroder's plan.
The army's expansion had been underway since they received the news of the orc invasion.
In fact, a comprehensive expansion plan had always existed in the army, but the orc invasion triggered its implementation.
In terms of scale, the Alden army was still considered "weak." It had only consisted of four full battalions and four half battalions, along with an independent transport company and an independent artillery company.
Although the new situation prompted Alden Town to immediately begin restoring the four half battalions to full strength, this was still insufficient. Thus, the army expansion plan began in response to the times.
In previous military meetings, a larger tactical unit—a regiment—was introduced as the new structure. A regiment would consist of three battalions, with the regiment headquarters having direct control over an artillery company, transport company, and communications company, bringing the total personnel in a regiment to around 2,500 to 3,000.
The initial goal was to establish six regiments based on this standard, meaning the Alden army would grow to nearly 20,000 soldiers.
To counter the orc invasion, economic measures were also implemented in tandem with military expansion.
Under Alden's leadership, members of the Customs Union negotiated to control materials like steel, feed, saltpeter, and sulfur.
Weapons and armor made by the Northwest Industrial Company would be prioritized for supply to the military of the Northwest Bay.
The hot weapons factory in District 51 was also being expanded on a large scale, and in the future, it would continuously produce firearms, cannons, and gunpowder.
At the meeting, Schroder respectfully requested, "Lord Grayman, I hope you'll approve of me personally leading this expedition!"
Paul was shocked. "That won't do! You're the Chief of Staff!"
Although Schroder was only the Chief of Staff, he bore responsibilities akin to "Army Commander."
As the lord, Paul didn't have the energy to lead the army's construction; he could only give general directions to ensure the army's development stayed on what he considered the "right path."
"Please forgive my rashness, Lord Grayman. You should know that I was one of the defenders of the Watcher Fortress."
The old knight's eyes glowed with longing... and hatred.
Paul nodded.
"Alright. Schroder, go take your revenge!"
(End of the Chapter)
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