Gaileo had been recalled to the capital from Shuangfeng, where he had made his base. His ranks were now full of many hardy Northern warriors who had surrendered during the last campaign and his influence both militarily and politically had steadily been increasing.
Once he arrived in the Imperial capital Zhenqi, he was taken to be granted an audience with the Emperor. The first order of business was his official appointment as a General, but the Emperor had more that he wished to discuss with his "son".
"Other than promoting you to General, you'll of course be granted the right to lead 50,000 men into battle. I will send men from the Imperial Reserve army to complete your new force."
"That won't be necessary. We already have more volunteers than we can handle Shuangfeng. We can handle recruitment for our army ourselves." Gaileo replied.
"Hohoho, very well. Feel free to replenish your ranks anyway you see fit. I will give you one month to prepare your army, your objective will be the nation of Carriha. You are to occupy the country and return it to the Empire."
"Carriha is a relatively small country with a weak army. It should be a relatively easy task. When will the rest of the Tenjin Army be joining us?" Gaileo asked.
"I've decided to give you a bit more independence along with your promotion. Just like I did for your brother. You will no longer be attached to the Tenjin Army and you will now receive your mission objectives directly from the Imperial Court."
"I see, then what other forces will be joining us on this campaign?"
"There won't be any other forces joining you on this campaign. I want you to subjugate Carriha with only your own army. Or don't you think you can do that?"
"Who do you think you're talking to. Something like this isn't even considered a challenge to me."
"In that case come back after you've taken Carriha City (the name of the Carrihan capital) or don't bother come back here at all."
The Gaileo Army spent the next month filling their ranks to a force of 50,000 men. With the added troops of Kazuma's Army which was now 10,000 men their forces now totaled around 60,000 men. With their soldiers ready they made the long march down to the desert nation of Carriha.
The Carrihan Army was not known for being particularly formidable. They numbered a bit over 300,000 men, but that was only taking into account every militia and garrison across the country. In order to raise an army of that size they would have to abandon the defense of just about every city and town in Carriha. Even out of their relatively small numbers they had very few soldiers that would be considered elite.
In both the size and quality of their army the Carrihans were lacking. That fact might raise the question of why they hadn't been conquered yet. The answer was threefold. The first reason was the geography and climate of Carriha itself, it was a land of long spans of harsh desert terrain which would make it difficult for any invading armies to advance. The next is that that what the Carrihans lacked in military strength they more than made up for it with their economic success.
With their vast wealth they could easily hire armies of mercenaries to come to their defense. However the most formidable defense of Carriha was not the harsh desert or mercenary soldiers, rather it was the walls of its capital city that deterred most would be invaders.
The walls of Carriha City were considered one of the Four Great Walls of the continent. Little is known about the walls themselves, but what is known is that no army has ever breached the walls of the city, not even the Emperor Hongwu himself.
The Gaileo Army had crossed the border into Carriha and continued to push their march south. Though while they had expected to be quickly met with some form of resistance, they continued to advance for miles unhindered.
"I have to say, our advance south has been far easier than I had expected." Shion said. "Far too easy. Something is going on here."
"I agree, I'd expected to face some sort of resistance by now." Gaileo replied.
"We haven't seen any sign of the enemy yet. Except of course for that small force that have been following us." Shion said.
"An enemy force has been following us?" Elara asked in a panicked shock.
"Yes, it's only a few thousand men, but they've been mirroring our movements since we crossed the border." Gaileo replied.
"Shouldn't we do something about them?" Elara asked.
"If you want I can take 100 men and crush them." Genbu offered. When Gaileo had been promoted to a General, he made Genbu and Shion his Deputy Generals.
"That's not necessary." Gaileo responded. "I'd rather advance as soon as possible. Splitting up and chasing detachments of their army would be a waste of time. I'd prefer to keep our army together until we can force a decisive showdown."
However, the decisive showdown that Gaileo sought after continued to elude him. No matter how far they pressed into Carrihan territory they were never confronted by any enemies. They continued to pass through city after city and town after town without seeing a single person whether it be soldier or civilian. Every place they passed through seemed to be completely abandoned.
"This is becoming quite bizarre. Did they all decide to pack up and leave their country behind?" Shion asked in jest.
"If only it was that simple. It seems like they've already started their counterattack, and it's a nasty one." Gaileo said.
"What do you mean?" Elara asked.
"Every town that we've passed through has been completely abandoned. On top of that, they've taken every scrap of food and water and blocked every well that we've encountered." Ma Ten answered. "Their intention is clear. They don't intend to fight us on the field, they plan for us to die of thirst in this desert."