Enlightened Empire

Chapter 378: New Role

The negotiations between the king and the league of lords were only a short interlude in the southern kingdom’s civil war. Not long after Fadelio had returned to the command tent in the army’s back line, the drums of war began to sound. First came the drums on Saniya’s side, which were soon answered with drums from the league of lords as well.

Unlike many of the old customs associated with warrior culture, this was one of the few medalan traditions Saniya had kept. Before every battle, their enemies would hear their music. However, the purpose of the music was entirely different for Corco’s men.

The old medalan armies beat their drums to intimidate the enemy and increase their courage before a charge. In the process, they would bring their warriors into trance state of sorts. Sometimes the music would be combined with the use of hallucinogens, which together would make the warriors fight harder and ignore their pain. Meanwhile, the drums of Saniya’s troops were only there so the soldiers could keep their order.

The music kept everyone marching in rhythm, which kept the lines steady and straight, while also boosting morale. Thus, the king’s troops slowly stepped down the hill in beat with the drums, and the flutes behind them. They marched towards their enemy without fear. This was far from their first war after all. Over the past few years, the troops had experienced much, from the battles against Pacha to the guerrilla war in the Verdant Isles. By now, there were many veterans among them.

As a result, they knew what was coming, and that they had nothing to fear from the old-fashioned medalan army they were about to face. All the veterans here had already seen what happened when an old-fashioned warrior army went up against a modern troop with thousands of rifles, so they were confident, despite the massive army that opposed them. Even among those who felt safe, there were some who felt even safer.

Alcer was among them. On one hand, he had experienced more fights than just about anyone in the army, and on the other, he was marching behind the army, far away from the front line.

Back when he was still fighting in the Verdant Isles, he used to be an officer with ten men under his wing. At the time, he had been forced to fight on the front, in a jungle surrounded by enemies. Now, neither was the case anymore.

His exploits in the past had earned him another promotion and a safer spot on the battlefield. Yet at the same time, all his former subordinates had been taken away to command their own units, at least those who had survived the grueling war in the jungle. Now, rather than taking command, he was marching with another nineteen equals next to him. In the end, his own talents had become a burden for him.

Normally, his new promotion to ensign would have seen him in charge of a platoon of one hundred soldiers and another twenty logistics personnel. That was the ordinary career path for an officer in Saniya’s army. His success on the field certainly would have warranted as much. Yet because of his excellent shooting performance with the new rifle models, he had been assigned to a special new unit of specialized shooters.

Their role in battle would be much different from other officers, so he wouldn’t be responsible for anyone other than himself. At the same time, he had far more freedom than the average ensign would have.

Thus, although his abilities let him miss out on further career advancement, he didn’t really mind. Either way, he had long planned to quit the army once his length of service was up. This would be his last campaign. And marching behind the army like this, at least he could observe the entire battlefield rather than be stuck in a confusing mess like he had been every time before.

From his unique position, Alcer could see the entire army advance to the beat of the music. Slowly, step by step, like the machine works of the clock makers, they stepped down the hill and closed in on their enemies. In the meantime, their foes at the foot of the hill remained completely stationary. Maybe they were waiting for something?

Rather than that, Alcer was more inclined to believe that they were confused on how to handle an engagement with Saniya’s troops. He couldn’t fault them for it, since he himself also had no idea how to go about such an impossible task. By now, their king had completely erased the early weaknesses his kingdom’s army had shown during his first wars.

Among those improvements, the warriors who had been added to the front row of the formation were the most obvious change, as well as the most imposing. Once those warriors had learned to march in line like Saniya’s troops, their imposing aura rose to inconceivable heights. Rather than fight one on one in search for glory like they had done for generations, these warriors would now fight together and support each other, in search of victory alone. Together with the twenty-four thousand commoner soldiers the king had contributed to the army from his own estate, the fifteen thousand warriors from the allied lords were enough to shake the earth with every step.

Though for all their imposing manner, they wouldn’t be the ones to initiate the battle. As was so often the case in the fights of the southern kingdom, the opening salvo would be left to the two dozen cannons the king had brought along on his trip south.

This time, their enemies had wisely set up their formation out of range of the cannons, so they couldn’t fire from their original position atop the hill. However, what would they do when the cannons came to them?

The hill Saniya’s army was stationed on was wide, with a gentle slope. Thus, they would still be halfway uphill by the time the enemy front line entered into cannon range. At that point, the league of lords had no choice but to charge uphill, against an enemy with superior weapons and superior morale.

Of course, the southern forces could always just step back a bit and restore the distance between the forces, but did these lords really have that option? In the end, a giant battle between armies wasn’t much different from a street fight, and Alcer had also been in a few of those over the years.

Whoever showed weakness first would be at a crucial disadvantage. Even just one step back at the wrong time would be enough to cool the fiercest fighting heart. If the southern lords really wanted to fight their king today, they didn’t have the choice to step back and play conservative. They needed to engage, so their best option was to start before the first cannon shot. At least then, they could pretend that they had the initiative.

As expected, Alcer saw some restless movement in the ranks of the league’s army, but ultimately, none of their units stepped back, or forward. In the end, they still showed some of the fighting spirit Medala’s nobles were so renowned for, but their indecision was damning. The street fighter steeled himself and waited for a chance to jump the larger opponent, but he was already shivering.

Their first coordinated reaction came from the drums. They no longer held their steady rhythm from before. First one sped up, then the others followed, until a cacophony of drums broke out, together with endless screams from among the enemy ranks.

Alcer knew that they were getting ready for an attack. What would follow should have been a mighty charge up the hill from the united army of southern lords. Yet at first, only some isolated groups on the right center advanced. Soon their bravery radiated and others around them followed, until most of their army was on the move, yet their advance was lopsided, and uncoordinated.

Still, while the charge looked clumsy, their opponents were still warriors. With the strength of true cultivators, they had to be taken seriously even if their command was poor. Immediately, Saniya’s own commanders reacted accordingly and gave their orders.

The soldiers on the front line stopped at once. Muskets up ahead would be the first to launch a salvo, so they were slightly ahead of the warriors, who had dug their shields into the snow to take up defensive positions. Behind them, countless halberds poked through between the lines to turn a frontal charge into a death trap. Meanwhile, Alcer was marching along their back row to fulfill his own mission, together with another nine members of their team who had been sent in the same direction as him.

After only a few seconds, he reached a small rampart made from trampled snow some twenty steps behind their main force. While his other team members marched on to find their own positions, Alcer found his spot atop the elevation and unpacked his rifle. His hands were flowing with mindless routine, unperturbed by the noises around him, or by the cold that has seeped through his gloves and into his fingers. By the time his preparations were complete and he was ready to fire his first shot, the enemy warriors were just about close enough to shift from a determined march into a full charge.

At this point, Alcer had taken up his position, and he knew what to do. No more orders were necessary, for all of the men in his unit had long been given their orders long before the start of the battle. As part of the new special sniper force of Saniya’s main army, his mission was only one: Disrupt the enemy army’s order by taking out their commanders.

Thus, he went on his knee and rested his gun’s barrel on a small mound of snow that had been erected on his little platform in preparation for this moment. These kinds of platforms had been placed all along the hill. The ones further up front would be used as defensive positions for infantry, while the ones further behind were reserved for the cannons, or for snipers like him.

Through the scope, he could see the over the heads of his allies. So good were his eye and his telescope that he could make out the fierce faces of their onrushing enemies with ease. However, he was far more concerned with their clothes. In classic medalan armies, military officers were easy to identify. All he had to do was aim for the guys with the fanciest armor. Fancier armor meant a richer wearer, which also meant a higher position.

Thus, he picked someone whose torso was surrounded by thick metal ribbons in bright scarlet, with a hint of a toga draped around one shoulder and a helmet in the form of a tiger on his head. Rather than admire the workmanship, Alcer breathed out slowly and pulled the trigger.

Boom

The noise of death around him turned his own gunshot into a whisper, but the effects were the same as ever. The first officer from the league of lords fell to the ground like a sack of rice. His contents spilled out like rice as well, through the jagged hole in his fancy armor. Soon, his life would be snuffed out. Alcer didn’t know what the nobleman’s name was, or his position, and he didn’t care. By now, his eye was already searching for the next target.

Boom

The next highborn sank into the snow, this time with a contorted face of screams. It hadn’t been a clean hit, so the man was still alive. For a few seconds, Alcer frowned and watched as the great lord held his shoulder and writhed on the ground. Some of the brave warriors halted their charge and instead stood around their officer as they stared at him in confusion.

Not all the soldiers had stopped, but most who came across him did. After all, this was most likely the man who fed them their meals. They would much rather defend their master than charge ahead and see him die. After a while, Alcer concluded that this one was more harm to the enemy alive than he was dead, so he didn’t insist on another shot. Instead, he reloaded again, and searched for a new target once more.

As he did so, he mused that the old armors of Medala were no longer sufficient to fight in modern wars. Maybe there was money to be had there, if he could come up with a good solution for Saniya’s troops. In his mind, the battle was won already, and his focus switched to his retirement plans.

By now, the endless thunder of cannons and muskets had occupied his ear, and his entire being. His whole body shook from the hill’s vibrations. Only his mind was cold as the snow around him, as he searched for yet another victim. All along the hillside, his fellow snipers were doing the same. When another highborn fell, Alcer knew that this war would not last for long.