I Am Being Mistaken for a Genius Strategist

---

A new sun rose, but the biting cold wind was still fierce.

It seemed that the relentless chill was just beginning.

Winter is a harsh season. It’s not easy for any creature to endure it.

Even for those hailed as the pinnacle of creation, it was no different.

“Cough, cough!”

One of the soldiers on guard atop the castle walls coughed a few times.

Given the cold, it could just be a common cold like many others might have.

However, the soldier merely rubbed his nose a few times and showed no sign of illness.

This was no common schoolchildren’s playground. It was a battlefield where life and death were decided.

There was no room for feeling sorry for oneself over a mere cold.

Here in Setongrad, to be a patient meant losing at least one limb.

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow—until then, everyone had to fight.

—Thud.

“…Oh.”

“What do you mean, ‘oh’? Here, take it.”

Another soldier beside him readily handed over his blanket.

There were plenty of winter supplies that the Empire had stockpiled in Setongrad.

But resupplying was exceedingly difficult compared to the rate at which they were consumed.

Whenever there was an attack from the Dedorant, at least one supply store would inevitably catch fire.

In any case, there would always be some loss, so distributing excess was impossible.

They had to rely on what they had to endure this harsh season.

In other words, giving away one’s own supplies was an extraordinary act.

“I’m fine, so you use it.”

“What are you talking about? Do you think you can endure with just that windbreaker?”

“Shut up and take it quickly. That cough of yours is really annoying.”

“Hey, if you start coughing, it’ll be me who’s annoyed then?”

“Take it! No, I don’t want it. You use it. You should use it.” The soldiers’ squabbling continued.

Then finally, the one who had offered the blanket declared, “Should I just throw it in the fire then?”

The startled soldier stood dumbfounded, not knowing how to respond.

“Just keep acting like fools, you lot.”

The commanding officer of the two soldiers approached, hurling thick curses.

It seemed he’d seen enough of this farce from the beginning, clicking his tongue repeatedly.

“You’re doing a great job. Chatting during guard duty, are you? About to throw perfectly good winter supplies into the fire.”

“I-I’m sorry!”

“I’m sorry!”

“If it were usual circumstances, I’d have you fully equipped and running laps ten times around the drill ground! But currently, you’re in a battlefield. If you’re chattering away like this and miss the enemy’s surprise attack, all the comrades below trying to catch a little sleep will end up as headless ghosts!”

From beginning to end, it was all completely reasonable. There was no way to refute it.

So, the two soldiers repeatedly muttered apologies.

“You two, after your guard duty, I want to see you more.”

“Can we go right after we shift?”

“Go right after? Are you crazy? Are you not going to sleep? Get some rest and come back when you’re done. Unless there’s a battle tomorrow, that is. Damn it.”

Grumbling, the commander disappeared below, but soon he popped back up and threw something into the air.

“Ugh.”

“If you need anything, tell your superior. You useless bunch. You’re supposed to be using your superior for times like this!”

What he handed over was a new blanket. It seemed to be one of the supplies he had received.

When I asked him what he would do without it, the only reply I got was one sentence.

“Use it cleanly and return it when the weather gets warmer.”

Until this brutal winter passes and all preparations are complete.

The command was to never die until the Empire’s tremendous counteroffensive begins.

Therefore, they must survive at all costs.

The soldiers smiled wryly as they wrapped their bodies in the blankets and refocused on their guard duty.

And not long after, they were to marvel at their commander’s foresight.

“Enemies! The Dedorants are approaching!”

“Wake up! Wake up!! Large scale attack imminent from the north gate! Quickly return to your positions!!”

Even with a biting cold wind that felt like daggers against their skin. Even with a freezing chill that seemed to freeze them to the bone.

Those seeking to reclaim this place and those determined to defend it.

Ultimately, both were fighting with the singular resolve to repay humiliation.

A long fight, with no one willing to retreat, was about to begin once more.

*

“Brother!”

Kaya dashed in with incredible speed and leapt into my arms.

At first glance, she looked just like the little girl who used to chatter away.

She had just grown a little taller and aged just a bit more.

“…”

Of course, that was quite surprising for the accompanying Charlua and other demon tribe members.

It was probably because she looked so different from the Kaya who had fought on the Atria front.

I heard she was literally slaughtering enemies. A butcher in every sense of the word, they said.

Honestly, it’s hard to believe, but considering the report from the Ministry of War, it must be accurate.

The number of Atria knights who lost their lives at Kaya’s hands was already in the triple digits.

Thinking about each of those knights being the Empire’s finest forces…

‘Hmm. Well, should I say she took down hundreds of tanks all by herself?’

If I think of it that way, it’s understandable why they seemed so perplexed.

After all, the one who had been beheading enemies like a bottle opener was now doing this.

But to me, she remains family, loved just as much as Mother and Father.

“Welcome back, Kaya. Was anything tough from the north?”

“Nope. It was so easy, I was worried it might be a trap.”

“…Well, that’s fortunate, I guess.”

She’s my little sister, but to be honest, I find her a little frightening.

To say it was too easy, especially since I heard the Dedorant army on the Atria front was quite formidable.

Worrying it could be a trap seems to suggest that facing them was too easy.

“Hmm-hmm. Lady Kaya? I expressly warned you several times before I arrived.”

“Eh? Ah, ah!”

“You must always be cautious. The Imperial Chief of Staff is your brother, but he is also the commander of the 1st Legion. If you don’t exercise caution, you could be a burden to the chief.”

What’s going on between them? While I blinked in confusion, Kaya cautiously lowered her head.

Then she began to show me a side of her I had never imagined.

“Ka, Kaya Clausewitz! I greet the Imperial Chief of Staff!”

“….”

When I glanced at Charlua, I could see her winking.

What a surprising sight. Even Father could never handle Kaya this smoothly.

Only Mother could manage to display a similar demeanor, really.

Yet, Charlua accomplished it. The result is the situation I’m witnessing now.

“…Yes, you’ve worked hard, Lady Kaya. Please come in.”

Not as Kael’s little sister, but as Kaya Clausewitz, an imperial knight who has stepped into battle.

And I too welcomed her as the hero of victory who had just briefly returned from the battlefield.

“Lady Charlua, please come in too. I’ve heard you’ve faced hardships alongside Lady Kaya.”

“Fufu, it was nothing. Rather, it reminded me of my hometown, Nobogord, with just the right chill to invigorate me. Wasn’t it?”

“Your words are correct, I thought the temperature was just perfect for movement.”

Indeed. This is why I insisted on sending support from Nobogord to Atria.

Originally, even during the onset of winter, Atria is far colder than this.

To send the Southern Kingdom’s army there? I guarantee non-combat losses would be significant.

To fight on the Atria front, the Empire’s Northern Legion or Nobogord’s forces were necessary.

But the Northern Legion had already faced battles before and was in the process of strengthening for the next counteroffensive.

Thus, the heavy infantry from Nobogord was the most suitable choice.

“Chief, the leader of the Ghost Legion and the deputy commander of the 4th Legion in charge of the southern front have also arrived.”

“Good. Can you ask them to wait a moment?”

After sending an aide, Charlua cautiously spoke up.

“Gathering everyone like this, it seems the time is nearing.”

“That’s right, Charlua. As you said, it’s time for us to become the fierce blade.”

After losing two legions in the west due to the Dedorant’s counteroffensive.

Whether in the north or the south, we expanded our frontlines and supported the Ross Tanika and DeGale resistance forces.

Moreover, we set up Setongrad to lead them into causing chaos, getting them stuck on that front.

However, from an official standpoint, it was our Empire’s 1st Legion that was on the defensive, not the Dedorants.

Having sustained damage and retreated due to their massive counterattack, we had not advanced further.

From the perspective of those disconnected from the battlefield, it appeared that our Empire was struggling.

And such views surprisingly influenced even those on the battlefield.

No matter how advantageous our position may be, if the outsiders perceive it as unfavorable, the soldiers will think so too.

Even if there’s an advantage now, such worries often make the commanders voice their anxieties.

War is a contest of momentum. And momentum always stems from massive victories.

And that massive victory cannot simply be achieved by inducing fatigue and widening the frontlines.

It must be achieved through smashing the enemy in some battle and breaking them apart.

“As of today, it has been two months and over a week since the Battle of Setongrad began. Having fought such fierce battles this winter, both the Dedorant and our 1st Legion must be nearing their limits. Now is the perfect moment.”

“But the Dedorants wouldn’t be unaware of that, would they? They would know that this moment, when they are weakened, would be the most favorable time for a counterattack. Wouldn’t they want to retreat?”

If they had any sense, they would certainly think so.

Right now, they could retreat and promise for a future showdown.

But would that be possible for the Dedorants?

After all, they were the ones who blustered about the glory of the Deo Ethnicity.

They couldn’t just let the yoke of Seton pass by without some response.

There was yet another flaw on their side.

“Charlua, have you ever heard of the sunk cost fallacy?”