I Am Being Mistaken for a Genius Strategist

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The Dedorant front, which had been in a temporary lull for a few months, began to spill blood once again.

Recognizing their own disadvantage, Dedorant aimed to defend their fortifications and castles.

On the other hand, the Empire had to overthrow all those places to stabilize their advance.

It was only natural that ruthless siege warfare and various battles ensued between them.

Now, everyone knows. Dedorant is at a clear disadvantage. The Empire’s victory is drawing closer.

Though they are holding on for now, if this situation continues, Dedorant will eventually crumble.

They need another plan. Otherwise, they will only wither away slowly.

“…Thus, your hands hold the future of Dedorant. The glory of our Deo Ethnicity rests upon you.”

The Empire’s strength lies, after all, in their experienced combat legions that surpass foreign nations.

No matter how much they repel or obliterate them, legions of that caliber will fill their ranks.

And there are reserves, supplies, and transportation units to support them, not to mention the Empire itself.

It is impossible to gain an advantage from the Empire by mere skirmishes or the results of individual battles.

Initially, the Dedorant Command that only wished for victorious battles has now changed.

By Cassius II’s command, they have decided to eliminate elements aiding the Empire’s legions’ combat.

“Do not fear death. Your proud end will be remembered by all.”

“But do not see it as death. No! Do not even think of dying. Today, only the Imperial Army shall lie on this cold ground.”

“The enemy’s elite are being held by your juniors. Make their sacrifices not in vain. Force them to tire themselves, make them unable to turn back in cowardice, let them know they cannot run forward.”

The frontline has grown longer. They have now completely entered Dedorant territory.

Could we allow those who dare to trample upon our sacred ground to step forward unchallenged?

With every step they take, one of their own shall die fighting, while another perishes from starvation.

“I’ve already cleared all the areas. There are no useful resources for them to utilize on their path. Only the supplies they are sending from the Empire remain.”

“Go, plunder, and burn. For every wagon you stop, dozens of our allies will survive. The glory of the Deo Ethnicity will gradually be restored.”

It is indeed wasteful to consume our elite soldiers merely as supply raid squads.

Yet, this can be a way to provide the Empire with the seeds of their great defeat.

Wasn’t it Dedorant that recently trembled under the instability of its supply lines?

The Empire hasn’t been trapped in a siege like they were. The situation isn’t entirely the same.

Nonetheless, the expanded and distanced front lines have formed a similar effect even without a siege.

If the supply lines are not properly connected, they will collapse like a sandcastle.

“The Empire’s first transportation unit will be sent carelessly. It does not benefit us to reveal that we are lying in wait this early.”

“They aren’t fools. Initially, they will be on high alert and position their soldiers. But once they verify that our Dedorant’s resistance is fierce at every bastion and castle, they will consider the threat level on their transportation units low. That will be our chance.”

“This is Dedorant. No matter how hard the Empire tries, those born and raised here cannot be followed.”

Small elite squads have moved quietly and set ambushes in places where they anticipate the Empire’s supply routes.

If there had been a little more leeway, they wouldn’t just target supplies but would have aimed for the enemy’s rear as well.

However, past battles have exacted a heavy toll on Dedorant’s side.

Large-scale maneuvers are no longer possible. From now on, they will have to nibble away systematically.

And this transportation unit attack will be the first plan.

A little later, they arrived at their predicted points and tried to erase all traces of their presence.

Fortunately, there was no disastrous reveal to the Empire’s rear reconnaissance unit.

It seemed that the Empire was fully committed to the battles occurring right now.

“General! According to the scouting report, a group of enemy transport units is expected to pass through here this afternoon. What shall we do?”

“Send them. They will all be tense at first. The cargo they thought was supplies could potentially be hidden enemy forces. We must be cautious.”

These are not the second-rate troops of DeGale or Ross Tanika.

The Empire is strong. They are above us, Dedorant.

I hate to admit it, but I have to accept it now. If we clash, we will die.

Thus, the Dedorant forces let the Empire’s transportation units pass quietly.

Were they anticipating the possibility of ambush? It seemed they were showing quite the keen alertness.

Had they attacked, even without traps, they would have suffered considerable losses.

Two days later, news arrived that another transportation unit was approaching.

The Dedorant forces rose and began preparing thoroughly.

This time, they had to ambush the enemy’s wagons, seizing some supplies and destroying the rest.

“It’s an imperial wagon!”

“Charge! Burn them all!”

Caught off guard by the sudden enemy ambush, the Imperial soldiers panicked.

They are not the elite troops of the legion; they are merely those escorting the transport units.

Naturally, they are far removed from battle and could only flounder.

“The enemies are abandoning their wagons!”

“Let them go. Our target is not the necks of such third-rate fellows. It’s the supplies heading to the Imperial legions.”

Delaying could mean the Imperial forces would soon rush in.

Thus, they must deal with this quickly. They shall take only what they need and set fire to the rest…

“Ugh?!”

“What, what is this?!”

The soldiers checking the wagon’s contents stepped back in surprise.

Could it be a trap? Did the Empire anticipate even this?

In a hurry, the commander checked the contents and automatically cursed.

“Damn it.”

It’s herring. Fish that have already begun to spoil, emanating a foul odor.

Surely, the Empire wouldn’t be so mad as to transport this as supplies.

So, the enemy had launched a provocation, confident that they would target them.

“Are they saying they can already see our numbers?”

For a moment, the Dedorant commander was conflicted, but soon he changed his mind.

No matter how much they do this, they can’t load herring onto every wagon like this.

Ultimately, they have to fly supplies to fill the bellies of the Empire’s legions ahead.

However, they cannot allocate excess troops to each transportation unit.

Doing so would only increase the load of supplies even more, thereby making it counterproductive.

In other words, unless the Empire’s legions abandon some of the battles on the frontlines and come back, this is their domain.

“Do not be disappointed. Though we were the ones hit this time, the next will be them.”

“Let’s move to the next location. By now, the Empire’s extermination forces may be coming here. Let’s use the mountain paths we scouted beforehand to set an ambush at the next site.”

Thus began the chase and evade game between those who must plunder and those who must stop it.

“…I report. Chief of Staff, there have been 21 ambush reports received so far, with nine cases of supply theft and destruction occurring.”

“They aren’t fools. They attack knowing their lives are at stake, not wanting to suffer losses. And when we set traps, they somehow evade them.”

“They appear to be well-acquainted with Dedorant terrain.”

The Empire’s reconnaissance unit examined the terrain as much as possible for the smooth movement of their transportation units.

Additionally, they interrogated prisoners to extract useful information wherever possible.

Even so, they haven’t completely robbed the Dedorant of the benefits of their home ground.

Popping up here and there, they continue to attack our transportation units and target the supplies.

While they have repelled some enemies and many have retreated, instances of them being hit are increasing.

“How about utilizing one of the reserve units sent from the Empire to thoroughly secure the supply routes?”

“Sure, it’s possible for the main roads but impossible to deploy units at every location. And doing so would mean they’d need separate supplies, which the Ministry of War may not be able to handle.”

It’s not just the growing demand for supplies that’s a problem.

There are not just one supply line. How do we deliver supplies to all the scattered reserve units? That’s the issue.

Transportation units are still people. The more people there are, the more supplies will need to be consumed.

It goes in circles. Ultimately, that burden will fall on the Empire as a whole.

“This feels like the Atlantic War. Watching U-boats.”

The fortunate thing is that we are protecting plenty of chow wagons and are not close to starving like the British.

Nevertheless, it cannot be helped that they are a hassle. The timing for a full search is not good either.

Currently, the majority of skilled troops are targeting the various defensive positions and castles of Dedorant.

The momentum is with us, so we must not miss it and continue pressing forward.

“It seems we’re reaching a dead end. Aide?”

“Yes! Chief of Staff.”

“Please contact Minister of Magic, Your Excellency.”

“The Minister of Magic, you say?”

“Yes. It seems we may have to request something.”

How did the U.S. respond when U-boats caused havoc during the Atlantic War?

They did a crazy thing that only they could do. They just attached an aircraft carrier to the convoy.

While there may not be an Air Force in this world, there are detecting spells to sense incoming threats.

It is indeed true that wizards are a very precious resource. I won’t deny that.

However, our Empire has far too many of them. Too many.