After a few days of this, Sigurd received a report from the reconnaissance force that the enemy was camping on the opposite side of the forest.
Sigurd galloped to the front of the group. After running out of the coniferous forest, he saw the camp in the distance - facing a plain, backed by a hill, with many battle flags flying neatly inside.
"Have you found that supplies are not enough to support them to Uprun, so have you planned a decisive battle in advance?"
Sigurd smiled proudly.
"Anyway, this plain is indeed a good battlefield."
The troops were exhausted from days of marching, so Sigurd ordered the troops to camp with their backs to the forest and look at the enemy camp from a distance. He only sent some small troops on duty, letting the remaining troops rest and prepare for tomorrow's decisive battle.
During the whole process, the enemy did not send any troops to harass them, and they probably did not have much morale left.
The next day, he spent a long time lining up his troops on the battlefield and getting into formation. He carefully selected a group of the most elite warriors and went to provoke the enemy's camp.
After quite a while, the enemy made no move.
Sigurd could not sit still. He commanded the troops and slowly advanced towards the enemy's camp.
Ten arrows away, there was no movement in the enemy's camp.
Five arrows away, there was no movement in the enemy's camp.
Two arrows away, several people fell into the trap dug in advance.
The troops stopped suddenly within two arrows' distance.
"Don't panic! Send a few teams to explore the ground!"
After half a day, all traps were eliminated. However, the number of these traps was so small that Sigurd regretted spending so much time investigating them.
The troops began to move forward.
Entering the range of the bow and arrow... there was still no movement from the enemy's camp.
Sigurd looked at the enemy camp in confusion...
Many birds were landing on the tents, chirping non-stop.
He suddenly realized something, spurred his horse and shouted:
"It's just an empty camp! Charge on! Charge on! Charge on at full speed!"
An empty camp, unmanned from the start. In some cases, there are only flags that make people feel intimidated when looking at them from a distance.
It is obvious that this camp was left deliberately to hinder Sigurd from supporting Uprun. From yesterday afternoon to noon today, this empty camp actually delayed Sigurd's march for a whole day.
In order to make up for this day's journey, Sigurd began to force the troops to march. This made some weaker soldiers unable to hold on. When Sigurd arrived at the gates of Uprun, the troops surrounding him had been reduced by one-fifth.
Outside the city of Uplon, everything was quiet and peaceful.
His men came out of the city to greet him with joy, but he grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.
"Where is the enemy! Where is Hestein's army! Where is Ira Cornelius Scipio!"
"Enemies...?" The person who was caught in the air replied with a puzzled look on his face, "We have never heard of any enemies..."
With a "pop", he was thrown out by Sigurd and hit the city wall, hitting his head and bleeding.
Near Westfor, in the territory of Ungurmark. There are about a dozen boats fishing in the sea.
A medium-sized fleet sailed down the river and entered the sea, with about a thousand people. Gan, who was standing on the bow of the front boat, excitedly shouted to the fishing boat:
"Sister Shield Girl! We are back!"
A woman who was casting a net for fishing straightened up and wiped the mud from her face.
She is none other than Ella Cornelius Scipio.
"Thanks to you." She waved to the soldiers on the ship, "I have never commanded an army. If it weren't for you, my plan would not be completed!"
From the beginning, only these one thousand troops entered West Fore. They wandered around the territory of West Fore, changing flags and leaders every day to grab a village, and then left a "trace" of a camp ten times the size. After setting up the last and first complete camp in front of the forest, they got on the boat of their companions who came along the river to pick them up, and returned in a swaggering manner.
This group of pirates are not good at attacking cities, but they are very good at grabbing and running.
A fishing boat came from the other direction, and the people on it shouted to Ella from a distance: "Shield Girl, we have captured another messenger sent by Lorraine!"
"It doesn't matter anymore, let him go. Even if he doesn't report the news, Sigurd should have noticed it - the plan has been successful, and we should return."
"Your Majesty, I still don't understand. Why do we have to go all the way from Sealand to West Fore, run a lap up there, and then retreat back to Sealand without doing anything? What's the use of that?"
On the way back, Amy still had doubts.
"I was looking for a way to double the speed of making trebuchets, but couldn't find it. Then I came across a book that didn't seem to have anything to do with making siege weapons. Its author was The far east seems to be called the ‘Sage of Soldiers’. In this book, the Saint of Soldiers mentioned an interesting question.”
Ella proudly showed off the knowledge in the book to Amy:
"Suppose there is a dangerous terrain ahead. Whoever occupies it will gain a great advantage in combat. But it takes thirty days for our army to get there, while the opponent's army is closer to it and only needs two. It takes ten days to get there. What should we do to get there first?"
"What to do... we can only force a march? Just like Hestein, roar to boost morale, and then the whole army runs over with all their strength..."
Ella shook her head.
"This is what the Soldier Saint said: If you march for thirty miles, only two-thirds of the army will arrive; if you march for fifty miles, only half of the army will arrive; and if you march for one hundred miles, then in the end Only one-tenth of the army can arrive. And if you march forcefully, you will have to abandon your baggage and attack with light armor. If you do that, even if you occupy a favorable terrain, the war will fail. Although I don't know the actual situation during the battle, But since he is a Soldier Saint, he is probably inseparable, right?"
"so what should I do now?"
"The solution proposed by the Soldier Saint is surprisingly simple - since our distance from there cannot be shortened, then just let the enemy's distance from there be increased."
"Increase the enemy's distance? Your Majesty, I still don't understand."
"Amy, how many days will it take for us to make the catapult?"
"It will take fourteen days at the earliest."
"How many days does it take Sigurd to get from Frisia to Zealand?"
"It only takes a week to arrive."
"How many days have passed now?"
"Twelve or three days..."
"How many days will it take for Sigurd to travel from Uprun to Zealand?"
"It will take another twelve or three days..."
In front of Amy who suddenly understood, Ella smiled slightly:
"That's right, the trebuchet that was originally impossible to complete was completed before Sigurd arrived. This weapon can help us gain a great advantage. And the method that helped the trebuchet to be completed was named 'Transformation' by the Soldier Saint To be straight'."
Ella relaxed and lay on the boat in a "big" position, looking at the broad and infinite sky.
"Father...this is my first time commanding an army. Isn't my performance good?"
The boat rocked on the waves. When she first left Constantiniya, Ella suffered from seasickness due to the shaking. But over the past few months, she had gradually gotten used to the shaking.
Like... lying in a cradle.
Under the blow of the sea breeze, Ella gradually narrowed her eyes. Her mother's nursery rhymes seemed to be heard in her ears, and she smiled happily and fell asleep.
Amy tenderly put a piece of clothing on her body. She knew that Ella had been under too much pressure in the past few days and had not slept soundly even a day.
"Your Majesty, take advantage of now and have a good sleep."
Zealand's coast appears on the horizon.
"This war is not over yet...no, it has just begun."
"War is cruel, Your Majesty. It will test you soon."
"——Test whether you are qualified to become a real king."
