Enlightened Empire

Chapter 328: Finding Meaning

Although Dedrick had already been an experienced commander when he had met Corco, even he had learned one or two tricks about combat from the layman merchant king. Back in Arcavia, one of the king's most common strategic principles was his insistence on always fighting in the defender's position. Even if he was the aggressor in a conflict, he would maneuver his troops in such a way that his enemies would be forced to move first. This way, he could take full advantage of his technologically advanced weapons and superior position to achieve a perfect victory almost every time.

While Corco wasn't an expert in many areas, he was clever and always had strange ideas and plans that were far beyond a normal person's scope of thinking. The results had also affirmed Corco's strategies. So now, Dedrick was learning from the King of the South, following the same strategy to force his enemies into an attack.

That guy really is a good teacher. Didn't even have to say a word.

With a grin, the general observed the panicked movements atop the opposite wall from his command tower. As soon as dawn had broken, the truth of last night's attacks on the walls was revealed: Within a few hours, the attackers from Saniya had built an entire fortress within firing range of the defensive palisade wall in the south.

Faced with a far greater threat than mere fire, the defenders didn't even take the time to extinguish the last smoldering bits of wall in the east and west. Instead, all troops scrambled to amass back in the center of the wall. Meanwhile, the many cannons om the fortification were brought into position as well, readied to fire and destroy the enemy's advanced position.

However, Dedrick's grin only widened when he saw their panicked and hasty response. Maybe they thought that the fort built overnight was only a temporary shelter made from wood. That way, the cannons would be enough to destroy their defenses, and the following charge would be able to push them back, if only under heavy losses. But if they thought like that, they would be sorely mistaken.

Soon, the first cannon balls crashed into the wooden walls and harmlessly bounced off, much to Dedrick's enjoyment. Only a few of the hits had been flush and left shallow, round dents in the wood. Since the walls had been built at an angle to the towers of the defenders, the other hits were deflected to the side, doing no damage in the process. They had now proven their defensive powers, so it was time to show off their offense.

When the first cannon balls hit their new walls, Saniya's troops were long ready themselves. Immediate return fire came from the cannons now placed inside the bunkers along the new wall. These bunkers housed five cannons each, for a total of forty, more than enough cannons to rival their opponents in number. Even more, their cannoneers were generally better trained than those of their enemies. After all, who but Saniya's army had so much money that they could waste powder on regular firing drills?

While the low bunkers didn't allow the cannons to fire at the enemy artillery up high on their towers, they were in the perfect position to attack the foundation of the palisade wall and repel onrushing attackers. Even better, the strong ceiling of the bunkers, as well as the overhangs along the walls, allowed them to fire through rain and storms, until those pesky defenders were finally driven off the island.

No doubt the other side wanted to do the same, but their efforts would be rewarded with disappointment. After several salvos against the new wall, the cannon balls finally managed to crack the wooden shell around one of the bunkers. However, the cannoneers on the other side must have felt confusion and despair when the hard concrete was revealed underneath the wooden panels, still unblemished from all the attacks.

While Dedrick was still guessing at the feelings of the cannoneers, the warriors among the former defenders had finally begun to form lines at the foot of their wall. Of course the constant cannon fire didn't make it easy.

Scared of the destructive forces of the cannons, many of the warriors scrambled behind their own covers, before some of their commanders barked orders at them. Even then, only a part of the warriors was brave enough to stand and face the enemy fire, and even they stood in a loose, dispersed formation, so they wouldn’t be an easy target for the medalan cannons.

As a result, their formation looked disjointed before they had even begun their attack. Maybe the commanders had realized that things would only get worse from here if they couldn't bolster morale, so another round of shouts made the disordered lines charge at the new defensive position in the center of the island.

As they launched their attack, screams came from within their ranks, to encourage their own and intimidate their enemies. The distance between the camps was short, but the ground was still muddy and uneven, as before. Now, finally, their enemies could feel what sort of hell Saniya's troops had gone through all these days.

Under the fire of cannons and muskets, more and more of them fell victim to war. Unlike Saniya's troops however, they didn't advance in neat formations. Instead, each individual warrior rushed up by himself, irregardless of those around him.

In time, Dedrick noticed more and more disunity within the ranks of their enemies. Soon he realized that in fact, only half the enemy army was charging them. Although the enemy army was made up of a coalition of Verdant Folk and Arcavians, only the locals were attacking. Meanwhile, the arcavian warriors stayed on the wall. Only some of them provided cover fire for the charging warriors from a distance, while most of the others had hidden themselves behind cover.

Maybe the different leaders of the coalition have different ideas on the state of the war, Dedrick guessed. Indeed, if the Arcavians thought that the battle was lost already and that more deaths were unnecessary, then he would have to praise them for their foresight. Though no matter what, the disunity in the enemy ranks, as well as the clear split between locals and Orientals, was good for him, so he wouldn't complain.

As Dedrick watched the disorganized attack slowly make its way towards his defenses, he realized that there was nothing to worry about. At this point, he was already thinking ahead to the time after his great victory. He looked over his own men, all the people he commanded, hiding behind the defenses he had built over night, readying themselves to welcome the enemy storm that would turn out to be a mere drizzle.

Just like Dedrick had helped build those defenses, he had also helped build the city these people called their home. His contributions to the rise of Saniya wasn't small. Still, he was nothing more than a hired hand in the end, and none of what was happening here today had any lasting connection to him. Maybe that was the reason he had felt so uncomfortable ever since he had decided to leave Medala.

No one besides him seemed to be struggling though. At this moment, his old arcavian subordinates were preparing to repel the impending enemy attack together with their local Yaku comrades. After years of cooperation, none of the wolf mercenaries had any problems instructing the locals, or with working together. They had learned their language, and either accepted or successfully ignored the differences in culture.

Of course that didn't mean that everyone had become friends. Some of the wolves were more distant towards the Yaku. They were the ones who would soon follow Dedrick home to Arcavia. But even they were firm in their command at the moment, never showing any of the hesitation and insecurity Dedrick felt. Though the ones who had decided to stay were even better. They had long integrated into Saniya's newly developing society, some with wives or sweethearts, some even with children. In the face of the incoming enemy, they talked and joked with the locals, as they prepared for another heroic victory in the name of their king.

Maybe that was the actual reason Dedrick felt so conflicted: The many of his men who would stay behind and wouldn't support him after his return to Arcavia. Yes, maybe that was what had bothered him all this time.

While Dedrick was still busy with his own thoughts, the verdant warriors made steady progress through the mud. Although the ground and cannon fire made their life hell, eventually, the first attackers crossed the space between the camp. No doubt, they would be eager to engage the musketeers behind the walls in close combat. This way, the constant fire would stop and the way would open for their companions behind them to rush in.

However, as soon as they reached the wall, countless spears and halberds stretched out from above to block their advance. While the musketeers hid behind the concrete walls and poked their weapons out from within the many arrow slits, the pikemen and halberdiers of their army were on the wooden overhang above. The overhang was designed to protect the muskets from rain, but it also doubled as a walkway to hold back attackers from above.

Although the warriors among the verdant folk may have been stronger fighters than Saniya's commoner soldiers, but in the end, they were still just human. They couldn't just push through the countless axe heads and spear tips to scale the wall. Several warriors tried to use their strength to simply jump up and create chaos in the ranks, but once again, the terrain came to Dedrick's support.

In the deep mud, the warriors found no fulcrum to push off from. Although the top of the wall was so close that the tallest among them could grab it with their hands, it felt completely out of reach. Thus, their first charges were quickly pushed back. But retreat was no option either. Far enough away to escape the halberds, they would simply become the target for the muskets again, and from behind, more and more warriors were pushing them forward to join the attack.

As time went on, the bodies piled up at the foot of the wall, and thus created more stable footholds. In these areas, the warriors began to amass, using the bodies of their fallen allies to surpass the obstacle before them. But even now, Dedrick still wasn't worried at all. When the defenders saw the plans of the warriors, they simply threw several bottles from atop the walls into the masses of warriors down below.

As soon as the petrol bombs landed, they exploded into fiery glory. Just now, these areas had seemed weak and were almost overwhelmed by the masses of bodies, but now they had become impassible. And with continuous fuel the many bodies provided, the fire would not go out any time soon.

At the same time, several of the verdant warriors tried to round the battlefield in a wide berth, to attack the wall from behind. However, what hadn't worked for Saniya's troops in their attack of the original palisade wall certainly wouldn't work here.

Although the wall was short in length, nowhere near the incredible size of the wooden wall to its opposite, it still completely enclosed a large area in its center. No matter where the warriors turned, they were greeted by even more lead and steel. In the end, all they managed to do in their attempt was tire themselves out. On their way, they fell one by one.

Only the few lucky ones managed to round the wall, but they found that the defensive position was completely surrounded, with no obvious flaws. There was only a single door in its back, made of solid oak and carried over from the main camp. However, the warriors had brought no siege equipment that would allow them to overcome it.

Even worse, whoever made it this far soon realized that now, they were caught in between the original Saniya camp and the new fort in the center of the island. Boxed in between the two, out in open terrain and stuck in the mud, there was nowhere to hide, and the stragglers were soon gunned down from both sides.

As Dedrick watched the battle progress with remarkable ease, he still felt conflicted. He helped build this, not only this defense, but also the country that had created all these fine soldiers. Was he really just a hired hand? Wasn't that just some nonsense story to make himself feel less guilty for leaving them behind, these brave people who were about to create a place unique in the world, both in power and grace?

All this time, he had held this strange irritation within him, ever since his conversation with Laqhis during the last banquet in Saniya. No, in fact, he had already been irritated long before that. What was it that bothered him like this? Like he had done so many times since the start of the battle, he scanned the battlefield again, in search of areas that needed his help or his instructions.

So far however, all parts of their fortress seemed to hold off the attackers with ease. After he had finished the initial layout of his plan and the fortress had been put in place, there had been little the general had to do. His subordinates could solve all the basic deployment by themselves, without his input.

Then, he finally realized. He understood what had bothered him. It had never been about himself, but about the duty he felt towards Saniya, and its people. All this time, he had been needed there. Of course he wasn't just a hired hand, not after years of service. These hired hands had created many things in the city themselves.

How many of Saniya's current officers had been hand-picked and trained by him? Like the little General Paec, there were many others, though not all of them had the young general's steady nature and calm intelligence. No, he had helped build all this, and now he was about to abandon it all, abandon things he held dear. All this time, he felt irritated because he was about to leave the city that needed his help, just because he had somewhere else to go.

However, as he saw his men form their own defense with the precision of the mechanical clock in his hand, his mind eased. Saniya was getting stronger, bit by bit. Even without his input, Dedrick had no doubt that Paec could have solved this battlefield eventually. Maybe it would have taken more time and effort, but in time, the number of ships they were building in Saniya’s shipyards would be enough overwhelm everything else in the Verduic Sea eventually.

All he had done here was speed things up a bit, reduce the losses by a few heads. The truth was that maybe, this would be the last time in a long while that Saniya would really need his help to achieve victory. He was no longer needed here, but back in Arcavia, there were many things he needed to do, things no one else could do for him.

With his mind finally at ease and his decision made, his usual, cocky smile finally returned to Dedrick. He drew his sword, and stepped down from his lookout in the center of their fortress.

“General, where are you going?” one of his guards asked.

“Just out for some fun. Let's show those idiot sailors what a real warrior looks like, and leave them with some unforgettable memories.”

After his declaration, Dedrick jumped down the ladder to enter the fray one last time, together with his people.