Dungeon Defense (WN)

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Sure enough, the foreboding feeling I had was on the spot.

Our strategy went off the rail from the very beginning. The reason was overwhelmingly simple. Everything Barbatos predicted had occurred but to an excessive degree. A thick fog covered all of Austerlitz. The fog formed around late in the evening and didn’t let up at all the next day.

“……Mmm. We will not know if the enemy is near us even if they are right under our noses.”

Laura was concerned. She was right.

Our vision on the battlefield became limited in a matter of moments. The fog would reach its peak around daybreak. We couldn’t see more than 100 meters in front of us. We could barely even see 50 meters ahead of us in areas where the fog was more severe. Even if I were to excuse myself for a moment and have sex with Laura a distance away from everyone, I doubt any of our allies would notice. …No, this doesn’t mean I’m actually going to do it. Laura and I know full well that there is a time and place for everything.

A field of vision limited to 100 meters. This is bad. 100 meters can’t even be considered a measure of distance for cavalrymen. They could charge through 100 meters in a blink of an eye.

If we make any mistakes, then we might become completely exposed and defenseless to their cavalry. Even if we set up our defenses thoroughly, a cavalry assault is something you can’t defend against completely. If we get attacked without preparing any defenses, then……I don’t want to imagine it. Naturally, the other Demon Lords also became worried.

General Zepar tried to figure out the reason for this fog himself; however, the cause of this abnormal natural phenomenon was laughable. I felt so taken aback that I asked back.

“Pardon? Are you saying that a spell failed?”

“To be more exact, it was too successful.”

This was what happened. 

Commander Barbatos was concerned that there wouldn’t be enough fog to cover Austerlitz, so she had been preparing a countermeasure since before we began our march. She had ordered our mages to cast a weather spell.

Each Demon Lord has about two to three mages under their command. If you scrape together every mage in the 6th legion, then you could create a unit with approximately 50 mages. 50 mages at or above Three Circles. They arrived near the lakes of Austerlitz before us and had been manipulating the weather for six days straight. Ultimately……the mages were so capable that they ended up covering the entire area with a thick layer of fog.

“Even Her Excellency the Commander was surprised.”

“Of course she would be. Is this not too much?”

“Some of the mages went wild with their spells due to their personal curiosities.”

General Zepar stroked his mustache. 

“They got excited because they were allowed to use weather magic which is something that they are often not allowed to do.”

“Haah.”

A sigh came out on its own. The creatures known as mages really aren’t suited for battlefields. No matter how much you educate them, they care more about themselves than the group. The reason why they do their best in battle isn’t so that their allies can win, but because they can test out their spells freely. It’s obvious what would happen if you gather 50 of those weirdos together.

According to General Zepar, the mages failed to realize what they had done wrong and had run up to Barbatos while asking to be praised for their efforts. Barbatos obviously blew up at them. However, we can’t lose our mages which possess a lot of military power when we’re going to battle soon, so all she could do was fume in anger. Pitifully.

I spoke with a little bit of hope.

“Will our plan change, Brother?”

“I am hoping for that as well, but……Her Excellency the Commander is a rather subjective person, so there is no way to know what will happen. Let us try contacting them for now.”

“Those that go on an offense will have an advantage over the ones that stay defensive in battles with limited vision. When both parties are unable to grasp the other party’s situation, then the first to move will automatically gain the initiative. If we allow the imperial soldiers to attack us first, then we will have no other choice but to move according to their actions.”

General Zepar nodded. This was one of the most basic common sense. In any situation outside a siege, the attackers usually have an advantage over the defenders. While the attackers are able to attack whenever and wherever they want, the defenders are forced to move after they’ve been attacked. There’s no way Barbatos wasn’t aware of this when she has 2,000 years worth of battle experience.

“I was rejected.”

However, my hope was soon crushed.

“Her Excellency has ordered us to continue with our original plan. We will proceed to go into a defensive stance on the right side.”

“But, Sir Zepar.”

A Demon Lord who was joining us for the first time spoke up.

“It is concerning whether we will be able to cooperate with our allies properly in this situation. We have to construct our line of defense, so we cannot be gathered here at all times to carry out orders. We will have to be in our respective positions and intercept the enemy forces systematically. However, it will be difficult for us to work together with our allies within such thick fog.”

I mentally agreed with their statement.

If I were a human general, then I would carry out a feint attack. I would attack the right wing with my main force and use the cavalry to instantly penetrate through a portion of the right wing’s defense while they are mostly busy fighting off the main force. With fog this thick, it shouldn’t be difficult to hide the cavalrymen. Thanks to this, the cavalrymen should be able to breach through in a matter of moments and join up with the main force to wipe us out from both sides. It’s a simple but effective tactic.

In order to prevent this calamity from unfolding, we must be able to work together and communicate with our allies properly. How much a certain side is being attacked, where a certain ally unit has moved, and if our defenses get breached, where that breach is, we must have an accurate grasp of all of these things constantly.

“Your concern is reasonable; however, do not worry. Her Excellency the Commander has urgently dispatched a mage for the sake of helping us work together.”

“A unit of mages?”

“No, a single mage.”

I was confused. How can a single mage solve our communication issue? Are they going to use wind magic and get rid of the fog?

“The mage will be in charge of not just the right wing, but the systematic communication of our entire army. The mage will be distributing one of their familiars to each and every Demon Lord. If you need to report something, then do so by using the familiar.”

“I apologize, but I do not understand fully yet.”

Rank 58 Amii spoke up carefully. He may have the right to speak now because of the achievements he obtained in the siege of the Black Mountains, but he was reserved since he was still a newcomer. Well, even if he wasn’t a newcomer, it’d still be hard to speak normally with Rank 16 Zepar. Even the Demon Lords in the middle echelon of the Plains Faction speak in a partially formal tone when addressing him.

“How will we give our reports?”

“You will give your reports to the familiars. If you do, then the report will immediately be sent to the mage who is bound to them. The mage will then act as a relay and give the report to the appropriate unit. The mage will be located in my quarters and orders will be given on the spot through the mage’s familiars.”

“Ah, so that sort of method exists.”

Amii was in awe. I was as well. In other words, the familiars were going to act as two-way radios while the mage acts as the relay station! It was a step down from the two-way radios in my world since it’d have to go through another step, but it’s better than nothing. If anything, high command will have a constant grasp of the battle situation, so this might be a net positive. 

Zepar continued while I was busy feeling a newfound respect towards the strategic value of mages. 

“Additionally, we will release 300 demon fowls into the sky above the battlefield. You all should be able to observe the battlefield with more freedom through these fowls. The mage will also utilize their familiars to scout out the area.”

I immediately understood what General Zepar was trying to say. In other words, we’re going to use our ability to read the emotions of monsters. If the imperial army suddenly turns or attempts to charge at a single point, then the monster birds in the air will see them and warn us. The warning will immediately be transmitted to the Demon Lords. It’d be like a type of alarm system.

The birds won’t be able to see the entire battlefield due to the thickness of the fog, but this is a hundred times better than not having them at all. Now we have drastically decreased the chances of being attacked by the enemy while being completely off guard because of the fog.

On the contrary, we might be able to create an advantageous situation for our forces. Would the humans have prepared this much in the case of fog as well? If they haven’t, then Austerlitz will become a massive, gray grave for them. Once the meeting ended, Laura whispered to me in an overly excited voice.

“Lord, this is a revolutionary idea!”

I agreed with her. Shortly after, a familiar was distributed to me and every other Demon Lord in the right wing. Surprisingly, the familiar turned out to be a slime. This small monster that was made up of blue mucilage stuck to my neck. The fact that it had something like a mouth hole made it different from normal slimes. I decided to test out the slime communicator.

“This is Dantalian. All clear on this end.”

A few seconds later, a mechanical voice came out from the slime’s small mouth.

– This is the command center of the right wing. Understood. All the other officers are also currently informing us that it is all clear on their ends. Only report important matters from now on.

I chuckled. This meant that I wasn’t the only one testing out the slime’s communication ability. The other Demon Lords are probably making up a bunch of excuses as they test out their slime communicators. Wouldn’t General Zepar be feeling annoyed trying to respond to each and every Demon Lord?

Laura listened in on the transmission and spoke.

“The imperial army absolutely cannot do something like this.”

“Hm? Would it not be possible for them to do this if they utilize mages as well?”

“The issue is the familiars. A familiar needs a decent amount of intelligence to understand and give reports. You either have to create a high quality familiar or a mage has to focus on a single familiar and create a complete mental bond with it. Regardless of what they choose, this cannot be used for communication on a large scale. It might be possible if a mage is attached to each and every unit, but that is unlikely.”

She smiled.

“All of these procedures are unnecessary for Demon Lords since they give both orders and imagery to monsters. In the end, they skip another step and transfer the image to the mage themself. Now I understand what the commander’s intentions are……. A battlefield covered in fog will always be advantageous for the Demon Lord army.”

Laura’s explanation went like this: the line of command has not been properly established in the imperial army and there is friction between the main army and the margraves’ army. The discretion of commanding officers will naturally become larger in battlefields like Austerlitz where one’s vision is heavily restricted. The enemy forces might abruptly appear just a hundred meters ahead of them, so they can’t sit idly and wait to receive orders from their superiors. 

Even if Margrave Rosenberg gives an order as the supreme commander, the other commanders will be able to say, ‘Sorry, but I will act under my own discretion according to the situation of the battle.’. The supreme commander will be unable to actively confirm the ongoing situation of the battle, so they’ll have no other choice but to allow the commanders to do as they please.

Now that they have an excuse, would the 20,000 soldiers from the main army and the 20,000 mercenaries obediently follow the supreme commander’s orders? It is obvious that they will act unpredictably while saying ‘The situation is different here’. The point of the supreme commander’s existence will become vague. The imperial army will mess around……while, on the other hand, the 6th legion will have a perfect communication and scouting system. I look forward to seeing how much of a decisive difference this will make in battle.

A day passed for the imperial army and the Demon Lord army. The imperial army had set up their camp in the center of Pratzen Heights and the Demon Lord army had devised a countermeasure for the fog and refined it. The first day the two armies stood face to face ended quietly.

The next day.

The imperial army started their attack around 5 in the morning. This was something we hadn’t expected. The way they attacked was rather unique.

The ground trembled and the vibration shook me awake. I ran out of my tent, but it was dark and foggy, so I had no idea what was happening. The slime was probably meant for times like this. I asked General Zepar what sort of attack was happening.

– Wait. I am also trying to grasp the situation.

I waited patiently. Before long, Laura had also exited the tent. While all of this was happening, numerous thuds kept echoing throughout the area. Which unit was being attacked? What sort of attack could it be for it to be audible from this distance? A moment filled with anxiety flowed by.

Shortly after, the slime’s mouth opened. I became stunned once I heard General Zepar’s message.

– This is a message for all forces. Catapults are the reason for the loud sound. I repeat. Catapults are the reason for the loud sound. The imperial army has set up a couple dozen catapults and is launching boulders at us.

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. Okay, this is a minor announcement, but I’m going to take a break for the next 2 days. I have some last-minute assignments to take care of and I have to visit my brother at his new place. I mean, 2 days isn’t much, but I figured I should mention it here since I’ve sort of been picking up my pace recently and people might be expecting the next chapter to pop up soon as well. So yeah, I’ll be back soon.