489: Chapter 79, The Actions of the Human Alliance_2 489: Chapter 79, The Actions of the Human Alliance_2 Joseph II asked with concern.
The Minister of Defense remained silent, but the Chancellor spoke first, “Your Majesty, the issue now isn’t just whether we have the time or not, but what the orcs really want to do.
The orc cavalry is indeed heading north, but they are not forgetting to wreak havoc along the way, setting fire to houses, destroying farmlands, and displacing people…
The areas they pass through all become wastelands.
Most of the provinces along the way can basically be declared ruined.
If this situation continues, not a single piece of uncontaminated land can be found in the entire Warhammer Great Plains.
The foundation of our kingdom has been shaken.
Moreover, those several millions of displaced refugees are becoming a new threat.
In some areas, there have even been farces where the refugees storm the castles of the nobles for food.”
The actual situation is more serious than what Chancellor Guy described.
The local economy has been devastated, which directly weakens the potential of the Warhammer Kingdom in the war.
The most direct consequence is that the logistic support of the army will not be guaranteed.
Without the fertile Warhammer Great Plains, only the mountain provinces in the west of the kingdom cannot bear the huge consumption of the army.
Even if all the savings of the nobles were drained, that would still be a drop in the bucket.
Support from allies also cannot be relied upon, even if everyone is willing to donate generously, it is difficult to transport the supplies here.
As the most remote kingdom of the human race, the Warhammer Kingdom has been spared from numerous internal disputes.
Still, it is also difficult to get help from other countries in times of crisis.
To transport supplies here, one must either borrow routes from the Orton Duchy or the Moxi Duchy.
Not to mention the long distance, neither of the two countries can spare any effort to help organize transportation given their current situations.
We can rely on the stockpile for a short period of time, but if this situation of eating into our reserves continues, the collapse of the Warhammer Kingdom will be just a matter of time.
The problem has shifted from a military one to an economic one, making Joseph II’s head even bigger.
Suddenly, he understands the reason why the orc infantry can be easily encircled.
With the backlines continuously running into trouble and this gathered army of seven hundred thousand, the logistics are slowly being eaten away by the orc army.
This destructive sabotage is far more effective than simply looting supplies.
As long as the besieged orc infantry can hold on for a while, the army of seven hundred thousand will collapse from insufficient supplies.
Thinking that he had grasped the enemy’s plot, Joseph II couldn’t feel happy at all.
In order to gather this seven hundred thousand army, they had already exhausted the military strength of several provinces in the rear.
In the face of the orc cavalry’s relentless advance, the local areas hardly have any power to fight back.
Even the nobles who stayed behind to defend the castles could not stop the edge of the orc army.
Cavalry might not be suitable for attacking cities, but that doesn’t mean they can’t compel the serfs to do so.
One cannot expect everyone to be tough.
When the knife is at the throat, there will always be people willing to cooperate with the orc army.
From the moment Duke Daniel forbade slaughter and used refugees to cause trouble for the Warhammer Kingdom, this war became different from those in the past.
The present Warhammer Kingdom not only has to provide supplies for the army, but also has to find ways to aid refugees.
If any part is not done well, it will become a thunderbolt, shattering this ancient kingdom to pieces.
If he had known that the orcs would play this way, Joseph II would certainly not have assembled a large army to come and battle them.
If the troops are scattered everywhere, they certainly cannot resist the orc’s edge, but the enemy’s cavalry movement would certainly not be so smooth.
At least, teams of ten or so cavalry units driving thousands of serfs to cause destruction everywhere, and even besieging noble’s castles, would not happen.
Unable to split up the troops means the enemy’s speed of destruction would drastically slow down, and they could gain more time to prepare for emergencies.
Unfortunately, reality has no ifs.
Even if he could do it all over again, Joseph II might not be able to withstand the pressure.
Though it seems that he initiated this battle in Atrus Province, it was actually orchestrated by multiple interest groups within the kingdom.
Who made everyone’s foundation lies on the Warhammer Great Plains?
Who could bear to abandon their family estates and retreat to the west to resist without putting up a struggle first?
People are despised when they leave their hometown, even for the nobles.
Without the support of their estate, even if they strategically move with their army, their voice in the kingdom will be greatly reduced.
War is full of uncertainties, no matter how strong one’s power, without the continuous resource support, it will only become weaker as the fight goes on.
When the lost territories are recaptured after the war, those once bases of power have nothing to do with these disappointed ones.
Those who are lucky might still get some compensation to appease them, but those who are unlucky won’t even have the chance to survive till that day.
Interest determines the position, Marshal Borg can strongly advocate for giving up the Warhammer Great Plains and retreating to the Western Mountain Area, because he is a representative of the interests of the provincial nobles in the west.
This is not possible for Joseph II, the foundation of the Royal Family is in the Warhammer Great Plains, and so are their core supporters.
To dare to directly give up the base of power, perhaps before the Orcs attack, the subordinates will have started creating a fuss.
Individuals cannot go against the general trend, even if they know that the road ahead is fraught with enormous risks, they can only grit their teeth and march on.
The current problem has been raised because their base is being destroyed by the Orc Cavalry, and they urgently need a rescue plan.
“If we give up…”
Joseph II swallowed the rest of the words as he was halfway through speaking.
It’s easy to release the encirclement, but these tens of thousands of Orc infantry would become like chewing gum, constantly following them.
As long as the army exposes a slight flaw, these enemies will bite at the first moment.
They are all elites, once they start, the damage caused to the army will not be small.
It’s also not possible to divert troops to reinforce the north, the mobility of the infantry is not equal to that of the cavalry.
Judging by the time it would take them to divert the troops, the Orc Cavalry could have turned their guns around and attacked again.
Under the internal and external collusion, most of the remaining army would have to prepare for the worst.
After all the hustle and bustle, it would just result in the loss of soldiers and generals and put them in a strategically passive position, they would suffer a great loss.
Moreover, after the war, the power comparison between the two sides would also change, and the situation would even worsen.
“Isn’t there any good news?”
Joseph II asked helplessly.
“Your Majesty, we just received news from the Moxi Duchy, they have defeated the Orc Army besieging Dapes.
As long as they can withstand the counterattack of the Orc Reinforcements in the upcoming war, the situation in the Moxi Duchy can stabilize.
We also received good news from the Alpha Kingdom, the Orc Army was finally stopped by them after breaking through three defense lines.
It is said that they have also launched a counterattack, destroying three main Orc Armies in succession and eliminating over two hundred thousand of the Orc Army.
The first batch of reinforcements from the Human Alliance has now all set off.
In total, there are thirty thousand elite soldiers, who will reach the Moxi Duchy within two months at the earliest.
In addition, the Alliance Conference also approved the previous proposal by the Alpha Kingdom, with all major powers sending elites to increase reinforcements to the front line ahead of time.
This time the support is very strong, all forces with council seats are sending at least one Earth Knight or Sorcerer.
One voting right represents one elite, and all the top forces promise to send Sky Knights to participate in the war.
These elites will arrive one after another within a month.
Once these forces are in place, we will completely suppress the Orc Empire in terms of high-end forces.”
Foreign Minister Cassidy calmly dropped a bombshell.
Those who were initially worried about the uncontrollable situation suddenly found that they could still save it.
As long as they hold on until the reinforcements arrive, the deteriorating situation could potentially be reversed.
The only issue is the distribution of reinforcements.
Thirty thousand elite troops are not a small number, and it already surpasses the total military strength of many countries.
Before the outbreak of the war, among the many factions of the Human Race, there were only five with a standing army of over thirty thousand, and there was only one in the north, which is the Alpha Kingdom.
However, no matter how many reinforcements there are, there are also a lot of countries that need reinforcements.
When everyone splits it down, there won’t be much left.
“How many reinforcements has the kingdom received?”
…