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Chapter 1036 - 1036 141 The Great Retreat_2

1036: Chapter 141, The Great Retreat_2 1036: Chapter 141, The Great Retreat_2 The internal political struggle in the Court allowed Hudson, who held a transcendent position, to remain completely neutral.

As long as the major factions were not foolish, they would not provoke him.

By staying neutral for a few more years, other nobles who wished to do the same would naturally gravitate towards him.

If nothing unexpected happened, Hudson was bound to receive a large tract of land on the Northern Front Line after the war, without having to vie for it, as people would willingly offer it up to him.

Where the most important strategic location was to defend against the Orc invasion, there would be his land.

The job of the kingdom’s gatekeeper, a hundred percent guaranteed to fall on his shoulders.

Had it not been for the establishment of the Prairie Seven Kingdoms, leading everyone to mistakenly believe the Northern Border no longer posed a threat, Hudson’s land would have been on the Northern Frontier during the last awarding of fiefs.

This was a tradition of the Kingdom – to bestow lands to their most capable generals where they were most needed, which led to the current military pattern of a strong north and a weak south.

“Enough, don’t act on impulse!

The enemy hasn’t pursued us, which already says a lot.

Do you still want to blitz with an army of over a hundred thousand gathered?

We’ve been out here so long, our military supplies have nearly depleted, especially the special-made arrows, which are only enough for three volleys.

These items must be reserved for unexpected situations.

The enemy has suffered a massive loss and will surely react; our return journey may not be smooth.

If you want to fight the Orcs, there will be plenty of opportunities later.

Decision for retreat tomorrow has been made.

What you need to do now is to carry out the orders!”

…

Nearly at the same time, the Orc Army Camp was also holding a military council.

The contrast in morale between the two sides was stark, completely polar opposites.

Compared to the Expedition Army Corps clamoring to expand their victory, the complexions of the gathered Orc officers were terrifyingly grim.

An entire five thousand Cavalry had vanished in an instant, and up to now, the gathered routing troops did not even total three thousand – a thunderbolt out of the blue for the Orc leaders.

Duke Daniel was seething with pent-up anger; had it not been for these fools scattering in disarray, they would not have collided head-on with the enemy.

When attempting to assign blame, there was not a single “beast” to be found.

According to the routs’ reports, all five Legion Commanders had died in battle, and the Hawkman General overseeing the fight had also vanished without a trace.

No substantial responsible parties could be found; without a doubt, the burden of defeat was to fall on him, the Commander in Chief.

“What’s the next move, what ideas do you all have?

Speak up,” asked Duke Daniel.

His question startled the Orc officers, who widened their eyes in suspicion, assessing their own Commander.

Those familiar with Daniel knew that his military talent was matched only by his arrogance.

The generals who could catch his eye were nonexistent.

In the past, during military councils, it was Daniel who gave orders, and everyone else’s role was to execute them.

It wasn’t problematic to put forth suggestions, though they were most likely to be shot down harshly, as if everyone’s plans were excrement in his eyes.

After following him for a long period, the officers had stopped offering their opinions.

When it came to military knowledge, they truly fell far short of their own commander, leaving nothing to argue over.

The arrogant commander was suddenly asking for advice.

This abrupt change made the generals extremely uncomfortable; some even suspected the commander before them had undergone a “core substitution.”

Similar incidents were not unheard of on the Continent of Aslante, especially with the dark arts used in courtly power struggles, replacing the Peach for the Plum was most frequent.

However, these maneuvers always had significant weaknesses.

Foreign souls could not perfectly meld with new bodies, and discrepancies in behavior were easy to spot.

After repeatedly confirming no issues, a Lionman General slowly said, “Marshal, the enemy is extremely cunning; we can’t keep being led by the nose.

From previous battles, Hudson is particularly adept at striking unexpectedly, ruining the Ancient Heritage Alliance and also causing significant trouble for the Empire.

The method to deal with him, I can’t come up with one just yet.

However, what’s certain is that we cannot split our forces anymore.

No matter how the situation changes, we must not divide our troops, or we risk repeating the tragedy of the Ancient Heritage Alliance!”

As soon as these words landed, the generals unanimously agreed.

In the blink of an eye, “not splitting forces” became the consensus.

However, for Duke Daniel, these suggestions amounted to nothing but idle talk.

“Not splitting forces” merely described their conduct and had no relation to defeating the Expedition Army Corps.

The enemy wasn’t foolish; causing destruction everywhere was sufficient, there was simply no need to engage in a pitched battle with them.

Hampered by infantry, pursuing the enemy had become a fantasy.

No matter how slowly the enemy retreated, they were still faster than foot soldiers.

Suddenly, the encircling army found itself caught in a strategic dilemma of being unable to advance or retreat – an utter “embarrassment.”

“Marshal, perhaps we should report back to the Imperial Court!

Hudson is recognized by the Empire as the Continent’s foremost general.

Not being able to defeat the enemy he leads in a short time is excusable.

Compared to others, our performance has been quite acceptable – at the very least, we’ve maintained our main force, preserving vitality for the Court.”

A Bimon Commander beside advised.

Without a path to victory, they might as well compare failures.

After all, many significant figures had been defeated by Hudson’s hand, so if it came down to assigning blame, most of the Five Great Emperors would be “culprits.”

Comparing past results, the encircling corps had lost only several tens of thousands of second-rate Cavalry – by these standards, their performance was certainly passable.