Arc 4 Chapter 25 : Sail

[Siena POV]

Ah... This dream again...

Right now, I was watching two men kicking the body of another man who lay sprawled across the street.

He was Evans Baxter—Liana's former lover. However, in this timeline, the two of them had only just met one another.

After Liana promised to go with the blond-haired man, his companions finally stopped beating Evans.

Liana appeared to be about to help Evans, but the blond-haired man stopped her. If I remembered correctly, his name was Gavin—Liana's childhood friend.

Liana was the daughter of a prominent weapons manufacturer in this country. Her family belonged to the elite circles of society.

Gavin was the son of one of Liana's father's business partners. When they were children, the two of them had often spent time together because of the close relationship between their parents.

Although the social structure of this world was different from that of my original world, the nature of those who possessed power was no different here than it had been in the world where I was born.

Those at the top always flaunted what they possessed, looked down upon anyone they considered beneath their social class, and frequently exploited others for their own personal gain.

That was why Gavin—whose family belonged to the elite—treated Evans, who had no background among the powerful, in such a manner.

However, Liana's outlook was different from that of most people within these elite circles, even though her own family belonged to them.

That did not mean Liana had never behaved like her family.

She had been taught from childhood how to conduct herself like a member of the elite, just as Gavin had.

She had also been allowed to socialize only with people selected by her family.

At first, Liana believed that arrogance, excessive pride, and looking down on people of a lower social caste were simply normal things in this world.

However, when she turned fifteen and entered high school, Liana began meeting people from a wide variety of social backgrounds.

It was completely different from before, when her friends had always approached her regardless of how coldly she treated them or how often she looked down on them.

Liana could always sense a certain falseness behind the smiles of the people who wanted to become close to her because of her family's prestigious status.

Yet when Liana responded coldly and frequently belittled the other students around her, she began to notice the hateful looks directed toward her.

Even the girls who envied her began distancing themselves when so many of the boys at school started approaching Liana.

During her second year of high school, Liana made a male friend.

The two became quite close, and it could be said that this was the first relationship Liana had ever experienced without any lies involved.

Her friend interacted with Liana not because of her family's status or because of her beautiful appearance.

But their friendship did not last long.

Jealous students, especially those from elite families, bullied Liana's male friend.

They told him that he had no right to stand beside Liana because the backgrounds of the two of them were as different as heaven and earth.

After being bullied repeatedly by those jealous boys, Liana's friend began distancing himself from her.

Liana did not even understand why her friend's attitude toward her had suddenly changed.

However, even after he distanced himself from Liana, the jealous boys continued bullying him until he fell into severe depression.

Liana only discovered why her friend had distanced himself from her when they met for the last time on the rooftop of their school.

Her friend explained why he had avoided her and why he had begun skipping school so often.

He had even received numerous threatening messages that threatened harm to his family.

Hearing his confession, Liana was deeply shocked.

Even so, she tried to remain calm and comfort her friend.

But her friend suddenly screamed hysterically and tried to distance himself from Liana.

He continued screaming, unable to endure the bullying he had suffered.

The threats he had constantly received had driven him mad, until he finally dared to leap from the rooftop of the school building and end his life instantly.

The incident had an enormous impact on Liana.

The only friend she had at the time had died because of his connection to her.

Afterward, she even confronted her father and asked him,

"Why do we have to live like this? Why can't we live normally like ordinary people?"

This story originates from NovelPhoenix. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Liana also told him about the heartbreaking incident that had befallen her only friend.

However, Liana's father answered her question in a cold voice.

"We do all of this so that people fear us and see us as powerful. Look at what happened to your friend when others looked down on him. We must show them that we belong among the upper class so that we do not end up suffering the same miserable fate as your friend."

In my opinion, Liana's father's words were not entirely wrong.

Take the Venetian people, for example.

Before we had our own nation and were forced to depend on other peoples simply to survive, we were constantly oppressed, ridiculed, and looked down upon.

That was because they considered us weak and believed that we possessed neither the power nor the strength to fight back.

But after we established our own nation and began gaining influence across the continent, other nations gradually began respecting us—and fearing what our people were capable of doing.

Even after receiving an answer from her father, however, Liana still refused to change her opinion about her family's lifestyle and the social circle they belonged to.

After that incident, Liana became increasingly withdrawn and even distanced herself from her family.

She eventually rented an apartment of her own, even though it meant having a longer commute to school.

Then, after graduating, she met Evans, who slowly began opening her heart again and allowed her to form a connection with another person.

But it happened again.

Right before her eyes, a man she had only just met was being beaten by her childhood companions, causing Liana to remember the heartbreaking incident from her past.

Because of that, when the incident happened to Evans, Liana decided to end her relationship with him.

• Clack!

Just as I was dreaming about Liana's life again, I suddenly woke up after hearing approaching footsteps.

It seemed I had fallen asleep at my desk again.

A man I knew very well entered my office.

"Captain Siena, I'm sorry for entering your room without permission," the man said.

He was Valentino—the Vice Captain of the Cavalier Squad.

"It's fine, Valen," I told him. "Is there any important information regarding the war?"

"Indeed, Captain," Valen replied. "According to information from our Reconnaissance Unit, the Empire has divided its forces into two groups. The first force, numbering approximately 20,000 soldiers, is moving toward Ebro Village, while the other force has entered the Tuscan Forest and is heading this way."

They had already begun moving?

If so, it was time to put our plan into motion.

Valen and I then left the room to meet with the Minister of Defense—Antonio Margarete—to discuss the execution of the plan we had previously devised.

After leaving the inn where we were staying, Valen and I rode through the streets of Tusculum.

The city was still bustling despite the enemy forces being only a short distance away.

Almost all of the civilians, particularly women and children, had already evacuated to the capital.

However, the men remaining in the city had refused evacuation. They claimed they did not want to abandon their possessions and intended to assist the soldiers if the city came under attack.

After several minutes on horseback, we finally arrived at the military command center in the Tusculum region and hurried to meet Lord Antonio.

"Captain Siena, what brings you here?"

A guard approached us and asked about the purpose of our visit.

"I want to see Lord Antonio," I answered. "Is he in his office?"

"The Minister is in his office," the guard replied. "Allow me to escort you to him, Captain Siena."

Following behind the guard, we entered the building.

There were countless military officials moving through the halls.

Everyone was undoubtedly extremely busy handling everything related to the war that was currently unfolding.

After walking for some time, we finally arrived in front of Lord Antonio's office.

The guard knocked on the door and waited for a response from the person inside.

"Come in."

After receiving permission, the guard opened the door for us.

Valen and I entered the room and saw Lord Antonio sitting behind his desk, which was covered with all kinds of documents.

"Captain Siena, Lieutenant Valentino, take a seat for now," Lord Antonio said, ordering one of his servants to bring two chairs in front of his desk.

"Thank you, Lord Antonio."

Valen and I sat down, ready to begin our discussion about the counterattack against the Empire.

"So, what is it that you need to see me about?" Lord Antonio asked.

I then explained that the Imperial forces had begun moving and had divided themselves into two groups, each heading toward Tusculum City and Ebro Village.

"That means the 20,000 troops heading toward Ebro Village intend to intercept the 30,000 soldiers from the Republic of Greco who will be arriving in this region?" Lord Antonio muttered. "That means there are two options available to the remaining 70,000 Imperial troops heading here."

I confirmed Lord Antonio's assessment before continuing.

"First, those 70,000 troops will attack Tusculum City directly. If they learn that we have 50,000 troops stationed here, I doubt they will immediately launch a direct assault against the city."

Tusculum City had approximately 10,000 guards.

Combined with our main force, that meant we had a total of 60,000 troops defending the city.

It would be difficult for the Empire, with only 70,000 troops, to conquer the city.

They would need at least 100,000 soldiers if they wanted to win a battle here.

"Second, the Empire may attempt to draw us out by sending those 70,000 troops toward Ebro Village to join the other 20,000 troops currently confronting the 30,000 soldiers from the Republic of Greco there," I continued, explaining the second maneuver the Imperial forces might take. "From there, they could either confront our 50,000 troops directly in open terrain or join their remaining 20,000 troops at Ebro Village."

Considering the geographical conditions along the road toward Ebro Village, it seemed more likely that they would choose to fight our forces there.

However, they had no idea that we had a third option.

"Lord Antonio, I want to proceed with our previous plan because the development of the war so far has proceeded according to our predictions," I told the Minister.

Hearing my words, Lord Antonio thought for a moment before asking,

"Has the number of troops you requested for this operation changed?"

I answered him clearly.

"No, Lord Antonio. Thirty thousand will be enough for me to retake Fortress City Regium and attack the 20,000 Imperial troops currently heading toward Ebro Village."

"Very well, then," Lord Antonio said.

He then wrote a letter.

Once he had finished, he signed it and placed an official stamp and the seal of the Minister of Defense upon it.

"Give this letter to Admiral Benio."

Lord Antonio handed me the letter he had just written.

"He will transport you and the 30,000 troops under your command by boat to Bitola Village."

"Thank you, Lord Antonio."

After receiving the official orders from Lord Antonio, I then went to meet Admiral Benio to inform him that we would be departing as soon as possible.

.

.

.

The following morning, tens of thousands of soldiers were lined up at the city's harbor as the sun had just begun to rise.

One group after another boarded the boats that would carry them to Bitola Village.

The vessels we were using were Nordic Ships, commonly used by the Nordican people in the northern part of the eastern continent.

Although they were smaller than ships that sailed the open seas, these vessels could navigate rivers with ease, moving against the current when the wind was favorable and with the help of strong rowers.

A medium-sized vessel could carry approximately 40 people, while a large one could carry a maximum of 80.

Because we possessed only 200 ships of this type, the troops had to be transported in shifts from morning until night.

"Verentini Battalion! Board ships number 21, 22, and 23!" shouted a sailor standing at the end of the pier, calling for the soldiers.

Once the ships were fully loaded, the crews raised the sails and immediately began sailing into the Vicenzo River toward Bitola Village.

While waiting for my battalion's turn to board, I looked toward the horizon.

The sun was beginning to climb into the sky.

"I hope everything goes according to plan."