III
The Battle of Ilys was drawing to a close. Supreme Commander Osvannes, Lieutenant General Georg, and Major General Minnitz had all fallen. Major General Heid Börner, commander of the imperial army’s left flank, continued to put up a staunch resistance in the hopes of allowing as many soldiers as possible to escape. Paul left Lambert to deal with him, and set off for Fort Caspar. They were en route when a messenger from the detached force arrived bearing shocking news.
“I don’t believe it! Fort Caspar has already fallen?!” cried Otto.
“Yes, my lord! The fort is under our control,” the messenger answered proudly. When Paul asked for the full explanation, the story they recounted was more shocking still. A mere eight royal soldiers had been lost in the attack on the fort. The vast majority of imperial soldiers had surrendered without resistance. Otto had never heard of a siege that had ended with fatal casualties in the single digits, no matter how far back in history he looked. Paul had sent Olivia because he thought she’d be able to wear down the enemy, even without a large army. Even he hadn’t hoped for more than that. No one could have foreseen that they’d topple Fort Caspar in a single day. The man they’d once called the God of the Battlefield felt a chill run down his spine.
“Very good. Go back and tell Lieutenant Olivia to stay vigilant.”
“Yes, my lord!” The messenger gave an energetic salute, before mounting their horse and galloping off back to Fort Caspar.
“Yet another slaughter to add to Lieutenant Olivia’s achievements,” said Paul happily. “What are we to do, Otto? I doubt just cake is going to cover this.”
“Please, my lord, spare me such talk. Besides, we have more important things to consider.”
“Ah, yes, this Ashton who supposedly came up with their battle plan. Do you know anything more about the boy, Otto?”
“I’d never heard... No, hold on.” Otto’s eyes darted about, and he began to stroke his chin.
“That’s right. Back when we questioned the lieutenant, she referred to someone of that name.” Otto’s face grew dark, as though the memory was unpleasant for him. Paul thought back to the incident where they’d captured the enemy spy. He must have been there too. He strained his aging memory, and little by little it all came back to him.
“Ahh, I remember. Lieutenant Olivia mentioned him when she asked for good bread from the capital as her reward.”
“I honestly hoped you wouldn’t bring that up. It makes me remember all the other things she said,” replied Otto, his expression growing darker still. Paul only laughed.
Fort Caspar was bustling so much when Otto arrived that he felt almost light-headed. Though they’d won the fort, they couldn’t afford to relax until they knew the situation at Kier Fortress. They kept guards stationed around the fort at all times. On top of that, they had to secure the surrounding towns and villages and deal with the four thousand soldiers they’d taken prisoner. The prisoners in particular were a headache for Otto. They’d never taken so many before. Just keeping them fed was no mean feat. The fort’s storerooms were extremely well-stocked, but he wanted to keep those supplies for their own troops. Unfortunately, he couldn’t just execute soldiers who’d surrendered, and there wasn’t even a convenient mine nearby he could send them to labor in. He wanted more than a little to take out some of this frustration at Olivia, but he also knew that this resentment was misdirected.
Two weeks passed like this, until one day, Olivia, Claudia, and Ashton were all summoned to the command room. They stood in front of the door.
“Olivia, why do you keep staring at that pocket watch? It’s not going to blink, you know,” said Ashton.
“Colonel Otto is really, really strict about time. Didn’t you know that? Anyway, he gets super mad if you’re even a little bit late.”
“I mean, it’s the first I’m hearing of it, but caring about punctuality is normal for the military, isn’t it?”
“Lieutenant Olivia, Ashton, be quiet. We’re right outside the command room,” cautioned Claudia. Ashton clamped his mouth shut. Olivia, unfazed, knocked on the door.
“Lieutenant Olivia, Warrant Officer Claudia and... Hey Ashton, what’s your rank?”
“Private Second Class,” hissed Ashton.
“And Private Second Class Ashton!” continued Olivia loudly, knocking on the door again. “Lieutenant Olivia, Warrant Officer Claudia, Private Second Class Ashton, reporting on time—”
“Yes, that’s enough. Enter, and be quick about it,” came Otto’s exasperated voice, and Olivia flung the door open. Paul sat in the front of the room, laughing, while Otto sat beside him shaking his head. Olivia and the others saluted, and Paul returned the salute, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. With the supreme commander right there in front of him, Ashton felt like he’d been turned to stone.
“Welcome! Thank you for coming all the way up to see us. Today—”
“Do you have cake?” Olivia cut him off. Otto fixed her with an icy glare, and even though he knew it wasn’t directed at him, Ashton began to sweat.
“It’s all about cake for you, is it, Lieutenant?”
“Not at all, ser. I also like books,” said Olivia, completely unconcerned.
At least try to think about what you’re saying, thought Ashton.
“As admirable as the pursuit of knowledge is, I didn’t call you to the command room because I care about what you like.”
Claudia kept her head resolutely lowered. Paul let out a hearty laugh.
“You never change, do you, Lieutenant?” he said. “I’m afraid the cake will have to wait until we’re back at Galia Fortress. Today I want to talk to you about another matter.” Hearing this, Olivia seemed to wilt with disappointment.
“Understood, ser...” she said dejectedly. Paul gave her a mollifying smile, then turned to look at Ashton.
“Private Second Class Ashton Senefelder!”
“Y-Yes, m’lord!” replied Ashton, tripping over the words in his alarm at being addressed.
“No need to be nervous,” Paul said, his expression kind. “I’ve already heard Warrant Officer Claudia’s report. You displayed impressive talent with your plan to take the fort.”
“Th-Th-Thank you, m-my lord! But it wouldn’t have been possible without Oliv—I mean, without Lieutenant Olivia, so I... I...” said Ashton in a rush. Paul looked amused at his panic, and raised a hand to cut him off.
“You’re right. Without Lieutenant Olivia, I very much doubt things would have gone as smoothly. But that, Private, is just as much thanks to your planning. Am I wrong, Lieutenant?”
“You are absolutely correct, ser,” answered Olivia, puffing out her chest with pride. “Thanks to Ashton, we were able to easily capture the fort.”
“O-Olivia!”
“What? It’s true. By the way, you should probably call me ‘ser’ in front of Colonel Otto or he’ll get mad at you.”
“Wha—?! You’re telling me at a time like this?!”
“Would the pair of you shut up? Lord Paul isn’t finished,” barked Otto. Ashton jumped like he’d been stung by a wasp.
“Lord Paul, I beg you to forgive my impudence!”
“Yes, yes, all right. Now, what I wanted to talk about is this: Lieutenant Olivia appointed you as tactician in a temporary capacity. How are you finding it? Would you consider taking on the position officially?”
This was so unexpected that Ashton’s mind went totally blank for a moment. He’d only taken the role after Olivia had practically forced him into it. He hadn’t dreamed that it could become a permanent appointment.
Is he...? No, he’s not joking, Ashton thought. Paul’s expression was dead serious. Ashton didn’t know how to respond. He’d only been able to think up the plan because of the old military history books he’d read. He wasn’t so drunk on his success to think that meant he could craft a battle plan for any situation.
He looked at Olivia, and saw she was smiling at him.
Oh, for... Damn it, I can’t say no to that face. He felt himself turning red as he turned back to Paul.
“I really don’t know if I’m up for the job, my lord, but I’m willing to give it a try.”
“That’s what I like to hear! In that case, there’s something I’d like your input on.”
“Y-Yes, my lord... Er, what is the situation exactly?” he inquired, taking pains to keep his tone level as a voice in his head yelled Right now?! Going from Paul and Otto’s looks of amusement, he hadn’t succeeded.
“Try to relax a little. Otto will explain.” Otto walked out to stand in front of the three of them, and began to lay out in detail the problems they faced feeding and finding work for their four thousand prisoners. Olivia yawned widely several times as he spoke, clearly bored. Claudia continued to stare at the ground.
“Well, Private?” said Otto when he’d finished. “If you have any promising ideas, I’m all ears.” Unlike his words, his expression was wholly unwelcoming.
But Ashton thought for a while, then replied, “Well... What if we negotiated with the empire to do an exchange of prisoners? There are two benefits to that.”
“Oh?” said Otto. “Explain.” There was a steel in Otto’s eyes that made Ashton struggle to continue. He still wasn’t used to this air of intimidation the officers carried.
“Y-Yes, ser. The first is that if the negotiations succeed, we solve our food problem. The second is that with our soldiers returned to us, we can bolster our own forces.”
Otto paused for a moment before replying. “I see your point. That would certainly resolve our supply problem. But if we exchange prisoners, won’t we be allowing the empire to bolster its forces just as much?” Otto voiced his concerns.
So he’s on board with my point about food supplies, but thinks there won’t be any meaningful military benefit, thought Ashton. As far as I’m concerned, it’ll make a big difference.
“Yes, ser. However, I believe the benefit to the royal army in its current state may be more significant. Right now, you have soldiers like me on the front line who can barely tell the blade of a sword from the pommel.”
Paul and Otto both winced like he’d touched a sore spot. He went on.
“On top of that, from a humanitarian standpoint, the empire will have no choice but to engage in negotiations. They’d face significant backlash from their citizens if they refused.” Everyone in Duvedirica knew the reputation of Ramza the Good. Ashton felt sure he wouldn’t act in a way that tarnished that reputation, and said as much.
“I see...” said Otto. “You may be unaware of this, Private, but as a general rule, only those of high rank are exchanged as prisoners. It’s a measure we might consider should a member of the royal household be captured. It has never been done with ordinary soldiers. Your idea, however, merits further consideration.” He stroked his chin, and looked over at Paul, who grunted thoughtfully.
“Time for an emergency council, then. Thank you, Private Ashton. Your insight will be of great help to us.”
“Th-Thank you, my lord!”
Paul dismissed Olivia, Claudia, and Ashton, then pulled a cigarette from his breast pocket and put it in his mouth.
“What do you think, Otto? It sounds feasible to me.”
“I don’t have any objections. It does appear his performance at Fort Caspar might have been more than just luck. I don’t think it’d have occurred to me to do a prisoner exchange with ordinary soldiers.”
“It would be quite the embarrassment for us if he pulled off such a historic victory with just luck. Albeit all the more so for our enemies.”
“There is that, at least. Now, I’d best get started drafting a request to open negotiations.”
“Very good.” Paul watched Otto go, then slowly exhaled a mouthful of smoke.
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