+++ Lieutenant Hans Hoffman +++

  Nomosian Countryside

  January 4, 1539 CE

  They finally marched out of La Veridad. It was more of a joyous procession from the crowds that watched them leave. The soldiers of the 1st Anti-Demon Regiment marched on the streets proudly with their guns and equipment. Drums, fifes, and bagpipes all played the marching tunes of the Imperial Army.

  All in total, the three infantry battalions of the 4th Holy Ygeia Regiment followed by the singular cavalry battalion of the unit. The last members of the 4th Holy Ygeia Regiment’s cohort funneled in, with the 22nd Imperial Artillery Battalion, consisting of A, B, and C Batteries showing off their light guns towed by horses. Then, behind them, was the rest of the 1st Anti-Demon Unit itself. The so-called 2nd Specialist Battalion, consisting of two mage engineer companies and one battlemage company, marched with discipline as well.

  And of course, Hans and Adelyn’s mechs drove as well. The cheers of the crowd grew as their mechs walked slowly through the streets. Flowers and paper confetti fell from the two and three-story buildings throughout the thoroughfare. Hans on the other hand was simply glazing over all of it on his seat.

  I wish we could just drive out at full speed.

  He kept his feet on the pedal, keeping a steady pace with his mech.

  But, they all needed this, I guess.

  Hans could only sigh, remembering the Viceroy’s insistence on one last send-off celebration. She seemed to be desperately trying to keep the morale of her remaining territories up. And this was the best they could do.

  “We’ll need actual victories though,” Hans said to himself. “That’s the only way to raise morale once and for all.”

  Behind their mechs, reinforcements from the north followed close by. They were from Ygeia, all sent by the IYC and the Ygeian Principality to bolster the Army of Nomos. Like the 1st Anti-Demon Unit though, they were also seemingly well-equipped for the battle ahead of them. New guns, new uniforms, and clean, disciplined marches.

  All in all, they should be on the best footing now to take on two calamities. An ambitious goal indeed, but a goal they wouldn’t be able to back out on. It was either victory or death for mankind.

  And Hans knew that all too well, as he gripped his controls harder. He could already feel instinctively what would be happening again now that they were back on the campaign. The upcoming battles…wouldn’t be the most fun experience for him.

  He tried to steel himself.

  If I’ll die and die again, then so be it.

  He would still triumph eventually.

  +++

  Fort Sagrada

  They soon arrived at one of the fortresses that overlooked the southeastern front. Fort Sagrada. The fortress itself was situated near what appeared to be a walled town. Except, unlike the walled town which only boasted near medieval walls, Fort Sagrada was a well-built, modern one to Hans’ view.

  Its walls were angled, thick, and low to the ground. Eight bastions armed with four cannons each were placed on the faces of its star-like walls. That, alongside the corners of the walls as well, which were equally armed to the teeth with artillery. The ravelins outside of the fort also seemed well-manned, with troops patrolling the well-covered areas as they went through the main entrance.

  It was a fortress that already managed to seriously injure and deter three minor demons. Due to Hans’ suggestion of utilizing enchanted canister shells, the strength of pre-positioned artillery against demons was increasingly becoming lethal. Fort Sagrada had been one of the first to adopt the doctrine of ‘alert and fire’ measures.

  It simply meant that the fortress wasn’t manned for a one-time prolonged siege. Instead, the fortress was surrounded by enchanted ‘tripwire’ artifacts that were capable of detecting demons. Hans saw them surrounding Fort Sagrada, as they were practically just magical crystals mounted on fences positioned two kilometers away from the fortress.

  It was a pretty new invention from Ygeia, and extremely expensive, but it allowed this fortress to do a lot of things it wouldn’t have been able to. It could detect a demonic attack 24/7, and enact the ‘fire’ part of the doctrine. It essentially would just be the act of firing all available enchanted canister shells at whichever part of the fence wall sent out beacons to the sky when activated.

  The interior of the fortress itself wasn’t that welcoming. It was mostly just utilitarian buildings arranged in dispersed rows. Each of them seemed to serve a specific purpose. Warehouses for munitions, or grain and foodstuff. Workshops for weapons maintenance. Countless barracks for the fortress’ garrison. And the headquarters building.

  The rest of the 1st Anti-Demon Unit itself was outside of the fortress due to its small size. Most of them would be encamped outside of Fort Sagrada, near the walled town of Capez northwest of the fortress. Hans, and Adelyn, alongside the officers and mages of the 1st Anti-Demon Unit, were staying inside though.

  He dismounted his mech right in front of Fort Sagrada’s headquarters. Adelyn did the same, and so did the Viceroy and other leaders of the 1st Anti-Demon Unit. Soon, they went straight inside the building. It seemed that the administrative staff of the garrison was extremely busy.

  “So what’s the situation here?” Adelyn asked the garrison commander. He was Colonel Dominic Reichmeister, a human imperial military officer. He was clad in a full metal chest plate on top of his red dress uniform, with a hat containing a red-dyed feather.

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  The officer turned to Adelyn with a grunt.

  “Decent,” was his blunt reply. Then, he grinned. “We received copies of your reports about killing demons. We’ve applied most of the suggestions made by Lieutenant Hoffman, though we’re still procuring more demon detection crystals to plant around the fence lines.”

  “Yeah, but you detected one last night, right?” Hans asked.

  The man nodded.

  “Indeed. It could have attacked Capez if it wasn’t for the swift response of our artillerymen. It was humanoid by the way, just…badly disfigured. It seems to have this crystal bullcrap flying around it and killing people. We gave it a rain of enchanted canister shells,” the Colonel laughed. “In just three minutes, it was reduced into an almost mangled creature. Then it ran from whence it came.”

  “You didn’t chase it?” Emilia asked from the side.

  “Your Excellency, we don’t have the manpower for it,” the Colonel said. “This fortress is only capable of defending itself. Nothing more, nothing less. The good news is, the strategy works.”

  “Well, we already placed that to the test in the field,” Hans said. “That’s why I recommended it. Musketry and artillery, combined with magical attacks, are very potent if used correctly. While it’s hard to kill a demon outright, you can deter them well enough.”

  “Yes, but that’s the problem,” the Viceroy’s frown grew. “We can only deter them. Delay them. Measures that are painfully temporary. Eventually, they’ll recover and continue their rampage. We need more mages capable of getting the final killing blow on these creatures.”

  “But that’s the problem,” Hans said. “Mages aren’t easy to come by. Just creating the 2nd Specialized Battalion required that we hire most likely half of the eager and effective mages available in Ygeia. Quite frankly, it’s unrealistic to even try.”

  “Indeed. That’s always been the bottleneck of all armies,” Colonel Reichmeister said. “Hence why we have armies. A few powerful individuals can change the fate of battles. But the fate of wars between two grand states is decided by the endless tide of material and men.”

  “That’s why we must flood the battlefield with enchanted munitions mounted on artillery platforms,” Hans declared. “It’s good that we’re starting to do that. But for that to happen, the Imperium truly needs to mobilize. Everything. To total warfare.”

  “How will we get to that point,” the Viceroy asked. “All I can do is mobilize my Principality. But that’s it. And my Principality’s a burning mess.”

  “We’ll win this campaign. Then we’ll make our case to the Imperial government,” Hans declared. “Now, to start with, Colonel—where did that demon last night retreat?”

  The man stopped walking and turned to Hans.

  “Are you serious?”

  +++

  Hans stared blankly at his current status screen.

  Hmm…I’d say, it should be fairly possible to pull this off.

  Assuming that there was no presence of the calamities nearby, considering the calmness of the front, Hans could do a fast recon this day. Vanquishing that demon with a quick search-and-destroy operation would mean that the rest of the 1st Anti-Demon Unit and the attached elements of the Army of Nomos would be able to charge southwards safely.

  It was already night, however.

  Someone tapped from outside of his hatch. Hans thus briefly opened it. Above him was Adelyn. She was looking down at him, concerned.

  “Hans, are you even sure of this?” she asked. “I can accompany you if need be, you know?”

  “Worried again?” Hans asked with a cheeky smirk. That elicited an annoyed pout from Adelyn.

  “You’re getting into too many solo missions now,” Adelyn said. “And your usual excuse is that I’m too busy—”

  “Well, you are busy. We need to move out tomorrow. Someone needs to keep things organized.”

  “I can free my time to ride out with you, you know?”

  “I know. But then, what if we come back at say, eleven PM? Then you won't have proper sleep.”

  “Isn’t that a problem for you too? Besides, we’re talking about finding and killing a demon.”

  “An injured demon, specifically. Look, I’m not going to get into any unnecessary threats. He already gave me the description. I’ll just scour the countryside, find it, and cap its ass. And if I somehow encounter something different, then I’ll retreat and inform you all.”

  “But what if it kills you first? Then what?”

  “I won’t die,” Hans said, his voice turning slightly neutral. “Well…yeah, I won’t die. I won’t be defeated.”

  “Really now? That sounds awfully Hans-y. Cheeky that he believes that he won’t ever be defeated. I don’t trust that at all.”

  Hans snorted. She has a point. He could be defeated…technically. He could die…technically. But, well…

  “I’m wounded, Captain. Is my performance nowadays truly this bad that my commanding officer has no trust in me performing my duties?”

  “Hans…please,” Adelyn turned serious. “Can I please accompany you? I just…I want to fight with you, no matter what. If I can. And right now, I can.”

  “Is that an order?”

  “You will wound me worse if you deny my invitation.”

  Hans groaned.

  “Whatever then. Get to your mech. We’re on the move in five minutes. Get to it,” he shook his head. “Such an insistent woman.”

  She smiled smugly in response.

  “And you fold too easily to pressure, Lieutenant. Let’s do this nicely then, as a team.”

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