Chapter Seventeen: Military Strength

Dragumo had no idea that he and his army had been treated like livestock, paraded around by Komer with a lady in tow, all because his own lord could control his lusts no better than an animal and thus ravaged her in the same manner. At that moment, he was worried about the loss of two thousand of his soldiers. Out of the two thousand soldiers who boarded the ship at Bruce and arrived at the river port by Lake Nise, twenty-six were lost—none of them survived, either falling into the river or being killed by the fierce crocodiles that inhabited it. These crocodiles were among the most dangerous magical beasts in the Nise River, but they mostly hid in the swamps surrounding the forests and lakes, and they never showed mercy to invaders in their territory. From the river port to the Zuke Valley, another thirty-three soldiers died in battles against wolves and orcs.

Having lost nearly seventy warriors before even starting the campaign, Dragumo was furious. Yet, faced with those brutal and fierce magical beasts, he had to admit that his soldiers lacked both combat skills and experience in dealing with them. As for Sorenberg and Ilot, who came with his army, they saw the magical beasts as a rare opportunity to hone their skills. They not only fought their way forward but also deliberately provoked those beasts, keeping things chaotic along the way. Their formidable abilities almost made Dragumo and his orc soldiers worship them. In particular, Sorenberg single-handedly fought two orcs, splitting one of them in two with his knight’s sword, earning the utter admiration of the orc warriors.

Of course, Dragumo also knew that in actual large-scale battles, he still relied on his orc soldiers. Though knights were valiant, in large-scale combat, individual strength became less important. So, while envying Sorenberg’s personal skills, Dragumo focused more on helping his remaining nineteen hundred soldiers adapt to the environment and strengthen their discipline through training.

Komer stood silently in the woods outside the barracks, observing the training going on in the drill ground. It could be said that Fran’s training had produced quite good results—these strong but disorganized half-orc warriors now at least appeared organized, and to outsiders, they seemed formidable. At least Kakiya had been completely awed by these terrifying half-orcs. As for Palermo, as a merchant, he lacked any special ability to assess warriors; aside from his admiration, he was thinking about how to help the Livonians accept this reality without panicking.

However, Komer knew that although this army appeared fierce, it still lacked true combat experience. Fortunately, the noble private troops gathered around Hoffman weren’t much better. His own half-orc army should have a certain advantage against them. The only concern was the court mage corps. Although this army had undergone basic training against magical attacks, it was merely routine training—common fire and lightning magic still held considerable power over them. Perhaps it was part of their race’s nature, and a few drills couldn’t completely eliminate it.

Another key issue was the numerical disadvantage. Two thousand soldiers couldn’t ensure that Kakiya could rival Hoffman’s Blood Lion Corps, which had the support of even two major lords from the north and its numbers had officially exceeded ten thousand. They seemed strong and numerous, so their attitude toward Kakiya grew increasingly hostile, with some even calling for force to subdue the southwestern regions that refused to obey Gothenburg’s orders.

Komer sighed softly. His forces were indeed too weak. Yet even so, five thousand soldiers had already caused financial difficulties for the Caucasus. If not for the development of industry and commerce over the past two years and the profits from selling mines, supplying even three thousand soldiers would have been a struggle. But this was a battle that determined whether Kakiya could ascend to the throne, and it was crucial for him as well. A victory in this battle could resolve all the pressures he faced.

Komer’s sigh was immediately noticed by the half-orc sentries surrounding the drill ground. The sentries rushed over, their spears almost touching Komer’s throat, before realizing it was their lord observing the training. Uncertain about how to handle the situation, they turned to their leader for guidance.

“Oh, Lord, is it you? How did you find time to come here? Do we need to go to war right away?” Waving for the sentries to leave, Dragumo stared in surprise as Komer stood alone outside the training ground.

“Well, I came to check on your training. Dragumo, how is the morale of the soldiers?” Komer’s gaze swept over a half-orc soldier with a bulging chest and belly. Seeing that the lord himself had come to inspect, the half-orc soldiers’ morale soared, and as their formation adjusted, their shouts grew louder and more synchronized.

“Excellent, Lord! They’re all eager to fight a good battle. I heard that the nobles here have prepared rewards for us. If we win, the soldiers will receive generous bonuses. Right now, they’re intensifying their training to ensure a victory.” Dragumo puffed out his chest and said proudly, “I trust my soldiers. Those cowardly human soldiers are no match for them. We will surely win.”

Komer nodded thoughtfully. “Dragumo, I also believe my army can win. But you should be aware that those guys over there not only have an army—they also have magicians. We might have to face the enemy’s magical attacks.”

Dragumo’s expression turned somewhat uneasy. Despite having undergone several drills against magical attacks, the half-orc soldiers’ resistance to such attacks remained weak. It wasn’t so much the power of magic that was the issue, but rather the half-orcs’ poor psychological resilience. Faced with forces beyond their comprehension, they felt extreme fear and instinctively wanted to flee. In contrast, they were incredibly brave in actual combat against human soldiers. This was probably the biggest flaw in the half-orc army, and Dragumo knew his own kind all too well.

“Lord, I’m truly helpless in this regard. Not to mention the soldiers, even I feel panicked when faced with magical attacks. I always think these forces from nature will throw us into hell forever,” Dragumo replied gloomily.

“Well, I understand this. To prevent this phenomenon from causing further damage to our army’s combat effectiveness, apart from strengthening training to adapt to magical attacks, the only way is to enforce strict military discipline to keep them from collapsing in battle!” Komer certainly understood the reasoning: “Dragumo, mortal soldiers are just as afraid of magical attacks as your half-orc soldiers. However, years of rigorous training have instilled in them an ironclad discipline. Even faced with deadly dangers, as long as they don’t receive an order to stop, they will keep moving forward. Even if the sky falls, they will wait in place unless ordered otherwise. It is strict military discipline that truly ensures the strength of an army. I hope you can understand this.”

Nodding eagerly and seriously to show he understood, Dragumo also felt a surge of pride. The lord now regarded him as a reliable asset, which filled him with honor. To prove his worth was different from that of ordinary people, he could only do so through victory in war. And now this opportunity was right before him—Dragumo would never let it slip away.

“Please rest assured, my lord. Dragumo will never disappoint you.”

Komer nodded slightly before suddenly remembering something: “Dragumo, I’d like to know—if your half-orc army were to face off against an orc army, do you think we have a chance of winning?”

Dragumo’s expression turned serious once again. As descendants of the legendary hybridization between orcs and mortals, the true origins of half-orcs have always been a subject of debate. Half-orcs consider themselves a separate race, distinct from both orcs and mortals. If they must identify a racial connection, they prefer to believe they share some bloodline with mortals. The term “half-orc” simply arose because their physique bears some resemblance to northern orcs, leading to a superficial classification.

“My lord, although I have always believed that our half-orc soldiers are no inferior to those of any other race, given our current level of soldier quality and overall military strength, I fear we cannot compare to the orc armies in the north. Though I have never faced the orc armies head-on, Lord Fran has always been my most respected commander. From him, I learned that the combat strength of the orc armies far exceeds that of human armies. They possess the individual strength advantages of us half-orcs, as well as the discipline of human soldiers due to their long history of warfare. Their extensive experience in fighting human armies has also made their armies highly experienced and battle-hardened. If human armies do not have more advanced weapons and equipment, as well as powerful magicians to support them, then, according to Lord Fran, the entire north could become a hunting ground for the orc armies.” Dragumoe did not dare speak rashly on this matter and could only present Lord Fran’s views to Komer.