Chapter 87: The Decision
This is pointless…
There’s no time to escape into hollow thoughts about meaningless international law.
What I need to think about—right now—is what the Lunoa army should do next.
“…I…”
What do I do? What should I do?
The loss of the mining region hurts too much. Far too much. It throws everything—every future war plan—into disarray.
That was why, without even needing to say it aloud, General Newsbeck and I had reached the same conclusion: we had no choice but to launch a renewed offensive and retake the mines.
That was the reason I had wagered everything on this.
A trump card doesn’t remain a trump card forever.
Air superiority wouldn’t last even half a year. The enemy would find countermeasures to tanks sooner or later—and it wouldn’t be surprising if they built their own. No… they definitely would.
If we stopped the offensive here, when would we ever reclaim the mining region?
We had struck down their prized aerial magic with a premature counter. We had blown apart their general headquarters. We had played every card we had—held nothing back—and only then managed to carve out this fragile advantage that couldn’t even be called absolute.
Would we ever get another chance like this?
If we halted now, the Kingdom of Lunoa would have to begin by rebuilding Frankhalt.
And in that time, the Kingdom of Friez would recover from the wounds we had inflicted in this battle.
The two-front war hadn’t been resolved.
We had already lost resources.
How much longer could we even continue fighting?
…No. In the end, there was only one option—launch the offensive on the mining region now—
No—! That’s impossible!
An offensive without supply lines isn’t just reckless—it’s suicide.
We’ve lost our supply network.
It can’t be done.
I knew it—
I knew that if Frankhalt were attacked, the Lunoa front would collapse.
That was why I tried, even on my own, to establish alternative supply points—anything, even a small buffer.
But alone, there was a limit.
There weren’t enough people.
There was no system in place to sustain it.
All I could create were empty shells—facilities without the means to function.
I was powerless.
Supply… was dead.
And without supply, an offensive is impossible.
There has never been a successful campaign fought without logistics to sustain it.
There’s no way to secure provisions.
We can’t even live off the land—everywhere ahead of us is already Lunoa territory.
No matter how you look at it… there is no path forward.
“…Ghk…”
Before I even realized it, I had sunk my teeth into the fingers of my right hand.
Warm blood trickled down.
…Can we still win?
Without the mining region…?
People died.
They died.
The soldiers of the Lunoa army gave their lives for this offensive—and many of them had already fallen.
Was I going to let those deaths be for nothing…?
From the very beginning… this plan of mine—
“Brigadier General Willard.”
“—Ow!?”
My spiraling thoughts were abruptly cut off.
General Newsbeck reached out, seized my head firmly, and forced my face downward.
“Call someone.”
“G-General Newsbeck…!? W-what are you—!?”
“Be quiet.”
Her voice was sharp, decisive—leaving no room for argument.
“Messenger. Don’t stop—go and bring someone here.”
“Y-yes, ma’am!”
The hurried footsteps of the messenger echoed as he rushed out of the room.
Even after the sound faded into the distance, General Newsbeck did not release her grip on me.
“Keep your head down like this, Brigadier General Willard.”
“I—I can’t do that. What are you trying to—?”
I didn’t understand.
Why was she holding me like this?
Confusion churned within me, mixing with the remnants of panic.
“This is not your responsibility.”
Her voice softened—firm, but steady.
“I am the supreme commander. The ultimate responsibility lies with me. You did everything you could.”
“T-that’s not—!”
I didn’t need to be told.
…I knew that.
But—
Had it really been written so plainly on my face?
She was… worrying about me.
“The decision will be mine. We are halting the offensive.”
“B-but—!”
“You understand it as well as I do. Combat without supply is impossible. First, we confirm the situation in Frankhalt. There is still a chance the damage is not catastrophic. We will pull back the lines once, reorganize, and prepare for a renewed offensive.”
She paused briefly, her tone measured, rational.
“This time was something we needed anyway. We must give ourselves a moment to regain composure.”
“…Yes. You’re right.”
It was the correct decision.
The calm, logical choice that had to be made here and now.
“…I…”
“Brigadier General Willard,” she said, looking at me steadily, “you have the makings of a general. Though… you are a bit too kind.”
“…No, that’s not true.”
“That is an order from your superior. Accept it.”
At last, she released me, lifting my head back up.
“It’s alright,” she said gently. “You’re doing well.”
“…Thank you… very much.”
As our eyes met,
the expression on General Newsbeck’s face was—
unbelievably kind.