I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 183 The Battle of Chokepoint Peak (Part 4)
"So, the Burning City forces have been delayed by the enemy?"

An hour later, in the Allied command tent, Roxie did not receive the expected report of the successful raid from Gal, and immediately realized this.

She was indeed somewhat surprised by this turn of events. After all, based on the intelligence she currently possessed, John Maslow, who had already lost most of his army forces in the battle between Horseshoe Territory and the Seventh Legion, and was unable to deploy magic soldiers due to the support of their own anti-magic devices, should theoretically not have any elite troops capable of withstanding their City Burners forces.

Moreover, the person leading this force is Gal Loken, a super-ranked mage.

Even a super-ranked mage of the same level would likely find it difficult to gain the upper hand against Gal, who wields magical armor.

They would most likely be severely injured, or even perish, from their subordinate's unique technique, which could instantly shatter a hundred-meter-high mountain.

However, the annihilation operation, which should have been completed within half an hour, has yet to receive a report from the enemy, even after a full hour has passed.

Even without being there in person, Roxie could deduce that the Burning City forces were now facing unprecedented resistance.

"So, John Maslow received support from the Third Navy of an elite force of equal or even greater strength than the Burning City Force? I must say, that's quite surprising."

After gathering his thoughts, Roxie quickly realized the origin of this elite enemy force.

If she's not mistaken, the enemy force that blocked the Burners' army is most likely the Third Navy's Raider land and sea combat force.

She had long heard of this force, which was active on the northwestern border of the empire and was currently fighting against the Kingdom of Loran.

Besides each member possessing elite-level marksmanship and astonishing close-combat abilities, the most important thing is that this unit was carefully selected and created by the Grand Admiral Ostan, known as the 'Imperial Sea Dragon,' and is a special combat force that possesses covert-level magic and whose strength is limited to its unique magic.

In terms of mobility, destructive power, and functionality, it is among the top forces in the world.

If the Burning City forces were facing them, it would be understandable that they would be unable to capture the city after a long siege.

After all, apart from the Demon Legion that makes the world tremble, the only other elite troops in the Empire's current army are the Black Hawk Special Forces and the Raiders land and sea combat forces.

The former is only good at assassination, and it is difficult for them to exert their strength when facing the Burning City forces, which are all equipped with magical armor.

Therefore, without a doubt, the only force capable of appearing on this battlefield and successfully stopping the Burning City forces was the Raiders.

"In that case, the plan to annihilate the main force of the enemy's heavy artillery regiment should have failed."

Realizing that his plan to use the 112th Division as bait to try to defeat the enemy's main force and secure victory had failed, Roxie was not disappointed.

Her blue eyes returned to the real-time battle map in her field of vision. Under the control of her mental power, she continuously switched the battlefield positions at various points on the front line. After discovering that the enemy's front-line troops were beginning to collapse under her own firepower, and that the battle line had shown that her side had a complete advantage, she realized that the enemy's front-line troops were in a state of continuous defeat.

Instead of smiling, Roxie's expression grew increasingly cold and serious.

After reviewing the Seventh Army's operational reports, particularly those concerning the 1st Division's performance in guerrilla warfare, she concluded that John Maslow could, through some kind of technique, micromanage his own troops, much like her Mind Technique.

Although the specific principles could not be determined due to insufficient information, for Roxie, knowing this much was enough.

Having grown accustomed to commanding troops to fight according to her own will, she knew very well that with this trump card, if her overall battle situation fell into an unfavorable state...

Therefore, she would never easily use this trump card to allow the frontline troops to maintain the battle line.

Instead, they will choose an appropriate time to launch a counterattack.

So, what exactly is your goal, John Maslow?

"..."

Roxie's gaze swept back and forth across the map, and as she put herself in the enemy's shoes and deduced the tactics, various possibilities began to emerge in her mind.

But soon, her gaze suddenly locked onto a location behind her main force, where an information unit was currently responsible for communications relay, and a glint of light flashed in her eyes.

That's right, a raid!

By cutting off one's own communications and completely severing one's own command and control, the commander's ability to transmit operational orders will be paralyzed.

In this state, after briefly bringing the entire army under his control through special techniques, John Maslow was able to use his command to enable the originally weak Independent 3rd Division to achieve combat superiority, or even surpass it.

Even if our side sends a completely new unit to the battlefield to take over the communications hub, or sends other information transmission units to the information transmission point temporarily to set up the corresponding facilities, it will still take at least two hours before communications are restored.

This period of stagnation is undoubtedly fatal for our side!
After all, once he has activated the Spirit Heart Technique, even if he uses a force of three thousand men, he can still turn the tide on multiple fronts within an hour!

Moreover, John Maslow demonstrated his ability to command nearly 10,000 men in combat simultaneously during the Battle of Horseshoe Ridge.

If I hadn't realized this, I might have been forced to issue an evacuation order due to the other side's scheme.

"But unfortunately, I've already seen through your plan, so I still win this round!"

The excitement brought by this long-awaited competition made Roxie's lips slowly curve into a smile, but then she calmly gave orders to another elite force that she had pre-positioned on the battlefield and was currently waiting in the rear:

"Colonel Lyria Corwin, immediately lead the 'Silent Assassin' unit to the location of area D33 to prepare to engage the enemy!"

"Yes, General!"

After issuing the order to intercept the possible elite enemy troops, Roxie did not stop. Instead, after pondering for a while, he turned to look at the young man with brown hair and black-rimmed glasses who had been standing silently behind him, looking like a bookworm.

Then, an instruction was given to cause the other party's pupils to constrict:
"Orion, the coordinate-setting team has now arrived at the enemy's rear. You can now begin preparing to activate the phase teleportation spell to teleport me and the entire guard regiment to the battlefield!"

"Once Liria and the enemy forces that have launched the raid officially engage in combat, I will activate the Spirit Heart Technique and lead the guards to complete a flanking attack on the enemy forces, thereby securing a complete victory in this war."

"...General, if I may be so bold, your decision seems a bit too risky."

“No, in my opinion, quite the opposite.” Meeting Orion’s silent gaze, Roxie rose from her chair with a smile, then picked up a black baton she often used in sand table simulations, and with ease and composure placed the piece on the sand table that represented the last three thousand troops deployed in her own base.

It smashed through everything in its path, pushing it straight to the very back of the throat peak. Its dazzling red color, among the black pieces representing the Imperial forces, was like a nail embedded in the heart of the enemy, enough to make any attempt to put up a last stand by the sudden attack from behind, leaving the enemy with no chance!
Only after all this was accomplished did Roxie's calm voice slowly reach Orion's ears:

"The Third Navy is already at its limit if it can spare two elite units to support John Maslow."

"In the ambush zone where the 112th Division is located, the heavy artillery regiment, which is the core main force of the enemy's army, has been deployed, and elite troops have already engaged in combat with Colonel Gal!"

"If my tactical counter-analysis is correct, then the enemy's last elite force will also engage in combat with the Silent Assassin force led by Liria within half an hour."

"Although John Maslow does have an elite squad from the Black Hawk Special Forces, given the current situation, there is absolutely no way they would send it to this massive battlefield to carry out an assassination!"

"Given their personality, they will most likely hide it, trying to make me wary and thus restrict my actions. I will leave a super-ranked mage and a force of about three thousand men to protect my safety."

"He is very smart and adept at understanding people's hearts. I almost ended up following his lead."

"Even I can't help but praise his strategy as brilliant."

Roxie's voice was very calm, without any emotional fluctuation, but when it reached Orion's ears, it made him, a super-ranked mage, feel an inexplicable palpitation.

It was as if he was facing not a human being, but a monster that could see into people's hearts and perceive all the secrets of the world!

"But unfortunately, he overlooked the most important point: before I truly became a legion-level commander, I was a commando squad leader."

"For an assault soldier, there is never a situation where he would be trapped in one place for safety reasons."

"I was prepared to die the day I joined the army, for the possibility of assassination and the ever-present threat of death!"

"The so-called risk is always based on a lack of clear understanding of one's own abilities and a lack of self-confidence."

"But what I am most proud of is my clear understanding of myself, and that I will not doubt my own abilities because of pointless criticism."

"Arrogance or conceit, such worldly judgments are nothing but meaningless noise to me, and I will eventually shatter all doubts with facts."

"That was true until I reached the position of Lieutenant General of the Kingdom."

"This is what makes me, Roxie Sancaster, so different from ordinary commanders!"

"And John Maslow, due to this lack of intelligence, made a crucial and fatal mistake in the game of this war!"

"That is, they treated me as a human commander, not as one of their own kind."

"Therefore, he will taste the bitter fruit of defeat because of this oversight!"

"!"

As if confirming Roxie's judgment, the next second, accompanied by a faint crackling sound, the communication device suddenly crackled with a report from the communications unit:
"Reporting to command, our D33 area information unit has been attacked by enemy forces numbering 1000. Colonel Liria is currently engaged in combat with them!"

"Beep, beep!"

The dull thud of the phone being hung up echoed continuously in the command post. After confirming that his guess had been proven true, Roxie did not show any relief. Instead, he slammed his baton on the table with a cold laugh.

He then gave Orion an order without hesitation:

"The enemy has revealed all their cards, and the current situation is crystal clear."

"Colonel Orion Frost, do you have any objections to my decision?!"

Meeting Orion's flashing gaze, Roxie, whose hair stood on end in a fit of rage, exuded a terrifying majesty, resembling a ferocious lion ready to devour its prey at any moment.

A glint of murderous intent was flashing in her azure eyes.

But Orion, who had followed the other side for four years, knew that beneath the emotion called killing intent, General Roxie felt more excited.

In a game where both sides are evenly matched in strategy, a wise judgment and unconventional actions can completely push the enemy into the abyss.

When the enemy forces are forced to retreat or even be annihilated due to severe damage.

And the uncontrollable excitement stemming from an almost pathological thirst for victory.

He hadn't seen this kind of scene for far too long, in the three years since Her Majesty the Queen had officially appointed him as the commander of the Fifth Legion.

Even when the opponent fought against the famous white-haired demon general Dormammu of the Empire, he had never seen General Roxie show such a state.

This made him feel inexplicably worried.

He originally intended to advise the other side not to put themselves in danger, and to lead his troops to fight in their place.

But facing the other party's cold and stern gaze, Orion realized that he probably couldn't persuade this extremely talented yet extremely stubborn general.

Therefore, he could only sigh deeply, and under the scrutinizing gaze of the other party, he respectfully saluted them, and then replied in a deep voice:
"I have no objection to your decision. I will now accompany you to lead the troops to break through the enemy's formation, Your Excellency General!"

"despair!"

……

(End of this chapter)