FATE: Target of Grand Master

"I think now is a good time to attack. We should push the front line as far as possible before the Eastern Army can react."

Chester's words echoed in the Presidential Reception Room in Denver.

At this time, only half a day had passed since the great victory on the northern front, and at Chester's call, the main personnel of the Western Army had gathered here.

Edison, Helena, Xia Yan, Chester, and Lan Muyan, who had returned from the southern front, were all there.

Chester first reported the situation on the northern front to Edison, receiving several excited roars in response. He then immediately proposed to press the attack and advance the lines.

Edison and Helena both agreed with Chester's point of view. Xia Yan was thinking silently, while Lan Muyan looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.

Edison looked at Lan Muyan and asked, "Mr. Lan, you are welcome to speak freely about any other ideas you may have, without any reservations."

Lan Muyan pondered for a moment, and finally decided to express his thoughts.

"We do need to push the lines forward, but I think our current strength is still insufficient to push too deep on both the northern and southern fronts at the same time. Pushing the lines to the middle area is about right."

Chester was puzzled: "This is the most strategically significant victory for our Western Army since the start of the war. Naturally, we must turn our advantage into a winning position. Advancing on two fronts will not only leave the Eastern Army unable to attend to both ends, but also let them experience what it's like to be trapped at their own doorstep."

Lan Muyan explained, "I'm not against pushing the lane, but I don't think we have enough strength and time to suppress the Eastern Army. Don't forget, although Maeve is seriously injured, she has the Holy Grail. If she uses the power of the Holy Grail to recover, it won't take too long. Moreover, the other side has Zhang Jiao who can mass produce units, so our advantage is not obvious enough."

"so what?"

Chester said impatiently, "After all this talk, we've basically gone back to the beginning of the war. And then what? Wait for Maeve's injuries to heal before attacking? Wouldn't that make it even harder to win? Speed ​​is of the essence in war. If we miss this opportunity, who knows when we'll have another chance like this?"

"Then let's calculate our combat strength. Our western Servants include Okita Souji and Robin Hood from my side, Beowulf, von Hohenheim, and Mephisto from your side, and Musashi, Cú Chulainn, and Euryale from Xia Yan's side, plus Edison, Helena, and Arjuna, totaling eleven. The eastern army currently has six known Servants: Cú Chulainn, Medb, Minamoto no Yoritomo, Zhang Jiao, Fergus, and Finn. Although there are only six, neither Cú Chulainn nor Minamoto no Yoritomo can be dealt with by any of our Servants. Moreover, the enemy's advantage of rapidly increasing their numbers hasn't been lost, and we still need our Servants to help fill the gaps in our ranks. If we can't completely crush the eastern army, once they recover, they can completely push us back. At that point, let alone gathering our strength to defend Denver, we'll just be surrounded and killed by the eastern army in the eastern region."

"It's just a coward's excuse."

Chester's attitude gradually turned disdainful.

"Don't forget, this great victory was achieved on my northern front. What notable achievements has your southern front made?"

Lan Muyan remained silent.

"No, why? Because you're too conservative. Opportunities on the battlefield are fleeting, and every second I spend arguing with you right now is wasting the time our Western Army could have used to advance."

Chester seemed unwilling to argue with Lan Muyan any longer, so he turned to Xia Yan and asked, "Xia Yan, what do you think?"

"Calm down, both of you. We just won a battle, why does it feel like we've suffered a defeat?"

After easing the tense atmosphere slightly, Xia Yan continued, "Chester, how confident are you in your plan?"

"Eighty. No, ninety. As long as we work together, we can definitely cripple the Eastern Army."

"What if—I mean, what if—your plan fails?"

Chester gave a very confident smile.

"Although such a possibility is almost nonexistent, if it were to happen, I, Chester, would be willing to accept any punishment."

"Really? We Chinese have a saying: 'There is no joking in the military.' We are holding a military strategy meeting now, which is no different from being in the army."

"I will stand by every word I say. If I fail, you can send me to a military court."

Xia Yan seemed to be persuaded by Chester and said, "I think what you both said makes a lot of sense. I have never led an army in battle, so it's difficult for me to judge which of your views is better. How about we each implement our own tactics on the northern and southern fronts?"

Upon hearing this, both Chester and Lan Muyan were stunned.

How can an army implement two sets of strategies?

Is this a complete separation of the North and South fronts?

"Xia Yan, are you kidding me?"

Chester fell silent, and it was Lan Muyan who spoke up in response.

"No, I'm serious. I don't think there's anything wrong with this. You two can each proceed according to your own ideas, while I, as a special operations team, will traverse the desert in the middle of the continent. Whichever side encounters the enemy on the north or south front, I will go to help that side. This way, you can act according to your own plans without worrying about the allocation of combat power."

"No, no, no, that won't do. Without your combat power, our advance efficiency will be greatly reduced, whether in the south or the north."

Although Chester showed no modesty when taking credit, he knew very well that the key to this victory was the addition of Xia Yan and his followers.

If we only consider the strength of the Servants of the three Masters of the Western Army, Chester believes that Xia Yan's three Servants are the strongest, followed by himself, and Lan Muyan, who is missing one Servant, is the weakest.

Without Xia Yan's company, Chester couldn't convince anyone, let alone himself, about his plans.

"I'm just not in the open. I can provide support whenever needed, and this also keeps the Eastern Army guessing about our tactics."

Chester immediately reassessed his side's strength and said, "Xia Yan's method will work, but since I need to take the initiative, I must replenish my followers. Besides Arjuna, could you also accompany President Wang and Mrs. Blavatsky?"

"No!"

Lan Muyan immediately objected, "Chester, it's one thing that you're not leaving me any fighting force, but you're even sending President Wang to the front lines. If something unexpected happens, the Western Army will completely collapse."

Chester scoffed at Lan Muyan's words.

"Which of them, Medb and Zhang Jiao, weren't key to rapidly building up their armies? Didn't they both personally go to the front lines? There's no such thing as a sure-fire, risk-free war."

"That's because they have Berserker Cú Chulainn protecting them! Do we have a Servant on our side who can take on all three of them single-handedly?"

Seeing Lan Muyan gradually getting excited, Xia Yan thought to himself: Yes, brother, I do, you just don't know it.

Seeing that the two were about to argue again, Xia Yan spoke up to support Chester, saying, "Since Chester has already made a pledge, we should trust him. If we cannot unite, we cannot win."

"That's right. Xia Yan has a better overall perspective."

Chester stopped arguing with Lan Muyan and turned to Edison, saying, "Mr. President, would you be willing to accompany me to the front lines? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity; if we miss it, we don't know if we'll ever have another chance."

Edison, also inspired by Chester, didn't hesitate and said to the three Masters before him, "Don't take me, Edison, too seriously. In essence, I'm just a Servant, no different from the Servants who have signed contracts with you. If needed, I can also go into battle."

"Your Excellency President Wang, please accept my highest respect."

Chester stood up, bowed slightly to Edison, and gave him a salute.

Lan Muyan fell silent, because he knew that saying anything now would be pointless.

Xia Yan wasn't as pessimistic as Lan Muyan. As long as Chester and Lan Muyan accepted his proposal, his plan could proceed.