Industrial Revolution of the Mage Lords

Chapter 796 Multi-front Counterattack
The day before the harvest festival in the capital city of Starfire, Pierce, the commander-in-chief of the army of the United Kingdom of Saint Valen, arrived at the command base of the eastern defense line at the moment when the long-distance teleportation array at Wolf Fang Ridge on the border was activated.

Without the slightest delay, he walked straight into the General Staff Headquarters, causing the senior officers guarding the conference room to stand up and greet him as if facing a formidable enemy, instantly creating a tense atmosphere.

“A detailed report on the Battle of Steelrock.” Pierce, always decisive, pointed to Chapter Master Wayne, who had just returned from the front lines. “His Majesty only needs to know the outcome of the battle, but I need the specific number of casualties down to the single digits.”

He paused, then added, "And the spoils of war... and the current situation in Steelrock City."

Wayne nodded, stood up, and gave a concise report: "Our combat group suffered 579 direct casualties and more than 800 wounded, including non-combat units such as logistics and engineering."

As soon as the numbers were announced, the entire conference hall fell silent... This was just a siege battle, yet the casualties were the most severe in the history of the Northern Army. Rumor had it that three assault battalions of Wayne's elite 1st Battalion had suffered more than half their casualties, to the point that their unit designation and organization could be canceled.

Even non-combat units in the rear were attacked and damaged, which shows how intense and brutal the battle was at the time...

Pierce remained unmoved, calmly nodding, "I will replenish your battle group with two battalions' worth of manpower, in a mixed formation of new recruits and veterans... This will not hinder your unit's continued combat capability."

Wayne, who had been expecting a severe scolding, suddenly beamed with joy, clenched his fist to his chest, and shouted, "Yes, General!"

"Continue the report..."

"Yes! In the battle of Steel Rock City, our troops annihilated more than 13,000 enemy troops. Among them, the more than 2,000 winged beings entrenched in the city were almost completely wiped out, and more than half of the more than 20,000 black lizard warriors were slaughtered... Those who managed to return to the Dark River Floating Island through the underground waterway can no longer be traced."

Upon hearing this, the other officers gasped in unison... Could this really be the achievement of an independent battle group, accomplished in just one siege battle? The annihilation of tens of thousands of alien enemies sounded too horrifying for them to believe.

Of course, no one dared to question the authenticity of this data. After all, the military police and judges from the military law department who went to the front lines were His Excellency Asdaren's trusted subordinates. Under the watchful eyes of these "iron-blooded judges" who came from secret police backgrounds, no one dared to engage in acts of greed for credit, recklessness, or fabrication of battle achievements.

In this light... the number of over five hundred casualties on our side doesn't seem so unacceptable.

Pierce chuckled and said slowly, "Don't think I don't know that most of these enemy casualties... are probably due to your deployment of airship forces to bomb Steel Rock City with incendiary bombs, setting off a massive fire, right?"

After all, the fire had been burning for three days and three nights and had not yet stopped. Steel Rock City was still a scorching hell. Even the victorious Northern Army could not enter the city and could only temporarily camp at the city gate, waiting anxiously for the fire to be extinguished and the temperature to drop.

Wayne felt no shame and stated bluntly, "General, in order to seize the initiative in the center of the defensive line and weaken the enemy's manpower as much as possible, this burning of the city is imperative..."

Pierce nodded, turned to look at the map spread out on the long table in the center of the conference room, and said in a deep voice, "Indeed, after capturing Steel Rock City, we will have the initiative to advance or retreat in the middle of the eastern defense line. With the completion of the garrison base in the southeastern Wind Erosion Ridge, the next tough battle... will only be in the Shensang River Valley area in the northwest."

Upon hearing this, Chief of Staff Dickinson immediately rose and replied, "Combat Group Colonel Dav is currently commanding his troops in engagement with the enemy in this area... General, the terrain around the Shensang River Valley is complex with crisscrossing waterways, making it difficult for us to pinpoint the exact location of the main alien force. We are unlikely to be able to initiate a localized direct confrontation in the short term." Without finding the coordinates of the Demon Lizardmen's floating island fortress, it would be difficult to achieve a decisive victory in one battle, to gather a large force to encircle and annihilate the enemy's manpower. Furthermore, the area is close to the northern Great Rift of the Divine Spine Mountains, meaning a large number of aliens will continue to gather there...

The General Staff, relying solely on intelligence, estimated that the number of Lizardmen entrenched and active there likely exceeded 30,000. Once they converged, there was even a risk that they might turn around and encircle the Northern Army.

This passive situation has also led to some indecision among the military leadership... There are many opinions that cannot be agreed upon regarding whether to abandon the Chensang River Valley and completely withdraw the defensive line in the northwest section.

But it was clear that Commander-in-Chief Pierce, who was personally present at the front lines, had come with the Emperor's will and strategies...

Faced with setbacks in the Northwest, he seemed to have prepared a contingency plan. He turned to his staff officers and asked, "Is Commander Duff's battle group currently cooperating closely with the steppe resistance forces active in the area and actively carrying out joint operations?"

Dickinson paused for a moment, then slowly replied, "That's true, but... the number of the Revenge Resistance organizations active in the area is not large, and their distribution is too loose, so they cannot play a role in influencing the course of the battle."

“Then we’ll intensify our efforts!” Pierce shrugged and patiently explained, “We will provide unconditional support to these rebels… We can meet all their demands, whether it’s weapons, supplies, or logistical reinforcements. Since we can’t pinpoint the main force of the Lizardmen, we can’t let the enemy discover the movements of our main force.”

What does it mean?
The officers present were all stunned.

Only Dickinson, the senior chief of staff, reacted immediately, asking with surprise and doubt, "General, you mean... to deliberately break up our organized troops and mix them with the local resistance forces to carry out guerrilla tactics?"

Pierce nodded in satisfaction. "Indeed, this is His Majesty's will... He has foreseen the unfavorable situation that may arise in the northwest defense line and believes that breaking the army into smaller, dispersed units for infiltration operations will give them a better chance of turning the tide."

Since the Chensang River Valley is already a quagmire of intense fighting, let's just make the water even muddier and thus confuse and distract the enemy.

An officer immediately raised a question: "But if we scatter our main force, how will we deal with the enemy's floating island fortresses once they appear? And then send a large army from the rear to the front line... I'm afraid it will be too late."

"No need to worry, His Majesty has already prepared a surprise force in advance, just in time for their floating islands to fully emerge."

Before Pierce could explain further, Dickinson and the other staff officers immediately understood and exclaimed with delight, "Is it the Armored Independent Team?"

An independent armored mobile regiment composed of two hundred self-propelled artillery armored vehicles, more than three hundred armored wheeled vehicles, and more than five hundred military motorcycles, with all personnel riding in high-speed vehicles.

If this newly formed "Mobile Raiders" were to launch a lightning raid against the enemy, the Shensang River Valley area could indeed be reached in a day, with no possibility of seizing the opportunity or being passive in terms of time.

(End of this chapter)