Chapter 1000: Stalemate of War

Rosetta rose from behind his desk and walked over to the nearby map. His gaze slowly swept across the series of markers along the border region. Behind him, Matilda’s voice broke the silence.

“In the past week, the Cecilian forces have reinforced the Winterwolf Fortress line four times. Their controlled territory now stretches from the fortress all the way to the Shadow Marshes. Recently, they seized the mechanical bridge in the marshes, allowing their armored train to enter the war zone. That war machine now sits like a fortress along the line from the Shadow Marshes to Winterwolf, putting immense pressure on our border offensive…”

“Looks like they’re determined to hold fast at Winterwolf,” Rosetta nodded thoughtfully. “It’s a strategic stronghold. We can’t rule out the possibility of a sudden Cecilian push toward Aldern.”

“Indeed…” Matilda replied. “We’ve cut the railway from the Shadow Marshes into our territory and established a new front anchored at Winterfort. Troops from the interior are steadily gathering there. The Cecilians’ steel war vehicles and mechanized infantry tactics initially inflicted heavy casualties on us, but after Count Parin of Winterfort withdrew from the Winterwolf line to the rear, he guided frontline units in developing effective tactics. Now, our gifted units can hold their own against those machines… but we’re still powerless against the Cecilians’ two mobile fortresses.”

“Parin of Winterfort…” Rosetta murmured. “After Winterwolf fell, he faced much criticism at home… but those voices have finally quieted.”

“The battle at Winterwolf saw two main commanders: one surrendered after being gravely wounded, the other withdrew early to the rear. No matter how the public opinion was steered, it dealt a blow to the pride and confidence of the upper class that had lasted for years. As for Andersa, who surrendered after severe injuries, that’s one thing. But Count Parin reportedly escaped unscathed. Many nobles considered that even more disgraceful than surrender.”

“It’s laughable,” Rosetta said coldly, “that only those who never set foot on the battlefield and know nothing of the army mock them. The real generals understand that those two criticized commanders bought us precious time to regroup and adjust.” He shook his head, not dwelling on the topic. “It seems these so-called ‘armored trains’ are even more troublesome than our initial intelligence suggested.”

“It’s a technological leap,” Matilda said gravely. “The earlier intelligence was outdated. The original armored train was a prototype, but the Cecilians have since perfected its weapons and propulsion systems. It boasts firepower on par with a strategic mage regiment and defenses like a fortress wall. It can speed freely along the tracks, which are protected by a powerful shield and numerous garrisons and watchtowers. Small patrol trains run back and forth along the protected rails. According to Count Winterfort’s reports, it’s a ‘dynamic, offense-and-defense integrated’ system. None of our units can effectively counter it…”

“The Cecilians clearly invested heavily in its design. It wasn’t meant to fight weak little nations like ours, but to take on behemoths like Typhon…”

Listening to his daughter’s report, Rosetta fell into a brief reverie. After a long moment, he sighed softly and said thoughtfully, “A mobile fortress—offensive, defensive, and habitable—essentially a constantly advancing supply line. If we built a few railways extending into the wasteland, under the armored train’s cover, establishing forward bases along the way, human civilization might even be able to launch a counteroffensive into the Gondor Wasteland…”

Matilda hadn’t expected her father to voice such a thought, but she quickly grasped its significance and looked at him in surprise. “Father… you mean?”

“Gawain Cecile’s vision is indeed farther-reaching than ours,” Rosetta said, then shook his head. “But now is not the time to dwell on that. The key is those trains… They have strong firepower and long range, meaning they can cover engineers as they lay tracks while fighting. Even if we destroy mechanical bridges and rail hubs, as long as the Cecilians are willing to invest, they’ll keep pushing forward relentlessly. We must find a way to deal with those machines.”

“Count Winterfort proposed a plan, but it once again exposed our weaknesses,” Matilda said. “He believes that using ground forces against such land fortresses will inevitably result in heavy losses. The only effective method is air strikes. The armored train’s main cannon can only target ground units. Though it has smaller anti-air weapons, their firepower is far weaker. As long as we avoid that deadly main cannon, we have a chance to destroy them from the air.”

“From the air…” Rosetta’s eyes narrowed, but his expression remained tense.

“Air superiority is not on our side,” Matilda said heavily. “Though we have the largest aerial mage regiments and griffon units on the continent, the Cecilians have taken their war machines to the skies. Against those machines, griffons and mages are too fragile and slow. More importantly, mages with flight and experienced griffon riders are far more valuable than those machines—we can’t afford to lose them.”

Rosetta pondered, then slowly said, “Can those flying machines be replicated or studied for weaknesses?”

“We’ve shot down a few. Their wreckage has been sent to research facilities under the Royal Mage Association and the Engineering Guild. But replicating them in the short term is unlikely. Experts in runes report discovering an entirely new rune system on those machines, completely different from the ones used by elves and humans. It’s somewhat like the legendary Dragon Tongue… These runes interact with the special alloys that make up the flying machines to generate power. We can’t piece together a complete rune set, nor do we know how the base materials are produced. Even with luck, we don’t have time to replicate these flying machines.”

“Indeed… We’re chasing a completely unknown field from scratch, and we don’t have the time,” Rosetta said grimly. “For now, we must find solutions within our own expertise… Do those flying machines have weaknesses?”

Matilda nodded immediately. “Yes, and surprisingly simple ones, though tricky. To reduce weight and improve agility, those flying machines lack the heavy armor and powerful energy shields of the steel war vehicles. Their anti-gravity structures are poorly protected and vulnerable to interference. Ordinary arcane traps can temporarily disable their power. In theory, a small-scale arcane shock near their power units can bring them down or at least cause them to lose control and combat effectiveness. But…”

“But only if our mages can get close enough to those machines alive,” Rosetta said expressionlessly. “They fly faster and more agile than mages and griffons, and have stronger offensive capabilities. Their structural weaknesses become irrelevant—no one can get close, not even in pursuit.”

Matilda was at a loss for words. After a moment of silence, Rosetta returned to the map, seemingly having forgotten their previous discussion. He focused again on the lines and arrows representing troop movements. After over a minute of thought, he broke the silence.

“The next batch of troops will depart for the front in a few days… Count Clermont Dart will lead the reorganized Fourth Legion and the last ‘Church Volunteer Corps’ to Winterfort.”

“Clermont?” Matilda was momentarily taken aback but quickly recovered, her expression growing complicated. “He’s probably the last stubborn relic of the conservative nobility… He’s tried more than once to rally nobles and mages against your reforms. Even Hadrian can’t handle him because of his influence…”

“Parin will handle it,” Rosetta said calmly. “At worst, the Cecilians will.”

“I worry that Count Dart might just surrender in the first battle—he hates you more than he hates the Cecilians. Sending a man like that to the front will only weaken us further.”

“He won’t. He does hate me more than the Cecilians, but he loves Typhon more than himself… I’ve dealt with him too many times,” Rosetta slowly turned, gazing out the foggy window at Aldern. “He understands my intentions, but he will still go to the front and die bravely there, fueled by hatred. If not for this war, he’d never do such a thing anywhere. But now Typhon is in danger.”

Matilda fell silent for a moment, then hesitantly said, “Also, about that ‘Church Volunteer Corps’…”

“The priests of the God of War want this war, so I’ll give it to them. They’re fanatics on the edge of losing reason, but at least they can be used one last time,” Rosetta said, his back still to her, hiding his expression. “They accepted the orders willingly. For now… let’s consider them the last piece the Church can offer us.”

Matilda pondered. She instinctively sensed something off about her father’s arrangement, but before she could ask, a knock came from behind.

Rosetta turned toward the door. “Come in.”

The door opened, and Diana appeared, dressed in her black maid’s uniform, her dark hair falling over her shoulders. The head maid first gave Matilda a slight nod, then bowed to her master.

Rosetta looked at the woman who had served the Augustus family for centuries. “What is it?”

“The Cecilian technicians stranded at the Aldern Railway Company still refuse to continue service. The consular officials have also rejected your proposal,” Diana said expressionlessly. “Similar situations are occurring at railway hubs across the country.”

Rosetta fell silent, deep in thought. Matilda instinctively watched her father.

The Cecilians stranded in Typhon… she had been following this issue for some time. The war had come too suddenly. Neither side was prepared. When the border skirmishes escalated into full-scale war within forty-eight hours and cross-border transport was abruptly cut off, many foreigners found themselves awkwardly stranded. Cecilian technicians, investors, and envoys were stuck in Typhon, while Typhon’s diplomats, students, and merchants were stranded in Cecile.

The new “international order” of the past two years had brought unprecedented complications. Previously, even if two nations at peace suddenly went to war, such complex personnel stranding wouldn’t occur—there was no multinational trade, no technological exchange, no state-sponsored students or research delegations.

Matilda knew many were actively working to resolve this. Some were organizing evacuations for the stranded; others sought to establish “wartime transit windows.” Aldern and Cecile maintained fragile, difficult, and cautious contact precisely to handle these troublesome matters.

Meanwhile, the Cecil technicians stranded in Aldern had outright refused to obey the Augustus family’s orders, declining to continue providing technical support for Typhon. This defiance had already drawn quite a bit of attention. To be honest… Matilda even found herself admiring the boldness of those Cecils.

Most of them were neither knights nor mages—in the traditional sense, they were just commoners, with no obligation to follow any knightly code or noble etiquette. Yet their resolve was no less impressive than that of warriors on the battlefield.

The study was heavy with a tense silence, but finally, Rosetta broke it. “Has anyone clashed with them?”

“No,” Lady Diana shook her head. “Per your orders, we’ve exercised maximum restraint. Food and water supplies to the embassy and the technicians’ quarters remain normal, though we’ve now restricted access to those areas.”

After a few more seconds of quiet, Rosetta exhaled slowly. “Tell the ambassador he can leave Aldern soon. We’ll escort him out at the edge of the Dark Mountains.”

Diana glanced at him. “In exchange for our own ambassador?”

Rosetta nodded deliberately. “That’s already arranged. Just relay the message.”

“And the technicians?”

“…Let them refuse service if they want,” Rosetta said. “Make it clear their safety and living conditions in Aldern will still be guaranteed. Treat them well, and increase security patrols in their districts to prevent any extremists or reckless nobles from causing trouble. Also, keep trying to reach out to them—discreetly. Not everyone is a steadfast, honorable warrior. When deals happen behind closed doors, there are always those willing to switch sides.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

(Happy birthday to Operations Officer Xin Xin Qian Qian!)

(End of chapter)