Yes, Madam Prime Minister

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After the bombing, they would fly directly to a bastion still in their own hands in the distance and land there.

“No problem,” Ronan agreed. “The best production areas will be shipped to you.”

He himself will not participate in the battle. The explicit rule is that those above the fifth rank will not participate in the battle, and the implicit rule is that those above the fifth rank will not participate in the battle. Back then, Dinia was at a critical point. When she went into the battlefield, she was still at the fourth rank, but she became the fifth rank as the battle progressed.

Ten minutes later, the battle situation changed dramatically.

Villar's air force was wiped out; they never expected that there were even fighter jets.

The small bombers from the Kingdom of Fas did not target the artillery positions, but instead launched a barrage of bombs around the main camp.

Immediately afterwards, the army rushed up.

"Gather the nearby ones, don't surround them on both sides, don't worry about the formation, and attack the enemy's main camp from the flanks."

Commander Villa issued the order.

He panicked. His strategy was simple: some soldiers retreated, while others went to trade bases with him.

It must be said that, at a normal pace, Villa should have destroyed the Kingdom of Phos's "home" first, given their superior numbers and firepower.

However, even if the base raid is successful, the formation will be thrown into chaos, and a chaotic battle will ensue.

Unfortunately, he didn't expect that the Kingdom of Fas would airdrop several third-tier mages, instantly accelerating their advance.

"General, it's not too late to retreat now. The three square formations around the main camp haven't broken down yet," the staff officer beside him reminded him.

If we retreat first, the front will soon collapse.

But if they don't retreat and he is captured, the entire army will collapse.

After a moment's hesitation, he made a decision: "Let's retreat steadily first, use a few spells to stabilize the situation, then retreat to both sides and give them a good beating so they don't have the strength to chase us, and then we'll retreat."

Retreating directly would be suicidal. The only options are to first retreat, then counterattack, and finally withdraw completely. This process will certainly result in significant losses, but at this stage of the battle, minimizing losses is the best course of action.

The battle lasted for more than an hour before Villa retreated in panic.

More than a thousand corpses and more than a thousand prisoners were left behind.

But the army of Bilia was also a battle-hardened force, and the casualties on the side of the Kingdom of Fas were no less than those on the other side, with seven or eight hundred dead and three or four hundred wounded.

Five thousand defeated fifteen thousand, which can be considered a great victory, but with over a thousand casualties, it can also be considered a Pyrrhic victory.

Chapter 553 Ronan's retreat, Anri's great victory, the emperor suffers the most.

Shortly after defeating the Belial army, the Kingdom of Fas quickly recaptured the two bastions that had been previously seized, thanks to its air superiority.

Subsequently, the previously defeated local troops completed their reorganization and regrouped, returning to the front lines and occupying the bastion.

Next, using three bastions occupying important transportation nodes as defensive strongholds, Ronan and Delos led their troops as mobile forces to establish defensive zones.

A month later, Villa replaced his commander, reorganized, and reinforced his troops before launching a comeback.

During this month, the Kingdom of Phos spent a lot of money to get the stinking pirates of Wieland to send troops. With the help of Wieland's navy, plus the Kingdom of Phos's own navy, they finally managed to suppress the naval power of Bilia.

It was supposed to be Weyland asking the Kingdom of Fas to send troops, but now it's the other way around. Dinia is heartbroken and wishes she could fly to the palace of Bilia and twist that old man's head off.

Southern route.

Faced with Villa's 50,000-strong army, Ronan did not hesitate to abandon the defense zone he had spent a month building up and retreated completely on the southern front. Ronan led a small elite force composed entirely of mages and musketeers and began a guerrilla war against Villa.

Other local armies, under Delos's command, engaged in a strategic retreat while fighting, in order to preserve their strength.

Unfortunately, the local army was no match for Villa's frontline regular army, and Ronan simply didn't have enough troops with sufficient fighting strength.

Of course, things weren't easy for Villa either. They thought that once they broke through, there would be a constant stream of collaborators, and Ronan and Delos would keep confronting them head-on.

But they were wrong. The agricultural associations of the Kingdom of Fas had spread far and wide, and there were also "organizations" in the countryside. The Bilians could collect some supplies from the countryside, but if they wanted to plunder freely, they would encounter very tenacious and organized resistance. Tenacity was not the problem, but organization was.

They tried splitting their forces and sending one large force to do the job, but when they did that, Ronan's guerrillas came.

If they only send a small force, they might not even be able to defeat the villagers.

Villa was furious, so he simply sent a small group of troops to collect a small amount, not too much, so as not to provoke a rebellion from the other side.

Ronan wasn't having an easy time either. The enemy only came in a small group, just twenty or thirty people. If he led his troops over, it would be a bit of a loss. If the enemy had sent several hundred people, he could have led his troops over and wiped them out, which would have been a win.

Just as Ronan was in a rather disheveled state, on the northern front...

Ambrina's personal campaign went very smoothly. With the mage corps protecting her, several experienced veterans leading the troops, and a group of promising young officers, the all-star lineup led an army of 100,000 into the Rhine region.

Ambrina didn't have to do anything. She could just eat fried chicken, sing songs, and then go to sleep. When she woke up, it was another great victory.

Over the years of trade, the Rhine region had long been infiltrated by the Kingdom of Fass, with countless collaborators. Coupled with overwhelming military superiority, they quickly crushed the coalition of the three princes.

Within a month, there was no longer any force in the Rhine region that could openly resist.

Ambrina did not kill the three princes, nor did she even capture them. Instead, she invited them to merge into one country, whose king would naturally be Louis, Ambrina and Ronan's seven-year-old son. However, Louis would not come to the capital; the actual power would remain in the hands of the three princes, and the future would also be in the hands of their family heirs.

But the future is hard to say.

This is a typical Western Continent-style unified strategy, a gameplay style that conforms to the rules of this continent.

Man-made rules are easy to break, but rules that have formed naturally over a long history are difficult to break.

It's not that no one wants unification, but on this continent, unification is impossible. There are many reasons for this, but the most important reason is that the languages ​​and scripts are different, and they have been different for many, many years.

Seris was able to absorb certain ethnic groups only because those ethnic groups were nothing more than primitive barbarians who didn't even have a written language.

"Germans" were once, but if you think they still are now, that's going too far.

If Ronan were to travel back to "Rome" a thousand years ago, he might as well try to unify the world, but for now, he wouldn't make such a foolish attempt.

Overall, things are going relatively smoothly in the Kingdom of Phos.

But the emperor was furious.

The serious consequence of being defeated by Sweden was not the loss of troops or the obstruction of strategic plans, but rather that it emboldened some Protestant princes who had previously dared not act.

They don't have the guts to confront the emperor head-on right now, but they do have the audacity, and a great deal of audacity, to use this opportunity to weaken the emperor and strengthen themselves.

This threw the Empire of Will into complete chaos.

The emperor hadn't initially planned such a large-scale conflict. His plan was to thoroughly punish those troublesome Protestant princes, and then, once the Kingdom of Fass had traveled a great distance, deliver a heavy blow to it.

After accomplishing all this, riding the wave of victory, he will deal with the other feudal lords one by one, and then launch his grand plan to restore the empire.

Little did anyone know that Sweden's intervention would throw things into chaos, and instead of coming to his aid, Villa headed north to confront the Kingdom of Fas. Soon after, Willand joined in, and the scale of the war spiraled completely out of control.

Left with no other choice, the emperor also brought in the big bob from the east.

But what he didn't expect was that Suleiman would also make a move.

Now, the war involves more and more countries, and even if we wanted to stop, we couldn't.

Although Emperor Antoine was unaware of sunk costs, he understood the principle.

The investment a country makes in launching a large-scale war is enormous. To stop it, either the interests are sufficient or the war can no longer be sustained.

Currently, no country has earned enough profit, nor has any country been unable to continue fighting.

Without a doubt, the only option is to continue fighting.

During this time of chaos in the western continent, a "minor incident" occurred: the purple cross flowers of the Netherlands began to fall.

Although the drop wasn't too drastic, it still forced many people to jump into the sea because they had leveraged their investments.

Velma's father, Slater, was unaffected, as he had accumulated a great deal of wealth during his previous windfall and, in addition, had secretly colluded with people from the Kingdom of Phos, successfully rising to the position of dealer.

He is not someone who might jump into the sea at any moment, but someone who indirectly causes others to jump into the sea.

He remained calm about all of this because he was a capitalist, and capitalists have no compatriots, only rivals.

If he doesn't make more money, he'll be devoured by his rivals.

However, although prices have fallen, people's confidence has not. Because of the war between the countries, the trade volume of the Netherlands has increased rather than decreased. More people can afford to buy that kind of flower. As for other buyers, it has no impact. The front is tight, but the rear is rich. Nobles and wealthy merchants will not stop their luxury consumption just because of the war.

That makes sense, but they didn't realize that from the very beginning, this flower was destined to plummet in price.

The timing was in the hands of Ashley, the head of operations at the Security Bureau of the Ministry of the Interior of the Kingdom of Fass.

"The chives are so lush, they need to be harvested."

Ashley sat on the balcony, holding a glass of red wine, and read aloud.

Chapter 554 A Changing Situation: Joy? Surprise!

In April 1602, the power of the Old Church League reached its zenith.

The emperor repelled the combined forces of the Protestant princes of the north and Swedon, whose young monarch nearly died on the battlefield.

The reason was that the emperor had sent a magic-wielding assault team.

This mage assault team has a long story to tell, which begins with the red pearls found in those giant seashells back then.

Emperor Antolo already possessed some secrets, and with the assistance of Heath, a talented and very young man, his team quickly discovered some things through the red beads.

First is the secret elixir that can advance a talented individual to a novice mage.

It's important to understand that only about one percent of people possess magical talent, but the actual number of mages is far lower than that. In the past, due to both resource and political reasons, many talented individuals lacked the financial means to attend school, and nobles also discouraged them from doing so. However, things are different now. All the countries in the Western Continent are developing, and each country's national strength has increased dramatically compared to the past. They are all allocating resources to the training of mages. Moreover, the voice of the nobles in these countries has also diminished. Even if it hadn't diminished, they would have had to agree, because training mages is tantamount to an arms race.

However, the number of magicians did not increase rapidly.

The reason for this is that many people with magical talent cannot even become novice magicians.

However, having this secret medicine is enough to become a beginner mage, and there is hope of advancing to a full-rank mage. Once you become a full-rank mage, you are no longer a mortal.

However, the emperor did not form the commando team based on this. It had only been a few years, and he had no intention of sending these children, who had become novice mages thanks to the secret medicine in his possession, to the battlefield.

In his plan, these children were bureaucrats, officials to be assigned to the new lord in the future.

The emperor used the promise of fiefdoms to attract a large number of powerful mages. He promised to make them lords if they won, but lords can't be without subordinates. These children would become their subordinates and, at the same time, bureaucrats of the empire.

Only in this way can the emperor rule the entire German region and prevent the new lords from becoming like the current lords who not only ignore him but also oppose him.

So, where did the commando team come from?

The answer is that when this secret medicine was made, a byproduct was produced that can be used by lower-ranking individuals. Initially, it can rapidly increase strength, but after a while, the effect will dissipate, and the user's strength will begin to decline. Most people will revert to their original strength, a small number will be stronger than before, and some will fall to a level lower than before they took the medicine.

It was with this secret medicine that the emperor assembled a commando team.

He didn't spend any money; in fact, he made a profit. Many high-ranking mages nearing forty and still in low rank were willing to gamble, since taking the potion might increase their strength, right? Especially for some second-rank mages, if they could enter the third rank, it would be a qualitative change.

With such a small commando team, they almost succeeded in the decapitation strike.

Fortunately, Kate Pellegrini was there to collect unpaid wages from King Olosson of Swedon. As the creditor, she couldn't just stand by and watch the person who owed her money die, so she drove him away. But that was all; after all, you only get what you're paid for.

In short, King Olosson of Sweden had a promising start but ultimately declined.

Although this commando unit was originally intended for the Kingdom of Fas, and the emperor was somewhat frustrated, he had at least regained the initiative and suppressed the Protestant forces again.

Meanwhile, Bobo, who was also an ally, was very helpful, fighting against Switen in the north and Suleiman in the south. Although he did not provide much assistance, he did relieve a lot of pressure.

But the one who should truly be happy is Villa.

The forces of Villa, which have invaded the homeland of the Kingdom of Phas, have reached as many as 150,000 and have advanced to the central part of the Kingdom of Phas, with their sights set on the capital city of Palistor, and are still advancing.

"I can't believe it. Is the commander of Villa's brain filled with caramel pudding?" The speaker was Delos. When they first met a year ago, this colonel, who was two years younger than Ronan, was in his early forties. He was not tall, but young and handsome, with light brown eyes and long hair. He had a hint of a pretty boy. Now, however, he was unshaven and looked much older. However, his mental state was surprisingly good, without the slightest trace of vicissitude.

“That’s going too far, don’t insult crème brûlée,” Ronan added jokingly.

Valyrian, who had caused a great disturbance in Venaya six months ago, looked at the map and said with a sense of helplessness, "If it were me, I would probably have done the same thing as that guy on the other side."

Delos looked incredulous. His old general Valyrian, who was both his mentor and friend, was a very steady person. Don't be fooled by the fact that he went to Venaya with 15,000 troops; it was because he was very confident that he would achieve his goal and return safely.

The reason is simple: the advance of Bilia has not been smooth. It has been half a year and they have barely managed to push forward. Moreover, they were able to push forward only because the Kingdom of Fas was not determined to stop them. Instead, they fought guerrilla warfare while also sending local second-line troops to scout ahead and use the battles as training exercises.

At this moment, it appears that Villa has reached the heart of the Kingdom of Phos, and the core region lies just ahead.

But in reality, the front lines in Villarreal were already stretched too thin; they couldn't afford to lose, let alone drag the war out.

If they delay any longer, the Kingdom of Phos will directly cut off the rear of these 150,000 troops, leaving them unable to return home.

Therefore, Delos really couldn't understand why Valyrian said that he would do the same if he were the other party.

“Soldiers can never escape politics, Marquis, don’t you think?” Valerian asked Ronan.

“That’s right,” Ronan said.

In fact, four months ago, Bilia was advancing triumphantly. Even though the generals at the front had objections, the higher-ups insisted on relentlessly pursuing them. Two months ago, the higher-ups probably didn't want to fight anymore. Their 150,000 men still couldn't bring back 100,000 men from the northern part of the Kingdom of Fass, and their strategic objective had already failed.

But we can't retreat. If we retreat, not only will the money be wasted, but the entire Old Church Alliance will also be put in a passive position. We can only bite the bullet and move forward, using this tough stance to force the Kingdom of Fas to take the initiative to propose a ceasefire, so that we can at least recoup our losses.

But then came the "surprise": the Kingdom of Phos showed absolutely no intention of stopping the war. They just kept at it, retreating little by little, even willing to have their southern towns and villages ravaged, just to keep fighting.

Now, Villarreal cannot afford to retreat; retreating now would result in a crushing defeat.

No one in Villa's leadership can bear this responsibility.