When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

#393 - Ten days! Ten days saved Rapid City!

Standing in a corner of the Holy Grandson's study in Holy Advent Hall, Halkin stared boredly at his toes.

Sitting on a simple chair with a straw cushion, Horn handed the last letter to Duvaron: "This is for Hilov. Tell her I'm fine and will be back soon, so she doesn't have to worry."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Carrying a stack of letters, Duvaron hurried out of the study.

Horn then beckoned to Halkin, "Why are you hiding so far away? It's not like you don't know me."

"Hehe, you are the Holy Grandson descended to earth. Looking at your face is blasphemy to me."

"Alright, alright, you're exaggerating more and more." Horn put on a disgusted expression and pretended to cover Halkin's mouth.

Halkin naturally smiled and bowed to Horn: "Your Majesty, what are your orders?"

Withdrawing the smile from his face, Horn entered work mode: "What is the current situation of the Gray Furnace Town Armory?"

"Currently, each armorer can complete a set of armor in four days, including a breastplate, a brimmed helmet, and a neck guard," Halkin said without hesitation.

Unlike what Horn remembered, high-tech products such as armor were not made by blacksmiths as in many novels in his previous life, but by specialized armorers.

Making armor is a delicate job. An armorer must not only have the forging skills of a blacksmith, but also know leather processing, carving, sheet metal work, assembly, and riveting, and even design and drawing.

An armorer needs at least five to eight years of apprenticeship to become a master, which has always been a high-paying and high-end profession.

The difference between a blacksmith and an armorer is like the difference between a carpenter and a furniture maker; both are higher-level professions.

"What is the monthly output of the Gray Furnace Town Armory?"

"Each month, 80 to 100 sets can be completed, depending on the yield rate," Halkin explained. "Because armorers make armor by hand, sometimes nearly 30% of the armor and semi-finished products need to be remelted and reworked."

"How many sets of defective products, semi-finished products, and uninspected armor are currently in the warehouse?" Pressing a local gazetteer on the map, Horn asked while looking at the map.

"95 sets. Some are from previous stockpiles, and some are from this month that have not been issued," Halkin, who came from a merchant background, was quite sensitive to numbers and reported the number without thinking.

"Take them all out and send them to the two new recruit legions of the Guards. Set off by noon tomorrow." As he spoke, Horn snapped his fingers, and the secretary immediately placed a draft order on the table.

After reviewing it and confirming that it was correct, Horn readily signed and sealed it, handing it to Halkin: "When you leave, call a few of the bolder armorers from the armory to go on the expedition with the army."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Halkin bowed with his hand on his chest, took the order, and walked out of the room.

However, Horn's work was not finished. After Halkin, he successively received seven or eight important figures and public officials of various sizes.

While receiving them, the quill in his hand never stopped.

Based on these people's reports, Horn signed five or six orders, such as the "Mule and Horse Conscription Order," "Night Curfew Order," "Holy War Bond Issuance Increase Order," and "Boot and Legging Collection Order."

It was not until late at night, when the high-hanging silver moonlight shone through the blinds onto the almost burnt-out candle, that Horn straightened his sore back.

In front of him on the table was a strategic plan map filled with various red and blue markings and attack lines.

"After squeezing and squeezing, there are still only 5 days left."

Rubbing his temples, Horn took a sip of the cooled black tea and suppressed the sleepiness.

From Black Pottery Town to Small Pool City, if they took the King's Road instead of the old El Road, it would be about 140 kilometers, which is closer than from Jeanneburg to Small Pool City.

Currently, the Salvation Army infantry's normal marching speed is about 20 kilometers per day. At this speed, it would take about 7 days to arrive.

But this was clearly not enough. In the letter Catherine sent from Rapid Current City, she clearly stated that they could only hold out for two more weeks at most.

If they took the Small Pool City route at normal marching speed, it would take 7 days to reach Small Pool City and 3 days to travel by boat and land to the north, which would take about 10 days.

It seemed like there was plenty of leeway, but in reality, it was not the case, because 3 days had passed from the time Catherine sent the letter to the time Horn sent out his troops.

So Horn actually had a maximum of 11 days.

In Kasha County, the Church faction and the Huanno faction had completely fallen out. The Blago Monastery was fine; the nobles did not dare to provoke the huge monastic system behind it.

But Small Pool City, as the Huanno faction's base camp, was different. Thousands of noble coalition troops were advancing towards Small Pool City.

It would take time to defeat the noble coalition, and it would also take time to gather ships to go north. After all the fuss, according to Jeshka and others' estimates, it would take more than two weeks to arrive.

So Horn sent Jeanne, ordering her to take almost all the cavalry to arrive in Small Pool City within 2 days, ensure that Small Pool City was not lost, and then requisition ships and horses on the spot.

When Horn was sitting in Holy Advent Hall, except for the third and fourth new recruit legions of the Guards, all the legions had already set off towards Small Pool City.

They had to arrive in Small Pool City within 5 days, defeat the enemy within 2 days, and arrive at Beechburg, a major town on the outskirts of Rapid Current City, within 3 days.

Then, while containing the enemy's main force, they would restore morale and organization.

According to this timetable, it meant that the Salvation Army's two major battle groups, twelve infantry regiments, needed to travel at least 28 kilometers per day.

This was equivalent to increasing the original marching speed by at least 40%.

Although hundreds of carriages had been mobilized to carry supplies, many people still had to travel 140 kilometers in 5 days wearing 10 kilograms of armor.

You should know that in the Divine Ai Empire, a daily march of more than 25 kilometers was considered a rapid march or even a forced march.

This was different from Horn's previous fortress advance. The fortress advance tactics would set up post stations along the way, horses could be replaced and supplemented with fodder along the way, and excess manpower could be sent back on the spot.

This time, they were essentially fighting a war abroad, without much time to set up post stations, but they had to do it.

Horn returned to Jeanneburg to mobilize a large number of mules and horses and the Protectorate Army to go on the expedition with the third and fourth legions of the Guards.

They would first arrive at Black Pottery Town, join up with the mules and horses provided by the Ibe Knights, carry seven days' worth of food with them, and accelerate to catch up with the ten infantry regiments in front.

Then, they would continue to use mules and horses to help carry armor and food, striving to arrive early and quickly defeat the noble coalition of Small Pool City.

Arriving at Beechburg within 10 days, they could even have 1 day of error tolerance.

But could Rapid Current City really hold out for these two weeks?

If Rapid Current City surrendered in advance, then Horn would be stuck in Beechburg, unable to advance or retreat.

If Rapid Current City could hold on, could his side really defeat the Kasha County noble coalition within 2 days?

Despite being full of confidence in the Salvation Army, if the opponent stubbornly dragged out the time and took three to five days to resolve the situation, then this plan would still fail.

Too tight, the time is too tight.

The last time Rapid Current City sent a letter was half a month ago. They swore that they could hold on for another half a year without any problems, and told him to fight slowly with the Ibe Knights and not to worry.

How could the situation take a sharp turn for the worse in just one week, as if they couldn't even hold on for half a month?

Could it be that they were lying on such a life-and-death issue before?

Could a big fire cause such serious consequences? Or did something happen that he didn't know about?

Putting down the quill, Horn let out a breath of turbid air.

War, it is simply the most thrilling gamble in the world, its variables are more than any other gambling game.

And all he can do is try not to make mistakes and persevere to the last moment.

"You have tasted the blood and tears, and I, this fake Holy Grandson, have taken all the fame and fortune," turning around and looking at the blood-covered clouds hanging on the wall, Horn chuckled and used an iron spoon to extinguish the candlelight.

"But I can't let you die in vain."