Reborn: Imperial Officer Promotion Guide

At this moment, Reinhardt only felt his bones creaking, and his body could not even muster any strength.

Even at this time, Reinhardt still tried to ask Hull next to him.

"Finally... why are you in mid-air... is that also the effect of the [magnetic mine]?"

"The magic wand [Floating Feather] can temporarily return the gravity of an object to zero. I also used this effect to make some of the rocks you crushed float in the air. Of course, I had already marked those rocks."

"So...what was that attack that crushed me?"

"The magic wand [Earth Bind] has an attack range of about thirty meters and can apply three times the gravity to an object. They are all level 10 gems, but if the range is concentrated to the limit, it can apply about thirty times the gravity. In order to gain this thirty-meter distance, I can only risk disappearing from your surveillance field of vision in this way."

"..."

It turned out that before this, Hull had always simply moved left and right, forward and backward in a flat plane in order to make Reinhardt accustomed to this movement trajectory, shift his attention completely to the ground, and ignore the boulders floating in the air.

This magician named Hessenheim was able to make such meticulous calculations under the intensive attacks of [Thousand Dragon Birds].

This is no longer a realm that humans can achieve.

General Reinhardt's expression finally relaxed.

"Well done... I lost."

The arrogance that would never lose to anyone was shattered into pieces at this moment like those crushed stones.

"Then you will be my subordinate from now on, General Reinhardt."

A smile appeared on Hull's face.

General Reinhardt also smiled, closed his eyes, and nodded heavily.

"...Ah, this imperial fortress actually has a strong man like you hiding. I accept defeat sincerely, but I have something to say in advance."

"My becoming your subordinate does not mean the war is over. My soldiers will continue to attack," Reinhardt added.

“…Okay, the halftime break is over.” Hull turned over, stood up, looked up at the sky and stretched.

"I'll make them stop."

"How is that possible?" Reinhardt laughed bitterly. "No matter what, the Principality of Diordo still holds the upper hand in terms of military strength. The commander of the Landbreu Guards under my command is also in perfect condition. He is second only to me in strength and is stronger than Commander Neddel and Commander Zod."

After the battle with me, even Helheim should not have enough magic power left to face Landbrough's challenge.

"Really? So there are still strong ones. In that case, you can be my prisoner for once."

"…What do you mean by that?"

Before answering General Reinhardt's question, the battle troops on the Principality side beat drums to the sky, which was a sign of advancing.

Warrant Officer Bass was the first to run to Hull and said, "The enemy is not retreating and is advancing towards us!"

Hull nodded: "I understand... General Reinhardt is a very important prisoner, so he must be treated well."

Hull handed Reinhard over to Bass and the soldiers of Squadron 8 who arrived shortly afterwards.

As expected. Just as Reinhardt said, the Principality did not give up.

Hel's plan to defeat General Thunder and win the battle failed.

There was not much surprise in Hull's eyes.

"Really? Even after losing their general commander, they can still maintain this kind of morale. They are indeed the Guards. Although they have deviated a bit from the original trajectory. From now on, it will be a pure war of attrition!"

Hull looked at the sky and said, "Just be patient for a few more hours, and the winner will be revealed."

"Yes! I understand."

Warrant Officer Bass lent his shoulder to General Reinhardt and responded.

"A few hours? How is that possible? Even if I'm not here, my soldiers will continue to fight. I know this better than you do. You should prepare yourself for a few days of non-stop fighting."

Rhinehart was confident.

"…Really? You'll know in a moment."

Hull muttered to himself, and the next moment, there was a loud cheer coming from the direction of the fortress.

Soon, messengers from other troops arrived at the battlefield where Hull and the 2nd Battalion were.

"Haaa... Haaa... Lieutenant Hull, news came from the West Gate, South Gate, and East Gate at the same time. The soldiers of the Archer Corps, the Armored Corps, and the Cavalry Corps who stayed behind to guard the main camp of the Principality of Diordo are gradually withdrawing from the battlefield!"

"We are sending out our entire army to hunt down the enemy!"

“This…! How is this possible!?”

Reinhardt looked hard towards the rear of the main camp.

"Really? It was a little faster than expected. We finally caught up before noon on the third day."

Hull looked at Warrant Officer Bass beside him and said, "We will also send out pursuit troops immediately. We cannot let them leave this battlefield."

"Yes!" Warrant Officer Bass immediately ordered the soldiers of the 8th Squad to return to the 2nd Battalion and issued Daher's instructions to the entire unit.

"…Did they send out the special forces in advance?"

Reinhardt's eyes rolled around and he immediately guessed the answer.

Hull nodded with a proud expression.

"That's right. Your Arugeil defensive fortress has fallen. After hearing this news, your army no longer has the will to fight."

Hearing this, Reinhard showed an expression of disbelief.

The possibility that the Empire might send out a commando team to attack the empty rear fortress while Reinhard was attacking on all fronts had actually been discussed before the expedition.

Hull had anticipated this.

But at the same time, he was certain that they would misjudge the situation and would not leave heavy troops to defend the Arugeil fortress.

"Warrant Officer Bass... please move away and plug your ears."

"Yes!"

Warrant Officer Bass's voice was loud and clear, and after keeping a distance of about twenty steps, he covered his ears with his hands.

The conversation that followed was not convenient for the Imperial Army to hear, not even Warrant Officer Bass.

If it is later confirmed that someone eavesdropped on Hull's private conversation with Reinhardt, Hull will execute that person no matter who it is.

However, the only person present was Warrant Officer Bass. Based on his understanding of Warrant Officer Bass, he should faithfully carry out his orders and there would most likely be no problems.

Reinhardt also noticed Hull's intention to dismiss his attendants, and immediately lowered his voice so that only the two of them could hear it.

"I have left at least three thousand soldiers in the Arugail Defense Fortress. Where did your Empire get the troops from? How could they capture the Arugail Defense Fortress in just a few days?"

"No, in the North, the Empire naturally doesn't have that kind of spare capacity, so I asked them for help."

Reinhardt's brain was working rapidly. In an instant, an idea flashed in his mind and an answer came out of his mouth that even Reinhardt couldn't believe.

"...Kuming people?!"

"As expected of General Raiden, you guessed it right. It's the Kumin people."

"However, the Kumins and the Empire have only signed a truce agreement. The two sides do not have an alliance. Why should they send troops to help you?"

"I want you to think so, so that you can relax your defenses and launch a full-scale attack on the Imperial Fortress."

"Could it be... that was fake news that you deliberately sent someone to deliver?"

"How is that possible? Lieutenant Mosbia is an idiot who doesn't have the talent to lie. He just told me everything he knew truthfully."

"You already know that it was Lieutenant Mosbia who leaked the secret to us? Did you arrange it on purpose?"

"How could he obediently follow my arrangements? At best, I was just inducing him. I pretended to be a little louder when talking to my subordinates and accidentally leaked some inside information to him. The rest was his own behavior."

This caused Hull to take great pains. He not only deliberately raised his voice when talking to Goliath in the room.

He had to keep repeating, like a lousy circus performer reading out loud, that if the Principality came to attack at this time, it would be very difficult to deal with.

I’m afraid Lieutenant Mosbia won’t remember it.

After several days of hints, until Lieutenant Mosbia did not show up for drill on time one morning, and after learning that Lieutenant Mosbia had asked for home leave, Hull guessed that the lieutenant was going to collude with the enemy and transmit intelligence.

"But, data and official documents cannot be faked. On the surface, you have only reached a ceasefire agreement with the Kumin people. It must not be that easy to get them to send troops according to your request. How did you convince the Kumin people?"

"I didn't try to persuade the Kumins to send troops. After I learned about the Principality's dispatch of troops, I sent a message to a familiar merchant, asking him to personally report to the Blue Queen the information that the Principality's Arugeil Defense Fortress was empty during normal transactions with the Kumins."

"…So, you were planning to let the Kumins take our fortress from the beginning?"

To this question, Hull nodded.

"Even so, what makes you sure that the Kumin people will send troops? They are a tribe living in the mountains. Even if they gain control of the plains fortress, the surrounding land is of little value to them. What benefit will they get from helping you fight against the principality?"

"Yes, the value of items is not constant. For the Empire and the Principality, important strategic locations are useless to the Kumin people. But the opposite is also true. Some territories that are useless to the Empire are more important than life to the Kumin people. That's why both sides have the need to exchange what they have and conduct transactions."

Reinhard showed a surprised expression: "Could it be... a territory exchange!?"

"Yes. After years of conquest, the Empire gained many of the Kumin people's original homes by stepping on their corpses. These mountainous areas, cliffs, and unconnected enclaves have very low value for the Empire, but they are precious homes that carry the history of the Kumin people."

"..."

In this cold land ravaged by wind and snow, development in mountainous areas is extremely difficult.

Some areas that were barely habitable were only barely surviving, even if some bankrupt pioneers took the risk of settling down and building micro-villages.

It looks good on paper and has a large area, but most of it is hardly used well.

These barren lands can only be given as commendatory prizes to meritorious border officers as a modicum of consolation.

“We have signed a truce agreement with the Kumin people. Now, the Kumin people have occupied the fortress on the border of the principality, blocking the empire’s marching route to launch a large-scale expedition against the Principality of Diorudo.

In order to open up the road, the Empire, which cannot tear up the armistice agreement, can only exchange territory with the Kumin people to get back their homeland. As long as this hint is given, the Blue Queen will have no reason not to be tempted and will naturally send troops with all her strength. "

"So, everything is in your plan?"

"How is this possible? I am just an ordinary person. Your appearance has overturned my original plan and led to the current imperfect situation."

"...I still don't understand. Considering the interests of the empire, why would you take the risk and deliberately leak information to us?"

If the information about the armistice agreement between the Empire and the Kumins had not been leaked, when Mi Hill arrived with the expeditionary force as promised, one of the four earls, plus Helheim, who was no match for him, it would not be difficult for the Empire to capture the Arugail defensive fortress even in a siege.

Why go through such a long detour and even bring the Kumin people into the mix?

Hull's answer was so frank that it almost came out of his mouth.

"My priority has never been the interests of the empire. In the final analysis, I did all this, planned all this, planned all this, and induced all this, all out of consideration for my personal interests. Simply put, I don't want others to take the credit that belongs to me."

Lieutenant Mosbia, Major Schneider, and Colonel Giroud Magno...

If the credit for my achievement falls into the hands of these insects, I might as well spend more effort and take such a long detour.

"…I am really surprised that someone would make such a bold statement so openly."

"There is no other way. I have my own difficulties."

It all started from taking the general officer examination, where he was maliciously sent to this battlefield with an extremely high casualty rate.

Along the way, we encountered one rotten pest after another.

Or you can choose to degenerate and become one with those insects.

Or you can only be plotted against again and again, and finally fall into the conspiracy behind the scenes.

Or, fight your way out of them.

Heer no longer wanted to be forced to live in seclusion in the mountains with his disciples like in his previous life.

Finally, everything is irreversible.

However, fortunately, Hull gained the most from this victory. "

Hull smiled and handed a piece of parchment to Reinhardt.

"This is?"

"This is the magic contract for the master-servant relationship between me and you. Please sign it according to the previous agreement."

Reinhardt is undoubtedly a powerful magician.

Basically, Hull doesn't believe in things like loyalty.

In order to prevent him from rebelling at a critical juncture and causing heavy losses, Hull's behavior pattern is to restrain the opponent in this way in advance.

Of course, the safest way is to develop an actual supporting relationship through long-term cooperation, but this takes time.

"I have made a promise, and I will not go back on it. But is it really okay? I thought you were going to let me betray the Principality of Diordo and become a member of the Empire."

"How is that possible? If you join the Imperial Army, you will soon be poached by those guys who use their positions to dig you out. Just like I said just now. I will not let the interests of the Empire take precedence over my own interests, and I will not hand over my subordinates to others."

"Hahaha! You really surprise me more and more!"

"So, after signing the magic contract with me, please leave this battlefield immediately."

"Are you planning on letting me go just like that?"

Hull nodded.

"……can I ask you something?"

"you say?"

"Helheim. How old are you? Judging from your appearance, you look quite young."

"……Why do you ask?"

"You look to be in your early twenties. However, your words, actions, fighting ability and ideas are not what you should have at your age. Who are you?"

“……” Hull fell into silence.

"There are many people in this world who are called geniuses. There are also people like Mi Hill who are called peerless geniuses. However, compared with you, those geniuses are not even on the same level."

"Reinhardt, I want to give you a piece of advice. Don't try to understand me, otherwise you will regret it."

Hull's expression didn't seem like he was joking. His expression at this moment was even more serious than when he had fought Reinhardt with all his strength before.

Reinhardt also understood that Hull must have some inhumane secret.

"Really? I see. I will definitely keep your advice in mind. Should I call you Shangguan now?"

Reinhardt bit his finger and pressed his fingerprint at the bottom of the parchment handed to him by Hull.

As the blood seeped into the parchment, a faint light emanated from Hull and Reinhardt's bodies at the same time, but soon disappeared.

The contract has come into effect, and from this moment on, Reinhardt has become Hull's first true subordinate.

A right-hand man with the fighting power of a general...