The president has posed a rather troublesome question at this timing.
The issue itself is easy enough to understand.
North and South, lands without a connection, or lands with a connection.
A general who operates in the shadows and a general who leads a turbulent front.
This combination alone creates four patterns.
He wants me to present how I would fulfill my role in those four patterns, right here and now.
“… …”
Even the generals, it seems, have fallen into deep thought.
One could answer immediately and appeal more than others.
However, opinions lacking substance would be swiftly refuted by the president.
Ideally, this is a matter that should be taken back and considered thoroughly before answering.
However, what the president is looking for now is immediate responsiveness.
In an unpredictable situation, saying “Please give me some time to think” would be admitting one’s own lack of flexibility and decisiveness.
“By the way, Human King, how would you attack if you, who have no connection to Isal, were to do so?”
As everyone pondered, the president, perhaps feeling no need to maintain silence, turned to me.
What the president wants is a proposal that is not bound by preconceived notions.
No, perhaps it would be better to say a strategy not bound by history in this case.
I was born and raised on Earth.
I have set foot on Isal a few times, but I am fundamentally an unrelated being.
He wants to hear my thoughts on how to attack from my position.
“… If it were me, I would take the royal road and sow seeds of doubt in my opponent.”
“Hou, can you elaborate a little?”
The time to think is less than a minute.
But I had a moment to spare.
Therefore, I will convey my thoughts, albeit in the conceptual stage, as far as I can.
“For the attacking force, a flamboyant march for diversion would be best on the southern side. If we were to attack from the north, where we are unfamiliar with the terrain, it would take time to leverage the geographical advantages due to our lack of local knowledge, and it might draw attention to the possibility of remaining forces in the south.”
“Hmm, continue.”
The first thing to consider is the advantages and disadvantages.
In terms of a surprise attack, dungeons can appear at designated coordinates without warning.
The typical pattern is being discovered by the overflow of magic power afterward.
There are no exceptions to this.
Therefore, to leverage the advantage of a surprise attack, it is better to use the land you are familiar with and have time on your side.
“In terms of taking them by surprise, the northern region is more promising, but for sustained combat, stability is required. Therefore, it would be better to establish a base in the southern region where it is easier to gather information.”
“However, that method has been used extensively in past history. Therefore, the south is known as a cursed land and is heavily guarded. Furthermore, a colossal castle wall has been erected along the border. It would be difficult to attack. Even if the generals are immensely powerful, they are not invincible. Therefore, I believe attempting to capture the castle wall in the south would yield greater benefits?”
My conversation with the president is, in a sense, for the reference of the other generals.
He is suggesting that they explore solutions using the president’s thoughts as hints, and in ways the president hasn’t considered, by presenting an opinion like “There is such an opinion, but I think this.”
“There are those merits. However, I believe creating an unseen enemy is more important.”
“An unseen enemy?”
“Yes, there is nothing more terrifying than an unseen enemy.”
“Are you saying you would create soldiers whose existence is uncertain?”
“Precisely.”
Among these, I will present my own thoughts.
When I hear the word “war,” I might have an opportunity to devise some kind of strategy.
“Hypothetically, if the Demon Lord’s Army were to counterattack, the thought patterns of the people in Isal would not be that numerous. The reaction to one general counterattacking would broadly be divided into three: fear, underestimation, and suspicion.”
While considering what I can do, I thought about accepting war as a reality rather than avoiding it.
What I am explaining to the president is the answer I arrived at by accepting war as a reality in my own way.
“Fear is simply harboring a sense of threat towards the Demon Lord’s Army. This would involve confronting the immediate threat and choosing whether to flee or fight. And this is the most common reaction.”
I raise my index finger for the first point.
Fear is natural as a survival instinct.
If you don’t perceive an opponent as a threat, you won’t try to deal with them. This is the most important thing in war.
“Underestimation, in a way, would be the most convenient for our side. They would view it as merely the appearance of one dungeon and deploy their forces piecemeal. ‘This much is fine, and if it fails, we can send more forces than last time.’ By the time they realize it, it will be a fatal blow. In a sense, it’s an ideal scenario.”
I raise my second finger, but I believe this is something a combatant should never do.
Underestimating the strength of the opponent is the most crucial mistake in war.
Fear, the first point, can be the driving force to resist it.
However, underestimation, conversely, leads to a decrease in driving force.
There is a world of difference between composure and underestimation.
The former is the thinking of a capable person who understands their own strength and how much power they need to exert.
The latter is the thinking of a fool who overestimates their own strength and fails to exert the necessary power without realizing it.
If we are to wage war, it is easiest if the enemy underestimates us.
“The third point, in a way, I believe this is the most important. Doubt. It cannot be done on the spur of the moment, but once it is created, it becomes a poison, an indelible anxiety that can disrupt the opponent’s thinking.”
However, such a convenient outcome is unlikely.
“Demon Lord, if you were in a position to lead the forces of Isal, considering past history and seeing the appearance of only one dungeon, what would you think?”
“Hmm, to borrow your words from earlier, an ordinary person would fear it and prioritize eliminating the immediate threat. A fool would underestimate the opponent’s forces, thinking they can only send this much, and hope that the soldiers on the front lines will win on their own. And a wise person, the third type, would wonder, ‘Is this all the forces they can muster?'”
“Yes, a general capable of doubt would report back to the home country and ask, ‘Are there any other dungeon appearances?'”
“…Fufu, I see. You’ve figured it out, Human King. You are quite interesting, and a tactician.”
Then, it is up to us to create that convenience.
The president smiled with amusement, having apparently seen through my thoughts.
I also noticed a few other generals nodding in agreement.
Without acknowledging the generals who hadn’t realized it, I nodded sincerely.
“Yes, a comprehensive investigative network, or rather, a surveillance network, would be established. In any case, vigilance would arise throughout the country, or perhaps the world, and they would search for dungeons. However…”
“Even if they search and search, they find no other dungeons besides the one that appeared. ‘Is it really there? Are we just overthinking it?’ But considering past history, finding only one dungeon is strange.”
This president is truly sharp.
He easily sees through a plan I have carefully considered.
“The most important thing to be wary of is divine revelation. Detection by supernatural beings like gods cannot be avoided by any means. They will be detected at the stage the dungeon is established. However, there is a time lag before it is sent out. Therefore, we will maximize that time lag. We just need to slow down their movements. We will exploit the human cognitive blind spot: the psychological gap that once a place has been searched, it takes time to search it again.”
However, I cannot abandon the explanation here.
And from here on, it is crucial.
Countermeasures for the created surveillance network.
“The words of God are absolute, there is no mistake. That is their perception and common sense. We will drive a wedge of doubt into that. It is there, yet it cannot be found. It should be there, yet it cannot be found. By implanting this contradictory question deep within their subconscious, we will erode their trust in God and dampen their motivation. And then…”
“The second wave, the general operating in the shadows begins to move. I see, I see. While there are still many details to refine, the overall framework is an excellent plan.”
It’s a common trope in Black companies where the boss is absolute, but if the boss’s words are wrong, and that is discovered, a capable boss will apologize. However, an incompetent boss will shift the responsibility onto others. The morale of subordinates changes significantly based on this difference in response. Being told to search repeatedly for something that should be there, searching the designated area, but not finding it. “Failure to find it is the responsibility of those on the scene.” Those who only criticize and interfere, without proposing solutions, are harmful elements that disrupt the scene. The more such impressions are instilled in the scene, the more discord and cracks emerge between the top and bottom. The more fatal the crack becomes, the greater the damage will be. The more it expands, the more opportunities the side causing the commotion and the side operating in the shadows will have to move freely.
“It creates a need to pay attention to the front lines, while at the same time hinting at a threat from behind, preventing them from dealing with it fully. It’s a plan that also supports the front lines. So, Human King, following this line of discussion, if we were to adopt your plan, whom would you recommend?”
I thought I had come up with a good plan by racking my brains, but here the president dropped a bombshell.
As if to say, “If you devised the plan, think about staffing too,” he delivered a killer pass.
All eyes turned to me, sending a chill down my spine.
If I didn’t name someone, I felt like I was being stabbed in the heart with icy needles, as if they knew what I was thinking.
For a moment, I felt like I had seen death, but my heart is actually beating.
“… Well.”
I cannot remain silent, so I put my hand on my chin to buy a little time.
Frankly, there is a person I had anticipated when devising this plan, but mentioning them would completely offend a certain individual.
“Ultimately, the decision-making authority rests with the president, and I would like this opinion to be considered as mere reference.”
“You’re putting up quite a preamble. Is the person you’re going to recommend someone you’re that nervous about?”
“In a way.”
After such a preamble, there is no choice but to speak.
Taking a deep breath, I named the person I had in mind for this plan.
“First, for the general who will wreak havoc on the front lines, I would like to ask Dragon King, you, to do it.”
“Huh?”
Unexpectedly, the Dragon King looked at my face for the first time with a surprised expression.
Given our relationship, he probably expected me to recommend the Oni King, Instructor Kio, for the front-line role.
Instructor Kio’s expectations were unmet, his eyes widened, and he immediately began stroking his chin with a displeased look. But Instructor, please give me a moment.
“Next, for the general who will operate in the shadows…”
This is where I am more tense.
“I recommend the Oni King.”
Huh?
For a moment, everyone in the room stopped thinking.
Recommending the Oni King, who dislikes subterfuge and scheming and prefers straightforward combat, for this plan is an act of extreme recklessness.
Even the president’s thinking couldn’t predict this, and his eyes widened. Both instructors gave me silent pressure, asking what I intended.
For now, since the conversation is still flowing with the president asking me questions, the two instructors are not protesting. But if that weren’t the case, they might even attack me.
However, the crux of this plan lies in how to create a worm in the apple without the enemy army being aware and how to do it swiftly.
“I will explain the reason for that now.”
Considering that, this choice is still the best for me.
Todays’s word: Take responsibility for your words.
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