Lord of the Sky City-Chapter 846 - 828: Time, Time

In the eyes of others, Marshal Mannstein’s approach may indeed be highly efficient, but the cost is equally great. Engaging in continuous offense and defense against the demons, repeatedly battling over the same city in a tug-of-war, it’s impossible not to suffer losses—and significant ones at that.

However, from a different perspective, the situation appears to be entirely different. He might not agree with Mannstein’s approach, but he deeply admires such strategic brilliance. freewёbnoνel.com

Losses?

Losses are inevitable in warfare. Any attempt to avoid losses entirely in a war is foolish. An outstanding commander is deemed exceptional because he minimizes losses, not because he avoids them altogether. Moreover, he does not abandon opportunities in pursuit of avoiding losses. Marshal Mannstein epitomizes this principle.

His chosen methods certainly result in some casualties, but when compared with the losses suffered by the demons, the casualties on the Allied Forces’ side are almost negligible. Therefore, criticizing Marshal Mannstein’s strategy on this point would be akin to nitpicking.

Additionally, those who criticize Marshal Mannstein seem to forget one critical factor: time!

It has already been stated that at the beginning stages of warfare, the demons’ power is at its weakest. During this period, the demons are disorganized and few in number. The Allied Forces’ strategy precisely leverages this time window to occupy as much land as possible, thereby securing crucial strategic space for future battles. The tactics deployed by Marshal Mannstein save enormous amounts of time, allowing the demons to be defeated more swiftly and enabling the Allied Forces to take control of the Kalhan Region in record time. With an earlier seizure of the Kalhan Region, the Allied Forces can move on to their next phase of operations more promptly!

This is the true key factor, the true big picture—the kind of grand vision befitting the Imperial Marshal!

"Truly remarkable..."

Seated on the sofa, Rocky gazed at the sand table in front of him and couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. He had to acknowledge that, at first, he misunderstood Marshal Mannstein’s intentions just like everyone else, thinking the Marshal had made a fatal error. But now it was clear—he was still too inexperienced to grasp the Marshal’s overarching strategy.

And just as he was lost in reverent contemplation, Liliya entered the room, handing him a document. "This contains the latest research data on the next generation of Land Combat Armor. Take a look."

"Alright."

Rocky accepted the document and began flipping through it leisurely. Over these few days, his focus had been on the counteroffensive campaign, resulting in fewer visits to the research lab. However, with Hammerfire overseeing the research, there was nothing to worry about.

"By the way, tell the teachers that the Beastman Specific Armor’s design should also be revised. New technology needs to be integrated—specifically Elemental Technology—and He Nan’s Special Armor should receive particular emphasis for enhancement."

"Got it. I’ll head there right away."

Liliya promptly departed for the research lab after acknowledging his instructions.

Since He Nan led the Fireteng Tribe to join Rocky’s forces, nearly a year had passed. During this year, the tribe had firmly settled in Backhill Village and had largely integrated into Rocky’s domains. At the same time, Rocky had already designed Special Armor specifically for them.

However, the unfortunate reality was that although the Beastman Battle Armor had been designed and completed over half a year ago, it had yet to be mass-produced or put to use. Rocky hadn’t engaged in any conflicts with enemies during the recent extended period, so only a small batch of Beastman Specific Armor had been produced for defensive support in Backhill Village and for training the Beastman Warriors.

Yet in this grand era of rapid technological evolution, progress could only be described as astonishing. Within just a few short years, even the White Demon Armor had undergone multiple iterations, not to mention the other armors. Especially after the successful research of Elemental Technology, Special Armor used by individuals like Liliya faced imminent upgrades, leaving the Beastman Specific Armor on the verge of obsolescence without even being tested in real combat...

Thus, while actively developing the next generation of Land Combat Armor, Rocky hadn’t forgotten the Beastman Specific Armor, choosing to redesign it strategically. Fortunately, since the Beastman Specific Armor was relatively new, most of its technologies were cutting-edge. Simply incorporating Elemental Technology and fine-tuning the design would suffice.

If this were the past, such a workload would have been overwhelming—developing Land Combat Armor while simultaneously modifying other armor would surely create bottlenecks. But now, things were different. The research team at Thunderhawk City had grown to such a scale that they could handle multiple projects concurrently, significantly easing the burden on everyone involved.

And so, three more months went by.

During these three months, Rocky not only continued developing and refining armors but also implemented a large-scale troop expansion, rigorously training the new recruits. Although Rocky himself remained tacit, everyone knew he wasn’t content to be a mere observer at the rear. He undoubtedly had imminent plans in mind.

Meanwhile, during these three months, the Allied Forces demonstrated exceptional close combat prowess—most notably the previously controversial Marshal Mannstein, who had nearly conquered the entirety of the Kalhan Region!

It must be acknowledged that Marshal Mannstein truly lived up to his title as the ’God of War.’ Employing a strategy of aggressive initiative, he obliterated tens of thousands of demons and seized control of most cities in the Kalhan Region with astonishing speed. Every move emphasized one word: speed.

The faster cities are occupied, the more fragmented the demons’ attack targets become. The scenes of tens of thousands of demons converging simultaneously that once occurred were a result of the Allied Forces occupying only three cities, leaving the demons with singular targets. But when three cities became thirty cities, with demons acting on instinct without organized command or leadership, they could no longer amass tens of thousands in one place. Once divided, even though there were still considerable numbers of demons and the Kalhan Region’s terrain was highly unfavorable for defense, the Allied Forces were able to stabilize their defenses, gradually reducing the demons’ numbers through attrition, eventually capturing the entire Kalhan Region.

Looking back on the series of actions by Marshal Mannstein once the dust settled, it became clear that his strategy for the offensive was well-conceived from the war’s inception. This foresight allowed such rapid occupation of the Kalhan Region, which everyone initially thought would take a prolonged struggle. Not only did this save the Allied Forces significant time to funnel into subsequent combat plans, but it maximized the preservation of life and resources!

This grand strategy is undoubtedly worthy of utmost admiration.