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The Central forces corps and Central private troops, which had set out in grand procession, paused to catch their breath in the Duchy of Havlem. After all, it would be too cruel to send soldiers straight into battle against those damned nomads without a break. A brief period of rest was needed before crossing the border.

Of course, the Northern and Western forces were already stationed near the border beyond Duke Havlem’s territory, so we probably wouldn’t rest for long.

“Everyone’s here.”

While the soldiers made the most of what might be their last real rest, the high-ranking commanders and staff officers were summoned to the Invincible Duke’s tent.

Why am I here?

I wasn’t sure why I was in with this gathering of top brass. I came because I was called, but should I really be here?

“The inspector needs to observe the expeditionary force’s situation under His Majesty’s orders. That’s why I called the Prosecutors’ Office’s Executive Manager as well.”

Noticing my doubt, the Invincible Duke spoke first. In other words, while the emperor had technically offloaded this duty onto me, I still held the title of military inspector, and that meant I was expected to sit in on these meetings.

“Thank you for your consideration, Your Grace.”

I bowed my head in gratitude for this excessive consideration. Truthfully, I was more of a fighter than a strategist. I wielded a sword on the battlefield—I didn’t sit in war councils. I had no expertise to offer in these meetings.

Still, calling me was probably not just because of my inspector title, but to share real-time information with me, who had a history of bad blood with Dorgon. I truly felt grateful.

“A report just came in from the Northern forces’s Commander. No nomads have been seen near the border so far. They’ve probably given up on a preemptive strike against our forces and are trying to lure us deep into the steppes.”

Anyway. The Invincible Duke, who had summoned the top brass, immediately got to the point.

The expeditionary force would have to push into the north to hunt down and crush the nomads—no surprise there. If we were going to wipe them out, entering their territory was a given, but—

“That’s unexpected. Right now, our northern and western forces are still massed together, making them a difficult target. But before that, there were plenty of opportunities to strike.”

The 2nd Corps’s Commander spoke up, voicing the doubts of those gathered here.

It was inevitable that we’d march north. The nomads might be savages, but they weren’t stupid. They knew the empire was willingly walking into their backyard, so conserving their strength made sense.

But just as the empire viewed the nomads’ cavalry forces as threatening, the nomads were wary of the empire’s numbers. As the 2nd Corps Commander said, they could have chipped away at those numbers a bit if they had caused trouble at the border before the large-scale forces gathered, but they’d been quiet until now?

Last time, they were nothing but yapping dogs.

If they had always been this passive, I would’ve just assumed that endurance was their specialty. But in the last war, we had suffered a lot under their hit-and-run tactics.

On top of that, the land north of the Duchy of Havlem was a vast stretch of open plains—the perfect battlefield for nomadic warfare. They could have easily harassed us from a distance, firing arrows before vanishing into the horizon and leaving us with no way to retaliate.

And yet, they were quiet. It made things easier for now, but it also made things more complicated.

Is their internal situation more of a mess than we thought?

The thought crossed my mind. For the empire, hit-and-run tactics were infuriating. But for the nomads, they were a gamble. If things went wrong, raiders could be caught and slaughtered. It might be different if they were just raiding border villages, but playing around with hundreds or thousands of soldiers was very dangerous.

Last time, they had been reckless because Kagan had absolute control over them. Many were willing to die at his command. But maybe Dorgon hadn’t reached that level yet.

But then again, Dorgon called himself a Khan. If he couldn’t even maintain order, he wouldn’t have the nerve to claim the title so boldly.

What the hell is going on?

I couldn’t understand it no matter how much I thought about it. But then again, strategy and tactics were never my strong suit.

“We can only speculate for now since we can’t even find nomads to interrogate. Either there’s still internal turmoil among the nomads, or their forces have weakened enough that they’re avoiding reckless provocations in favor of a decisive battle.”

The Invincible Duke seemed just as conflicted as the rest of us, but in the end, he settled on the most conventional course of action.

Regrettably, there really was no other way. We needed information to make guesses, but what could we do when we didn’t even have prisoners to squeeze information from? Making guesses with no intel was nothing more than blind gambling.

“Five years ago, we had to push into the north while our soldiers were already exhausted from constant raids by the nomads. I don’t know the exact reasons for their current inaction, but at the very least, it has lightened the burden on our troops. That, in itself, is a promising development.”

The former Count Horfeld spoke up amidst the heavy atmosphere.

It might sound a bit irresponsible, but it wasn’t particularly wrong. While the leadership worried about the enemy’s intentions, the troops on the ground only cared about the fights ahead. With the nomads holding back, their burden had undoubtedly lessened.

“That’s right. No matter what their intentions are, a clash is inevitable. In that case, morale becomes the key. We should focus on using that momentum to crush their fighting spirit before they can gain any advantage.”

Following the former Count Horfeld, the 5th Corps’s Commander spoke, and the Invincible Duke nodded slightly.

If we couldn’t uncover the nomads’ hand, then the best we could do was maximize our own. If they were giving us time to prepare, then we needed to be in peak condition to hit them with everything we had. No matter what kind of traps they laid, we would break through them head-on.

...Of course, we shouldn’t completely forget about the opponent’s cards.

***The place where the Ga’ar tribe used to live.

Once, it had been a place filled with the laughter of children and the cries of sheep. It was silent now, but this land had once stood at the heart of the north. It’s a fitting place for a base.

“The imperial army is gathering near the border. As the Khan ordered, we’re scouting while maintaining maximum distance, so the details—“

“Even at a distance, you can recognize it when an army of that scale prepares to march. Maintain the current distance.”

“Yes, Khan.”

I tilted my head back after watching the Keshik bow and leave the tent.

Oddly enough, I felt calm. No tension, no thrill. If anything, I had felt more excitement when I first declared myself Khan and announced the rebirth of the Ga’ar Tribe.

It’s been three years, hasn’t it?

I let out a small sigh. Three years since that war ended, and three years since the North’s unity was broken.

And after three years, we were clashing with the empire again. Not as the hero who once led the north, but as the one who followed in his footsteps. By my will.

Kagan.

The North had never been united in its long history. But he had done it. He had gathered the nomads under one banner and brought the empire to its knees.

He was the one who proved that nomads were not just helpless prey to be exterminated at will. That we were not weak, powerless creatures meant only to be trampled.

Today, I miss him more than ever. I wanted to see a true warrior, a true leader... not a mere impostor like myself.

“We have lived as dogs. Swayed by the empire’s gestures, forced to bow down when leashed no matter how much we bark.”

I recalled his words from five years ago, just before we raised the army. He had poured me a drink himself that night and said:

“To them, we are nothing but talking beasts. They throw us scraps and manage us like livestock. And when our numbers grow too large, they cull us. If we dare break our leash and bite, they put us down like rabid animals.”

I still couldn’t forget the shock of him calmly calling us dogs back then.

Or maybe I had always known it. But hearing those words from him, of all people, who had always been so proud and strong, had been something I wasn’t ready to accept. If he of all people called us dogs, then who could deny it?

“But even a dog carries the blood of a wolf.”

Seeing that I was silent, he continued nonchalantly.

“In the past when the concept of settled people didn’t exist, nomads roamed the continent. We ran like fearless wolves under the eternal blue sky. Our beginning was as wolves.”

“But time made the steppes where wolves could run disappear, and eventually put leashes on the wolves’ necks. Thus, we became dogs.”

After saying that, he looked up at the sky. A sky so blue, without a single cloud.

“We were born as wolves and became dogs. But there is no law that says we must live as dogs and die as dogs.”

“Our ancestors, our history, and our pride flows in this blood and soul. Even if the body is oppressed, the blood and soul do not yield.”

Without thinking, I found myself looking up at the sky too.

“We will take off our leashes and become wolves again. Not dogs that lie at someone’s feet, but wolves that no one can mess with.”

My heart had pounded that day. If anyone could turn us back into wolves, it was him.

“And on the day we become wolves, the sky we look up to will be eternally blue.”

I think that’s why so many warriors had run alongside him, dreaming of that day. Not just to stop being dogs, but to stand by his side and look up at that endless sky.

In the end, we failed—but at least we accomplished something.

At least we’ve become rabid dogs.

I couldn’t help but smirk. Though they must know we’ve weakened compared to before, the empire quickly mobilized a large army. They wouldn’t have done that if they still saw us as weak and laughable dogs.

We didn’t reach our dream, but we showed the possibility. The possibility of becoming wolves and tearing at the empire’s throat, and a future where the empire could no longer unilaterally control us.

It was pathetic compared to when we were close to the dream, but wasn’t it still a pretty good achievement?

...Rabid dogs, huh.

I slowly closed my eyes. A rabid dog. Inferior to a wolf, but still not something to be treated lightly.

“I will run to become a wolf. I will bear the will of the north and run until my heart bursts. But if I die carrying that will... I leave the rest to you.”

At least he lived as a wolf and died as a wolf. But I am nothing more than a pitiful mutt pretending to be something greater, just a dog barking with the strength of a will that was never mine to begin with.

And a dog bastard has a dog bastard’s way.

“Move forward in your own way, different from me who failed and died.”

For my kinsmen and for our North, I will move forward in my own way.