Massive Demobilization
Standing atop the new city at Blood Moon Castle, Hudson looked at the conditions offered by Caesar III, glanced into the distance, and shook his head inwardly.
The aristocratic class was not to be trifled with, and even with significant concessions, Caesar III's plan was still unlikely to be approved.
"Tom, summon the high-ranking military officers to a meeting!"
Hudson gave the order expressionlessly.
No matter how difficult it is, you must put on an effort. Whether you can finish it is one thing, not trying is another.
It's likely that Caesar III himself didn't have any expectations, and everything proceeded according to his plan.
While the royal family may appear powerful and influential, it is an undeniable fact that its influence within the military has been declining since the last failed northern expedition.
With a large number of noble officers close to the royal family killed in action, and the new generation of royal family members unable to fill the gaps, the King's influence in the military has fallen to its lowest point in decades.
This is also the core reason why Caesar III went to great lengths to eliminate the power of the Northern Nobles.
Eliminating the biggest power in the military does not necessarily mean that the royal family has gained stronger control over the army. A single Marquis James is simply not enough to stabilize the situation.
If there were other options available, Caesar III would not have chosen a cunning man like Hudson to implement his political plans.
The results show that a slippery person is a slippery person; they don't put in any effort when it comes to getting things done.
It's all determined by status and position. As a member of the great nobility, Hudson could never completely side with the King.
Hudson's rise to power was purely by chance, not by the King's favored protégé.
In fact, Hudson's current situation is somewhat awkward.
In the past, the commanders of wars of this magnitude, even if not the King himself, were members of the royal family.
Hudson, who unexpectedly came to power, could neither fully support the King nor the nobility.
They have to play a balancing act in the middle; if they're not careful, they'll be disliked by both sides.
Especially now, when both sides are at an impasse, he, as the middleman, is in the most difficult position.
If you don't have a strong enough mindset, it's easy to mistakenly believe that you are the only one working hard in the entire kingdom.
In Lutetia, the Human Alliance meeting was once again in chaos. The various factions had been deadlocked for quite some time over the interests of the Great Plains.
There's no way around it; even grasslands vary in quality. Some areas with fertile land and abundant water can be developed into farmland and foster agricultural civilization.
In fact, the Orc Empire has already begun doing so. One-fifth of the vast Orc Great Plains is farmland.
This is also due to the low level of civilization of the Beastfolk. If it were humans who went to develop it, the utilization rate would definitely be much higher.
In theory, as long as there is sufficient water, flat terrain, and good soil quality, agricultural civilization can be developed.
Other minor problems can be completely addressed by human intervention. At least for major powers, altering the natural environment of a localized area is not difficult at all.
But theory is just theory. If there are good, mature plots to be taken, naturally no one will want to pick up bad ones.
Besides the land issue, the various parties also have endless disputes over the rule of the Orc Great Plains.
Some advocate for a complete breakup into multiple countries, others for a unified nation, and still others for a loose federation.
Each faction acted in its own self-interest, and none were willing to make concessions, making the meeting process very difficult.
Faced with this situation, Charles III, as the host, was so worried that he almost lost all his hair.
Enough!
If you want to argue, go outside and argue!
"What's the point of arguing? Since the debate is so endless, let's just vote. You're all elites of our human race; how can we let this turn into a marketplace?"
Charles III's proclamation, seemingly aimed at solving a problem, was actually a terrible idea.
Voting can indeed produce results, but it doesn't mean that voting is a panacea for solving problems.
In the short term, the distribution of benefits can be accomplished through voting results, but the potential for conflict cannot be resolved in a single round of voting.
There is no better option at the moment. As the initiator of the alliance meeting, we must give the meeting a satisfactory ending.
As for how many hidden dangers were left behind and how many landmines were planted, Charles III no longer cared about that.
Anyway, the human race already has a lot of internal conflicts, so adding a little more won't hurt.
"Then, as Your Majesty has said, let each side submit its proposals and proceed directly to the standard. The proposal with the highest number of votes will be the alliance's decision!"
Bishop Montesol added accordingly.
The Church, as the biggest troublemaker within the Human Alliance, has always loved this kind of digging and planting mines.
The only pity is that they are a religious organization, and when they play politics, they inevitably get involved with religion, which often makes things look awkward and incongruous.
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen proposals were put forward. It was clear that everyone remained restrained, and the representatives of the smaller factions wisely chose to back down.
"The war is over, and maintaining the current massive military would put too much pressure on the kingdom. After careful consideration, the command has decided to carry out a major reduction in the military."
Given that the threat from the Orc Empire has disappeared, the military pressure on the Kingdom will be greatly reduced in the future, so the number of the Standing Army will also be significantly reduced compared to the past.
In my personal opinion, maintaining the Kingdom's Standing Army at 50,000 to 80,000 is sufficient to meet current military needs.
Given the Kingdom's current financial pressures, the size of the Kingdom's Standing Army can be further reduced in the short term.
We can continue to study the specific standards. The most urgent task now is to reduce the surplus troops to lower the kingdom's military expenditure!
At the military conference, Hudson vigorously promoted his disarmament theory.
This battle severely damaged the Alpha Kingdom, especially its financial losses.
The immense debt burden has suffocated the kingdom. Disbanding the army is now practically inevitable.
In order to extricate himself from the power struggle between the King and the noble class, Hudson decisively chose to reduce the size of the army.
As the commander-in-chief, this was precisely his duty. Stepping forward to preside over military affairs at such a time to alleviate the kingdom's financial burden was a clear demonstration of loyalty and patriotism.
Incidentally, this also solved the biggest hidden danger for Caesar III at the moment.
Once the noble army disbands and returns home, the ensuing struggle will be purely political, without any need to worry about the parties breaking up midway and escalating into a military conflict.
"Your Excellency Count Hudson, we have no objection to the disbanding of the army after the war. This is only a matter of time."
However, the number of the kingdom's Standing Army is far too small.
You must know that the Kingdom has always maintained Standing Army of more than 300,000. How can such a reduction in the size of the army be commensurate with our international status?
Especially now, with the kingdom not only reclaiming lost territory but also achieving some minor gains, we have every possibility of maintaining an even larger army to demonstrate our status as the third strongest nation on the kingdom's continent!
Count Pierce was the first to object.
His intuition told him that Hudson's plan was a conspiracy. Although he didn't know what it was all about, he figured that directly opposing it, especially if it was supported by the enemy, was the right thing to do.
In theory, with the kingdom's military pressure gone, reducing the Standing Army was only natural. But Count Pierce was deeply uneasy.
On the surface, the number of the kingdom's Standing Army has been significantly reduced, but the number of private armies of nobles has not been restricted, which is very advantageous for everyone.
However, this applies to the powerful nobles whose strength has been preserved. Noble forces that have suffered heavy losses, are weakened, or are on the verge of collapse are in dire need of the kingdom's protection.
The Dalton Family certainly didn't fall to such a state, but it's undeniable that they suffered a severe blow.
If there are no competitors threatening the economy, and there is a ten or eight year period of rest and recuperation, the economy will gradually recover.
Unfortunately, they are not only threatened by competitors, but also by powerful ones.
While the Dalton Family could easily suppress the Coslo Family in terms of overall strength, they are currently at a disadvantage in terms of military strength.
Throughout history, countless examples have proven that only strength that is transformed into military power is true hard power.
Even with a deep foundation and strong foundation, a transformation process is still necessary. Before the transformation is complete, everything is just a dream.
"Count Pierce, your worries are completely unfounded. The strength of the kingdom has never been represented by such a small Standing Army."
Even the Frankish Kingdom, the strongest power on the continent, had Standing Army of only about 200,000.
This war demonstrates that traditional warfare models are being constantly overturned.
What we need to do next is adapt to the new war model and cultivate more elite soldiers, rather than simply increasing numbers.
The combat power that 50,000 extraordinary troops can unleash may not be much less than that of the original 300,000-plus Standing Army.
The kingdom is currently facing a severe labor shortage; we must achieve maximum combat effectiveness with minimal manpower input.
Hudson retorted without changing his expression.
This minor trouble was no problem for him at all. The background to the massive military downsizing was that the kingdom was experiencing huge deficits in both its finances and manpower.
Now that the problem has arisen, it needs to be addressed. Therefore, pushing forward with military system reform is a necessary step.