The First Trench Warfare?

“I am Ian di Polia. I currently serve as a ship’s captain.”

“Oh! A prince of the Polia Kingdom, no less! What a pleasure to meet you. Hahaha.”

Even in this situation, Admiral Dimitria’s eyes sparkled as he laughed boldly. In truth, he had already received intelligence that this young prince named Ian was the captain of the ship that sank one of their battleships.

A young prince like this… He lookEd even younger in person.

Was he sixteen now? It was said that he had joined the war due to King Polia’s mad decision to send his sons to the front. Reports claimed this prince had not led directly, but had left command to a competent deputy captain.

In that sense, it wasn’t really Prince Ian himself who sank the battleship. Still, what stood out was how he was conducting himself properly—unlike the other princes. In truth, the Doicheun Empire had planted numerous agents throughout the colonial city of Beyru.

They had extracted a great deal of intelligence and were already aware of internal developments. They knew what the Seventh and Eighth Princes had demanded, and that they were now in critical condition following their “accidents.” Some even suspected Ian might be connected to the incidents.

Maybe he wanted to get rid of his brothers and earn greater glory for himself—but there was no proof at all.

According to the intelligence agency, Prince Ian was simply the ninth son of the king, without any power base or political backing. That being the case, his success in the previous naval battle seemed mostly like good luck.

He was lucky to have a skilled deputy. Lucky his brothers were injured. Lucky his ship wasn’t hit by any shells. His luck is almost absurd.

In fact, Dimitria had ordered his men to hold back against ships flying the royal banner, targeting them only with disabling attacks. But in the last naval battle, Ian’s ship wasn’t hit at all. Given his frontline role, that result was practically miraculous.

Compared to the other princes who had stayed safely behind, this was a completely different outcome. Considering this, Admiral Dimitria couldn’t help but wonder whether such fortune would hold again. Last time, he’d held back—but now that a battleship had been sunk, there would be no mercy.

‘This time, royal blood or not, I’ll sink him. I must, for the sake of my honor.’

Losing a battleship came with heavy consequences. The resources invested in just one ship were massive, and the symbolic weight of even a single loss was too great. This was a war they could not afford to lose even one such vessel in.

“Now then, shall we head inside? A room has been prepared.”

Concealing his thoughts, Admiral Dimitria gestured toward the ship’s interior. Our group entered and followed a steel corridor deep into the vessel until we reached what looked like a meeting room.

They sat across from each other—only Admiral Nudelria and Prince Ian took seats. The officers who had accompanied them stood behind. As they faced the Doicheun delegation, Admiral Dimitria was the first to speak, making his demand immediately clear.

“We demand your unconditional surrender. You’ve already lost many of your core warships. Surely, you realize further resistance is pointless.”

“That is not possible. We will fight to the end.”

“Even if it means many lives will be lost?”

“Yes. Even if many die, we will never surrender.”

Hearing Admiral Nudelria’s firm declaration, Admiral Dimitria thought to himself that this was expected. From the start, the Polia side had shown a will to resist to the very end. He had only come to see it with his own eyes. He had expected despair and empty bravado—but they were analyzing the situation calmly.

Hmm, this wouldn’t be an easy battle after all.

He still believed in victory. But he was wary of the potential losses. They had already lost a battleship. To lose even one more would be unacceptable. After all, the Doicheun Empire was waging war while keeping other empires in check.

If we lose any more strength, other empires will become even more meddlesome.

So, the sooner he could extract a surrender, the better it would be for the Doicheun Empire.

“…I understand your position. But know that there will be consequences for this refusal.”

“We are already prepared for that. Then, let us meet again—on the battlefield.”

Admiral Dimitria was impressed by Admiral Nudelria’s unwavering spirit. He thought, Yes, this must be the Nudelria Family. He had already learned about the family. It had long produced brilliant naval commanders and was known throughout maritime circles.

Any sailor worth his salt would know the name. Though the family’s influence had waned over the decades, their capabilities had not. That knowledge filled Dimitria with unease. If he let them go now, they would surely put up a fierce resistance.

‘Hmph… Honestly, I’d like to imprison them both. If I could keep Ian too, it’d make for an entertaining situation.’

But that wasn’t possible—and he regretted it. If he did that, the Empire’s honor would be dragged through the mud. The Emperor’s wrath would surely fall on him. So, reluctantly, he let them go.

He had no idea how his decision at that moment would shape the future. He did not realize that his dangerous thoughts had, by his own restraint, passed harmlessly. Unaware of that, he sent the Polia delegation away.

They returned to the city aboard a small steam-powered boat and began full-scale preparations for war. Roughly two hours later, the battle began. As the enemy fleet approached, the coastal batteries of the Polia Kingdom opened fire.

These large-caliber guns had longer range, and their shells raised violent splashes as they fell, forcing the Imperial fleet to remain outside their effective firing range. Feeling the pressure, the Empire’s ships had no choice but to stay back.

It was then that Polia’s fighters, launched again, closed in on the Doicheun colonial fleet. As they neared, they dropped their bombs with all their might. Some splashed into the sea, others hit the deck and exploded.

But battleships and cruisers, with their thick armor, were unfazed by such attacks. When anti-aircraft fire began, the fighters were forced to retreat in panic.

Several planes were hit, caught fire, and crashed. The rest of the Polia fighters fled quickly. Though the fighter attack achieved nothing, this style of combat was still working in the Polia Kingdom’s favor.

As long as the coastal batteries held, the Doicheun fleet would never reach the city. That was why they anticipated a landing attempt.

Currently, around 40,000 ground troops were stationed around the city of Beyru. They had gathered every elite unit they could from across the colonies. These forces had been strategically positioned, complete with pre-installed machine guns, creating a fortified defensive line.

Pak! Pak pak!

The soldiers of the Polia Kingdom were digging into the earth. They were currently carving out long trenches. In a way, it was a trial setup of trench warfare—and, naturally, the one who had insisted on implementing it was none other than Prince Ian.

Trench warfare had never truly occurred in this world. While there were limited cases of combat from behind hilly cover, digging deep enough to hide a human body down to head level and firing from below—this was unheard of. In fact, this could be considered the world’s first true trench system.

At first, the army strongly opposed the idea. According to their knowledge, there was no such tactic. People hiding in the ground and only sticking out their rifles? How disgraceful, they thought.

But Ian persistently preached the value of trenches. He argued that the only way a small number of soldiers could hold off a larger force was through this method. This debate went on for several days before it was finally decided to dig a single line of trenches.

Had Ian not been so persistent, this would never have happened. Army officers were visibly uncomfortable with Prince Ian’s approach. They had once thought he was different from the other princes, but this incident made them think otherwise.

While Ian was overseeing the trenchwork facing the sea, the Doicheun Empire landed troops far off along the coast. Since these were areas outside the city’s limits, already under Imperial control, there was no way to stop it.

The Empire landed around 70,000 troops, and immediately began marching to seize Beyru. The Polia Kingdom forces, upon learning this through reconnaissance, focused purely on defense rather than counterattacking.

Because the enemy had landed along the coastline, they remained exposed to naval artillery fire and thus could only approach the city from its sides. Eventually, both forces found themselves facing off near the city’s outskirts.

Soon, the Doicheun Imperial Army initiated the assault. The Polia Kingdom soldiers, having learned the effectiveness of machine guns in earlier battles, had them mounted and opened indiscriminate fire. The Empire’s soldiers fell in waves under the barrage.

Of course, the enemy’s counterattack wasn’t weak either. Polia troops were shot down by retaliating bullets. Before long, a vicious cycle of killing and being killed unfolded—and amid the chaos, one location stood out with exceptional results.

It was the trench line created at Prince Ian’s insistence. Casualties there were drastically fewer than in other areas. The army officers were stunned by the unanticipated effectiveness of the trenches.

Attacking the enemy while hidden underground might have seemed cowardly. But against the overwhelming numbers of Imperial soldiers, they couldn’t help but acknowledge the need for trenches. Though they hesitated, the defensive line using trenches was proving to be extremely effective.

The results were undeniable. By simply ducking behind the trench and firing machine guns indiscriminately, the Doicheun Imperial Army couldn’t advance. With such outcomes, the army officers could no longer abandon the tactic.

On the contrary, they began expanding the trench line further back. Meanwhile, artillery fire from Polia’s ships added to the defense, inflicting devastating casualties on the enemy. Only after enormous losses did the Doicheun forces finally halt their advance.

Waaaaah—!!

“We won!”

“The Doicheun bastards are retreating!”

“Long live the Polia Kingdom!”

“Long live His Majesty the King!”

“Long live Prince Ian—!”

Among the soldiers’ cheers, Ian’s name was included. Word had already spread that it was he who had proposed and pushed for the use of trenches in real combat. Naturally, everyone felt grateful to the prince who had given them this advantage.

As expected, Admiral Dimitria was said to be furious upon hearing the result. To destroy the coastal batteries, the land needed to be secured first—but now that path was blocked. The fact that it was Prince Ian who had introduced trench warfare made Dimitria regret not capturing him when he had the chance.

In the end, breaking this hardened defense would require even more troops. So Admiral Dimitria began transporting additional forces from the Doicheun Empire’s colonies on a massive scale.

In response, the Polia Kingdom began conscripting citizens, gradually increasing their manpower. As both sides continued to reinforce, the Polia Kingdom’s army reached 70,000, while the Doicheun Empire’s numbers ballooned to a staggering 180,000.

Of course, most of the Empire’s reinforcements were forcibly conscripted colonists. Battles raged on, but the Polia Kingdom, in their defensive position, held the advantage.

That advantage was real—but it came at a cost. Massive resources were being consumed to maintain this defense. As the attrition rate continued to climb, the Polia Kingdom found itself in an increasingly precarious situation.

Their once-massive stockpiles were rapidly dwindling.