A month passed rapidly. In this time André's plans advanced in a constant manner. The telegraph lines were installed by placing cement poles every hundred meters and then stringing cables. Thus almost half the territory of Solomon was covered.
André was only waiting for the arrival of the Count of Blair's army. According to Lucía's intelligence report, the count's army would arrive at the viscounty in three days. André was thinking of the strategy for the battle.
Upon facing the Count of Blair, André decided to deploy a calculated strategy.
Considering the superiority in armament of his riflemen and the destructive capacity of his cannons, he decided to send only one unit of riflemen and three battalions of artillerymen to the war.
He kept the rest of his troops in reserve, ready to intervene if necessary.
Days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Count of Blair's army, for its part, was composed of 10,000 well-trained regular soldiers, backed by 20,000 militiamen recruited in haste.
These militiamen, although they lacked sophisticated weapons, were determined to defend their land using rustic tools and any available material as improvised weapons.
The Count of Blair was full of confidence in his army. Although news had arrived of the overwhelming superiority of the Solomon Viscounty's army against the Viscounty of Clun, the count did not believe he would lose this war. Many times news among the peasants tends to be exaggerated.
Lutton City was a small city located on the border between the Solomon Viscounty and the County of Blair.
The numerous army of the Count of Blair and his vassals had just arrived here and found themselves with a ghost city. With a population of a few thousand, the evacuation was carried out in a single day. The enemy army only found abandoned houses; not even the food was left behind.
"Hehehe, it seems the news that he crushed the army of the Viscount of Clun were only lies. The boy has already shrunk under the walls of his city. I believe we will have a siege battle under the walls of Solomon City," said a middle-aged man mounted on a white horse, next to the Count of Blair.
"I don't believe it is so simple, Alonso. Send some scouts to investigate the rear." The count had a bad premonition, so he decided to camp in Lutton City while they waited for news from the scouts.
Late at night, the scouts they sent returned with news: they sighted no army nor suspicious things in the rear.
The count gave a sigh of relief, then admonished himself for being so prudent with an enemy of such low level. Thus he decided that the army would depart early in the morning.
The next day, when they were about to depart, the vanguard scouts returned with news.
"My lord count, half a day's walk from here is Black City. It is a medium-sized city that has also been abandoned. Only that…" The scout hesitated a little before speaking.
"Only that? Come on, continue with what you have to say. We will analyze if it is important." The count spoke to calm the man.
"My lord, we found a strange construction. It seems a supply center, but it was completely empty. It's just that it has strange roads constructed of iron and they seem to lead to the mountains. We believe it is suspicious and there could be a conspiracy there." The scout reported his discovery and his own conjectures.
The count was sitting in silence analyzing the information obtained. After a long while he spoke:
"We will all advance to Black City. Once there we will camp until investigating how far those roads lead and what there is at the end of them. Alonso, I have a mission for you: take five hundred men and protect the supply line. If there is any conspiracy, I believe it will be there. Place scouts every five hundred meters to send a distress signal in case of accident."
"Yes, my lord count." Alonso went down on one knee and prepared to fulfill the order. He was not annoyed at leaving the vanguard army; he knew that the mission he had was of great importance, and the benefits after the war would not be lesser.
"The rest of us will depart immediately. We have to arrive at Black City before nightfall. You, what is your name?" The count asked the scout his name.
"My name is Gregor, lord count," the man answered quickly.
"Gregor, good. Get the fastest horse and return to Black City. Once there, take groups of two and explore the roads you mentioned. We must not lose time."
The count gave the order and everyone began to work.
"I hope to receive news of the enemy. Not knowing anything provokes uncertainty and a bad premonition in me," the count said to himself.
A couple of days later, in Silver City.
In a large-scale camp was the first division of the army. In the central tent André was resting while receiving the intelligence report from Lucía.
"Are you saying that, due to the railway station in Black City, the count and his army will not advance because they suspect a conspiracy?" André asked ironically.
"Yes. According to our infiltrated agent, the count suspects the railway tracks a great deal and believes you have some conspiracy. So he decided not to advance from Black City until the scouts he sent bring him news." Lucía said coldly. In this time, working as head of the intelligence department, she had developed this poker face. It must be said that she looks very cool.
"And he is not wrong. The railway is one of the central parts of this war." André was aware of the strategic importance of the railway tracks in the Solomon Viscounty.
He was elaborating an astute plan: allow the enemy army to advance deeply into his territory, waiting for the opportune moment to cut off their retreat.
When the Count of Blair found himself in a vulnerable position, André would launch a simultaneous attack from the vanguard and the rear, trapping the enemy forces in a pincer movement.
"What do you think we should do?" André asked.
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