Upon receiving Perfikot’s letter, Major General Richard promptly sent his adjutant to welcome Perfikot and his party into the military camp.

After exchanging some pleasantries to maintain appearances, Major General Richard dismissed the unrelated personnel, and Perfikot also had Samantha and her brother on guard duty, before sitting down and saying to Major General Richard, "Uncle Richard, I am not very pleased with your performance. Although your recent battles have been decent, allowing the command post to be raided, whether the opponent intended to attack your command post or assassinate you, causing such substantial losses is unacceptable."

"I apologize, Count! It was my oversight." Major General Richard did not argue with Perfikot but instead admitted his fault submissively.

Though he was a Guard Army major general commanding the Northern Army, and this was his command post, yet he seemed rather humble in front of Perfikot.

Moreover, anyone else in front of Perfikot would hardly be able to appear assertive; neither military nor government high officials would have the confidence or capital to be assertive in her presence.

After all, she was a prodigy who entered the ranks of the Imperial Center at sixteen, wielding great power, and could be called a powerful minister of the era.

In terms of power, identity, and status, probably only Her Majesty the Empress could surpass Perfikot, and even the Eldest Princess, the Empire’s heir, would need to give her some respect.

"If apologies were useful, I wouldn’t have come personally." Perfikot waved it off, not concerned with Major General Richard’s attitude.

Or perhaps if Major General Richard showed some defiance, Perfikot might have looked upon him more favorably.

Of course, Perfikot did not intend to belittle Major General Richard; she simply did not care about these matters.

More than these concerns, she focused on how to solve problems.

Hence, Perfikot moved to the map spread out within the command post, glanced at the enemy-friend markers on the map, and asked, "What’s the current enemy-friend situation? Don’t try to fool me with the things written in the battle reports; I want to know the most real situation."

Battle reports are intended to mislead, whether misleading the command post or the public, real battlefield information could never be openly shared.

After all, that would not only leak crucial military intelligence but also damage morale.

Of course, the usual approach is to simplify battle reports, only announcing whether the battle was won or lost, along with casualty and enemy defeat numbers, without revealing other detailed elements.

As for certain absurd battle reports from some headquarters, forget it, nobody with any sense would believe such nonsense from them.

Moreover, battle reports can deceive, but the battlefront cannot; if you continually achieve victories, why does the frontline keep retreating?

It was precisely because of this that Perfikot merely glanced at Major General Richard’s previous battle reports and didn’t bother reading them further; they claimed victory after victory, which was not worth reading.

Despite the genuine advances, maintaining an advantage, the progress of the battlefront, or troop casualties could hardly amount to a grand victory.

"Yes, Count." Major General Richard promptly stepped forward and briefed Perfikot on the current situation: "Currently, our army maintains an offensive against the Revolutionary Army. They previously attempted to block our forces in the Mishel River Valley, but relying on the Steam Knights’ breakthrough, our army successfully defeated the enemy’s blockade.

However, due to the colonial forces’ inability to effectively keep up with our advance speed, as well as issues with combat quality, we have not expanded the battle results; the enemy can still retreat calmly from the battlefield after being defeated.

Presently, the main enemy forces are concentrated around Stansol City. They have gathered approximately a division’s worth of troops, attempting to use the military fortresses left by the Empire during the conquest of the New Continent to block our forces.

Before my command post was raided, I was planning to launch a small-scale battle to break through the enemy’s line and open the road to Pignes Castle, initiating an assault on the enemy’s stronghold."

On the map, one can clearly see that the colonial military forces of the New Continent are basically encircling the Northern Army, treating the Northern Army as the spearhead of the attack.

"Are the colonial forces doing poorly?" Perfikot looked at Major General Richard, asking a critical question.

Although Perfikot knew the colonial forces were quite inadequate, she wasn’t aware of just how inadequate.

Facing this question, Major General Richard hesitated but eventually decided to speak truthfully: "Uh, although it’s not a good evaluation, if it’s the 17th Guard Division, an infantry regiment’s strength could defeat a colonial force brigade.

If assisted by the Steam Knights, this ratio could extend to a division.

And this is predicated on the 17th Guard Division not being accompanied by a cavalry regiment. If there’s cavalry collaboration in suitable terrain conditions, I can annihilate the opposing brigade."

Though Major General Richard’s description might seem biased, warfare is not as straightforward as proportional exchange, yet if merely describing combat strength, his words were not unfounded.

"Hmm, is that so? Then what’s the situation with the Revolutionary Army? What’s the disparity in combat strength between them, the colonial forces, and the Guard Army?" Perfikot gazed down at the marked Stansol City and the military fortresses around the city, her eyes flickering as though contemplating something.

"The Revolutionary Army’s weaponry is somewhat superior to the colonial forces’, possibly due to acquiring design plans for new-style rifles. Moreover, the combat resolve of these workers is strong, even the Guard Army finds them somewhat challenging to counter." Major General Richard objectively assessed the combat strength of the Revolutionary Army, his expression rather solemn: "Currently, the Revolutionary Army cannot compare to the Guard Army in training level and combat quality, let alone having a disadvantage in equipment. But if the war continues, the Revolutionary Army, with sufficient war experience, could quickly develop forces comparable to the Guard Army.

Without the Northern Territory’s involvement, considering the colonial forces’ level in the New Continent, they would certainly lose this war, and the Revolutionary Army might even win quite easily."

"Is that so, then it seems imperative to end this war swiftly." Perfikot nodded slightly, apparently making a decision.