Vol 4 Chapter 10 (1/2)
Volume 4 Chapter 10, “My Name Shall be Henceforth Known as—”
——- The Kingdom of the Lake, the Capital, the Headquarters of the Merchant’s Union
Union Eht”
Female Union Employee: “There have been three occurrences of lack of capital in Free Cities on the West Bank”
Branch Chief: “It has begun”
Young Merchant: “Will we be able to destroy the lines?”
Branch Chief: “It see quickly to towards the West The fire has spread to the Kingdo three Free Cities”
Young Merchant: “Understood Then gather 65 of the letters of exchange owned by the Union in those three Cities When you evaluate thereatest impact, liquidate these letters at the same time”
Union Employee: “Yes”
Young Merchant: “With this one strike, the three churches in these three cities will run out of cash Merchants will experience their worst nighte their credit for cash Once they realise that, they will speed away to neighbouring cities and exchange their credit for cash as soon as possible That will spread the lack of row into a panic, and hoe kick our plan to acquire credit from the landlords into action?”
Union Eents They have already been instructed to purchase credit at 70 face value”
Branch Chief: “Landlords hoping to liquidate their assets as soon as possible will flock to sell it to us And ill buy”
Young Merchant: “The plan we are putting intowere to happen, it may be out of control even for the Union For that reason, once we begin, we have to pay close attention to the whole situation It is not our wish for any further panic beyond e require to achieve our aims”
Branch Chief: “Understood”
Young Merchant: “We will need to verify the precise ti for our plan in the three cities Branch Chief, can you settle it?”
Branch Chief: “Me? I would have thought you would want to do it personally”
Young Merchant: “I have duties I need to perform here”
Union Employee: “Duties?”
Branch Chief: “…… Hmm”
Young Merchant: “This entire plan rests on ti For the Church, credit is a critical source of revenue There is no way they would be willing to let this rest However, the Church is a anisation If trouble were to happen, they would have to pass on the infories, which would probably take a month We expect the Church to see this as a natural occurrence that happens every few years, but if they h this disturbance as a deliberate act, itis to prevent this fro spread outside That’s why I cannot be on site”
Union Employee: “……?”
Branch Chief: “Understood I will coordinate the plan on-site”
Young Merchant: “Yes, thank you If necessary, you may also use all the letters of credit and even all liquidatable assets held by the Union What we need to achieve victory for the Union is a disciplined panic In other words, this entire operation is a fraud We will need to achieve that oals”
Branch Chief: “Understood Be at ease We will destroy this Continent from within its reinforced doors”
———- The De, the South, the Old Lands of the Pale, the Crown Prince’s Army
Clip clop! Clip clop!
Crown Prince Marshal: “What is going on?”
Strategist: “An urgent e from the frontline”
Holy Imperial General: “What does it say?”
Strategist: “I haven’t read it yet”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Well go on”
Opens envelope
Crown Prince Marshal: “…… ……”
Strategist: “How is it going?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “The siege has been delayed The Demon Army has retreated within the City of the Gate for a week We are being pushed to our supply lied to deliver some food from the our rear defence area, but the continuous use of our cannons is exhausting our gunpowder supply alarly”
Strategist: “Yes As Ithe city night and day in order to destroy the ht, but……”
Holy I an assault during a siege has been an inferior strategy, while surrounding theical warfare has been the superior strategy The co is sound”
Crown Prince Marshal: “It may be sound, but will soundness achieve victory?”
Holy Iht”
Crown Prince Marshal: “However, considering that the Ash Green King has been bo the city continuously for a week, it is unexpected that the De Had we not witnessed it ourselves, it would be hard to believe…… I wonder what sort of fortification is able to withstand such a protracted assault”
Strategist: “Indeed With a hundred cannons, even the heaviest fortifications should crumble within a few hours”
Holy Iy”
Crown Prince Marshal: “It’s fine Above that, what is even h e They have endured a week long bombardment, been cut off from all communications and supplies and have already last half of their original ar with injured and half-dead people As morale weakens, talk of surrender and capitulation should be running rife The will to fight and resist gets sapped, despair and disappoint spirit is at its very lowest, to launch an assault is the standard strategy of city sieges…… Nothe fortifications are, once ht becomes half-hearted”
Strategist: “What else does the e say?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “In the name of the Holy Spirit, impose a levy on saltpetre and return at this very moment”
Holy Imperial General: “How impertinent”
Crown Prince Marshal: “He comes from the nobles…… What is to be done about food? What is the situation regarding our rear supply areas?”
Holy Imperial General: “What shall we do?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “It also says —– Gathering all the food supplies and sending our troops back is the only way to save our lives The good offices of the noblemen should ensure that the noble armies have a priority to supplies, that is the will of the Church…… Isn’t that too easy!”
Holy Imperial General: “How shameless”
Strategist: “I fear the gunpoe have on hand is too limited It’s clear fro…… This is a battlefield Not just saltpetre, but our stocks of sulphur and charcoal are also running low, yet only saltpetre can be said to be valuable If ere to reduce the volu low on supplies and that would boost their morale —— If that happens, on’t be able to achieve a speedy victory The h, we can’t afford to give them even another shard of hope”
Holy Iet our hands on any saltpetre, all we’ve been doing is hanging about the outskirts of the Old Territory of the Pale and wasting tiirl wasn’t around”
Strategist: “Surely saying that we are wasting tiainst the Hero and the Scholar, we have to apply very delicate negotiations and diplomacy”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Perhaps stalling us in this manner is one of the aims of the Scholar……”
Strategist: “Indeed However——“
Crown Prince Marshal: “Yes, this can be said to be a staleth, and they have no choice but to give way to us At present, we have received two hundred wagons of food as a tribute And with our presence here, we can seal the movements of the army of the Scholar —- this secret Southern Alliance expeditionary ar table, we can prevent the possibility of the Southern Alliance reinforcing the Demon Army And above that, we can restrict thethis place”
Holy Imperial General: “But all of this is pointless unless the Green Ash King’s army is able to achieve victory in the attack on the City of the Gate”
Crown Prince Marshal: “We have no choice We’re depending on the on us too”
Strategist: “The army requires the saltpetre and food rations which we are holding We are depending on thee the otiations, othere do not have a strong strategy to counteract the Hero”
Holy Imperial General: “A thousand day hand”
Crown Prince Marshal: “…… At this rate, ill ress We have no choice Call the Hero Let’s try to discern the true identity of this woman they call the Scholar”
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
Explanation
Thousand Day Hand: In certain chess or shogi games, the positions of the pieces may be such that the opti to the same position every time In the case of a thousand day hand in chess, the player who initiates the play i, it is the reverse
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-
———- The De, the South, the Old Lands of the Pale, the Crown Prince’s Army
Tent flap opens
Strategist: “The Hero has arrived”
Holy Imperial General: “Send him in”
Tent flap opens
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hero”
The Hero: “hello”
Crown Prince Marshal: “It has been a long ti a pleasant time?”
The Hero: “Of course The Head Chef has been treating h the ood ways to prepare it It’s still very different froh”
Holy Iise”
The Hero: “I’ Thank you for your hospitality”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Then, Hero Putting those words aside, I have so to inquire of you”
The Hero: “What is it? Go ahead”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hearing you say that puts me very much at ease Allow irl?”
The Hero: “Yeah, you could say that”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Exactly who is she?”
The Hero: “Mmm, she’s one of the disciples of that person the Holy Empire and the Church call the Crimson Scholar…… She’s the one who started the whole liberation of the serfs”
Strategist: “That girl?”
Holy Iirl?”
The Hero: “It surprised me as well”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hmm —– I see She made that speech Hahaha”
Strategist: “Your Ihness……”
The Hero: “You could say it was a speech, or you could also say it was just an outburst”
Crown Prince Marshal: “That woman…… the Crimson Scholar The writer of ‘The Genius’ Manuscript’, the reforenius The Criht of the South’ Hehehehe Hahahahaha”
The Hero: “…… I haven’t heard all those rumours before”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Do you believe she has the ability to change the world?”
The Hero: “I don’t know”
Crown Prince Marshal: “……”
The Hero: “I a my instructions”
Holy Imperial General: “—– How do you feel?”
The Hero: “What about?”
Holy Irateful that you have accompanied us thus far But, are we to believe that you areus? Hero, it is time you told us what your true intentions are”
The Hero: “I have only ever had one true intention To protect the world”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Our Huress of your Hu their blades at us Holy Crusaders So which side are you on?”
The Hero: “Stop saying such things, Your Ireatest hero, am I not? I have walked this world for years The world is the world In this world, there are Hue their petty ith their own ideas of justice, using whatever names they can, whether its heroes or the Spirit What’s the difference now?”
Strategist: “! What!?”
Holy Imperial General: “That is heresy!”
The Hero: “Heresy is decided by the people of the Church, but I don’t worshi+p the Spirit of Light I have an individual relationshi+p with her and I help her carry out some tasks is all I am just a Hero of justice I am not an adherent”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hehehehehe Hahahahaha!”
The Hero: “Did I say soe?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Well…… It’s nothing If you think about it carefully, it’s actually nothing strange for the Hero to say It’s perfectly nor what you’ve kept hidden in your heart…… Well no, you’ve never actually tried to hide it”
Strategist: “Strategist: “Your Ihness”
Crown Prince Marshal: “In that case, Hero, in the fight between me and the Crimson Scholar, between the Demon Army and the Holy Crusaders, you should be neutral and impartial Is that correct?”
The Hero: “That’s right”
Crown Prince Marshal: “No matter what happens?”
The Hero: “No matter what happens”
Crown Prince Marshal: “So ill you do about the events unfolding in front of you?”
The Hero: “Will you not stop?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “I will not —– Hero Have you not heard? We are fighting for the peace and order of the people What have you gained from this liberation of the serfs? In the end, all you have achieved is chaos All you have done is to bait the serfs to the poor, hungry and infertile South, where theye of na this sort of false hope is far less advantageous than anisation which has kept the land at peace History has shown us that this is the only way to continue Talk of revolution and change is , Hero?”
The Hero: “It see the interests of the Holy Empire”
Crown Prince Marshal: “That is correct And why is that wrong? Accusing a king of pursuing selfish pursuits for his own country is only the biased view of a person with no power Kings pursue wealth for their country When the country is wealthy, the people are at peace, and they will not tread on the path of chaos In pursuing advantage for the Holy Eht for peace and order for the people, is that so which should be opposed? Noto maximise the benefit for the people”
The Hero: “……”
Crown Prince Marshal: “We in the Central Continent have a long history of stability and progress This was so created fro that these results were attained is as foolish as denying the very ground we stand on nobody can Of course, this structure has some weaknesses and flaws, but we have never attempted to imply that the system is infallible Nonetheless, for hundreds of years, Huress and history is the path of the Holy E to preserve it”
The Hero: “Well, that’s true It would be wrong to say that all new things are good things When new things begin, they have no experience, no results, no tried and provenfaced are completely natural”
Crown Prince Marshal: “……”
The Hero: “But according to her, even if Humans are defeated, they still retain their freedom”
Crown Prince Marshal: “So I should allow us to preserve our current freedoms, and maintain the present systems and institutions?”
The Hero: “It’s a good reasoning, isn’t it?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Try to understand, Hero This is the reasoning of a person who holds freedo to push her intentions onto you —– I hope herhas not been successful”
Holy Imperial General: “……”
The Hero: “……”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hmph I hope you can concede that I also have a point”
The Hero: “Your Iht concede that the new initiatives of that woricultural reforms and the liberation of serfs, have a point as well?”
Holy Imperial General: “What do you mean?”
The Hero: “It is not correct to say that new things are correct But following the sas which used to be correct will remain correct forever”
Crown Prince Marshal: “The logic is sound And there is also the matter of freedom”
The Hero: “So as it stands both sides are equal, right?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Indeed”
The Hero: “Both sides are Humans, both sides are equal, so as the Hero, I should not interfere?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Correct”
The Hero: “Then, if I do not interfere, with both sides fighting for freedohteousness—“
Crown Prince Marshal: “I cannot say that I am completely benevolent or completely just However, in order to chath is necessary Accuth is a severe test, a battlefield in its own right; and by standing on that battlefield, she too is a warrior There is no question of age or gender in this”
The Hero: “That statement is true”
Crown Prince Marshal: “In that case”
The Hero: “Before you say ‘in that case’ —— Crown Prince Marshal The world’s greatest hero With a single phrase of ‘in that case’, in order to impose your personal views on others, you display your ht on the battlefield…… In other words, as the Hero, I have the free will and a duty to uphold to crush violence where I see it”
Strategist: “That’s—“
Holy Imperial General: “Hero……”
The Hero: “As you say, Huht to have differing opinions? On this point, I respect your opinion over that of the Church If you were to ask me if the Church or the Crown Prince is better, I would definitely vote for you In a world where it is impossible to differentiate justice, in order to solve issues and fight for one’s ideals, is violence the solution? If that is not what you want, then I will be willing to take a backseat But, if violence is your way of achieving justice, then I will have to act accordingly”
Crown Prince Marshal: “……”
The Hero: “I a treated ratitude towards you…… However”
Holy Is the table
The Hero: “I don’t think I have to say the rest, your Iht? Half of the Holy Crusaders are here I hope that we can avoid violence In other words, you can probably take it that the Church and I are at conflict”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Is that a threat, Hero?”
The Hero: “Well—“
Crown Prince Marshal: “In that case, allowas well I have tens of thousands of muskets No matter hoerful you are, if you think about it, there’s no way you can single-handedly defeat them all, and I know you’re hardly that conceited I will take severe losses, but I in I have confidence in this”
The Hero: “Of course I’hness I am not a Hero ill solve issues with violence and destruction But, you people think that that is all that I can do Being a guy who can only do that, who can only lessly mumble aphorisms, do you knohat that is like?”
Crown Prince Marshal: “Hero……”
The Hero: “If violence could solve things, don’t you think I would have solved everything from the start? If I could avoid this troublesome state of affairs, I definitely would…… I really want to fly into this battle and try to put a stop to this reatest hero in the land If ant to do soht, consider that you have the same objective as she does, to pursue what is ‘beyond that hill’”
———– The Demon World, the South, the Old Lands of the Pale, the Encampment
Mercenary Archer: “I’ irritated…… It’s been five days”
Small Mercenary: “Yeah”
Elder Sister Maid: “We have to persevere”
Mercenary Archer: “Even if you say that…… OurI mean, we don’t even a hundred people here!?”
S thethis territory against them is insanity If they discover that this Secret Southern Alliance Expeditionary Force doesn’t even actually exist, they’re going to massacre everybody”
Elder Sister Maid: “Well, if you think about it, whether or not we have a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand ether” Smile
S so hopeless with a smile!”
Young Mercenary: “Come now”
Mercenary Survivor: “Well, it seeh”
Elder Sister Maid: “That’s right”
Mercenary Archer: “Really!? But at the negotiations we had no choice but to agree to their deive them food”
Disciple nobleman: “That’s not really related”
Mercenary Survivor: “Think about it Hypothetically, ie country At the very best ould only be able to hold off an ared to delay them for the last week, I would call that a victory, wouldn’t you?”
Disciple nobleht”
Elder Sister Maid: “The retreat of the Autoht?”
Mercenary Survivor: “Holding them off for five days would already be ied to conceal the rest of it, and the mines remain closed”
Resourceful Young Man: “What a splendid bluff”
Disciple nobleman: “That’s what diplomacy is about”
Elder Sister Maid: “It’s not just about bluffing isn’t it? You have to believe in what you’re saying If you’re unwilling to put your life on the line, you won’t be able to convince them”
Resourceful Young Man: “That’s very cool, I suppose that’s what they ht you will never have enemies”
Disciple nobleman: “My teacher had a similar idea as well”
Elder Sister Maid: “Well, I can’t say it’s entirely true in practice”
Mercenary Archer: (small voice) “If it’s not true in practice, then that would be troublesome, wouldn’t it?”
Elder Sister Maid: “But I really don’t want to fight those people”
Disciple nobleman: “With the Crown Prince Marshal?”
Elder Sister Maid: “Yes”
Disciple noble said, you’re quite a formidable opponent yourself I was very much impressed by your intimidation and steadfastness”
Resourceful Young Man: “Oh, and what about me? Hehe I impressed, you didn’t I? You love ht!?”
Elder Sister Maid: “What! No!”
Resourceful Young Man whistles
Disciple noble sound It is extremely uncool”
Mercenary Survivor: “And here I thought you were afraid of confronting that Prince”
Elder Sister Maid: “No, it is scary, but…… It’s no reason forI just have to do In the face of an ene such naivete would be impermissible It’s just……”
Mercenary Survivor: “?”
Elder Sister Maid: “I think that person has his own sense of justice Even though, my convictions and my route are different froht to say that his sense of justice is wrongIt ht be possible that his sense of justice is better for the world……”
Disciple nobleman: “……”
Elder Sister Maid: “Elder Sister Maid: “I don’t really have the intention to destroy or harm the Holy Crusaders If possible, I hope that all of the Crusaders can stay alive If ere able to fight in a different way, that would be best A different way When a war is fought, the fight cannot continue Because one sides is dead Even if we are enemies, that is not my intention Don’t you think it’s very lonely? —- Why can’t we become friends with the opponent?”
Disciple nobleman: “……”
Elder Sister Maid: “What a naïve way of thinking”
Disciple nobleman: “No, I can understand”
Mercenary Survivor: “That’s right”
Resourceful Young Man: “Really? Because I didn’t understand shi+t”
Disciple noble”
Mercenary Survivor: “Well, we’re mercenaries, so if the battlefield disappeared, ouldn’t have any food to eat and ould be out of a job It sure would be difficult without a job and nothing to eat —- But, above that, if we didn’t have this job, ould be undesirable people That’s why I understand Undesirable people are born in undesirable places, this is where we belong, but by being here, we keep the rest from it”
Resourceful Young Man: “Undesirable people?”
Disciple nobleuy…… Can be said to be the very frado and unbroken, and severely lack in talented young men He’s a man who has been called a hero of the people That way of living is sos he has to defend Defend the place where you belong, is that really so undesirable?”
———- The Holy Imperial Palace, a Gloomy Boulevard
Horse steps……
Footonal Palace after we pass this boulevard”
Young Merchant: “Alright, let’s go”
Footman: “Yes, sir”
Horse steps……
Young Merchant: “Ho people”
Young Merchant: (…… This is the pride of the Continent, the grand boulevards of the Holy Imperial City Well, the streets are pretty and wide The buildings are splendid, but the gravitas of the people is completely absent……”
Young Merchant: “I suppose it’s the smallpox”
Young Merchant: (It appears ru Especially with the economic hardshi+p i evident as well The serfs are heading to the cities, it see left untended then”
Horse steps……
Footman: “Sir, this is the Rose Gate”
Young Merchant: “Yeah”
Young Merchant: (The Church and the guilds which are linked to the Church arethe profit, and this is the result They have hollowed out an economic bubble and left the landlords to wilt away, but that’s the style of the Church…… Well, that’s fine too This too is agreeable to us…… I have very much to do, in the name of the Union”
———- The Holy Ional Palace, the Garden of Winter Roses
“What business would a merchant have in this ancient and honourable palace”
“How unpleasant”