Chapter 381 (2/2)

Kenneth felt like speaking out now would mean losing, so he silently watched the events unfold .

「Of course, it is a fact that my inadequate ability has led to the loss of Trisnia and Roleil . That’s why we must pour our entire force into the next battle to attempt to overturn the situation . We should not station soldiers for a rebellion which hasn’t even happened like we are doing now . Your Majesty, please allow me full control of the royal army . I will definitely take back the battle . 」

Erich appeals to the king as if he wasn’t scared of anything .

The close aides gradually distance themselves from the king, fearful of how the king would react to Erich’s unrestrained speech .

「Erich……I trust in you . I trust you, that’s why I bestowed you the rank of Marquess and entrusted the Royal army to you as Military Commissioner . Though the battle we face is tough, I have not lost faith in you . 」

The king stands up from his throne and approaches Erich .

Unlike past times, he did not bend down or pat his shoulder, he simply continued speaking while looking down .

「However, my faith is not the same as that of a religious devotee . I will waver and doubt . While considering how ridiculous the possibility may be, I will think to myself, “is he acting on my behalf?” or “is he pulling the strings behind the attack?”」

A painful silence surrounded the throne room .

n.o.body dared to utter a word .

The Kenneth faction, which opposed Erich, suppressed even their breathing sounds .

A sense of tension, that thought a cough could set off sparks, filled the place .

Erich lifts his head and looks at the king’s eyes . The king does not avert his gaze .

「I have no intention of rebelling . If you have any suspicion of me, investigate as you please, and if you find any particle of cloudiness I will accept any punishment . 」

Erich and the king would lock eyes for a while .

It can practically be considered a stare off .

Eventually, it was the king who broke eye contact first .

The tension eased ever so slightly . Regardless, the most anybody could do at that point was breathe . n.o.body dared to move their bodies .

「Domestic affairs Commissioner, you have attempted peace negotiations with South Yuguria, right? What are the results?」

「Your Majesty!」

The king holds up a hand to stop Erich who raised his voice .

Everyone focused their eyes on Kenneth this time .

「There are no substantial results . Currently, the enemy keeps repeating they will comply with a ceasefire using the frontlines as a temporary border and will only withdraw their troops if we do so first . 」

「And, what do you think?」

The king asks Kenneth .

Kenneth glances at Erich before answering .

「Unfortunately, South Yuguria does not appear to have any intentions to agree to peace . Everything they say is meant to stall us so they can catch us with our guard down . At the very least, we need to defeat the enemy on the battlefield and overturn our current situation in order to have any room to negotiate . 」

Erich speaks up again .

「Your Majesty . The choice is not between peace or war . It is between fighting or surrendering . 」

The king stares up into empty s.p.a.ce for a while .

Following that, he turns to the giant cage enshrined behind the throne .

A soft clang sound can be heard from within the cage .

「……very well . I shall summon all of the Royal army back to the capital and entrust the troops to the Military Commissioner . Do not betray my trust . 」

「I will carry out your will with my life on the line . 」

Erich’s face loosens up considerably, but tenses up again after hearing the king’s next words .

「Still, I cannot let the feudal lords whose intent to rebel are unknown have free rein . Thus I command that all the feudal lord n.o.bles lead all able soldiers to partic.i.p.ate as well . Surely, they would not attempt to try anything foolish with the Royal army surrounding them . 」

「But the logistics―― no, I understand . 」

Erich stops himself .

He knew that a jumble of soldiers from the feudal lords would be of no use and would only put a larger strain on logistics .

However, getting the entire Royal army to a.s.semble is a huge deal and he didn’t want to be so stubborn that the king would take back everything he said .

「I ran the calculations…… I can’t be the hero after all . Maybe he could have gone through with it and said everything to the end . 」

Erich sighed and called to mind the only man he could rely on .

–Aegir POV–

Demolished Zan Dora .

「”Lead all able soldiers and come to the capital”, how can he say that with no understanding of our situation……」

Celia complains unhappily and tilts the letter to one side .

Nothing you do is going to change what is written .

Although the letter was sent by Erich, the command came from the king .

This isn’t a request to come if possible like before, it is an order summoning us to the capital .

Not only that, the way it was written makes it seem like all the other feudal lords were addressed as well, not just me .

「Are they in need of soldiers that much?」

「No, setting us aside, I do not believe there is any other meaning in gathering feudal lords, big and small, besides increasing the burden on logistics . Therefore, I believe this is a political move rather than a military move . 」

If it’s politics, I’m clueless .

「In any case, we have to obey the king’s orders . The concern is that the enemy eastern army, while defeated, is still within our territory . Further, the army that attacked Malt is also showing signs of moving north…… mumu . 」

Myla racks her brain .

She must be thinking of how many soldiers to leave here and how many to take to the capital .

「I’ve already come up with how to distribute the soldiers . 」

I declare boldly .

Seeing Leopolt curiously look to me is amusing . Well, it doesn’t show on his face though .

Tristan seems to be sure that I’ll say something ridiculous . I’ll have Celia kick him later .

「Fufufu, listen and be amazed!」

――Some Time Later . Capital: Goldonia .

「300 proud mounted knights of the Great Dragon Order from the household of Count Krahne, present themselves!」

「200 knights of the famed Raging Bull Order from the household of Count Boldon, respond to your call!」

「100 members of the Fierce Pig Brigade, who many people paved the way for, from the household of Viscount Metaboll, at your command!」

The feudal lords who were called like I was introduce their troops with vigor .

I could have sworn something delicious was said, but I won’t interrupt .

「Umu, gentlemen, your contributions are indispensable during a national crisis like this . His Majesty has said a reward will be given without stint to those who achieve outstanding merits…… there may have been other things which complicated matters, but please disregard them and only focus on fighting for now . 」

Erich spoke to each feudal lord, praising them one by one, though his face appears tired to me .

「I guess it’s obvious, these guys don’t look useful at first glance . 」

Those “dragons” are overly bulky and their horses are breathing hard .

Such heavy equipment kills their mobility .

Those “bulls” are wielding swords, greats.h.i.+elds and crossbows, but don’t have spears .

It will be hard to use them on offense and on defense, if the enemy has even 20 heavy cavalry, they will be punched through easily .

As for the “pigs”, they’re out of the question . I get hungry when I look at them .

「What do you mean we’re useless? How rude!」

Oops, he heard me .

A man who looks like the follower of some feudal lord grabs my shoulder .

「b.a.s.t.a.r.d, which feudal lord do you…… Margrave Hardlett!?」

「Oh, did you hear me? Sorry about that . 」

When I turned around, the man quickly lowers his head .

「I had no idea it was Lord Hardlett, my humblest apologies! Please spare my life…… no, I beg you not to steal my beautiful newlywed wife!」

Why is he so scared?

I haven’t had many chances to visit the capital lately, so I wonder if the rumors about me have gotten more outrageous .

「Ooh, Lord Hardlett . So this is where you were . Goodness, I was looking all over for you . 」

「I thought I could identify Lord Hardlett’s grand army right away, but you probably have them waiting outside the city . 」

「Hahaha, with numbers like yours, it isn’t so simple to line up next to us, right?」

The ones who called out to me next were the poor trio of Count Monas.h.i.+, Viscount Binbo and Baron Gokhin .

That reminds me, I think they asked in a letter for us to head to the capital together . I forgot about it, sorry .

Those three proudly stick out their chests and introduce their armies to Erich .

「The three of us are one in body and soul . 」

They’re really close, aren’t they .

「Our armies are one as well . 」

Right, their armies are shared only because they’re broke .

「Behold, our elites . 」

500 soldiers appear with quick footsteps .

All of them are donning steel armor and, although they don’t look pretty, appear quite practical, plus the army has a nice balance of army branches .

Their ranks seem properly formed and their soldiers look well-trained .

A tiny sparkle glittered in Erich’s eyes .

「You’ve gathered some fine soldiers . I can tell they are a unit not only for show, they can fight . 」

They expressed a desire for their soldiers to be trained, so I sent Myla over .

She came back depressed after dropping a wallet filled with money, but I’m sure that is unrelated .

「So, what is your army named?」

Erich unusually asks for the name of the squad .

I don’t know the name either . I’m a little curious .

「「「Monas.h.i.+-Binbo-Gokhin joint army, the 529 members of the Starving Dog Army, who will not lose to anyone in terms of pride, are here before you!」」」

「「Starving…… dog?」」

Erich and I both let out a somewhat disappointed sigh .

「Not a hungry wolf?」

「Lord Hardlett’s name is derived from a hungry wolf . It would be presumptuous of us to use that . 」

I don’t really care if they do though .

「Still, we would like to share Lord Hardlett’s military fame! That’s why we settled on starving dog!」

「……is that so?」

Erich stared dumbfoundedly at the trio .

“Hungry wolf” gives off a sense of ferocity, whereas “starving dog” is a poor-sounding name which only reminds people of famine .

Besides that, 529 soldiers is a number which gives the impression that they’re all you could muster, and isn’t very cool .

Couldn’t you make it 550 or at least get one more soldier and round it off to 530? No, they probably didn’t have enough money for one more .

Erich’s eyes meet with mine as I was thinking of such things .

「Good of you to come . I know your territory is under attack by the enemy too…… I truly apologize . 」

「Please don’t . The battle in the west is one where we must also win after all . 」

Erich and I exchange a firm handshake .

「Honestly speaking, I do not consider the armies of the other feudal lords as part of our military force . Haha, you are the only exception . 」

Being evaluated so highly is going to make me blush .

It makes me want to do all I can .

「Now then, introduce your soldiers . 」

Erich tells me with a smile .

The feudal lords around me stop introducing themselves and pause their idle chatter to look in my direction, gulping audibly .

I should make an effort to stand out here .

「From the household of Magrave Hardlett, I, myself, have come alone!」

My voice was louder than all those who introduced themselves before me .

Such an unexpected statement shocked those present into an unpleasant silence different than before .

There was a clang made from the dropping of one’s sword .

It was the sound of the poor trio dropping their swords .

「Is this a joke? Are you serious?」

「I’m serious . 」

I reply immediately to Erich’s creeping growl .

Erich strangles my neck unreasonably and takes me away to his office .

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