Chapter 2: War of Defense
Six months had passed since I’d declared the founding of my nation.
Because I’d immediately set to work on internal matters, we had already begun to stabilize in many ways. However, there was now another new and pressing concern.
Yes, it was money. I’d been spending like a drunken sailor, so that was to be expected.
The starting bonus I’d received in the form of gold bars was beginning to run out—I was going to have to find new sources of funds and be responsible with the country’s management.
If the nation was in the red, that burden would fall on the people. I’d gone to a lot of trouble to raise their Opinion by exempting them from taxes, and if I placed heavy taxes on them now, that would lower it in no time. Low Opinion meant a greater chance of rebellions and coups, and it would decrease the Morale of my soldiers.
I needed to get us back in the black or this nation was headed for ruin.
My remaining gold was just enough to carry me through to the end of the tax exemption period when I could start collecting taxes properly. At that point, there would still be a tiny amount of money remaining, but I wanted to keep that as an insurance policy, just in case.
As things stood right now, if the nation had any sudden, unexpected expenses, I had no doubt that we would go bust.
For that very reason, the first year of taxes was going to be important. The nation had enough citizens and workers. There was just nowhere for them to work. We urgently needed to develop new farmland and increase the efficiency of our agricultural industry.
Thankfully, the tag team of Vintora and Mirinae was hard at work improving that situation. The combination of his practical experience and her high Intelligence contributed greatly to their success. Also, thanks to the farmers’ high regard for Vintora, the efficiency of our agricultural sector was growing fast.
The higher our score, the more we could harvest. Currently, our Agriculture had gone up all the way up to 85. This was the most important thing for the treasury. If I was going to get us into the black while maintaining a low tax rate, then I needed to massively raise the size of our harvests.
That said, without opening new land to farming, increasing our overall efficiency with our current land could only do so much.
For that reason, I intended to expand my domain.
In between Eintorian’s capital Brinhill and the former territory of Luaranz, there were ten distinct domains that had previously belonged to the former Brijit Kingdom. My current objective was to bring all of them under my sway.
I planned to install Erheet, Voltaire, and the other former Runanese nobles as my magistrates for now. Later on, I would distribute the domains to other nobles based on their accomplishments.
Deployment
Fihatori
Infantry: 15,000 / Morale: 92 / Training: 95
Yusen
Infantry: 15,000 / Morale: 92 / Training: 95
I gave each of them fifteen thousand troops and orders to occupy five locations. The minute details of positioning were left up to them, but the idea was they would have around three thousand men per domain.
It wasn’t hard to make unoccupied territories submit, so Fihatori and Yusen accomplished their mission in short order. With this, Eintorian now controlled thirteen domains, which made it roughly the same size as the former Brijit. The most important of these domains were on the east side: Beland and Kinburg. They bordered the former Luaranz.
Currently, the mountains north of Eintorian served as our border with the former Runan, and we bordered Rozern at the eastern end of those mountains. To the south was the sea. West of Bertaquin there were more mountains, and beyond them, also the sea. Lastly, there was the former domain of Luaranz to the east, directly adjacent to Beland and Kinburg.
Technically, there was a river separating the former Brijit from the former Luaranz, but it narrowed the farther north you went, which allowed for the passage of troops.
The Holy Ramie Kingdom was keeping the Gebel Kingdom in check inside the Luaranz Region, and with the Naruya Kingdom starting a war of aggression to the north, none of them were in a position to mess with us.
Thanks to that, I’d been able to establish the New Eintorian Kingdom and spend a full six months building the power of our nation, all without facing any particular danger.
＊
I was visiting the Beland Domain, which bordered the former Luaranz Region.
The New Eintorian Kingdom’s population currently stood at 3,240,000.
We’d annexed ten new domains and had added all of those people to our population. At least, all who hadn’t fled their homes due to the chaos of war. That, of course, meant a slight decrease in Opinion, and even with this amount of people, I couldn’t say that we had a large population for a nation of thirteen domains.
Even so, our population had increased—that was a fact. I had also drafted soldiers gradually over the six-month period and raised our Manpower, which currently stood at one hundred and twenty thousand troops.
I needed to garrison some men in each domain to keep the peace and prepare, just in case anything happened, so I organized seventy thousand of them into my defense forces.
First, I stationed twenty thousand in the standing army at Brinhill. That number included the mountainfolk defenders from the western mountains. There were also twenty thousand men in Bertaquin who were in training. Because the area was deep in the mountains and was practically unassailable, there was no need for a garrison force there. The other thirty thousand defenders were distributed throughout the other eleven domains. This left me with fifty thousand troops that I could manipulate freely, which generally meant that I would use them to attack other nations.
The breakdown by troop type was as follows: First, there were thirty thousand infantry. Next, there were ten thousand iron cavalry. And finally, the ten thousand lancers newly trained by Erheet. It was an elite force and the pride of Eintorian.
Out of that force, the ten thousand iron cavalry were currently stationed with me in Beland. I planned to deploy them here, and also in Kinburg.
“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!”
As I was on my way toward the border checkpoint where Fihatori had set up his camp, a soldier bearing the mark of his unit rushed over to me. He looked rather desperate.
“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?” Bente shouted. The soldier who’d run over was wheezing and out of breath. Instead of answering immediately, he just bowed down before me, too overwhelmed to answer.
He caught his breath after a moment and exclaimed, “Sire, I come bearing an urgent message!”
“What’s happened?!”
“The armies of the Holy Ramie Kingdom are on the march. They’re coming toward Eintorian!”
＊
The Holy Ramie Kingdom worshipped a god known as Ramie, and its people called themselves the Children of God. It was a special nation, different from others in the game.
The country’s defining feature was that they had access to a unique troop type, the priest. The priests’ devotion to God allowed them to use mana in the form of divine power. It gave them an instant healing ability that was a pain in the butt to deal with.
As you might expect from a nation that called themselves a “holy kingdom,” pretty much every one of their units included a priest. So, even if soldiers took heavy injuries, the priests could heal them on the spot and quickly get them back in the battle.
In short, the Holy Ramie Kingdom could sustain a war effort for much longer than other nations. And because of the existence of these priests, the Holy Ramie Kingdom had immediately accepted the Gebel Kingdom’s proposal for an alliance.
Since the territory of Luaranz had been ceded to them by Gebel, the Holy Ramie Kingdom was now in the best position to attack Eintorian without the need for crossing the mountains, and the king of Ramie felt sufficiently threatened by Erhin to do so. Furthermore, the new alliance had freed him of the need to keep Gebel in check. He could attack Eintorian using the forces he had already been using to occupy Luaranz, so this attack didn’t put any greater burden on his military.
But most important of all, if he was able to successfully occupy Brijit, the majority of the southern half of the continent would belong to the Ramie Kingdom. With that much power, he could even fend off the powerful Naruya Kingdom.
These were the motivating factors that had led the Holy Ramie Kingdom to begin its westward advance.
“What do you think of Eintorian, High Priest?”
The commanders-in-chief of the Holy Ramie Kingdom’s military were called “high priests.” Their military was subservient to the Ramie Church in which the four high priests held supreme authority.
One of the high priests had accompanied their reinforcements to the Gebel Kingdom, while the other three had joined up with the forces invading Eintorian.
The highest-ranking of them, High Priest Hamuni, was speaking with Garint, who had used the alliance as a justification to come watch the Ramie Kingdom’s invasion.
“We don’t have much information on that country at the moment,” said Hamuni. “Rumors say that their sovereign, Erhin Eintorian, is rather sharp. If anything, I’d like to hear your opinion.”
Garint was participating in this war on behalf of Duke Plenett, and he was making a point of being obsequiously polite around this high priest, who possessed incredible divine power. Gebel’s alliance with Ramie was Garint’s accomplishment, and his orders from the duke were to ensure that the war dragged on without a decisive victor, exhausting both sides. That was the best possible outcome for the Gebel Kingdom.
“I see it much as you do,” Garint answered, shaking his head. “We won’t know anything until we face them head-on.”
Obviously, he had done a detailed investigation into Erhin. There was no way he would have set this up without that kind of knowledge. But he couldn’t risk giving the Ramie Kingdom advice that they might then use to win a crushing victory, so he played dumb and lied.
Just how far had High Priest Hamuni seen through his deception? Garint was worried he’d get suspicious, but the high priest merely murmured, “I see.”
＊
“The Ramie Kingdom is attacking?”
“Th-That’s right, sire. That’s what our spies in Ramie reported!”
The soldier pulled a secret letter out of his pocket. This missive explained that the Holy Ramie Kingdom and the Gebel Kingdom had formed an alliance and that it had happened three whole months ago.
The education center that Gram was running for me had successfully trained some spies, but they only had an Intel skill of 55. Despite his breadth of knowledge, Gram was not a specialist in intel gathering. It seemed that, as things stood, 55 was the upper limit for us. That met the bare minimum, so I had been sending my spies to all of the enemy countries to see what would happen. This info had been uncovered by one of them.
However, it seemed that there was another drawback to only having an Intel skill of 55—it took them a considerable amount of time to send information back home.
That wasn’t a fatal flaw, but if I was being completely honest, I would have liked to know about Ramie’s plans just a little sooner.
The Droy Company, which I’d previously acquired, would have been perfect for Intel, but now that the Runan Domain was under Naruya Kingdom occupation, I wasn’t able to use them right away.
Regardless, this enemy alliance had caught me off guard.
Sure, in the game, the Gebel Kingdom and the Holy Ramie Kingdom worked together to fight against Naruya. But the timing was different, so this development was probably the result of me changing the game’s history.
Anyway, I’d already anticipated that one of them would attack me. It was the entire reason I’d gathered troops in Beland and Kinburg.
I scanned the message once more, thinking about the implications of this alliance. It definitely didn’t look like a fair deal to me, so I tried asking Jint for his opinion.
“This says that the Gebel Kingdom requested reinforcements in exchange for giving up on all of the land in Luaranz, but...what do you think?”
Jint shook his head with a dubious look on his face, almost like he couldn’t figure out why I would ask him.
Yeah, that’s a fair response. My bad.
I tried asking Bente and got similar results, at which point I gave up on getting anyone else’s opinion. It turned out that my right- and left-hand men didn’t have heads for anything besides fighting.
Anyway, there was no way that the Gebel Kingdom would really give up Luaranz in exchange for some paltry reinforcements.
Is Duke Plenett just that desperate to ruin me? Maybe he’s trying to get us to destroy each other.
“Good work,” I told the messenger. “I’ll go ask for the rest of the details in person!”
“Thank you, sire!”
I’m the grateful one.
I had that soldier come with us and quickly sent my troops marching to the border checkpoint where Fihatori was garrisoned. The gatehouse there only had an Endurance of 61, so I’d asked him to repair it, but there was no need for that anymore.
“Your Majesty! You’re here!” Fihatori ran out to greet me. “We received info that the Ramie Kingdom is attacking!”
“I just heard from your messenger. I’ll hold a meeting tonight, so call Erheet for me. And don’t panic. Keep the men’s spirits up!”
“Yes, sire!”
＊
Night came soon after, and the strategy meeting with it.
On such short notice, I had only been able to gather Erheet and Fihatori. They were quick to respond because I had garrisoned the two of them along the border in advance. It was only by coincidence that I was here at the border for an inspection.
There wasn’t time to gather all my other commanders. If I needed them to do anything, I would have to urgently call the necessary personnel and send out orders.
“Fihatori. When do we expect the enemy to arrive?”
I’d been given a rough outline of the situation, but Erheet and his retainers still had no clue what was going on, so I had Fihatori brief everyone.
“The most recent report states that they’ve set out from Ertendo in Luaranz. Considering the marching speed of a common infantryman, I would expect them to arrive in two days.”
If the infantry will take two days, then they’re close. The cavalry could be here in less than a day.
Obviously, I didn’t expect them to send the cavalry ahead on their own, but it was important to consider the fastest timeline for their arrival.
It was fortunate indeed that we knew they were coming. In a lot of cases, there was just no way to tell that an invasion was coming until it was closing in on the border.
Even with an Intel skill of only 55, our spies had done good work, so the investment had been more than worth it.
After Fihatori finished going over the other key details, Erheet’s expression darkened.
“The Holy Ramie Kingdom is...an exceptionally odd country, isn’t it?” he asked. “I’ve heard that they use a mysterious mana there.”
“That’s right,” I replied. “Which is why we need a detailed strategy.”
The Holy Ramie Kingdom used a kind of mana called divine power. They showed up in the game, so I knew all about it. In game terms, their army had healers. They were a real pain in the butt. But obviously, there were limits to what they could do. If they’d possessed infinite healing capabilities, then the Ramie Kingdom would’ve already taken over the entire continent.
“The enemy will most likely go after Beland,” I said, pointing to the map. Fihatori’s and Erheet’s eyes followed my finger.
Though both Beland and Kinburg bordered the former Luaranz territory, there was a river running between here and there. If they were going to invade us, then they would have to go through Beland where the river was shallower.
The Kinburg Domain was on the sea. Up until about the middle of the territory, the river was incredibly deep. It got shallower around where the Kinburg Domain met the Beland Domain. Because of that, it wasn’t unthinkable that they might invade that part of Kinburg.
Still, it would be easier to attack the Beland Domain. The water was incredibly shallow, so it was far easier to cross the river, especially with an army of a hundred thousand men and not just a detached force.
Yes, they’re likely coming for Beland. That said, the intelligence we’ve gotten our hands on didn’t include details about how many troops are coming, so I can’t make an accurate prediction. I’m probably going to have to confirm it using the system once they show up.
“Fihatori.”
“Yes?”
“Is there any need to meet the invaders head-on?” I asked.
“What else would you have us do?”
“We should strike before they can.” The troops I’d brought with me included some of Eintorian’s finest, and the enemy didn’t know about Erheet’s lancers yet. “Although... Hmm. It’s a problem that we don’t have our logistics set up yet. Especially if we try to advance.”
I had just recalled an event from the game that triggered if the Gebel Kingdom and the Holy Ramie Kingdom successfully established an alliance. That was something that only I knew about for the moment.
If I can take advantage of the event, then I might be able to rapidly turn things around. This war came suddenly, but I’ve been training my fleet for just such an occasion. Instead of getting flustered, I should probably see this as a good opportunity to try out some things.
I told my subordinates about the plan I’d come up with, and we spent time further refining it.
＊
Under the cover of darkness, I headed toward the enemy force alone.
My goal was to get close enough to use the system to check their Manpower.
I found a suitably high hill along the way and climbed it. This gave me a vantage point from which I could see the enemy far off in the distance.
Holy Ramie Kingdom Army
Manpower: 105,000 men
Troop Types: 65,000 Infantry / 20,000 Cavalry / 20,000 Archers
Morale: 93
Training: 85
It’s not a bad army, I thought.
That high Morale probably came from their devotion to the god Ramie, and I suspected that about five thousand of their infantry were dedicated to logistics.
Their forces seemed reasonably prepared, and they were coming at us with a fairly straightforward attack. They would probably cross the river to attack Beland like I had predicted.
We would be facing them tomorrow.
I let out a sigh as I looked at the well-trained enemy force.
＊
The next day, a large force from the Holy Ramie Kingdom crossed the border and encamped there. They planned to first establish a bridgehead with stable supply routes, then move to occupy both Beland and Kinburg.
“We must minimize the risk to our rear, High Priest! The invasion should only advance once Beland and Kinburg are definitely occupied. And since we can only bring in supplies through Beland, where the waters are shallow, this will be an important base of operations for us.”
“Yes, that stands to reason.” The high priest nodded after listening to his advisors. “I’ll do as you’ve all suggested. We act under the protection of our god Ramie! Surely we will achieve the greatest possible success!”
Though he held the highest authority, the high priest was an amateur at war. He was well aware of that, though, so he left the strategy completely up to his advisors. In his view, his role was to give the men Ramie’s blessing and increase their morale by performing miracles.
More than anything, he believed that all things would ultimately submit to Ramie. No matter what might happen, their victory was unshakable.
As he offered a prayer to Ramie, the high priest asked, “Then what will we do once the base is established?”
The advisors explained the plan to him. “We will arrange our troops in a pyramid formation and occupy Beland first. The pyramid will charge all the way to Beland Castle, and then at that point, we will switch over to siege tactics.”
“I see. Then make it so. Ah, yes—” The high priest turned to Garint, deciding to consult him as a courtesy. “Do you have any thoughts, Special Emissary?”
The pyramid formation his advisors were talking about would be performed with units of roughly ten thousand men. Each unit would form its own pyramid and charge. These triangular formations would place cavalry in the front with the infantry following behind, and if there was any sort of surprise attack while their units were advancing on Beland and Kinburg, the tip of the triangle could turn to face the threat.
It was an excellent formation, blessed with both speed and stability.
“Your men have proposed a solid plan. You shouldn’t have any problem.” Though he said this, Garint was curious about how Eintorian would respond. “The enemy has only a hundred and twenty thousand troops in total. They can maybe send sixty thousand to the border immediately. I’m interested to see where they’ll mass their forces for the decisive battle.”
“Even if they came with all hundred and twenty thousand, we would still have no cause for concern,” the high priest responded, shaking his head.
All would be as Ramie willed it.
This view could be seen as optimistic, but it was also a show of total confidence in the priests’ ability to heal with divine power.
Though Garint nodded along with the high priest, he was actually thinking about something else.
He hadn’t passed the information about Eintorian’s fleet to Ramie. He needed both sides to fight until they collapsed.
Gebel held the initiative here, not Ramie or Eintorian. After all, he who controls the information controls the war.
Garint clenched his hand into a fist where the high priest couldn’t see.
＊
“We’ll target the enemy’s supplies. I want to keep our expenditures to a minimum this time.”
Fihatori and Erheet simultaneously perked up. “Intriguing!”
“As for how we’ll do that... Bente!”
“Yes, sire!”
“Take twenty thousand troops with you to the port at once,” I commanded. “I sent a messenger to inform Yusen yesterday. You will join up with Yusen as soon as the fleet arrives, then head to Luaranz together. Yusen will take command of the fleet, with Hoffman as his second-in-command. The enemy controls the territory of Luaranz, but now that they’ve sent their troops here, the area should only be lightly defended. So, Bente, circle around behind the enemy by sea and cut their supply lines. As soon as that’s accomplished, return to Beland. We’ll catch the enemy in a pincer movement with their supplies cut off.”
Basically, I was telling him to attack the enemy base from behind.
“If, by some chance, they happen to have learned about our fleet, they might have stationed an army in the port. Force your way through. Another plan will be coming after this.”
“Understood, sire!”
“As for us, once we’ve drawn in the front of the enemy’s pyramid formation and destroyed it, we’ll seize some of their uniforms.”
Once the fleet dropped Bente off, I planned for them to return to Brinhill and pick up twenty thousand of the defenders there. Those twenty thousand would head for the eastern side of the Holy Ramie Kingdom where there was a border with the Rotonai Kingdom. In this season, if they traveled with the wind, they would arrive in no time. The idea was for them to go ashore in secret.
My men would be disguised in the uniforms of the Holy Ramie Kingdom. They would make it look like a Ramien invasion and then immediately pull back to the ships, allowing us to cause chaos for the enemy without exhausting our own forces.
If either Bente’s attack from the rear or Yusen’s deception were successful, the Holy Ramie Kingdom would suffer a major blow.
At which point, we’d turn our attention to the Gebel Kingdom.
The Naruya Kingdom had already destroyed the Herald Kingdom, so it wouldn’t be long before they began marching on the Gebel Kingdom.
I might not know what else is going on, but that much is certain. The problem’s going to be how the Gebel Kingdom reacts.
I knew that the Gebel Kingdom had pushed the Holy Ramie Kingdom into invading us. But that was information I had gained strictly through my spies, so we weren’t in an open state of war with the Gebel Kingdom.
Sure, there were still harsh feelings over South Runan. But with the Naruyans invading and the Ramiens proving useless, Gebel could potentially send a request to Eintorian for aid.
If things went the way I was thinking, then I might be able to retake the territory of Runan once more. I doubted it would all go exactly as I wanted, but that was the ideal outcome, at least.
And if things didn’t go as I hoped, I’d just have to adjust on the fly.
＊
Let’s review the situation on the continent.
First, there was the Naruya Kingdom in the north.
Their mainland consisted of thirty-five domains, with another fifteen domains subjugated in the Runan area. Once they pulled back for a time to subjugate the twenty-five domains that had made up the Herald Kingdom, they would be the largest power on the continent with a total of seventy-five domains.
The Gebel Kingdom was in the middle of the continent, and they possessed a total of thirty-four domains.
The Holy Ramie Kingdom was to the south of the Gebel Kingdom—they controlled twenty-six domains.
The Rozern Kingdom, a minor nation west of the Gebel Kingdom and north of the New Eintorian Kingdom, had a total of seven domains.
The New Eintorian Kingdom presently had thirteen domains.
That was more or less the present situation on the continent.
However, there were also two other countries in the south of the continent that had barely been relevant before now.
First was the Rotonai Kingdom. They were located to the east of the Holy Ramie Kingdom, and they possessed a total of thirty domains.
Finally, to the north of the Rotonai Kingdom (and therefore to the east of the Naruya Kingdom) was a major nation known as the Jenas Kingdom. The original protagonist of this game was of Jenasi origin. With fifty-eight domains, Jenas had been the largest on the continent up until Naruya had occupied Runan and Herald.
Now that the gold I received as a bonus is running out, it’s vitally important that I get my hands on the fertile lands of the former territories of Runan.
While it hadn’t been my original plan, I was thinking I’d use this incident to throw down the gauntlet and challenge all the other nations of the continent.
The situation is unstable. Things have already diverged massively from the history of the game. I now need to expand my domain using only my own power.
If there was one thing I had on my side, it was that the backstories of people who played major roles in the game remained unchanged.
I had scanned the key individuals from the top of Beland’s wall, and I’d found one person who was worth keeping an eye on. That individual was not the high priest who released a white light that healed fallen soldiers.
It was the man standing next to him, Garint. He was a Gebelian.
I wasn’t looking to recruit him. No, the goal was to use him. So, for the time being, the plan was to defend and then retreat.
Once the Ramien Army advanced, they began using traditional siege tactics.
I played it by the book too.
“Loose your arrows!”
My archers on the walls rained arrows down upon them. Because the enemy chose a formation that prioritized speed, they had no shield bearers up front, so they couldn’t defend themselves against the barrage. But in a sense, the first unit that charged was meant to be sacrificed. By the time the enemy’s third rank charged, our archers had run out of arrows.
Now that we had achieved some initial success, the siege battle began.
“Let’s hold out as long as we can!” I called out. “Make it look like we’re fighting our hardest!”
My current forces were made up of ten thousand trained infantry and twenty thousand cavalry. This wasn’t a distribution that lent itself to fighting on the defense, but I couldn’t load cavalrymen onto the ships, so I’d had no choice but to send the infantry.
Obviously, our defensive lines gradually got pushed back.
We looked for the right moment, just before we were fully surrounded, then began the retreat from Beland Castle.
＊
The Holy Ramie Kingdom was drunk on victory. The men knelt down as the high priest offered a prayer to the god Ramie.
“By the way, the Eintorian Army had fewer troops than we thought. Does that mean they’re withdrawing in order to join up with reinforcements?”
“That seems most likely. We’ll need to grind down the enemy’s numbers as much as possible before their reinforcements arrive!”
This was bothering the Ramie Kingdom’s advisors. Though they had won, they weren’t able to decrease the enemy’s numbers.
“Well, I’m sure it’s fine. Our victory is unshakable either way! Now, begin marching toward our next objective!”
The men cheered at the high priest’s words.
The Eintorian Army refused to yield. They put up a fight at the next fortress too, but the longer the fighting drew on, the more their lack of numbers hurt them. Ultimately, they were forced to retreat without offering any real resistance.
They appeared to be running terrified before the forces of the Holy Ramie Kingdom.
This only added to Garint’s suspicions. Thus far, there was no way that their army had faced any more than forty thousand Eintorian men. There were no reports of approaching reinforcements either. That meant there were more troops hiding somewhere.
I guess that means they’re using the fleet they stole from Luaranz. If so, maybe we’re in for an intense battle from here on?
Well, I’m in real trouble if that doesn’t happen. If the Ramie Kingdom keeps on winning these one-sided victories, that’s just not good for the Gebel Kingdom’s interests. But even if Eintorian does use the fleet to get behind the Ramie Kingdom while their guard is down, how do they plan to deal with the eighty thousand Ramien troops coming at them head-on with all the momentum of victory? It doesn’t look like a winning plan to me.
Ultimately, Garint was unable to fathom Erhin’s strategy.
＊
We kept pulling back, handing over another four domains to the enemy. That brought the Holy Royal Ramien Army deep inside Eintorian.
“The enemy’s momentum seems to keep on building,” observed Erheet.
I nodded. “I’ll bet. They’re so drunk on victory that they don’t realize they’re the only ones being worn down.”
“You’re so right!” Fihatori agreed.
We had held out for a day before withdrawing, then we’d dug in and resisted before withdrawing again, so the time was drawing near.
The time for our counterattack.
I’d even prepared a bomb to signal the start of the counterattack. I called the chief of the mountainfolk, Bertalman, to talk about it.
“Well, are you making good progress leading her in?” I asked.
“Yes! Our maze is perfect!” Bertalman asserted confidently. “The woman is strong, but no match for us in the mountains! The forest is on our side.”
The woman in question was none other than Medelian Valdesca.
I planned to use her by throwing her against the Ramiens.
Whenever our enemy finished a siege battle, they always pursued us using a pyramid formation. The pyramid formation was able to charge without losing its momentum, so they could use it to fight a pursuit battle with power and mobility. If we ran infantry into the tip of the pyramid formation, we would get taken out, and if we confronted it with cavalry, then it would be a contest of strength.
In short, either way, we’d take casualties.
The enemy’s Morale kept rising, and their Training was high. So it was inadvisable to face them head-on. I wanted to keep troop losses to an absolute minimum in this war because my real objective was in the war to come after this one. However, there wasn’t enough time to raise new troops.
Things were going the way I wanted them to, at least.
The twenty thousand men stationed at the Holy Ramie Kingdom’s supply base in Beland had been worn down considerably because many had been pulled into the main Ramien fighting force. Our repeated defeats and withdrawals had increased the enemy’s momentum, requiring them to pull more soldiers from their base.
The Ramiens had occupied all the castles along the way here, so they thought they’d eliminated the threat of a pincer attack. But that was only true for attacks from inside Eintorian. I was sure they’d never dreamed that we would strike their rear unit in Luaranz.
The twenty thousand men I’d sent with the fleet were commanded by Bente and Jint. With Bente’s Command and Jint’s Martial, their success was more or less guaranteed. And with the enemy’s supply lines through Luaranz severed, an attack on the base in Beland would leave the main force isolated.
Fighting a defensive war was effective when it came to fending off an enemy, but it provided no way to wipe them out in one go. For that reason, I’d needed to come up with another idea for how to beat the Ramiens.
One method was to use the bomb currently in the mountains.
As for Medelian, she had shown up around two weeks ago.
When I’d heard from the mountainfolk that she had suddenly appeared in the mountain maze, my immediate reaction had been one of horror. I never would have expected her presence to be such a stroke of good fortune.
“It’s about time to get started. Do it like we planned, Bertalman.”
“Understood!”
Medelian apparently held a major grudge over having lost to me. And yeah, given how prideful she was, I’d always figured it was a possibility that she would come to Eintorian alone looking for a rematch.
She’d also been wandering the mountainside for two weeks, so her rage had to be reaching its peak right about now. Obviously, I’d had the mountainfolk lead her toward places where she could get food and water so that she wouldn’t be weakened by starvation.
Currently, she’d been left in a maze. In the worst case, if she really got sick of it, she could probably teleport home using a tool.
Her problem was that she’d chosen to travel in a straight line all the way from the Naruyan capital to Brinhill. If she could’ve made it over the mountains, then it would have indeed been the fastest route. At least, it would’ve been if there were no mountainfolk in the mountains north of Brinhill.
I myself had crossed these mountains to attack Brinhill, so I’d made sure we were prepared against anyone else trying to do the same. I wasn’t sure whether I could get out of the mountainfolk’s maze. It was just that complicated, and the mountainfolk using their techniques to lead her around inside only made it harder to escape.
But I was about to have Bertalman release her from the mountains.
Once she escaped, she would immediately run into the forces of the Holy Ramie Kingdom.
If I could just deploy Medelian in the center of the enemy forces, she’d probably wipe them out on her own. Then, once the enemy was forced to retreat, it would finally be our turn to take action.
“My secret letter will be reaching Valdesca soon, right?” I asked.
Fihatori counted the days, then answered with a nod. “Yes. It should have arrived.”
I was more or less certain that Medelian had violated orders to come here. Having her wipe out the enemy was all well and good, but if my own allies got mixed up in a fight with her, it would defeat the purpose. So, I’d sent a secret missive to her brother to have him come pick her up.
When the Ramiens started to retreat, I’d show myself in front of her and then lead her into the forest once again. Keeping up the ruse that I was fleeing, I’d draw her into the mountainfolk’s maze and then have her leave the mountains on the north side, in the direction of Runan.
Once she was there, she’d be picked up by soldiers sent by Valdesca.
Naruya probably needed her strength too. She was ranked first among their Ten Commanders. They couldn’t just let her wander around wherever she pleased.
As a backup plan, I also spent some of the four thousand points I’d gained in the previous battles to raise my Martial score. That brought me up to a Martial of 70, which meant I’d have a Martial of 100 when using Daitoren.
Her Martial was 105 when she used all her swords, so with my increased score, True Crush would be able to handle her.
Everything was now ready.
“You’ve all done well to endure this long. With this plan, we’re going on the counterattack! Take out the frustration you’ve been feeling all this time on the enemy!”
“Yes, sire!”
Fihatori and Erheet led the men in a war cry.
＊
Medelian was out of the mountains for the first time in two weeks.
As she was chasing the shadowy figures who appeared from time to time, she finally found her way out of the maze.
“Aghhhhh! I’m mad! Sooo mad!”
How could they move from tree to tree and forest to forest so quickly? When she’d first seen one of the mountainfolk up in the branches, she’d just been speechless. With anger, that is.
They’d run when it had seemed like she would beat them, then appeared when it had seemed like they’d fled. And once they appeared, off they would run once again.
She hadn’t used a tool to return home after getting lost in the maze. This was largely due to her pride, which had stopped her from returning without anything to show for her journey. However, her anger at these impertinent mountainfolk wouldn’t let her leave either.
“#)@$!”
The way they yammered on in their nonsense language as they ran away... This especially rubbed her the wrong way.
Still, the fact she was finally out of the mountains helped to cool her head.
It irked her that she hadn’t been able to beat them, but there was a simple joy in knowing that she was free of that creepy place with its seemingly endless forests.
However, not long after, she was confronted with a new problem.
Where was this?
She’d been lost in the mountains, but she was still lost outside of them. Medelian had no sense of direction.
On top of that, there was nothing around that could help her find her bearings. Look around as she might, there was only an endless expanse of foothills. It wasn’t even clear if she’d come out on the Eintorian side.
That was when Medelian spotted something. There was smoke rising in the distance.
Maybe there was a village. If so, they could tell her where she was.
Medelian hurried toward the smoke. When she considered that it might be a village, she got very hungry. But of course she would be famished, given what she’d been eating.
She had discovered a new appreciation for her survival skills. She’d chomped down on unfamiliar fruits and spat them out when they’d tasted awful. She’d injured the inside of her mouth with thorns. But despite this, she’d continued on, chewing and swallowing without hesitation.
She’d been thrilled when wild beasts had found and attacked her. What could be more delightful than meat walking up to her all on its own?
Still, she was sick of tasteless meals. She wanted something tasty to eat.
Medelian ran like she was possessed.
However, when she arrived, she saw not the cooking fires of a village, but some sort of signal fire. Disappointment and rage welled up inside her.
And at that point, she saw more smoke rising up ahead.
Medelian burst out laughing.
“Oh, I see! That’s how it is! Just how much of a fool does he think he can make of me? Fine, I’ll do it! I’ll give them all the beating of a lifetime!”
＊
The advisors of the Ramie Kingdom’s army were pushing their troops forward with determination. This time, they would do real damage to the Eintorian forces.
Even as they dutifully marched onward, they didn’t break formation. The fundamentals were important.
Garint appreciated that about them. None of the advisors here were famous, but they knew how to stick their heads together and reliably achieve success. Because their ranks were equal, none of them stood above the others. They couldn’t get fixated on their own strategies, and that had worked out in the Ramie Kingdom’s favor.
If the army was in too much of a rush and broke formation, or if they sent the cavalry charging ahead, that would give the enemy an opening.
An army that is faithful to the fundamentals is always frightening.
That was Garint’s assessment of the Holy Ramie Kingdom’s forces, but he still harbored some suspicions about the Eintorian Army, which continued to run away.
It was clear that they were up to something. He just didn’t know what.
Regardless, no simple plan was going to shatter the Ramien Army.
Garint couldn’t see this ending in anything other than a Ramien victory.
＊
Following the signal fires until she came to the plains, Medelian was flabbergasted by what she saw in front of her.
“Why are there so many people?”
Medelian was staring at an army of tens of thousands.
Given that she was being lured here, she’d expected someone to show up, but not tens of thousands of someones.
Medelian instinctively checked the color of their uniforms and their coat of arms. It’d be bad for her if these were her brother’s men. Not even Medelian could kill her own allies. She’d just have to run.
But fortunately, they weren’t wearing Naruyan uniforms. She’d never seen uniforms of this color before.
Medelian let out a sigh of relief. If there was one thing in this world she was afraid of, it was her own brother, Frann Valdesca.
She remembered him viciously scolding her when she was young. He’d been really scary back then.
But if these guys weren’t the Naruyan Army, then it was fine. She stood to block the path of the onrushing soldiers, figuring that she could always look for the way to Brinhill after she’d beaten them.
Once they got closer, she could see their banners clearly.
The moment she saw the royal flag, Medelian cocked her head to the side. She knew that coat of arms. It belonged to the Holy Ramie Kingdom. Their country was pretty far to the east.
No matter where this place was, she was pretty sure she couldn’t have wandered into the Holy Ramie Kingdom.
“Well then...why’s this big army here?”
As Medelian was considering that question, the first cavalrymen raced past her and kept on going. There was a cacophony of hoofbeats as the larger force behind them passed by too.
Medelian was mad that they had ignored her.
“Hold on! How dare you ignore me?! Stop! Stop! I told you to stop!”
A number of cavalrymen rode toward her, swinging their swords. They didn’t slow down—they meant to kill her and keep on advancing.
But...
The cavalrymen who attacked Medelian were slashed. They fell to the ground.
This was the point when the unit as a whole recognized her as an enemy.
“You’d face us all on your own?! How dare you take us so lightly!”
“You’re the ones taking me lightly!” With a nasal laugh, Medelian chopped up all the cavalrymen who came at her. However, she clearly couldn’t take on these numbers without using her skill.
As more men than she could count began to surround her, Medelian unleashed the swords that she was carrying.
“Swegg, Rollins!”
Two swords floated into the air.
This was Medelian at her best.
The flying swords scattered her opponents with ease.
But corpses weren’t the only things that piled up. Their weapons did too. Medelian turned these fangs against the Ramien Army.
“All of you dieeeee!”
Her skill allowed her to freely control weapons within a certain range. Her enemies’ fallen weapons floated up into the air and then rained down on her foes. The weapons of the men she struck down joined in her next attack, meaning that the more she killed, the wider her attack radius became.
“Huff... Huff...”
Medelian stood in one place, unleashing her mana, until the entire first line of the Ramien Army was completely demolished.
But that wasn’t the end of it. There were too many soldiers, so they kept on surrounding her.
“Augh! I’m hungry...!”
She was weakened by hunger and overusing her mana. Too tired to want to keep on fighting, Medelian unleashed her swords so that she could break out of the encirclement.
“Swegg, Rollins.”
She even used the last of her swords.
“Valdesca!”
As all her swords worked together, a flash of white light shone down from the sky and struck the enemy directly.
Kaboom!
Medelian turned her back as she heard mana exploding. Then, she mounted a horse that had lost its master.
Even after everything she’d done to them, the soldiers wouldn’t stop coming.
This wasn’t a defeat. She was just hungry, and there were too many of them. Way too many. Really, what choice did she have but to leave?
Medelian made excuses to herself as she turned her back on the enemy.
That was what her pride demanded of her.
＊
“Now’s the time, Erheet! Divide the enemy’s vanguard with your lancers!”
“Understood! Men, the moment has come to show the fruits of our training! Everybody follow me!”
Once Erhin confirmed that Medelian had collided with the Ramien Army, he had one segment of his forces execute a sudden turn.
That segment was Eintorian’s newly established lancers.
Erheet and all of his retainers were masters of the spear, and he had directly petitioned Erhin for permission to create the unit.
Ten thousand lancers charged into the center of the Ramien Army.
Polearms had an advantage because of their long reach. Obviously, it was beneficial to be able to attack safely from a distance.
However, it was incredibly difficult to control a spear on horseback.
Erheet had personally selected soldiers with an aptitude for the spear, and then he’d gone to the effort of molding them into this elite unit. With their mobility and reach, they split the Ramien forces in a flash.
“Yeaaaaah!”
The Ramien Army’s momentum was not to be underestimated, but the lancers’ own momentum overwhelmed it.
＊
“They turned around ten thousand of their men? Are you telling me that they deliberately came to us to be defeated?”
The heads of the Ramien Army, the high priest and his advisors, were questioning the news.
“It’s terrible!”
At that very moment, an urgent report came in about the battle that had broken out on the front lines.
“High Priest! Something awful has happened. The first row of the pyramid has collapsed. The frontline cavalry suffered serious casualties, and then the enemy horsemen broke our formation...”
“What is this nonsense? There are only ten thousand of them!”
The high priest turned to his advisors after hearing the report. They all came to the same conclusion: “If the enemy is attacking, we have the advantage. We need only to envelop the enemy and defeat them one by one!”
It all sounded so very obvious.
But then, another messenger rushed over.
“I have an urgent report! We can’t overwhelm the enemy cavalry that split our formation. They’re actually pushing us back!”
＊
Medelian’s power truly was incredible.
The enemy’s pyramid formation utterly melted before her might. She wasn’t the first among the Ten Commanders of Naruya for nothing.
The enemy’s forces had been gutted by her onslaught—combine those losses with the men that had fallen during the pursuit battles, and it meant that Ramie’s numbers were down from a hundred thousand to seventy thousand. At the same time, the mightiest warrior in Eintorian, Erheet, had flanked the enemy from the side with his lancers, splitting their formation.
Erheet’s lancers were having an incredible effect due to troop type efficiencies.
Royal Eintorian Army Lancers: 10,000
Royal Ramien Army Infantry: 20,000
Terrain Type: Plains
Troop Type Advantage: Lancers — Attack Power Up 70%
Commander Ability: Erheet — Command 97 — Attack Power Up 50%
Thanks to Medelian’s actions, the lancers were easily able to reach the enemy infantry in the rear of the formation. When the lancers faced infantry, the efficiency of their attack rose by seventy percent. That was how they were able to dominate an infantry unit that had twice as many soldiers. Furthermore, during a surprise charge like this, it was normal to keep going until they exited through to the other side of the enemy formation.
That wasn’t what Erheet’s lancers did, though.
Under his command, they thrust through the enemy at a ferocious pace, then turned around and stopped in front of the enemy battle lines. They stood there like a dam blocking the flow of a river.
At the center of it all was Erheet.
His powerful Command effect had raised the efficiency of the attack another fifty percent. He also used his mana skill to mow down his enemies without restraint.
Thanks to all of this, the roughly twenty thousand enemies at the front were completely separated from the fifty thousand at the rear.
It wasn’t long before the enemy lost all momentum.
＊
With Erheet and his lancers holding strong, I had all of my forces to charge the front line of the Royal Ramien Army. Of course, “all of my forces” still only amounted to twenty thousand men—iron cavalry and infantry included.
The enemy army’s front lines had been sundered from their rear forces, and Medelian’s attack had decimated their numbers. These events had been critical to the battle because they’d left the enemy in a state of Confusion. Now, the Ramiens were unable to decide whether they should advance, fight where they stood, or withdraw.
Royal Ramien Army Front Line: 20,000
Battle Effect: Confusion — Attack Power Down 50%
Morale: 50
The Morale of the Royal Ramien Army’s frontline unit had fallen to 50. That meant their momentum had been totally blunted.
My own forces had been frustrated by having to hold back their real potential and engage in a series of false retreats, but their momentum was only building with this charge.
“Charge!”
“Aaaaaaaahhh!”
The attack led by Fihatori and myself threw the enemy unit into further disarray. That was because, at the moment, the Royal Ramien Army had no unified command structure. So in some units, it went like this...
“Sh-Should we withdraw? Our losses are staggering!”
“We have no orders! Maintain position!”
And in others—
“Pull back!”
—their thousandmen ordered reckless retreats.
The battlefield descended into chaos.
“I finally found you!”
“You made it, Medelian!”
In the midst of that chaos, the bomb appeared once more. There was Medelian, arms crossed, with a big grin on her face. But she was clearly pissed.
I had confirmed that she’d pulled out on horseback, but apparently, she’d charged right back in once she’d figured out that we were the Eintorian Army.
This is the best result we could hope for.
If she’d gone and run off somewhere else because she couldn’t find me, that would’ve been an emergency situation. No matter what havoc she unleashed on my armies or my domain, no one could do anything in the face of her power.
I had to act as a decoy and lead her away.
“Fihatori, continue the advance!” I commanded. “When the enemy starts to collapse, pull out! Have the infantry withdraw first and then reorganize the troops. I leave the rest to you!”
Once Fihatori had his orders, I sent my horse racing toward the Royal Ramien Army.
“Erhin Eintorian! I’ve got something to say to— Hey, hold on! Where are you going? Wait! I said waiiiiiit!”
Medelian’s face was a mask of anger as she chased me down.
“Why won’t you stoooooop?!”
“As if anyone would stop when you’re chasing them!”
“Huuuuuhhh?!”
The countless weapons she had floating in the air rained down on me. I kept on running using 30 Second Invincibility.
“Y-Your Majesty?” Erheet called out in confusion as I galloped past him.
“Clear a path! And don’t stop the woman behind me! That’s an order!”
It’s clearly lunacy for the king of a nation to be doing this. But I’m putting my life on the line here.
“Out of my way!” Medelian yelled. “I don’t have time for you small fry!”
She rushed heedlessly after me. I was untouched thanks to my 30 Second Invincibility, but her rain of weapons did cut down my enemies, clearing an easy path for me.
Finally, we ended up right in the middle of the rear group of the Royal Ramien Army. In short, we were surrounded by fifty thousand soldiers.
“Wh-Who the devil are you people?! Attack! Attack!”
The Ramiens immediately charged the two of us.
“Don’t interfere!” Medelian roared. “You’re seriously getting on my nerves! Hey, I’ve got something to say to— Aaaaaughhh! I’m so hungry I could die here!”
As she became more wild, the ring of soldiers surrounding us got thicker and thicker. I mowed them down with Daitoren, and she did likewise with her weapons, but there were fifty thousand of them, so they weren’t going to run out of men anytime soon.
Then, suddenly, there was a powerful flash of white light in the area around the fallen soldiers. They rose to their feet once more.
This was the power of a high priest, the pride of the Holy Ramie Kingdom.
However, at the same time, it provided an opportunity. That bright flash allowed me to pinpoint the enemy commander, the one who they called a high priest.
I wasn’t about to pass up this chance. I cut my way through the enemy forces, heading toward that light.
As I drew near, I spotted a man in white robes surrounded by bodyguards. These bodyguards were all A-class commanders. There was no doubt that they were strong...but they were no match for me.
When I was using Daitoren, my Martial was 100—S-class!
“H-High Priest! It’s an enemy commander! He’s coming! Please, run...!”
“High Priest!”
“Your head is mine!” I declared as I slashed through A-class commanders, closing in on the high priest.
I galloped past the high priest, and in one smooth motion, lopped off his head.
“High Priest! High Priest!” I could hear them shouting. The shock of losing their spiritual support was going to throw the enemy into even greater disarray.
I raced on without letting my speed drop, then turned my horse in a direction that would take me out of the enemy forces.
Behind me...
Boom!
I could hear the explosions.
It seemed Medelian was keeping up with me just fine. She was at a comfortable distance, so I could lead her where I wanted. I just had to hope she’d follow me all the way to the mountains.
＊
It happened just after Erhin killed the high priest.
Erheet had watched Medelian go, and then he’d carried out the plan that Erhin had given him. He remained at the rear, blocking the enemy.
Obviously, as a warrior, he’d wanted to fight Medelian himself. She was the top-ranked member of Naruya’s Ten Commanders. That would have made any warrior’s blood boil. It had been frustrating to simply make way and let her pass.
But the war, and his country, came first. Erheet understood that.
Soon, the enemy’s rear group of forty thousand men started falling into disarray.
“Something must have happened to the enemy commander!” Erheet declared. “His Majesty has succeeded! In that case, we charge! We’ll thoroughly tear apart the enemy’s formation and then withdraw!”
“Yes sir!”
Erheet’s retainers enthusiastically began the charge. The lancers had been acting as a sort of bulwark until now, but the unit’s specialty was actually offense.
They were able to open a path in front of them with minimal resistance. And once they were in, they wreaked havoc on the enemy’s main camp.
“We are the pride of Eintorian!”
This would go down in history as the brilliant beginning of Erheet’s lancers.
＊
One man was speechless as he gazed at Erheet’s performance.
He was the sole objective observer of this war—the advisor from the Gebel Kingdom, Garint.
This conflict had started with the Ramiens at an overwhelming advantage. However, their pyramid formation had been broken in a manner that Garint couldn’t understand, and then these powerful lancers had turned the tables completely.
The lancers were a menace. It was plain to see how strong they were. But at the same time, there were elements of this battle that confused him. For example, the S-class commanders who’d executed that incredible charge.
Did Eintorian really have two such people? Garint couldn’t suppress the shudder that racked his body.
Lancers, along with two S-class commanders.
Garint had always known that the New Eintorian Kingdom was not to be underestimated. But now he’d seen it for himself.
He’d hoped to make Ramie and Eintorian fight until they both collapsed, but given the way this was unfolding, he finally realized how reckless the idea had been. He hadn’t even given all the information he possessed to the Ramiens. After all, they’d held the advantage until now. Unfortunately, that lack of information might have already become a fatal injury.
The Gebel Kingdom knew that the Eintorian Army had far more troops than Garint had seen deployed in this battle. This had to have some connection to the vanished fleet.
“No, but...”
It was too late for him to tell the Ramiens. But would the war have gone all that differently if he had?
Not really.
That was Garint’s conclusion.
And for that reason, he decided it was time to get out and return to the Gebel Kingdom.
＊
Despite still having thirty thousand men left, the Royal Ramien Army began to withdraw once the high priest was killed.
Two S-class commanders. It was beyond their wildest imagination. They wouldn’t have believed that Eintorian had even one! In addition, they had no way of knowing that Medelian wasn’t on Eintorian’s side, so the Ramiens could only conclude that she was.
Once they realized that the momentum they’d been allowed to build had actually been a trap, they were knocked down into an abyss of despondency.
Even as they withdrew, the advisors of the Ramien Army looked panicked. For some reason, their supplies hadn’t arrived in time. That was an even bigger issue than losing the battle.
Ultimately, they pulled back all the way to the supply base in Beland. The idea was to at least solidify their occupation of that territory as they waited for further instructions from the homeland.
However, it was not easy to retreat that far.
The massive defeat had raised the risk they might be trapped in any castle they entered. As a result, they couldn’t pause to catch their breath along the way. They just absorbed the smaller forces they had left in each of the castles, then retreated alongside them.
“I-It’s the enemy! The enemy is raiding us! Defend yourselves!”
Even as they retreated, the enemy lancers kept showing up, charging into their lines, and then leaving again.
“Damn it... Pick up the pace! We’ll march night and day until we reach Beland!”
Despite their haste, they ultimately suffered a total of four raids by the lancers.
“Advisor, we’re almost at Beland Castle!”
Seeing the banners of the Royal Ramien Army flying over the castle, they somehow managed to drag their exhausted bodies up to the gates.
Those gates did not open for them.
Just as the soldiers were feeling relieved that they could finally rest, archers who had been hiding atop the walls started firing.
“It’s the enemy!”
“Aaaaaaahhh!”
The Ramiens had been ready to enter the castle, so when the sneak attack came, they hadn’t been prepared to defend themselves. The hail of arrows caused massive casualties.
Then, even more archers swarmed to the top of the walls.
“How are they in Beland Castle...? What happened to the troops we left here?!”
The advisors shuddered at the incomprehensible situation they’d found themselves in.
The Eintorian Army’s main force had been their cavalry. They didn’t have that many infantrymen. So how had they been able to get here first, and occupy a castle held by ten thousand men?
It was impossible.
“Advisor, b-behind us... It’s those lancers!”
The advisors were shocked. At this rate, they would be wiped out by an attack from the rear.
“Go around the castle at once and retreat! Luaranz! Retreat into Luaranz!”
They shouted for everyone to pull back, but as they fled down the road around the castle, the Ramien army found their path blocked by Jint and Bente.
“Attack! Attack! Don’t let the enemy get away!” Bente shouted, sending his men charging in.
Jint led the way. Lancers charged at the rear, archers perched atop the castle walls, and Jint’s infantry marched along the road around the castle.
Jint started cutting down the Ramiens.
Garint, who had long since left the Royal Ramien Army and was watching the carnage unfold from a distance, let out a deep sigh. He’d wanted both armies to fall, but this had turned out to be a great victory for Eintorian. The scariest part was that Eintorian had taken practically no damage throughout this entire series of events.
Well, it still wasn’t the worst possible outcome. He’d managed to expend the Royal Ramien Army’s forces, and the Royal Gebel Army had already been called in to reinforce them.
There was nothing more to be seen here.
With that decided, Garint returned to the Gebel Kingdom.
＊
The grand fleet under the command of Hoffman, the newly appointed second-in-command of the Eintorian Navy, had been underway for days.
They had first dropped off Bente and Jint in Luaranz. After that, they had made a swift return to Brinhill to load up the twenty thousand defenders who would take part in the second phase of the battle.
It was an incredibly important operation.
Yusen’s men changed into some Royal Ramien Army uniforms that had been taken after the massive victory and then quickly boarded the fleet.
This operation was to be handled by Yusen and Gibun, with Heina and Vinay serving as advisors.
“I really have to dress like this?” Vinay looked down at the uniform in dissatisfaction. He was wearing a holy vestment from the Royal Ramien Army.
“You’re going to be central to this operation,” Yusen explained in an attempt to console Vinay.
“Central?! I’m not the kind of person who stands on the front lines!” Though Vinay complained emphatically, he didn’t really have a choice.
“Ah hah hah hah! You look great in it! What’s the fuss!” Gibun slapped Vinay on the back.
Obviously, this was no comfort at all. Vinay was feeling dispirited, but that had no effect on the plan.
The fleet mercilessly set sail.
“Is the wind steady?” asked Yusen.
“Yes, Commander,” Hoffman answered with a nod. “The winds blow due west this time of year!”
And so the fleet sailed past Luaranz, entering the territory of the Ramie Kingdom. The destination of these twenty thousand men was the Rotonai Kingdom.
“Isn’t it about time you prepared a mana circle?”
Yusen placed a hand on Vinay’s shoulder as they gazed toward enemy territory. This was the whole reason they’d brought the scholar into battle with them. Vinay had spent many long years studying mana. Naturally, he was aware of the Ramien system of spells known as divine power.
If he were to put up a circle using a similar kind of mana, the Rotonai forces would obviously mistake them for the Royal Ramien Army. That was Erhin’s plan.
Of course, there were no soldiers in need of healing here, so Vinay prepared a different circle instead.
One of the circles Vinay knew emitted a bright flash of light. It was no use as anything more than a distraction, but it closely resembled the flash given off by the high priests’ divine power. It used the same mana, so it only stood to reason that it would look similar.
＊
I had been running from Medelian for the past five hours.
During that time, I had gotten a feel for the range of her skill, so I’d taken to riding my horse just outside of it. However, because I’d summoned Daitoren to fight the Ramiens, it was going to take time before I could use it again.
Despite the dogged tenacity she showed in pursuing me, her stamina was starting to falter. Whenever I saw her stop her horse and stare hatefully at me, I took the opportunity to rest too.
It’s about time, though.
I moved close to the forest and made sure she could see me dismount. Medelian gradually closed in.
She stopped in front of me, jumped down from her horse, and the first thing out of her mouth was, “I told you to stop, so why didn’t you? Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! You piss me off so muuuuuuch! Aaaaaagh! I’m so mad!”
Her entire body shook as she balled her hands into fists and started swinging with reckless abandon.
“I could’ve practically died of hunger and from overusing my power, but you just kept running! Seriously, what are you trying to do here? Do you want me to kill you?”
“What, so you weren’t coming to kill me?” I asked. “I kept running away because I was pretty sure that was your intent.”
For some reason, my words only angered her more.
“You, you...! Arghhhhhh!” She started trying to tear out her hair.
What does she even want to do...?
“I’ll kill you. You are so dead. You’re already in range too, so running’s not going to save you. I’m not just saying it—I’m gonna murder you for real now.”
Man, she’s pissed.
“You’re gonna murder me ‘for real’? Don’t tell me you had something else in mind when you chased after me...”
That got her shouting again. “Aaaahhh! Shut up! Shut up!” Swegg and Rollins simultaneously flew up into the air.
Suddenly, I had an idea. I tossed a waterskin at Medelian.
She caught it reflexively. “What’s this supposed to be?”
“Water. Have a drink and calm down. You’ve gotta be exhausted, right? Don’t worry, it’s not poisoned.”
Not that I’d know, but she’s gotta be pretty parched.
“It wouldn’t matter even if it was. My mana would beat your lousy poison. Hmph!”
Having said this, she immediately opened the lid and tried to take a drink.
But no water came out.
Not even a drop.
She shook the waterskin over and over, but it was dry.
“Youuuuuu!!!”
“Whoa, whoa, hold up! It was a simple mistake! I didn’t mean to do it, honest.”
I’d apparently given her the waterskin that I’d just finished drinking myself. No wonder it had felt so light. I hurriedly found the right one and tossed it to her.
Medelian accepted the new waterskin with silent fury. There was a slight sloshing sound when she shook it, so she trusted that this one did indeed have water inside. But her pride seemed to get in the way. She looked back and forth between me and the waterskin.
Thirst won out in the end.
She emptied the waterskin with big gulps, only moving her lips away once it was drained to the last drop.
“Thanks...” Medelian said coolly after wiping her mouth with her sleeve.
“Heh...” I suppressed a laugh. “No problem.”
I’d assumed she was the type of battle maniac who just charged in blindly, but maybe there’s a good amount of room for dialogue?
For just a moment, I imagined the Valdesca siblings working alongside me, impossible as it might have seemed. Surely it was nothing more than a far-fetched dream. But it was an appealing dream nonetheless.
Grumble!
That massive delusion was wiped away by the sound of a rumbling stomach. I looked over to see Medelian bent double and holding her belly.
“Urghhhhhh.”
“Pfft!” I finally burst out laughing.
Honestly, if she were a normal girl, I might have even thought it was cute. I quickly got myself under control, though. She was an S-class warrior. No matter how adorable she might’ve appeared, her strength was monstrous.
Ahem. I cleared my throat. “So, what did you come after me for?”
Medelian glared up at me as she answered, “To fight.”
“If you’re here to fight, then you’re here to kill me, aren’t you?”
“It might turn out that way if you’re weak! But then it’ll have been your weakness that killed you. Not me. If you lose, it means you just don’t have what it takes!”
“‘What it takes’? To do what, exactly? You came all the way out here...”
“Well... What it takes to play with me!”
“Come again?” I couldn’t help but be exasperated. What was she even saying? “You’re not making any— You know what, forget it. Just eat this.”
I was so done with her that I didn’t even want to fight. Shaking my head, I tossed her a leather pouch, punctuating the gesture with a disdainful click of my tongue.
“I don’t need any more water!”
“It’s dried meat. At least look at it first!”
“Dried meat? Seriously? Oooh!”
Medelian opened the leather pouch and began stuffing its contents into her little mouth.
She’s way too delighted.
But her face quickly went pale, and she looked at me with desperation.
“Y-You don’t have any more water, do you...? I got some caught in my throat!”
I was speechless. I kindly gave her some more, which she gulped down with a look of satisfaction.
“Hee hee. Okay, I’m all full. Now I can fight!”
“Now listen, you... Shouldn’t you be in Herald or something? You’re one of the Ten Commanders, but that doesn’t mean they’ll just let you off the hook if you disobey orders.”
“W-Well, His Majesty and my brother might give me an earful! But whatever, I can’t avoid that. I’ve got more important things to do!”
“Like fighting me...?”
“Exactly! It won’t be like last time. I’m gonna go all out from the start!”
At that very moment, I sensed an intense bloodlust radiating from her. She’d seemed somewhat defanged up until a moment ago, but she was still a ferocious beast.
Medelian drew Swegg and Rollins—that alone boosted her Martial score to 102—and then lunged at me.
I immediately answered her with Daitoren.
My blade clashed with hers.
Shiiiiiing!
An ear-piercing shriek of metal on metal rang out with every impact.
It was 100 against 102. As things stood, she was stronger than me. But that was actually more convenient when it came to leading her where I wanted. I could retreat without having to put on a bad act of losing.
It wasn’t that easy, though.
“Valdesca!”
True to her promise to go all out, Medelian called her mightiest sword. Swegg granted her a +1 to Martial, and Rollins gave her a +2. Those were both solid numbers, but they had nothing on Valdesca’s +5. I should have expected no less from a weapon bearing the family name.
I had forcefully neutralized Swegg and Rollins using True Crush the last time we’d fought, so 104 Martial had been her highest score back then, but now she was using all three simultaneously. That boosted her Martial to a score of 107.
Her skill let her use all three swords freely. The fact that she could attack from three directions at once was enough trouble on its own.
It’s impossible to face a Martial of 107 with a Martial of 100. The Attack command won’t be able to fend off all of her blows.
Knowing this, I used 30 Second Invincibility to get on my horse and flee, setting my mount galloping toward the mountains.
“What? You’re just going to run again?”
She looked blatantly disappointed. I felt the incredible bloodlust from earlier ebb away.
Because I wasn’t fleeing at a distance like before, I was in range of her attacks the whole time. I wouldn’t have been able to stop them all without 30 Second Invincibility.
I did manage to lead her into the mountains, though.
Well, I didn’t want to resort to this, but if my reluctance is going to get me killed, then what’s the point?
With that thought in mind, I opened up the system.
Okay, my current Martial with Daitoren is 100. But if I raise my base Martial to 73, it’ll give me a total of 103. If I use True Crush on top of that, then that lets me temporarily beat her with a score of 108. I just barely have enough points, though.
Raising Martial from 67 to 70 had cost me 300 points per Martial point, for a total of 900. However, from 70 onward, it cost 700 points per point of Martial. That meant I’d need to spend 2100 total points to raise Martial from 70 to 73. I’d also used 30 Second Invincibility five times at a cost of 200 points each.
That uses up all of the 4000 points from earlier...
Regardless, if I used True Crush to get a higher score than her, I could get through this.
I hid for a moment and raised my Martial to 73. Just as I finished leveling up, I heard Medelian’s footsteps behind me.
Whoosh.
Her blades felled the trees all around me. I rolled out of the way just in the nick of time.
“Ooh, so that’s where you were hiding,” she taunted.
“I wasn’t hiding. I was waiting for this moment!”
I faced her with an inscrutable expression on my face as I used True Crush. Remembering what’d happened last time, Medelian met Daitoren with Valdesca and Rollins in her hands.
“Ooh...! Now we’re talking!”
She looked absolutely delighted, like a child who’d just found a playmate.
The three swords sent sparks flying as they struggled against each other.
True Crush had the awesome effect of neutralizing mana skills, but that part of it only activated once it made contact. By sending Swegg up into the air, she could take True Crush while still receiving its stat boost.
She’s not the top member of the Ten Commanders for nothing.
If it’d been 107 against 107, there would have been a blast wave like last time. But right now, my True Crush was just one point higher.
The result: Daitoren began slowly pushing her swords back.
For some reason, Medelian started laughing. Like a total goof.
“Wah hah hah hah hah hah hah!”
With True Crush overwhelming her, she looked at me and said, “I knew you were worth paying attention to! I won’t lose next time! See you soon!”
Then, just as Daitoren was about to touch her, she vanished without a trace.
She must have used a tool. Those things return the user home, so I guess she’s in Naruya now.
Well, it’ll do, I guess.
I had been planning to get her lost in the mountain maze and then let her out on the Runan side, but this was faster. Once he found out she was back home, Valdesca probably wouldn’t send soldiers in my direction.
＊
“Did you retrieve all of the Ramien Army’s supplies?”
“Yes, Your Majesty! We took everything they had along the supply lines from Luaranz, as well as what was at the base in Beland!”
Reports indicated that the Ramiens had supplied enough to feed a hundred thousand soldiers for about a month. It was fair to call this a massive win.
Of course, the end goal isn’t just to defeat the Ramien Army. The situation on the continent is only going to get harsher from here on.
I planned to use this chance to showcase just how horrifying the Eintorian Army could be.
It would be desirable to create a situation where they fear the New Eintorian Kingdom just like they fear the Naruya Kingdom, but at the same time, I want them to fall over one another to seek our aid. That’s why I’m going to intervene in the war between Naruya and Gebel.
To that end, I had deliberately let one of the sparks of that conflict return home alive: the man called Garint who was an advisor in the Gebel Kingdom.
＊
“A high priest is dead, and our expeditionary force was wiped out? Oh, Ramie! How could this be?”
The King of Ramie had just been informed of the disaster. One of the high priests was away in the Gebel Kingdom, but the remaining two high priests shared a look of anguish.
“This is but a small scratch to the powerful blessings of Ramie. Let us reassemble the army and attack at once. All is as Ramie wills it to be!” one high priest declared, and the other concurred.
If the army of their god was defeated, it would have a devastating effect on the people’s faith. They couldn’t allow this defeat to stand.
“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!”
At that moment, an urgent message arrived. It had come from the border with Rotonai.
“What is it now?” the king asked, clutching his head.
The priest bearing the message shouted, “A great army from Rotonai is invading Ramie proper!”
Both high priests looked at the man in surprise. “What in the world do you mean?!”
“They sent a letter saying, ‘We accept your declaration of war. Justice is with us.’ It just keeps repeating that they are responding to an unprovoked attack by the Ramien Army.”
None of this made any sense to the Ramiens, but...
Rotonai knew that the Holy Ramie Kingdom was stretched thin after they’d dispatched troops to Eintorian, Luaranz, and even the Gebel Kingdom. Thus, they were going to take the excuse to invade, regardless of whether the attack was a Ramien provocation or not.
Never let weakened prey escape.
Such was the way of a world at war.
＊
A few days after we beat off the Ramien Army, word came that war had broken out between Rotonai and Ramie.
“Your Majesty, the Ramie Kingdom is shaken, just as you anticipated. Though they are closely matched in terms of war potential, Rotonai has the upper hand.”
Yeah, I’ll bet.
Rotonai had the stronger momentum, but Ramie still had its powerful high priests. It sounded like there was an intense contest of strength unfolding along the border.
These chaotic times had been unleashed by the Naruya Kingdom’s wars of conquest.
The other kingdoms had realized that they would be nothing but victims if they sat still. So, they’d begun launching wars of their own in order to amass more territory and more supplies, which in turn had allowed them to support more troops.
“Meanwhile, we in Eintorian will harden our defenses. Until the time comes, that is.”
We were preparing to intervene in the war between the Naruya Kingdom and the Gebel Kingdom. Our own defense had to be perfect, otherwise we wouldn’t have the freedom to reinforce other nations.
From what we’re hearing, Naruya finished destroying Herald the other day. I’m sure that Medelian played a big part in that.
It would take the Naruyans some time, though. They would need at least two or three months to replenish their forces. I planned to use that period to prepare my forces too.
I turned to Gram, who was heading a research team tasked with developing new equipment.
“Gram.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“Has there been any progress on development?”
“Yes. You’ve given us plenty of funding, so our research is going smoothly!”
“Good. Fihatori, I want you to work with Gram to oversee our preparations. Also, repair the fortress walls and gates at all of our strategic passes.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!” Gram and Fihatori both responded.
“Hoffman, you have to seize control of the seas. No one can be allowed to violate our territorial waters. If there are any provocations, work hand in glove with the land forces to respond.”
“Got it. I’m ready to die for our waters!”
The mountainfolk would defend the mountains. The newly developed traps would be of use to them.
Beland and Kinburg would also need defenses. In particular, I planned to prepare a number of surprises along the road into Eintorian that went through Beland. That would give pause to anyone invading my territory. With the seas locked down on top of that, our nation’s defense would be perfect.
“As for the rest of you, stick to the fundamentals. Continue to focus on training our troops! Understood?”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
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