Chapter 43

Northern Arkland, Village on the side of the road

How brutalwhat on earth happened here?

Looking at the scene after galloping here in response to the news from the villagers that a large amount of severed heads loaded on demonic wagons has arrived, there were several fully packed wagons adding up to a few hundred heads, causing his face to be twisted in agony as he could not bear looking at it directly . In terms of numbers, it could only be the squad that sortied to Goldonia, but thinking about that country up until now, this sudden event is hard to believe .

Captain! Please come over here .

He heads over to check out what his subordinate called him for .

Its about this head .

Commander Butress and adjutant Bojogief , it seems that it is a certainty that they are a mere shadow of the invading Goldonia army .

After the subordinate finished speaking, he went over to the bushes and started to vomit . After youre done switch with me, Im at my limit .

Especially Commander Butresss head was split vertically; his crumbling head had a helmet forcefully put on to maintain its shape . The one who did this was not a human; it was a demon or something of that class .

Either way . Dont think the top dogs in the capital will stay quiet about this . A war will erupt .

I cannot say this out loud, but right now Arkland is confused and exhausted . Right now, the tremendous power that the royal family has is because of the large army behind them . If they ignore the situation this time, the armys dignity will be tarnished, and if the army moves out it would also impact the whole country .

If it is going to be a war then the drafting of the citizens will begin . They are exhausted and might not be able to withstand it next time . He was not feeling compassion nor anger for the murder of the soldiers, but his head was full of unease towards the future . But that was also something normal .

Irijina POV 1

Northern Arkland, Army Base

Irijina, your behaviour is regarded as problematic .

Northern Army vice-squad leader Count Varus Litobaroll is quiet, but he continues to lay the blame on me without any sugarcoating .

Your company only had a measly 10 people who ran away and came back, anyhow you ran away without giving the order to retreat .

I did not give the order to retreat . The headquarters was destroyed; the only commander that survived was me so of course I would run away .

In your report, everyone in the headquarters under Butresss command died in battle, but if thats the case then according to rank you would be the commander in his place, so shouldnt you have taken command of the entire squad?

Dont say something so unreasonable! In that situation even a cat taking command would produce the same result . And also, if I didnt run from that place I would also become that demonic knights prey . Just thinking about it gives me the shivers .

I am ashamed

I had hopes for you . That is why I placed the title of company commander on a woman, but in the end are you saying you were the same as the women who only dance and talk at parties?

In this regard! I will definitely make up this humiliation in the future!

Whether that opportunity will be given to you or not, I will be judging you as a commander from now on . In some cases, you will be exiled from the army, and you might even be put in prison . Be prepared .

I keep quiet and look down . It is determined that you will be executed if you run away in the middle of a battle . If I accept that I ran away after the squads destruction, then it isnt such a heavy sentence, and I can understand the meaning of something like putting a woman in prison . Suddenly running away in the enemys presence and becoming a traitor, the jailor and the prisoners will not show you any mercy . You will need the determination to have all the holes in your body broken .

Anyway, after becoming someone this disgraceful, I must apologize to my deceased father . Irijina sits cross-legged in the center of the room in which she was ordered to be disciplined in . I pray that there will be a chance to vindicate my honor, and on that occasion let it be one where I will not meet that knight .

Aegir POV

Goldonia Royal Palace

As the new king of Goldonia, more than worrying about the throne, you should be greeting

Its fine, in the first place the country is not one who values asking of ones mood .

In front of the throne, Goldonias authority figures are all gathered around the king . For some reason, I was also invited by the king to participate even though Im not an authority figure .

The one who is kneeling in the center is the messenger from Arkland, it seems the thing that was expected finally came .

(Light Novel Illustration: Messenger from Arkland Kneeling)

You should have had a friendlier relationship than your previous generation .

It seems that continuing to be extorted is a good relationship .

I do not care about that sort of thing . Tell me the requirements; I dont have time to spare .

The messenger raised her head and raised her voice up one level .

The other day, there was a large amount of heads found in our territory . Looking at the situation it seems like it was your work . I want your answer as to what this barbaric act is!

Yes . I will answer you . Invading my territory, I discovered the group of savage people who killed soldiers and commoners, I subjugated them but I was unable to find out who they were . I only knew that they came from the south, so thinking that it would be pitiful to leave the corpses, it was in my compassion that I at least sent the heads back to their home village .

Isnt this a merciful act? The king thought as he laughed and the messengers face turned red .

I have heard that my soldiers were receiving attacks from the soldiers of your country, and they were just striking back in retaliation

As a form of retaliation, you killed the villagers and set fires to the village, your army is plenty brave, Im jealous .

The king doesnt even take a step back . The messenger realizes that he is completely different from the previous king .

The man over there, Lord Hardlett is said to have split the leader of the savage group in half . Its quite the splendid story, isnt it?

Apparently it seems that I am in attendance for the reason of telling the messenger this . I have to apologize to Melissa for leaving things halfway done since the kings messenger called me while I was in the middle of my time with her . At this time, shes probably comforting herself alone .

The conditions for peace this time will be quite harsh than previously

What are you saying over there? There has not been a war . Its quite odd to think about peace when a war has not even started .

Your wordsI have certainly received them . I will tell my king your exact words .

Very well, Im counting on you . And also once every few years, about the trade that goes on with your country . If you so desire this year, why dont you come to Goldonia and well talk about it?

Even if there was a war there is no need for a half-decent peace . If they make us succumb to them, they will come and attack Goldonia again . Thats what the king is saying .

please excuse me .

After the messenger leaves, a strange silence envelops the area around the throne . There will definitely be a war . Everyone in this room was convinced of it .

Arklands military strength is 40,000, our armys combined strength is 25,000 . Considering the skill of the troops, the difference in strength is more than double .

Marquess Hoover opens his mouth with an uneasy look on his face . If we fight them head on, they might actually march all the way to Goldonia .

The marquesss role is to lead the national army and give it your all . Make the most of the troops given to you, Baron Radhalde will do the same .

In regards to the army, it was decided that the still insufficient budget for the reinforcement will be used, while preparations for war exercise and organization will continue and after that was settled, we were dismissed .

The authorities left their seats, and in the quiet area around the throne, the only person remaining was the newly established position and the kings favorite, minister of foreign affairs, Count Kenneth Baldwin . Among the authorities made up only of elders, Kenneth was only a little over 40 and he had a self-protective interest, a burning ambition and was an opportunistic person . The minister of foreign affairs is a job that bundles and carries out foreign exchange to the countries that high-ranking nobles or royalties frequent, and while not official, he also oversees the diplomacy .

What do you think of the course of events?

It isnt bad . Right now, the attitude is not clear but if you want results to be shown once there is .

I see, well done . Please continue to work as you have been . The conditions are those as usual, its fine no matter how much they protest .

Yessir, then immediately

Everything is going well . Once Arkland is crushed, we will have overwhelming superiority in the surroundings of Goldonia . What we need now is to win a war; it would be great if only a single victory will decide things in a war between two large armies .

Gazing at the sky, he embraces the maid who refills his drink . He wants to let loose for just a little bit . The maid tensed her body for a second but, thinking about whether there is an advantage in letting the king embrace her, she relaxes her body obediently .

While whispering You mustnt, please forgive me she no longer resisted his touch .

Aegir POV

There will be a war in the near future . How is the battalion looking?

I arrive at the military station and call for Agor, who is still in the middle of training, and Leopolt .

The infantry company are somehow able to smoothly execute the basic tactics and formations . Right now, I dont want to think about butting heads with Arklands steel spear cavalry squad .

Agor definitely wants to increase the level of the infantry squad, but there is no time, and it takes too much effort just for them to remember the basics .

Lord Hardlett, if there isnt much time why dont we train the teamwork of each company? The way we deal with their cavalry will be up to our own devices .

Leopolt says its fine if the soldiers dont have any experience, and sought 200 people .

Even if you gather 200 people, if they are amateurs that dont have any training it wont become anything . Are you going to become a shield?

Agor looks with harsh, judging eyes . He dislikes that sort of thing . However, I feel as though Leopolt is capable of doing anything .

Speaking of shields it will be just that, we will make a shield but not from their own flesh .

Agor and I dont really understand what he means .

They dont need spears or swords, they will be specializing in setting up encampments swiftly by bringing shovels and hammers onto the battlefield .

Are you saying that you will make a team specializing in construction? I havent heard of something like that before .

Agor spoke out loudly .

It has not existed before, so you wouldnt have heard about it . To defend against a heavily armed cavalry, you need a highly trained team of spearmen . However if you line up wooden stakes you can easily prevent it . Also, even a child could hammer in the wooden stakes .

But if the enemy changes its course slightly wouldnt they lose their meaning, unlike spearmen they arent able to move .

Thats true . Its