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131 Count
Parton's Army Moves
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Translator : PolterGlast
"Your Excellency.
There's been movement from Count Parton."
While I was working,
Barth came to me with information on Count Parton's movements.
"Count Parton is
gathering soldiers. It seems he's gathering about 2,000 of them."
Gathering soldiers at
this time of the year must be to attack Triange. I think it's a safe
assumption.
"Are they coming
here?"
"Almost
certainly."
"Our territory's
soldiers will be enough. Prepare for an interception."
"Yes, sir!"
The information I
gathered earlier stated that the Parton family has about 2,000 soldiers. Of the
2,000 soldiers Count Parton is gathering, only about half would be his family's
soldiers at most. He must be conscripting the rest from his citizens. After
all, he can't leave his territory undefended while he's attacking us.
Our military strength
is about 380 people. We also have the fourth and fifth-generation soldiers in
the royal capital and Kerniff. Also, most of the soldiers we inherited from the
royal direct domain era have gone into the Zawalifi dungeon to level up. The
huge disparity in power between them and the first- to third-generation
soldiers, who are all over Level 40, seems to have motivated them.
There are about 100
soldiers in the Zawalifi mansion, so there are about 280 soldiers here in
Triange. We'll be fighting the defense battle with these 280 soldiers.
"Should we bring
back the soldiers from Zawalifi?"
Banarji asked, probably
knew I wouldn't do that. And of course, I denied it, saying it wasn't
necessary.
"What about
conscripting our citizens—"
"We will not
conscript. We will handle this with only the soldiers from Triange."
"What about
evacuating the citizens?"
"Hmm. For now,
just tell those who want to flee to do so."
"It might cause
chaos, but is that alright?"
"It's better than
them finding out later. Let's bring the fourth and fifth-generation soldiers to
help with the evacuation."
"Understood."
I immediately summoned
the fourth and fifth-generation soldiers from the royal capital and Kerniff.
Some of them are in the dungeon, but they should all be here by tomorrow.
Count Parton's army is
expected to reach the border in about four days. A small territory has its
advantages. We can easily predict Count Parton's invasion route.
And I should also be
concerned about the neighboring territories. We are adjacent to four
territories.
The first is, of
course, Count Parton's territory. The second is Viscount Tigarood's territory,
where he's currently a houseguest. The third is the royal direct domain of
Zawalifi. And the fourth is Count Lafon's territory.
I don't think Viscount
Tigarood is staying with us to spy on us. He seems like a simple martial arts
fanatic. I don't think he's involved in this. However, as a noble in this
region, it's possible he has some connection to Count Parton. My Detailed
Appraisal didn't show any such information, though.
I also don't know if
Count Lafon will cooperate with Count Parton. He hasn't made a move yet, but
anything could happen. However, there are mountains between Count Lafon's
territory and ours, making direct travel difficult. If he were to invade us, he
would have to go through either Count Parton's territory or Zawalifi.
I never thought I
would be fighting a war after coming to this world. Count Parton is just
reaping what he sowed. He's blaming me for his own foolishness and starting a
war. I can only sigh.
I can't say much
myself, but what a shortsighted person he is. He probably hasn't thought at all
about how many people will be affected by his actions.
"Viscount Tigarood.
Please return to your territory at once."
I told Viscount Tigarood
that Count Parton's army was approaching and urged him to return to his
territory. I don't plan on losing, but there's always a one-in-a-million
chance.
"I will return
with reinforcements. Please hold on until then."
He said something
nice. But I don't think it will take that long. This battle won't have any
tactics or strategies. Count Parton has several times our military strength, so
he probably thinks he can overwhelm us.
"We don't need
reinforcements, so please be careful on your way back."
I saw Viscount Tigarood
off and let out a sigh of relief. If Viscount Tigarood were to join the battle
and get injured, it would have consequences later on.
***
The citizens who
learned that Count Parton's army was coming began to evacuate. I had the
low-level fourth and fifth-generation soldiers who won't be fighting in the war
direct traffic to prevent chaos and injuries.
"Your Excellency!
The preparations for our departure are complete."
Gandarvan came to call
me. His jet-black Gormodia armor looks cool. I'm also wearing Gormodia armor.
The high-level
knights, including Jojok, are equipped with hihirokane armor, and the first-
and second-generation soldiers are equipped with mithril armor. The massive
number of armors that dropped from the Orichalcum Golem's treasure chests has
become the equipment for the main force of the Footscythel viscount family's
army. The Gormodia armor is quite heavy, but it's not a problem for our level.
I stood on a wooden
box in front of the 280 soldiers, which included the first, second, and
original soldiers.
"As you all know,
there are bandits targeting Triange."
He has no reason to
invade us. He is no different from a bandit. In fact, Count Parton's job is
Bandit.
"We will now go
and take care of the bandits. It's only a force of 2,000. It's not even a warm-up
for us."
Laughter erupted from
the soldiers.
The ninjas from the
former Kouga clan investigated the Parton army and found that even though their
numbers are large at 2,000, most of them are below Level 20. In the first
place, there is not a single person over Level 30 under Count Parton. The
highest level is 25.
We have over 150
first-, second-, and third-generation soldiers who are all in their 40s. Not
all of them are here, as some are in the royal capital, Kerniff, and Zawalifi,
but we brought over 130 of them.
People at Level 40 are
the ones who fight against Merfolk in the 8th floor of the royal capital
dungeon. Merfolk fight in groups. They fight a group of over 100 Merfolk with
less than 10 people. There's no way our 130 elite soldiers, who have fought
against 100 Merfolk of the same level, would lose against an army of low-level
soldiers who are below Level 20.
Of course, people use
tactics and strategies. That's a power that monsters don't have. However, Count
Parton is ignoring strategies. Regardless of whether he can or can't, he should
have mobilized the nobles around Triange and attacked from all directions.
This time, Count
Parton only mobilized the soldiers he gathered in his own territory. He
probably thinks there's no way he can lose with a force of 2,000 against a
viscount. This world has a level system, you know? It's a world where quality
is more important than quantity.
Count Parton probably
didn't investigate us at all. He knows I can explore the 10th floor of the
royal capital dungeon. He probably thinks the only high-level people are the
few who explored the 10th floor with me. He should have investigated the royal
capital's Explorer's Guild and the movements of our people in the Kerniff and
Zawalifi dungeons.
"Alright, we will
either kill or capture the bandits. And don't let their leader escape. Bring
him to me. Let's march out!"
I raised my magic
sword, Salman, to the sky.
" "
"Ooooh!" " "
The soldiers stomped
their feet so hard the ground shook. Our soldiers are in high spirits.
We left the town of
Triange and headed toward the Lubish Plains, where we were told Count Parton's
army was advancing. The Lubish Plains are located to the west of Triange and
form the border with Count Parton's territory.
We advanced through our
small territory and set up our formation in one day. Since we have infantry, it
takes about this much time. The Lubish Plains are a barren wasteland with no
fields or houses. It's just a wide-open space with a single road.
It's a good place to
fight a war where no one will be bothered. Is that right? Well, I guess it is a
good place in the sense that it won't bother anyone.
"Set up the
camp!"
At Gandarvan's
command, fences were put up around us, and tents were pitched. The item box of
our transporters is full of military supplies. It's easy to set things up since
we just have to take them out.
"Anneliese, you
didn't have to come."
Anneliese, in her mage
gear, is also in the army. I feel more at ease with her by my side than being
separated from her, but it's a battlefield, so anything can happen. As long as
there's a one-in-a-million chance, I'm a little worried.
"I want to be of
use to you, Toi-sama."
How endearing. I love
her!
Dinner is curry. It's
a curry with a lot of vegetables and meat. We also have rice. Curry has become
popular among the soldiers recently. I've made curry day every Sunday since our
time in Kerniff, and it seems to have become a custom here as well. And since
there's no time progression in my item box, the curry is still piping hot.
After we all finished
eating curry, I gave the soldiers some fruit that Rose grew. The soldiers were
very happy since sweet fruits are expensive and not something they can eat
often.
We're here to fight a
war, but it feels more like a picnic.
We are on alert, but I
don't think there will be a night raid. Count Parton underestimates me, so he
probably plans to crush us head-on.
He gathered a force of
2,000 to attack a viscount's territory, so his intention must be to defeat me
in a flashy way and show off his power.
I watched Anneliese's
sleeping face as the night went on.
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