Expendable Pawn

The young master of Lutenia had grown up under his father, a commander, and had lived by keeping one thing firmly in mind.

War is waged through numbers.

No matter how outstanding a knight might be, or how much of a one-man army a hero might be, before war, he was merely a number.

Having studied to become a commander, the young master of Lutenia had experienced and absorbed this truth firsthand.

If only he had possessed proper knowledge of monsters, he might even have narrowly surpassed Olivia and become chief of staff.

There were three things that surprised him as he entered this battlefield.

‘Dragon Spawn.’

The first was the Dragon Spawn.

There were Luri, Valdrova’s attendant, and Isabella, the administrator.

Because of the long peace and the fact that he had spent most of his life inside the Imperial capital, he had never had a chance to properly witness their power.

He knew Luri had flown in like a comet and broken through the Imperial magic array.

In addition to her martial prowess, she could emit Dragon Fear much like a dragon, and it was said that anyone who engaged her would have had a hard time.

How many Imperial mages and officials had been executed over that incident?

‘Fast and strong, just as one would expect from Silverwind’s descendant.’

In fact, she was more than capable of handling the monsters on her own.

It was apparent even though she moved more cautiously than the other humans.

He turned his attention to another Dragon Spawn, Isabella.

‘Precise and deft, just as one would expect from Iorga’s descendant.’

She wielded water magic, tending to weak points so the formation would not collapse.

Luri and Isabella.

With just those two, he wondered if these monsters might be dealt with in no time.

However, the reason they did not do so was clear.

This was a human war.

The key to this operation was the magitech tactical infantry.

It was to determine how effective soldiers armed with magitech rifles—the tactical infantry—could be in a human war.

‘Magitech rifles... They certainly pack a punch.’

That was the second factor.

He had rated them highly enough when he first saw them, but their performance was on a level that made even that assessment seem like an underestimation.

It meant they could perform the most important role in war even without elite personnel like knights and mages.

That alone gave them tremendous value.

‘If they were modified and simplified just a little more...’

They could play a major role not merely in killing monsters, but in human wars as well.

The commander’s son in him felt his desire to conquer beginning to swell.

‘This man is the one leading all of this.’

He subtly turned his head to look at the third factor.

There, a gray-haired, blue-eyed man sat astride a horse, casting magic.

‘Ferda Valdrova...’

The Dragon Spawn and the tactical infantry’s value were astonishing, but neither compared to Ferda.

Because he was bearing all of this.

‘And he’s only nineteen...’

The Grand Duke of Valdrova’s fiancé.

That meant he ought to be the worst of the worst.

Yet the Dragon Spawn followed him, and he had even created weapons capable of fighting the demons.

Was that all?

Ferda himself was also an excellent mage.

Not only had he reached the fourth circle in a mere year, he had also mobilized first- and second-circle mages who were not even considered proper mages and drawn out their value.

‘These aren’t things an utter reject could accomplish, are they?’

What kind of place was the House of Rosnova, exactly, to have cast out a man like this?

His curiosity got the better of him and even prompted him to bring up a personal matter.

“Commander of Lutenia.”

Ferda’s call brought that train of thought to an end.

Taken by surprise, Lutenia let out a foolish sound.

“Y-Yes?”

“Shall we advance now? It seems things have been cleared up to a certain extent.”

Ferda asked politely.

As he said, the number of monsters had fallen considerably, and the mothers were exposed.

If they were going to advance, now was the perfect time.

The young master of Lutenia raised his sword and shouted.

“Advance in two divided battalions! Secure the mothers!”

Thus, they succeeded in securing two colossal monsters.

Isabella sent the news via telepathy and told Ferda and the strategic advisor,

“It seems the First Regiment has also occupied its target without difficulty.”

“What about the others?”

“The Far Eastern Alliance and the Eri Adventuring Party are both in the process of securing their targets and waiting only for the order.”

Everything was ready.

The young master of Lutenia gave the order.

“Tell them to begin.”

“Understood.”

A small number of troops were selected to bring down the colossal monsters.

A fifth-circle mage was needed to cast Supernova.

Five knights were assigned to escort the mage and strip away the monsters’ thick outer shells.

The Second Regiment’s fifth-circle mages were the gloomy witch Echidna and the administrator Isabella.

Isabella, a Dragon Spawn, posed no problem thanks to her uniquely approachable air, but Echidna was different.

“Hee-hee, I suppose there are lots of handsome men since you’re Imperial people...”

The gloomy, wicked witch’s laugh could hardly be called that of a shy maiden standing before men.

The knights were horrified.

‘Never in my life did I think I’d end up escorting a witch.’

‘O Light of Purification, protect us from that wicked witch’s curse.’

Still, being professionals, they protected her without showing their disgust.

They had all put on the anti-demonic amulets they had received from Blue Eyes and finished preparing.

“From this point on, everything depends on your roles! May fortune favor you!”

The designated mages and knights each approached a colossal monster.

After forming a perimeter, the knights and mages approached the colossal monsters.

The sharp aura of the elite knights smoothly peeled away the outer shells,

and six stars exploded along the border of the Grand Duchy.

* * *

While the soldiers were still basking in their victory in the first battle, the staff officers held a meeting.

They had won the battle, but not the war.

Given the distance, they heard one another’s voices through the crystal balls they had been issued.

Olivia spoke in a satisfied voice.

-We completed the first stage of the operation smoothly.

The first stage was the plan to raise morale through overwhelming firepower.

-Is it a festival over there too?

“There is practically a second Ipchun Festival. If we press forward with this momentum, it seems we can eliminate them all without suffering significant casualties.”

-I think so too.

Olivia did not look entirely satisfied.

Lutenia tactfully asked her,

“If the chief of staff has a good plan, we will gladly adopt it at any time.”

-This is something worth discussing with the strategic advisor, so I’ll explain. From what I’ve seen, I feel that the number of troops is excessive.

“Looking at the results, it really is excessive.”

Lutenia felt the same.

The troops here were elite knights, men who had mastered the fundamentals even if they had learned different tactics and martial arts.

Once command began, they obeyed orders and became one; that was their basic nature.

-Which is why I think we need to be a little more daring with the operation.

“What do you mean?”

-As we feared, the colossal monsters are exhibiting abnormal behavior.

It was only to be expected.

Attacking six monsters at once was also meant to minimize losses in case the monsters displayed abnormal behavior.

-The difference is that I hear the monsters are spreading out. Unlike when they headed for the Empire, it feels as though they are literally dispersing far and wide.

“They are spreading out instead of gathering... It’s no different from a plague.”

“It is a plague. They are eating away at the continent.”

Olivia’s voice was filled with anger.

-Still, one fortunate thing amid the misfortune is that things are proceeding as I predicted.

Unlike those who claimed the mothers would be protected, Olivia had been the one to claim they would spread out.

It was a scenario she had predicted after continuously researching and studying the monsters’ habits and related records for a month.

-So we can respond accordingly. The situation is extremely favorable. This is the time to be ambitious.

Ambitious.

Even after gaining command of the army and the tactical infantry, what more was she planning to covet?

“What ambition do you mean?”

-If the monsters aren’t gathering, I intend to divide the troops once more. Into an extermination battalion to eliminate the colossal monsters, and a pursuit battalion to chase down and repel the monsters spreading toward the small villages.

They had been divided into groups of about a thousand, and now she wanted to divide them even further.

-From what I’ve confirmed, the tactical infantry are so valuable that I judge it safe to deploy up to four hundred of them against the monsters.

“In the worst-case scenario...”

-That number was chosen with the worst-case scenario in mind, of course. The main force can hold out sufficiently.

If Olivia guaranteed the safety of the main force, then the same was true of Lutenia.

“Of course, I would be glad to, but...”

Lutenia turned his eyes to the commanders of each platoon.

Every one of them avoided his gaze, reluctant to participate.

This was the moment when they could earn merit, yet no one was eager to step forward.

Naturally.

Wasn’t it obvious that capturing a colossal monster would be safer and bring greater merit than saving a few dozen more people in a small village?

For now, the small villages were expendable pawns, and it would not be a problem even if several hundred people died as a result.

-If the Second Regiment is opposed, I will say no more.

If Olivia had said only that, they might have immediately called it off.

-As a princess, and as a commander who took up the sword to protect this land, I simply don’t want to send even a single life to waste.

Despite the gentle tone of her voice, the substance of her words forced upon them the duty of nobles and knights.

That was surely how she had won over the First Regiment herself.

In the place where no one could readily open their mouth, someone stepped forward.

“The Second Regiment will go as well.”

The one who volunteered was Ferda.

-Regent Ferda, you’re going? That seems like it would reduce our strength...

“The strategic advisor is commanding in any case, and even if Luri and I leave, I don’t think it will cause any major problems.”

Because that possibility had been anticipated and they had been moving cautiously, he judged that the matter could be handled sufficiently even with only the tactical infantry left behind.

“As you say, before being the regent of a grand duchy, I am a subject of the Empire. I cannot simply stand by and watch fellow subjects die.”

-Thank you, Regent. Then I understand that the Second Regiment will also form a pursuit battalion to repel the monsters.

More conversation followed, but none of it was particularly useful.

Once the meeting ended, they returned to their respective tents to prepare for another march the next day.

When Ferda returned to his tent, an incoming signal rang from his personal crystal ball.

-Can you hear me?

It was Olivia.

Perhaps it was because he had been hearing Chief of Staff Olivia’s voice for some time.

Hearing her speak in a girlish tone gave him a decidedly different impression.

“I can hear you clearly.”

-As expected, they’re all cowards. Why are they making such a fuss about winning my favor when they have so little spirit?

Men who are all mouth.

Olivia muttered the words under her breath.

“Did you contact me just to gossip?”

-It’s an icebreaker based on a shared interest. Let’s hold a private debriefing among ourselves.

A private debriefing.

As it happened, there was something he had been curious about.

“You said you were going to protect the small villages. Is that really your true intention?”

Olivia was quicker than anyone at calculating profit and loss.

She must also have known perfectly well that the small villages were of no benefit.

The fact that she had gone out of her way to suggest this operation meant she was after something else.

-Of course not.

As expected.

-I have a separate target.

“What are you after?”

“In short, they say that when troubled times arrive, extraordinary people appear. I intend to draw out that reclusive extraordinary person.”

Did she think there was such an extraordinary person in a small village?

“Who is it?”

“The Sage of Water, Hellus Fobidas.”

“Ah.”

The moment he heard the name, Ferda exclaimed.

The sage who had appeared like a comet, Hellus.

How much effort had he put into winning that man’s favor?

The Empire had been no different.

The Imperial princes who had fought over the right to succeed the throne had also desperately tried to bring him over.

Olivia seemed intent on snatching him up during this opportunity.

“Come to think of it, he did live somewhere in the east.”

-I see Regent Ferda knows him as well.

“That’s right.”

-Most people would still get excited or nervous upon hearing the Sage of Water’s name, but you seem rather nonchalant, Regent. I suppose he isn’t a particularly significant figure to you?

Well, he had long since extracted the essence from him.

Hearing Olivia’s words, he realized she still did not know that the man was a mere scarecrow, so he glossed over the question.

“Wouldn’t it be better for Your Highness to go rather than me if you want to recruit that sage?”

-From what I’ve analyzed, he does seem to have a somewhat lecherous side. I hear he likes blonde, blue-eyed women with large breasts... Just from that description, doesn’t anyone come to mind? Hee-hee.

“……”

-I’m joking, just joking. It’s awkward when you stay silent over something you could simply laugh off. Are you like that when you talk to the Grand Duke too?

“I do often find myself at a loss for words.”

That was mostly a problem on Ferda’s end.

He tended to fall silent while choosing his words.

-Since there is a sage there, I hoped you would go, Regent Ferda. Since you accepted, I thought you had made some calculation, but it doesn’t seem as though you’re after that sage, does it?

“Yes.”

Since the real one was already there, bringing in that greedy fatso would only increase the food bill.

-Then why are you going yourself, Regent?

“It’s exactly as I said. I’m simply going to protect the small villages.”

He had no hidden intention.

No, he did have an intention, but it was not something he could blab to Olivia.

-I see. You intend to firmly establish your image as the virtuous ruler of Hestia Village.

Olivia spoke in a satisfied tone.

-Did you know?

“Know what?”

-I’m lying down. In bed.

It was a completely unexpected remark.

“I am sitting.”

-I’m lying down and listening to your voice, Mr. Ferda.

“That is a highly improper thing to do.”

-Hehe. I want to fall asleep like this. But I can’t seem to get to sleep.

Olivia let out a long sigh.

The soft rustle of silk blankets tickled his ears.

“That means you haven’t relaxed yet.”

-That’s right, yes. A war like this is a harsh place for someone like me, after all.

She was saying that despite having lived in an even harsher world of politics.

-I am the chief of staff.

“That’s right.”

-If I fail to command properly, there will be setbacks.

“That’s right.”

-You wouldn’t want a situation where I gave a nonsensical order, caused confusion, and got everyone wiped out, would you?

“……Is that right?”

What in the world was this woman trying to say?

-So may I ask you for just one thing?

“Please, go ahead.”

-Would you tell me to sleep well?

“……Must I, really?”

Ferda asked dubiously.

-Yes. You really must.

Ferda thought for a moment, then shook his head.

It was something that did not require thought in the first place.

She was not asking him to recite a magic spell; wasn’t it a phrase requiring only eight syllables?

“Sleep well.”

-Yes. You sleep well too, Regent.

With a satisfied-sounding breath as her last words, the light faded from the crystal ball.

Ferda lay down as well.

Ferda was just as busy.

The monsters were moving even now, at this very moment.

To catch up with them, he had to prepare for tomorrow.

* * *

The war room in the Imperial Palace.

“What do you mean by this!!”

Alexander’s anguished shout rang out loudly.

“My army was annihilated by the monsters!?”