Chapter 222

Chapter 222: Giant Caterpillar

Giant Caterpillar
Chapter 222. Giant Caterpillar

Following the collusion with the demons, the neighboring kingdoms of the Kingdom of Heinckel deployed their armies to the border to isolate and blockade it.

Advancing slowly in this manner, they formed an encirclement, and now it had become an image surrounding the capital of the Kingdom of Heinckel.

Among them, the largest scale was, as expected, that of the Arken Empire.

For this operation, three corps were mobilized, and mercenary corps seeking to get their share also joined.

Thus, a total of 100,000 personnel gathered, a number that would be insufficient even if a decent-sized kingdom mobilized its entire army.

With so many gathered, the forward base was also extraordinary.

Temporary barracks were built by stacking sturdy wood and bricks, and they even made wells and roads, so much so that it could be used as a town even after the war.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Empire invested as if they had come with the sole intention of devouring this land.

— Did King Hudret propose an alliance?

At the operational command post, Ureas was seated, and the commanders continued to report via the pieces placed on the map.

— Yes. They have already formed an allied force with the surrounding nations and are also requesting an alliance from the Empire.

— Since this incident is not a war between humans, but a war between humans and demons, they proposed that we should ally and go all out, as it would otherwise be difficult, and set aside the calculation of gains and losses to focus solely on the war.

Ureas snorted.

— Ha! A transparent plan. They shamelessly devoured the Duchy of Urey, and now they say we should set aside gains and losses? That means they will also eat the capital, isn’t that right?

— That intention is not absent.

— How many have those cowards calling themselves an alliance gathered?

— The pure number of troops is 50,000.

— Are those reliable figures?

— Yes. They are figures that scouts counted in person.

The Empire also boasted a huge scale of 100,000 in total, but the actual combatants numbered 40,000, so they had far fewer than the allied forces.

— There are only three neighboring kingdoms, aren’t there? They wouldn’t go all out just to catch one demon, so how do they get those numbers?

— That is because the surrounding nations won’t sit idly by either.

A woman’s voice, out of place in the command post steeped in the smell of sweat and tobacco.

The Princess, Olivia Arken, was also participating in that meeting.

She had shed her splendid dress and jewelry, and wore armor.

Her current status was that of Leader of the Relief Corps of the Order of Althea.

She was the person in charge of the wounded and support in the rear.

— This war has a clear just cause, and they want to use this opportunity to prevent another enemy from running rampant.

— By “another enemy,” you don’t mean us, right?

— Yes. That’s right. To them, we are merely mindless devourers, like monsters swallowing fish.

— Not surprising.

Ureas, in fact, thought exactly that.

He planned to condemn the weakness of the Kingdom of Heinckel for colluding with demons, achieve a great victory, and then seize most of the capital’s resources.

Would it simply end there?

He also planned to interfere in internal affairs, claiming there was no guarantee that the surrounding nations wouldn’t also collude with demons.

It was the perfect way for Ureas to accumulate merits while gaining support in his own country.

— What do you think, little sister? In a situation like this, how would it be best to get out of it?

— I think it would be good to participate in the allied forces and form a united front. That way, the suspicions of the surrounding nations might diminish a bit, don’t you think?

— Mmm…

Ureas silently looked at the map, running a simulation.

Drawing a scenario of 12 nations participating and dividing the spoils, just with the resources to be obtained, it was already a deficit.

Ureas hated suffering a loss, even if it killed him.

Wasn’t there a better way?

While he was thinking that.

— General.

The sentry outside entered to report.

— Count Rooster has arrived and is waiting.

— Show him in.

Shortly after, a large man of robust build entered and greeted them.

— I present my respects to the Second Prince and the Princess. I am Count Oldin Rooster. I have joined the front with the 11th Corps by order of Archduke Golt.

— Thank you for coming, Sir Rooster. It’s a relief; things were a bit difficult, but now we can talk.

The Reverse Hero, Oldin Rooster.

A man who earned Valdemar’s trust by proving himself purely through loyalty and dignity.

Ureas appreciated him, thinking they were on the same wavelength.

Olivia also greeted him.

— Welcome, Sir Rooster. Is Archduke Golt not participating?

— The Archduke is of advanced age, so he is not participating in this battle, and I have come in his stead.

— I see? The last time I saw him, he seemed healthy, but I suppose it is difficult with age.

Count Rooster looked at Olivia and spoke.

— The Archduke is very worried about you, Princess.

— Me?

— He thinks it is not good for a woman to be on a battlefield like this.

A greenhouse flower should stay in the greenhouse.

It was a remark with a transparent intention.

Olivia smiled and answered.

— Being born in a noble body is to fulfill that duty. As someone who inherited Golden Blood, if a problem arises with the continent’s peace and I only wait with folded arms to save myself, how could that be the action of one who carries out the greater good?

— There is no need for the Princess to do something so trivial with her noble body.

— At the same time, I am an Apprentice Saint of the Order of Althea. Caring for soldiers who risk their lives and watching their backs, how is that something trivial?

Olivia added.

— Archduke Golt cherishes his soldiers so much, yet he himself does not come to the battlefield, so one wonders what greater good he upholds.

— The Archduke is indisposed, Princess Olivia. Please refrain from speaking lightly.

— Lower your voice first, you bastard.

Ureas stepped in front of Rooster and said.

As much as he liked the man, he could not bear to see him lash out at his little sister.

— How dare a commoner show his teeth to royalty as high as the sky? Shameless bastard.

— …

— Those eyes of yours displease me. Are you planning a rebellion?

— I am a body loyal to the Empire.

— If you are loyal to the Empire, shouldn’t you show an even greater loyalty to the Emperor?

Count Rooster’s eyes showed not a shred of respect.

He mechanically inclined his head and answered.

— Prince Ureas, you are merely a Prince. Your current position is only that of the Emperor’s representative; you cannot become Emperor.

— You bastard, you dare…

— Let us stop here.

Olivia interrupted the atmosphere that seemed ready to explode at any moment.

— It seems the demons are already up to their tricks. We are fighting among ourselves first… Since we were both emotional, let’s leave this here. Is that alright, Sir Rooster?

— I committed great rudeness. I will submit our army’s operational plans in writing, so please consult them.

Saying, in effect, that he would not join Ureas’s army.

Count Rooster withdrew like that, and Ureas’s face turned beet red as he snorted, staring fixedly at the place where Rooster had disappeared.

If not for Olivia, a massive fight surely would have broken out.

«He really is not an easy man.»

If Olivia had to choose five talents she had set her eyes on, Count Rooster would undoubtedly be among them.

He survived countless battlefields where the survival rate converged to zero, returned alive, was called the Reverse Hero, and possessed all the true qualities of a general—strategy, tactics, and personal martial prowess—without lacking any.

But what she valued most was his loyalty toward Valdemar.

Being capable and having deep loyalty was never an easy thing.

«If only I could know where that loyalty springs from.»

Olivia lightly tapped her lips.

She wanted him.

There was nothing she could do, so she could only swallow her regret.

Ureas, with his anger still unappeased, shouted senselessly.

— When will the Far East troops that agreed to support arrive? Why are they taking so long!

— We received word that they would arrive soon… But whether it is possible for an army that departed a week ago is…

— A week ago? Is this a distance leisurely enough to travel in just one week?

Even for the closest Imperial army, it took more than two weeks to arrive here.

Ureas finally could not contain his boiling emotions.

— That guy Ferda seems bent on annoying us, so I’ll make sure he knows how much he will regret that choice.

Olivia sighed inwardly.

«Trying to calm this guy down only drains my emotions again.»

At that moment, the sentry outside the command tent entered again to report.

— Sir. An unidentified creature, estimated to be from the forces of the Grand Duchy of Valdrova, is approaching this location.

— What nonsense is that?

Ureas frowned and glared at his deputy commander, and the sentry explained again.

— That is, something with the flag of the Grand Duchy of Valdrova fluttering on it is coming this way. It looks like a giant caterpillar, and there are more than 30 of them.

— Caterpillar?

— D-Don’t tell me the Grand Duchy has also allied with demons…?

— No, that’s not it! They don’t seem to be related to demons. It’s just that they bring a very peculiar creature…!

The deputy commander babbled incoherently, as if he had seen a monster.

Olivia stood up as if frustrated.

— Instead of staying here restless, wouldn’t it be faster to simply verify it with our own eyes?

Olivia’s steps to verify with her own eyes were noticeably light.

With each step, the heavy air lightened, as if she could breathe freely.

And she was able to understand why the deputy commander called them giant caterpillars.

The long bodies and the undulations created by the tents were perfect for creating that illusion.

— What on earth are those things?

The commanders expressed fear and astonishment upon seeing those objects.

At first glance, they resembled the structure of a wagon.

Yet there were no horses in front, and still they moved forward without problems.

Mana would be the most sensible answer to move something of that size, but even that made one doubt whether they could move with such pointlessly large shapes.

— They are Mana Automobiles.

Olivia answered.

— Mana Automobiles, you say?

— Yes. I heard they were manufacturing mobile equipment using mana stones. I heard Escolleia was developing them, but to think they have already produced so many.

Light began to shine on Olivia’s face.

What appeared in her view was a single carriage advancing between the large Mana Automobiles.

The carriage stopped before Olivia and Ureas, and a man appeared from within.

Gray hair, blue eyes.

A man with a cold expression, indecipherable even one step ahead.

Despite his young age, an aura of experience that no one could ignore emanated from him.

Ferda Valdrova.

He stepped down from the carriage and offered a polite greeting.

— I present my respects to Prince Ureas.

— You arrived early. You said you departed a week ago.

— I apologize for the delay. Given that they are newly created with recent technology, they must be handled with care, so I marched leisurely with time to spare.

— You came leisurely?

— Yes.

It was unbelievable.

Ureas, who had been on the battlefield for a long time, believed it was impossible.

A week was credible for a forced march of a few elites, but with the scale Ferda brought, even a forced march would have taken at least three weeks.

«Those caterpillar-looking things must be that useful.»

He coveted magitech weapons with tremendous firepower, and now the Mana Automobiles also caught his attention.

The others were the same.

As the procession of Mana Automobiles lined up in perfect order, the soldiers inside began pouring out in droves.

Wearing helmets and armor, they looked similar or inferior to Ureas’s own troops.

Instead, they held something resembling staves instead of long spears.

— Is that what kills monsters in a single blow?

— How do you kill monsters with something of that shape?

No matter how much one looked, they didn’t feel strong, and the infantry didn’t seem well trained either.

It seemed they would fall defenseless if charged at that moment, so they couldn’t help but look down on them.

Ureas was the same.

Looking at the troops he brought, he asked Ferda.

— I heard you sent 100 knights, but the number of infantry doesn’t even seem like 1,000.

— The entire infantry consists of 400 selected Tactical Infantrymen.

— You won’t employ cavalry?

— Yes. We plan to form a defense force strictly centered on Tactical Infantry. I judged that would be most effective.

— So you will step over our corpses.

Ureas cast a displeased look.

He already knew that Ferda had declared his participation because he didn’t want to hand over magitech weapons.

— There is nothing to worry about. Even if our army advances defensively, we will never retreat.

— That remains to be seen. If the vanguard is deficient, everything is in vain, isn’t it?

— You are right. That is why we are selecting the best elite knights of the Far East and placing them in the vanguard.

— The best elites…

Ureas looked toward the knights.

They might have names in the Far East, but in the Empire, they were only frogs ruling a well.

As he scanned them, his eyes casually settled on a man wearing heavy cavalry armor.

— Is that…?

Ureas was not the only one who saw him.

The other commanders also fixed their gazes on that man.

— That man is…

— That armor and that enormous club… There is only one person who wields something like that… Could it be?!

A man whom Ureas had once visited, offered a knight position to, and who arrogantly didn’t even listen before leaving.

Ureas asked Ferda if that man was him.

— Don’t tell me that is the man called the Mobile Fortress?