Chapter 738 - Third Story: The Demon Lord's Resurrecting Cave In The Demon Realm ⑨ (Morandine) Outpost
The operation to subjugate the monsters to a certain extent changed its aspect when the Boy King of Morandine decided to participate. The Boy King's main camp would be at the southern fortress, the one closer to the Royal Capital. However, since separating from the Henry Party would be inconvenient in many ways, the units remained as they were, and only the King and a few confidants, accompanied by guards, arrived at the fortress where we were staying in two bowls. The confidants were the State Chancellor, the Head of the Royal Guard, and a high-ranking noble related to the military. I went to greet them when they arrived at the fortress. It was Beatrix's first time meeting them. That said, since she is a knight of two nations and holds an audience rank with the Regnentes, she greeted them alongside me.
By the way, they remembered me properly. I was asked about the whereabouts of the Black Stone, and when I showed them that I wore it at all times, they seemed satisfied and said nothing more.
When I looked to see how the boy was doing, he was behind the Royal Guard. His face was bright red, perhaps from excitement. I was worried he might get a nosebleed.
Regarding this first campaign, the Boy King had consulted those around him about his wishes beforehand. It seems it was before the operation was implemented. Those around him opposed it. He is still pre-adult. Only one person agreed. That was Seldic's Second Son, who is one of the heads of the Royal Guard. The Second Son argued that if they reduced the monsters to some extent, the monsters' food situation would improve slightly, and it would also serve as a threat. If that happened, fewer monsters would emerge from the forest during periods of low food supply, such as winter and early spring. The Boy King's argument was that he sought to fulfill his role as a King who protects the people, and he reportedly persuaded those around him by questioning the propriety of subjects opposing such a thing. How should I put it—like father, like son, I suppose.
Seldic's Second Son is a man of such skill that he went to war as Engrio's main force during the battle to subjugate the Demon Lord. He further made a name for himself by showing brave fighting in the previous battle for the Demon Realm. And in a way, it was the same during Engrio's war against West Liber. The current Duke of Roland, Richard, captured a port town where the plague was rampant. At that time, he killed the lord who was monopolizing magic water and scrolls to make exorbitant profits, and saved many infected people in the town and its surroundings by providing magic water for free regardless of the gap between rich and poor. In that conquest, he even mobilized soldiers who had been staying behind in the country. The one who led about two or three thousand conscripted soldiers in the emptied Engrio to guard the Royal Capital was the Second Son. He himself slipped out of the country alone in response to his brother's request. That is because the Engrio Royal Family and the Morandine Royal Family are in a state of estrangement. Since he participated in support of a hostile country... though they are quite close, starting with trade... on his own, he apparently was prepared for the deprivation of his status as a knight and estrangement from the family he had married into. However, the Duke of Roland gained a reputation for saving the people suffering from the plague in the port town and suddenly became a savior of that land. The Second Son ended up helping his brother. Furthermore, perhaps considering that the lineage of the First King of the Morandine Royal Family and the ancestors of the great nobles of Morandine, including the family the Second Son married into, were from that region, the matter was left ambiguous, and he has a history of returning safely after the campaign. Combat skills, bravery, and a chivalrous spirit that seeks to protect the weak without regard for oneself. In Morandine, he seems to be quite popular among the common people.
It seems this exchange has already been publicized in the Royal Capital, and it is said to be told as a moving story of the Boy King and Seldic's Second Son thinking of the people.
The operation itself was explained by Eleanor-sama, the planner.
It's the King's first campaign. Even if the opponents aren't that strong, he must not lose.
"It is His Majesty the King's memorable first campaign. We will achieve the operational objectives with an overwhelming victory."
At the momentum of Eleanor-sama, who put strength into the words 'overwhelming victory,' the Boy King's throat moved.
"In terms of numbers, we are no match. And the opponents are inside the forest. That being the case, in this operation, I believe it is necessary to narrow down the attack targets in order to achieve His Majesty the King's objectives."
First is the Ogre. In a sense, this one is the most difficult. It's cunning and will unhesitatingly use its allies as shields. It's also fast at running away. To be precise, its timing for fleeing is early. It must be quick at judging victory or defeat. Therefore, we let it get carried away. We just need to make the monster side think they have the advantage. Since it's difficult to do when we have the advantage, we take them down in the early stages.
Next, we aim for the big eaters. Cyclops and Trolls have heads that exceed the tree canopy when they move standing up. So, we just need to make them hurry and run.
Last is the prolific Fenrir. It moves quickly and fires powerful lightning magic. Because it's agile and smart, it makes good use of the shade of the trees. Therefore, we'll have it fire lightning to pinpoint its location.
Basically, the objective was to subjugate these three types of monsters.
We've confirmed they aren't in the northern swarm. The rest are in three directions.
The operation area will be the deep forest. If there were plains or areas with few trees, we could fight there, but since they are a collection of monster swarms rather than a Demon Lord's army, they aren't in such places. Because they are always in the forest, it's difficult to pinpoint the location of the Ogres especially when they show themselves, and even if we find them, it's hard to hit them with magic. Besides, since there are no commander-class individuals, they'll easily flee if they think they can't win. If they scatter into the vast forest, it will take time to find them. We have to do something about that.
"Then, we begin the operation. Everyone, be brave!"
"Ooh!"
The Boy King's instruction was given. It's time to sortie.
The medium bowl that Eleanor-sama rides is the main force. In addition to Henry-sama and Harrison-san, it's a large group including the Boy King, the two heads of the Royal Guard, the high noble and the boy, the Bishop of the Morandine Royal Capital Church, and five guard soldiers. The guards aren't just those on board; the two Morandine bowls are as well. These were carrying archers and magic soldiers. They always follow the main force. It's quite different from a hunter's troop deployment.
On the other hand, we rode in Wilson-san's small bowl. The Class of 175 gathered here. Our roles are decoy and assault. Well, that's how it would be.
And there's one fellow passenger. The Alraune. Since it's going to be a battle, it's inside a barrel. For the start of this operation, Henry-sama and Eleanor-sama hurriedly hired one Alraune from Northern Gram. It's an interpreter for the Harpies. They told it not to go outside during the operation period so as not to get caught in the crossfire. Regarding food, they reportedly left three pieces of dried meat, several barrels of water, and one canteen of honey-water for the chicks. As for its business... rather, its bathroom needs, they reportedly ordered it to be sufficiently cautious of the surroundings and to keep a low profile.
We precede while keeping the main force behind us. The first day is the swarm at the southeastern pond. We're flying as if detouring to the east of the forest, and since we have sufficient altitude, we probably won't be found. Then, since I've cast Sight, we should be able to see even from a distance. After taking a lunch break at a fortress on the east side midway, we came out over the southeastern side.
It's as planned. One horse-drawn wagon carrying several sheep and over ten wagons carrying luggage advanced from the grazing land. In front and behind them, armed cavalry are guarding. Their number is several dozen. They are soldiers who were asked to sortie to see the monsters' movements in the first half of the battle, and they will be the decoys until the snow piles up.
Looking from above, I can only think they are making the sheep stand out on purpose. They are letting out bleating cries. I know because I've raised them on a farm, but those are cries of anger. Surely, they are hitting them with a whip or something to make them cry. It's impossible for a line of wagons to pass through such a place. They did something similar last time. In the case of human opponents, only a very clumsy bandit would fall for it.
It's the same as that time. Even though the Harpies are gone, it seems they can't break the habits they've had for many years, and they've come out to the outer edges. Since the first target this time is the Ogre, we have to drag them out of the forest.
Perhaps a message went out from the main force, as the guard unit stopped. People are crowding around the wagons loaded with luggage. This is where the trick begins. Several people are shouting at the top of their lungs. It's somewhat monotone, but the monsters won't know. Before long, when the gathered people dispersed, all the wagons loaded with luggage were overturned. Surely, they flipped them over. Wooden crates are broken, and something like red meat is peeking out from inside. When the cavalry, pretending to have given up, rode away... the monsters began to move. They fell for it.
They start running all at once. There aren't a thousand. Maybe about a hundred, all Orcs. The monsters get closer and closer. Finally, the first few reached the wagons. They put the meat from the broken crates into their mouths and shout loudly. As they started eating just like that, more monsters came out of the forest in droves. There might be nearly a thousand, a whole unit. There are also several Ogres. There are big ones too. The second target, the Fenrir, is not there. And the followers coming out of the forest ceased. Probably just one swarm.
Positioning ourselves behind them, we dived down all at once from the sky.
Since we aren't hiding ourselves, we have to attack swiftly. Taking aim, I took down one Ogre running toward the wagons with Holy Lance. Just like that, I aimed for the Ogres while overtaking the swarm. Beatrix fires Wind Cutter, and Will and Bonnie fire Silver Arrows in rapid succession at the big ones. Once we reach the wagons, we evacuate back into the sky. By that time, Log Holies were fired one after another from the first group in the sky. They are making good use of the fact that the monsters' eyes are on us from the direction of the forest. The targets being scattered is probably because they are aiming for Ogres and big ones with Sight. It's Harrison-san and the Bishop. The Bishop is a veteran who participated in the Demon Lord subjugation unit as the representative of Morandine. Morandine, like others, had several heroes killed. He is one of the survivors.
They are single shots, but it's one shot, one kill. Moreover, they aren't within range of bows and arrows. Because it's far, there are misses. Since they fire with increased power, they can't fire as many as usual. They are single-mindedly aiming for Ogres and big brutes.
The Orcs aren't being targeted. Perhaps because of that, they come to scavenge the luggage. The second group obstructs that. Half of the decoy luggage is empty, but the other half contains food from a nearby fortress. We can't let it be taken. Taking advantage of the fact that we are showing ourselves, we moved around in circles above the wagons like decoys, attacking with magic and bows. We mustn't do it flashily. We have to draw them in. While receiving arrows in the bottom a few times, we attacked.
And finally, it seems both Ogres and big brutes are gone. There was a message from the main force. In that case, Beatrix fired Flame and Storm, and I fired Over Flow with a reflection plate in rapid succession. Of course, the support from the second group also became intense. At this point, the Orcs also gave up and fled back into the forest just like that.
The first operation was a brilliant success.
Eleanor-sama, in high spirits, consulted with the Boy King and the two heads of the Royal Guard, and from the second day onwards, they did it twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon, and by the third day, they succeeded in exterminating the big brutes and Ogres of the swarm loitering around the pond. From the second day onwards, the Morandine bowl units also actively participated. Thanks to that, we also took down quite a few Orcs. After the battle, we dug holes under the corpses with magic and buried the monsters while saying funeral prayers, but it took quite a bit of time on the second day. Reflecting on that, we were more moderate with the Orc extermination on the third day. The Boy King also attended the funeral prayers. Morandine, like Northern Gram and Engrio, has a flourishing spirit worship. They also value the forest and the creatures living in it. Given what happened last time, there seemed to be no resistance.
What's unfortunate is that there were no Fenrirs, but this was expected to some extent. The Fenrirs were not around the pond. They are around the river that flows into the pond. There are several places where the river is wide and shallow in parts, and they are there. Because they are further inland than the pond, they couldn't be lured by the decoy operation from the outer edge.
According to Eleanor-sama, this arrangement is reportedly a strategy of the Demon Race.
If humans were to plan an invasion, first, while holding them off at the outer edge of the forest, Harpies would attack the humans gathered on the wasteland from the sky. If they are broken through and an intrusion into the forest is permitted, they defend with the barrier of the pond and the river flowing like a water moat, while attacking with the lightning of the Fenrirs waiting in the back. Last is the battle utilizing the terrain of the undulating areas and the cave where the Demon Lord resurrects. It's just like a siege battle.
"In other words, the real thing starts from here. Fenrirs are not only fast and use lightning, but they are also extremely clever and cautious, and brave when it comes to fighting. I don't think it will go like it has so far."
In the Eastern Plains, we struggled and nearly died in the defense of the fortress. However, compared to that time, we have also become considerably stronger. Even while remaining visible, we should be able to win sufficiently.
The fourth day became a rest day. This was because the Boy King said he wanted to participate in the attack himself. Despite it being feared as the Demon Realm, he must have felt good seeing a small number of allies overwhelming and chasing them away. I thought it might have been better if he had just fired an arrow and taken down even one Orc at that time, but the Boy King was obsessed with the Fenrir. It is rare for someone who is still a minor to be able to slay a Fenrir. It's just right for making a name for himself. Because he is a boy, there must have been times when he was slandered. It's a chance to show them. The reason he watched quietly until the third day was probably because he had been taught beforehand that the possibility of a Fenrir appearing was low. It might also be related to the fact that Fenrirs weren't the type to ignore military discipline or strategy and bite at bait following their instincts.
Anyway, the Boy King, who was told that the Fenrir would be the main target from now on, showed great motivation as if this were his moment. Not only that, he even suggested inviting the boy from the fortress, who is close in age, to do it together. Those around the Boy King were bewildered, but Henry-sama, Eleanor-sama, and Seldic's Second Son greatly agreed. As a result, they spent a whole day reviewing the original operation plan, and Operation Iron Shoes, aimed at having the Boy King slay a Fenrir, was drafted.