264 - Betrayal
――Redant Fortress.
Its first wall had been seized, and the forces of Banseime were deployed right before the fortress. Although the Banseime army was lined up in a narrow space, they were positioned to leave openings where the cannons were installed.
The Commander of Beime, the fortress's commanding officer, gritted his teeth as he watched the scene.
"...Why?"
Every trap he had set had been dismantled, and he had been unable to inflict any damage on Banseime. Even the rocks positioned on the cliffs for rockslides had been moved before the Banseime army passed through, failing to cause any casualties.
"Why are we losing!"
In a limited space, the tactic of overwhelming the enemy with numbers cannot be used. Therefore, Banseime should have been at a disadvantage. In fact, it was common knowledge in this world that the defenders had the advantage over the attackers.
However, facing the surging Banseime army, the fortress had already suffered losses of half its strength. In addition to the dead and wounded, there were the injured. Even with an abundance of supplies, they had not even been able to effectively stall the opponent.
The quality of their equipment was not inferior to Banseime's. Rather, it was superior. When the first wall was breached, the fortress had sent out relief forces. However, they had been defeated by the Banseime knights.
The numbers were high. Beime was superior in the quality of equipment. And yet, they lost. The vice-commander spoke to the commander.
"Commander, if this continues, morale will only keep dropping. We should move the injured to the rear and send people to request reinforcements."
"I've already done that! This happened because those merchants are being stingy!"
The commander, clad in luxurious armor, had originally been the third son of a merchant family. He had a large build. However, lacking business talent and unable to help the family, he aimed to become a soldier to gain independence. From there, with the support of his family, he rose through the ranks and was now appointed as the commander of Redant.
The commander had been thrilled at the prospect of being able to move over fifty thousand personnel. But reality was heartless.
A messenger burst into the meeting room inside the fortress.
"The Banseime army has entered the fortress! Both armies are clashing on top of the walls, but Banseime soldiers are climbing up one after another, and we cannot deal with them! Reinforcements! Please send reinforcements!"
It seemed they were engaging in close-quarters combat, deploying soldiers against each other in a limited space. However, the Banseime soldiers seemed to be pushing forward, defeating the soldiers inside the fortress as they went.
"Have the adventurers deal with them!"
At those words, the messenger muttered regretfully.
"That's... many of the adventurers have already been cut down. Some were assassinated inside the fortress, and those who lost their leaders are unable to move."
As soon as the attack began, members of a mercenary group who had been lurking inside had started moving. They had assassinated the primary adventurers, steering events to be favorable to the Banseime side.
"A-Assassinations... Why? How did the enemy sneak in!"
Then, a battered messenger burst into the room. He was covered in blood and gasping for breath.
"What! What happened!"
The messenger tried to speak. However, perhaps he couldn't find his voice, as only a small sound could be heard. The irritated commander carelessly approached, and the man who was the messenger grinned. He hugged the commander and stabbed a sword into a gap in his armor.
"Thanks. I didn't think the commander would actually come close."
Immediately after, people wearing Beime's equipment flooded into the room one after another.
"Tsk, so the commander's head belongs to this guy. Well, I'll settle for something else."
Although the meeting room inside the fortress was spacious, it was still an indoor room. The mercenaries had stormed the Beime headquarters carrying daggers and shields. Meanwhile, the weapons held by the headquarters' soldiers were long ones, like longswords.
"You bastards, you betrayed us!"
Hearing those words, the mercenaries fell silent for a moment and then suddenly burst out laughing.
"Betrayed? No. The other side's conditions were better. And since we thought the other side would win, we just joined them. We were on their side from the start. We're saved thanks to how naive you all were. So... die for the sake of our reward."
The high-ranking officials fought the mercenaries in the meeting room. The soldiers serving as guards were surrounded by mercenaries and cut down. The mercenaries also suffered casualties, but they slashed away without caring.
The vice-commander was stabbed by three mercenaries with daggers and pinned to the floor. Bleeding and pale, the vice-commander looked up at the mercenary who seemed to be the leader.
"Do you... do you know what you're doing? Beime—the guild will never forgive you."
At those words, the mercenaries roared with laughter. As the vice-commander looked around, one of the mercenaries crouched down and peered into the vice-commander's face.
"That's scary. But hey... the guild you're talking about is Beime's guild, right? Do you seriously think they won't touch the guild? Banseime is coming to completely crush Beime, you know?"
The vice-commander's eyes widened.
"No way, you... you know! You know that if Beime is gone, it's you who will be in trouble!"
The mercenary leader kicked the vice-commander away.
"You're noisy with that condescending attitude. We aren't dogs for merchants or guilds. We just cooperated when things were going well as business partners. If we can't make money staying in Beime, we have no choice but to go where we can, right? ...What, is he dead already?"
Losing interest in the vice-commander who had stopped making sound, the mercenary told them to contact the Banseime side.
"Hey, tell Banseime that the big boss has been taken down. With this, our reward will be an astronomical amount."
The mercenaries laughed. Ironically, the fortress of the Capital of Adventurers and merchants was brought down by adventurers—mercenaries—.
――By the time Broa moved toward the fortress, everything had ended.
Inside the fortress, bloodstains were everywhere. They must have fought fiercely, but even so, it had ended one-sidedly. Looking only at the result, it was a complete victory for Banseime. With no significant damage, and moreover, having secured a massive amount of Beime's supplies, the Banseime army could now march toward the urban areas of Beime without worry.
Entering the cleaned-up meeting room, Broa apologized to the generals who had already arrived.
"Now then~, I'm late. My apologies."
One of the generals overlooked Broa's light attitude. He must be in a good mood because they won.
"General Broa was at the first wall, after all. It can't be helped if you're late. Now, continuing the meeting."
The general who was the Commander-in-Chief spoke.
"We will proceed with the invasion of Beime as planned. Also, there are requests from the lords. We have decided to conduct local procurement on-site."
At those words, Broa thought.
(Human greed is endless, huh. I figured it would turn out like this)
The lords of Baron houses and above who were participating were each delighted by the words 'local procurement'.
"Even if there are supplies inside the fortress, this is a massive army of three hundred thousand. It's still worrying if we want to take down Beime."
While a viscount said such transparent things, a count who had been silently crossing his arms also voiced his agreement.
"The soldiers are waiting too. We can't have them go berserk if we make them endure it here."
A still-young baron immediately volunteered.
"Then, we shall proceed north from here."
Then, voices of dissatisfaction rose from the other lords.
"I heard the north is developed. A Baron house's scale would be repelled. We shall handle it."
"How rude. You saw Beime's weak soldiers, didn't you? It would be a shame as a lord to lose to those."
Laughter dominated the meeting room. Amidst that, Broa alone had a gloomy face. The lords were laughing, but what was about to happen was looting that would not end as a funny story. Depending on the case, some would burn villages and slaughter everyone.
The reason the lords were becoming serious was that they knew there were no lords in Beime and each village was wealthy. They couldn't put up a coordinated resistance, and the adventurers they relied on were busy defending the urban areas. He couldn't imagine them losing.
In fact, as far as Broa had investigated, it was a perfect hunting ground.
(It's true that it's not pleasant. But even if I say that, they won't stop. Besides, Central truly intends to annihilate Beime. If I say the wrong thing, I might be the one punished)
Broa didn't think the world turned on platitudes alone. However, it was also true that there was a part of him that couldn't accept it.
Then, the Commander-in-Chief looked at Broa and spoke.
"By the way, General Broa. Your performance in the previous battle was splendid. I shall report to Central that the general's contribution was great. I have high expectations for you in the conquest of Beime as well."
Broa, with a smile.
"No, I only did what I could. Rather than myself, the other generals—"
Just as he was about to make a humble comment praising those around him, the meeting room door opened. Bread was standing there.
The scornful gazes of the surrounding generals, knight commanders, and lords concentrated on Bread. The Commander-in-Chief pressed his head and shook it exaggeratedly.
"Honestly, how pathetic. Not only did you act on your own discretion despite the opposition of those around you, but you didn't even make it to the battlefield in time. You're the complete opposite of General Broa."
Broa thought inwardly.
(Please stop. Bread-dono is glaring terribly. He's definitely going to make me his enemy now)
Even for Broa, it was difficult to follow up for Bread, who had rushed out saying he would take a detour and failed to make it to the battlefield. The only thing he could say was.
"Commander-in-Chief, honestly, no one could have imagined that the fortress could be conquered in such a short period. The skill of the other generals in the fortress conquest was splendid. I think it's a bit much to blame only Bread-dono. Rather, isn't everyone here responsible for taking it down too quickly?"
When Broa said that, the surrounding generals, knight commanders, and lords burst out laughing.
"True. If we had known they were all weak soldiers, we would have kept the imperial guard and elite units behind."
"He crossed steep mountain paths. Perhaps it would be pitiful to be cold to him? He probably suffered a fair amount of damage, right?"
"That's right. It's not that he didn't make it in time, but that we were too strong. There's no helping it even if we blame the Captain of the Imperial Guard."
At the surrounding laughter, Bread glared at Broa even more. Broa hoped he would feel some gratitude since he had diverted the conversation. Then, the Commander-in-Chief told Bread to sit. The empty seat was the chair furthest from the Commander-in-Chief's seat.
"Now then, let us move as planned. Also, we will disperse the troops, but make sure to keep a tight grip on the reins. We can't have them go berserk. Let's not forget to gather at the rendezvous point by the time we march as a whole."
As the Commander-in-Chief stood up, the meeting ended, and the lords and generals stood up and left the meeting room. Everyone looked at Bread.
"I'm surprised you could even come to the meeting."
"If it were me, I'd be too ashamed and end my life."
"He's Celes-sama's favorite, after all. He's the Captain of the Imperial Guard just because of that. Isn't it cruel to expect actual ability?"
Broa ended up being the last to leave the meeting room, and as he passed by Bread.
"...You blockhead general who's only got his birth. Don't get conceited over a single achievement."
Immediately after, Bread stood up, pushed Broa aside, and left the room first. Broa, letting out a sigh.
"No matter what I do, I'm hated. Honestly, why am I in such a troublesome position?"
Broa shrugged his shoulders and was the last to leave the meeting room.
There was one Baronet rank who had been observing the state of the meeting room—.
――Bread was kicking his luggage in the private room he had been given inside the fortress.
"Every single one of them! It's not my fault! I was late because the guide and the mercenary group were hesitant! If not for that, we—no, I!"
The furniture placed in the room had been smashed to pieces. There was no sign that Bread intended to calm his anger. He was simply rampaging until it subsided.
A knock sounded at Bread's room.
"Who is it!"
The door opened, and standing before the room were two Baronets. From Bread's perspective, they were insignificant opponents. The soldiers they brought were only about a hundred to two hundred. Thinking they weren't much of a threat, he didn't even greet them.
"What do you want? I'm busy!"
The pair of Baronets. One was the Baronet who had promised cooperation to Adele.
"...There is something we wish to bring to the attention of the Captain of the Imperial Guard. We wondered who would be the best person to tell."
What was presented was a letter. Bread snatched it and checked the contents. As he read on, Bread gradually held the letter with both hands and curled the corners of his mouth upward.
The letter, whose seal had not been broken, had not yet been read by anyone. The two Baronets showed it to Bread.
"This is... a letter of collusion, isn't it?"
What was written there was a request for cooperation from a person named Adele, one of Lariel's party. It was a letter asking for cooperation as promised, citing a past connection.
Bread looked at the two Baronets.
"Judging from the contents of the letter, it seems you two already have a secret pact?"
One of the Baronets—the one who had pushed unreasonable demands on Adele—explained the situation.
"Betray the three hundred thousand strong Banseime army and side with Lariel's side, which is nothing but a small force? We aren't that foolish."
The Baronet who had a long-standing relationship with Adele's family also spoke.
"We have scattered similar letters to several Knight rank houses. Well, there were benefits for us when we cooperated. However, considering our future, there's no need to even think about which side to take. That said, we have cooperated in the past. Therefore, we would like the Captain of the Imperial Guard to intercede for us with Central."
They had defected from Lariel's side to him. Thinking so, Bread listened to their story.
"Very well. I shall intercede for you. Also, you will cooperate with me from now on, I presume?"
The two Baronets nodded.
"Of course. However—"
"However?"
As Bread braced himself for what the Baronet would say, the two began to talk about Lariel's plan.
"There may be those who hand over letters while pretending to betray. Lariel's gang uses quite dirty tricks. We thought we should warn you of that."
Bread thought it was just that. However, at the same time, he thought it was possible. The two had handed over the letter before breaking the seal. He could probably trust them to some extent.
"Then, the moment someone brings this story to another, they are confirmed as a traitor. Understood. I shall deal with it. Also, regarding this letter... you will continue the correspondence."
The Baronet wondered.
"Continue it?"
A plan came to Bread's mind. It was to lure Lariel and the others out, surround them, and crush them. Looking at the two Baronets who didn't understand this, he mocked them inwardly.
(They can't even think of a strategy like this)
"Yes, that's right. It's an important strategy, after all. I'll have you two cooperate as well. By the way, have you told anyone about this?"
The two shook their heads. Then, they brought up Broa's name.
"I don't like that general called Broa. Well, the other generals are similar. However, we thought the Captain of the Imperial Guard would understand the value of this letter. You executed a strategy of crossing the mountains that no one else would choose. You didn't make it in time, but that was only because Beime was too fragile. Normally, you would have created an opportunity for a pincer attack, and the Captain of the Imperial Guard's achievement would have been the greatest in everyone's eyes."
Feeling pleased, Bread nodded while laughing.
"Then, I shall think of the reply. If a letter comes, notify me immediately."
Thus, the battle between Bread and Lariel became unavoidable—.