316 - Common Sense
――Miranda looked down from the Mobile Fortress at the sight of the soldiers lined up in formation.
Lariel stood on the prepared platform in his armor. Using gestures and with Eva playing music in the background via a skill, he used a skill to deliver his voice to the more than two hundred thousand soldiers.
"You've arrived quite quickly to get this far," she remarked.
One of the major factors was that Lariel had been blessed with luck. Or rather, it could be called a chance.
For those who are prepared, a pinch is also a chance. In a desperate situation, using the recapture of Zain as a catalyst, Lariel had expanded his influence.
Lariel, who was once just a talented, well-bred child, was now delivering a speech before a massive army.
"...If we were clever, the best strategy would be to wait for Banseime to be completely exhausted before attacking. We could achieve victory without effort. There would be no need to struggle and fight now."
While listening to Lariel's words, which suddenly denied this invasion operation, Miranda looked around. Lined up near Lariel were Novem, Aria, Shannon, Clara, Eva, and May, who had fought alongside him since the beginning. Monica was working in the background.
"However, while we do this, blood continues to flow. And if left alone, Banseime will spread death across the continent. I cannot forgive that. Can it be called justice to leave evil alone and wait until we can win! No, it is absolutely not justice! To save the continent, to bring peace! I have determined to challenge this, no matter how difficult the battle may be! Gentlemen. Brave soldiers! I want you to lend me your strength! For the sake of justice, to save the continent from the atrocious Banseime, I want you to entrust your lives to me! This battle depends on the efforts of you brave soldiers!"
He declared that they were justice and provided the grand justification of saving the continent. Celes's atrocities had spread, even without exaggeration.
Moreover, Lariel also lacked time. If he took his time, he could certainly organize more troops. He could assemble an even more powerful army.
However, the existence of Celes was too dangerous to simply worry about winning the battle. Lariel believed that defeating Celes was more difficult than winning the war.
Vera, who operated the fortress, watched Lariel from the indoor window. Among the lined-up forces were Glacia and Eliza.
Where the relevant parties were gathered, there were Aura and Gastone from Zain to Selma. From Rolfis, there was Anneliese and the Prime Minister, Lombolt. There were also merchants. Fidel looked bored.
Rianne and Adele were also in that line.
And Baldoa and Maxim, who led separate forces, were also lined up in armor.
"This battle will go down in history. Brave soldiers. Win and carve your names among the heroes! Justice is with us! The Goddess smiles upon us!"
Shannon, who stood next to Miranda, was yawning since she was in a spot where the soldiers could not see her.
"He sure talks a big game. When he's trying to attack as quickly as possible because he's afraid Celes will be absorbed by Agrissa. Besides, he's attacking because he knows he can win, right?"
It was the season when things settled down after the harvest. It was a time when many soldiers could be gathered, making it convenient for fighting. The same applied to the Banseime side.
However, based on the information Lariel and the others had gathered, the deduction was that in the exhausted Banseime, only Central could offer proper resistance.
"When you think you can definitely win, you let your guard down, and that's why they say letting your guard down is dangerous. If you have a sense of crisis, you move desperately. It's not like you'll absolutely win just because you've gathered a large army."
Miranda looked at the expressions of the lined-up soldiers. Hearing about justice, they showed motivation. In fact, they believed they were right. If they didn't believe that, they couldn't fight. They could fight for their families. However, in a battle in a distant place where they didn't know if it would benefit their families, they couldn't find meaning.
A grand justification was necessary. No matter how much of an illusion it was.
"It makes me annoyed because he has a face that says, 'I've faced large armies with only a few people,' or something like that. Because he only ever fights under absolutely advantageous conditions."
"Preparing such a situation is Lariel's and our job, isn't it? Well, stop complaining now."
Lariel raised a well-decorated greatsword instead of the katana hanging at his waist. The soldiers let out a shout in synchronization with Lariel's voice.
The air shook, and the heat seemed ready to blow away the morning cold.
"――All armies, advance!"
Lariel's voice reached every single soldier through Eva's skill――.
――While Lariel and the others advanced, Rianne had work in the rear, so she decided to return to the castle immediately.
However, No. 34 was not with Rianne this time, as she was also serving as Lariel's guard. In front of the carriage, No. 34 spoke with Rianne.
"Please make sure not to put in extra sugar just because I'm not there."
At No. 34's way of speaking, a vein popped on Rianne's forehead.
"You really are a rude person until the very end."
No. 34 put a hand over her mouth.
"Too bad. I was an automaton."
Seeing the laughing No. 34, Rianne let out a sigh.
"Come back quickly. I'll work you to the bone."
At that, No. 34 beamed. Instead of her usual maid outfit, she wore blue armor with binder-like wings on her back. Horse-type automatons were also prepared for the Valkyries, and a mechanical horse stood beside No. 34.
The Valkyries insisted on horses, saying that bikes lacked elegance.
"Are you a tsundere? Too bad, that level of treatment is nothing more than a reward for us. Even if you say you hate it, I'll serve you until you're broken."
No. 34 had tied the ends of her long black hair with a pink ribbon she had received from Rianne.
"...Haa, you're a happy person to be pleased no matter what I say. Well, it's a good thing to have someone I can work to the bone. It's good that she doesn't betray me."
At Rianne's words, No. 34 put a hand over her mouth.
"Things would be different if I bared my fangs at my master, though. Don't worry. I'll take responsibility for raising little Chick-sama. Like a mother, like a sister, and like a lover... Ha! Wouldn't that be more fun?"
Rianne smacked No. 34 on the head for muttering something ominous.
"Just go already! When you come back, I'll correct that personality of yours."
No. 34 mounted the horse and said with a smile,
"That's impossible. This is the standard."
With that, she parted with Rianne――.
We were advancing, but basically, the main force consisted of an army of one hundred thousand.
Baldoa and Maxim-san were leading fifty thousand and advancing from a separate route, seizing key locations to ensure we weren't attacked from behind.
However.
"Commence bombardment!"
The third floor of the Mobile Fortress was equipped with the machinery to move it. Vera, the captain of the Trace Company, and the crew were there, operating the Mobile Fortress.
When the barrels of the cannons protruding from the fortress spat fire, the Mobile Fortress shook.
With the bombardment from the Mobile Fortress moving under Vera's orders, the outer walls of one of the forts in Banseime were easily destroyed.
In a fort that only had a few knights capable of using magic, they were no match. As soon as the white flag was raised, I ordered the seizure. With just that, the unit moved and seized the fort.
"I have nothing to do."
"Sitting quietly is also part of the job. Well, for the subordinates, this is the time to earn achievements. Please don't be too pushy."
"I know."
General Bloa was also nearby, sitting in a chair.
Ten thousand had been split from the main force and entrusted to Aria and Miranda to be sent toward lords who were still undecided.
Monica, who was nearby, skillfully brewed tea inside the shaking fortress and offered it to me.
"A message from Miranda-san. She and Eliza-san have seized the target town. They say it surrendered just by being surrounded."
General Bloa also received tea.
"I imagine so. They arrived in just a few days since the start of the advance. It's a momentum that would crush anyone who resists. What do you intend to do with the lords who surrendered?"
I drank my tea.
"Their titles will be downgraded to Knight rank. They'll be sent to the frontier."
"You're pushing them to the corners of the continent. They'll resent you."
I laughed slightly.
"I'm already resented by plenty."
Then, Monica said to me,
"It seems Aria-san is struggling more."
I moved my eyebrows.
"Struggling even with Glacia with her? Was there someone talented?"
The place entrusted to Aria was not of a scale that could handle an army of ten thousand. Just as I was wondering if some problem had occurred...
"No, it seems they are negotiating for surrender, but they can't get through to the other party. The other party's demands are the confirmation of land tenure, and they hope for a title befitting the victory of the chicken coward. If that cannot be done, they say they won't hesitate to resist to the end."
General Bloa had a look of understanding.
"Ah, they exist. Lords who can't see the surrounding situation. If I recall, he was a dependent lord of a Baronetcy."
My hand reached for the jewel, but I clenched my fist halfway and endured.
(I'm trying to rely on it immediately. I'm hopeless, too.)
I remembered the words of the previous heads of the family.
"Tell them to leave it to Aria. I could step in, but this is also experience. Tell her to contact me if the situation becomes untenable. Also, prepare to send twenty thousand as reinforcements at any time."
General Bloa said,
"We should have assigned someone skilled in negotiation."
I smiled.
"Well, they have to do at least this much. Besides, a tough opponent is waiting for us further ahead."
General Bloa made a disgusted face.
"Ah, that particular lord and noble. If the dependent lord's attitude is like this, the protector lord might be terrible as well."
――Aria, who had been entrusted with such negotiations, was facing Glacia.
The response from the Valkyrie was "leave it to you," so Aria and Glacia were racking their brains.
Glacia, her gaze wandering,
"W-what should we do? I usually handle this kind of negotiation with force, should we attack with a few thousand and show them our power?"
Aria was also troubled. She hadn't thought that Glacia, who was more of a muscle-brain than herself, would be this useless outside of the battlefield. Since she had led a country, Aria thought she would be good at negotiations, but she wasn't.
"No, that's no good. They said they would surrender, so we have to negotiate for now."
However, Glacia shouted,
"Then are you saying we should accept those demands! Everyone else has their land confiscated, and they're even being detained, yet we're supposed to confirm the land tenure for only them! It would be faster to just attack!"
It was a territory with only a few hundred soldiers, but they were somehow defiant.
"I can't understand why they're so defiant either!"
Then, a knight entered the tent.
"Um, they're being noisy, asking if the negotiator hasn't arrived yet."
When Aria and Glacia turned to the knight, the knight let out a "Hie!" sound. Both hurriedly softened their expressions and let the knight withdraw.
Aria said,
"A-anyway, we have to teach them reality."
Glacia made a disgusted face.
"I don't think we can get through to them. He's someone who looks down on us."
Aria hadn't expected the opponent to be so defiant despite her leading such a large army. She began to think, as Glacia said, that it would have been better if it had turned into a fight――.
――Meanwhile, as for Miranda.
She sat in a chair in the tent, crossing her legs in her armor.
Before her was a Baronet, who was somehow requesting the confirmation of land tenure. From the start, she hadn't used a negotiator and had summoned the lord himself.
"...We have no choice but to follow the intentions of our protector lord. I ask that you consider the circumstances."
Miranda directed a smile at the lord.
"We could just destroy you while we advance, you know? Besides, you formally declared that you would side with the Banseime royal family, right? After saying you'd be hostile, surely that's not possible."
The Baronet――a lord who held a few hundred soldiers based on the scale of his territory, but since the largest lord in the neighborhood was a Banseime Kingdom faction, he had been hostile to Lariel and the others. However, when the lid was opened, the protector lord did not come to the rescue, and the main force was several hundred thousand. Moreover, he was surrounded by ten thousand soldiers.
Even if he gathered the protector lord and other dependent lords, it would be nearly impossible to put out ten thousand soldiers in this region.
"...Land confiscation. If you want to keep your family name, start over from the Knight rank. I'll forgive you by sending you to the frontier. If you hate that, then fight until the last person. Though... I wonder which one the people will choose?"
At Miranda's words, the lord's face turned pale. From the perspective of the people, they would be saved as long as the lord was changed.
"This is a good opportunity to test how much the people have admired you until now. Go back and prepare. I'll wait that long."
If he were admired by the people, there was a possibility that they would resist to the end. However, it was clear from the preliminary investigation that such a thing would not happen.
"I hope you aren't killed by your own people."
Miranda said to the lord with a smile.
Eliza, who was nearby, was breaking into a cold sweat looking at Miranda.
As they watched the lord be led out of the tent by the knights, a nearby Valkyrie said one thing.
"With this, all the target territories have been seized. I'll report it."
Miranda stood up and asked the Valkyrie,
"So, how is it with Aria?"
"...They're in the middle of negotiations and making no progress at all. It seems the opponent is complaining."
"Aria, what are you doing? Honestly..."
Eliza, wondering, asked Miranda,
"With an army this large, even the protector lord would shut himself in his own territory. Why would they think rescue would come?"
Miranda looked at Eliza.
"Even if rescue doesn't come, until now they've survived by switching to the winning side. Because that's been the norm, they're panicking upon hearing about confiscation. Look, even if we take the land, we need people to manage it, right?"
"Well, that's true, but if that happens, won't it be dangerous if there are no managers around here?"
Miranda smiled.
"It's fine. This land will later become land given as a reward. Look, since the rewards we can give are few, we'll have this area be the sacrifice. They were just unlucky. Well, being unlucky is fatal for people in power. Let's have them disappear cleanly. It's their own fault for thinking regional rules would apply forever."
Eliza decided that she should try not to oppose Miranda――.
――Meanwhile, as for Aria.
"Land confiscation is out of the question! Do you think governance is possible without our power!"
The defiant negotiator knight was a middle-aged man with a beard. His voice was loud, and no matter how many times they explained, he wouldn't listen to what Aria and the others said.
"In the first place, what is this, women leading an army! Your lack of talent is obvious, and if we don't cooperate, you won't even be able to manage the territory! How can I hand over land that I've worked hard to govern to such an opponent!"
Everything he was saying wasn't wrong. However, despite being this defiant, he was in the position of the loser.
Glacia, irritated,
"Then go back and prepare for battle. If words don't work, I'll make it clear on the battlefield."
Then, the negotiator said,
"We are saying we surrender! To attack those who have surrendered, are you people even knights! Are you not the same as bandits who have no common sense!"
Aria said to the negotiator,
"That's not the attitude of someone surrendering! Listen, our condition is the confiscation of land and assets. I'm saying we'll spare the life of the head of the house, who is the responsible party!"
"What utter lack of common sense! It seems you know nothing of the ways of war. I cannot hand over my lands to such a person. Bring someone of higher rank!"
The country called Banseime was large. Because of that, when wars between territories occurred that weren't just skirmishes, problems arose in governance if everything, including small territories like those of dependent lords, was taken.
Within Banseime, the methods of governance were similar, and if one won, they would either take everything including the surrounding dependent lords, or take a part including the dependent lords.
There were cases of destruction, but it was also the common sense of Banseime to accept them if they surrendered. However, that was an internal rule; they didn't do such things in Beime or elsewhere.
Moreover, the negotiator was likely desperate, risking his life because the lord had told him to extract conditions no matter what.
With veins popping on their foreheads, Aria and Glacia looked as if they were about to cut the negotiator.
"Will you draw your sword! If you cut down and discard a negotiator, the depth of your Alliance Leader will be revealed! Come, kill me! Kill me and display my head!"
Then, a Valkyrie let out a sigh.
"Haa, both of you, come here. There is a message from the Master."
When Aria and Glacia were whispered to by the Valkyrie, they turned back to the negotiator. Aria, while feeling a bit uneasy,
"...I'll guarantee the lives of you and your family. Also, you're a subordinate vassal, right? Right now, you'll be sent to the frontier, but I'll prepare a Knight rank and some starting funds. Although it's the frontier, I'll guarantee you're treated as a direct vassal. If someone is being held hostage, I'll send people to rescue them."
The negotiator man's eyes widened, and his face turned bright red. Just as they thought he would shout...
"...Um, my daughter has married, and I would like you to put in a word for her house. I am also indebted to the house she married into. If you do that, I will immediately prepare for acceptance on this side! I can persuade the others as well!"
And so, he folded easily――.