kscans

Chapter 81 - A Foreign Palace and the Little One

"Now then, I wonder how they’ll play their hand?"

Today was the day of the former king of Donautil’s funeral. Normally, all the princes would be bound in ropes to attend, but the Little One’s participation had apparently allowed them to avoid that. They likely wished to avoid displaying their wicked customs in front of a foreign envoy.

However, that did not mean the princes’ fate would change.

You’re coming, right? I have ways to do this flamboyantly with magic, but if possible, I want to resolve this with human hands.

The Little One looked up at the sky, which ought to be connected to Frontier, and quietly waited for the time to come.

"There are so many of them."

"They’ve brought out their full force."

The scene changes. This is the Donautil border. An army of seventeen thousand sent from Frontier was at a standstill before the assembled Donautil army. Their numbers were roughly thirty thousand. The Frontier side was centered around the Royal Capital Unit led by Harold, with a mix of other units from various feudal lords, like a volunteer army.

The orders the Little One had left behind were to lead as many troops as possible and march on the Donautil royal palace. Moreover, it was an incredibly absurd command to do so as bloodlessly as possible.

"She is a child who knows nothing of war. She must be painting a fantasy based on ideals alone."

As the knights smiled wryly, Harold could not hide his own bewilderment. The Lords of the Forest from Flowers had joined them as reinforcements. Frogs and bees flew about the area, constantly on alert. Even so, it would be impossible to win against those numbers without bloodshed.

As a troubled Harold pondered the situation, someone approached.

A familiar figure, hanging from a bee and soaring through the sky.

"Chihaya-sama?!"

Chihaya leaped down nimbly in front of the astonished Harold and fixed him with a sharp, ice-cold gaze.

"What are you doing! Are the knights of Frontier so weak as to be stopped by such a disorganized mob!!"

A blackish-purple magic power flared up. Before the speechless Harold, Chihaya twisted his lips into a ferocious smirk.

"Look closely, most of their soldiers are in light armor. And in such a spread-out formation. There is only one thing to do!!"

The knights stared wide-eyed as the boy pointed at the enemy formation and shouted.

"Rally the troops! We’re breaking through the center!! You frogs, you understand, do you not?"

As if startled by his words, the frogs scattered.

"You bees as well! You understand, do you not?!"

The bees wheeled in the air as if to say they understood.

Watching them, Chihaya let out a low chuckle. kutsukutsu.

"It has been long. This excitement. Advance with me!! Our goal is the royal capital, the palace!! Do not fall behind, you hear?!"

An overwhelming presence emanated from the young child. A clear sense of elation, like a poison, slowly seeped into their own bodies. A thrill of joy ran up their spines, and shivering with excitement, the knights let out a war cry.

As if controlled by something, the knights’ expressions turned fierce.

Amidst it all, Harold, the only one who remained calm, stared at Chihaya with eyes that looked upon something unbelievable.

"Who... are you?"

His eyes widening slightly, the person in Chihaya’s form narrowed his sharp gaze.

"Hoh. You can tell. ...I am Cesare. A general who led mercenaries and achieved many victories in numerous battles. For the sake of my sister, in this life, I shall ride forth!!"

Amidst the cheering knights, Harold stood alone, utterly dumbfounded.

Rewind to half an hour earlier.

"It seems Harold and the others have arrived, but they’re being blocked by the Donautil army and can’t advance."

The ever-familiar bee mail.

"The order to be bloodless is likely the sticking point. If you’re surrounded by a large force, you have no choice but to attack."

I understand that. But harming the common people will leave behind ill feelings. Most of Donautil’s soldiers are conscripted civilians. I thought they could be outmaneuvered if they were knights, but perhaps they are powerless against the sheer force of numbers.

As the Little One groaned, hmm, Chihaya raised his hand.

"Cesare is pestering me to let him out. Is it alright if I do?"

Surprised by the unexpected words, the Little One decided to at least hear him out and had him bring Cesare forth.

"In short, neither Frontier nor Donautil knows war."

The Cesare who emerged also shared Chihaya’s memories. The knight order’s job was primarily to subjugate monsters and magical beasts. They rarely engaged in interpersonal combat. Because each country was geographically isolated, they had almost no experience with war and did not know how to command troops, Cesare said.

"Come to think of it, you quit being a cardinal to fight on the battlefield, right?"

The Little One casually baited him. If he answered yes to this, her bad feeling would be spot on.

"A cardinal? This person was a clergyman?"

The Little One gave a grand nod to the surprised Dorfen. He was infamous, but he was a man who had risen through the ranks, achieving many military honors with his skillful command of troops.

Smirking at his sister who seemed to understand, Cesare tilted his head slightly and showed his teeth.

"I shall go. A mere rabble is nothing to speak of. The monster units are with them, are they not? I will scatter them and bring the army here to show you."

That would be helpful, but.

"Nii-ni, are you okay?"

"If it’s for Hiiro, it’s fine."

Chihaya floated up gently, fuwa, but Cesare immediately took his place.

"I am your brother, too!"

"Nii-ni? No... Onii-sama?"

Cesare’s heart pounded loudly. Chihaya, synchronized with him, felt a bad premonition about it.

"...Good. You may call me that. I am your Onii-sama."

"Understood. I’m counting on you, then, Onii-sama."

A soft, warm smile. Something nostalgic swelled up inside Cesare, buwari.

When was it? He felt like he had experienced a similar, bashful feeling somewhere before.

"Leave it to me!! I am Cesare Borgia!! A veteran general!!"

Ah. Confirmed.

Watching Cesare fly off towards the Frontier army, hanging from Tarō-kun, the Little One had a suspicious look in her eyes.

I had my suspicions from his expression when I mentioned the cardinal bit, but to think he’d come out and say it. He probably doesn’t realize it himself.

Cantarella poison from the Borgia family, huh. Another intense one has arrived.

Breaking out in a cold sweat, jittori, the Little One prayed to the heavens that things would not get out of hand.

And expectations, more often than not, are shattered.

"Left!! The barrage is thin!! Make more, smaller flames!!"

At his command, the mages created multiple flames, each about the size of a pinky nail, and sent them flying around. The flames were just strong enough to pierce the light armor, and when they did, the inside would catch fire, causing the soldiers to hastily remove their armor to try and put it out. It seemed they could not simply ignore the magic that was slowly searing their skin.

Thanks to this, the movements of the Donautil soldiers were sluggish, and they were startled by the charging cavalry, scrambling about clumsily in a panic.

"To think they were this fragile. Is this truly an army?"

To the dumbfounded Harold, Cesare laughed as if greatly amused.

"If you judge them by your standards, these soldiers are no better than amateurs. They are farmers who have been conscripted and received only hasty training."

"Conscripted... I have heard of it, but to think they would actually make civilians stand on a battlefield."

No wonder they were so fragile. In Frontier, it would be unbelievable to send the very people they were meant to protect to a battlefield.

"To be held up by this. You are still just a fledgling yourself."

An indescribably awkward atmosphere filled the air. However, Cesare-sama, who would not read such an atmosphere, berated the slow-moving mages.

"You there! Why can you only produce two! Make more flames!!"

"Two is my limit! There’s no way I can make that many!!"

Magic was something to be deployed on a large, efficient scale. They had never fought using small flames before.

"What, you are not much of a mage, are you. The little brat from Donautil could easily produce ten."

At Cesare’s words, the mages’ faces froze.

Huh? Ten? Eh? Multiple activations are ridiculously difficult, you know?!

Leaving the speechless mages behind, the Frontier army advanced like a gale and reached the royal capital.

Once they broke through, the infantry-centric Donautil army could not keep up with the cavalry-centric Frontier army. Furthermore, the frogs guarding the perimeter had prevented any major clashes. They scattered the enemy with long-range magic attacks alone, and the bees blew away the scattered enemies with wind magic.

As a result, a path opened for the Frontier army to charge through.

"The gallop ends here. From now on, advance slowly and with dignity. Like honored guests who have been invited. That is all that is required."

Following his orders, the Frontier army aligned their steps and strode down the main street. The people of the capital watched in silence the imposing figures of the knights, who looked as if they were returning in triumph.

Just as promised, your Onii-sama has brought them, you hear? Chihiro.

And so, with all the actors assembled, the funeral, which was likely being conducted with great solemnity, was about to reach its finale.

If things proceeded according to the Little One’s plans, everything should be resolved peacefully.

The Frontier army surrounding the front of the royal palace simply remained silent, watching to see how events would unfold.