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Chapter 56: Crown Prince Alex’s Request

Jessica and I galloped off on horseback.

The Barbar Mercenary Force followed behind.

Elranief, the Elf chieftain, and the rest of the Elf tribe were all on horseback too.

Their mounts were spoils from the Kiritai cavalry.

Among the other Barbar clans, a few of the smaller-framed members who could ride had mounted up as well.

Two more were on horseback.

That made ten riders total.

The rest, Barbar infantry, ran after us on foot.

Rosso of the Big Lizard Tribe called out in a loud voice:

「Hey! Gaia! Where we headed?」

「To the side of the Kiritai’s retreat route!」

The battle was already decided.

The Kingdom army’s infantry had forced the Kiritai into close combat and were overpowering them.

A melee between 5,000 infantrymen.

No way a 60-man Barbar unit could make a difference in that.

We were aiming to 「hunt heads「, to pick off the fleeing.

If we were going to do it, we had to be efficient.

With my 【Sma-ho】 skill, I could see the movements of both armies from a bird’s-eye view.

We’d swing around the battlefield, approach the Kiritai’s retreat path, and ambush from the side to rack up achievements.

If they’re fleeing, even our small force could handle them.

Then came the sound of galloping hooves.

Heavy hoofbeats.
Not Kiritai light cavalry.
It was the Kingdom’s cavalry.

Looking in the direction of the sound, a group of Kingdom cavalry approached.

The central rider waved a hand.

「Hey, Gaia!」

It was Crown Prince Alex himself!

I pulled my horse to a stop.

「Crown Prince Alex…! Hey, is it alright for you to be here? Shouldn’t you be at HQ?」

Prince Alex grinned with his usual cheer and rode up beside me.

「The outcome is already clear. You know it too, don’t you? That’s why you’re galloping around here.」

「Well, yeah.」

We exchanged glances and laughed.

Even without planning anything, we could act in sync with the situation.

His tactical sense really was reliable.

And at the same time…

…I felt the gap between us.

I had 【Sma-ho】 to read the battlefield.
He judged it all with his own eyes.

That was a major difference.

It made me realize, I’ve still got a long way to go, and lit a spark of rivalry in me.

Crown Prince Alex spoke:

「Gaia. Capture someone of high rank for me.」

「Capture, huh…」

Capturing someone is doable, but it’s harder than killing them.

This is a life-or-death fight.

We’re fighting with everything we’ve got, and so are they.

Even if we demand surrender, they might not yield peacefully.

Try to go easy on them and you might be the one who ends up dead.

I hesitated to respond.

「You say it like it’s easy… Why?」

「I need information.」

「Hmm… so you want someone important, huh…」

「Exactly.」

To get information, it has to be someone with authority.

Low-ranking grunts wouldn’t know anything useful.

Someone important, flashy military gear, riding a good horse…

But those people would have guards, making them hard to capture.

If they have a good horse, they’d be fast, again, hard to catch.

I get why Prince Alex wants an officer alive, but pulling it off would be tough.

「I’ll do what I can, but I’m not making any promises, alright?」

「Fine. If it’s the Barbar Mercenary Force, you can handle it. I’m counting on you!」

「Hey! You’re not even listening to me, are you!?」

「I’ll be waiting at HQ!」

With a light wave, Prince Alex turned and rode off with his escort cavalry.

「Seriously! What a pain in the ass!」

I cursed at his retreating back.

「What is it, Gaia?」

Elranief of the Elf tribe rode up.

Rosso and the other Barbar infantry gathered around as well.

The conversation between me and Prince Alex had been in the Kingdom language.

The Barbars didn’t know what we’d said.

They were curious.

I told them, Prince Alex asked us to take prisoners.

「Hmph…」

「Hmm…」

「Not gonna be easy…」

These are seasoned battlefield veterans.

They know how hard it is to capture someone alive.
They know how fiercely a cornered enemy fights back.

Everyone crossed their arms, grimacing.

I called over Drye, Rosso’s right-hand man.

Drye, rare among the Big Lizard Tribe, is the brainy type.

「Drye. Go around the battlefield and wait just beyond that hill.」

I pointed to a hiding spot near the Kiritai’s likely retreat route.

Drye rolled his neck and squinted at me like I was suspicious.

「Sure, I can. But what about you, Gaia?」

「I’ll take the mounted group and grab the tools for capturing prisoners.」

「Ah, so you’re sending the infantry ahead, huh?」

「Exactly. I’ll meet up with you later!」

「Got it.」

Drye accepted without fuss.

He always acted detached, but he was reliable.

I knew I could trust him to bring the infantry to the spot I marked.

「Mounted fighters, follow me!」

I parted ways with the Barbar infantry and spurred my horse into a gallop.