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Volume 7 Chapter 6 Part 1

Translator: Kell

“My sword did not hit,” the Count said. “Was that Magic?”

“Yeah,” I answered. “I can’t give you any details, because I don’t want any information leaking out, but it’s one of the defensive magic spells I use.”

“I have seen a lot of defensive magic, but this is the first time I’ve seen something that can completely neutralize my Guard Crush. I can see why you were able to defeat Cardinal Georgis with only a few troops.”

Count Gaze picked up his sword and put it in its scabbard, then looked around. Soldiers who had witnessed their commander’s defeat looked dumbfounded. From the looks of it, they were truly convinced that the Count would emerge victorious.

“Attention, all men!” the Count bellowed. “As you can see, I have been defeated by Commander Eld! In accordance with the terms of the duel, the Royal Interim Special Knights will be the ones to reclaim Raijis. Tonight’s raid is hereby canceled!”

“Yes, sir!”

Hearing the Count’s words, the soldiers around responded without hesitation. They all then dispersed to all directions to inform those who had not watched the duel about the cancellation of tonight’s attack.

The whole army moved with a single order, no matter what kind. They exuded complete competency as a group with the way they moved. In battles where such things are highly valuable, Count Gaze’s army must be quite strong.

“So, Commander Eld,” the Count began as he watched his men spread the news to everyone. “Would you allow us to join the Royal Interim Special Knights?”

All of a sudden, his tone became respectful, and instead of calling me just Eld, he began calling me Commander Eld. Apparently, the king was right. He was the kind of man who believed that those who are strong are superior.

“What happens when you join us?”

“All members of my army will fight according to your orders, myself included. You may give whatever order you want, and we will all obey it.”

Ahuh. So he doesn’t just want to join the battle. He wants to be completely under my leadership. But if they joined my group, it’ll only give me more work. Handling them all will be difficult. Before that, am I even allowed to add more members to our organization without first asking for permission?

Okay, how do I deal with this? If I was the kind of guy who’s interested in power or achievements, I’d be down for it. But alas, that’s not me. Besides, I let Count Meigis handle everything that’s related to politics.

”Sorry, but I have no intention of adding more members,” I said. “What we have at the moment is enough.”

“I know my troops cannot be compared to yours, but numbers can be a powerful thing. We are willing to give our lives for the sake of the people.”

“Steam Explosion.”

Instead of replying, I cast Steam Explosion. Of course, I directed it at an empty location, right above our heads.

With a loud bang, the flames spread in all directions, followed by a shock wave a second later. Because I shot it towards the sky, the blast did not harm the people on the ground, but it was enough to make them understand how much power it held.

If I unleashed this magic spell against a group of enemies in battle, a single blast can kill hundreds, or at worse, even thousands. Count Gaze, a man used to fighting, would know exactly what this all meant.

“Were you holding back during our fight?” he asked.

“Well, I can’t use this kind of spell against an ally. Besides, I can’t really just adjust the spell’s power to make it not fatal.”

“Thank you for your consideration. I now understand why there is no point in adding more to your troops. Joining you will only be a liability, it seems. But if you ever need our help, please do not hesitate to tell me.”

Great. Looks like he finally gets it. Well, strictly speaking, the more troops you have, the easier it is to fight, but fighting with the intention of using a lot of people as pawns can have all sorts of harmful effects.

If we have no other means to win, I might accept his offer, but I won’t use such a method against an enemy who I can defeat anyway using normal means. I would only ask for Count Gaze’s help if—and only if—the situation is so dire.

While the Count’s troops are superior by this world’s standards, they’re absolute amateurs in Skill-based combat. I doubt their addition would increase our chances of winning that much.

“We’re going to wait for an opportunity to take back Raijis,” I said. “What are you gonna do?”

“Since we can leave the counteroffensive to you and your troops, I will divide mine and deploy them to different places for defense. We need people to protect the cities.”

Good call. If they can protect the nearby cities, we can focus on retaking Raijis. Well, for me, Raijis is just a waypoint, and my real objective is the active volcano located nearby.

“If you get attacked, send word to me,” I said. “We’ll back you up if necessary.”

“I appreciate the offer, but how do we contact you?”

“Just go to any branch of Maxia Trading and tell them what you need. Just say you want to reach me and they should get the message.”

“I see. Maxia Trading Company’s communications network. I suppose the rumors are true. They offer their services in the battlefield as well.”

There was admiration in his tone. Strictly speaking, Maxia’s information network only goes as far as the nearby town or city, and from there, someone from Count Meigis’ troops connects to the network, but I suppose there’s really no need to tell him all that.

Count Gaze appears to be a trustworthy man, but the more people who know, the more likely it is that information will spread. And no one really wants to learn military secrets they have no business of knowing. It’ll only cause trouble for them. It’s for this same reason that I’m not mentioning when exactly we’re taking back Raijis.

“I get how to contact you,” the Count added. “Please take back Raijis.”

“You got it,” I assured him. “His Majesty also ordered me to do so.”

And that’s how we ended up with the task to reclaim the city of Raijis. What do you know? The king’s order to “do as you see fit” actually came in handy.