3 bar menu

Wake Not a Sleeping Lion – Part 04

“I don’t like this,” Jillarte mumbled, her expression grim.

They had just seized the second town this afternoon. She was currently staying in the local lord’s mansion, giving orders on behalf of the confederacy’s leader.

It was nighttime, and Jillarte was agonizing before a pile of reports.

“What’s troubling you, Lady Jillarte?” asked the chief of the Chelonians.

Chelonians, a race that carried shells on their backs, tended to mature from an early age. Owing to their long lives, they often appeared elderly, but actually brimmed with vitality.

Also thanks to their longevity, they were more composed compared to other Beastmen, setting the Chelonian elder in the role of Jillarte’s advisor.

“Don’t you think it’s taking too long to free the slaves?” Jillarte said.

“There’s little we can do. This is our first time invading another country, and we’ve never had to free slaves before.”

The Einbiest army stationed in this town comprised 2,000 soldiers. Out of these, 1,000 were responsible for maintaining order, while the other 1,000 were conducting a survey of the Beastmen residing in the town.

What surprised them was the utter lack of management for the Beastmen slaves in each town. Records were maintained for all the ten thousand or so citizens, but when it came to the slaves, there was no documentation whatsoever.

“Slaves are treated as property, denied even the right to live.”

Some of them had endured horrendous fates. Some had lost limbs and all hope for life, while others were bought solely for the purpose of torture.

An incident had occurred where an Einbiest soldier lost control, killing an owner who had been mistreating a Beastman slave. In a way, this was unavoidable.

However, allowing the soldiers to act rashly would lead to significant backlash from the citizens. Increased opposition would hinder their survey. Jillarte and her comrades aimed to liberate all the slaves, so they strictly prohibited violence against unarmed citizens. Soldiers hounded her for this order.

That’s when their leader, Gerhardt, intervened. He embraced the angry soldiers and wept.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. Please, just bear with it. If we act recklessly here, we won’t be able to free our other comrades.”

When Gerhardt spoke those words, the soldiers were unable to say anything back. They wept and howled alongside their leader and, the next day, carried out their duties with renewed determination.

I owe him one.

Jillarte knew she couldn’t do what he did. Gerhardt had a natural charisma, and there was no use in wanting something she couldn’t have.

On the other hand, there were Beastmen leading lives no different from the citizens, which posed a different challenge.

“There are more cases of Beastmen refusing to be freed. What do we do about them?” the elder asked.

“It’s a headache. They’re among the few who have found success in this country. Being the property of the elite gives them protection, allowing them to make a living. For them, being liberated and returning to Einbiest, on equal terms with other races, might actually be a disadvantage.”

“Do we allow slavery in some cases?”

“In principle, I don’t want to allow it. If we did, our comrades back in Einbiest might question our methods.”

“But if we try to take them back against their will, they will resist and might put up a fight.”

“…Sigh.”

Jillarte buried her head in her arms and slumped onto the desk. The Chelonian elder watched her with a warm gaze.

“Lady Jillarte, what if we say there are more Beastmen slaves than we initially thought?”

Jillarte lifted her head. “What do you mean?” She saw a hint of cunning behind the elder’s gentle smile.

“We want to free as many slaves as possible. To do that, we will continue capturing towns one after another. However, it’s impossible to visit every house and rescue every slave, right? Instead of wasting time on that, it’s better to take over as many towns as we can.”

“Yes… I think so, too.”

Even Jillarte recognized that capturing every town in the Theocracy of Bios was an unattainable goal. She believed that continuing their advance and capturing the holy city, where most of the Beastmen slaves were likely held, would be enough.

“In short, we’re bound to miss a few cases.”

“…I see.”

The elder was suggesting they overlooked those who wanted to remain as slaves and move on.

“Lady Jillarte, your dedicated approach is something the other Beastmen could learn from. However, have you considered occasionally embracing the easygoing and carefree spirit of your fellow Beastmen?”

“…Duly noted.”

The elder laughed. “I may have gone too far.”

With that, the Chelonian left the room.

Jillarte had undoubtedly been taking everything too seriously lately, resulting in poor sleep and frequent headaches.

“I shouldn’t lose sight of the bigger picture.”

She opened her room’s window and gazed at the night sky. The stars sparkled just as they did in Hopestadt, the capital city of Einbiest, but the air here was completely different. Einbiest had dry winds, while here, the winds were moist, carrying a sweet scent, different from the air in Ponsonia, the kingdom where she had once lived.

“I’m trying my best, Silver Face. But maybe I’m pushing myself too hard.”

If Silver Face were here, he’d probably say something along the lines of: “You’re putting too much pressure on yourself. It’s important to switch between what demands your full attention and what doesn’t.”

Jillarte decided that tonight she would sleep well and give her best again tomorrow.

---

The Einbiest army was making slow but steady progress in their mission to liberate the slaves.

The Knights Templar, preoccupied with their battle against the Quinbrand Empire, had yet to make an appearance, and fifteen days into the invasion, Jillarte and the Beastmen finally reached the outskirts of the holy city Agiapole.

As expected, the city was fortified with high walls, and although they had only enough troops for defense, the Agiapole’s soldiers outnumbered the Einbiest army.

“Recon says there’s a significant number of temple guards and security personnel in Agiapole.”

In the tent were Gerhardt, Jillarte, and chieftains from various races.

So far, they had freed over 5,000 Beastmen slaves, and the Einbiest army also numbered 5,000. They hadn’t stationed soldiers in any of the towns they’d captured, as controlling the towns wasn’t their goal.

“Jillarte, what do you think?”

Lately, Gerhardt often let Jillarte speak first in their strategy meetings. Though freed from the dragon’s curse and no longer a demi-human, she had gained the respect of the other races. She was solidifying her authority as the confederacy’s deputy leader.

“The Knights Templar, their main force, are absent. We can capture the city.”

“How do you suggest we attack?”

“They might have the numbers, but they can’t defend the entirety of the long walls. I actually have information about a secret route that allows entry inside the city. We should start by sending scouts.”

“What did you just say?!”

The Beastmen in the tent stirred.

“You’re not the type to crack jokes or make things up, but do explain,” Gerhardt said.

Jillarted nodded. “I have a personal contact within the Quinbrand Empire. The Empire has already sent spies into Agiapole, and they provided me with this information.”

“What?! Why didn’t you share such crucial information earlier?”

“I only learned about it recently.”

“That sounds too good to be true.”

“I disagree, and I don’t think it’s a trap either. I’ve known them since back when I was still a Dragonfolk, and I only became deputy leader of Einbiest recently.”

“Hmm…”

Jillarte’s connection with her source of information, Unken—she didn’t actually know his name—was established through Hikaru. By “I only became deputy leader of Einbiest recently,” she really meant, “I only got to know Silver Face recently,” but mentioning that might cause unnecessary confusion, so she refrained from doing so.

“Hmm, whatever. We’ll know whether the intel is accurate or not when we see this supposed secret route ourselves.”

Gerhardt was the type to value firsthand experience and observation before trusting anything.

And so the meeting concluded.

The reconnaissance team would attempt to infiltrate the holy city tomorrow, and regardless of their success, the Einbiest army would launch a full-scale assault in three days.