Chapter 31

The number of captured prisoners is about fifty.

Upon confirming the dead bodies, there are around a hundred.

Probably about fifty escaped and returned.

From the talk of the captured prisoners, we were able to understand the enemy's strategy to some extent.

Indeed, the enemy's target was not our village but the capital of King Rosais.

They planned to directly invade the country of King Rosais with three hundred, and while the attention was diverted, launch a surprise attack from the forest side.

This place is close to the capital of King Rosais, so if we capture it, we can launch a surprise attack.

Despite the fear of griffins that keeps many people from entering the forest, King Verm is quite bold.

And we learned that four hundred led by King Verm are heading this way.

Four hundred is quite a challenge.

“Are there any dead or injured?”

I ask, a bit tense.

“There are no dead. Ten are injured. Five of them have injuries from falling. Three were cut by the enemy, and the remaining two have broken bones.”

Ron reported.

Good…

No deaths.

“Show me the injuries. I’ll treat them.”

I’m not a doctor, but I know how to treat simple injuries.

Scrapes are washed, disinfected with alcohol, and wrapped with clean cloth.

Fractures are immobilized with wood and tightly wrapped with cloth.

Cuts are pressed with cloth to stop the bleeding.

The people of our village are strongly affected by the blessing, so they won’t die from injuries of this level.

“Well, next is the four hundred led by King Verm…”

It won’t be as easy as before.

“Yar. Go back and explain the situation to King Rosais again. He might be awake. And ask for reinforcements since we are joining his forces.”

“Understood.”

He flies off from the village.

I hope he makes it in time.

“Tetra, Soyong. Can you go on reconnaissance? Lulu, go report the victory to Boros and his group. Be careful.”

“Understood.”

“Yes!”

“Understood!!”

The three go to get the soul grass.

Well, let’s prepare ourselves too.

“Defeated?”

Ferm doubted his ears.

“Yes… Suddenly fire burst out, and soldiers were blown away one after another…”

“…Is there such a curse?”

Ferm asked the curse master.

“A curse can’t do something so grand.”

“Is that so?”

Ferm looked down at the soldier in front of him.

The soldier was trembling with a pale face.

“You don’t seem to be lying. Still, to lose to just forty… We need to be cautious.”

Ferm placed his hand on his chin and pondered.

“Trouble!”

A messenger soldier came to King Ferm.

“What is it?”

“A rebellion! A faction of the As party incited the peasants and revolted! The capital is being attacked by fifty of the As party and a hundred and fifty peasants!”

“What? What were the hundred soldiers doing!!”

“They were suddenly enveloped in flames and blown away in a bizarre manner…”

Ferm clicked his tongue.

“We’re retreating! It’s not about whether we kill King Rosais or not. We are the ones who will be killed!”

Ferm stood up and mounted his horse.

If we advance at full speed from here, we should make it in time.

The capital’s defenses are not that weak.

“Urgent report!”

“What now?”

“The three hundred who were on a feint have been defeated! King Rosais’ army has crossed the border and invaded!”

Ferm was hit with dizziness.

“Damn!! Let’s hurry back!!”

Ferm’s army started to retreat in a panic.

“Almus! King Verm has suddenly started to retreat!”

Tetra, who returned from reconnaissance, told me this.

“I see… Could it be that the army King Ferm sent to King Rosais’ country was defeated and counter-invaded?”

But in the previous battle, King Ferm’s side won with five hundred against a thousand…

It’s not that easy to be counter-invaded, right?

Even if they are counter-invaded, the capital is quite a distance away.

If King Ferm launches a surprise attack on King Rosais’ capital, King Rosais’ army will rush back, so in this case, we should hurry to King Rosais’ capital, right? Given King Ferm’s character, he would probably aim for that…

“A rebellion broke out?”

“Probably that. Or both.”

“Is Boros and the others okay?”

“Who knows. I did give them the black powder, so if they use it effectively, they should be able to win like we did…”

They should be able to capture the palace.

There are hardly any stone walls or other grand fortifications in this region.

King Ferm’s country is a small nation with a population of thirty thousand.

The defensive facilities are made of wood.

They can be blown away with enough gunpowder.

However, if King Ferm’s army returns, they might lose due to their small numbers.

“King Dorgal might also attack. …He is currently fighting King Gilbert, so it’s uncertain if he has the time to intervene.”

King Dorgal’s country is a large nation with three times the power of King Rosais’ country.

If he pushes a bit, he can send an army to King Ferm’s country.

As I thought, a hawk landed.

It’s Lulu.

“Mr. Almus! Boros and the others have already started the rebellion!! They are about to occupy the capital. And King Rosais’ army has invaded King Ferm’s country.”

“I see… As expected. Thank you.”

Then, I think.

Wait, do we really need to fight?

“Hey, Leader. Shouldn’t we pursue them?”

“Hmm… Do we really need to pursue them?”

When I said this, everyone’s gaze turned to me.

“Either way, King Ferm’s country will fall, right? Even if it doesn’t fall, it will suffer a major blow. We won’t be able to take military action for a while. We have already repelled the enemy once, so we can negotiate from a position of strength…”

“That’s not acceptable!!”

Soyong raised her voice. The other companions nodded.

“You’ll lose all the credit if you don’t act.”

“But credit is less important than lives…”

As I said this, a headache shot through my head.

My vision swayed.

Painful…

“Are you okay?”

Tetra shook me with concern.

“I’m fine.”

The headache gradually subsided.

“You’re right. Let’s prepare for the pursuit. If possible, we’ll defeat King Ferm and cut off the root of future problems!!”

We started preparing immediately.

Ten will stay to guard the captured prisoners.

They are properly tied up and their weapons are taken, so ten should be enough.

Speed is crucial this time.

We won’t carry much food for a short-term battle.

Instead, we will move at full speed.

“Shouldn’t we wait for reinforcements?”

“We don’t have time to wait… Alright, I’ll write a letter. Soyong, deliver it to Yar by hawk.”

“Understood!”

Soyong performed the soul transfer again.

It’s not something she should do repeatedly, but there’s no choice.

“Either way, we can’t just sit here. King Ferm needs to be eliminated, even if it’s unfortunate for him.”

As long as he lives, we are in danger.

When Yar arrived, King Rosais was awake.

Thanks to the efforts of the curse masters.

He should be resting, but he forced himself to wake up due to the emergency.

“I’m sorry, Yar. I can’t send reinforcements.”

“Why not!!”

Yar couldn’t help but lean forward and shout.

“Hold on, hold on. Listen to the whole story. There’s no need to send reinforcements now. After all, King Ferm’s army has already retreated.”

“R-Really!?”

Yar let out a loud voice.

Purely out of surprise at King Ferm’s retreat and the fact that King Rosais knew about it.

King Rosais smiled slyly.

“Invading the capital by passing through the Romano Forest… It’s a risky move that King Ferm would like. I could predict this much. My response was delayed because I was incapacitated… but I already sent out the hawks. And a little while ago, I received a report of their retreat. The reasons are three: Baltor defeated King Ferm’s army and started a counter-invasion, a rebellion broke out domestically, and they were defeated by you. If any of these didn’t happen, King Ferm would have come this far. It would have been dangerous, but now, King Ferm is finished.”

King Rosais spoke happily, as if one of his worries before death had been lifted.

“…Then I will go to Mr. Almus now.”

“One question, if you don’t mind.”

“What is it?”

“Why do you swear loyalty to that man? From what I see, you have considerable negotiation skills. Why not come to me?”

Yar answered immediately.

“No thank you. Mr. Almus has done me a great favor. I will spend my life repaying him.”

Yar said this and left.

King Rosais watched Yar’s back with interest.

It took about a day to reach King Ferm’s country.

“Isn’t the capital of King Ferm’s country about an hour from here?”

“Yeah.”

Tetra nodded.

But this village is in a bad state.

I look at the village in front of me.

The residents’ eyes are dead.

They don’t even make a fuss when fifty armed people come out.

Are they used to it, or do they think it’s pointless to make a fuss…

“Can I ask you a question?”

I stop a woman passing by.

“What is it?”

“This village seems to have only women. What happened?”

The woman answered my question.

“…King Ferm said he needed soldiers… My father was sent to fight King Rosais five years ago and died. My husband two years ago. Three of my five sons died in the war last year, and the remaining two were taken by King Ferm a few hours ago…”

The woman broke down in tears.

“Are you here to defeat King Ferm? If so, please, kill that king and avenge my father, husband, and sons!!”

The woman clung to me, crying.

Looking around, other women were bowing to us, surrounding us.

“…I understand. I will kill that man.”

When I answered, the women started to look at us as if we were heroes.

Ah, I have another reason to kill King Ferm.

“Can I ask you something?”

Tetra looked around and asked.

“Do you regret killing the previous lord, Lagou As?”

The women answered in unison.

“The previous lord was better…”

“But the taxes were higher under the previous lord…”

“But that’s the same now!”

“There was no war under the previous lord!”

“We were deceived by Ferm!!”

Tetra looked at the women with a cold eye.

“Almus, humans are like this.”

“…But I will still help.”

When I answered, Tetra hugged me, looking a bit unhappy but also a bit happy.

After walking for a few minutes, we saw a group of soldiers in the distance.

King Ferm’s army?

We finally caught up.

“Everyone, prepare for battle—”

“Wait.”

Tetra stopped me with her hand.

Then Tetra squinted and looked at the flag.

“That’s King Rosais’ army’s flag.”

“Really? That was close.”

So our hypothesis… that King Rosais’ army defeated King Ferm’s army and started a counter-invasion, was correct.

“Then I’ll go. Brother.”

Rozward said this, kicked his horse, and galloped towards King Rosais’ army.

It would be good if the general knows us, but if not, the explanation will take a while.

He returned a few minutes later.

“They want us to join the attack. The commander is Baltor.”

Baltor? …Ah, that guy.

I remembered.

He’s a smelly guy.

“Hey, Almus… right? It’s funny. We defeated the enemy two days ago and rushed here… Why did you start marching yesterday and meet us?”

“We’re just faster.”

Thanks to the blessing!

No need to worry.

“Ah, right… Well, it’s good that we joined forces. By the way, are you behind the rebellion happening now?”

“Saying it’s my doing is a bit harsh… I just gave them weapons and a leader.”

“A leader…”

Baltor looked at Tetra next to me.

“Shouldn’t you act with the rebels