Chapter 9

"Phew, I almost died."

That was my honest reaction after meeting with the Demon King.

"What's the matter, Ike? You seemed unusually nervous."

"Unusually? I may look tough, but I'm actually quite timid. I'm sure the captain knows that."

"Unfortunately, you're wearing a mask, so I can't confirm your expression."

"I'm drenched in cold sweat."

"Then, when you return to your post, you should take a bath. A good sweat will calm you down."

"Post? What do you mean?"

I couldn't help but ask.

"Didn't you listen to what the Demon King said earlier?"

"No, he said he would give me a reward, like a thousand gold coins."

"Fool. He wouldn't just give you that much money for nothing. That includes the military funds given to you as the lord of a city."

"Lord of a city? Me?"

"Not a strange thing at all. You were the one who made the greatest contribution to capturing Arsenam. It's only natural that you become a lord."

"Is that so? But, suddenly becoming a lord? And of a major city like Arsenam. Can I do it?"

I have experience in battle and war, but I'm clueless about politics and administration.

I did receive some education from my grandfather, including these matters, but there's a big difference between studying and putting it into practice.

"No, your post is not Arsenam."

Sefiro said this with a wicked smile.

"Usually, in the demon world, it's called 'take and run,' meaning that the city you capture, you occupy and manage. However, Arsenam is an important stronghold. We offered it to the Demon King and made it a direct territory."

I think it was a wise decision.

That city will likely become a cornerstone of the Demon King's army.

Nobunaga...—no, the Demon King will surely manage it well and bring great wealth to the Demon King's army.

Moreover, as a fortress city in the center of the continent, it will serve as a strategic pillar.

I was relieved that I wasn't appointed as the lord of a major city, but she told me my post with a sneer.

"Ike, your post is a town called Ivalice, south of Arsenam."

"Ivalice? I've never heard of it."

"Hmm, it's a small town. Your mission is to defend it and double its tax revenue. That's your current goal."

"Double...? In the midst of this war, and in a city on the front lines?"

"What? Are you dissatisfied? I could make it triple if you want."

While I was dissatisfied, the orders of a superior in the Demon King's army were absolute.

I returned to Arsenam, where my subordinates were waiting, with a "I'll do it, I guess" attitude.

---

The group setting out for the town of Ivalice, known as the Undead Brigade.

The brigade consists of about 300 soldiers, including orcs, goblins, trolls, and skeletons, a typical composition of the Demon King's army.

Usually, the Demon King's army is organized by race, with vampires or werewolves as the core, but the Undead Brigade is not exclusively made up of undead.

In fact, I, the captain, am human inside.

Officially, I am the highest-ranking undead, but my body is not rotting, and my flesh and skin are not falling off.

First of all, even though I look like this, I'm better at offensive magic than necromancy.

Furthermore, the skeleton unit, one of our main forces, was transferred to me from Sefiro.

It's just that I'm called the Undead Brigade because I look like the King of the Undead.

In fact, I asked Sefiro, the army commander, to assign more rational and self-controlled demons, as I no longer needed more undead.

When we arrived in Ivalice, we first greeted the former human lord.

He was a middle-aged, unimpressive noble.

He survived by surrendering his weapons and fully submitting to the demons. His name is Edward.

He welcomed us, the new rulers, with the utmost respect.

He showered us with flattery, but I ignored it and immediately issued orders.

"First, I want to repair the city walls."

The repair of the city gates, which were destroyed during the capture of Ivalice, was an urgent task.

The army commander gave me two tasks: to defend this city and to double its tax revenue.

The latter was a challenge, but the former was an urgent priority.

I inspected the city gates.

"Hmm, they are beautifully destroyed."

I'm sure Sefiro herself commanded the capture of this town.

"...She never thinks about the aftermath. She doesn't even consider repairing the city gates after the battle."

It's better that she didn't resort to massacres, but she lacks the concept of repairing the city gates after the battle.

She used her most powerful magic, "Meteor Shower," to blow away the city gates.

Well, if it was just the gates, it would be fine.

The aftermath of the magic affected the surrounding area, and the sight of it made me sigh.

Jiron, the orc advisor, also sighed in agreement.

"Lord Ike, it will take at least six months to repair this..."

"Six months? The humans will attack during that time."

"That's true. Then, should we leave it as it is? It would be a waste if we were attacked during the repair."

That's a valid point.

However, the Demon King's army has been advancing rapidly, but that momentum is likely to stop here.

There are two reasons for this.

First, we are far from our homeland, and our supply lines are stretched.

Second, human resistance has become stronger.

Currently, our Demon King's army is invading the kingdom of Rosaria.

We have already captured half of the kingdom, but our advance has slowed due to the reasons mentioned above.

As we approach the enemy capital, resistance has intensified, and it seems that Rosaria has formed an alliance with neighboring countries, creating a coalition of kingdoms.

Reinforcements are pouring in from the surrounding countries of Rosaria.

While it's a feeling that demons can't understand, humans unite when faced with a crisis.

They band together and attack.

The surrounding countries could abandon Rosaria, thinking it's not their problem.

But what happens after that?

If Rosaria falls, they will be next.

Naturally, they imagine this and offer aid.

This is different from the demons, who are always at odds with each other.

—In my opinion, the Demon King's advance will stop here.

This means that this will become the front line of the battle against the humans.

Given this, the option of not repairing the city gates was not viable.

I ordered Jiron, the orc advisor.

"Start repairing the city gates. Gather laborers and engineers."

Jiron replied, "Understood," and followed the order.

"I will gather laborers and engineers from the town."

Jiron said this as if it were obvious, but I disagreed.

"No, that won't work. It's too inefficient."

"Huh? Then, are you saying we should work hard ourselves?"

"The trolls can help with transporting stones. However, we are rulers, not servants. We need to draw the line."

However, forcing humans to work is also meaningless.

To repeat, there is no more inefficient system of rule than fear.

Humans and demons will not perform well unless they work voluntarily.

Knowing this, I ordered Jiron.

"First, recruit volunteers from the citizens. Promise them proper payment. If necessary, write a pledge on a sign, in my name, or even in the name of the Demon King."

"..."

Jiron looked puzzled.

"Doing this should secure half of the laborers and engineers. For the rest, recruit from the cities in the rear territories. Unemployed people should come."

I repeated that the payment must be clearly communicated.

"Also, as I said before, make the strong ones, like the trolls, work hard."

Trolls are large war demons.

They have the intelligence of an 8-year-old, but their strength is equivalent to modern dump trucks or excavators.

"Once you gather the laborers and engineers, make them work in shifts, 24 hours a day."

"24 hours a day?"

Jiron's large eyes widened.

"B-but, Lord Ike, didn't you say humans are important laborers? No one will work under such conditions."

"Fool, they will work for 8 hours a day. No more than that."

"Huh? Just 8 hours? But you just said 24 hours a day."

"We'll implement a shift system."

"Shift system?"

Jiron didn't understand.

Well, that's understandable.

This concept is likely unknown to both demons and humans in this world.

Usually, humans wake up with the sun and return home when it sets.

Demons have the opposite pattern, but in an era without advanced lighting, this cycle is natural.

However, repairing the city walls is urgent.

The only way is to work 24 hours a day.

Gather more laborers and engineers than usual, divide them into 20 groups, and have them work in shifts.

However, the working hours will be 8 hours a day.

Even though we are the Demon King's army, I don't want to be a black company. I won't allow overtime and will give them proper holidays. If anyone gets injured during work, I will provide compensation.

Using this method, we should be able to repair the city gates three times faster than usual.

We will need more laborers and a lot of torches at night, but I can't be stingy now.

I have gold coins from the Demon King.

I can afford to be generous.

I explained this to Jiron, who still looked puzzled.

He may be foolish, but he is not stupid.

He may not fully understand my intentions, but he will faithfully follow my orders.

"Understood."

He bowed respectfully and began the preparations.