CH 72

Chapter 72 – Scouting Party To The North

“Oh, Yoshua.”

As usual, Myrril-san wears the standard style of her beloved UZI on her right shoulder with a leather belt and a holster with a copy of the M1911 on her left shoulder.

Today, in addition to that, she is wearing a bowl-shaped helmet with goggles that match mine.

Yeah, cute.

“When I thought about it, I realized that both the military truck and the single vehicle with a side cart are called ‘Uraru.” Isn’t there a different name for them?”

“Oh, the truck is Ural 4320, and the motorcycle is… I forgot. They’re used for different purposes, so it’s not a problem.”

“Is that so…?”

“Hey, there you are.”

There was a light exhaust sound from behind, and Yadar’s Honda XR appeared.

The tiger girl was wearing a helmet and normal clothes, but the pattern of her machete was visible on her back. This time she only had two machetes because she was doing some scouting. I heard that Heimann-jiisan was very angry when he found out that she had generously broken the machetes and thrown them away, so he had them magically strengthened or something, but I don’t know the details.

“Incidentally, the old man is packed up as well.”

“What do you mean “incidentally”? The main purpose of the scouting is to get a better understanding of the situation.”

The scouting party consisted of me on the Ural (the motorcycle) and my escort Myrril. Also, Heimann-jiisan, the commander of the first T-55 tank and the commander of the Casemaian Armored Corps (which only has two tanks), was present. We decided to have him accompany us in the tandem seat of the Yadar so that he could get a feel for the actual operation.

Minya stayed behind to help build a defensive position in Casemaian. We had to reposition the barbed wire and horse fences and modify the flow lines. This time, the homemade bombs were removed because our allies would be deployed, and the enemy extermination position was set farther away from the canyon.

I thought she would be annoyed at being left behind, but her eyes lit up when she heard that “my Humvee” would play an important role in the defense of the plains.

“Don’t drive too fast, Yadar. We are going to check the terrain and road conditions.”

“I know what I’m doing. Hold on, old man, don’t fall.”

After leaving Casemaian, we headed slightly south on the road to the royal capital. On the way, we turned east and entered a narrow liaison road. Keep going and turn left at the junction where the battle took place before.

From there, it’s just a matter of heading north along the road that connects the empire to the kingdom.

Although the road was relatively well maintained, it was still muddy in places due to the recent rain. We avoided the parts we could avoid and carefully passed through the parts we couldn’t.

Even with two-wheel drive, a motorcycle with a sidecar doesn’t have much driving ability. Yadar, riding an off-road bike, seemed unconcerned about the road surface and just kept going. She looks like she’s having fun.

Hmm, should I have chosen the Honda XR? I thought it would be better to have Myrril sit in the side cart to communicate with the airborne surveillance and get a line of sight for the UZI.

“All right, Yoshua, hold on! Whoa, there’s water splashing everywhere! Keep moving left!”

…The noja loli seems to be having fun, so that’s good.

“It’s been a while since the rains ended, but there are still so many puddles.”

“The Dark Forest has wetlands and water sources in the back. The forest itself has a high water retention capacity. There are also many small pools of water scattered around the periphery, so there are always many wet places.”

I see. So the surrounding soil doesn’t have good drainage either. I don’t know much about it, but maybe it’s good for farming. However, it is not suitable for operating heavy vehicles.

“If you’re going to take out a tank, you’d better think about the route it’s going to take. If that thing gets stuck, it’s… Hmm?”

“Can’t you just stow it and take it out again?”

“Yeah. I just realized that, too. As long as we’re not in the middle of a battle, it should work.”

Heimann-jiisan seemed to be thinking about the best place to move and position the tank, stopping the bike several times to check the terrain and situation on foot.

It seems that he hasn’t found the right place yet, but in some cases, the tanks could be ambushed together in a defensive position on the southern plains of Casemaian.

But since it’s basically a defensive battle, there’s not much advantage to having the tanks out first. The only advantage is to reduce the damage to the defensive positions by crushing the Ore Golems beforehand.

“Jii-san, how far is the outer moat now?”

“Sixty percent, I’d say. We had to postpone our schedule because of the rain, but we’ve already built the wooden frame. The stone reinforcement is mostly in place, and it all depends on the timing of the “konkurito.”” [T/n: Concrete.]

In the outer extension of the plain, which is several kilometers long and wide, an outer moat about four meters wide and deep is being completed.

It was a very large construction project, costing a lot of money and time, but with the introduction of heavy machinery and the skill of the Dwarves, it seems to be nearing completion.

The bottom of the moat was planted with sharp stones and pieces of iron, and the plain side was a vertical wall without any clue. Once we remove the metal bridge, the enemy should not be able to get in easily.

“It’s not enough to stop the Golem.”

“That’s true. The fortress is built to keep out soldiers, so it’s no use assuming a walking disaster.”

It can be expected to be quite effective against humans. After the moat is completed, it will be possible to draw water from the Dark Forest, and whether it is true or not, I have heard that there is a high probability that the water will contain “cannibal fish.”

The cannibal fishes are not large fishes like sharks, but apparently fishes about 30 centimeters long (according to one theory, they are monsters) that playfully devour the flesh of animals that enter the water. That sucks.

“…That means you can’t play in the water with those fish.”

“Yoshua, what are you whispering about?”

I was talking to myself, and Myrril looked at me suspiciously.

I was hoping for something like a swimsuit episode with Nojaloli-san in the summer, but maybe I was too nervous. We’re in the middle of a pre-war scouting mission. Hmm.

“No, the problem is the Golem. If we can find out how mobile and destructive they are, we can find a way to deal with them…”

“Yoshua, I heard there’s an Imperial Army barrier ten miles down the road.”

I made a desperate appeal to work to cover up my paranoia, but it was completely ignored. Fine.

As for the enemy’s movements, Myrril in the side cart will communicate by hand signals with the Winged People, who are on alert in the sky. So far, there seems to be no danger, but we’d better take care of it as soon as possible.

“If we make it past the second turn from here, we should be visible.”

“Okay, stop!”

I stopped the bike behind Yadar and stowed the bike. From there, we move on foot, off the road, and around the forest. The vanguard is Myrril with her UZI and Yadar in the rear with her machete.

“Myrril, do you need MAC10?”

“From what I can see from the signals on the sky, the number of enemy soldiers doesn’t exceed 30. Then we can neutralize them with the Woji.”

We soon found the enemy position we were looking for. In the shade of a few dense trees, we saw the bridgehead of the Imperial advance team.

There are about twenty infantrymen in leather armor, two wagons, and six cavalry. They were armed with hand spears, short swords, and short bows. Although they are disguised by branches and fallen trees, the front and back of the camp are shielded by carriages and even horse fences.

“…There’s a mage in the back. Yadar.”

“Oh. I’ll go ahead and create a diversion, right?”

“Please. I’ll hold the mage in the back; Yoshua stops the cavalry from going out to send word.”

I nodded and pulled out my AKM.

I’m a provisional Demon King, but I’m not very good at commanding a battle. I’ll leave it to Chief of Staff Myrril to take care of the important parts in the future.

“Heimann-jiisan, do you have a weapon?”

“If only to protect myself, there’s nothing to worry about.”

He pulled out from his waist an old hatchet that seemed to be his favorite. I’m afraid that the sharpened blade glows a murky reddish-black color. How many people have you killed with that?

“Now, let’s get moving.”