Chapter 245: Three

[If I am to assist Qir-dono, would I have to move separately from Belzegia-sama?]

Seras asked.

[When I need you, I’ll send a messenger to you or throw out a sound ball. Until then, I’d like you to assist Qir and keep an eye on everything.]

[———–Understood.]

This is also the reason why I didn’t make Seras the Chief Commander.

Depending on the situation, I’d like to ask for her help.

[Errr, w- what about me? What should I do?]

Liese asked in a timely manner.

[Liese, you should go back inside the door with Armia. I want you to explain the current situation to King Zect and Gratora. I want those two to understand the current situation and have them do what they can.]

[A- Alright.]

Turning towards her, I smiled and jokingly said.

[You’re good at strengthening your theories and persisting with your opinions, right? I’ll have you do the same thing you’d always been doing.]

[I————– I know that already! What happened back then...... I- I’m sorry......]

[I’m not just being sarcastic with what I said. I appreciate your way of conversation, where you force your opponent to yield by reinforcing your theory.]

[D- Doesn’t the word “just” there means that there’s still some sarcasm in it......]

[Well, you reap what you sow.]

[......Even so, I guess it might be more comfortable when you say it like that. I may have been lifted up too much...... so much so that I can’t even see myself......]

Liese started feeling depressed again.

Seeing Liese like that, I placed a hand on her shoulder.

[The only reason I didn’t leave you out of this fight is because I’m partly counting on your abilities. Please don’t let me down.]

[Y- Yeah——– I’ll do my best!]

[Ah, also, Liese.]

[W- What’s next!?]

[Get some proper treatment and some sleep.]

[......Alright. I’ll do that.]

Thereupon, Liese’s expression darkened.

Biting her lower lip......

It felt like something suddenly came up in her mind.

[....................]

[What’s the matter?]

[Because of me...... The harpy soldier I sent as a messenger was killed. I have to apologize to Gratora and the soldier’s family......]

I looked towards Liese’s face.

[Are you still having a hard time with your feelings? If it’s that bad, you don’t really have to participate in this battle......]

Hearing my words, Liese wiped the tears away from her eyes.

[It’s alright. I will do what I can———- Once again, I’ll make sure to apologize for my ignorance. But for now...... I have to protect those who are still alive......]

Guilt, responsibility, and pressure......

There are times when these are moderately needed.

However, if there’s a mistake in the usage of such aspects, it can become a powerful mental poison.

The current Liese’s state of mind......

Should I say something that would effectively stabilize her mind————

[No one is freaking telling you to not worry about it.]

Standing next to the sighing Liese and calling out to her was Gio.

[What we will be facing after this is war. People will die, and of course, monsters will die...... Someone will lose their life.]

[......I know that.]

[Even so, the only way other than accepting b*stards like them are to oppose them...... We have to risk our lives to fight against their unreasonable violence. It’s for the future...... for the citizens’ next generation.]

[...........................]

[If you feel that your bad choices caused the deaths of your comrades, then save more lives than the lives that would be lost today. That’s the only way we can make amends after this.]

Gio didn’t say “you”......

And instead, he said “we”.

I don’t know if he said it consciously or not.

However, what came to my mind was how great of a guy he is.

If he said it like that———–

Wiping the tears with her arms again, Liese looked up.

[Yes...... Now is not the time to stand still...... I’ll do what I have to do......]

Saying that, Liese turned her gaze to the side.

Then, she moved her hands behind her hips.

[And ummm......]

She looked very unwilling, but with an embarrassed look on her face————-

[......................Thanks, Gio.]

She expressed her gratitude.

[Ah?]

[I- I didn’t say anything———— Idiot!]

[......Hmph.]

Leopardkin has excellent hearing ability.

The words Liese said just now————– There’s no way Gio didn’t hear it.

......It feels like their relationship has begun to thaw out.

Watching them have such an exchange, Armia gave them a questioning look.

[Umu...... Doesn’t Gio-dono seem to have changed a bit from before? Even something in his mental state seemed to have changed? Could it be———– did something happy happen......?]

Not bothering with what she said, I just handed Armia a piece of paper.

[Armia, here’s a list of what you need to do.]

[Hmm?]

The list I gave her was filled with stuff about what she would do once inside the silver door.

While Liese and Gio were talking, I added a few things to it.

[You and Liese should work based on the things listed in this.]

[I understand the “organize the monsters and send them as reinforcements” written here...... but Gratora and I, are we going to remain inside the Faraway Country?]

[Yeah. I want you to send some of the Harpy soldiers and have them act as our messengers. But the Serpentine Light Army and the Royal Guards should stay inside. Some of the Orcs and Kobolds...... and some other combatant monsters too.]

[Do we have enough combatants outside?]

[It’s highly likely that there’s a Divine Beast among our enemies. Until we can secure or get rid of that guy, there’s always the possibility that the enemies could infiltrate the door...... We’ll do our best to prevent them from passing through this valley, but in case they use a rope or something to climb down from the cliffs around us, then they’ll come straight in with the Divine Beast...... That’s why we need to keep some of our forces inside until we can deal with that Divine Beast.]

Nyaki and Munin are still inside.

Most of all, it would be an instant out if they were able to kill the Forbidden Race.

[They could also be a backup force. If push comes to shove, we’ll have you all come out.]

[I understand, unnn.]

Liese originally wanted to have the army corps dismantled.

Looking at it in another way———-

It means that Liese was well-aware of their domestic forces.

Thus, they would gather the remaining forces inside the silver door and organize them.

Being that she has a better grasp of forces than anyone else, Liese would be the right person for this.

Armia, who is familiar with the operation of the corps, will be assisting her.

Now then, as for the others......

[.....................]

[What’s the matter, Belzegia-dono?]

[......You mind if I say something?]

Looking at everyone, I spoke.

Then, I turned my gaze to Seras.

[Seras...... Can you quickly draw the crest of the Mira Empire on this paper?]

[Mira Empire’s crest? Yes, I can draw it.]

[Then, please.]

The Four Warlights looked at each other, looking as if they had no idea why I asked such a thing.

Seras didn’t take that much time to finish drawing the crest.

[This is Mira Empire’s crest huh......]

The crest depicts a lion and a lily.

Taking a glance at the crest himself, Gio looks back at me.

[Is something up with this crest?]

[There was that one information Mikhail gave us, right? That Mira Empire has declared war on Alion.]

[Ahh, speaking of which...... He did say that huh.]

Thereupon, Armia asked.

[So, what’s with them?]

[It means that they should be hostile to Alion’s cavalry, who are here now.]

I turned my gaze towards Liese.

[......We share a common enemy huh?]

[If the Faraway Country wants to establish diplomatic relations for the first time, I think that Mira might be a suitable partner.]

[I...... see......]

Liese’s expression became more serious.

[......................]

From the information I gained from Heroic Sword......

They had engaged with Mira’s assassins before they fought us.

It’s possible that there may be more of Mira’s people nearby.

[It’s not a good idea to accidentally kill someone who might become your ally in the future. If you do encounter them, try to avoid engaging the people with this crest.]

Seras follows up.

[If they really were hostile to Alion, then Mira should want to have more allies on their side.]

[For example, if you were to offer up the bonus of having the Fly King Squadron as an ally..... They might think more positively of an alliance with the Faraway Country.]

[Does that mean...... You’ll be going into this battle as the Fly King Squadron?]

That question was also to verify if we’re going to reveal the information that the Fly King Squadron is on the Faraway Country’s side to Alion’s Thirteen Cavalry.

[Gio, what about that thing I asked you before?]

[Ohh.]

Saying this, Gio looked behind him————— towards the entrance path of the valley road.

There was the Dragon Light Army, carrying long spears and shields.

With the arrival of the anti-cavalry equipment, it is distributed to the soldiers.

As they were distributing the weapons to everyone, Gio held out a jute bag to me.

[Here.]

Receiving it, I take out the contents of the bag.

A black leopard mask.

The outfit of the Shadowblade tribe.

Receiving another set of such jute bag, I passed it to Seras.

[You take this, Seras. I had the size matched to your Fly Knight outfit, so it should fit you.]

[Y- Yes.]

Seras curiously receives it.

Folding his arms in front of him, Gio snorted.

[I had Yerma fiddle with the masks and outfit of the Leopard King and Leopard Princess we use for our rituals.]

[Whether or not we will join the fight as the Fly King Squadron or not after this..... That’s something I actually haven’t decided yet. So, I asked Gio to prepare a mask and outfit that would make us look like Leopardkin at first glance.

Seras inspects the Leopard Princess outfit.

[I see......]

[While we’re wearing the Leopard mask, I’m “Doris” and Seras is “Koudelka”. Gio, please remind the others of this.]

[Alright.]

I examined the Leopard King mask that I received.

It looks very elaborate.

It was apparently made by a dragonewt who is very skillful with her hands.

Burning-eyed black leopard.

Red eyes and black head————- Oddly enough, it was the same as the Fly King.

Next, I checked the inside of the mask.

As I had requested, there are holes for me to attach the Gem of Voice Amplification and Gem of Voice Alteration.

This was splendidly made.

I’ll have to thank Yerma for this.

[It seems like———— Depending on the situation, I’ll be using three different forms.]

The Fly King.

The Leopard King.

A messenger.

Packing the Fly King and messenger outfits in a bag, I fastened it to the saddle of a horse.

By the way, the horse isn’t Slei.

Slei should be kept close to Seras.

It’s because it would be better to have Slei’s mobility when I need to call for Seras.

The cavalry horse is also better for moving around when I want to take the identity of a messenger.

[Now then, let’s confirm things again————]

I gathered Gio, Qir and Niko.

Seras was next to me.

In addition, a cerberus named Roa, who mainly organizes the monsters, will also join in.

She’s a monster that understands common language.

As for Liese and Armia, they’ve already headed for the door.

Thus, they aren’t here now.

[The first and foremost priority is the Divine Beast on the enemy side. Secure them if possible...... If not, you can consider taking them out. Also, avoid engaging the Sixth Cavalry, which is considered to be the most dangerous of the enemies, and as soon as you encounter them, inform me or Seras of the location they’re encountered.]

I then gave them a description of the main figures of the Sixth Cavalry.

Though I say that, it’s just filled with the information I had gotten from Mikhail.

The accuracy of information was also somewhat lacking.

Most of all———— Their Captain, John Doe.

“His lack of features is his feature.”

Even though I told them that, they still didn’t seem to get it.

Then again, I heard that the Deputy Captain is also not that distinctive either.

Which means......

[The easiest way to tell them apart is by the numbers engraved on their equipment and flags...... According to Mikhail, since there are thirteen cavalry units, they are easy to distinguish from a distance. So, if you see any equipment or flags with the number “6” engraved on them, just retreat. Also, well...... The Sixth Cavalry is most likely accompanied by the Divine Beast. Their fur is the same color as Nyaki, so you might be able to judge who they are. After that......]

I continued.

[As I said earlier, if you encounter someone who appears to be a human from Mira, avoid engaging them if possible. First of all, I want you to tell them that you have no hostile intentions and that you are willing to negotiate. It’s fine as long as you convey that to them. There is no need for those present to handle negotiations themselves.]

Everyone listened intently.

[But if they attack you, prioritize your own life first. If you decide that your life is in danger, you may run away immediately———— or fight back. The decision is left to you. Anyway, let me or Seras know the situation and the state of affairs at the time of the encounter. Understood?]

Just like that, I gave them a rough sketch of their movements.

And so———- each of us began to prepare to move in earnest.

Seras and I moved to change our clothes.

Gio had set up a simple, hastily-made partition for us earlier.

[Ummm...... Since it would be wasting time, why don’t we both change clothes together?]

Agreeing to Seras’ suggestion, I changed into my Leopardkin outfit within the narrow partitions.

Seras had finished changing to her Leopard Princess form.

I also, at the end————

I put on the Leopard King mask.

Just as I stepped out of the partitions with Seras, Qir came running up to us.

[I received a report from the centaur scouts I sent out. It looks like the enemy’s on the move.]

Finally......

[They’re coming huh.]

The enemy started moving.

▽

Leaving the valley road, I rode my horse through the rocky terrain.

I’ve gotten pretty good at riding horses at Slei.

I guess it was the result of Instructor Seras’ guidance.

I am currently in the frontal route, in a position overlooking the main camp.

If something happens, I can easily run to either the east or west side.

Also moving forward with me through the frontal route was the Leopard Light Army led by Gio.

However, they were ahead of me.

They were currently hidden somewhere out of sight.

We are still in a “waiting” state for the time being.

Even though I said that they were ahead of me, Gio and his team were still scouting.

According to the reports, the enemy would be attacking from three directions.

Roughly speaking, they had divided themselves into three groups, with each group heading for the east, center, or west route.

It’s favorable for us that the other side didn’t attack us while gathered.

It would be better for me if they were that spread out.

Considering the numerical limit of targets that I could use my Abnormal State Skills on, this is better.

“Alion’s Thirteen Cavalries tend to avoid encroaching on each other’s territory.”

“So, even if they do attack, they are more likely to disperse and use separate routes.”

It seemed that that information Mikhail had spouted was correct.

In fact, it would be more difficult for us if they had charged into the valley road with their large army.

That is why, if possible, we should go and crush the cavalries while they’re still dispersed————

As I was thinking about this, I could see a female centaur, most probably a messenger, rushing over from afar.

[Reporting!]

The centaur announced.

Viewed from the main camp, the Dragon Light Army, led by Kokoroniko Doran, began fighting on the left-flank.

Their enemy is the Fourth Cavalry.

They’ve started clashing.

Opening the curtains of war————- was the Dragon Light Army.