Ch 113: My presumed age continues to increase

If you want to support, you can at: https://www.patreon.com/finlegost

There you can find 18 chapters in advance.

Thanks to my patrons and to those who comment on the chapters. It means a lot to me and motivates me to continue this hobby of mine.

And, of course, thanks to everyone who reads this work.

*************************************

'Taking an MP potion, I walked around the battlefield.'

'The previous fight left no one alive. My arrows were powerful enough to considerably decrease the time per kill. I'm not lying when I say that no more than 5 minutes passed from the first arrow and it was all over.'

'The soldier influenced by [Confusion] was the last one left standing, but his mental and physical condition was deplorable. At the end of the fight, I quickly granted him death to prevent him from further suffering.'

'On my walk around, I keep all his goods in my inventory, such as armor, weapons, and items. Of course, this includes his remnants as well.'

'After clearing the place, I head towards the Castemira kingdom's rear army to meet the commander.'

'Avoiding the enemy groups peacefully, I managed to cross the river and arrive at a secluded space where I could cast the Space Travel magic.'

'After crossing the illusory gate, I walk in the direction of the reconnaissance group's tent. It should be impossible to recognize me, since I'm wearing mask and clothes I don't normally wear. But, thanks to the insignia on my shoulder, the soldiers just glance at me and then continue patrolling.'

'"Good morning, I come to deliver my daily quota."'

'I quickly dropped the 10 remnants on Commander Cael's desk, along with the scroll containing the location of the soldiers of the Drial Cenit kingdom.'

'Not knowing how to react, the commander looked at me... But the next second he pulled out a magnifying glass from his pocket.'

'"Have a good day commander, I bid you farewell!" I quickly turned around and escaped from his tent.'

'Cael: "..."'

'- Shall I tell him that today is payday? ... ... ... Nah! Next month I'll let him know.'

'Casually Cael picks up the remnants and evaluates them with his Object Identifier Magnifier. They all proved to be true, and of a considerable level at that.'

''- I still can't believe how that brat can pull this off... Wait! what if he isn't as young as he looks? Bullshit! my eyes never fail. That brat must be between 16 and 17 years old-' He abruptly stopped his thoughts.'

'Upon opening the scroll, he was immediately surprised.'

'The map has about 15 symbols drawn on it, and some arrows around each of them, indicating the movements made, and the possible location to which they are headed.'

'- It's true information! The other reports yield similar results... Hmm, they seem to be investigating locations conducive to large-scale battles... Is that date approaching, eh?'

'Tapping the scroll with one of his rings, a flame surrounded the map and it turned to ashes in just 3 seconds. Then, very cheerfully he smiled and, from his pocket, he pulled out a gold coin.'

'- 21... No, that brat must be 22 years old!'

'Attached to the gold coin is a piece of paper with the words...'

'[Your pay, brat Emir.]'

'After scratching his ass, he went to Dorian Aranis.'

'Of course, he'll greet him with a handshake.'

'***'

'"A- Achú!" I sneezed.'

'This feeling...'

'Why do I feel like my presumed age has suddenly increased?'

'Even though I look everywhere, I can't find anyone talking behind my back.'

'Haa... It must be my imagination.'

'If the army is at the center of an imaginary map, then on its left and right side there is a vast forest. This is a double-edged sword that, on the one hand, protects people from enemy attack, but on the other hand can be used to hide soldiers from the opposing side. Thus, they can attack us when we least expect it.'

'The commanders know this better than anyone. That's why, just like the Drial Cenit kingdom, they have soldiers patrolling all over the place.'

'Now, if I always transport myself through the 'left' forest every time I go to Commander Cael. I now find myself in the 'right' forest.'

'What am I doing here? I'm changing my clothes.'

'Well, I know that no one wants to hear that answer, so I'll explain myself better.'

'There is someone I want to greet who is on the other side of the reconnaissance group. I don't want to be discovered, or hear rumors about what I'm doing on the other side of the river. I'm killing dozens of enemy soldiers after all. It's more than certain they will want to take revenge at some point.'

'Not for nothing do I always wear mask and different clothes.'

'So, this time I'll show myself as a normal young man without a mask, and wearing the clothes I'm used to all the time. That way I create two different identities, the misterious Emir, from which no one has seen his face, and the simple Emir that you can find anywhere.'

'To finish with this normal disguise, I hang a sword at my waist.'

'As I leave the forest, I head towards the thousands of waiting soldiers and, among them, the adventurers who were forced to come.'

'"Were you also trapped?"'

'The one who spoke to me is none other than Zia. One of the members of the group of the three annoying beauties, and whom I come to greet even though it was for a short period. I know that they got along very well with Alessia, so I want to know how they are.'

'That way, later I could give Alessia the news.'

'"Yes, unfortunately…" I replied.'

'Beside her, both Irina and Miria looked at me without saying anything... No. To be more accurate, they are looking behind me as if looking for someone.'

'Ah, I see.'

'"Alessia didn't get caught" I shook my head.'

'"You sacrificed yourself, huh? Well done" Irina nodded.'

'"That's good. This place… I wouldn't recommend it to anyone" Zia sighed.'

'Will it be too hard for the soldiers stationed in this place? I don't have any partners I can get information from, so I only know what the commander has told me.'

'"She is right. It's too boring!" Miria said resignedly.'

'So that's why! Give me back my concern!'

'"By the way, what sector did they assign you to, little monkey?"'

'Little monkey? Hmph, I'll let her call me that. Since we sound like a couple.'

'Should I call her piggy in return?'

'"To the recognition group"'

'"!!!" They were all surprised.'

'It was only after a few seconds that Irina spoke again.'

'"You must be very careful. The people in the recon group are commonly known as lone wolves. They don't even trust their companions. Alone they are very strong, but when they gather in groups they are capable of killing dozens of enemy soldiers" Irina said with a serious tone.'

'"Mn, it’s one against much full time" Miria nodded.'

'I see. That's why Commander Cael once told me not to salute any man under his command. They must be the kind of people who stab in the back... And well, I don't blame them.'

'Only someone who has fought against the soldiers of the enemy kingdom will know how it feels to have your life in constant danger. If the worst-case scenario happens, betrayal is still an option to take.'

'"When you are assigned a mission, you must fail it, take advantage of the time, and escape. You will be left for dead if you prove to be weak" Zia said.'

'"Ah... I've already passed the first mission."'

'3 Annoying Beauties: "..."'

'They all smacked their foreheads at the same time.'

'"Make sure you write a will leaving everything to Alessia," Miria said seriously.'

'Hey! don't forget about Delia!'

'"Haa... Well, out of jokes. As long as you don't actively move-..."'

'"I've already delivered my daily contribution to the commander" I interrupted Miria.'

'3 Annoying Beauties:''..."'

''- Ah, this guy is already dead' They all thought something similar.'

'Sighing, Miria said "Alessia will change her class to [Widow] any moment now."'

'As if there is such a class!'

'"Emir, to be honest... You're a hopeless case, act carefully" Zia said.'

'Your sincerity hurts. But thank you anyway!'

'Ah Ah. Calm down, calm down.'

'Then, we talked about the war and I told them my view of it, which is very similar to that of Commander Cael. Although I don't want to accept it, this war is, as he said, a war of egos.'

'"Don't say that! Many humble people will die if the Lucia river is diverted"'

'"We are gambling with the welfare of the people"'

'"You don't understand anything monkey, should I degrade you to an ape?!"'

'But my opinion is not well regarded by the 3 annoying beauties. Each one of them spoke as if they had personally seen all the rivers and the people near them. Ans as if they know what will happen to those people if the river is diverted, and what it will mean for the kingdom...'

'I want to deny their arguments, but their looks resembled those of faithful believers.'

'I quickly understood what is going on.'

'The welcoming speech of the new soldiers must have been very inspiring. The admiral general must have the gift of the gab.'