CH 305.1

To the north along the highway from the Imperial Capital. After passing a T-junction on the way to the Count Rosehip’s territory in the west, you will find the territory of the old warrior who is the commander of the Imperial Army.

Beyond that, there is nothing but an uninhabited wasteland and a burnt field that until recently was the Northern City.

In front of the fortress in the northern part of the old warrior’s territory, a large number of human-shaped golems, some as tall as 18 meters, were gathered.

[What a spectacular sight.]

The one who opened his mouth was a large middle-aged man with short white hair holding a small, four-legged white bird. He stood in the cockpit of a jet-black A-class Knight with a giant rose dyed on the surface.

The Knight’s chest armor is still raised so that he can clearly see the Knights that were lining up, facing him.

[This is the best force the Imperial Army can muster at the moment. If I have a month’s time, I can still gather more, but time is of the essence.]

From the cockpit of a lacquered samurai Knight standing next to him, the old warrior, the knight commander replied.

The Imperial Army, the Rose Knights, and the Mature Viscountess together number nine A-class Knights, 61 B-class Knights, and 20 C-class Knights.

The reason for the small number of C-class Knights is because most of them are guarding the borders and bases.

[I see that the White Lily Corps of the Lily Knights is also coming. How encouraging.]

With the addition of these women, who consisted of three B-class and four C-class Knights, the total number of Knights was close to a hundred. This is double the number of Knights they had when they fought the Kingdom’s knight order on the plains west of Larndbarn.

Considering that the Frontier knight order and other low-skilled independent Knights were not included, their strength would be even greater.

[Such a great number. I haven’t seen this kind of sight since my youth when I fought with the nobles under His Majesty just after his coronation.]

Count Rosehip squints his eyes and immerses himself in memories. But his expression tightened when he saw the chest armor of the A-class Knight standing beside the Samurai Knight open.

They were to receive instructions from the emperor before going into battle.

The middle-aged emperor appeared from within in a hunched posture, standing on the lid under the chest armor, which opened vertically, straightened his back, and spoke.

『Gentlemen. It has been said that there is only one World Tree in the world and that if it were lost, the world would lose most of its magical power.』

The noises of the crowd and noises created by the Knights’ movements. All of these have faded away, and only the sound from the external sound system echoes in the quiet place.

『However! I want you to think about it. Who decided this was the case? Yes, the elves. And we have no way of verifying the truth.』

If the World Tree is destroyed, the world will be destroyed. Since this was common sense in this world, there is anxiety in the hearts of the members of the army.

By giving them an answer, he is trying to dispel it. The emperor continues.

『Our current situation is that we are being held hostage by the uncertainty of the truth. And as you can see from the devastation of the Northern City, the elves’ goal is to take the lives of the citizens of the Empire. Then, there is only one course of action we should take.』

After taking a deep breath, he declared with a deeper voice.

『Kill them.』

The words brought complete silence, but it’s also the emperor’s voice that breaks it.

『Kill them all before they kill you all! We are inferior in terms of strength but we are superior in numbers. This is the only way to survive.』

Intense tension fills the towering forest of golem Knights. Meanwhile, the mature Viscountess leans forward and bends the corners of her mouth upward widely.

『Go! Crush them! And burn them down! Burn the forest of spirits to ashes, together with the World Tree. As they did to the Northern City!』

The emperor stands on the lower cap of the chest armor and shouts, and the human-shaped giants stare at him without flinching.

The sovereign closes his mouth and a few moments pass, but no one utters a sound or makes a move. It was the old warrior, the knight commander, who broke the silence.

He sits down in the cockpit with the chest armor open, raises his sword directly above his head, and shouts through the external sound system.

『As you will, Your Majesty! Uraa!』

The Knights, as if snapped back to reality, thrust the heavens with their long swords and shook the ground with their shouts.

『Uraa—!!』

After that, it’s followed by the sound of almost a hundred Knights shutting their chest armor.

As if a massive river that flows as it is, they start to move north on the highway sandwiched between mountains.

At this moment, for the first time since the 『Spirit Forest War』, a major invasion of the Spirit Forest by humans had begun.

***

The sun is starting to set and the stars twinkle in the sky.

I went out into the garden and sat on the grass, eating watermelon while looking up at the night sky with my familiars.

(Jayanne’s Grand Thanksgiving was great.)

It’s all I can think about in my mind. Even after I get home, I find myself immersed in the memory.

But I can’t keep doing that. If I continue to dwell in silence, Imosuke and Dangorou will worry about me.

So I asked them about what the turtle told me the other day.

[You know, Zaratan said that sooner or later this place is going to get cramped for us and we will need to move somewhere else.]

The two animals react to my voice and turn their heads toward me. While the turtle in question is circling the pond slowly, and he only passes by us from time to time.

[So, is there a place you want to go?]

The wave of reply came almost immediately from the two animals, who looked at each other. They say they don’t care where as long as they’re with me.

I’m flattered that they think that way, but it’s also troubling. It’s like when you ask, 『What do you want to get for lunch?』, and the other party replies, 『Anything is fine』. 

[Even so, you guys must have preferences like, a cold or warm place, right?]

I asked and Imosuke sent a wave at me.

『Where they aren’t.』

What was transmitted to my mind was the image of the elves. Dangorou seemed to feel the same way and said that a place far away from the Spirit Forest would be good.

Zaratan passed leisurely in front of me as I nodded my head. Seeing him, I thought of another requirement.

[Oh, right, we will also need a place that has water.]

I am a good boss who doesn’t forget to be thoughtful to his subordinates. That was my intention, but it was easily dismissed.

[Eh? Zaratan will do something about it himself you say?]

Imosuke and Dangorou say that even in the desert, Zaratan can create an oasis around himself. As expected of the Great Spirit Beast with water attributes.

The caterpillar pushes my thighs with its head in distress. What I received was a wave that said, 『Don’t mind us and live where you want to live』.

I’m really grateful to my familiars for not being selfish, and while I pet their backs with my fingers, I told them what the turtle said.

[He said we should go on a trip and find a good place to stay. And he also said that he’ll be staying to watch the house.]

The caterpillar and the dung beetle are suddenly becoming more and more excited. Their tension is great as if we’re going to depart the next morning, so I move my hands out to restrain them.

[It’s not now, just so you know. I’m talking about someday, okay? On one of these days.]

My familiars’ gives out an atmosphere of dissatisfaction at once. Looks like I made a mistake in the timing of what I should say first.

[I’ve got some things to arrange on my end, so it’s not gonna happen anytime soon, you know?]

I continued and they’ve calmed down for the time being. But it seems I will be haunted by the question 『When are we going to go?』 for a while.

(And about letting Zaratan handle the Garden Forest, it seems they don’t have any problem with it.)

The turtle seems to have gained firm trust from the two animals. It went just as I expected, but I’m still glad.

General Dangorou asks for a new chestnut burr for his traveling outfit, and the vice-commander Imosuke adamantly refuses. I narrowed my eyes as I watched them.