CH 184

Chapter 184 – Burning Casmeer

The port city of Casmeer in the Central Territories is located on the Meer Peninsula, which juts out into the sea between the Northern and Eastern Territories. As its name means “Castle of Meer,” it is a fortified city that has prospered since ancient times.

The peninsula is shaped like an inverted question mark, and its inner bay, about two kilometers in diameter, has an opening facing south. We entered the bay late at night, around 2 a.m. or so to my senses, but we didn’t get lost in the darkness.

It’s because the fortress of Cassmere, perched on top of a small hill, is ablaze with flames.

“Hey, hey, what’s all that commotion? Where are they being attacked from?”

“I don’t know. The flags are all over the place.”

Myrril looked through the binoculars at the harbor and fortifications at the far end of the inner bay.

“The ship in the foreground is the banner of the Northern territory. There are two gunboats and four transfer ships, and the landing craft is hidden behind fishing boats and merchant ships. As far as can be seen from here, the land troops making noise in front of the city walls are from the northern and eastern territories. Those clustered at the far left are probably the Imperial Army.”

McKin-dono, who had been frozen in place with his mouth gaping open, rebooted after he caught my gaze.

“If the imperial ships are not in the bay, they must have landed from the north. Damn it.”

“Does that mean the Northern territory helped them out? If so, what were they doing off the eastern coast, crushing each other?”

“I don’t know. Hey, bring the old man!”

“”Yes, sir!””

The guards grabbed Tyrell, the east lord who was wrapped up in a bamboo mat, by the neck and carried him out. He stared at us with an unfaithful face as if he would never speak, but when McKin trampled his hand tied behind his back with his heel, he let out a miserable scream and cracked his mouth open.

“I-I told you so! The fox woman from the Northern Territory has lured in a foreign party! I don’t know, but the traitors must have split up because they had a dispute over their share after conquering the capital!”

The old man’s comment made McKin-dono’s forehead turn pale.

“Don’t be so selfish. You’re one of those traitors, aren’t you? You’ve even gone to the southern territories to block trade, support pirates, and invade with a fleet of ships. What was your share? You are not so generous as to move for free, are you? What were you trying to get with all that time and effort and money, huh?”

“T-that’s…”

“Speak up, or I’ll stomp your arm off!”

“…The right of the southern territory… Then, buh!?”

“Screw you, lowlife!”

As soon as he spoke up, McKin kicked the old man in the jaw. Blowing off and hitting his head on the floor, the eastern lord spat out his broken teeth and froze in his place, foaming up.

“…Sorry, Demon King. I’ve defiled your ship.”

“That doesn’t matter, though. What are you going to do now?”

He still seems to be in a state of rage, but this is no time to get hung up on personal feelings. McKin knows this, too, and he is desperately trying to calm down and catch his breath.

“…Yeah, I know. There are seven permanent members of the council packed into Cassmeer. If they are captured, the decision-making power of the national government will be split. I’d like to destroy the invasion force and the traitors if possible, but if that’s not possible, I’d like to take back at least one of the council members.”

“Mir?”

“As you can see, it’s going to be a little difficult now. The only people left on the ship are probably sailors who are in control of the ship, so it’s pointless to use the same rough tactics we used on the eastern territory. From the looks of it, there are at least 5,000 men who have landed.”

“What do you mean? With Mir and Takifu, it’s only a matter of time, isn’t it? Of course, we will help you, too.”

“That time is the problem. If it’s just a matter of eliminating them, it’s not impossible. From the looks of it, the fortress will fall in less than an hour.”

“””Eh!?”””

I agreed. The fire seems to indicate that some of the invasion forces are already inside the fortress. It is a relief that there has been no bombardment from the imperial ships that have landed on the outer edge of the peninsula, perhaps because they are out of the mortar’s range, but there is a possibility that they will turn around and sail to the inner bay if the situation is protracted. However, if we went to crush the ships now, the fortress might be occupied, and hostages, such as permanent members of the council, might be taken.

“Then, shall we go?”

“Hmm. That seems to be the only way.”

“Go where… hey, Demon King!?”

I open the throttle of the Griffon, and we traverse straight across the inner bay. The hovercraft, at full speed, roars into action and reaches the shore within minutes. I climbed onto the ramp and began to climb up the slope toward the walls of Cassmeer.

“I’m counting on you, Mir.”

“Umu, leave it to me. A mere 5,000 or so of these little bastards…”

The MAG machine gun spits out a burst of ammunition, and a group of heavily-armed infantrymen positioned halfway up the hillside falls with a thud.

“They are as good as deadwood in front of me…”

Unarmored light infantry and archers were shot in the eyes with UZI point blanks or had their heads blown off with M1911 copies. Sitting on the roof of the Griffon, Myrril-san howls with forty-five in each hand.

“His Majesty the Demon King is on his way. Get out of the way!”

“Oh, no, Mir-neesan, that name-calling is a bit…”

The soldiers, who were ready to fight, screamed and ran away at the sight of the hovercrafts rushing toward them with a tremendous noise and gusts of wind. Few of them had any intention of resisting, but unfortunately, some of them, whether they were late in escaping, cowering, or brave soldiers, stood in the way with a shout.

“Ooooh… oooh!?”

But they, too, are either splattered with blood from bullets or bounced off the skirts of Griffon and scuffed down on the cobblestones. The bodies and bloodstains that dot the area are left behind after we’ve passed. There is no way to retrieve them. The only time I do that is when I have to clear out the wagons and materials that obstruct our passage.

The neutralization of the enemy deployed on the slope progressed steadily, and the hovercraft we were in reached the gates of Cassmeer. There, the battle between the Imperial Army and the Northern and Central Territories of the Republic was halted, and the soldiers fled like spiders.

The main gate of the fortress was left open.

“…They’re not only cowards, but they’re also idiots.”

“I agree.”

I call in the Battlecry members and ask them to do what only they can do.

“Maintain a distance that will allow you to return to the hovercraft immediately and eliminate any enemy approaching McKin-dono. Preventative and over-defensive is fine.”

“Oh.”

“Yes.”

“””Alright.”””

“You too. I’m counting on you, Moff.”

“Woof.”

McKin’s guards will be dedicated to the defense of the lord himself. Only he can identify a friend and foe once he’s in the political center of Cassmeer.

I open the throttle of the Griffon and break through the castle gate. Once inside the fortress, I see mixed armed forces running around.

“Well, Mir, let’s go. Let’s go rescue the permanent members or whatever you call them.”