281 Chapter 19-6 The Imperial Army

It's nothing!

Ernesto, who was watching Cain's training with me, summoned the knight and listened to him, but he immediately had a steep face.

"Thank you. I'm sure the others are headed to the Royal Castle?" Now let the Lord explain it to me in my tent. Albert, Cain, Leon, and the lords will bring their responsible men from their respective units to the central command. Take Luna back to the Royal Castle, Teeta! The carriage will be prepared for the Guard! "

After hearing Ernesto's words, Tedda immediately took action and seemed to understand that Luna was not a problem, so she obeyed quietly.

“Everyone else should get back to their posts immediately and be ready to move if instructed to do so!”

After the next orders were issued, Albert and his men instructed their men to return to their posts.

"Leena, the Lord wants you to play the role of coordinator for the adventurers." If you need anything, you can name me. "

Okay, got it.

Ernesto then nominated Leena to be the coordinator of the adventurers. Perhaps because Lina and Jin were in Leon together, it was enough for Jin to participate with Leon, and because Lina was the only aristocrat in the [Sword of Dawn] that was at the center of the adventurers, it was considered suitable for a temporary role.

"Cain, I can't afford to overlook the Lord's selfishness." If you still want to go back... you'll have to be prepared to lower the sign of the Marquis's house. "

"Yes, I'm sorry for the inconvenience." Later, I apologize to Temma..... "

"Oh, I don't mind letting him." Apparently, it was my request. It's in my work. Rather than that, if you provoke yourself and take a counterattack, you'll have to make fun of me later. That's why it's not handmade. "

Ernesto summoned Cain, so he asked what he was going to say, and I decided to make fun of him. Well, I don't know what to do with it, so I don't think there's anything I can do about it... but Albert and Leon seem to be making fun of it together. Well, if that happens, I'll fight back against both of them.

When they finished directing their respective units, they followed Ernesto to the central headquarters. Tedda and Luna came to say hello to me, hoping to return to the Royal Castle at this time. Well, although Luna understood that it was an emergency, she seemed slightly unhappy, but she was in a good mood when she handed over the pudding she was thinking of using as a treat for today.

I saw off Tedda and Luna, and I walked for a while in the direction they were heading.

Even if you say Command, it's actually a big tent.

I saw a pretty big tent. They're all going in there, so that must be the headquarters.

Tents are probably the best given the cost of moving around and building, but I think they're nameless, to be honest.

"Well, I know what Temma wants to say." I thought it was a mess at first, too. "

At some point, Jin stopped by and said something like that, nodding... but I thought (...) (...) (...) (...) I didn't say it out loud like Jin.

Furthermore, Leon, who had heard Jin's remarks, came closer in sympathy with "That's right ~", so it became lively only around me (even trying to keep a distance from the two of them casually), and it was a situation that could be seen with white eyes from the surroundings, but the two of them also came to the front of the headquarters and became quiet. Well, I guess it's too late.

"It's late! Get in your seats!" Things will be battling for a while! "

When the three of them entered the tent at the same time, Ernesto's rage flashed.

In that voice, we hurried to our seats (for now, each unit seemed to have a rough location, and I didn't know where to sit, so I sat near Leon for now), but some of the crew members hadn't come into the tent yet, so this is not just us, but the whole thing.

"Temma, I'm sorry, but can't you come over here instead?"

For some reason, I was moved close to Ernesto. Maybe it's because it gets in the way when giving orders to each unit, but I don't think it's because Ernesto said so.

"Don't have them all." We're running out of time, so let's get down to business, but five days ago, the Empire broke through the front of the Houston Frontier Territory. "

More than tens of thousands of troops are currently marching towards the capital.

"The Empire doesn't seem to be marching so fast due to the number of them... but it looks like it's about ten days from now."

Ten days feels like there's still time, but I don't think there's enough time to prepare the kingdom for defense. But the thing that bothered me more than a few hours ago,

Ernesto, isn't it too early (...) to expect to reach the royal capital from the outermost provinces?

Albert's right, it's too early. Ten days is a little slow if this is traveling on horses, but the enemy is an army, and tens of thousands of soldiers cannot be traveling on horses.

"Albert's right, a regular army can't do it for ten days." The enemy... the army of the Empire is made up of monsters. It's not a metaphor, it's literal. "

I had a terribly bad feeling about Ernesto's words. At this time, I didn't notice it myself, but it seemed that I was clamping my fist with a lot of force.

“What does that mean?”

In response to Ernesto's question about the crew members who hadn't come to him (like the three idiots and Jin, some of them imagined monsters like Chaos, but they didn't seem to know as many as they did), Ernesto looked at me and Clinton for a moment.

"The Imperial Army... no, the army that was coming in from the Imperial side was mostly made up of zombies."

He said something, and then he said something, but I think the memories are flying for a few seconds. When I realized it, Jin was shaking my shoulder.

Temma, are you back to your senses?

When I looked around to see if Jin's first voice (as I noticed it) was doing something about it, there were only Albert, Cain, Leon, Ernesto and a few others left, and most of the others were down near the entrance to the tent or outside.

What did I do?

”Don't you remember... the next moment you heard the word 'zombie', you were so murderous”

When I was told that, I felt that my head was bleeding the moment I heard it was a zombie, but I don't remember it well.

"Temma, I know you've become like that, but can I keep talking to you like this?"

Ernesto called out from behind the Knights Guard. The remaining knights were Ernesto's (four) knights and Galat's Menas. Only the best acquaintances and Ernesto's escort remained. Well, there was one more of my acquaintances in this tent... and they were evacuated. Being borne by my own vassal (...) genus (...)......

"You guys, get back to your fucking seats!" If you're surprised at this, you won't be able to protect anything you can protect! "

When Ernesto told the evacuated crew to take their seats, most of them came back, keeping their eyes off me. In the middle of it, Leon was near me, trying to get back to his seat.

That's what I'm saying, but in that murderous mood, you can't escape, can you?

He told Albert and Cain, but ignored Leon and went back to his seat. It was to avoid Ernesto being embarrassed by my reply here.

"First of all, perhaps this will be the front line, but the Lords will not be the front line." When the lords fought, they allowed their enemies to invade the king's city, or when they were cornered to the brink. With that in mind, what can you do right now, Temma? "

Many of the servicemen who came back to their seats said, "Why are you asking him? The gaze turned to Ernesto, but everyone was convinced by the explanation," I'm the only person here who fought a horde of zombies, and I want to know what we can do from that experience. "

"The first thing that comes to mind is the construction of human knowledge. Even in Kukuri Village, until the Dragon Zombies emerged, we were able to fight each other more than we could by strengthening our positions. Next, we need to secure a retreat. Since this is an army that is not afraid of death, it is better to assume that the enemy will eventually destroy this sector by merely attacking it. In that case, we need a second and third position."

Even when the village of Kukri was actually attacked, except for the dragon zombie who turned the field upside down in a single blow, it was possible to fight at the fort of the reinforced Knights. Had there been somewhere else to fight like that fort, the damage would have been even less.

What size fort do you think we need?

"At least (d) ~ 300 people are large enough to be caged with room, and the perimeter is about 2m high enough for people to climb up and move... If possible, I would like to have an empty moat about 1m deep enough to prevent several attacks by monsters like augers."

“Shouldn't we go deeper into the moat and fill it with water?”

"If it's too deep, we'll struggle to escape, and if it's a zombie, fire magic is effective, so I think it's better not to add water."

When I was in Kukuri Village, I used magic to reinforce what was there from the beginning, but this time it's a task from scratch because I don't have time, so I think it's better to build numbers.

"After all, fire magic is effective..."

"With Fire Magic, you can expect extensive and continuous damage from spreading fire even with a single attack." However, if you have some skill to aim at with a pinpoint, no matter which attribute you have, it will have an effect. Well, it's inefficient to target tens of thousands of opponents individually. ”

Unlike in Kukri Village, there are more allies this time than a large army of zombies, but there is no other way to contain the damage than to efficiently defeat them.

"Then go back to your units and explain the situation to the crew members, except for those who are now called Squad Leaders."

Ernesto named several of them, and the unnamed crew immediately left the tent. By the way, it was me and a few other adventurers who were called by name.

"Now then, from now on...."

Ernesto, I've just been told to stay, but I'd like to return to the Mansion.

Why not?

"I'll bring my grandfather." At the time of the attack on Kukri Village, my grandfather was in the center of the chain of command, so I think he was more familiar than I am. ”

"That's not true. That's not true. I'm sorry, but hurry up and get me Merlin."

When I fought the zombies in the village of Kukri, I would certainly be one of the people in the center of the battle, but in terms of the chain of command, it was terminal and basically moving according to the instructions of my grandfathers. Perhaps the kings would try to call Grandpa, but before they could, they needed to bring him here. Well, that's a very egotistical reason... but I don't think you'll be late for the king, because you'll probably think the same as me.

With Ernesto's permission, I aimed for the Mansion in [Flying Magic].

I fly more than usual, completely ignoring the knights guarding the entrance of the King's City and aiming for the Mansion, people will certainly complain to me, and I may be guilty, but I will have no problem if I turn everything to Ernesto.

"Grandpa, follow me to the guard immediately!"

"What, what, all of a sudden?"

When I jumped into the Mansion and took Grandpa's arm, Grandpa was surprised and turned his eyes black and white, but he immediately understood that something unusual was happening.

"Everyone, it's an emergency! Primera, Jeanne and Aura need to be ready to fight or escape at any moment. Amur, go to Uncle Mark and tell him he can evacuate to the Otori residence at any time.”

I asked Primela and the others who came to see what was happening to them to give them instructions and prepare quickly, and I asked Amur to tell Uncle Mark that he was ready to evacuate. Meanwhile, Grandpa went to his room to get what he needed.

If you want to make preparations, you may want to leave Amur and send Jeanne or Aura to your uncle, but Amur would be more suitable given the speed of her legs. Above all, if you send Amur to your uncle, he will make contact with the southern officials stationed in the capital on the way there or back. I don't have time for more information right now, but I need you to be ready to head south at any time.

Temma, I'm ready!

Well then, let's go. I'll fly you, follow me.

Ask Primera to do the rest, and my grandfather and I flew up to Ernesto.

When I flew up into the sky, I saw a familiar royal carriage heading towards the Mansion from a distance, but now I didn't realize it on purpose.

Ernesto, what's going on?

"Hmm, actually..."

While Ernesto was explaining things to his grandfather, I decided to ask the remaining Alberts about my absence.

“What we talked about earlier is where we're going to build our territory and how far we're going to make it. And it's about our role in the Guard."

The position has chosen a number of places to take advantage of the ups and downs of the terrain, and the scale is said to be 50 to 100 m high. However, they only build walls on the front and sides, and they use piles and the like for the sides. Without daring to build a rear wall, they said they would fall back to the next sector when the enemy approached. Even though it may seem like a skeleton, it is impossible to build multiple forts in a short time, and since it may interfere with the operation of the Royal Army, it seems that it has been simplified so that it is easy to break when it is necessary.

"Until the military officially orders us to do so, we will follow Ernesto's instructions and build our positions in parallel with the surrounding vigilance." After the arrival of the Knights, the Guard will turn to the Royal Guard and the Knights' support. "

I received an explanation.

"I understand most of the story. It's a different matter, but I'd like you to lend me a hand with the Duke of Sangha, who's in the Guard now."

“I don't care, but what are you going to do?”

"Actually, I want you to deliver a message to the Primers." I almost jumped out without saying anything, so I'm sure you're worried. "

Upon hearing that, Albert immediately summoned a knight from the Duke of Sangha's house, who was standing outside the tent. I asked the knight to explain to me that there was no problem even if I spoke to the outside, and my grandfather and I ran to the house of the Otori family, asking for a message that I might not be able to go home for a few days.

"Hey, isn't it faster for Temma to fly back again and explain than to run the Duke's Knights?" Even if we don't have the time, it won't be a problem if Temma, who doesn't belong to the Guard, leaves for an hour or two. "

"That's right. Is there any other reason why I shouldn't do it?”

Cain was looking at me in response to Leon's question. It was a bit of a risky thing to say, but it seemed to have settled down a lot.

"Grandpa, do you know what happened?"

"Well, I understand the situation and have given some advice... but I don't think it will be very helpful under the circumstances."

When I fought in Kukri Village, I changed instructions on the spot against the zombies that appeared after them, so I don't know if I can use them in this battle. Well, my grandfather's advice was to get you here.

"Well then, shall we actually go and see it?" Let's take a chance and see how strong our enemies are. There are a lot of things that my grandfather and I think about zombies, right? "

"Hmm?... I see, that's true." Well then, let's go! "

"You two, wait a minute!" I won't allow you to do anything of your own! "

Ernesto was in a hurry to stop as he tried to get to the place where Grandpa and the zombie herd were.

“Who's going to forgive you? We live in this country, but we don't serve. Besides, isn't it time to take a little time? Me and Temma will be able to find the Imperial Army much faster than horsemen and take them by surprise. What do you think will happen to the villages and towns nearby on the Imperial route if Shirai doesn't go first? Are you going to send a guard to buy you some time?"

In the last words, Albert and Cain all came together and said, "I can't! 'He shook his head sideways. Well, Leon had a motivated face.

However, it seemed that the threat of Grandpa, who was ineffective in some parts, had worked for Ernesto, and he was starting to think about something while muttering.

If there's no objection, I'll let Temma and I go.

When Grandpa said that and turned his back on Ernesto,

"No, wait! Wait a minute because I understand!" Temma, this is my request. I would like to ask the Imperial Army to take on the task of "Powerful Reconnaissance". I'll be late, but I'll tell His Majesty to send the Knights. "

"Hmph! That's what I'm trying to say from the start... I'm trying to keep something weird, so it's going to be an extra expense!" And I don't need the Knights. Just get in the way. "

Grandpa told Ernesto,

"Idiot! A war of nations... How can you send civilians out to buy time, when it is invaded and the most powerful force in the land!" Besides, letting only two of them go... from the side, it's a complete discard! Can you do that? Well, sending the Knights was nominal, but even if I sent them in just a few shapes, I could still make excuses. For example, the two knights with slow legs cut off the numbness, and went ahead on their own...... "

About half of it will be my and grandpa's responsibility, but since it was originally our selfishness, I don't care about responsibility. However, Ernesto thinks that if he doesn't do so, the face of the royal family will be completely ruined.

"Then leave it to yourself!" Enough, Temma. Let's go again! "

While Grandpa and Ernesto were at it, I heard from Albert and Cain about the location of the Imperial Army, including its predictions, and decided on a general course of travel. Perhaps, but at my grandfather's and me's speed, you'll find it in a day or two, including breaks.

As I told Grandpa about it, I jumped out of the tent and flew in the sky, and from behind I said, "I'm not finished yet! Ernesto's voice was heard...... but I ignored it and speeded up because I was running out of time. I think it's a detailed discussion about the request, but it doesn't matter if there is no request fee, so it won't be a problem for us after we get back safely... at least on our side.