CH 266

[……What should I do now?……] Mitsuha

I looked at the King as I said that…

[It’s because you get carried away and make promises like that……] King

And that’s what he said to me.

……No, what the heck is that?! In order to solidify Princess Remia’s position, Count Covemain said, <Say something that will bring His Highness Princess Remia to a personal friendship!>

Since our country already got the information, Princess Remia’s place should have gotten the details a long time ago. At the military level of this continent, there’s no way you can keep a large army marching in complete secrecy. If you leave a couple of grasses (local settler type spy) in place, you’ll know exactly what’s going on, so there are probably people in the military and nobility who have inside knowledge.

She probably confirmed that the empire’s target was her country, had carefully considered how to use me, and was now ready to make this call. I heard that she hadn’t mentioned this matter at all in her last regular communication, but she must have had all the information by then.

……Yes, that princess, Princess Gegege, is quite the doer. She is so good at what she does that she even annoyed the schemers to the point that they want to get rid of her……

I’m sure she doesn’t have any bad intentions towards us or our country, but just as the people of this country are important to me <next to myself>, the people of her country must be more important to Princess Remia than me or our country. If I’m not careful enough, she might even say that <my life is more important than yours>.

In order to protect their people, they would not mind getting down on their knees or even do anything that would make them frowned upon by other countries. Such people are much more troublesome and their behavior is much harder to read than the <easy to understand people> who put their own honor, money, and pride first.

[She got me on a tight spot……] Mitsuha

As my shoulders slumped in disappointment, the king ruthlessly told me.

[It’s because you’re too gullible…… And you deserve it.] King

[No, that was part of the job I was ordered to do, so it was a <damage received while performing my official duties>! It’s a matter that my supervisor should’ve followed up on. Absolutely!!] Mitsuha

Damn it, I can’t stand it when they blame me for everything!

[It was His Majesty himself who instructed me through the head ambassador to try to strengthen Princess Remia’s position and to speak accordingly, wasn’t it? In other words, I made those remarks by His Majesty’s order, didn’t I? Therefore, the responsibility lies with His Majesty, who ordered his subordinates to do so, right?] Mitsuha

[Guh …] King

Fuhaha!

I even considered getting a job as a high school graduate at one point. I’ve at least read the [Salaryman Zamaa Novel] that new hires turn to when they feel like their boss is going to rub the blame for their failures on them! (TN:『サラリーマンざまあ小説』 Sorry, can’t find the source.)

……But I have to be careful because there are times when the situation can be <reversed>.

[I’m not going to let His Majesty or the kingdom’s army do anything about it, of course, because I was the one who said that to Princess Remia, and I said that <I myself, regardless of the country, and not as Viscount Mitsuha von Yamano, but as an individual named Mitsuha.>

I will only help a little, to the extent that I can. And if Princess Remia wishes, I will travel here by <transfer> along with her brother, His Royal Highness the Prince, and the Ministers.

……But are you willing to accept a <government in exile> rather than just an exile?] Mitsuha

In response to my question, after thinking for just a few seconds, the king assured me clearly.

[Umu, in that case, I accept.] King

Well, of course, there’s no other answer.

If the legitimate heir to the throne is seized by the empire, they will kill the current king on the appropriate pretext…… and set up a puppet government or annex the country based on <the new king’s request to deploy troops to maintain security against the rebel forces> or <the alliance was formed>…… And with that, the country will be swallowed by the empire, certainly.

And after that, other countries will inevitably be targeted.

On the other hand, if we hold both the princess and the prince, the surrounding countries will raise their troops to carry the royal sisters and brothers who are trying to take back their homeland from the invaders, then we will be in a complete state of <justice is mine>, so the people of Princess Remia’s country will all side with us.

After getting rid of the imperial army, will Princess Remia and the prince be able to rebuild the government, or will we and the neighboring countries interfere with the context of <collecting a huge loan> and garrison the army under the name of <preparing for another invasion from the empire>?……

I don’t know the details of that, and frankly, I don’t care. At least for the people, it would be much better than the hellish days of being occupied by the Imperial Army.

And there is one more thing that His Majesty must approve.

[Your Majesty, I have one more request. I would like to ask for your permission to support Princess Remia’s country, the Kingdom of Darrisson, not only as <an individual named, Mitsuha> but also as <Viscount Yamano, Lord Mitsuha von Yamano>……] Mitsuha

Yes, if we get the king’s permission, I can openly intrude and interfere without any excuses. And I can even use my own army.

……Well, I don’t have the slightest intention of sending a common soldier, who is really just a farmer, to the battlefield of another country.

The commander, Willem-san, and his officers…… Sven-san and his four men…… I will need a little more help.

It would be a bit difficult for me to do it alone, or rather, the range of options would be extremely limited. In a case like this, I need to have a lot of options.

[Hmm? Yeah, that’s fine with me……] King

Alright, I got his word!

Yeah, it’s risky to mention something about our local conduct…… shut up!

Maybe the king thinks I’m going to call in the <divine soldiers> again.

Last time I didn’t have much time, so it was a bit of a mess, but if I have time to lay the groundwork, I can use a transfer or a small high-speed ship if I don’t have as many troops as last time……

Well, even an idiot can understand that since they are aware of how shabby our local army is, it won’t affect a lot of people even if we bring them into the war.

That’s why I have to make him think, <This time, I’m not going to fight as a princess of a foreign country, a status I’ve already abandoned in the past, but as a nobleman of my country, a status I have now, and I’m expressing my healthy and heroic will>.

Well, that’s not wrong, but…….

[Captain, can you fly a chopper?] Mitsuha

[Why do you keep doing things so suddenly?…] Captain

Yeah, I came to Wolf Fang’s HQ and the first thing I asked was this.

[No. We don’t have a helicopter. We don’t have one because we don’t have anyone who can fly one. Also, helicopters are a pain to maintain and expensive too. Those are just gold eaters, and on the day those things crashed, it’ll be a big loss. Only the national army, big organizations with a lot of money, or people with connections to helicopter companies would use them.

In the first place, helicopters are only used in slightly larger battles, and in those cases, the regular army will send them out. If we were to use our own helicopters, they would only be used up in the most dangerous roles. So it’s not worth it.

……So, what, do you need one……?] Captain

[Yeah……] Mitsuha

[I’ll get it ready for you…….

…But I’ll have to ask one of the other mercenaries, is that okay with you?] Captain

[Yes, please!] Mitsuha

If I were to ask someone from another mercenary group other than Wolf Fang, there would be a lot of problems with trust and the amount of compensation. I’m sure that’s why he went to check, but if it’s the captain’s choice, I guess there’s nothing to worry about.

[However, you can’t get an attack helicopter that was originally built for combat, those ridiculously expensive ones are just……. The best you can do is to put weapons on a transport helicopter, alright?] Captain

Ah, attack helicopters such as Apache and Cobra are impossible to have. I guess only an <armed helicopter> with a mounted machine gun on the door of a general-purpose helicopter or a transport helicopter, or have soldiers on board with automatic assault rifles.

It’s not an attack-spec helicopter, it’s just a retrofitted helicopter with armaments attached, so it’s an <armed helicopter>, you know…….

But well, the enemy doesn’t have surface-to-air missiles or anti-aircraft machine guns, so as long as we get enough altitude and stay out of effective range of the bow and arrow, we should be fine.

It’s the same as what we call <technical> armed vehicles, where heavy machine guns, light machine guns, and recoilless guns are mounted on the flatbed of a commercial pickup truck.

……The drawback is its paper-thin armor, but helicopters are vulnerable in the first place, so it doesn’t change much. Still, without anti-aircraft weapons, it’s not a problem. If it doesn’t hit you, there is no problem.

[Also, about ten squad support firearms. Something with an easily replaceable barrel to withstand long hours of continuous fire. Belt-fed, of course. The caliber is 5.56mm. Also, a grenade launcher. Both of them have lots of bullets…] Mitsuha

Oh yeah, just in case, I’ll prepare that, too.

[…And maybe three portable anti-aircraft missiles.] Mitsuha

[…………] Captain

The captain is staring at me in silence.

Yeah, the last order was obviously to shoot down the helicopter that betrayed us.

Well, in case they have the stupid idea of «TUEEE! In A Different World With A Helicopter Full of Modern Weapons!» I will never allow such things. (TN: 『ヘリに満載した現代兵器で、異世界で俺ＴＵＥＥＥ！』)

In case of emergency, I can take it to [under the sea, back on Earth] by transfer, but it would be a problem if they get a headshot on me first to prevent it.

At that point, we need to make sure that the remaining Wolf Fang members can destroy the helicopter.

Even though the odds of that happening would be very low…….

With such a small amount of weapons and a small number of people, I’m sure they’ll be worn down soon enough, but I can’t let them have their way with me, even if it’s only for a short time.

Yes, it is the Yamano family’s policy to always play it safe.

And it will never change whether it’s in Japan or any other world out there.