CH 268

In this battle, there was a good chance that if we asked some country on Earth, they would gladly provide us with an army.

……Of course, for free. I’ll be asked to do something in return for the service, though.

It would be an unacceptable act for a developed country to <deploy troops to an unrelated country>, <one-sided slaughter>, or <an act of aggression>, and it would be impossible to explain the expenses spent or what would happen if there were casualties on our side, without telling the people.

But in some countries, it doesn’t matter, and they will deploy troops at the discretion of their leaders.

But I can’t stand it when people get carried away with things such <compensation> or <substitute for the soldiers’ live-fire exercise>.

You might say that mercenary groups are similar to those countries, but the mercenaries are the ones I “hired”.

I won’t let them do anything on their own or do anything other than what I tell them to do. And if something happens, I will “stop” them.

Besides, the mercenaries are the “tools” that I hired.

No matter what happens, the responsibility lies with me, the user of the “tool”.

That’s why I’m too scared to use a <tool that may not work as I intended>, which is not under my complete control, which may take orders from others that have a higher priority than my instructions, and which may work on its own.

I don’t even know what they’ll ask me to do afterwards…….

If this is a battle that requires a truly mighty force, it may be unavoidable. I’ll do anything to protect the people I care about.

Are all human lives equal?

No, no, no, the lives of our people are much more important than the lives of bandits and enemy soldiers. It’s not a matter of course.

But we’re not in that situation yet.

It’s not time to panic yet, you see.

[All right. We’ll go with that amount. Although I don’t know when the sortie will be, is that okay? But they’ve already moved their troops, so it’s just a matter of days of travel……] Mitsuha

[That’s fine. I’ve done some research on the armies of that era by reading some history books. You still have enough time to spare, right? Well, there’s nothing more important than going to another world, so don’t worry about the schedule.] Captain

[Ah, yeah……] Mitsuha

Well, that’s true.

Now they just have to compete for the five-person spot and hope it doesn’t turn into a big deal……

Eh? I thought there were six? No, wait, Captain-san, you definitely included yourself, did you?

100 gold coins says you did.

……Wanna bet?

[Apia!] Mitsuha (TN: Appear!)

[Gyaa!… Mitsuha-sama!] Remia

[No <-sama>!] Mitsuha

[Ah, I’m sorry……] Remia

I teleported to Princess Gegege… I mean, Princess Remia’s place.

I appeared directly inside the princess’s room so that the others would not notice me.

As expected, I’m alone today. I didn’t bring Sabine-chan with me.

It’s <adult talk> today. So, no Sabine-chan this time.

……If it’s a <wasabi-free> topic, it may be appropriate for kids, you say? 『サビ抜き』

Shut up!

[Welcome! I knew you would help us!] Remia

Princess Remia clasps her hands in front of her chest, her eyes moist with luster.

She has a beautiful face. But it’s not real. It’s an act. So.

……Who the hell is <Tatchan>? 『たっちゃん』

[I said I would protect Her Highness Princess Remia, but I never said anything about sticking my nose into your war and protecting your country!] Mitsuha

[I have already informed the people that Hime Miko-sama will cooperate with us. Gegegegege!] Remia

[I’ve been turned upon to, this girl!!] Mitsuha

Damn it, I’m totally being set up!

If I don’t do anything here, the name <Hime Miko of Thunder> will fall to the ground.

[Gununu……] Mitsuha

Well, I was going to help her from the beginning anyway……

[You do realize that’s outside the scope of our agreement, right?] Mitsuha

[Wai-, wha-……. But, for the sake of the people, I had to…….] Remia

So you do understand it.

Besides, it is only natural that the royal family, especially the acting king, would want to help their own people even at the expense of other countries. That’s what a good king is for this country, I guess.

…But I’m not sure I’d like to be on the receiving end of it though. No way!

And there is no need to play along with the selfish agendas of others. Our own people are much more important than the people of other countries.

Well, I’m sure Princess Remia is having a hard time. But still, I’m her <friend>… Sabine-chan was drawn to me, however, she was talking to Princess Remia in a slightly humble way.

Does she think that an angel is higher than a princess? I thought we had agreed to be friends, on equal terms……

……That’s it!

This time, in order to carry me up as the goddess’s messenger, Hime Miko of Thunder, she is going to put me in a higher position than herself, strengthen her grip on the people’s minds, and put me on top of her to use in case of an emergency……

This bitch……. (このヤロウ……。)

[No matter what you tell to the public, I can simply say that <I have not heard of it>, and <the only promise I can keep is limited to Princess Remia personally>. And the result is Princess Remia WILL lose her reputation for being a liar.] Mitsuha

[U~u] Remia

Oh, no, she looks like she’s about to cry…… This is definitely an act!

The one Sabine-chan sometimes uses!

Is there a course or correspondence course somewhere that teaches princesses these techniques? The text is in a binder format…….

The royal family is scary!!!

[I’m so used to Sabine-chan, that trick won’t work on me!

But, well, I have no choice but to help you……

However, it’s only “help”, I’m only “helping”! The main point of it is to get this country’s military to do it, okay?] Mitsuha

[Wha-? Wai-…] Remia

[And if you ask for help from my home country’s military force, you’ll have to pay a lot of expenses for travel, depletion of the divine power in the sacred vessels, and other things. Will you be able to cover that?] Mitsuha

[Yes, of course, that’s……. I’m not that ungrateful or shameless enough, no matter how much I want to be.] Remia

Oh, it seems that she really intended to pay.

Well, it’s no surprise. If she doesn’t want to pay, I’m going to have to pull my forces out.

Well, now that she said she would pay me, although I was afraid of not knowing how much she would pay me.

But I don’t know how much to ask for in a country where the cost of war is going to be so high. Where there will be so much destruction on farmland and human suffering. I don’t know how much money is needed for the war in this world……

I don’t know the market price for it.

We don’t want to burden the people of this country by asking for an absurd amount of money.

On the other hand, I don’t want to be lambasted for being too cheap, and I don’t want the people to feel free to ask for help afterwards.

And I don’t wish to be in the red.

As an individual, Princess Remia is not a bad person, and as a friend, she is a sincere girl. But as the “Acting King”, Her Royal Highness puts the interests of her own people first, and in order to do so, she puts her own personal principles and wishes on the back burner.

……Yes, she would do anything for her country, even if she thought I might be dismayed and dislike her.

Well, she’s not going to be so reckless now, because it would be detrimental to the national interest to break ties with me……

Oh, that’s right!

[Then how much can you pay me? I’ll decide on the number of sacred artifacts and the number of soldiers we’ll send out so that we can stay within that budget.] Mitsuha

[U~u] Remia

Oh, this girl, she’s having a <This is bad!> face!

I knew it. She was thinking that I’m giving it away cheaply……

But she is a princess who cares about her people. In this case, she can’t afford to be stingy.

To get my cooperation and pay me cheaply. So far, both of those things were supposed to benefit the people.

But right now, it’s all about paying me less, which means fewer support forces, longer battles, more dead soldiers, and widespread destruction of farmland.

She’ll have to make a decision based on how much she can afford so that her finances don’t collapse.

[You can’t decide on your own. You’ll have to consult with the minister in charge of finance or something later.

I’ll see you later. Oh, please contact Sabine-chan via the <communication device>. Please keep me updated on the enemy’s speed of advance and the estimated date of arrival at the border. We have to deploy our forces in time for that. The speed and accuracy of the information will determine the size of the damage, do you understand?] Mitsuha

I grabbed both of Princess Remia’s shoulders and shook her, who was so badly damaged by my earlier words…… That her support strength depended on the amount of money…….

It’s not an…… extortion nor a shakedown.

[……Ha! Ah, yes, I am well aware of that. In battle, information is vital! A single line of information can be more powerful than a thousand soldiers……] Remia

Mm-hmm, she got the idea.

No, I have educated them a little so that this country can be the bulwark of our nation.

As expected, the lecture on strategy theory from the <Hime Miko of Thunder> was taken seriously…….