CH 273

[Apia! (Appear!)] Mitsuha 

[Gyaa!…… Mitsuha-sama! Where are the Divine soldiers? Where are the floating boats of the divine heaven? What was the result of the battle?] Remia

[That hurts! Let go of me!!] Mitsuha

I can’t stand it when someone grabs me by both shoulders and shakes me around!

[Ah, I’m sorry……] Remia

Princess Remia, who had been temporarily excited to see me suddenly appear, quickly regained her composure.

Well, she was anxiously waiting for the result, she also thought that I was going to come back by helicopter, also known as, the heavenly floating boat, but I came back alone by transfer. Anyone would be upset with it. It’s not unreasonable to think that <we were wiped out and I escaped by myself using transfer>……

[Well, the result of the battle is a complete defeat…] Mitsuha

[Gyā ā ā ~~!] Remia

[……For the enemy forces, that is… Whoa!] Mitsuha

Oi, that’s dangerous! She’s really trying to hit me!

[I’m sorry, it was my bad! Forgive me!] Mitsuha

No, really, that was my fault.

It seems in this world, there are jokes that you can and can’t tell.

……And now, it’s clearly the latter.

She was worried about the survival of her country, the lives and property of the people, and my life, but she could do nothing but wait and pray to God in anguish……

[It was really my bad! I’m sorry!] Mitsuha

As I earnestly apologized, Princess Remia rapidly regained her composure again. As expected of royalty, she has iron-like self-control!

[……No, I’m the one who should be apologizing……

I should know since I’m also educated to lead the army.

Fear and guilt on the battlefield. Those who are traumatized, and those who are mentally deranged……

I knew that the only way to rebound and blow them away was to act extraordinarily cheerful and laugh.

Commanders, in particular, are strictly forbidden to show any signs of anxiety or weakness. No matter how painful and sad it is, it’s part of the job of those who are in charge to joke and laugh, and they have to do so.

And I know that if you force yourself to go into a hyper-emotional state, you can’t suddenly go back. I also……] Remia

Oh, right. Princess Remia also said that she ordered the death of the masters of the hostile forces and then witnessed their execution…… She said that it was the duty of those who ordered the death of their own vassals……

And even now, they are massing their forces and deploying them in front of the royal city.

As expected, I can’t just leave it to one girl from another country and do nothing.

In case we are defeated or in case the enemy’s remaining troops, which we have dealt a heavy blow to, do not turn back to the Empire but rush towards the capital instead, we have to properly deploy our troops according to the enemy’s invasion route and prepared for delaying tactics.

While trying to buy as much time as possible, we’ll force the enemy to bleed, and finally run to the castle for a siege.

Of course, all the inhabitants of the surrounding area would be evacuated with gold and food, no human casualties, and we’ll also make sure that no gold or food will go to the enemy.

A conscripted army with the goal of looting would be angry or disheartened.

But we haven’t evacuated the people yet. It’s not that difficult to move faster than a fully equipped army with Transportation Corps in tow. It’s not too late to confirm our failure. So I’m just telling them to pack up what they need to escape and get ready.

In the first place, there’s no invading army that would chase the refugees past this castle once we’ve fortified it.

Anyway, Princess Remia is also <ready> and I’m not originally in a position to lead a war…… I’m just a former princess and the current head of the Viscount family. You may think that the battle is thrown to the commander of the territorial army…… and I think he’s pretty overwhelmed.

I’m not a genius, I can’t stop a war without hurting anyone, enemies, or allies.

But I’m not stupid enough to let a bunch of friendly soldiers and civilians die for the sake of respecting the enemy’s life.

I’ll prioritize the lives of 10 allies over the lives of 100 enemy soldiers.

So when it comes to the actions I choose to take, I will not regret them no matter what.

It was the result of choosing the best course of action available at the time, using the information and troops at hand.

If you fail due to lack of information, obtaining wrong information, or choosing the wrong method, there is no need to regret it because it is the result of your own thinking at the time.

……What you need to do at that time is not regret, but reflect. Reflecting on that will allow you to make the most of your mistakes.

A lot of people have died.

But it would have been much better than if the armies of both countries had fought head-on, and cities and villages had been attacked, looted, and overrun one after another.

The soldiers and civilians of this country, as well as the soldiers of the Imperial Army. If the battle proceeded normally, even if the enemy eventually wins, the death toll from that battle will surely greatly exceed the death toll of today.

And even though the actual number of casualties is small, in order to make the “next war” as difficult as possible, the best way is to have an overwhelming difference in power and make the enemy think that they are against a country that has the God or the devil on their side.

I wonder if they didn’t learn about that from the battle with our country.

I also wonder if all the senior officers who were on the front lines watching everything died and the rest couldn’t get home. The return trip would have been a mess with our pursuit team hot on their tail and angry monsters that they had tricked……

Or maybe they were able to return home safely but was blamed for the defeat and was purged, or maybe they didn’t believe his report and he was purged for fleeing before the enemy, or maybe he was purged because he was used as a scapegoat to direct the people’s anger……

It’s tough, being a great soldier…….

Princess Remia is silently looking at me.

……Do you think I’ll cling to you and cry my eyes out?

No, no, no, I used to be a normal high school girl in Japan until a while ago, but now I’m Mitsuha von Yamano, a sole proprietor and the head of a viscount family. I wouldn’t cry in front of the royalty of another country. I’ve been prepared for what happened today for several days, moreover, I’m acting to protect the lives of people in an allied country.

If I hadn’t done anything, many more people would have died. And most of them would not only be enemy soldiers but ordinary residents of this country as well.

From God’s perspective, is this mass murder, self-defense, or a battle for justice?

……Either way is fine.

And it’s not like I’m trying to flatter God either.

I simply stopped the empire from devouring the countries of the Grand Alliance one by one and protected the future of my friends and my country. With far fewer casualties than if I had stayed out of it.

[Have you called for help from the surrounding countries?] Mitsuha

Let’s get this out of the way. I have to get back to Wolf Fang’s headquarters before the debriefing after all.

[Of course, we sent out the fastest horses as soon as we’re almost certain that the Imperial Guard will cross the border. I don’t know how many countries will respond, and how many troops they will send out……

So, what is the status of the Imperial Army? Have we been able to cut down about 20-30% of the spearhead force?] Remia

Princess Remia asked me such a thing.

U~n, she should have gotten the information about the <Royal Capital Absolute Defense Battle> in our country……

As expected, she thought that with only two helicopters, we would have much less strength than we did back then……

Well, there was not much human damage even then. Most of the damage to the imperial army was not caused by the battle in front of the royal capital, but by the pursuit during the retreat……

[I think the death toll is probably in the hundreds.] Mitsuha

[…………]

Yeah, that’s about right, and it’s a very small percentage of the total number of their army. It’s not that there aren’t armies out there that would rush in after a few hundred people died in battle…… at least not that rare.

And the imperial army is highly disciplined, not the kind of army that can be defeated so easily. So it’s no wonder that Princess Remia doesn’t easily believe me when I say <the enemy is completely defeated> after only inflicting that level of damage……

If that’s the extent of the damage, one would think that the invasion would continue with little or no impact, right?

[Anyway, the command structure of the Imperial Army has been destroyed, and the Imperial Army is currently running towards the border. We have to hurry up and inform the other countries that our army is <completely victorious and we don’t need reinforcements>. Or else, you’ll be wasting their time and the amount of money you’ll have to pay will increase.] Mitsuha

[Eh?] Remia

[No, moving reinforcements from such a distance will cost a lot of money, so we’ll have to send them a lot of money and goods as thanks……] Mitsuha

[I don’t care about the money. Running towards the border? Complete victory? With only those two floating ships?] Remia

Princess Remia looked aghast.

[No, we also used about six ground personnel, but……] Mitsuha

Well, from Princess Remia’s point of view, it’s not much different.

[E e e e e e eh! Then, what about the turn of our soldiers?…] Remia

[None.] Mitsuha

[What the hell is that? I thought we were talking about our soldiers playing the main role, not support……] Remia

[Ah.] Mitsuha

[Oh, no, this can’t be happening! So, with this, we’ll look like a weak, bullied child who’s been rescued by the nobles of another country! We’ll be looked down on by the other countries!

……No, of course, I’m grateful. If we had fought normally, we wouldn’t have known whether the siege would hold until reinforcements arrived from other countries, and in the first place, how many countries were willing to send reinforcements…….

In the past, my father might have helped me, but I’m a little girl after all, and the attempted rebellion has greatly damaged the credibility of the country…

And if we had fought, many soldiers would have died and some residents would have been caught in the middle.

Since the damage is minimal and the human casualties are almost nil, I should perform a dogeza or prostration right now…… I am well aware of this, but……] Remia

Perhaps she was excited, Princess Remia has a little restraint in her wording.

But what she’s saying makes sense. This is my fault.

That’s right, there is such a thing as the face of a country……

However, it is also awkward to have allied soldiers die in vain for the sake of national prestige or to show that their own soldiers also fought. That’s exactly what killing enemy soldiers is, many times, many dozens of times better…….

Can you look at the face of the bereaved family of a soldier who died from head-on combat?

[I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for us to end it on our own at first, either.

But I didn’t want the soldiers of this country to die in vain. If they’re going to die fighting, I want them to die in a way that makes sense, when and where it’s really necessary. For the sake of this country, and for the sake of the people they are supposed to protect……] Mitsuha

[…………]

I want to convince her somehow.

Oh, right!

[How about we pretend that the soldiers of this country also fought……] Mitsuha

[If we tell a bad lie and get caught, we’ll be a laughing stock and lose all credibility!

It’s the worst thing you can do as a royal, a noble, or a military man, or even as a human being, to take away someone else’s war service! It will ruin the honor and credibility of the country, and the country will collapse!!] Remia

Not good it seems…….