Chapter 871: The Second Year of the Great Invasion 7
“Let me make this clear from the start. I do appreciate the reinforcements for the major invasion. Last night, the two dragons likely took down around 100,000 monsters. Handling that number with just our own troops would have been incredibly difficult. We were planning to push ourselves pretty hard over the next week until the rock-type monsters arrived. We would have suffered a significant number of casualties. Having that burden lifted is certainly a relief”
Lord Buster began his explanation, chalk in hand as he approached the strategy board in the captain’s room, his expression grim and unwelcoming despite his words. Present were all the dragons, Dianne-san and the members of the Gauntlet Knights. Anzeros, Aurora, and the former heroes were assigned to guard and watch over Charlotte and Princess Ran.
“But their complete annihilation overnight……well, that was a bit of a sore point for the Council members left behind”
“So the question is……do we really have any guarantee those dragons will remain allies?”
“Well, historically speaking, we’ve had such cases. But the Council’s level is a bit lower. ……They’re now asking if we can’t redirect this military force southward toward other nations”
“Ridiculous. Dragons don’t side with 『Society』”
Laila dismissed it with a scoff, but Lord Buster sighed.
“That’s a concept our fools just don’t grasp. They seem to think the dragons’ actions stem from gratitude for the previous Kalwin operation, a debt owed to us. In other words, they believe if we state our needs, the dragons will act in our national interest”
“Tell them it’s impossible. That should settle it”
“The fact that they so easily and thoroughly cleaned up this scenic Rennesto area has emboldened them. The dragon acted conveniently for them without demanding proper compensation, which only led to them making even more reckless assumptions. Had they started a bit further out in the frontier, they might have been more cautious about the truth of the matter. Even if they had targeted this area, leaving a bit untouched would have given us room to negotiate”
“If you’ve come complaining to us out of consideration for those fools, it’s unpleasant either way. My enthusiasm has cooled. As a final act of mercy, I’ll spare you the burning inside the walls. Tell them that and end the conversation”
“……Well, I suppose I don’t mind either way.”
Lord Buster looked resigned. He didn’t want to upset either the Council or the Dragon Collective, but if a fatal blow could be avoided, a bitter end was still preferable. However, I held Laila back.
“That’s not for you to decide. Hold back a moment, Laila”
“……Hmm. Well, if it’s none other than my master speaking. I suppose I’ll obey”
Laila backed down easily. She’d said what she needed to say, so she probably judged that I wouldn’t be put in a disadvantageous position. I took over and stepped forward before Lord Buster.
“There must be some way to clean this up”
“Well, what’s done is done. My men and I will handle the fallout from this Council meeting. But next time, please don’t wipe them out completely. If possible, call for reinforcements from somewhere a bit farther away”
“Is that all you want?”
“We’re the most dangerous country on the continent. ……But we’re also a country built on that premise. Yes, monsters should be eradicated, but we’re not the ones footing the bill for those wars. Most of the funds come from the southern nations who’d be in trouble if we collapsed. The question is, what happens if that funding dries up? What then?”
Lord Buster scribbled a rough map of Renfangas, the Valery nations to its south, and the pressure exerted by the even further southern nation of Saint Gardo onto the board.
“Truthfully, the Valery nations want to prepare more against invasion from the south and don’t want to pay up either. If they can count on regular dragon intervention, they’ll reduce their share. But that inevitably weakens our military. If our military loses its deterrent power against other nations, then some of those Valery lot will come nibbling at our relatively rich southern lands. If they take them, our national strength will drop further, making it harder to repel a major monster invasion alone. The current balance is a tightrope walk”
“The Valery States must understand that too”
“But knowing doesn’t mean they won’t make mistakes. In fact, this time, the military strength that was supposed to be cut is now available. If they quickly turn their forces south and occupy another country’s land before the funds for that strength are cut……their tax revenue increases”
Buster drew a rough diagram, pointing an arrow south and crudely 「Taking」 a neighboring country’s land.
“Doing this would definitely contribute to maintaining the state, and increase the nobles’ livelihoods. If we don’t, we’ll just wait for the south to make their move. War expenses will be cut, and the army is likely to shrink. And after that happens, there’s the danger of being bitten, as if to say 「How convenient」. If we could do it with dragons, it’d be pure profit, but that’s wishful thinking. Anyway, now that this option has come up, there’s bargaining to be done with the council members and each of the southern countries. I couldn’t settle things with mere speculation either, sitting here”
“……So we merely defeated monsters, yet we nearly triggered a war?”
“It’s a matter of degree. To repeat, you did nothing wrong, and we’re grateful. But if you forcefully smooth out wrinkles in a world that was stable with its wrinkles, those wrinkles just shift elsewhere. If we keep going like this, we’ll exceed our capacity and be stuck between a rock and a hard place. It’s fine to help out a bit, but don’t put us out of business”
Lord Buster sighed again.
“Now that Kalwin’s development has begun, the Northern Six Nations will eventually normalize, and our role will end. When that happens, we’ll have to face this problem head-on. You could say it’s just putting it off, but……it’s too complicated to resolve in one go. At the very least, I want to lay the groundwork so the Queen doesn’t have to struggle. I want to die having done that”
“……Truly, thank you for your hard work”
“No, I’m sorry. I was criticized for my good intentions. But I’m truly sorry, please understand. Unless you’re going to be our Queen’s ally until you die, that is”
“I have no particular intention of becoming an enemy……but well, it’s a matter of the country”
“Exactly. Matters of the country often run counter to personal feelings. ……You, who remain entirely yourself while the dragons obey you, might be different. But at least for us, there’s no guarantee we can get along with Trot and Celesta forever”
Lord Buster said this, glancing at Dianne-san and the dragons. I’m the biggest fool here, so the others surely understand this already. That gaze was likely just confirmation.
“I commend Lord Buster’s sincerity and courage in coming here, knowing the dragons would likely take offense. I shall respect you”
“Thank you, War Goddess Dianne. ……Well, I was sweating bullets thinking I might get bitten at worst”
Leaving behind a face that looked genuinely pained despite the joke, Lord Buster exited the captain’s room. Watching his retreating back, Corti snorted.
“Honestly, human strategy are such a pain”
“That’s precisely why we align ourselves with individuals and keep our distance from groups. You knew that, didn’t you?”
Shario answered with her eyes still closed. Since it was a proper occasion, the Black Collar members were dressed in the Crystal Palace’s stylish attire. In fact, the ones dressed more casually were Laila and Maia, who had just wrapped random cloth around themselves to look like clothes. But no one complained about that.
“Ho, even if we cause a ruckus, this is no good. Sneaking around like this feels like we’re being manipulated even more by that bald guy, and I don’t like it”
“But that guy is Andy-sama’s favorite”
“It wouldn’t hurt to be bold once in a while, Master. As we saw earlier, that kind of approach can sometimes lead to a satisfactory outcome”
Laila and the others said this, but Emma countered.
“We should not be the ones urging our Master’s intentions. We understand that when decisions must be made, he is decisive. That is why we follow him”
Still, dragons are smart creatures, after all.
“I’ll gratefully accept your advice. You’re all more capable than me”
“Master”
“Lord Buster, Dianne-san, Carlos, King Ulysses, they’ve all spent far longer than me thinking about others’ happiness and peace. There might come a day when I truly can’t follow them, but I never intend to underestimate them”
Hearing this, Dianne-san smiled slightly, looking a bit embarrassed.
“……I suppose so. I’ll try not to betray your trust. Even if it’s only two hundred years”
“No one here would laugh at that as only two hundred years”
Well, among those present, maybe Hilda-san. She’s in another room, though. And pointing out that she’s at an age where she could laugh it off is a trap, so effectively, no one is. Yeah.
The next target is around Catalina. We got renewed instructions to fly in at night and thin them out appropriately, so we’ll fly again at dusk. But first.
“I want Fiona to get experience fighting monsters, so let’s head to Ghibli Fortress during daylight”
Dianne-san proposed this. Ghibli Fortress has a confined combat area, making large-scale engagements unlikely, and Tetes, Naris and the other knights can provide support. But.
“Isn’t Fiona still only capable of fighting with the bamboo-splitting technique……?”
And if she can’t even form a proper blade edge, won’t she be unable to inflict fatal wounds on monsters?
“We can work around that by modifying her weapon”
“But even if you say weapon, it still boils down to a sword……”
“This is Fiona’s sword”
Dianne-san fetched something from the attic and tossed it onto the ground. It was a stick. Pitch black. And when it hit the ground, despite the soil being quite compacted, it stood upright with a thud.
“……What is this?”
“They say it’s the 『Heaviest Wood』 in the Northern Forest. As usual, it has a strange name, so it’s simply called 『Heavy Wood』—a rather uninspired name”
“Hee……”
“The wood from the 『Sexroom』 is hard but too light for weapons, apparently. Instead, this was suggested by Christie. Similar woods I know include Ironwood and Lignum Vitae, but this is heavier than those. At this length, it weighs nearly three times a normal sword”
“……That much?”
“With this, blade quality won’t matter. And since it’s undoubtedly special wood, if we call it 『The Sacred Elf Sword Passed Down in the Northern Forest』, Fiona should buy it”
“Eh……I doubt she will”
She’d probably say something like, 「A knight fighting with a wooden sword, no matter how sturdy, is just lame」.
“You want me to fight with a wooden sword……”
“Fiona, even if it’s wood, it’s a mystical material from the Elven lands. And it’s a sword made just for you, so it has to be strong!”
“Ra, Ran-sama……”
“Do your best, Fiona!”
“……Yes! I will definitely show you results!”
She bought it. Though it definitely felt like thanks to Princess Ran’s backup.
“……By the way, Anzeros. Do you think you can handle that?”
“……One-on-one, I might be able to manage?”
“Still worried?”
“Even Jeanne has defeated monsters before……but she was a beginner until recently, after all……”
……I’ll bring all the knight girls along.