87 [2-21] La La La Lange Ultimate (1/2)

”Bertil Lagerbeck, Commander of the Second Order. This is the first time I've been able to find out about this. I'm not sure if it's the hope of Ciel-Teira, who survived the battle of King's Landing despite the loss of both of her arms. ......

A girl with long honey-colored hair and white porcelain skin.

A man in the shape of .......

This is a great way to make sure that you are getting the most out of your investment.

I'm not sure I'd want to be in the princess's army,.......

”Hey, hey, hey, tell me who you're dealing with. I'm surprised, too.

Tracy is an adventurer even I know the name of. I can't believe she was captured by Rene and made into his puppet.

I don't know what to say.

Bertil drinks tea and moistens his lips with his steel skeleton-like artifact prosthetic hand.

You can find a lot more than just a few simple pieces of furniture in a room that, at first glance, looks like a pre-furnished apartment. This is a medium-grade inn in the city of Teirakainen. The room was assigned to Bertil.

Tracy, sitting opposite Bertil, was dressed in the work clothes of a thief, which showed off her curves. She had snuck in here under the cover of night so that no one would notice that Bertil had come into contact with someone.

Tracy had come under Rene's orders to ask for Bertil's help.

Her men were not in this place.

Only Bertil himself and Rene's party knew of Bertil's decision.

”Is that the reason you're in this town?　Prince Ghislain.

That's it. Well, I was only told about it after I came here.

Because of my position, I'm the only candidate for the crown prince, so I have to stick around.

That's right. Royal security is also the job of the Royal Court Knights.

......, you know. So you want His Highness' head, do you?

With all due respect, yes. Yes. And the Marquis, of course.

Of course the Marquis does,” Bertil muttered in his mouth.

As soon as Hilbert is dead, he's going to set up another king to replace him, and then he's going to join forces with Noa Curio again.

It is natural for René to find this unforgivable.

But that doesn't mean I'm going to sell Gislain out so easily.

I'll only help if I think it'll reduce the death toll. I'd be happy if you brought me some bait that I could bite on.

”Hmm, if you can kill the Marquis and His Highness without incident, I'm sure they'll refrain from slaughtering the citizens.

That was a bargaining chip until the Noa Curio army showed up. I'm only interested in reducing the number of civilian casualties. If Rene loses, so be it.

The dazzling ...... glow of freedom is dazzling .......

I'm not sure what to make of this.

I'm not going to let you down.

The princess is preparing a countermeasure against the holy beast. And Noah Curio's army is ......, well, the first phase of the operation is underway, did you notice?

Tracy holds up her index finger with a serious face.

I'm not sure what to make of that.

As soon as he was told, Bertil thought of an incident.

”...... Ah. I've been thinking that it was unnatural, but I knew it. I knew it was a development I liked, Rene.

I'm not sure.　It is not a lie that the knight is self-defense!

I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

It's a good thing that you're not the only one who has a problem with this.

Barthil swallowed a swear.

If Tracy is right, then first of all the Noahcurio soldiers who caused the scandal and the Marquis who covered it up are at fault.

And then there's Rene, who saw an opportunity and took immediate action. It's unbelievable.

And also... The mysterious merchant should be on the move by now. A mysterious merchant who buys up food and fodder at two or three times the market price.

”Huh. ......

In order to maintain a large Noah's Curio army, it is necessary to buy the necessary supplies locally. However, once the food is bought up, we'll just have to wait for it to dry up in the sun.

Come to think of it, there must have been a lot of gold and jewels left in the royal castle that was attacked by the undead army. Well, what a coincidence...

Every army needs supplies to stay active.

There is a large scale transport from the home country using the sea and rivers, and Transportation Corps to transport overland from there. For powerful nations, mobile airlift using storage magic and airborne cavalry is also an option.

However, transporting heavy goods requires a tremendous amount of manpower and money. It makes sense to procure as much as possible locally.

Water, food, and fodder for the horses are relatively easy to procure locally. You will have to buy or loot from markets and villages.

These things are absolutely necessary, except for the joke of an all-undead army, but they are consumed in huge quantities and are very bulky if you want to carry them over long distances.

I'm sure the Noah's Curio army has been buying them up in Ciel-Teira as well. ......

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for. So there is a possibility that they will cooperate even if they have to push a little.

But - if you have any doubts about the Noah Curio army here: ......

I think you want to hold onto your money for the future.

I hate it when they pay well. If Rene does a scorched earth campaign, the remaining people will want to put their faith in Noah's Curio more and more, but that won't happen if they play it cool.

Hahaha, when the buying up is over and we can't replenish our supplies, will the raid on the armory be the end of it?

”I'm sorry. A living army needs food, so that's tough.

d*mn it!　I hate enemy armies that don't need food!

Bertille half-heartedly slammed his empty teacup on the desk.

I'm sure you'll be able to get some food from Noah's Curio next door,......, but I doubt it.

If Rene herself moves to destroy the transport line, there's nothing you can do. She can only move around so lightly on her own, and the convoy's escort can't keep up. If we can get a convoy that can fight her without a position, we'll have no trouble.

But Noah Curio can use storage magic and aerial cavalry for mobile transport. ...... No, there will be more zombies!

Bertil shook his head.

The battle over King's Landing was still fresh in his mind. If we let anyone fly, we'll just add more undead airborne cavalry to Rene's army.

The more he thought about it, the worse it seemed to him.

The more he thinks about it, the worse it gets. ”It's more like the Noah's Curio army came out unprepared because they were next door, so they could handle it. It's a good opportunity to seize the Gracelum vein, so it's natural for them to push themselves to come out.

...... d*mn it, war in the wintertime is unreasonable. It's a good thing that you're not the only one.

I love it!　Skeletons don't need to keep warm, they won't complain if you make them walk through the snow endlessly, and they won't get frostbite from metal equipment!

Tracy looked pained as she saw Bertil scratching his head.

I think the Noah's Curio army is more interested in conquering demons than fighting a war.

The atmosphere, the tension, it doesn't feel like we're dealing with an army. To be honest, I don't think you're licking your chops.

”So you're saying that the ...... Noah's Curio army is barely taking shape because it's supported by 'ease'?

Tracy was full of conviction.

I can't help but wonder how and when you figured that one out.

We don't fight wars in the winter, but we fight demons all year round, right?　That kind of thing.

The fact that the princess escaped almost without a fight when we arrived also adds to the ease.

I don't think there is any guarantee that the army won't fall apart when each soldier realizes that ”this is war. Because no one wants to go to war in winter.

It's possible, thought Bertil.