episode_0287

* * *

What greeted us when we arrived at Jog Castle was a tragedy of an unbelievable scale.

“How could this be… … .”

A burnt down private house.

The farmland was so damaged that it was impossible to cultivate anything properly, and the streets were filled with suffering, groaning villagers.

It wasn’t just the troops that were missing. Of course, that was expected. Even the transport of all the supplies was within the expected range.

But- I never thought that they would completely destroy the territory, making it impossible for our army to regroup.

Wasn’t this place… … the territory of the central continent that had been under the control of the Bran’s Army for generations?

“This is… … too much.”

“Really… … Really, I can never forgive you… … .”

What I heard were Airen and Reika’s voices.

It was understandable that Reika, who was half-sobbing, would be shocked since she had been a normal person for a long time, but when you consider that even Irene, who had been through countless battlefields, hell, and chaos, was reacting like that-

Certainly, he had not imagined a disaster of this magnitude.

at that time.

Someone who appeared to be Yeongjimin grabbed my foot and spoke pleadingly.

She was a woman with a shabby appearance and wearing clothes so shabby that she almost looked like a beggar.

“Please, please save us, General! We, we… … will never cooperate with a witch like Serpina, no matter what happens! So please, please… … please save us… … !”

“… … .”

It seems like they mistook me for someone from Cheol’s group.

I slowly got down on one knee, looked him in the eye and said.

“Don’t worry, we won’t harm you, teacher.”

“Is it true… … ?”

“Yes. The Serpina Army would never senselessly slaughter innocent citizens. ”

The woman’s face, which had been showing a relieved expression, changed completely as soon as she heard the name Serpina-kun.

“Okay, sleep… … what, what did you say… … ? That, that means―”

“Calm down.”

I put my hand on his shoulder.

“I know what you want to say, but we have no intention of harming you.”

“Ah, I… … .”

“It’s okay. You can answer slowly. I’ll wait.”

I didn’t rush the woman, I just looked straight into her eyes and waited for her answer.

Airen and Reika, who had been following me, also wait quietly for the woman.

And finally, the woman lifted her heavy lips.

“Then… …then, Chel-nim… …?”

“Run away.”

“The story you said about the Serpina Army’s informant… … is that… …?”

‘Was that an external justification?’

Is that really the only reason you gave for burning down the entire home of the Yeongji people?

That must not be the purpose. It must have been to force our troops to fight against them without even a single proper supply, including a small castle, in the long run.

Seeing them do something like this, I got the feeling that they were just trying to pour everything out on our military one last time without any thought for the aftermath.

If he does something like this, the people of Yeongji will inevitably lose their support, and if Cheol has ambitions for unifying the continent, he absolutely must not take such actions.

“… … There is no such thing as a traitor in our military.”

“But, uh, why… … !”

At my words that there was no informant, tears began to fall from the woman’s face.

At the same time, his expression becomes distorted, as if something that should never happen has happened.

“If there is no informant, then why, my husband… … our children, why on earth… … !!!!!”

“Calm down! First of all―”

“Swen.”

At that moment, I hear a familiar voice behind me.

“Serpina… … ?”

“Would you mind giving me a seat for a moment?”

I gave her space by quietly stepping aside.

Serpina, as I had done, kneels on one knee and looks her in the eye.

The woman seemed to be flustered by the sudden situation, and instead of going wild, she stopped and looked at Serpina with a blank expression.

“, you are… … .”

“Serpina von Eingart. That’s my name.”

“!!!”

“Don’t be afraid. This body will never harm you.”

“… … !!”

“Don’t judge just by hearing the story, look at the face of this body with your own two eyes.”

“How are you? Are you still afraid of me? Do you feel like an evil witch?”

The woman just trembled and couldn’t answer.

And yet – even I, who was right next to him, could tell that he was definitely regaining his composure compared to when he had just talked to me.

“Chel Branth has abandoned you. He has burned your homeland, with the sole intention of causing damage to our army.”

“How could that be… … Chell-nim, why on earth… … .”

“That’s the kind of man he was. From the beginning.”

The woman who heard Serpina’s words fell to her knees on the spot.

Looking at the wasteland with nothing left, with dead eyes that had no hope at all-

“Why… … Why would you do something like this… … .”

The woman soon began to cry bitterly.

Irene lowered her head in silence, and Reika turned her head and wiped away her tears.

I don’t know what exactly happened… … but just from that woman’s reaction, it’s not hard to imagine how dire the situation must have been when Chel left.

In this place, only Serpina maintained her composure.

How many minutes passed like that?

As the woman’s cries gradually stopped and she slowly regained her composure,

“Don’t worry.”

Serpina looked at her and spoke in a more kind voice than ever before.

“You will be under the witch’s protection from now on.”

“Yes… … ?”

“I am saying that as long as this body is under my control, this will never happen.”

“!!!”

“Judge by what you see whether he is a monarch worthy of trust and follow. The right to resist someone you cannot trust is one of the few rights given to you who live in these miserable times.”

After finishing speaking, Serpina slowly got up from her seat and looked down at the woman she had been facing just a moment ago.

“But this body is not afraid of it. Perhaps you will also know. About Branth and Eingart, which path to follow.”

“Serpina… … ”

Serpina turns around and hurries on without answering the woman who has just mentioned her name for the first time.

I, Airen, and Reika – we followed Serpina after calming her down slightly.

*

The first thing we did after occupying Jog Castle was to control the situation.

At this point, to some extent, Chell’s plan was successful. Although it was a decision that would cause him great losses in the long run, it was successful in holding back our forces to some extent.

To restore the houses, elite soldiers who had been drafted as the occupying force of the army were dispatched, and measures were established to manage the market again.

That moment came to mind. It was the time when Zeeland Castle was being rebuilt after being left in shambles by repeated battles and typhoons.

“Here is today’s food. There is plenty, so you don’t have to worry for the time being.”

“Thank you so much… … .”

Sharing food wasn’t that difficult.

Literally, we were in a very solid position during the time the plague was spreading across the central continent.

There was no problem with the supply route or lack of food, and securing the hearts and minds of the people was important in order to become the new ruler.

As they were distributing basic amounts of food to the residents, a man’s voice was heard from behind.

“Sir, thank you for your hard work. Please change shifts.”

The owner of the voice was Irian.

Since I took up the position of national strategist, he has been using formal language with me.

In terms of hierarchy, it wasn’t strange that I, as a state strategist, was higher in rank than Irian, the general… But… hearing honorifics in return from someone who was used to using honorifics wasn’t something I could get used to.

Irene also said that she didn’t have to speak informally to me at first, but Irene’s will was firm, so I didn’t press her further.

“How are things going?”

“The restoration of the Jog Castle is almost complete. However… …just a moment ago, the scouts returned.”

“Are you the one that was dispatched a while ago?”

“Yes. As the bookworm predicted, it seems that all the castles under the cell were burned down without leaving a single area. Except for one place… …Alkanwood Castle.”

So the enemies have gathered in Alcanwood?

There wasn’t really anywhere else to decide on, so I dragged it out as much as possible… … but I couldn’t just pass by all the territories, so it seemed like it would take some time.

“Okay, do you know where General Irene is?”

“You are at the barracks.”

When I went to the barracks with Irian, I was able to meet Irene, who was encouraging the soldiers.

“Thank you for your hard work, Swen.”

“We’re both having a hard time. How are you?”

“The morale of the soldiers is at its peak. The eyes of each and every one of them conducting the training are not ordinary. The soldiers have eyes, so they must have many thoughts after seeing this situation where the people of the territory are mercilessly burning down the place. Even if Chell made a bad judgment, it was a bad judgment by a long shot. The act of trying to grab the ankles of others has ended up burning our fighting spirit. ”

“I think that sounds right.”

Even though I was caught by the ankle, if this incident can improve the public sentiment towards Serpina even a little bit… …

I couldn’t say it out loud because it might have been rude to Youngjimin to even think like that, but I think I had that kind of thought.

at that time.

Irene looked at me with a serious expression and asked.

“… … Swen.”

“Do you have anything to say?”

“Yeah. That’s… … .”

Irene hesitated for a moment, then nodded as if she had made up her mind about something and asked.

“Luna Princess… …what kind of person is she?”

“Yes… … ?”

A question that came out of the blue.

It was about――an unexpected person.

“I’m asking what kind of personality Luna has.”