Ch.1271Why Should We Be the Only Ones Left Holding the Bag?

With insufficient, unprepared forces, we need to attack a fortress where powerful enemies lurk. And we need to do it as quickly as possible.

At the same time, we must deal with another threat in northern Naraka. Feyrus, who volunteered to handle it, can’t be trusted in terms of either ability or character.

It was certainly a most troublesome situation. Not just for me, but everyone else thought so too.

“…Come to think of it, there is one approach we could try.”

However, between being troubled and being helpless, there’s a narrow but definite gap.

I suppose it was worth gathering everyone to put our heads together. When several people gather, somewhat usable countermeasures do emerge.

“An approach?”

“We expand the playing field. Make it truly grand.”

For example, Leonore suggested a way to supplement our insufficient forces.

“The northern frost giant issue is really just our problem, but what that Garmerlic fellow is doing threatens not just us but this entire underworld, right?”

“That’s true.”

“Then there’s no reason or obligation for us alone to suffer. If our house caught fire, naturally we’d put it out ourselves, but if the entire city were in flames, shouldn’t everyone join in to extinguish it?”

Her proposal was that since what Garmerlic had done and was trying to do threatened all life in Naraka, we should naturally draw them all into this war.

It was sound reasoning. Though I wondered if it was appropriate for the imperial princess of a nation that had experienced its capital in flames twice to use such a metaphor.

However…

“I’ve considered that too… but I’m not sure how many would gather. Most of the demigod-level powerhouses in this land have already chosen sides. Those who haven’t have mostly been hunted down.”

Whether those we gathered would actually help was another question.

The days when Naraka was filled with demigod-level powerhouses are now in the past. The political situation, which began changing after I came down here, mercilessly swept them away and crushed them.

Those with established forces and alliances perished in clashes with other factions, while loners were hunted down one by one by such factions and lost their lives.

It was the natural progression. Even we prioritized hunting lone powerhouses or monsters to build our strength.

Anyway, because of this, the number of demigods or hero-class top-tier powerhouses in Naraka has noticeably decreased.

Though the possibility isn’t high, some might have been crushed to death in this recent great collapse or burned to death from exposure to the light of Heaven’s Wall, further reducing their numbers.

I wonder if beings at the demigod level—or equivalent—would really lose their lives so futilely… but that’s hard to say. The world is vast, and fools are plentiful.

In short, even if we declare Garmerlic a public enemy of Naraka, I don’t expect many powerhouses besides us would step forward to fight him. That’s my prediction, anyway.

“Why do we need demigods when we have the lady? The reason we’re worrying now is because we lack troops, not powerful individuals.”

“…That’s right.”

But hearing that, I realized it wasn’t really an issue.

What we need are forces to engage the Undead Duke’s army. If demigods joined us, it would feel like gaining thousands of elite troops, but they don’t necessarily have to be demigods.

“Even if it doesn’t work out as well as you fear, there’s nothing to lose, right? What do you think?”

“Sounds good. What do you all think?”

“There are some concerns, but… it seems like the best option at present.”

“This is a battle we can’t retreat from, isn’t it? I believe the more reinforcements we have, the better. Even if they’re just filling numbers, compared to not having enough numbers at all…”

Since my other companions nodded in agreement that it wasn’t a bad idea, Leonore’s proposal was adopted as our future course of action.

“Sorcery, messengers, even simple rumors. Let’s use every method to spread this information throughout Naraka. Caliburn and the allied dragons will join when they hear of this.”

“As for the gathering place… mentioning a specific location risks counterattack, so it’s better to express it ambiguously. For example, ‘Gather beneath the blue star’ or something.”

“It would be best to maintain the legion’s current route. However, instead of returning to Nastaria to garrison, we should transport and receive supplies at an intermediate point…”

Once we established the basic policy, it became easier to identify additional concerns and countermeasures.

“If things go well, we might somehow manage the all-out war with the Undead Duke… but what about the northern situation? We can’t trust that Feyrus character, can we?”

“Let’s divide our forces in two. We don’t know how many will gather after hearing the rumors, but it should be thousands or tens of thousands. Even if we withdraw some of our forces, it shouldn’t significantly affect the war situation.”

The remaining issue was the frost giants in the north, which we decided to address by sending my companions.

If the number of participants in the war against the Undead Duke increases significantly as planned, removing a few people from our side shouldn’t be a major problem.

Three hero-class knights and one archmage should be able to reduce expected casualties, even if an all-out war with them would be difficult.

It’s almost like taking stones from the bottom to prop up the top… but if that’s the best option, what else can we do?

In the end, I just need to hold firm as the biggest and strongest foundation stone, right?

“What if the gathered numbers fall short of expectations?”

“Then I’ll just have to work harder.”

It won’t be easy—no, it will probably be quite a grueling battle… but when has it ever been different? I’m already accustomed to life-or-death struggles and bloody battles.

That’s why I didn’t hesitate to decide to send Nigel and Ophelia to the north.

“The north, you say?”

“Yes. There should be at least a few places where the ceiling has collapsed around there, right? Go up through those holes and evacuate the residents of Faelrun. If the Grand Duke Valdemar hears about the situation here, he’ll accept the evacuation order.”

Of course, as I mentioned earlier, the reason for sending them north wasn’t to fight the frost giants.

Rather, the opposite. It was to minimize the damage to Faelrun in case Feyrus failed to stop the frost giants—or chose not to.

“Um… lady? I understand what you mean, but… honestly, I’m not sure if it will work out. The Grand Duke Valdemar I know isn’t someone who would abandon his territory and flee. The same goes for that taxidermy-loving lady.”

However, it seems this wasn’t as simple as I thought. Leonore advised me with a troubled—or somewhat awkward—expression.

She said the Valdemar she knew would never abandon his territory due to pride, sense of duty, and honor as the guardian house of the north.

Not just Valdemar, but Frider who inherited the same mindset would be the same. They would evacuate all their subjects, but they themselves would stay and fight to the end.

Nigel, sitting beside me, nodded slightly, apparently sharing the same thought.

“You mean they’ll hold out even knowing they’ll die… like a captain going down with a sinking ship.”

Indeed, even I didn’t think Frider, who was always singing praises of Faelrun, would abandon his territory and retreat.

Risking one’s life to protect territory or pride rather than people seemed like foolish stubbornness to me, but… the people here wouldn’t think so. Their common sense, learned and experienced since childhood, is different.

So I had to be generous in my understanding.

“Then… emphasize that this is a directive from a goddess, not advice from a meddling friend. Also present the justification that it’s not retreat but preserving forces for a ‘greater battle.’ If they still won’t budge…”

“If they won’t?”

“Though you’re all hero-class, there are four of you and only two of them, right? Subdue them, knock them unconscious, and bring them out. I’ll deal with the aftermath.”

I have no intention of agreeing to their suicidal behavior.

“Is that really okay? They are imperial dukes after all…”

“Why not? You seem to have forgotten because I told you to be comfortable around me, but I am, after all, humanity’s god. Who would dare question something I ordered?”

Since I awakened my divinity, humanity of this era, unfamiliar with the concept of demigods, regards me as a god manifested on earth.

I’m not considered equal to celestial beings like Saulite—rather, I’m treated as a minor deity half a step below… but I’m still recognized as a god.

My acquaintances know I don’t welcome such worship, so they treat me casually as before, but strictly speaking, I’m already a being who should be revered and worshipped just for existing in the same space.

Who could possibly challenge the will of someone like me overriding the wishes of a “mere” duke?

Especially when it’s not due to malice, contempt, or desire for control, but simply to save their lives.

Looking at the result, it would be a pious tale of a god cherishing and loving human lives, sending apostles to save them.

There might be comments about my methods being somewhat aggressive for a goddess with a swordsman background, but that would be more like half-joking complaints rather than serious criticism.

So there shouldn’t be any real problems.

One of the people who treats me casually—Frider, who will become homeless while unconscious—will certainly rage when he wakes up, but he can’t beat me anyway.

Besides, to vent his anger at me, he’d have to come down to Naraka in person, which he couldn’t do when busy taking care of refugees.

Anger is a volatile emotion, and Frider’s especially so. If time passes without us meeting, he’ll regain his composure before long.

After I roughly summarized my judgment to everyone, they all nodded in agreement after a moment’s consideration.

“Hmm… well, I suppose that works.”

Only Leonore glanced at me with a slightly dubious look, but in the end, she smiled and agreed.

And so our future course of action was decided.

In truth, there might be better strategies that we haven’t thought of… but what can we do? This is the limit of what four muscle-brained sword-wielders can come up with.

It couldn’t be helped.