Ch.158Chapter 158: The Decisive Battle in the East (26).

Everyone seemed surprised, but Arias began speaking with sparkling eyes.

“What do we need right now? Isn’t it powerful combat strength like Valt?”

Valt’s combat capability simply surpasses that of a Master.

Valt is someone who would never lose in a duel against the Masters of Zerdin’s unit.

Moreover, Valt’s main weapon is magic.

He’s a mage who can defeat a Floor Master using Aura in close combat one-on-one.

That’s not to say Valt is only specialized in one-on-one combat.

Rather, Valt’s abilities, which might demonstrate even greater power in large-scale battles, were valuable enough as a variable right now.

“That’s true, but…”

“Then think about it! What if I could keep the Orc King occupied when only Valt could stop him?”

As Arias spoke, everyone’s expressions began to change.

“We deploy Valt elsewhere while blocking the Orc King’s throwing attacks! Doesn’t that sound incredibly advantageous just saying it?”

But Lisa looked skeptical.

“No! It’s too dangerous. It might work like you say, but if the Orc King realizes Valt is elsewhere, your life will be in danger. Can you dodge those tusk spears?”

But Arias wouldn’t back down.

“It’s impossible to dodge all of them, but I might be able to avoid a few! Watch this!”

Sharalarak-

As soon as Arias shouted to watch, the spirit Undine quickly created images of Valt and the others.

“I tried it once with Valt and completely mastered the technique. I call it Spirit Illusion. What do you think?”

The completeness was on a different level from the illusions they had created with Valt in the air.

The doppelgangers of others that Arias created had completely identical appearances—if Arias hadn’t told them, they wouldn’t have known the difference.

“W-what is this? It’s amazing!”

As Lisa showed her surprise, Arias smiled with satisfaction.

“Hehe, how about it? Don’t you think even the Orc King would be fooled by this?”

Arias truly was a genius. While her talent for general magic was ordinary, she possessed unrivaled application and execution skills when it came to spirit-related techniques.

“No… this isn’t something I can dismiss as unconvincing even as flattery.”

Arias’s spirit illusion technique was that impressive.

Valt, who had been quietly observing Arias’s spirit technique, finally spoke.

“That doesn’t mean it’s not dangerous. The Orc King’s attacks could begin at any time.”

But Arias didn’t yield to Valt’s warning.

“I know that. But the distance is far, right? I can handle that much. And there’s also that magic you taught me, Valt—the one for seeing far away using water.”

The telescope magic was suitable for Arias, who could manipulate water.

Lisa, surprised, asked Arias:

“There’s such magic too?”

“Yes! Valt taught me that if you control water well to build something called a ‘lens,’ you can see opponents from very far away.”

“What? That’s incredible!”

In this world where glass manufacturing technology and lens production were lacking, telescope magic using water was truly revolutionary.

“So, what do you think? Wouldn’t it be possible for Liris and me to draw the Orc King’s attention with this?”

It seemed reckless, but there was definitely a possibility.

“Take the elder brother with you. That will confuse the Orc King even more.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for Lord Ruktan to go with Valt?”

But Valt just shook his head.

“Defeating the enemy is important, but your safety is even more important to me. Elder Brother Ruktan will be able to protect you from unexpected attacks.”

Once the main direction of the operation was proposed, working out the details didn’t take very long.

However, since Valt belonged to Zerdin’s unit, Zerdin’s permission was necessary.

Even though Valt was the prince of Gerung, it was difficult for him to act freely here.

Moreover, although Valt had been incorporated into Zerdin’s unit, he wasn’t officially and completely integrated.

This could actually be advantageous for Valt.

He was clearly part of the unit, but Valt and Zerdin had made a deal.

Using that as leverage, Valt decided to obtain autonomous operational authority.

***

“So… you’re saying you’ll prevent the royal army from being annihilated?”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm… I appreciate you scratching where it itches, but… individual operational authority? Do you understand what that means?”

At that, Lisa, who had come along, raised her hand.

“Hello, Commander! I am Lisa Valentine of the Valentine family from the Halkin Empire.”

Zerdin, who had been wondering who this little one was, showed a slightly surprised face upon hearing the Valentine name.

“Oh… the Valentine family is famous even here. Well then, Lady Valentine, what is it?”

“I believe granting individual operational authority during wartime shouldn’t be a big concern for you.”

“Hmm… why is that?”

“Commander Zerdin, you formally requested reinforcements from the Halkin Empire, correct?”

Formally, indeed.

In a war of this scale, requesting reinforcements is natural.

But the Halkin Empire, understanding the interests of the Eastern Alliance, doesn’t look favorably on interfering in Eastern affairs.

Therefore, the Halkin Empire also formally declined the request, using the northern monster wave as an excuse.

“Can you take responsibility for those words, Lady Valentine? Even the Valentine family must know that if you obtain individual operational authority and fail, you cannot escape responsibility.”

“I will take responsibility.”

“What?”

Lisa’s action of representing her family seemed inappropriate at first glance.

After all, Lisa was just an academy student, and it seemed too much for her to bear the entire weight of the Valentine family name.

But Lisa had something she was counting on.

Before Lisa left her territory, the head of the Valentine family had told her:

‘I’ll give you one chance to use the Valentine family name. What you do with it is entirely up to you, Lisa.’

It was the right to use the family name officially recognized by the family head.

It was only a one-time right, but Lisa had it.

And Lisa sensed it.

Now was the time to use that right.

On the surface, this was an orc army arising in the East, but it had already exceeded the influence of the East.

The situation wasn’t widely known yet because it hadn’t become serious enough, but if the current situation became widely known, it would likely become more than just an Eastern problem.

As they dug deeper into how these orcs came to be, it became clear that the Shadow Society was involved.

This would give the Halkin Empire, which had declared war on the Shadow Society, a justification to intervene in this Eastern orc war.

In such a situation, what if they achieved merit through Valt while using the Valentine family name?

Of course, if they failed, they would have to bear that much responsibility, but the word “failure” didn’t exist in Lisa’s mind.

Lisa trusted Valt that much, and she had the expectation that this man, armed with solid muscles, would do anything for her.

“I will leave the Valentine family emblem as evidence. In return, I ask that you grant individual operational authority to Valt and me. Of course, we will report directly to Commander Zerdin and not through any other reporting channels.”

A unit with individual operational authority under the commander.

It might seem like nothing special, but in reality, it was a unit with tremendous rights.

Depending on how they performed, Zerdin’s evaluation would change, and the relationship with the Eastern Alliance, and even the Empire, could be said to depend on them.

The Valentine family seal that Lisa always kept in her bosom.

Made of visibly expensive material with elegant patterns, it proved itself to be genuine.

“Well… the Valentine family… I don’t deny recognizing Valt Gerung, but is it necessary to go this far to give Valt operational authority?”

Zerdin had finished his calculations.

Even if Valt’s unit attempted something and failed, there would be nothing bad for Zerdin.

Rather, it was like creating a hole through which he could avoid responsibility.

Of course, such a thing shouldn’t happen, but having a way to plan for the future made a big difference in mindset.

In fact, this was also what Lisa had aimed for.

Lisa’s judgment was that Commander Zerdin was currently under too much pressure.

Lisa knew very well that creating an escape hole would make thinking more flexible and allow operations to be carried out without fear of failure.

They say that one who would be king must bear the weight, but sometimes too much responsibility is nothing short of poison.

Lisa, quickly catching that Zerdin had made up his mind, smiled broadly.

“Hehe, you’ll be surprised, Commander! At what Valt—no, what we can do!”