Ch.193Army of the Dead (2)

“Could you spare a moment, Lord Victor?”

The inspector asked me cautiously, and I nodded, offering him a chair.

He sat down, paused briefly, and then spoke.

“Originally, our city government requested a one-month containment operation.”

“That’s right.”

“But now I see… it’s far more serious than that… We can no longer maintain the current situation under the terms of the original request.”

Saying this, the inspector mentioned that he had spoken with his homeland while aboard the airship.

Judging by his expression, the news was far from optimistic.

“The undead have begun to spread throughout the streets of Zirconia.”

“!”

“According to the mages and scholars, it’s likely that infected grain or dairy products had already spread the infection before this outbreak, and cultists infiltrated the city to trigger this epidemic.”

“…Is everything alright?”

“Haha… How could it be? Martial law has already been declared, and food prices have begun to skyrocket. They’ve even started deploying the military because they can’t distinguish between the infected and rioters.”

I held my tongue.

The undead were persistent adversaries. Vicious monsters who could always maintain a certain number of followers by exploiting their inability to die.

“The other cities in the Coastal Domain have already sealed off major routes and refused to send military support.”

“In other words, they’re completely isolated…”

The inspector nodded.

Is there a more pitiful profession than a civil servant of a collapsing nation?

He wiped his eyes briefly, then took out a piece of parchment from his breast pocket and handed it to me.

“What’s this?”

“A new contract. The Domain Council refused military support but agreed to provide financial assistance. Currently, mercenary groups and adventurer parties numbering 300,000 are sealing off city districts and purging the outlying villages.”

300,000.

The weight of that number began to press down on my chest.

I wasn’t sure if the Coastal Domain actually had enough wealth to bear such enormous employment costs, or if they were simply counting on not having to pay the dead.

“So that means they don’t have the resources to help us. That’s why you want to renegotiate the contract.”

“…That’s correct.”

I read through the contract.

The staggering sum of 30,000 gold coins. However, we would only receive it after completing the request, and only if the Zirconia city government remained intact.

The desperation to keep our party bound—when we could leave at any time under the original contract—seemed to seep through every letter on the page.

“Lord Victor. Please, I beg you. Your party is the only one with all Aura users and battalion-level forces.”

The inspector was nearly ready to prostrate himself.

He might be a high-ranking official, but what use was that if the government collapsed?

Moreover, his life could be in danger simply for being at the source of the infection.

“Don’t worry, Inspector.”

I signed the new contract, reassuring him.

I am a Knight of the Sun.

And the sun never yields to darkness.

*

Swish! Swish!

Thud! Thud!

“Drive the stakes deeper! If they’re too shallow, they won’t stop the enemy!”

“Once you’ve gathered all the stones, pile them over there!”

Early morning.

Before dawn, the soldiers had risen and begun driving stakes in diagonal lines beyond the barrier wall and digging trenches.

The trenches were filled with densely packed, sharply whittled wooden spears that would be lethal to anyone without armor.

In front of these, massive stakes made from tree trunks were driven at an angle to impede fast-moving ghouls and golems.

This defensive line was replicated on the inside of the barrier as well, resulting in a five-layer defense: stakes-trench-wall-stakes-trench.

We abandoned any plans to descend from the wall, demolished the ground stairs, and connected the two rear watchtowers to the wall with bridges to form a triangular zone.

Additionally, the soldiers crafted makeshift slings from leather or cloth, as hundreds of thrown stones could inflict at least some damage.

Of course, since much of this was hastily constructed, the dwarf brothers were assigned only to supervision, while Simon reinforced most of the defenses with enhancement spells.

For instance, he applied purification runes to the trenches and stakes to dissolve impaled corpses, made the walls slippery, and added self-repair enchantments.

He also placed self-replication spells on Hawk’s flamethrower fuel tanks, Berk’s grenade containers, and the elven twins’ quivers, creating temporary infinite ammunition.

“Of the 30,000 gold coins, 10,000 will go to Simon. Make note of that.”

“Argh…! I should have learned magic instead of archery…!”

Lucia lamented, but no one opposed my decision.

Simon was the backbone of our party, and everyone keenly understood the crucial role he played as our only spellcaster.

“Thank you, truly. Without you, we could never have made it this far…”

“The same goes for me, Party Leader. If you hadn’t rekindled the fire in my heart, I’d still be sitting in some musty back room, puffing away on my pipe.”

When I expressed my personal gratitude, Simon responded with his own thanks.

If I had to choose the most valuable companion in this party, I would pick Simon without hesitation. And I’m sure he would do the same.

Just as I cherish Simon, he is the only one in our party capable of soothing everyone.

A psychopathic slaughterer and a love-starved spear-wielder with breasts and buttocks larger than her brain. Alcoholic elven twins and the pyromaniac, bomb-obsessed dwarf brothers…

Even in the eccentric adventurer society, our party would be rejected as “the deranged Evande” due to our serious social defects. The fact that we function smoothly is entirely thanks to Simon.

“Live long, Simon. I’ll find you an elixir somehow.”

“Heh heh… I appreciate the thought.”

*

Four days passed.

During that time, there had been small-scale attacks. Thousands of zombies swarmed in around noon, but we were able to annihilate them after about 40 minutes of fighting.

“I don’t think we’ll see any more zombies now.”

“They’ll deploy ghouls and golems next. They’ll use zombies as fodder.”

Simon nodded gravely.

At best, zombies reanimated from farmers or amateur adventurers had clear limitations, but flesh golems made from human materials or naturally monstrous ghouls had combat abilities that vastly outstripped those of zombies.

Unfortunately, this meant my soldiers would die like bananas in a blender.

For ordinary people who couldn’t use Aura, giant monsters were like the neighborhood bullies—utterly overwhelming.

The one fortunate thing was that my soldiers were all experienced veterans, so I didn’t have to worry about dozens being swept away by just a few ghouls or golems.

Of course, this meant reduced casualties, not their elimination—an important distinction.

In this world, knowing that death is a constant rather than a variable is quite different from truly understanding it.

I looked at the inspector beside me.

Wearing a soldier’s armor and weapons, he looked quite unfamiliar yet simultaneously exuded a warrior’s presence.

Since his survival was no longer an absolute condition, he had volunteered to serve as a combatant.

“It’s not too late to go down and fight with the soldiers.”

“No, sir. I’m a civil servant. Despite appearances, I’m a former marine.”

I subtly suggested he join the soldiers, but he declined with a bitter smile.

“I’m a civil servant, fighting to preserve the continuity of Zirconia’s government and to set an example for the citizens. That’s why I cannot retreat.”

“The greatest strength and weakness of democracy is that the power of the state comes from its citizens. The more people like you there are, the deeper democracy’s roots will grow.”

“Every ideology, philosophy, conviction, and belief requires the blood of martyrs. I fear death, but I fear dishonor even more. There’s a saying that one mudfish can muddy an entire pond. I simply don’t want to be that mudfish.”

“I see…”

I smiled slightly, then started to ask his name but stopped myself.

It was enough that he was the Inspector of Zirconia.

Wasn’t that the name given to him by the citizens? No family name could surpass that.

So all I could do was pray to the Sun that he might survive, bearing the name he loved.