Ch.663The Worst Boss

“Lord Ragnar. What did you just say?”

Knut, the vice-commander of the Crusader of Seals Einherjar, stared at his superior with a face full of shock.

Ragnar. Like Knut himself, he had the ᚨ(Ansuz) rune carved into his left eye, and as the commander of the Einherjar, he used that power to command other crusaders.

The undisputed strongest crusader of Dane was looking down at him with a crooked smile.

“Has your hearing gone bad too? Then I’ll tell you again. Withdraw all troops and create a path for Ka’har to advance. This is His Majesty’s royal command—and also the will of Cardinal Wolfgang Kapraich.”

“What are you saying… are you surrendering to Ka’har?!”

“Quite the opposite. It’s to defeat Ka’har.”

Shaking his head, Ragnar explained to Knut in detail why the king had given such an order. Even the inside story that ordinary soldiers could never know.

It didn’t take long for Knut’s doubtful expression to change to anger and contempt as he listened.

—-

“This country has gone mad.”

Returning to his quarters with a distorted face, Knut declared to Frigg, the female knight who had been accompanying him like a bodyguard since he was injured.

Hearing the deep anger and contempt in his voice, Frigg put down the sausage she was chewing and looked at him.

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“His Majesty said he would withdraw all troops to the central region. To avoid being consumed in battle with Ka’har.”

“…Isn’t that the standard scorched earth tactic? I think it’s a strategy to cut off their supplies, force them to suffer massive casualties in battle with the Empire, and then launch a total attack to annihilate Ka’har as they retreat.”

Frigg asked, tilting her head slightly. It seemed like an obvious strategy, but she couldn’t understand why Knut was so angry.

‘Could it be that he doesn’t even like a strategic retreat? But he must know there’s no other way to win.’

Even if they mobilized all of Dane’s forces, including the Einherjar, it would be impossible to face Ka’har’s main force head-on.

They might have been able to somehow repel the Red Flag Legion that attacked a few days ago, but there was no chance of winning a full-scale war against an enemy several times larger, especially with Orhan joining them.

Implementing a scorched earth policy to wear down Ka’har’s forces and seeking to benefit from the conflict between Ka’har and the Empire—from Frigg’s perspective, Dane had no better options at present.

However, Knut’s face only grew more distorted. And for good reason, as the strategy chosen by the Kingdom of Dane was—

“It’s not a scorched earth tactic.”

“What?”

With a tone full of disgust, as if chewing on bile, Knut explained to Frigg the reason for the retreat that Ragnar had told him.

“We’re only withdrawing the troops. The supplies and citizens will be left behind. There’s no time to move them to the rear, and if there’s nothing to plunder, Ka’har might advance to central Dane instead of heading toward the Empire.”

“Wait, hold on. You mean… they’re going to feed all those kingdom citizens to Ka’har? Is that what you’re saying?”

Frigg’s eyes trembled slightly.

“That’s what he said.”

“Are they insane?”

Since it was the exact same reaction he had shouted at Ragnar, Knut couldn’t help but recall the argument from a few hours ago.

—-

“Are you insane? If we lose over a hundred thousand citizens, that alone would already be our defeat!”

Knut shouted fiercely, almost growling.

His protest was right. If it had been Dane a year ago, it would have been an indisputable truth.

Not anymore.

“We’re not losing them. It should be called a sacrifice. The blood they shed will be the cornerstone of victory and the sword that will protect Dane.”

Ragnar laughed nonchalantly. His attitude was theatrical to the point of being shameless.

“What nonsense are you—”

“It’s not nonsense. Have you forgotten? The rune marks we’ve obtained. What the essence of that power is.”

Ragnar tapped his left eye covered by an eye patch as he spoke.

“A magical mark tempered with blood. That is the essence of the rune. According to the mage scholars studying runes, the number of lives sacrificed for the forging of a rune determines the output of the completed rune.”

Ragnar’s lips curled upward. It was a smile as vicious as a beast’s.

“Then, a rune forged with tens of thousands of sacrifices would contain enough power to annihilate Ka’har’s remnants and more, wouldn’t it?”

“So… now… you’re saying you’ll sacrifice over a hundred thousand citizens to strengthen the Einherjar’s power? And this is His Majesty’s will?”

Knut’s voice trembled with shock.

In stark contrast to the young crusader who was in shock, Ragnar’s voice, answering as if preaching to him, contained not even a hint of wavering.

“That’s not the only purpose. Some of the sacrificed will be used to summon Valkyries at the Cardinal’s request… and Ka’har, clashing with the Imperial army without our interference, will inflict massive damage on the Empire even if they are defeated. Enough that they won’t have the capacity to intervene in whatever we do in the future.”

Knut stared at Ragnar with a dumbfounded expression. He felt a chilling sensation creeping up his spine, just like when he was wounded by Aishan-Gioro Haschal’s gauntlet.

If they were retreating out of fear of Ka’har, he could have understood it even if he despised it.

But the fact that this insane strategy was the result of a cold calculation of the benefits to be gained from the deaths of over a hundred thousand people gave him a revulsion that was difficult to explain.

Because he could no longer see his superior and the Dane leadership as fellow humans.

Of course, Ragnar, seemingly unconcerned with Knut’s feelings, simply ordered him to follow the royal command with a composed attitude.

“If you understand, follow the orders, Knut Svenson. Haven’t you always hated Ka’har? To avenge your sister, wasn’t it?”

Knut’s face hardened. Sister. Astrid. The last image of that child flashed through his mind.

Ragnar, smiling with satisfaction, lightly patted Knut’s shoulder.

“You can’t help but feel reluctant. I understand. But… it’s unavoidable if we want to destroy Ka’har. This is the best course of action our Kingdom of Dane can take.”

“……”

Knut nodded without saying anything.

—-

Although Knut had shown agreement in front of Ragnar, he had no intention of supporting such an insane plan.

That’s why he had confided in Frigg as soon as he returned home.

“…So what are you going to do? If the royal family, the church, and Commander Ragnar all support this, our opposition would be meaningless.”

“We can’t be the only ones opposing this madness. If we inform the crusaders and knights and gather those who oppose…”

Frigg shook her head.

“That’s reckless. As long as Commander Ragnar has the Ansuz rune, the marked crusaders have no choice but to follow him.”

[ᚨ]

Ansuz. The rune symbolizing god.

That mark took away the left eye of the suitable bearer in exchange for granting the power to command all others who bore the rune—a mark of dominance.

Knut also had the same rune carved inside his lost left eye, but his dominance could not surpass Ragnar’s.

This meant that even if he gathered marked crusaders who supported his cause, they would all turn against him the moment they met Ragnar.

“Besides, few knights would protect the citizens against His Majesty’s orders. Who would welcome a fight that has no chance of success and no meaning, only to be executed as traitors?”

“So you’re saying we should just stand by and watch? Such an atrocity?”

Frigg stared at Knut with her characteristic expressionless face, as if she had seen it all, then sighed deeply, averted her gaze, and answered in a murmur.

“…Yes. Let’s leave it be. Rather than choosing a meaningless death, it would be wiser to set aside your conscience for a while and turn a blind eye. It’s nothing special. Ordinary people all live that way.”

“…That’s not right.”

Frigg sighed once more. From her perspective, it was utterly frustrating to see Knut still clinging to illusions like justice at his age.

“Don’t you understand? You’ll just add your corpse to the pile, and nothing will change.”

“Even so, this must be stopped. How can I stand by and watch my homeland become a den of demons no different from—no, worse than Ka’har?”

Knut’s resolve was firm. His voice was as full of unwavering determination as his expression, which was as hard as stone.

Frigg realized anew that Knut had already made up his mind, and once he had decided, no one could persuade him otherwise.

As always.

‘This stubborn fool…!’

Extreme irritation rose like a volcano, and Frigg gritted her molars and furrowed her brow.

Looking at the man before her who seemed to have an uncanny ability to choose the path to his own death, she felt the urge to pluck out his remaining eye.

“Fine, do as you please. Dying while intoxicated with self-satisfaction would be a fitting end for you.”

“…Yes. It would be like me.”

Seeing Knut calmly accepting her sharp mockery with a nod, Frigg felt as if all the heat in her body was rushing to her head.

“Ha…!”

She completely broke her expressionless facade, frowned deeply, gulped down the beer mug on the table, and put it down roughly as if she might shatter it.

Knut looked at her with slightly surprised eyes.

“Yes, a fitting end for you. That really gets on my nerves.”

Frigg kicked back her chair, stood up abruptly, approached Knut, grabbed his arm, and slung it over her shoulder to lift him up.

“What are you sitting around for? Let’s go find people willing to die with you. Time is of the essence.”

“Ah, no… this is my choice, and I don’t intend to drag you into it if you’re against it. I’ll try to handle it on my own somehow.”

“Shut up. You can’t even walk on your two legs without using the power of the rune, and you say you’ll do it alone? You came back with crippled legs after rampaging alone for revenge, and now you say you’ll do it alone? What exactly will you do alone?”

Frigg snapped sharply.

Her expression suggested she would tear out his throat if he talked back, so Knut could only remain silent with a sour face.

Supporting Knut, Frigg took him out of the house and onto the street in the middle of the night.

“Do you know, Knut? You’re the worst superior. Stubborn and selfish. The kind of person who pushes all his subordinates into the grave and then lies down next to them.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, then listen to me for once. You stubborn fool.”

Frigg scolded Knut every three steps as they walked.

To gather people kind enough to join his cause.