episode_0040

Milreya was oblivious.

In fact, if anything, it was my fault for not anticipating this and telling her beforehand.

It’s fine to seek advice, but to blatantly ask in front of a man who looks like he could kill you on the spot.

“Milreya! Who is this man and why is he interfering at such a crucial moment?”

In the end, the man who couldn’t hold back exploded.

He was not an adventurer but someone from the knight faction.

If he were an adventurer, he wouldn’t have said a word to Milreya.

Either way, I was in a difficult situation.

“This is the reason I brought him here.”

Milreya calmly replied to the man with an expressionless face.

No, please stop…

I’ll give my opinion later in private, so please don’t put me on the spot in front of everyone.

Can’t you sense the atmosphere of the subjugation team right now?

The entire subjugation team seems to be displeased with me.

It seemed like leaving it as it was would only make the situation more troublesome, so before Milreya could say more, I intervened.

“Milreya, just a moment. Let’s just listen to what he has to say for now and discuss it later…”

“You seem clueless. Do you really think you’ve become something because Milreya is on your side?”

But before I could finish my sentence, the man in armor sharply retorted.

“No, it’s not like that…”

“I am talking with Milreya! I’m not interested in your opinion.”

The man didn’t give me a chance to speak.

It’s annoying that he’s being so harsh.

I don’t want to be here right now.

“Stop.”

Milreya said briefly at that moment.

The surrounding air felt a bit colder.

Is she angry?

“Please don’t speak to him like that.”

“Yes? But I just don’t understand…”

“Demon, are you perhaps mistaken right now?”

“No, I just…”

“Are you the leader of the subjugation team?”

“That’s…”

“Yunoa is someone I personally chose.”

Milreya’s cold eyes stared at the man in armor called Demon.

Is this the intimidating figure that adventurers fear when they hear about Milreya?

She’s just speaking calmly, but I can feel a chill that makes me shiver.

The fierce attitude Demon had just a moment ago was instantly broken.

The other members of the subjugation team who were watching from a distance also held their breath.

It seemed like they now understood why no adventurer dared to give her advice.

Anyway, I wanted to somehow bring this situation to a close.

She brought me here because she wasn’t confident in making decisions herself.

So, I just need to listen to her decisions and quietly give some advice, right?

But I wanted that advice to be as discreet as possible.

I’ve already received enough cold glares and insults from behind.

I wanted to avoid drawing more attention to myself here.

But my wish was shattered in the next moment in the worst possible way.

Milreya spoke in front of everyone.

“Listen carefully. I will follow Yunoa’s orders without question.”

“…?!”

What is she talking about?

“I trust this man to that extent. Do you understand?”

The eyes of Demon, the knight representative of the subjugation team, widened as if they were about to pop out.

Among the other members of the subjugation team who were watching this situation, there were gasps of astonishment and disbelief.

Oh, I want to be a mole.

I want to become a mole, dig into the ground, and disappear.

* * *

“What’s going on, what’s the relationship between him and Milreya?”

“How did such a worthless guy manage to win over Milreya?”

“From the start, that guy has been receiving special treatment. It’s not like they found a weakness or anything, right?”

Sigh.

After Milaeya’s shocking declaration, the atmosphere within the punitive force became even more tense.

Well, of course. Even I would curse if some brat with the intelligence of a dog suddenly gets promoted to the leader of the punitive force and participates in the strategy meeting.

It feels like the gazes directed at me have become even more hostile, but maybe that’s just my imagination.

It’s like spilled water, there’s no turning back now.

How should I carry myself in the guild from now on?

There won’t be any adventurers openly expressing dissatisfaction towards Milaeya, but internally, they must all be cursing.

“…As I mentioned earlier, we need to split the punitive force into two units and attack separately. Although the numbers are high, all we see right now are weaklings like goblins, so we need to launch a preemptive strike before stronger monsters gather.”

The representative knight of the group, Daemon, spoke to Milaeya with a grim expression.

Milaeya looked at me after hearing the proposal.

“What do you think, Yunoa?”

“….”

It seemed like this uncomfortable operation plan wouldn’t end unless I said something.

Daemon was glaring at me as if flames were about to shoot out of his eyes, his facial muscles twitching.

In a situation where he was staring at me as if there were words written on my face saying, “Say something stupid and you’re dead,” what could I possibly say?

“Well… I guess it’s fine.”

Since the monsters are split into two groups, we should split our forces as well.

Honestly, I had no idea, so I had nothing to say.

You need to know something to make a suggestion, right?

“If that’s how you feel, then we’ll proceed as planned.”

Milaeya nodded.

Daemon then spoke to Milaeya again.

“And let’s divide the units based on adventurers and non-adventurers. I will take responsibility for the knights and soldiers I brought. Our unit may have slightly fewer numbers, but it would be more convenient to divide it this way.”

Although his tone was polite, the way he was dividing the units indicated that they would essentially be acting separately from the adventurers.

By dividing the units like that, even though Daemon’s unit would have nearly ten fewer members, it was clear that this division was a sign of dissatisfaction.

“What do you think, Yunoa?”

But Milaeya asked for my opinion again, whether I agreed or not.

What kind of absurd play was this?

Daemon proposes a plan, Milaeya asks me as if I’m in charge of checking homework, and I answer without knowing anything.

The strategy meeting of the punitive force was following the same pattern, like three people telling unfunny jokes.

With the situation as it was, the punitive force’s operations were all being accepted according to the proposals of the knight representative, Daemon.

I couldn’t judge whether his plan was appropriate or not.

I didn’t know anything at the moment, so I had nothing to say.

“Thus, the punitive force decided to split into two units and launch a preemptive attack on the monsters gathering in the wasteland beyond the Horn Canyon.

If the opponents were ordinary monsters, there wouldn’t have been any issues with this method.

However, the monsters the punitive force would be facing this time were not just simple monsters.”

As the strategy meeting of the punitive force was nearing its end under Daemon’s leadership, the narration began.

“The monsters were known not to move strategically.

But the monsters here were being commanded by the demons.”

“Alright, hurry up and prepare to depart!”

Following the decision made during the strategy meeting, Daemon was dividing the punitive force.

The knights and soldiers belonging to the punitive force all moved towards the direction pointed out by Daemon.

Even as this was happening, the narration continued.

“The monster unit under the command of the demons was luring the punitive force as a decoy.”

The demon troops visible to the punitive force’s sight did not go beyond a small part.

The truly powerful demon troops were hidden in unseen places.

The narration continued with unsettling content.

“The punitive force was mistaken.

They were not in a position to attack.

Objectively, the demons had the upper hand in terms of power.

The punitive force was in a position to defend against such demon attacks.”

If that’s the case, this is a big problem.

If the information provided by the narration is true, we should not divide our forces but rather defend this place.

The Horn Valley where we are currently camped was extremely advantageous for defense.

“The demon Daemon was trying to lead the people he brought and conduct a reckless assault.

He wanted to swiftly subdue the demons, proving that they were better than the adventurers.

But they had no idea that this would be their final battle.”

Finally, the force led by Daemon began to move slowly.

Having seen their dark future through the narration, I couldn’t let the situation continue as it was.

“Milreya, please stop that force over there right now. We need to reconsider the operation.”

I hurriedly told Milreya.

Without questioning or hesitating, she immediately stopped Daemon’s force at my words.

Daemon asked irritably, “What is it?”

“Yunoa says we need to reconsider the operation.”

Milreya said bluntly enough to make me embarrassed.

In response, Daemon scowled arrogantly and glared at me as if he wanted to kill me, shouting, “Are you listening to that bastard again? Who the hell is the leader of the punitive force? Is it necessary to treat him so specially?”

Yeah, it seemed like that.

But if we send Daemon’s force to be annihilated, we’ll be in trouble too.

According to the narration, the punitive force’s power loss must be minimized for the operation to succeed.

To achieve success in the punitive operation, someone must change the current policy.

“Sigh….”

There’s no way to quietly bury this.

If you’re going to be cursed no matter what you do, it’s annoying to just sit still.

In their eyes, I was the mysterious Silver Ear who was brought along, receiving all kinds of special treatment.

I was just brought here suddenly and forced to be included in the punitive force.

I tried to be as quiet as possible, knowing my place.

I didn’t use my friendship with Milreya to bully anyone, so why do I have to be cursed like this?

There’s a saying.

If someone dislikes you for no reason, give them a reason.

“Milreya, you said you would follow my orders unconditionally earlier, right?”

“Yes.”

“From now on, I will personally give orders to the punitive force. Punish anyone who resists without exception.”

I asked Milreya.

It was a request that would astonish everyone.

Without a second thought, she replied, “Understood.”

Special treatment, huh?

Let me show you what real special treatment is from now on.