Volume 2 Chapter 97 Request For Reinforcements From Izerland Fortress II
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Oswald or Renaud from the ‘Knights of the Sun’ must be invited into the fortress; it will be difficult to drive away McCutchen’s troops otherwise.
A heavy silence engulfed the dining hall, but soon the clamor from the direction of the Main Castle’s gates began to echo, breaking the stillness.
It seems McCutchen’s army has started their assault on Main Castle.
”Contact the guild master of the adventurers in the fortress. As for the Church Knights, I’ll order Fringilla to mobilize Archbishop Homolka once she finds him.”
”What about the ‘Knights of the Sun’?”
Natasha persistently asked, but Maribel shook her head.
”For now, we’ll rely on the adventurers and the Church Knights. If that fails, we’ll remove the barrier on the outer wall and break our contract. ──Everyone, I count on you; please take care of it. Owl, stay with Natasha to maintain the barrier. I’ll write a letter promptly.”
”Understood.”
”I hope it won’t be too late.”
Owl bowed respectfully, while Natasha shrugged.
Maribel found the head magician annoying, but disregarded it and quickly turned on her heel.
Christy hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do, but soon ran after Maribel.
Manon is her master.
She has to protect this child’s life no matter what.
With that resolution, she dashed down the corridor.
* * *
(Damn it, what are those head magicians doing!?)
Meanwhile, McCutchen, leading the foreign mercenary group surrounding Main Castle, watched the battle situation with frustration.
The moat of Main Castle is shallow, and the castle walls are not too high; he believed that if they could just make it, they could quickly take control.
However, for some reason, Natasha and the others had not yet lifted the barrier surrounding Main Castle.
Thanks to that, the McCutchens had no choice but to rely on the primitive method of slamming logs into the magic power barrier wall.
With a loud shout, the log collided with the physical barrier, creating a thundering crash. The hemispherical barrier protecting the Main Castle was incredibly strong, something that only became clear when they took the offensive.
(Damn it, don’t panic! It’s been 4 days since contacting Lord Shajar. It’s a miracle we’ve executed such a rapid siege operation. Renaud is face to face with Azrael and can’t move, and Oswald has gone back to Ramsey! We still have plenty of time to attack!)
However, if it dragged on too long, grievances from the townsfolk would be hard to suppress.
The adventurer Guild seemed to be following McCutchen’s standstill order for now, but it was uncertain how long they would remain compliant.
According to McCutchen’s calculations, if they hadn’t captured the Main Castle by tomorrow morning, public opinion would likely shift toward considering this foreign army as ‘the rebel forces’ for elimination.
Before that happens.
They must kill the Owl and seize Maribel before they are recognized as complete villains.
(It was painful to have our plans for the uprising date dictated after the discussions with Lord Shajar post-conference. I wanted to take action after being better prepared.)
McCutchen and Shajar were temporarily allied to protect their respective positions.
Shajar would provide mercenaries from the Azrael faith within the Franz Kingdom to McCutchen.
After taking control of Izerland fortress, McCutchen would negotiate peace with Shajar on equal terms under Maribel’s name, thereby forgiving the chaos caused by Azrael’s apostle in the country.
They had agreed to assist each other under those conditions.
(The mercenaries unexpectedly gathered quickly, and the head magicians surrounding Natasha betrayed her for money──luck is on my side. Stay calm.)
Natasha desired land and noble status, but.
Natasha’s entourage had accumulated substantial debt from their extravagant lifestyle, and they were troubled over how to repay it.
McCutchen, who knew this weakness, used his connections to help reduce the amount of their debt.
Moreover, he promised to provide financial support if he could return to the political stage.
As a result, the 4 head magicians of Natasha’s entourage eagerly offered their cooperation to McCutchen.
Natasha also decided, after discussing with her 4 companions, to provide extra assistance to McCutchen.
While she didn’t remove the barrier for the sake of appearances,
she did delay closing the eastern gate of the outer wall.
(Now, all gates of the outer wall are tightly closed. This prevents the ‘Knights of the Sun’ outside the fortress from entering.)
Even if they managed to enter, they would be no more than around 4 hundred soldiers.
In contrast, there were 1500 warrior monks bolstered by the Nakash family’s apostle (though some were inept hyenas and mere refugees).
In terms of military strength, McCutchen held a decisive advantage.
(Are the head magicians ever going to remove the barrier? Damn it, I promised to wipe their debts, yet they are not delivering… They really can’t be trusted. After acquiring Maribel, I must take appropriate action.)
Kill Natasha and all the other head magicians.
After that, they hire people who might listen to McCutchen again.
The head magicians who had served Godfrey since his time were like a thorn in McCutchen’s side.
It’s about time he should be able to improve his metabolism in a clean and refreshing way.
Old Steward, increasingly murderous intent on Natasha and the others, sent instructions to the siege forces.
”Prepare a simple stone thrower! Don’t let your attacks go! The head magicians are only a human. They will soon tire and be unable to put up a barrier!! You’ll soon be able to acquire your rights in the area!”
* * *
A rock the size of a human head was launched from a simple catapult, crashing into the barrier maintained by the Head magicians with a thunderous roar.
Filled with anxiety, Christy was diligently repairing the cracked barrier in a businesslike manner.
(There are just too many of them! If this keeps up, it’ll be a disaster.)
The barrier was maintained by a few magicians, including Christy.
Magic power would eventually run out, and they needed sleep and food as well.
Simply hunkering down here would only make the situation worse.
”…That should do it.”
Completing the repairs to the northern barrier of the Main Castle, Christy stood up from the keystone and began moving toward the west side.
Fortunately, the east side──the arena area──had been devastated during the previous attack by Azrael’s apostle, causing the moat to widen.
For now, the forces encircling the castle seemed to be avoiding that side to keep from getting wet.
Hastily, she made her way through the castle corridor and entered the central dining hall.
There stood Maribel, Owl, and Natasha, seemingly engaged in some discussion.
”Manon.”
”Christy, have you finished the repairs on the northern barrier?”
”Yes. ──But standing here and just holding the line won’t work. What about the Adventurers’ Guild and the Church Knights? Are they mobilizing yet?”
At Christy’s words, Maribel cast her eyes down, while Natasha shrugged her shoulders.
”The Adventurers’ Guild says they are ‘watching and waiting.’”
”Wha…what!?”
”Whether they are foolish or not, they probably just don’t understand the situation well enough and are being cautious.”
Owl said, stroking his chin.
Maribel added more.
”McCutchen must have informed them that ‘Maribel is just being forced to write letters by the bandits; do not send any reinforcements.’ The Guild Master knows we’ve taken power through reckless means, so they can’t judge who is telling the truth. If I’m just a doll, and Owl and McCutchen are just fighting over the doll, the Adventurers’ Guild wouldn’t want to lose their precious adventurers in such a trivial matter.”
”The Adventurers’ Guild exists to protect the people from threats, so I can understand the Guild Master’s decision in Izerland. If we keep sending letters, they may eventually figure out who is in the right and send adventurers our way.”
”No matter how you look at it, we have the legitimacy on our side! I mean, McCutchen is bringing along those confusing Azraelian and Shin folks! It’s clear they’re the enemies!”
”With the noble blood of the Franz Kingdom flowing through him, he truly is a typical racist, isn’t he?”
”Ah… b-but Kian is different! Kian is… a good person.”
”I understand the urge to reject someone just because their skin color or appearance is different, Christina. After all, I received a refined noble education in the royal capital.”
Natasha, unusually defending Christy, turned back to Maribel.
”Your Excellency, the Church Knights aren’t coming, and if this continues, we’ll be attacked and the barrier will be broken. We might have to rely on the ‘Knights of the Sun’.”
”But…”
”If we don’t follow the evacuation order, then we won’t follow it. For now, we must drive off the bandits in front of us; otherwise, we’ll have no choice but to abandon this castle and seek asylum in another territory.”
”…….What do you think, Owl?”
The knight of Owl answered while crossing his arms inside his cloak.
”I will follow Your Excellency’s judgment. If we can summon a large number of Bloodsucking Kind by night, then we can manage almost anything, barring some major incident. Oswald and Renaud have gone back to their own territories, haven’t they?”
”Owl, please don’t make me repeat myself. I will absolutely not allow Bloodsucking Kind to be summoned within the castle. Just think of the damage it would cause to the people.”
”It won’t happen. I won’t let it.”
Owl states confidently, but letting 50 or 60 Bloodsucking Kind into the fortress is no sane decision.
Even if Christy were the lord of the fortress, he would have immediately rejected such a nonsensical proposal.
”────”
Maribel clenched her fist tightly.
Owl quietly awaited her response.
Natasha sighed, as if she already held the answer.
The blonde little princess looked around at everyone once more and softly murmured.
”…I will break Oswald’s magic contract. It should be better than dealing with Renaud.”
”Oh my, Your Excellency, Oswald is a noble member of the ‘Knights of the Sun’, isn’t he? What are you so afraid of?”
”It’s obviously Oswald’s betrayal, Natasha. He is an excellent knight, but he’s far too greedy for gold and power. Considering his lowly origins, it’s to be expected.”
”Oh? You’re quite lowly too, aren’t you, Lord Owl? After all, you aren’t even human──”
”Owl, please stop.”
Maribel quickly interjected as she saw Owl’s slitted eyes slowly open.
The little princess stepped between them and looked up at Natasha.
”I ask for the breaking of the barrier’s origin stone of the ‘Steel Dragon’, Natasha.”
”Breaking it requires the magic power and blood of the head of the Danofen family, Your Excellency.”
”Understood. After I break the magic contract that forbids Oswald’s army from entering, I’ll head to the starting point of the barrier immediately. Natasha and Christy, please go ahead and prepare to destroy the barrier.”
”…Manon, are you really sure about this?”
”There’s no other way.”
”But, maybe I’m being persistent, but there must be another way, like abandoning the fortress and fleeing somewhere far away.”
”And then, do you think you could return here after running away?”
”No… But I think it’s better to run than to die. Sure, I don’t want to fall from grace either. But if we die, then it’s over. I don’t see any reason to hold onto this fortress.”
At Christy’s words, Maribel looked up with dark blue eyes.
A strong light seemed to engulf her eyes as she opened her mouth.
”This fortress is the symbol of Godfrey’s wish for peace in the borderlands. It is also my ideal.”
”Ideal? The wish you mentioned before, to create a ‘peaceful country where no one gets hurt’?”
Christy almost retorted, “That’s impossible, look at reality,” but when faced with Maribel’s intense gaze, she found herself unable to say anything.
”Fleeing and relying on Oswald, or inviting Oswald’s knights in here, isn’t much different. The only difference is whether I’ve abandoned the borderland’s royal castle or not.”
”Ah…”
”Hmph, did you finally understand, Christina? Abandoning this castle would be the same as throwing away the fortress piece.”
”Even if it’s not exactly throwing it away, I won’t run anymore. I’ve gained my freedom, and I’m finally about to take the first step. I absolutely don’t want to end things before my dream even starts.”
Maribel said this quietly, then turned her back.
”Prepare for the contract’s destruction. I’ll head to the vault and break the contract.”
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply