Volume 8 Chapter 3 Tale Of Nokin Triumph – Prologue
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Understood. I’ll pardon the self-defense force of Schuwelt. But make sure to keep my memory loss strictly confidential.”
”Yes! Wait, not Sir! Sir Nokin!”
”As you command.”
The two who were pardoned lit up with bright smiles.
I also judged that having someone around who knows my past would make it easier to cover up my memory loss, so I decided to take them in as my subordinates.
* * *
As my forces entered the town of Schuwelt, the locals started to welcome us with open arms.
Although my troops include former soldiers of the Demon God Emperor, when we separated from the Demon God Emperor’s army, Alonsa established strict military discipline, and severe punishment was meted out for looting and violence against the citizens, thus preventing any chaos in Schuwelt.
On the contrary, it turned into a festive atmosphere with drinking, and we gained great trust by mediating disputes among the self-defense force members and resolving conflicts among the citizens.
After staying for about a week, I reorganized the Schuwelt self-defense force of 15 hundred into the army, added a thousand to make an expeditionary force, and left 5 hundred soldiers along with supply handlers in Schuwelt as a rear support base.
Then, with Repulus at my side, I set off for our next destination, the Ostenfort Domain.
”Sir Nokin, is it alright for me to lead the army?”
Repulus, who was next to me, asked with a puzzled expression.
”It’s fine. They were originally soldiers under your command. There’s no need for me to take over. Besides, you seem to have a better grasp of the situation around you than I do. I have no fear of losing in personal bravery, but I think I’d lose to you in group battles. You’re a tricky one to deal with in command.”
During the reorganization of the army, I had a mock battle with Repulus using soldiers of the same scale, but he managed to successfully isolate and surround me by sacrificing soldiers to slow my advance and separate me from the following troops.
Then, he tightened the siege and attacked, never moving forward himself, always commanding from the rear.
Somehow, I broke through the siege and managed to win a one-on-one duel with Repulus, but by then, all my soldiers had been wiped out.
”I’m not nearly as brave or courageous as Sir Nokin. I’m just trying to figure out how we can all stand up to him. I even sacrificed soldiers in the simulations, but that’s a strategy that makes me want to gag if we used it in real combat. But for Sir Nokin’s sake, I’d take any dirty trick there is.”
Repulus may have a gentle face for a young man, but he seems to be the type who can make cold, calculated decisions when thrown into real battles or clan training grounds.
In fact, even though it was just a simulation, there were several dozen injuries, yet no one blamed Repulus.
”Did I teach you that?”
”No, Sir Nokin has always preferred to fight alone. I never thought I had the leadership ability to repel the Demon God Emperor’s army with a Schwert Belt, and I still don’t see myself as a commander.”
”I’m not good at commanding, or rather, I don’t like it. Repulus can take over all the soldiers. I’ll let the deputy know. It seems I’m better off fighting on my own anyway.”
Repulus was taken aback at suddenly being handed command.
”Why am I supposed to command Sir Nokin’s troops? That’s crazy!”
The deputy next to me seemed to agree.
Since he had seen the difference in leadership abilities when his troops were wiped out by Repulus in a simulation, he had no objection to following Repulus’s command.
”Oh, right. I’ll temporarily appoint you as General. If you’re going to command 2 thousand troops, we need to give you a rank that fits, or it’ll be a hassle. So, I’ll entrust my troops to General Repulus.”
The deputy was already drafting the temporary appointment document next to me, and once it was done, I signed it and handed it to Repulus.
”Whoa, a General! I’m just a guy in my twenties. I’m not a Noble, just a commoner with no connections! I can’t accept this!”
Repulus pushed the General’s appointment document back.
”Shouldn’t you listen to what your mentor says?”
He placed the document back into Repulus’s hands again.
”So you only bring up your status as a master during these times, huh… Once said, I can’t go against it… If you make me a General, I won’t be responsible for any regrets!”
”My intuition tells me you’re a good commander, so no worries. For now, it might just be for this expedition… But if we achieve results in the Ostenfort territory, I should officially be commissioned.”
”Ugh, my stomach hurts. Seriously…”
Repulus received the orders while pressing on his stomach.
* * *
By delegating command to Repulus, I was freed from the mundane work of being a commander.
If Alonsa were accompanying, she would handle all the pesky instructions, but since I couldn’t leave the capital for this expedition, I was taking on the commander duties.
However, with the addition of Repulus, I was glad to have someone else to share the burdensome tasks.
Meanwhile, Mr. Bertram, who came from a cart trader background, was efficiently managing logistics as the person in charge, ensuring a steady supply of food and equipment, as well as gathering information in Ostenfort territory, thus lightening the load for Alonsa and Porcha.
Since we just set up the country, we’re lacking personnel in various places, but if we search the east, we can find usable talents lying in wait.
It seems Kent Blackdagger from the South District is gathering talent while taking it easy himself, so I should follow his lead.
I’m satisfied as long as I can fight… If Alonsa can bear me a child as well, I won’t ask for anything more.
Eventually, the army reached the border between the Schuwelt territory and Ostenfort.
”Beyond this point lies the Ostenfort territory, where 3 factions are vying for control. Occasionally, they’ve crossed into Schuwelt, but I took out all the intruding bandit band myself.”
It seemed Repulus had led local militias to repel bandit bands a few times.
”There are 3 of them… Which one is the largest?”
”The top dog is probably ‘Swords and Skulls’. They’ve got control over most of the town of Ostenfort and are effectively ruling over more than half of the territory. Next in line would be ‘God’s Soldiers’. They’ve made their stronghold in the northern mountains. Last might be ‘Garden of Goddess’. This is a gang of bandits that has set up their sphere of influence around the border with us.”
Repulus has been getting info from Bertram and filled us in on the situation in the Ostenfort domain.
”A 3-way split, huh? Can you give me the lowdown on all 3 bandit gangs?”
”Sure, let’s start with ‘Swords and Skulls’. This gang is centered around a former regular army officer of the Kingdom, Surveyga, who took advantage of the Gertroud rebellion to assassinate the general and seize control of the army. Originally, Surveyga was a dodgy officer from the poorly disciplined Eastern garrison, and amidst the chaos, he occupied the town and territory, massacred the lords, and began his reign, treating the people like slaves. They’ve got about 2 thousand troops.”
”So ‘Swords and Skulls’ are remnants of the Kingdom’s army. What about ‘God’s Soldiers’?”
”These guys are a bunch of stragglers from the Demon God Emperor’s northeastern expeditionary force. They’ve got de facto control over the villages in the northern mountainous region and often clash with ‘Swords and Skulls’ forces. Leading them is a former Demon God Emperor army general, Stefan Schuwelt. They’ve got about 5 hundred troops but tend to avoid direct confrontation.”
”Schuwelt?”
”Yeah, he’s the ex-lord who was exiled from the Schuwelt domain. After losing his lands, he joined up with the Demon God Emperor’s army and became a general. He’s one tough nut.”
”Tough break. How about the last one, ‘Garden of Goddess’?”
”This might be the trickiest one. It’s a group led by the daughter of the former Lord of Ostenfort, with old retainers gathering around her. But this lady has a real bad rep. She’s known for snatching up women she considers prettier than herself and forcing them into servitude for her men. They’re thought to have about a thousand troops.”
Repulus explained the situation with each power, but it didn’t seem like any of the 3 were forces we could ally with.
”Repulus. Crush all 3. Minimize harm to the people, but kill no enemy soldiers. Use the guilty for labor in the South District’s new town construction as workers. Return the innocent to their rightful occupations.”
”How will you judge guilt or innocence?”
”Simple. If they’re presented before the people, that should suffice.”
”Well, most will be found guilty. Will you hold their families accountable too?”
”If there’s no blatant criminal activity, let them go.”
”Understood. Shall we start by crushing ‘The Garden of Goddess’? Secure the Lord’s daughter to ensure the legitimacy of our claim over Ostenfort.”
Repulus proposed securing the Lord’s daughter.
Indeed, as he said, securing her would provide a just cause to eliminate other factions.
”Agreed. Let’s move swiftly.”
”Ha!”
Immediately, the army set out towards the village that served as the stronghold of ‘The Garden of Goddess.’
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
Leave a Reply