Chapter 110. Treaty (2)

Puu-puuu-puuu-

For the first time in months, the war horn blared through the city.

A public notice was posted in the plaza, and loud-voiced soldiers went around the streets, informing the residents of the current situation and the code of conduct.

A request for cooperation through temporary employment was also sent to the mercenary guild.

The Viscount's army had already gathered at the barracks and was waiting for orders.

“The enemy force is roughly eight thousand. Five thousand zombies, three thousand skeletons, and about thirty to forty wights as commanders.”

Karen, who had returned from scouting with the rangers, reported.

“Their speed and location.”

“They are not fast. About an adult's walking pace. No corpse carts or vampire necromancers that would increase their marching speed were found. Their location is a half-day's journey from the outer outpost.”

“Estimated time of arrival?”

“Even if they come in a straight line at their current speed, it will take four days. Looking at their route, they seem to be wandering a bit, so I expect it to take a week.”

A week.

There's still time.

It was the right decision to spend a considerable amount of money to place outposts along the entire border of the domain.

A week is enough time for Olif's 'Nameless Knights' to come as reinforcements from Burken Fortress.

It would take about a day if they rode on horseback.

In the meantime, I can maintain the artillery corps and finish organizing the volunteers from the magic towers and the mercenary guild.

Although there are city walls, I have no intention of fighting near the city.

Because it's a winnable fight.

Although a force of about eight thousand is 30% more than ours in number, there is a huge difference in the quality of the troops.

It is absurd for zombies and skeletons, commanded by wights, to defeat the Viscount's army, which has undergone arduous training.

“We will march at dawn two days from now.”

“Understood.”

“The battlefield will be the hilly terrain near the southern border. You remember the place I scouted before, right?”

“I remember. I will relay it to the commanders.”

Olif and Karen left.

As the door closed, a whirlwind blew in through the open window and swirled around the office.

I pressed down on the fluttering papers and thought.

“…….”

It's strange.

I don't quite understand.

Using the identity of Tribus, I am in a state of a loose friendly relationship with the Princess of Blood.

They say there are no eternal allies, and it's not even an alliance, but at least when it comes to the Princess of Blood, I am confident that I know her better than anyone.

Hebrun von Zarhill.

The only daughter of the Vampire Duke.

The second-in-command of the Archduchy and one of only two 8th-circle necromancers.

Even with her powerful legion sealed, she is a possessor of unrivaled martial prowess among high-level mages, capable of destroying the lord's castle of an average city single-handedly and escaping.

The only part that deviates from my knowledge is the 'Sacred Relic' that was added to her, who belongs to the Order, with the 4.0 update.

Nevertheless, the reason I can confidently say that I know her is because, no matter how much the world scenario updates, it does not change the character's personality or disposition.

“Her personality itself is a mess, but…”

She is a character who is more certain about favors and grudges than anyone else.

It means that no matter how much the Duke has awakened and the situation has changed, she is not a woman who would suddenly point a sword at me without warning.

Because I was the one who provided the method for the Duke's revival.

A plausible answer came from an unexpected person.

“Could it be a gift?”

It was when I was summoning the commander-level units of my bound forces one by one and explaining the operation in preparation for an unforeseen situation.

The vampire who had been with me for well over a year tilted his head.

“A gift? What do you mean?”

“Aren't you a necromancer, my lord? So, she is sending a gift as a token of gratitude for the favor she received.”

“Zombies and skeletons are a gift?”

“Isn't that so? In vampire society, those two are good gifts. Because they are a labor force.”

Come to think of it, there was a setting like that.

That in the Vampire Archduchy, zombies and skeletons are treated as a labor force.

This is because just because no people live there doesn't mean that there is no need for various construction projects or manpower.

Whether it's maintaining the castle walls or building a mansion for a vampire, a labor force is essential.

‘Is that why Tick-Tocky didn't emit a red light?’

I thought it judged that it wasn't a crisis because our current forces were sufficient to deal with it.

But the idea that the intention wasn't an invasion at all also makes sense.

Come to think of it, the Princess of Blood said it before.

That she would give me a sufficient reward once the Vampire Duke's power was restored.

Even so, nothing changes.

If I were to take her at her word and use them as a labor force, this time an Inquisitor with a silver bullet loaded would come to the door of my office.

“You've all understood the plan, right? I will send you back now.”

“Yes, we understand.”

[[Warrior’s Binding] is deployed.]

[Summoned troops are returned.]

I sent the vampire back and left the room.

I can roughly guess the Duke's intention.

He woke up from a sleep of hundreds of years.

When he woke up, he found that a part of his original territory had been taken away, and that some paladin lord was ruling it.

Having recovered his strength with the method his daughter told him, he was about to order the recapture of the territory, but his daughter must have stopped him.

Saying that the necromancer who provided the method for his revival and recovery is under the command of the lord of Wolfskrig.

He must have been dumbfounded.

That the necromancer is a human, and that he is under some paladin.

So, he must be testing me under the pretext of giving a gift.

Whether I, Tribus, am really in Wolfskrig.

If so, what my position is within the domain, and so on.

If I accept his gift of 'labor force,' he would think that Tribus is above Ash.

If not, he would think I am below him.

The diplomatic line of the Archduchy would depend on that judgment.

“William. Are you ready?”

I don't care.

My response is already decided anyway.

I'm not going to risk the silver bullet ending, nor do I have any intention of diminishing the prestige of the Tribus identity.

In the end, it's enough that both identities are not looked down upon.

“Yes, Viscount. The church army priests, the School of Metal mages, and the specially treated gunpowder are all ready.”

“Good work. Please make sure there are no setbacks until the day of the campaign.”

“Yes, and…”

As I was about to leave the artillery base, William raised his hand.

He said, hesitating.

“Viscount, do you happen to have a moment?”

***

“This is not something to be discussed right now, but…”

The opening he brought up after a pause.

It was a story about his past.

“My hometown was the City-State Alliance. I was an orphan. There are many orphans in Gunterburk, but there are just as many in the City-State Alliance.”

I once read about the tragic situation in places like Africa, where civil wars are incessant, in an international relief organization advertisement that I accidentally clicked on on the internet.

A story of a world where it's not strange for brothers, sisters, parents, and children to suddenly die one day.

I thought it was a story far removed from me, but not anymore.

This is a continent where war is common.

As such, death is also familiar.

William, who became an orphan at a young age that he can't even remember, grew up on the streets without parents.

Many abandoned children die at a young age, but William was lucky.

“My uncle took me in. We were not related by blood. He just told me to call him uncle, and since I had no family, I called him that.”

That uncle was said to be a little special.

He was shorter than other people.

He was good at handling hammers, chisels, bellows, and saws.

He also frequently made exploding powder.

He only found out the identity of his uncle, who had a particularly bushy beard and rarely left the house, when he entered puberty.

“My uncle was a dwarf.”

“I see.”

“I learned the dwarven gunpowder technology from my uncle as well.”

William's dwarf uncle ran a small forge.

For reasons unknown, he hid the fact that he was a dwarf and made a living by taking non-face-to-face orders through William.

From an errand boy to an assistant, from an assistant to a blacksmith, and eventually receiving the gunpowder technology, William said he started to feel frustrated one day.

“I felt sorry for him.”

William recalled with a sigh.

“With my uncle's skills, he could be treated well anywhere. He wouldn't have to live as a third-rate blacksmith with no face and no credit.”

That pity did not last long.

Because his uncle suddenly collapsed.

The dwarf, who was suffering from a high fever, strongly refused William's suggestion to call a healer or a priest, and eventually succumbed to the illness without being able to overcome it.

“In the City-State Alliance, I researched explosive mining using gunpowder. The merchants, who only know money, fired me, asking why they would do such a thing with expensive gunpowder when there was a surplus of labor.”

It was the background of William's mining knowledge, gunpowder technology, and rune magic.

Unable to achieve any results, he headed for the Empire.

He became a priest in Gunterburk, the city of refugees and vagrants.

If he couldn't become a gunpowder smith and carry on his uncle's legacy, he would rather heal the people who were dying from illness like him.

“Before he passed away, my uncle left a will.”

William did not speak at length.

Perhaps because he didn't want to waste my time with a battle ahead.

Nevertheless, after hearing the whole story, one more item was added to my mental checklist.

The Vampire Duke.

I have something to say to him.

***

Two days passed.

The Viscount's army left the city at dawn.

Unlike a year ago, when the Beastmen invaded the domain, there was no great confusion.

Clank.

Clank.

Clank.

Clank….

The sight of nearly six thousand troops marching in formation towards the city gate was watched by the people gathered on the main street and in the alleys as if it were an event.

“Long live Viscount Wolfskrig!”

“Come back safely!”

“I'll take good care of Remy, honey.”

Cheers.

Blessings.

Support.

Children scattering flower petals, and a woman who ambushes her marching lover with a kiss on the cheek and retreats.

When the army leaves the city, they will go back to their workplaces and live their daily lives.

This is a good sign.

It means they have come to trust the lord and the army that much.

The Consecrator of the Beast Hide.

The Lumer underground ruins.

This is the reward for preventing two major crises.

“Viscount, the enemy is eight kilometers ahead!”

On the third day of the march.

The ranger scouts brought good news.

“As reported by the advance scouts, they are all zombies and skeletons. There are a few wight units, but no higher-level undead or vampires.”

‘So it really is a gift. And a test at the same time. What will you do, master?’

Kkumteuli asked, holding a cookie in one tentacle and propping up the octahedron with another as if resting its chin.

‘Can't we just bury them in the forest like the Necro Ogres?’

I shook my head.

Imagine that nearly ten thousand undead who were marching towards the domain suddenly vanish.

No matter how friendly I've become with the church, it's a point that would raise suspicion.

There's no need to jeopardize the well-divided identities and the foundation I've built.

“All troops, to the ranged annihilation formation.”

“To the ranged annihilation formation!”

“Move quickly, you slugs!”

Puu-puuu-puuu-

I deployed the formation.

The thousands-strong Viscount's army moves in perfect order.

The 1st Battalion, organized around the spearman and swordsman squads, is in the front.

The 2nd Battalion, mainly consisting of the crossbow and archer squads, is in the rear.

Among the 2nd Battalion, the rifle squad moved to the flanks.

This is to pour down a crossfire from both ends of the formation, which forms a round arc overall.

Guarding them are the 3rd Battalion's halberdiers and greatswordsmen.

“Olif, Karen. Is communication clear?”

[Yes, Viscount.]

[I can hear you clearly!]

The ranger scouts and the Nameless Knights, who were separated from the main force, were also ready.

Around that time, a dark silhouette began to appear beyond the horizon.

An endless line of skeletons and corpses.

The silent marching army of the dead.

“These corpse-loving bastards…”

Balkan, son of Ungol, the dwarf who had followed along saying he should at least earn his keep, roared.

I smirked and raised my hand.

“Prepare for bombardment.”

“Prepare for bombardment!”

The cannonballs are loaded.

The priests' prayers echoed.

The School of Metal mages chanted their spells, and under William's command, the angle of the cannons was corrected towards the vampire army.

Actually, what I want is a conversation.

If I can handle the Vampire Archduchy well, it seems I can use it as a breakwater to block the southern border of the domain.

In fact, after the battle is over, I will go to see the vampire for a conversation.

However, there is one fact that must be known.

That diplomacy between nations is an absolute logic of power.

It means that in order to have a conversation, one must first be recognized as an equal diplomatic partner.

That recognition comes from strength.

“Fire.”

“Fire!!”

Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang-!

The mortars spat fire.

And before long.

Thump-

At the end of the parabola, in the middle of the undead horde, a pillar of light shot up.