Chapter 207 - Shirone, Part 3

The next day.

On the stretch of wilderness expected to become the main battlefield, Zanoba and I led the army forward in full force.

The soldiers' morale was high. But this would be over quickly, wouldn't it?

I looked around and murmured.

"Not bad terrain..."

The winding landscape was scattered with tall weeds and large boulders. There was a slope to it, too. Looking toward Karon Fortress meant looking upward, which put us on a slight downhill approach. The river ran south to north.

Zanoba caught my murmuring and replied.

"Yes, it's good terrain. But the enemy's archers can reach us from here."

"True... Still, we marched out here with this much fanfare and they haven't done anything."

"We've been shut inside the fortress this whole time. Appearing like this out of nowhere, they're probably wary of what we're planning."

"Where is their base?"

"Northwest of our current position. About 3 days' march if we advance."

"Then we advance."

"...But Lady Aisha... we are the defending side here. In both numbers and weapon quality..."

"You don't trust me?"

"How could I dare!"

Zanoba asked nothing more. He gave the order, and the soldiers began marching toward the enemy base.

------

2 days into the march.

A shout cut through the air.

Every gaze snapped to the same point.

At the edge of the horizon, dust was rising.

The enemy had come.

They must have caught wind of our movements and moved to intercept. Arrows were already flying before our soldiers had time to react, and the formation started to waver.

Well then.

"O that which you seek, let the great earth's protection be forged into a sturdy shield and stand firm before me, Earth Wall."

The magic went up and caught every arrow.

I jumped on top of the wall and looked out over the enemy ranks.

Not their full force. Around 2,000, maybe a little more.

But 2,000 men meant a commander somewhere.

"Everyone stay inside the wall."

"Eh? Lady Aisha, what are you—"

I didn't wait to hear the rest. I left Zanoba behind and charged straight into them.

In the end, they were just ordinary soldiers. Between my magic and my sword, cutting through to the center of their formation was easy enough.

But here was the problem.

Mana runs out.

2,000 men spread across a battlefield, there was no clean way to take them all down with magic. So it was time for the plan.

"O spirits of the earth, answer my call..."

Another earth spell. A pillar rose at the center of the battlefield, and I rode it up.

I looked down at them from above and held out Lord Rudeus's token.

"I am a trusted aide sent by Lord Rudeus. My name is Aisha. I have come to end this war. This is Lord Rudeus's will!"

The arrows stopped.

Silence settled over the battlefield. A few seconds. Maybe longer.

Then a man stepped forward. He had the bearing of a commander. He tilted his head up to look at me.

"...May I confirm the token?"

I tossed it down to him.

He examined it for a moment, then raised his hand. Around him, soldiers dropped into salutes.

"Lady Aisha... please forgive our rudeness."

"It's fine. This is a battlefield."

I let the earth magic go, walked over, and took the token back.

"So. The war is over."

"...We cannot end it. Not like this."

"Oh? Why?"

The commander glanced around. The man beside him, his deputy by the look of it, nodded slightly.

"Lady Aisha. Do you know why we are attacking Shirone Kingdom?"

"Resources?"

"No... Shirone was our ally. The king changed, but Shirone has only gotten stronger since then. That is good for us too."

"Then why?"

"...We have no reason to attack Shirone. We were threatened into it."

"Threatened? You..."

I looked them over. The armor, the military flag.

"The Kingdom of Kika, threatened? Your neighbor Sanakia doesn't have that kind of reach."

"It was the Ouryu Kingdom."

"That makes no sense. Shirone is a vassal state of the Ouryu Kingdom. Why would they need you to pressure their own tributary?"

"Because Shirone's new king has been trying to break free from that status for a long time. He has been moving in secret. The Ouryu Kingdom noticed, and they threatened us to put pressure on Shirone in their place."

Now that he said it, it fit.

Pax hadn't hesitated at all when he accepted my help. Not for a moment. He had wanted this opportunity, wanted to use it to cut the Ouryu Kingdom's leash.

The Ouryu Kingdom had shown him favor once. But he was a king now. Wanting better for his country was only natural.

Not that it mattered either way. Whether I was being used or not, my goals were simple: keep Zanoba safe and end the war.

"Alright. The war is over."

"But, but we—"

"..."

I held Lord Rudeus's token out to him again.

"When you go back, tell them this is Lord Rudeus's will. If the Ouryu Kingdom dares move against you for it, Lord Rudeus will deal with them."

"Yes...!"

With the battlefield settled, I walked back to our army.

They had been exactly as told, holding position inside the earth wall with their weapons ready.

It was over now, though.

Zanoba was on his feet the moment he saw me coming.

"Lady Aisha — what happened out there?"

"They agreed to pull back."

"That's... truly remarkable. Thank you, Lady Aisha."

"Thank Lord Rudeus. Let's head back."

We were just getting ready to move when a scout came running toward us, a letter in hand. He saluted and passed it to Zanoba.

"What's this?"

"A letter from Lord Pax."

Zanoba broke the seal and started reading.

His face changed as he read. The color drained out of it slowly, like a candle going dim.

"What does it say?"

"Instructions. What he wants me to do after he dies."

So Pax didn't believe in Ghislaine's strength after all.

"Pax isn't going to die," I said.

"...But..."

"Ghislaine is with him. It's fine. We're heading back."

"...Thank you, Lady Aisha."

➤ Next: Shirone, Part Four