Raising the Princess to Overcome Death

Chapter 246

245. Childhood Friends – How to Use People

“Hahaha! It’s been so long. How long has it been?”

“Reuben! Vanne!”

The barbarian warriors embraced each other tightly. They bumped fists, exchanged winks, and playfully pounded on each other's chests to affirm their well-being.

Such was the deep bond between king and brotherly warriors.

Not only did the warriors from the Bizaine tribe greet each other warmly, but also those from the Norangdeu, Dwina, Baruga, and Meiwa tribes, each in their own unique way. A warrior from the Baruga tribe, named Hatu, was even getting smacked around.

No matter how distinguished he was as a member of the selected sword corps and a direct disciple of Rev, getting hit like that would surely leave him aching.

Unfortunately for him, this was just the beginning; he was likely to be beaten up ten more times before it was over.

Rev and his group had arrived at a forested area, a little distance from the Marquis Guidan’s estate. In this dense forest, a large camp had been set up, housing over a thousand warriors. But this was just one of twelve such camps.

A total of 12,000 barbarian warriors had gathered.These warriors had been sent by the various barbarian tribes of the Orun Kingdom, trusting in Rev.

They were rapidly consuming the wealth and resources of the Marquis Guidan, who prided himself on his long-standing history and fortune, but this was only about eighty percent of the total force that had arrived.

As for the remaining twenty percent...

No one knew.

Each tribe had sent anywhere from a few dozen to several hundred warriors. However, to avoid drawing the suspicion of local authorities, these warriors traveled in groups of about ten.

All they knew was that they had to reach the estate of a nobleman called the Marquis Guidan.

These warriors, who had likely never ventured out of their villages before, embarked on what would become the adventure of a lifetime, a journey that would become a tale of valor to tell for years to come.

In the midst of this, about twenty percent of them went completely off course.

But really, what could happen?

The boisterous warriors laughed it off, calling them “idiots,” not taking it seriously. Rev wasn’t too worried either; he figured they had likely mistaken the second estate owned by the Marquis Guidan, located on the border with the Kingdom of Conrad, as their destination.

Or maybe not.

It might sound irresponsible, but such losses were common in military operations of this era.

Rev was rather impressed that eighty percent of them had made it, so he was in high spirits as he inspected the twelve camps.

The first thing he checked was the supply of rations. Thanks to the efforts of the Marquis Guidan, the food supply was adequate.

Next, he examined the warriors’ equipment and training. Unfortunately, most of the warriors were still armed with their hunting tools, such as axes and bows.

Even after raiding the armory of the Theovic family, it wasn’t enough to arm 12,000 men, and not even the Marquis Guidan could procure such a vast amount of weaponry quickly.

The good news was that the warriors’ training was up to par, which was expected, given that the mobilization date had been delayed by a year.

“Who is in command of each camp, and how are communications handled?” Rev asked. The great warrior of the Bizaine tribe respectfully answered his younger relative (Rev).

“The great warriors of each tribe have taken command. As for communications... we haven’t really established any, but the steward of the Marquis Guidan would bring us news from the outside whenever he delivered supplies.”

“I see. Alright, I’m going to reorganize the army. It seems the Marquis deliberately divided us into groups of a thousand, so we’ll maintain that structure. You’ll be the commander of a thousand from now on. And Reuben.”

“Yes.”

“You’ll be the vice-commander and liaison officer here. The commander of a thousand should appoint ten commanders of a hundred, and they in turn should select their own commanders of ten and messengers. Once that’s done... send Reuben to the southern camp. That will be my headquarters.”

“Understood. What should we call our unit? Should we be the 1st Regiment?”

The great warrior subtly hinted at his desire for the honor of being the first, and since Rev didn’t care much about such things, he readily agreed. “Sure, go ahead.”

Rev continued to visit the remaining eleven camps, assigning numbers in the order he visited them. He also assigned one of his ten disciples to each of the great warriors who were promoted to commanders of a thousand.

Finally, at the 11th camp, where there were no more disciples left to assign, Rev...

“...Could it be this brat?”

He looked at Leo Dexter. Amused by Rev’s reaction, he chuckled and then addressed the great warrior in charge of the 11th camp.

“You’ll be the commander of a thousand from now on. Select a messenger to maintain communication with the main force, as well as ten commanders of a hundred.”

“Yes, sir.”

Rev then headed to the final, 12th camp. He appointed the great warrior there as the commander of a thousand and assumed the role of the general leading the main force.

Having completed the reorganization, Rev turned his horse toward the Marquis Guidan’s estate.

At that moment, one of the twelve knights assigned to him by Marquis Evni Drazhin spoke.

“Lady, please get into the carriage. We will escort you.”

He was speaking to Lena Ainar. Lena frowned slightly but complied, getting into the carriage.

Leo, who had been riding alongside Rev, asked.

“About your disciples... Vanne, Reuben, Hatu, and the others.”

“What about them?”

“You’ve been teaching them diligently... Wasn’t your plan to train them to deal with the princes?”

“That’s right.”

“Then why did you just relegate them to vice-commanders and messengers? If it were me, I’d keep them close.”

It was a reasonable question. However, Rev pointed to the knights following behind the carriage.

“Because we have them. I didn’t expect Marquis Drazhin to provide knights. You’ll be in charge of them.”

“...”

Leo was momentarily at a loss for words.

Of course, no matter how much you train disciples, they can’t compare to fully-fledged knights. It was an obvious truth.

But still, these were the first disciples they had taken in since Katrina. They had been together for over a year... Leo would never have made such a decision.

Whether they were lacking or exceptional, he would have stuck with his disciples to the end, motivating them together.

Leo muttered.

“When you were assigning numbers earlier... You really lack romance.”

Rev gave a curt reply.

“That’s childish.”

*

A month later, in the summer, Rev and the army of Marquis Harvey Guidan set out.

The barbarian warriors followed the Marquis’s army, a tactic to deceive the kingdom’s attention.

Lena did not accompany them.

She decided to stay at the Marquis Guidan’s estate. Apparently, the Marchioness was an excellent cook, and Lena intended to learn from her.

“Take care. I think you said it’s Bidorinin Castle? I’ll be waiting, so make sure to earn lots of honors and pamper me, okay?”

Leo boasted that she could count on him. It was touching to see how he tried to fill the emptiness left by Lena’s resignation.

Rev couldn't bear to watch any longer and turned his head away. It wasn’t the first time he had witnessed such a scene, but what made it particularly unbearable was the sight of Harie Guidan standing next to him with a vacant expression.

Lena, who had lost her dream of knighthood, and Harie, who had lost her beloved, exuded a similar aura.

The vibrancy that normally emanated from a living person was gone, leaving behind only their empty shells. It was a pitiful sight.

For a brief moment, Rev saw the old image of Cassia overlapping with Lena and Harie, and he shut his eyes tightly, thinking to himself:

‘Lena's situation is better, at least. She still has a husband who loves her deeply...’

Just then, a voice whispered in his ear.

— Don't change the subject. You're the one who caused Harie's condition, you hypocrite.

‘...I had no other choice.’

— Oh, really? Are you sure there was no other way? Don’t try to fool me. You sacrificed that woman to achieve your goal more comfortably. You know there were at least five ways you could have helped her.

‘Who are you?’

— I'm Rev, you fool.

The whisper faded as Rev opened his eyes. Once a simple young man from the village of Demos, he was now a general leading the vanguard, and the Marquis Guidan spoke up.

“Duke Elzeor de Lognum is advancing north. He’s managed to gather 30,000 troops in that short time. With Prince Athon de Lognum sending two knight orders to reinforce him, we stand little chance in a direct confrontation.”

They were passing through the forest. Rev shook his head and asked, “What about the mages?”

“No idea,” replied Count Soarel Demetri Ogleton, not the marquis. He shrugged as he continued, “I’ve contacted my fellow mages and seniors, but they were rather indifferent. Still, don’t worry. I’m here, after all.”

What kind of confidence was this?

However, Rev, too, had confidence in his ability to outmaneuver the princes, so he didn’t dwell too much on the negative.

Days passed as they marched, slept, and marched again. Rev and the Marquis Guidan’s army passed the central trade hub of Bospo on their way to meet Duke Elzeor de Lognum’s forces under the scorching sun.

Both armies set up camps.

Naturally, as a royal and duke, Prince Elzeor held the higher rank, so the Marquis Guidan went to report to him in his camp.

Rev and Leo could have accompanied him and simply decapitated the prince. But doing so would have left them surrounded by over two hundred knights and thirty thousand soldiers, from which they would not escape alive.

Perhaps someone like Lean de Yeriel could have pulled it off.

Fortunately, the marquis returned with a cheerful smile. Under a makeshift canopy to shield them from the sun, he spread out a map and spoke.

“It seems everything is going according to plan. As expected, the prince suggested that we take ‘Radoga’ first.”

Radoga was a trade city of the Conrad Kingdom, rivaling Bospo, located beyond the Irotashi River.

It was currently ruled by Count Gideon Lopero, not Duke Tertan, since Prince Eric and Duke Tertan’s deaths had led Midian Tertan to step down as the western border marquis.

“That makes sense. We can’t just pass by such a city. Then, we’ll ambush Prince Elzeor’s army as they cross the Irotashi River. We’ve already reached an agreement with the Conrad Kingdom. Count Gideon Lopero will pretend to retreat and then counterattack at the river.”

“Understood. In that case, our army will need to delay the crossing as much as possible... Ah, but there’s no need to find an excuse. Fortunately, a significant number of the prince’s conscripts are pirates. Even if we don’t intentionally slow down, our crossing speed will be much faster than theirs. It might be better to pretend we’re hurrying.”

“Pirates, you say?”

“Yes. I was wondering how he gathered so many troops, and it turns out he issued a decree across coastal cities, offering amnesty to those who served as soldiers.”

Rev nodded, but Count Ogleton, unfamiliar with coastal affairs, asked, “Isn’t that a foolish move? Coastal cities trade with each other... Wouldn’t the news of Prince Elzeor raising an army have reached the Conrad Kingdom? This campaign was doomed to fail from the start.”

“Haha. I’m not trying to praise Prince Elzeor, but that’s not the case. You’re forgetting about the trade winds.”

“The trade winds?”

Marquis Harvey Guidan briefly explained the coastal winds.

In winter, the wind blows from the continent toward the sea. Thus, ocean-going ships use this ‘outbound wind’ to head out to sea in winter and return using the ‘inbound wind’ that blows toward the continent in summer.

Given these wind patterns, maritime trade with other kingdoms doesn’t happen during summer and winter.

However, large-scale maritime trade is possible in spring and autumn, thanks to the ‘west trade wind’ and ‘east trade wind.’

“In spring, the wind only blows west. Technically, it circulates around the continent, but from our kingdom’s perspective, it’s westward. The prince issued his decree at the end of autumn, just as the trade fleets were departing for the Conrad Kingdom on the east trade wind. And in spring, only the west trade wind blows, so there are only returning fleets.”

“Ah, I see. So there was no passage to the Conrad Kingdom during that time. I understand now. He’s quite clever.”

“Yes. Pirates use galleys to sail the calmer coastal waters, but do you think they want to keep rowing forever? They were eager to enlist when told their crimes would be pardoned if they served as soldiers.”

“Hmm... That’s a bit unfortunate.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just... They came here hoping to start a new life, but now they’re destined to be drowned in the Irotashi River. Don’t you have any plans to show them mercy?”

Count Ogleton directed his question at Rev. But unlike Lean de Yeriel, who had a penchant for sparing bandits and ruffians, Rev, who despised them, responded dryly.

“If they’re still alive.”

Mercy? As if.

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