Under Airen’s command, the soldiers of the Brans army began to charge towards Jeilant Castle in unison.
“Fire!”
At Lunarien’s command from the walls, the elite archers of the Raven Mercenary Group began to unleash a barrage of arrows. The overwhelming number of arrows raining down seemed to inflict significant damage on the enemy soldiers, but-
‘There are too many…!’
It was an army of over 20,000 men.
Of course, not all 20,000 were attacking the east gate, but even if the soldiers were divided, their number was still overwhelming. It was clear that they couldn’t be completely stopped by arrows alone.
Moreover.
Stones were being launched from catapults in the distance.
Boom!
The enormous sound was so loud it seemed to pierce through the soldiers’ shouts, assaulting Lunarien’s eardrums. The situation was disadvantageous.
Thankfully, Sven had focused on reinforcing the walls, or else they might have already breached the gates, a thought that filled her with dread.
‘Sven…!’
Sven had said it.
That negotiating a truce was the only way. She wasn’t exactly sure how he would negotiate such a truce, but Lunarien trusted Sven. He was her first comrade who had joined and became her first strategist.
‘I’m counting on you… I’ll hold out as long as I can… as quickly as possible…!’
Then, the scene shifts back below the walls.
Tifa, standing in front of the gate with her axe raised, shouted loudly to her soldiers.
“Everyone! Prioritize attacking the catapults! Got it?!”
“Uoooooo!!!”
As if to demonstrate the results of their usual training, the soldiers under Tifa fought bravely against the enemy.
Despite the clear difference in numbers, the morale of the soldiers didn’t falter. After all, their great general, Tifa, was leading them from the front.
“Come at me all at once, you scoundrels!”
Tifa swung her axe freely, slaughtering the enemy soldiers. Her speed of cutting through them was even faster than the arrows raining down from the walls, causing a slight stir among the soldiers of the Brans army.
“What, what is that monster…?!”
“They’re coming this way!”
Realizing her soldiers’ formation was breaking, Airen quickly assessed the situation. Up ahead, a female general was wielding her axe, overwhelming her soldiers.
‘Hoh.’
Even for a small country, they seemed to have some capable people. Airen shouted to her soldiers.
“Everyone, fall back!”
At Airen’s command, the battle momentarily ceased. She then slowly advanced on her horse.
“My name is Airen Juliette. What’s your name?”
“What do you care, you rascal!”
Tifa pointed her axe at Airen and said.
“If you want to fight, come at me directly instead of wasting time with such trivial talk!”
Although a person who valued chivalry might find this rude, Airen seemed to like Tifa’s response, chuckling lowly.
“You’re as wild as a beast. I like people like you. But!”
Clang!
The sound of their axe and giant sword clashing echoed as if to consume the heavens and earth.
“People with such a wild spirit like yours tend to have short lives. What a pity!”
“Why are you so talkative?! Come at me, you brat!”
Clang!
The two exchanged several blows, sizing each other up.
That alone was enough to gauge each other’s skills.
It was Tifa who felt panic at this point.
‘…She’s strong, this woman!’
Knight Airen.
Tifa had, of course, heard the name. However, Tifa believed more in what she saw and heard than in rumors. The rumors mentioned Airen’s exceptional skills in siege warfare, not much about her individual combat skills, so Tifa thought she was average.
After exchanging a few blows, Tifa realized something without much difficulty. She couldn’t win against this woman with her abilities!
‘Damn it!’
But.
If they were to measure everything in this way, how could Lunarien’s army, which Tifa belonged to, ever hope to defeat the mighty Brans army? Moreover, that effeminate young strategist said he would definitely achieve a truce.
So-
‘I have to hold out! I must hold out here!’
Clang!
“How about putting a bit more heart into it? If not, you might really die.”
Biting her lip, Tifa shouted back at Airen.
“It’s your head that’s going to roll on the ground! Come at me, you brat!”
“Haah!”
Turning the situation around now depended solely on the strategist, Sven. Tifa kept clashing her axe against an unbeatable opponent, thinking only of holding out until Sven’s results came back.
* * *
I rode my horse at breakneck
speed. If I were going to Kihara Castle, where I stayed before joining Lunarien’s army, I would have arrived in a day, but Lynn Brans, the lord, resided further away in Anel Castle. Day and night, sleeping sparingly in the saddle, I somehow managed to reach Anel Castle.
‘Should I just go straight to the palace?’
In the game, clicking the ‘Diplomacy’ button and then ‘Execute’ would directly lead to an audience with the ruler of another country, but trying to meet a ruler in reality was far more complicated.
“Stop!”
Already being stopped at the castle gate like this.
“Who are you?”
‘…Hmm, will this work?’
I couldn’t use the 1,300 gold brought for diplomacy. I took out 30 gold from my personal wallet. It was a significant amount, but if I couldn’t get in, Lunarien’s army would be doomed.
“I’m not suspicious. Perhaps this could help?”
“……Hmm… Well, you may enter!”
Fortunately, it worked. I had expected it to. Although there was no such setting in this [Garland Eternity Saga] I entered, another game of a similar genre developed by the same company allowed bribing guards.
Anyway, I safely entered the interior of Anel Castle.
‘Wow.’
Entering the castle, I was immediately captivated by the scenery unfolding before my eyes. The metropolitan landscape, like something out of a fantasy game trailer, made me realize anew that I had entered another world. The only cities I had seen so far were the ordinary-sized Kihara Castle and the nearly crumbling small town of Jeilant Castle. The number of people walking around was significantly larger.
The reputation of the largest castle in the central continent was well-deserved.
‘I don’t have time to waste.’
I immediately looked for what seemed to be the royal palace.
It wasn’t hard to find.
In the center stood a castle with a spire that unmistakably looked like it belonged to a sovereign.
‘It has to be there. Let’s go.’
I quickly made my way towards the castle.
*
Entering the castle gates, I worried about being unnecessarily hassled by the guards, making it difficult to meet the sovereign. Fortunately, meeting the sovereign turned out to be easier than expected. Of course, I underwent a light body check, and soldiers flanked me as if to monitor my every move, but I didn’t mind. It was a small price to pay for an audience with the ruler, certainly better than being turned away and wasting more time.
‘Wow.’
The interior of Anel Castle was lavishly decorated.
The furnishings looked incredibly expensive, and various decorations exuded both intimidation and majesty, making me, an outsider, feel quite insignificant. Considering that the royal hall of Jeilant Castle was nothing more than a brick room, the difference was stark.
In the game, the design of the castle interiors was unified, so I didn’t notice it much.
But thinking about it, this level of disparity seemed much more realistic. Well, this is reality itself, so discussing realism seems a bit absurd.
‘Indeed, big companies do it better.’
After following the soldiers for some time,
“Wait here.”
One of the soldiers guarding me said, then opened a door and went in. Shortly after,
“Come inside.”
Good.
Finally, I was going to have an audience with the sovereign. Recalling the dialogues from the game, I entered with a slightly fluttering heart.
*
The door opened.
I stepped into the corridor leading to the audience chamber of Anel Castle.
A long red carpet was laid out, and on both sides stood people who appeared to be generals of the Brans army, lined up in a row. Their unanimous gaze might have intimidated someone else, but not me.
‘I have no reason to be nervous.’
Right now, I was the ‘superior party’ here to negotiate a ‘100% certain’ agreement. They had to accept my proposal. There was no other outcome. My intelligence of 100 predicted so. With that confidence, I walked forward unabashedly.
And finally.
I arrived in front of the audience chamber.
Inside were the sovereign, a messenger, two guards monitoring my actions, and the sovereign’s strategist.
As a diplomat, this place – the audience chamber of the castle – was my actual battleground. I felt the sensation of being an away team visiting the home ground as I slowly opened the door.
The door closed.
Before me sat a woman on the throne, exuding an air of ennui.
Long blue hair and eyes as blue as her hair.
A beautiful appearance with dignity.
Though she possessed a beauty sparkling like jewels, it wasn’t just her ‘prettiness’ that was remarkable – an aura radiated from her that was impossible to define in words. It seemed only natural; this beautiful woman with a petite frame had surpassed her two elder brothers to ascend to the position of supreme ruler of the Brans army.
The Lynn Brans I remembered was simply a woman with blue hair. Her portrait in the game was pixelated, so her beauty didn’t really stand out.
But seeing her in person, it was undeniable.
Her bearing screamed that she was a ruler, someone who wouldn’t tolerate being subordinate to anyone. It was immediately apparent.
This was my first meeting with a female sovereign after Lunarien Iniang.
Lynn Brans looked at me and smiled faintly.
‘There’s… no one else.’
No strategist?
There were a few names that came to mind for the Brans army’s strategist, but perhaps there was some special circumstance. Or maybe they thought they could handle a diplomat from a small country like mine alone. Regardless, I had to do my best in the given situation.
I slowly knelt down.
And then, I uttered the line I had seen dozens of times in the game.
“I have come to deliver a message from our sovereign, Lunarien.”
Hearing my words, Lynn Brans chuckled as if amused, then spoke in a low voice.
“Oh my♡ Such a handsome face, and yet you dare to come as an envoy to a nation at war. Do you have a bit of a manly side too?”
Despite her words seeming to look down on me, I didn’t let her tone phase me. If I got swayed by such things here, I might as well quit being a strategist.
“Alright. Let’s hear it.”
I slowly raised my head.
The fate of Lunarien’s army rested on my shoulders.
It was time to use my eloquence.
Don’t be nervous.
It’s okay. I have an intelligence of 100.
“I would like to make an irresistible sweet proposal.”
“Oh? A sweet proposal, you say. I’m intrigued. What
is it?”
I, like a salesman selling a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, put on a brazen smile and spoke with as much confidence as I could muster.
“I will offer you 1,300 gold. Please enter into a truce agreement with our army.”
