273. Hinnes Protection Army
273. Hinnes Protection Army
- 1 -
The capital of the Hinnes Duchy, Hainnod.
In the faint light of dawn, the outline of the castle slowly revealed itself.
This city, which had once guarded the northern border of Haisen, was now the heart of an independent duchy.
"From this moment onward! The Hinnes Duchy shall be protected by our two kingdoms!"
"Do not harm civilians! But for their protection, all weapons within the territory shall be confiscated!"
... No, that had been the case.
There were three flags in total upon the castle walls.
In the center, the golden dragon wings of the Hinnes Duchy.
On the left, a black eagle on a yellow field, the royal army of Kakia.
On the right, five swords embroidered on a pink field, Elieniesi.
These three flags were raised high, fluttering violently in the wind.
"We protect this place!"
"We have defended this land from the clutches of Kiza!"
The cheers echoed along the wall.
But the truth hidden beneath those cries was different.
There were only two armies present here.
Beneath the shadows cast by the flags through which the rising sun shone, the knights of Kakia in golden armor and the knights of Elieniesi in pink cloaks gathered, each forming a regiment.
In this place that had been Hinnes territory just a week ago, there was no Hinnes army.
It was filled with only two foreign forces.
"A historic moment."
Atop the wall, the old Lord of Fei Post, who had guarded the southern border of Kakia, smiled with satisfaction.
The epaulet symbolizing his position as commander of Kakia glinted on his shoulder.
"Indeed. It is as if we have finally reclaimed our rightful land."
The duke who had come as Elieniesi's commander stroked his beard.
Though he had little military experience, his adjutant served as the Knight Commander of Elieniesi.
"Now let us divide the territory as agreed."
The duke's words were laced with caution.
Though they had been allies moments before, it was now time to become rivals again.
The Lord shook his head.
"Of course. The west and north to Kakia. The east and south to Elieniesi. But you must be careful with your words. We are merely 'protecting' Hinnes, not occupying it."
"Ho ho ho."
The duke narrowed his eyes at the Lord's words.
The Lord was right. In truth, they had come to quickly claim land for themselves while keeping the northward-advancing Haisen in check, but the pretext was purely to come and protect this land against the invasion of the Kiza Kingdom.
It was a time when yesterday's ally became today's enemy, and today's enemy became tomorrow's ally once again.
"An age of strife."
"But our kingdoms shall be eternal."
The peaceful era was gradually turning into an age of chaos.
Under the touch of someone they knew nothing of.
Flap!
The wind blew again.
The flags of the two nations fluttered violently as if trying to overwhelm one another.
As if signaling the prelude to the coming war.
- 2 -
The eastern mountain fortress of Hinnes territory.
"They are entering the castle!"
A cry came from the city's north gate.
Elieniesi's expeditionary knight order, pink cloaks billowing, was marching in a grand procession.
Among the knight order, multiple flags fluttered vividly.
Occasionally there were flags of Hinnes, but most belonged to Elieniesi.
The city had already fallen.
Just the night before, the city's east gate had opened, and Elieniesi's army had poured in.
The Hinnes garrison did not resist.
Because their pretext was 'protection.'
"This is occupation... it's clearly occupation!"
An old soldier whispered in a trembling voice. Anger and fear mingled on his wrinkled face.
Those around him looked at him with tense eyes.
Everyone knew the truth, but no one spoke it aloud.
"Be quiet, old sir. The walls have ears."
Just then, a passing knight cast a suspicious glance at them.
The people hurriedly bowed their heads.
All over the city, Elieniesi knights were already entering every house, searching for something.
Under the pretense of 'replenishing expended armaments,' they were ransacking every home.
"If you take this, how am I supposed to do my work?! I am an adventurer whose home base is here!"
"It will be returned when the protection period is over. For now, submit it quietly. It is a measure for your safety..."
"Who believes that! Even as you're doing this!"
"You are now insulting the Royal Army of Elieniesi."
The Elieniesi officer exclaimed, but contrary to his words, the soldiers were taking not only weapons but also gold, silver, treasures, and even food.
The adventurer protested vehemently, but in the end, there was no choice but to have his weapons taken.
"The Guild will not stand idly by for this!!"
"Do as you please."
Above the protesting adventurer and the sneering officer, Elieniesi's flag, now atop the castle, fluttered vigorously.
Its shadow was like that of a predator covering the entire city.
"With this, the entire eastern region of Hinnes has come under our control, Your Excellency."
A senior knight reported.
His armor was clean aside from the old scars it bore.
It meant there had been no great difficulty in seizing this fortress.
The duke's adjutant, the Knight Commander, who had climbed the high tower of the castle and looked down upon the city, smiled with satisfaction.
"Well done. Now what remains is..."
His gaze turned south. Not toward Haisen, but toward the Kiza Kingdom.
"This is merely the beginning. We must also bring the northeastern part of Kiza under our 'protection.'"
The Knight Commander murmured.
The Kiza Kingdom, which had originally proposed dividing this land into three and occupying it, was already an enemy.
And driving out enemy forces to seize and settle upon their land was a perfectly natural (fate) thing in war.
- 3 -
The border area between Hinnes territory and Kiza. The entrance to a small mountain range that encloses Hinnes to the south and east.
"Retreat! Everyone retreat!"
A despairing cry cut across the field at the entrance of that mountain range.
The expeditionary army of the Kiza Kingdom, split in two. The last unit of that expeditionary force was crumbling.
The remnants of Marcus's army, which had proudly set off on an expedition mere weeks ago, were now barely holding on, surrounded by the armies of Kakia and Elieniesi pressing in from all sides.
"The jackals of Kakia and Elieniesi. These treacherous bastards!!"
A young officer shouted in a desperate voice.
But there was no one to answer his cry.
Behind them, several kilometers away, the border fortress between the Kiza Kingdom and Hinnes was already burning.
The army of Kakia had captured the fortress and was attempting to advance into Kiza territory.
"Hurry! We must secure the border and cross over!"
Kakia's supreme commander, the Lord of Fei Post, shouted.
The eagle flag on a yellow field fluttered above his horse.
"Advance!!"
Across the river bisecting the plain, further south, Elieniesi's vanguard was already advancing into Kiza territory.
At their forefront, Elieniesi's Knight Commander himself led them astride a horse clad in gleaming silver armor.
The armies of the two nations raced southward, as if competing, as if by agreement.
Hinnes had already been conquered, and now their gazes turned toward a weakened Kiza.
It was then.
Ppuu—
A low, clear horn rang out, and a black wave appeared upon the distant southeastern horizon.
At first it was only a faint silhouette, but it grew clearer until the form of a massive army was revealed.
Knights clad in black iron armor and infantry following behind them.
And among them fluttered a flag depicting a purple daffodil and a black dragon.
"It's the Haisen army!!"
Someone in Kakia's vanguard shouted.
A stir spread among the soldiers.
Just a few kilometers from the Kiza border, the Haisen army led by Daniel was unfolding a grand encampment.
Their flag rose high toward the foreign invaders like a warning.
"Just as Master expected," Daniel said. A smile rose on his face.
Now it was Haisen's turn to become a symbol of peace.
- 4 -
The great river that began in Haisen, passed through Orbis, and flowed into the Aririt Duchy. The Foile.
The northernmost city on that river in the Aririt Duchy, Ranhan.
A place that could now be called the fortress of Echidna, the White Lamia Queen.
Chalpak.
In the early morning, before the fog had fully lifted, a woman set foot in this port city.
Wrapped in a plain gray cloak, the woman looked unremarkable. She carried a worn leather bag in one hand and leaned on a staff with the other.
But there was a peculiar awkwardness in the woman's gait.
Every time she touched the ground, she walked with a careful manner, as if stepping on something soft rather than solid.
That walk, which appeared merely elegant on the surface, felt as if a creature that had lived its entire life underwater was walking on land for the first time.
"The mana reaction begins from here."
The murmuring woman's voice was peculiar.
It was a sound laced with a unique resonance, as if echoing underwater.
Wepar.
She was Dantalion's subordinate and a marquis-class dungeon lord.
Though she usually did not move from the far northern tip of the northern demon realm while keeping Astaroth in check, she had gone out on a rare outing.
"Even if it's an order, to have to assume such an appearance..."
And in a contemptible human form, at that.
Sarak... sarak...
Despite being on the surface, her footsteps sounded as if brushing through a waterway, and she left the port to enter the city.
"The goods came cheap today! Come take a look!"
"Ah, you'll regret it if you don't take them!"
The beautiful streets of Ranhan, adorned with white marble and blue accents, were already bustling with many people despite the early morning.
This port city of the Aririt Duchy, now the domain of the new power of Aririt, the Lamia Queen Echidna, was always a place frequented by various merchants and travelers.
The fact that she was actually a subordinate of Libertas was something few people in the world knew.
Including Wepar, who had now come here.
"Now where..."
Standing on the castle wall, Wepar paused her steps briefly and closed her eyes.
Beneath her eyelids, her pupils moved rapidly, and a faint blue light seeped out.
"Six... no, seven."
What her low voice referred to was the result of sensing the presence of demonic beings nearby.
Excluding the Lamias, the unique snake monsters who had become human rulers despite being monsters, it was about the number of dungeon lords hiding in the plains beyond.
A dungeon lord of the marquis rank could exert this level of ability even in a location far from their core.
"Strange. Truly..."
From the outskirts of this city to deep inside those plains, she had detected the presence of seven dungeon lords.
They were all only at the apprentice or official level, but the number was no ordinary matter.
"Why are so many dungeon lords alive."
The inland region of the Eastern Continent did have many dungeon lords raised by humans.
But that sort of thing was done in secret.
The principle of human adventurers was to subjugate dungeons built on the plains and recover the cores and dungeon lord bodies.
Wepar, having lived long on the surface, knew this well.
'Even the demon realms are no different in this regard.'
The masters of the demon realms commanded many dungeon lords.
But if they were deemed to have no potential, it was normal to mercilessly kill that lord, recover the corpse and core, and use them as materials for other lords.
But this place...
The master of this land, whom she could not tell whether was a dungeon lord or an adventurer's guild, was strangely leaving many dungeon lords alive.
And there was one more oddity.
'... The mana pattern. This again.'
Wepar entered a deserted alley and unfolded a map.
Red dots were already marked on her map. They were the locations of dungeon lords she had detected in southern Haisen and inside the Orbis Duchy.
She had rushed here to confirm whether the Lamia Queen active in this area was a dungeon lord, but she was not one.
To be precise, she was not one 'yet,' but Wepar had no way of knowing that.
"They all possessed similar mana patterns. As if they came from the same source. ... Like a demon realm."
Her finger moved slowly across the map.
The distribution formed by the red dots seemed to gather toward a single center.
"The center is... the capital of the Orbis Duchy, Atrium."
Wepar stared intently at that spot, then tucked the map back into her bosom.
"I should return."
The number of dungeons grew scarcer the further south she came.
It ultimately meant that there was some secret in Atrium.
She moved her feet again and exited Ranhan.
The direction was north, and the destination was Atrium.
But Wepar did not know.
That what she had discovered was only a part of something far greater.