Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Scar-7
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"Sorry, but you'll have to clear out the inn tomorrow. They've even got this old man picking up a spear to fight."
"That's fine. We were planning to fight anyway."
"Thanks. Well, we can't run away anyway... but at least this boosts my daughter's chances of survival a little."
I couldn't guarantee it. With me here, the front lines wouldn't collapse right away, but there were no absolutes on a battlefield.
No matter how easy orcs might seem, they were stronger than regular soldiers. The moment swords clashed, whether a man lived or died was up to the goddess of fate.
"If you're really scared, just stick by my side! I might look like this now, but back in the day, I was quite the fighter!"
The maid had already donned leather armor and was gripping a sword and shield, striking poses this way and that.
I didn't know much about adventurers, but her gear looked convincing enough.
Swords in this world were handmade, even the cheap ones. They weren't masterworks by any means, but adventurers didn't buy them on a whim.
Factoring in the cost of a shield and leather armor, she was clearly someone who invested in herself without skimping—and whose skills had been proven at least to some degree.
Of course, even people like that died.
"I'll be counting on you."
In situations like this, people usually eyed outsiders warily. But these folks had welcomed me without a second thought.
At least I was glad they didn't regret the decision.
"Well, we'd have ended up meeting anyway. They round up all the adventurers and wandering knights in one spot... Ah, can the young lady fight too?"
Seris cutely swung her hand around, mimicking a fight.
"Just hand me a sword, and I'll sweep them all away!"
"That's enough, that's enough. We'll come back alive with the lady you serve, so just wait here."
The maid gave her head a quick pat, then roughly shook awake the adventurers who had passed out drunk.
"Get up, you pigs! How long are you planning to sleep?"
"We might die today—ain't this a bit stingy?"
"We won't die. So quit your pathetic whining and get up, moron! Unless you want my sword instead of an orc's!"
Despite the desperate situation, they still hadn't lost their composure.
"Straight into battle?"
"Yeah. They say we sortie the moment we gather. Honestly, I don't get why we have to tangle with the orcs first. Can't we just dig some traps or something..."
It didn't feel good. I had a hunch this fight might be tougher than expected.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "An orc horde has appeared. At least a thousand strong. We must dispatch the army as quickly as possible."
The news reached the palace a bit late. But not every minister treated it as urgent.
"Who will send troops first?"
No one spoke up.
It wasn't that there were no armies. Soldiers assembled from across the lands to hold back the Demon King's forces were standing by, ready for deployment at any moment.
But they refused to budge.
"We need to ascertain the enemy's numbers first. Better than sending half-baked forces one after another to get picked off piecemeal—we should act on solid intel."
Creon's words were spot on. Not a single soldier could be wasted lightly.
But with the Demon King dead, time was even more critical if they wanted to save one more citizen.
"The territory where the orcs appeared has no citadel and a shortage of standing troops. Before the villages are razed..."
The Emperor paused. The situation was worse than he'd imagined.
The armies under the Emperor's direct command were limited. Maintaining them was costly in itself, and his loyal guards were already committed to essential fronts.
The front lines hadn't ended yet. There were no massive monster assaults, but they still needed to reclaim occupied lands and guard against potential raids.
And that gap had been filled by Elenor's overwhelming might and her knight order, naturally.
But he couldn't bring himself to order her into action—not when even he felt her spirit broken.
There were many of imperial blood, and no shortage of those gunning for her life. Elenor, who had confronted the nobles as the Emperor's sword in his stead, received no support from them.
What sustained her life was her power as a hero and the people's backing.
The strength to cleave crude assassins or thugs in a single stroke, and the renown that would make soldiers refuse orders to march against her even if thousands were sent.
But right now, she had neither. Sending the princess with unreliable noble armies was too dangerous.
"Your Majesty, the lords are growing weary."
Crown was the type to mull things over repeatedly before choosing safe words. For him to speak so bluntly meant the situation allowed it.
Normally, the nobles would have followed the Emperor's command alone. He carried that much authority.
Or ambitious lords would have thrown in their own troops to curry imperial favor.
"Defense of a territory is the lord's responsibility from the start. With the Demon King's army gone, shouldn't we follow imperial law?"
And the reason that lord's troops were depleted was because he, a staunch supporter of the princess, had zealously conscripted them.
For the empire's sake, that territory had to be defended. Those who devoted themselves to the Emperor deserved reward.
Once trust broke, nobles would hoard private armies again. Those swelling forces would threaten neighbors, forcing the empire to raise more troops to check them.
Ironically, the inability to save that territory now stemmed from the very issue of trust.
Unlike before, he couldn't instill confidence that service to the Emperor would be rewarded.
For now, things were limping along somehow, but eventually, the Emperor would have to concede something. His authority would shake further.
The Emperor sensed his throne crumbling. He was paying the price for his choices.
"If that lord had even a shred of competence, this wouldn't have happened."
"Charging an improvised army straight at orcs—has he read too many chivalric romances, or does he have no concept of battlefields at all..."
The Emperor understood why he'd made that choice. And ironically, that was the very reason he couldn't commit his last reserves.
In the end, no decision came by the meeting's close. No one yielded an inch for others' gain.
Those who would suffer as time passed were either voiceless or absent from the chamber.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "No."
Elenor believed it wasn't too late to recover.
Even without hero powers, she was still a swordmaster. Her body was a wreck, far from fit to wield a blade, but with ample rest and time, it could improve.
But the intel from her informant was more shocking than imagined.
"Impossible. So close to the capital... there's no way that many orcs could appear."
"The scouts' reports align. Numbers vary slightly, but a massive orc horde is on the move."
"...Has this report reached His Majesty?"
"Yes. It's already on the council agenda. But..."
No soldiers had stirred. No reinforcements came. That much was obvious without separate reports.
"Was Erenel's presence there reported too?"
"It was."
Then the Emperor must feel the same threat she did.
A horde of thousands couldn't slip across the border like assassins.
The borders were riddled with gaps from the Demon King battles, true—but a force that size should have been spotted long ago.
"...They're multiplying."
Dozens or hundreds, though? That changed things. Skirting villages caused no damage, and they could infiltrate unnoticed amid the barrage of monster raids.
"You're saying orcs are just multiplying?"
"If there's demonic energy. And a suitable catalyst. The lord chose a field battle, right?"
"Yes."
She'd met the lord a few times. No tactical genius, but he grasped basic reason.
To face a thousand orcs, it'd be far more efficient to use detachments to lure and ambush them.
But if that thousand swelled to three or five thousand in days, gathering every soldier and striking immediately to rout them was the only viable strategy.
"An Orc Lord has slipped in."
With the Demon King dead, few monsters could amass enough demonic energy to spawn hordes.
The Emperor holding back his final guards likely stemmed from fearing that wildcard.
Reinhardt was strong enough to cross blades with an Orc Lord, but if his forces were too thin and he got surrounded by orcs, he'd lose his life.
"At least him, we have to save..."
"If he hasn't left by now, he plans to join the fight."
"I see."
This time too, he was there. Standing in that place to save even one more soul.
Elenor had pinned her hopes on that figure. She'd deceived herself, leaning toward the comforting interpretation.
Treating him—like a slave shackled by iron chains at the ankle—despite no obligation binding him.
Taking his sacrifice and devotion for granted.
Elenor had no more lies left in her.