Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: The Cardinal's Request (3)
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"These are the new supplies."
Just as I had hoped, Ianus provided ample support to the 13th Unit before our departure.
He supplied us with all sorts of equipment and consumables, but the one that drew the most attention was the Grade 2 Shario forged in the workshop of Shario, the master swordsmith.
"Edwin, you take this one."
"Me? You mean I'm supposed to use this?"
Edwin's eyes widened as he received the brilliantly shining sword.
"Isn't this the same sword used by Captain Ridcamp of the 1st Unit? For a 4-star Grade 2 Knight like me to wield something like this..."
"You can already compress your sword aura to form a sword extension. The Grade 3 Shario's mana capacity can't handle your full power."
"Even so, a sword this expensive..."
"And you're no longer a Grade 2 Knight."
"Huh?"
"I just heard from Advisor Gustav. You've been promoted to Grade 1 Knight."
"......!"
"Grade 1 Knights receive a Knight Badge, so go pick yours up from Advisor Gustav later."
Edwin's eyes welled up with tears as an expression of deep emotion crossed his face.
This guy's goal is to become an Iron Guard Knight who can wield sword beams. He's now one step closer to that dream.
"Oh, and Lieselotte. You're a Grade 1 Knight too."
"It's not all that exciting since I got it right after Edwin."
"If you don't like it, you can just stay a Grade 2 Knight."
"No thanks. Grade 1 Knights get a pay raise."
Lieselotte, who had likewise been promoted to Grade 1 Knight, brushed back her hair with a smile.
Now both of the people who passed the enlistment exam alongside me had become Grade 1 Knights.
"But Sir Sion, that Knight Badge on your chest..."
"It's the Iron Guard Knight Badge."
"Wow......"
Upon receiving the title of Iron Guard, a Grade 1 Knight adds an Iron Guard-exclusive Knight Badge next to their existing one.
In Ianus's case, he wore the Grade 1 Knight Badge, Iron Guard Knight Badge, Martial Rank Knight Badge, Heaven Rank Knight Badge, and Sky Rank Knight Badge all together.
"Sir Sion, I'll work hard to earn that badge too."
"Edwin, you'll get it in no time."
This wasn't empty flattery.
Edwin's growth rate was genuinely astonishing.
Part of it was because I was teaching him directly, but his innate talent was exceptional.
"We've received our new equipment, so everyone get properly prepared. We'll be heading out on the next mission soon."
"Understood, Captain!"
As I listened to my subordinates' responses, I made my own preparations for the mission.
* * *
The date was eventually set, and I led the 13th Unit members on our way.
Last time we headed west, but this time it was east.
Because our destination, the territory of Count Kraus, lay to the east.
But we weren't going alone this time.
"Hmm, this carriage is terribly uncomfortable."
He was one of the people who had accompanied Cardinal Epit Raus last time—a man called Bishop Mateur.
He was around thirty years old and clearly put a lot of effort into his appearance, constantly fussing with his bangs whenever he had a free moment.
"Please keep a good watch on our surroundings. We can't have anything happening before we even arrive."
Mateur was the representative sent by the Holy Spirit Church.
He was going with us to Count Kraus's territory to retrieve the holy relic, but he seemed to think he outranked us.
"A Holy Spirit Church bishop is technically higher status than us knights, but that doesn't make him our superior, right?"
"Exactly. We're just cooperating."
"He seems to have a serious misunderstanding."
Lieselotte whispered to me in disbelief.
"Sir Sion, you're going to show him who's boss, right?"
"What do you want me to do?"
"When someone tries to act tough, you immediately crush them. That's your style."
"What do you take me for?"
"At least, that's the Sir Sion I've seen so far."
"I have some sense. How am I supposed to crush a Holy Spirit Church bishop?"
"So you're just going to let him keep acting like this? He was hitting on that female knight nearby earlier."
"That's a bit much."
To ordinary knights, a Holy Spirit Church bishop is a pretty high-ranking figure.
It would be hard for them to even show their displeasure.
"I'll go check it out for now."
I approached the carriage Mateur was riding in.
"Bishop Mateur."
"Hmm? What is it, Knight Captain?"
Mateur was lounging inside the carriage alone, legs stretched out leisurely.
On top of that, he was munching on some sugar cookies.
When he was with Cardinal Epit Raus, he had carried himself with dignity, but now he was completely relaxed.
"I hear you're a 6-star mage, Bishop."
"That's right."
"Impressive. It must take a lot of study to reach 6-star mage."
"Haha. Yes, it does. But thanks to that, I've gained tremendous power."
Mateur spoke with evident smugness.
"The power of magic is magnificent. Even among 6-stars, there's a huge gap between a 6-star mage and a 6-star knight."
"Is that so? Well, that's convenient then."
"Pardon?"
"If you're that strong, you probably don't need our protection."
"What do you......"
Before Mateur could finish speaking,
Voices rang out from around us.
"Monsters!"
"M-monsters?!"
Mateur flinched and poked his head out of the carriage.
But when an arrow whizzed past his ear, he hastily pulled it back in.
"A large group of goblins! They were ambushing us from the forest!"
"Lots of archers! Everyone, stay sharp!"
"Shield bearers up front! Form ranks!"
The unit members shouted orders and moved with perfect coordination.
"G-goblins? Aren't those the super weak low-grade monsters? Why is everyone making such a fuss..."
Despite having just cowered inside the carriage from an arrow, Mateur was now blustering with all his might.
"You don't understand. Goblins are fairly dangerous monsters."
"What? Aren't they low-grade?"
"They're tool-using bipedal creatures. In that sense, they're as dangerous as 'humans.'"
"What nonsense... Ugh!"
An incoming arrow thudded into the carriage.
Mateur had nearly been pierced by it.
"Especially when over a hundred of them shoot arrows in unison, they're quite threatening."
"Th-those puny things? My magic can handle... Ugh!"
Another arrow flew in, and Mateur shrank back in terror.
If I hadn't swung my sword to knock it out of the air, he would have been hit.
[This guy's got almost no combat experience.]
'Yeah, just like Helena confirmed.'
We had been given basic info when assigned the mission, but I'd met with Helena separately to gather more details.
She'd made no secret of her dislike upon seeing my face, but after some smooth talking, she gave me the information.
Among it was the fact that Bishop Mateur was a bureaucrat with virtually no field experience.
"Then, Bishop, I'll be off now."
"W-where are you going?"
"To hunt the goblins."
"W-wait! Stay by my side!"
"You want me by your side? Are you courting me in the middle of this?"
"What are you talking about?!"
Mateur flushed red and snapped in outrage.
"I mean stay by my side and protect me! Block arrows like you did earlier!"
"Aren't you a 6-star mage stronger than any 6-star knight? You don't need my protection."
"I-it's standard for knights to guard mages while they prepare their spells!"
"Fine, then I'll assign another knight as your escort. Oh, but..."
"What now?!"
"After seeing you pester that female knight earlier, no one seems eager to come near you, Bishop."
"......!"
"Nothing to be done. Protect yourself, oh great 6-star mage."
"W-wait... Aaaah!"
Thud thud!
A barrage of arrows slammed into the carriage.
One even pierced the hem of Mateur's robe.
[Even in this situation, the horses are fine.]
'Because the others are protecting them.'
We were trained to properly guard the horses during ranged attacks like this.
The carriage, on the other hand, wasn't a priority. No one would be huddling inside it in a situation like this.
"K-Knight Captain! Please! Protect me!"
"Is that an order?"
"W-what?"
"An order or a request? Make it clear."
"Wh-what happens if it's an order, and what if it's a request?"
"In the chain of command, you have no authority to give orders, Bishop. So if it's an order, I'll ignore it as field commander."
"Wh-what if it's a request?"
"Then you owe me one."
"......!"
"What'll it be, Bishop?"
Thud thud thud!
Several more arrows struck the carriage simultaneously.
Unable to endure it any longer, Mateur screamed.
"P-please help me, Knight Captain! I beg you!"
"If it's a request, I have no choice."
I reached into the carriage and hauled Mateur out.
"Wh-what are you doing?!"
"It's safer by my side than cowering in the carriage."
"Wh-what... Aaaah!"
I hoisted Mateur over one shoulder and leaped into the air.
As I soared high and scanned our surroundings, the goblin archers encircling us all turned their attention to me.
"Now!"
Edwin and the others didn't miss the opening.
They charged the distracted goblins, inflicting fatal wounds.
Some goblins loosed arrows at me, but with their crude bows, hitting me high in the sky was no easy feat.
"There's what looks like the leader at the 7 o'clock position. I'll handle that side."
"7 o'clock is wh... Aaaah!"
I deflected the arrows flying my way with Ashurai, landed, and charged toward the goblins at the 7 o'clock position.
The goblins seemed thrown off by the sight of me barreling toward them with a man slung over my shoulder.
I didn't let the moment slip, and over ten goblins fell in an instant.
"Kerrrr......!"
A massive goblin that appeared to be the leader roared and raised its sword.
As it charged, I hurled Mateur skyward.
"Aaaah?!"
While Mateur screamed as he flew high into the air,
I unleashed a sword beam with Ashurai and cleaved the brute goblin in two.
"Aaaaah!"
"You're fine."
I caught the plummeting Mateur one-handed.
His golden hair was a total mess, but he wasn't hurt anywhere.
"B-blood! There's blood on me!"
"You must have bitten your lip."
That hardly counted as an injury.
I glanced around to see that the rest of the goblins had mostly been taken care of by my subordinates.
[It's almost over. Just like you planned.]
As Igzard said, this goblin ambush was exactly what I'd orchestrated.
I'd sent Dietrich ahead first to scout a route prone to monster attacks.
I'd deliberately taken that path to lure the goblins into striking.
"Bishop Mateur."
"K-Knight Captain......"
I set Mateur down on the ground and spoke in a calm voice.
"Transporting the holy relic will be a perilous journey. Incidents like this will happen all the time."
"A-all the time? Things like this?"
"Yes. So for your safety, Bishop, you'll need to follow my instructions."
"F-follow your instructions?"
"When it comes to this sort of thing, we're the experts. Obey my orders, and you'll complete the mission safely."
"You have no authority over me, Knight Captain... Ugh!"
Boom!
A sword thrown by a dying goblin nearly impaled Mateur, but I knocked it away just in time.
Mateur looked like he was about to wet himself.
"Got it, Bishop?"
"Y-yes... Knight Captain."
"Good."
I noted that Mateur had added the honorific when addressing me.
Just as I'd sensed at first glance, this was the type who responded well to being handled this way.
[He's completely cowed. Just like you intended.]
'I figured this approach would work best.'
As a bonus, the unit got some real combat training, and it wrapped up nicely.
"Well, the goblins seem dealt with, so let's get moving again. You can climb back into the carriage."
"Wh-what about all the arrows stuck in the carriage?"
"Pull them out yourself."
"......"
There wouldn't be any internal issues on the way to the count's territory now.