Chapter 154 – Chapter 16

“Window!”
“Reload! Hurry up!”

As the armored skeletons came running, the urging of the commanders quickened.

It’s a problem that can be easily solved if talented people such as knights, wizards, and paladins face each other, but it’s only the first day, and all skeletons armed with armor, but if asymmetric forces or war weapons from the rear come forward, they won’t be able to exert their strength properly in an important phase.

Soldiers exist to prepare for situations like this.

‘I don’t know how strong the armored skeletons are, but I believe in the strength of my men here.’

How they can’t solve everything on their own.

Determined to rebuild the kingdom, Lillian couldn’t get involved in everything, so he decided to leave it to his subordinates.

If the enemy is stronger than expected, then it’s just a matter of stepping out.

“You just have to do what you’ve been trained for!”

He trained for half a year under the instructors Akina personally selected.

Wolf’s mercenaries implemented the basic tactic of spear musketry, which was to block the movement of enemy infantry with their spears.

“Free fire!”

Ordering free fire when ready, Lillian watched the situation.

The subordinates dutifully built a wall by erecting spears as if blocking the movement of the armored skeletons with spears, and when the magic musketeers behind them finished charging, they fired magic guns between the allies.

Perseok! Shred!

Skeletons that were hit in the head or body by the magic gun had holes in them.
The more you shoot at close range, the more powerful it is.

If it was a normal spear, it would not be easily knocked down due to the nature of the undead, but the magic gun’s attack made of mana distorts the flow of mana the undead have.

The story would be different if it was a medium or high level undead, but this level of attack was enough for a low level skeleton.

The skeletons with holes created by the magic gun fell down one by one.
However, there was a point in time when the mana of the soldiers who used the magic gun fell and it was impossible to recharge.

“Row 2 forward! Row 1 back!”
“Move first, magic musketeers! Spearmen are holding out for now!”

It is very difficult to change ranks in the middle of fighting an enemy, but having learned how to command under Akina, Lillian successfully switched his men into second ranks.

When the undead army was dealt with after shifting up to three rows, Akina checked the victim report and confirmed that the damage was very minor, took a short break, and then started moving again.

‘It would be nice to follow orders like this in future battles, but…’

Right now, he faithfully carries out his orders, but if he gets a chance to make a big contribution in the war against the kingdom of the dead, he doesn’t know what kind of sudden action he will take.

‘I didn’t want to start an unnecessary war like this in the first place.’

To be honest, Akina is against this war.

Even though the country is in a staggering situation, the king uses this as an opportunity rather than trying to stabilize it and tries to take away the power of the aristocracy.

The nobles forgot their duty to take responsibility for the people and the territory in order to gain the power of black soil, even though the money to send an expeditionary force here would be returned with several times the profit if they were used to develop the territory.

‘How many people will die of cold and hunger during this winter…’

She is an aristocrat with universal values ​​in this world who hate democracy that denies nobility and thinks that royalty and nobility should govern the people.

That’s why she sighs when she sees royalty and aristocrats playing with power instead of ruling the people, but as she has almost no central power, she has no choice but to win this war.

“It looks like you’ve confirmed this side’s combat power.”
“Hmm. Same idea.”
“Shall we scout the area?”
“No. They are undead with enough power to destroy a kingdom. If you send a griffin carelessly, there is a high chance that you will be shot down.”

The adjutants around her made various opinions, but Akina responded passively.

The undead, with powers that cannot be ignored, roam in the dark, completely blocking the sun, on their home ground.

Even if you scout with Griffin riders in this situation, it is impossible to check properly because of the darkness, and there is a high probability that you will be defeated individually.

That’s why the Griffin, which always moved as if scouting around the unit, is moving in formation at the top of the unit’s center.

‘Griffins can fly through the air and act as hammers anywhere, regardless of the terrain. Don’t waste it hastily.’

Griffin is a high-class soldier that can be used for multiple purposes besides reconnaissance, so she decided to keep it intact for now and checked her surroundings.

‘The deeper you go, the darker it gets.’

“Go to the Purification Knights and ask them if they can lift the clouds.”
“Yes!”

I didn’t say who was specific, but the adjutant who was nearby answered and rode his horse towards the purification knights.

After a while, the adjutant returned with a dark face.

“I asked about it, but they say that the cloud has a different kind, but it feels like black magic.
“Good work.”

Akina clicked her tongue inwardly at her adjutant’s explanation, raising her voice to command.

“Light the prepared torch!”

Still, I brought a lot of torches just in case, so I can only be content with this for now.

On the other hand, there was a duo of vampires who were secretly monitoring the appearance of humans invading their territory by lighting torches.

“It’s quite a strong army.”
“It’s been trained in civil war. Personally, I wanted to see the power of the strong man and the Knights of Purification, but it’s a pity.”
“You’re expecting our surveillance from the other side.”

A middle-aged man with pale skin treated with respect to a man who looked younger than himself, only a young man.

This happens because a vampire’s appearance is fixed based on when they became a vampire.

“It doesn’t matter because it was a reconnaissance with a low success rate anyway. Let’s go back now.”
“Yes. Oh, by the way.”
“Hmm?”
“Wouldn’t it be easier and simpler to just send skeletons or zombies in sequence?”

The middle-aged vampire suggested that it would be more convenient and simple to kill enemies with mass.

“The Queen wants a sure and overwhelming victory that is overwhelming, without any excuses. That’s why Shirin-sama was sent.”
“I feel very sorry for the aristocrat named Akina. I heard that she is one of the strongest people in the human world.”
“That’s why the Queen’s intentions will work better. Because we can show that we are not standing still because we are powerless.”

After confirming the atmosphere of the expeditionary force and the proficiency of the soldiers, they disappeared into the darkness.
Expressing condolences to those who are walking toward their own death.

*                           *

The expeditionary force, who learned that it was night through the clock, made a campsite after making a wooden fence with the trees they had brought.

It was so dark that it was impossible to see even in front of the eyes without lights, so the atmosphere was generally dark, but the Wolf Mercenary Corps was more noisy than the others, perhaps because of the results of their training.

“I can see why you’re shooting spears, shooting spears.”
“So. Normal cavalrymen and monsters can be easily dealt with with this one.”

They learned the power of the spearguns they used in actual combat.
However, the weakness of the spear gun came out easily.

“But it will be useless to those who are called strong.”
“That’s right. No matter how effective a tactic is, it won’t work against the strong.”

Spearheads clearly specialize in dealing with humans of comparable ability or cavalry of mediocre abilities.

If a few knights jump in, or if a powerful high-level monster attacks, the spearhead is easily neutralized.

Still, it remains unchanged that it is a much more effective tactic than fighting with the main heating.

“Enjoy your meal, everyone.”
“Kaisent, you too.”

At that time, Kaicent passed between the mercenaries.

He attended the meal with the leader and his party, but instead of lavishly eating like other wizards, he was filling his stomach with bread and soup like the mercenaries.

If it was like other people, they would wonder why they ate like that, but the mercenaries who lived with Kaisent for a long time noticed why they ate like that.

Everyone fills their stomachs with soup and bread, because only they don’t want to be treated specially.

“Really. He’s a stupidly nice guy.”
“So. You can be selfish like a kid in this part.”

Children of that age act selfishly to fill their stomachs, but Kaicent does not show such selfishness.

Meanwhile, Kaicent, who joined Lillian’s party, was filling his stomach by soaking bread in soup.

Now accustomed to the food culture of this world, he ate without complaining, but surprisingly, it was Lillian and Priscilla who complained first.

“Damn it. I left someone to cook for me.”
“So. Even if it’s bread, I made a rough soup.”

Until now, Kaicent has tried to create dishes that can produce various flavors even in difficult situations where ingredients are scarce.

So that the person who eats it feels delicious even a little bit.
But now, this soup doesn’t feel the slightest consideration for the people who eat it.

The soup is insipid, ignoring the balance of flavors of the ingredients, and is all about beating and boiling.

“Certainly, I think that it is not a bit much even if I think that the leisure time to eat is more important than the taste of food.”

After living a rough life with the master of the old world, I made Lilith, who valued leisure over taste, but complained about the soup that was made without thinking about it.

“I also wanted to cook myself, but Akina-sama stopped me. I heard that if a wizard does such a thing, other wizards will ignore it.”
“Haa. Anyway, the mage’s arrogance.”
“Wherever you go, wizards always start off as a brat.”
“Huh? In your world too?”
“That’s right. They talk about the laws of the world and ignore things like cooking because they’re trivial.”
“In any world, those who have learned are the problem.”

The party, who could now have this conversation with Lilith, pointed out the vain pride of the learned guys.

As they talked and passed the time, Kaisent finished eating all the food and started looking around.

“Don’t you think something is strange?”
“Weird idea? What?”
“The atmosphere isn’t too bad.”
“That’s normal…”
“I see. I’ve been feeling a strange sense of incongruity since before.”

When Lillian and Priscilla tilted their heads, only Lilith understood and shook her head.

“What discomfort do you mean?”

Artie, who couldn’t feel anything like energy, didn’t understand what Kaicent and Lilith were saying.

“This is a realm ruled by the dead. If you are in a place where the energy of death overflows, of course the atmosphere should be sluggish and sluggish.”
“But not only us, but others are not in a bad mood.”

Except for the dark beyond the normal level due to the clouds, the atmosphere of the expeditionary force is not bad.

In other words, they do not feel the aura of death unique to the undead.

When the dead moon appeared, Lilith and Priscilla, who remembered the time when the world was filled with the energy of death, noticed something strange.

“There is no energy of death in the land ruled by the dead?”
“What kind of situation is this…”

Unsurprisingly, they couldn’t figure out what this situation meant, so they came to the conclusion that they should just pay attention.

That day, there was not a single raid on the campsite.

The way the Command Kingdom can harass the Expeditionary Force to the maximum is to attack while they are sleeping.

A few quick-witted people sensed something was wrong, but had to keep their mouths shut because they didn’t know what the situation meant.

It’s not that we should be careful because the enemy has spread a strange energy, but we can’t say that we should be careful because we don’t feel the energy of death in the kingdom of the dead.

At that time, the cavalry soldiers Akina had sent for reconnaissance found something and returned.

“Count! I found a village!”
“What? Minga?”
“Yes! Surprisingly, there are people living there! Not the dead, but the living!”

At the report of the cavalry soldiers, Akina and those around her were surprised.

“There are living humans in the Realm of the Dead?”

Just when I was wondering how to accept this, the leader of the Purification Knights, who confirmed the situation, approached Akina.

“We’ll check. Please attach one escort.”

The leader, who had a profound impression and looked the best for the title of knightly knight, suggested that they check it out for themselves.

“It’s not something the Purification Knights will do directly. I think they know better about your importance.”
“I know. But I’d like to check it myself.”
“I refuse. We’ll take care of the verification work, so you guys can preserve your stamina.”
“…I knew.”

Akina judged that 100% power of the Purification Knights was necessary to prepare for an emergency, and prevented their sudden action.

Leaving behind the figure of Jeonghwa Knights Commander who went back saying she would understand, she and her lieutenants selected a unit to contact the village.

Doo doo doo doo–

“Um!? What is that unit!”

After a while, the cavalry came out of the main army.

“The Purification Knights!”
“I’m moving with the troops of the other territories!”
“What bullshit are you doing!”

Akina was outraged by the actions of the Purifier Knights, who acted unexpectedly when she did not know where the enemy had set her or what trap she had set.

I would like to tell you to die on your own, but in order to attract the purification knights, the royal family made a ‘donation’ and ‘personal donation’ to the church.

In addition, since it is the core of this war, it is impossible to leave it alone.

In the end, Akina had to send 1,000 of her troops to bring in the Purifier Knights.