The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 14

The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 14.

The Alvard Kingdom, which suddenly raided the western front.

The Calliper Army, which was subjected to a joint attack by Gillias Melbourne, commander of the 2nd Army Corps of Alvard, and Ushis Goldray, commander of the 3rd Army Corps, suffered damage including General Morgan Lotsy and key officers, but thanks to the efforts of the mercenary units and the fighting of some officers, they were victorious.

“It seems that this will be the after-action report to be submitted to the court.”

Brother Ferge said calmly.

“That can’t be! There’s nothing about this guy at all!?”

The infantry commander Felix erupted in anger, pointing at me. He was scheduled for promotion in recognition of his achievements in this battle.

“I’m fine, Mr. Felix.”

Rather, I was glad there was nothing about me.

“No, there was something about my brother. Strictly speaking, not Ars, though.”

“It wasn’t about me?”

“The mercenary Wade. It seems he was evaluated as having achieved the same level of accomplishment as the mercenary commander Ilya. The military said they would give him a generous reward.”

“Oh… Then Master Ilya should receive it instead.”

Little did I expect Wade’s identity to gain such renown.

‘This part can be effectively utilized.’

I had planned to undermine things from behind before the main story of the protagonist progressed. The identity of Wade was suitable for that.

I asked Joshua and Felix to keep quiet about it.

Although they expressed doubts about why I was refusing the path to success, they nodded in understanding for the time being.

As we were discussing the aftermath for a while,

Someone entered the barracks making a noise.

“Excuse me for a moment?”

It was the Deputy Commander Ironheart.

As a key officer, he was seriously injured in the arrow attack launched by Gillias, but thanks to quickly taking cover, he managed to survive.

“Deputy Commander!”

“Are you all right?”

When he appeared, officers including brother Ferge stood at attention.

Ironheart told them to be at ease and turned his gaze towards me.

“You… You said your name was Ars Elaine, didn’t you?”

It seemed he recalled that I had spoken bluntly.

“Truly, things have unfolded just as you said.”

“What do you mean by as I said?”

“You spoke bluntly last night.”

“Bluntly? I don’t recall doing such a thing.”

Letting out a sigh at my feigned ignorance, Ironheart nodded his head.

“So that’s how you’re going to play it. I’m really grateful.”

If that incident came to light, Ironheart would likely lose his standing.

He would be branded as an incompetent officer who ignored the accurate blunt warning and put the entire army in danger.

This was a win-win situation for both of us.

I’m glad Ars identity didn’t become famous, and Ironheart maintains his dignity.

“About that, there seems to be a strange rumor circulating among the soldiers at the moment.”

“A strange rumor… You say?”

“Yes. That a ‘Child’ appeared in our army and rescued us from the crisis.”

“…”

Despite keeping quiet, it seems some information still leaked out.

Felix and Joshua avoided my gaze with awkward expressions, as if pricked by something.

“Moreover, it seems various pieces of information combined to make it seem as if someone with multiple bodies was responsible for the achievement.”

“Multiple bodies?”

“In simple terms, the accomplishments reported by multiple people were concentrated on one person. The young prodigy of Millias, Casper Millias.”

The officer cadets from Julia Academy who came for training.

They played their respective roles in the battle that took place this morning as well.

Most of their roles were support missions, but Casper Millias was different.

“I’ve heard he commanded soldiers at the front lines.”

Of course, he didn’t achieve anything significant enough to turn the tide of battle.

But because he stood out, he became a symbol of victory and ended up having all the credit and renown concentrated on him.

In the end, it feels like he took away some of my achievements.

“From now on, he’ll be praised as the ‘Strong Child’. Will you be alright with that?”

“I’m afraid I don’t understand what you’re talking about from a little while ago. I was just a coward trembling in the corner.”

“Heh, a skilled hawk hides its talons, does it… Very well. If that’s what you want, I’ll take it as such for now.”

Shaking his head, Ironheart left.

After seeing him off, I began preparations for my return in earnest.

***

Since such an incident had occurred, we could no longer continue with the training exercise. 

At any rate, as the exercise was nearing its end, our cadets were ordered to tidy up our gear and depart.

I decided to return to my territory of Rivell after bidding farewell to master Ilya, who was returning to the mercenary headquarters, along with Sister Julia and Brother Ferge, who remained behind to handle the situation.

We had a generous travel allowance from the military, so we planned to procure a good carriage in a nearby city.

However, before that, Yumir appeared first, pulling a carriage, somehow having learned of our situation.

“Young master. I’ve come to meet you after hearing the news from Miss Julia.”

“Thanks. That saves us the trouble.”

Yumir smiled warmly and guided us to the carriage, but soon her expression turned grim upon seeing the large bruise on my temple from the earlier match.

“Young master, this is…?”

“A kind of medal.”

“An injury to the head? Don’t tell me you were in a life-or-death battle!”

“To be honest, if it weren’t for the helmet my mother had prepared, it could have been dangerous. Who would have thought her talisman would really work?”

Yumir bit her lip tightly.

“I didn’t accompany you because that woman was with you. But even so, for this to happen…!”

“Don’t blame master Ilya too much. In the end, it was my mistake.”

“But…!” Yumir seemed resolved as she said, “From now on, no matter what happens, I will be by your side.”

“Go ahead. Even if I refuse, you’ll secretly tag along anyway, won’t you?”

“…”

In any case, she’s overly protective.

Even in the actual game, Yumir acted solely for Ars’ sake.

In the bonding events with the protagonist, there was absolutely no flirting with the protagonist. Rather than following the protagonist, it felt more like she was lending her strength because Ars was working with the protagonist.

And yet, the reason she was not included among the Seven Vassals was one thing.

‘Looking at the incident she was involved in towards the end of the story, it seems there was some underlying reason.’

No matter how vaguely I tried to probe, Yumir would simply tilt her head, saying she didn’t understand what I was talking about.

‘Well, it’ll come to light eventually.’

After all, Yumir’s situation would naturally be resolved if I could identify the traitor in advance, so for now, I decided not to worry about it.

***

After returning to Rivell, I spent time helping my father with his work again.

Naturally, the kingdom was in an uproar, as the king condemned the surprise attack by Alvard Kingdom and formed an alliance with the neighboring kingdom Crossing Republic, including a defense pact, to respond.

By taking a united stance, Alvard had no choice but to back down for the time being.

As each country entered into diplomatic negotiations, a temporary lull ensued.

At this point, after the diplomatic battle had reached a certain stage, the court announced the hosting of a victory party for the western front, along with a celebration of the strategic alliance with Crossing.

“Ah, Ars. This came for you.”

My father, seeming quite surprised, handed me an invitation while stumbling over his words.

It was a court party invitation bearing the king’s seal. Upon seeing this, my brothers Max and Miller were so astonished that their mouths hung open.

For a baron on the frontier, a court party was something that only appeared in dreams.

“I don’t really want to go though…”

“What are you saying, Ars! Don’t you realize how much of an honor this is!?”

Max raised his voice in protest.

Having been attending various parties to find a marriage partner, Max had been excited since earlier at the mention of a court party.

“You have to go no matter what! Just attending will raise the prestige of our family!”

“Are Ferge and Sister Julia going too?”

Father nodded ambiguously.

“Julia didn’t receive an invitation. It seems Ferge did though.”

It appeared that invitations were extended based on one’s area of expertise.

“Then isn’t it strange that I received an invitation?”

From an external perspective, it was as if I had no particular expertise.

There seemed to be another reason for this.

“It seems all the noble cadets who participated in that battlefield were invited. They must consider you future talent.”

“Then I won’t attract much attention.”

Aside from that Casper guy and the one from the Count Herald family, the rest of us would likely just be there to fill seats.

“Well, I’ll go then.”

It would be entertaining to see the game characters attending the party.

Mother smiled proudly and said, “I had prepared a ceremonial robe as a gift for your coming-of-age ceremony… But I suppose there’s no helping it now. Yumir, could you bring that outfit?”

“Yes, madam.”

And so, due to the decided court party, I had to spend time receiving etiquette lessons for a while.  

***

Having arrived in the capital to attend a party, I was roaming the city with my older brother Ferge.

The capital city Alphensard boasted a local population of 1.1 million.

With only 200,000 people in the city where the royal palace was located, this was one of the top ten largest cities on the entire continent.  

‘Certainly there are too many people….’

This world had an outstandingly large population compared to its historical backdrop.  

In modern terms, this place was between the medieval and modern eras, but this environment where even a mid-sized kingdom could muster 200,000 troops was clearly strange.

When enjoying it as a game, I thought the numbers were inflated for entertainment, but the size of the armies was actually that large.   

The reason for this was simple.

It was due to the astonishingly advanced medical system.

This world essentially has no magic. It is said that magic was lost due to a conflict between gods thousands of years ago.  

However, while many forms of magic disappeared, the lighting magic that illuminates the night and the sacred healing magic for treating injuries have been passed down to this day. The effect of the sacred healing magic was especially remarkable.

As long as one was not completely crushed or had body parts severed away, most injuries could be healed given enough time.   

Combined with the development of herbal medicine, the medical system was well-equipped to handle diseases as well.

This led to a population explosion, with the estimated population of this continent currently around 50 million.

While the peak population of medieval Europe was said to be around 70 million, this continent is only about 1/3 the size of Europe. So the population density is about twice as high.

“Ars, what are you doing? I know you’re excited to be in the capital, but if you space out, you’ll get lost.” My older brother Ferge smiled merrily as he spoke. “Let’s hurry. It’s better to move quickly. It’ll probably take at least an hour just to get ready.”  

“Yes, brother.”

Following Ferge, we arrived at a place like a beauty salon. 

We had made an appointment to get styled at this place operated exclusively for nobles.

The woman who seemed to be the owner lit up when she saw me.

“Oh my, it’s been a while since I’ve seen such fine material?”

The woman who introduced herself as Tiotera showed keen interest in me.

“Leave it to me. I’ll make you the star of the party in no time.”

Ferge cautioned her for being overly enthusiastic.  

“We’re soldiers. Anything too flashy won’t do.”

“Oh, what a shame. Could you show me the outfit you’ve prepared? I’ll style you to match.”

I handed over the evening wear my parents had prepared.

Tiotera, seeming delighted, sat me down and busily got to work.

Having no particular interest in styling, I decided to look out the window.

‘It’s quite lively out there.’

Normally when the palace holds a party, there’s an image of exploiting the commoners, but unexpectedly here it seems to be a virtuous cycle.

The city was also taking on a festive atmosphere, boosting consumption.   

“All done!”  

At the OK sign, I looked in the mirror to see I had been rather stylishly done up.

In contrast, Ferge had neatly slicked his hair back in a way that clearly marked him as a soldier.  

Having changed into evening wear, we set off to board the carriage we had prepared to enter the royal palace.

Even in that brief moment of movement, glances were drawn from here and there.  

Soon, a girl who looked about 8 years old came running up to hand me a flower.

“Here, take this!”

“Thanks. It’s a pretty flower.”

“Hehehe.”

The girl smiled broadly as she ran back to her sister. The sister seemed envious that her younger sister had worked up the courage.

“Oh my.”  Ferge sighed, amazed. “If even a fraction of that popularity went to Brother Max, it would be great.”

“Why Brother Max all of a sudden?”

“Max hasn’t been able to get married yet, so Miller and I haven’t been able to bring up marriage prospects either. This side allows it as soon as possible, but…”

“Does Brother Ferge have someone you’re seeing?”

“A classmate from the academy. A young lady from the same baron’s family. You might get a chance to meet her if you commission into the army later.”  

“Before that, it would be ideal to meet at an introduction.”

“Heh, that would be nice.” 

As I was chatting with Ferge like that, we soon arrived at the place where the carriage was waiting.

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TL NOTE:

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