Ｓｉｄｅ：Ｍｅｅｎａ
We departed Bestia, passed through Alka, and arrived at Denebulate, a city built on bridges southwest of Libertà.
As we expected, Denebulate had suffered damage from the steam battleship bombardments, and three steam battleships were stationed there.
With approximately 50 Solemne soldiers aboard each ship, there were about 150 Solemne soldiers in Denebulate.
“Three steam battleships. That’s not a significant number,” Reinhardt said.
“However, they’re walking around Denebulate as if they own the place. It will be troublesome if they take hostages or if we get into a siege,” I replied.
The commanders of our beast carriages gathered in my beast carriage to discuss our strategy.
My beast carriage was accompanied by the Kings of Amister and Torencia, as well as a General of the Order, and we had the highest proportion of Ancient Class individuals. Therefore, we had become the main force of the Allied Forces.
This is why the First Order, Secondary Saber, and Raid Leaders were gathered here.
I thought Alka would have been fine, but since we couldn’t formulate a plan without knowing the situation in Denebulate, we had no choice but to come here.
As His Majesty Emperor Reinhardt said, the number of steam battleships was not significant.
However, as my brother predicted, we didn’t know what the Solemne Army would do, so we couldn’t afford to be careless.
“Even if hostages are taken, my sister Mako and I can deal with it, right?” I asked.
“I know that. However, if they realize the Allied Forces have attacked, they will likely flee to the steam battleships and commence naval bombardment. After all, we are superior in both quality and quantity,” my brother replied.
With about 50 crew members per steam battleship, my brother was right; the quantity was nearly six times ours, and the quality was incomparable.
But how would we inform them of the Allied Forces’ presence?
“We teleported here, so they probably haven’t noticed yet. Even if they do notice, they’ll likely assume us to be a small force due to the small number of beast carriages. So, a few people will go to Denebulate as envoys to convey the Allied Forces’ advance, also serving as reconnaissance. Simultaneously, the beast carriages will disembark and form ranks. Even if they don’t believe the envoys’ words, seeing an army of nearly 1,000 people makes it hard not to believe,” my brother explained.
I see. The plan is to reveal our strength to drive them out of Denebulate, and then sink the steam battleships.
Certainly, even if they took hostages in Denebulate, the outcome is inevitable, so many would likely flee to the steam battleships.
“Hmm, Loxy, what do you think?” Reinhardt asked.
“I think it’s a good plan. Of course, some will be left behind, so we’ll need to be vigilant about them as well,” Loxy replied.
Loxy, who commands the Secondary Sabers, agreed with my brother’s plan.
Ah, Secondary Saber, like Secondary Order, means second-in-command.
I thought she could be General Saber since she commands the Saber’s Guild, but it’s impossible to have two Generals in the same unit.
However, since Loxy is a commander of the Saber’s Guild, she participates as a Secondary Saber, meaning second-in-command.
Incidentally, Loxy is considered the next Grand Saber Master.
“Hilde,” Reinhardt said.
“Yes. I also believe that this plan is sound,” Hilde replied.
“I agree. Then Rex, we will proceed with this plan, but what about the envoys?” Reinhardt asked.
“I intend to go with Muse and Yamato, the three of us,” my brother replied.
Both His Majesty and Lady Hilde supported my brother’s plan, and it was decided. I never expected my brother to volunteer as an envoy.
“General of the Order himself?” Reinhardt asked.
“Yes. I cannot burden the Hunters alone, and I believe it is necessary for me to demonstrate my considerable abilities by sinking the steam battleships here,” my brother replied.
While the Hunters and Orders of Amister might acknowledge my brother’s status as General of the Order, some of the Hunters and Sabers in Torencia apparently do not.
They might not even know that my brother has evolved into an Ancient Human.
Therefore, my brother chose to demonstrate his abilities on the first day of the advance, rather than postponing the issue.
“I see, there is indeed a need for that. But apart from Yamato, what is the reason for bringing Muse?” Reinhardt asked.
“Muse is also an Ancient Ogre, so I believe it is necessary to inform the Order’s Guild that there are Ancient Class individuals there as well,” my brother explained.
Is that the intention?
The former Ancient Orders were almost all Outside Orders, with only one individual being a pure Order member.
Therefore, the Ancient Orders were also Ancient Hunters.
This applies to Yamato and Caesar, the leader of the Black Army.
Thus, my brother and sister-in-law Muse are Inside Ancient Orders, following that precedent.
“If you’ve thought that far ahead, I shall approve it. What do you think, Hilde?” Reinhardt asked.
“I wanted to have Sabers accompany them, but I suppose it’s inevitable that they would only hold back the three Ancient Class individuals,” Hilde replied.
Loxy nodded in agreement.
“Lord Rex, I look forward to seeing the power of the new Ancient Human,” Reinhardt said.
“Yes, please leave it to me,” my brother replied.
After that, my brother temporarily handed over command to sister-in-law Marie and asked Loxy to assist him.
The Hunters were also preparing to stand by, but since Yamato, my brother and sister-in-law Muse were each tasked with sinking one steam battleship, their role would only come into play if cannonballs were fired.
Yamato took on the responsibility of defending against cannonballs to Denebulate, lamenting how difficult it would be.
After confirming the troops, the three of them, my brother, sister-in-law Muse, and Yamato, boarded their respective familiar spirits and headed towards Denebulate.
Ｓｉｄｅ：Ｓａｙａ
It’s been about two hours since Yamato and the others headed to Denebulate.
Although they are going as envoys to Denebulate, the content is a recommendation for surrender to the Solemne Army and a notification of rescue for Denebulate. Normally, this should be a quick affair.
However, this time, it’s not that simple.
There’s no way Solemne will surrender, and it’s also difficult to say that the people of Denebulate won’t suffer any harm.
I think it will be alright as long as the three envoys are within sight, but Denebulate is vast, so I don’t think things will go that smoothly.
“No, I think it might go surprisingly well?” Sayuri, the former Queen, who is our benefactor, friend, and mother figure to us at Lily Wish, offered an optimistic opinion.
“Really?” I asked.
“Yes. Solemne might know about Yamato and Prim, but the fact that you and a few others evolved is only in the last few days, and it happened in Torencia. So, there’s no way they could know. In other words, the existence of Rex and Muse is like a bolt from the blue for Solemne,” Sayuri replied.
It’s true that it was only a few days ago that Rex and Muse, along with myself, Slay, and Caesar, evolved into Ancient Class.
Moreover, it happened in the demon realm of Seryado Volcano, and we didn’t actively spread the word even in Rio, so it’s natural that Solemne wouldn’t know.
“So, they’ll panic and flee to the steam battleships, planning to defeat us with a barrage of cannon fire?” I asked.
“Those who are blinded by power do not acknowledge the existence of powers superior to their own. I can’t think of any other reason,” Sayuri replied, giving me a convincing reason for Alka’s question.
Sayuri joyfully celebrated my evolution into an Ancient Rabitry, and she is also pleased that all of us at Lily Wish have evolved into High Class.
Twenty-three years ago, I was apparently orphaned shortly after birth and was fortunate enough to be taken in by Sayuri and placed in an orphanage in Float.
At the same time, she gave me the name Saya, after the weaving used for the dresses she favors.
It’s not solely for that reason, but I’m also registered as a Crafter and work as a seamstress.
“The primary objective of this operation is to demonstrate the power of the Ancient Class to the Torencia side,” Sayuri said.
“I understand that. I was also suspected,” I replied.
Some of the Sabers and Torencia Hunters participating in the Allied Forces cast suspicious glances at the fact that there are 13 Ancient Class individuals.
While Yamato, Prim, Mana, Mako, and Faris were introduced at the Presentation for defeating the Slume Lord, so everyone knows them, it’s not the same for us who have just evolved.
Slay, Caesar, and I were able to silence the doubters by showing our licenses, and because the Union is well-known, it was still somewhat believable.
The problem lies with Lidia and Ludia of Wing Crest, Eos, and Rex and Muse of the Order.
While Eos is a Dragonian, Lidia and Ludia are only 16 years old, so showing licenses wasn’t enough to convince many.
We managed to silence them by enhancing their magic power, but that’s something only Hunters can do, as we are both Hunters.
For Orders, they can’t even use such tricks, so the only solution is to demonstrate their power in actual combat.
Although, it seems that even High Class individuals can sink a steam battleship alone, so we need to consider how to do it.
“Judging from what Shazara and the others have said, it seems that High Class individuals can’t sink them in a single blow, so I think that will resolve the issue,” Sayuri said.
“Indeed. Oh, they’re moving,” I replied.
It seems they’ve finally started.
The three steam battleships docked in Denebulate began to move, turning their bows towards us.
This is possible because the river is wide, and perhaps, we might have a role to play too.
“Still, they’re slow. Do you think they’ve noticed that we’re deliberately not attacking?” I asked.
“I doubt it. They probably think we’re intimidated,” Sayuri replied.
They probably do.
In fact, the Torencia side is a little flustered, so it’s not entirely wrong.
None of the Amister side are flustered; in fact, most of them are probably thinking ‘Hurry up.’
After more than 10 minutes, the steam battleships finally turned their sides towards us and began firing their cannons.
It’s my first time seeing it directly, but they are truly slow.
The cannonballs… there are about 40 of them.
“I’m heading out,” I said.
“Yes, have a good trip,” Sayuri replied.
As if going for a stroll, I leaped into the air using Scaffolding and fired magic beasts from the spear in my hand, shooting down the cannonballs.
Slay, Caesar, Lidia, and Ludia are also using their weapons and Unique Magic to intercept all the cannonballs.
Eos’s main occupation is Butler, so she is in charge of guarding the beast carriages.
Well, since Yamato’s beast carriage is the main unit, and even the royalty of Amister and Torencia are on board, it’s a relief for us that she’s doing that.
Sayuri sometimes rides in our beast carriage, saying that she is still energetic.
Personally, I wish she would stay in the Wing Crest’s beast carriage.
“This is the naval bombardment of steam battleships. I admit it’s a threat…” Reinhardt mused.
“They haven’t even enhanced their magic power, have they?” I asked.
“Yes. However, they are still lumps of iron, and if the number of battleships increases, the number of cannonballs will also increase, so Yamato and Mako said that the area of effect is significant,” Sayuri replied.
With more than 10 cannonballs fired at once from a single ship, it’s true that if the number of battleships increases, it could be difficult even for Ancient Class individuals to handle.
Accelerating Magic’s thought acceleration is essential, and magic with a wide range of effects can only exacerbate damage if miscalculated, making it quite challenging.
“And anyway, the Torencia side seems surprised?” I asked.
“They are surprised. It seems to be because we are flying in the sky,” Sayuri replied.
Rabbits originally have good hearing, but after evolving into Ancient Rabitry, mine has become even better, so I can hear voices that would normally be inaudible.
Based on the surprised voices I can hear with these ears, Lidia and Ludia, the Ancient Dragonians, can explain their flight by saying they have wings and are using Flying. However, I am an Ancient Rabitry, Slay is an Ancient Loxy, and Caesar is an Ancient Ogre, so we have no wings.
The reason for their surprise is that we are standing in the sky.
“No, surely the Torencia side knows about the effects of Scaffolding?” Reinhardt asked.
“Except for Sabers, we haven’t thoroughly explained it to the Hunters, so they probably don’t understand what kind of magic Scaffolding is,” Sayuri replied.
Scaffolding, which enables aerial combat without wings, is truly groundbreaking magic.
It creates a pseudo-footing with magic power, so it can be used on deserts, snowfields, and even on water where the footing is poor.
Yet, they didn’t understand the usefulness of Scaffolding? That’s more than just a little bit.
“I don’t think the Libertà army or Hunters are using Scaffolding either, are they?” Caesar remarked.
“That’s why Libertà will be destroyed. They neglected such convenient and useful magic, even though it was just newly proposed,” Caesar said, but I agree.
“We have explained it to the Lichtenfels Army, but… Ah, here comes the second wave,” Sayuri said.
I didn’t expect a second wave.
I thought they would be sunk immediately after blocking the first wave.
“Isn’t it to make sure they don’t think it was a fluke?” Reinhardt asked.
“Probably. Oh well, let’s finish this quickly,” Sayuri replied.
“Right.”
So, we easily shot down the second wave as well.
Immediately after, the three steam battleships were cut in half by giant swords and sank, likely because each of them created a greatsword by imbuing their elemental magic into it, as planned, one ship per person.
Even the Orders here are surprised by the absurd sight before them, so the surprise of the Torencia side is immense.
Conversely, the Amister Hunters are not surprised at all. It’s understandable because they expect them to be capable of at least that much.
As expected, more than 90% of the Solemne Army occupying Denebulate were on board the three steam battleships.
The remaining 10% were dealt with by the three envoys who cooperated with the residents while the steam battleships were getting ready to move. Thus, Denebulate has been freed from the Solemne’s clutches.
Fortunately, the dwarf councilor Urs, who serves as the mayor, is alive, so the cleanup was left to him.
Denebulate cannot be left defenseless, so the 4th and 5th Platoons of the Order and the 5th Platoon of the Saber will remain in Denebulate to intercept any approaching steam battleships from other cities.
We wanted to leave some Hunters behind, but unlike the nearly annihilated Solemne Navy, the Solemne Army still remains intact, so we couldn’t afford to further reduce our forces.
Out of nearly 20 cities built on bridges, only Lichtenfels was confirmed to be safe, so we can’t be completely unguarded here either.
Therefore, the 2nd and 3rd Platoons of the Order and the 4th Platoon of the Saber will also be dispatched to Lichtenfels.
They will also be responsible for guarding the Retisencia area, so the proportion of High Class individuals will be higher.
In any case, the result of the Allied Forces’ first battle is excellent.
The Torencia side did nothing in this battle, but the objective this time was to demonstrate the power of the Ancient Class. We will have them fight properly in the next battle.
