“We, the Knight Order of Anaheim, shall remain here!”
Captain Helena Hase declared with conviction, her beautiful smile like a sunflower in full bloom.
“Yeah, like that’s possible. We have less than a hundred surviving knights. Do you even know how to count? Should I teach you? Step-by-step, inch by inch.”
“You mercenaries are to retreat to Schreiaschwald and follow their command.”
The sunflower-like smile was gone. Her determined eyes pierced me. It would be a waste for such a beautiful sunflower to wilt.
“Captain Hase, are you truly intending to stay in Anaheim? Unfortunately, even with the same number of soldiers… we couldn’t defend it, let alone fewer.”
“Don’t say that, Shin. We are knights of Anaheim. There are people who will stay and fight in the city. While we are indeed loyal to Harmonia, we are knights of Anaheim Offen.”
It’s no longer about logic. Are you intending to fight even if you know you’ll die? Dying is a terrible thing. It hurts, and it’s painful.
Shall I tell them about the cavalry that charged at Nebel Bridge and were eaten? Or about the women held captive in Lauenstein?
Even if I tell them, their resolve probably won’t change. If their resolve could be swayed by such things, their eyes wouldn’t have that look. Those sharp, yet sorrowful eyes.
“May fortune favor you…”
That’s all I could say before leaving the guardhouse. As a coward, that’s all I could manage.
We left Anaheim with the townspeople fleeing. Even if we turned the Sand Dragon into an undead and defended Anaheim by defeating demons and giants, we still had to leave the city.
We won… As mercenaries, I believe we worked hard and contributed to the victory. The payment should be good.
But, what is this nagging feeling in my heart? It’s a lie to say I’m not bothered by Helena and the townspeople staying to fight, but that’s happened before, and I’ve seen people make reckless charges.
I thought they were fools sometimes, but seeing Captain Helena’s sad eyes must have left a mark.
War is awful. I truly hope they survive. If they live, there will be a time for laughter again.
“Gwahh!”
“Are you getting sentimental?”
Don’t punch me in the back of the head like that! My eyeballs are going to pop out. Is it so wrong to get a little sentimental? Captain Helena is staying to fight! Her sunflower-like smile might disappear.
“That Knight Captain woman… she was called Helena, wasn’t she?”
Are you still dwelling on that? We’re not like that. We’re comrades. Battle buddies. Friends of the heart.
Before I could take a second blow, Orietta, surprisingly, hugged me from behind. The frills of her gothic lolita dress tickled my nose. And she smelled good. In a way, Orietta might be the most fashion-conscious among us. Though fashion isn’t necessary for a mercenary.
“I’ll show the heartbroken captain something nice later!”
Something nice?! If it’s something nice from Orietta, I’m looking forward to it. My blues will surely disappear. What could it be? Did she finish making a sword? I hope it’s light, sturdy, and sharp.
Or maybe a new innerwear?! A white sailor-style swimsuit is tempting, but something new is also appealing. I think cute suits Orietta better than sexy.
Or underwear perhaps? The underwear in this world is nothing to write home about. See-through with frills would be nice, and a garter belt is also attractive.
I’ll have her make them for me someday. We’ll sell attractive underwear to the world. Hasuhanto Trading Company can handle it. I want Manon to wear them too. Even if the gods stand against me, I will face them for justice.
“Were you even listening? You’re drooling.”
“J-jurl, please don’t mind me. I’m fine. Orietta, when will you show me the nice thing?”
“After we reach the city!”
After we reach the city, huh? So it’s when we’re alone. This is going to be fun. Heal my heartbroken heart. I urged my horse forward with a strong grip on the reins, only to be hit from behind.
“What’s the hurry! The ones behind can’t keep up.”
That’s right. We were leading the townspeople and mercenaries. I’d forgotten. We need to go slowly and steadily.
“Guess I have no choice. Arana, switch with me. You, over here.”
As she wrapped her arm around my neck and pulled me closer, I saw the wagon behind us. Christine and Sophia were cleaning up the cramped space and setting up a soundproof tent.
No, let me be heartbroken now. I want to stay heartbroken like this. Let go of me! I’ll commit self-immolation!
We, the group that fled Anaheim, continued our journey without rest until we reached the city of Schreiaschwald, arriving before noon. Fortunately, no enemies appeared to roast us like beef, and the group that fled Anaheim safely reached Schreiaschwald.
The city of Schreiaschwald has no castle walls. It’s a peaceful, idyllic town close to the Royal Capital with no large forests for monsters to hide in, just sprawling farmlands where time seems to have stopped.
However, it is now designated as one of the strongholds to stop the Demon Army’s advance, and the town is filled with a tense bustle of people fleeing, preparing to flee, and mercenaries gathering.
Those who fled from Anaheim separated, and I, as the representative of the mercenaries who accompanied them, went to the Knight Order’s guardhouse with the White Lily Corps.
“You did well in Anaheim. We never anticipated the enemy’s advance to be this severe. Lunelius and Etvaar have fallen, but we will not let them have this place easily.”
The Administrator’s powerful words were reassuring, but his appearance sparked anxiety. His short stature was fine. Not everyone reaches their full growth during puberty.
The problem is his mustache. He stretches his mustache horizontally, and when he lets go, it curls into a circle. It’s probably a habit, but it makes me laugh every time. What kind of structure is that?! Is it shape memory?!
If he’s doing it to make me laugh, he’s succeeded perfectly. My eyes were fixed on his mustache, and I forgot what I was supposed to ask. For now, the White Lily Corps has been incorporated into the Third Army along with the Anaheim mercenaries.
It wasn’t until I went to greet the Third Army that I finally remembered. We have the undead Sand Dragon. The Sand Dragon’s formidable rock is a significant weapon for us, but we can’t have Rufina used without permission. That’s what I wanted to say.
Along the way, Orietta, dressed in gothic lolita style, ran after me. She looked the same as usual, but had something changed? Was the “nice thing” her outfit? It’s tough for a man to not notice things like this and get labeled as uncaring later.
“Orietta, what’s wrong? Where is everyone?”
“Everyone else went to the inn. I heard at the guardhouse that the Captain was going to the Third Army headquarters.”
This is it! I have to say it here!
“Is that so? That’s a cute outfit, it suits you.”
“Thank you! It’s the same as always.”
Wrong! It’s not the outfit! Find it!
It’s difficult. I can’t tell the subtle differences. Yet, if I don’t notice, they’ll complain incessantly.
“I was going to show the Captain something nice. The sooner the better.”
Orietta took my hand, and we went out of the city. It was quite a struggle to get out of this city. This city has no castle walls, but houses are built around the city, serving as walls. You could call them row houses.
They serve as both walls and houses, a two-birds-one-stone kind of thing. Old folks were ingenious, but for walls, you need height and durability.
The height varies, with some being one or two stories, and some walls look like they’d break if a Troll punched them. The defenses of this city seem to be mainly for human combat, and not robust enough for monsters.
Orietta and I went outside the city and walked for about ten minutes until we reached a small stream. We walked holding hands, but my heart was pounding.
The shield is heavy, so I didn’t bring it for just a chat. My Short Sword is on my left, and the Orietta Knife is behind my waist. Originally, the knife is oriented to the left so I can draw it with my left hand, but since I’m holding hands, the hilt is positioned to the right.
My pounding heart is from not knowing what’s going to happen. She has a past record of easily cutting off right hands, and now that she’s going to show me something nice, I shouldn’t be too wary.
It wasn’t about clothes. Given the situation, it probably wasn’t underwear either. And feeling this uneasy being alone with her, did I catch Priscilla’s disease?
It seems I did… Orietta let go of my hand, began chanting, and a battle suit over three meters long emerged from a magic circle.
“Orietta…”
“Just wait a moment!”
My words went unheard. Orietta quickly shed her gothic lolita outfit, changed into a sailor-style swimsuit, and boarded the battle suit.
What should I do? I’ve only fought against Orietta in her battle suit once before, and I thought I’d go bald from the wind pressure back then.
Moreover, looking closely at the battle suit, it seems to have been upgraded since then. Did it get bigger? Did the armor become thicker overall?
Orietta’s weapon has its destructive power increased by super-vibration, and the battle suit itself also increases its defense with super-vibration. How am I supposed to fight against this…?
“Captain, please step back a little.”
Sure, I’ll step back. I want to step back all the way to the city of Schreiaschwald. I wouldn’t be lying if I said I’d thought about us being intimate, but I was imagining something more fun. Like flirting.
Orietta opened another magic circle. From the center of the magic circle spread on the ground, a metal rod shot up. It was a huge… anti-material rifle, seemingly ten meters long, far surpassing the length of the battle suit.
“…Orietta, what is this?”
“It’s a Railgun!”
There’s no electricity in this world. Strictly speaking, there is magic, but there are no power plants, so how is she powering the Railgun’s battery?
She must have created it by reading my memories as a military otaku, but I don’t know all the principles myself.
To create something like this based on memory alone, who are you? I’m scared that if I don’t seal away my memories, I’ll lose control someday.
The Railgun, with its unnaturally long barrel for a rifle and two bipods to support it, doesn’t look entirely unlike a normal rifle.
“One live shot!”
Orietta, in a prone position, aimed the Railgun at a distant tree. I moved back a little and covered my ears with both hands.
“Fire it up!”
The charge fired from Orietta’s Railgun, with only the shockwave, blew me away, ripping up all the grass and plants in its path.
