Chapter 11

A silent war was still being waged in the royal tombs.

Isak had finished meeting with several key figures in the Imperial Capital and continued to extend his tentacles.

A subordinate approached Isak.

“What is it?”

“Your Highness, Leon has reportedly gone hunting.”

“I see. But why does that matter?”

The subordinate was flustered by Isak's cold reaction.

“I thought you should know….”

“That is not important information. I have no time to waste on such things.”

“Understood.”

Because Isak spoke so firmly, the subordinate decided to forget about Leon.

“More importantly, how are we progressing with winning over Belius?”

“Regarding that, Nilion of Apollia went in person.”

“Nilion? Yes. He should be more than enough.”

Nilion was Isak's closest aide.

Isak trusted him, and Nilion was completely loyal.

Isak suddenly shifted his gaze.

He frowned as he watched the Imperial Capital slowly being dyed by the sunset.

Time was running out.

It wouldn't be long until the uprising.

“Who am I meeting next?”

“The Archpatriarch of the Imperial Capital.”

“That old man? Well, he was strongly opposed to the Emperor's policies. That's fortunate for me. Gaining the support of the religious community would be a great help.”

“Understood.”

Isak, having dismissed Leon so thoroughly, missed the opportunity to check who he was moving with.

Had he known that the retired veterans of the Emperor's Royal Guard were acting with Leon, he would have been greatly appalled, but it was already too late.

Isak had become too complacent and kicked the opportunity away with his own foot.

All the while, time flowed on, chasing the shadows.

***

In the Imperial Capital, an armed Snow Elf was likely to be mistaken for a member of the Royal Guard.

But a retired Snow Elf was just a friendly neighbor next door.

That was why Count Nilion of Apollia did not suspect the Snow Elf lumberjack wandering nearby.

However, that Snow Elf lumberjack was, in fact, an emergency-mustered retired Royal Guardsman, and he even recognized Nilion's face from having served as his escort during a past visit to the Imperial Capital.

The soldier immediately reported Nilion's location to his superiors.

“Nilion of Apollia, you say. If he’s heading for the west gate, I suppose he's going to see off the army coming up to the Imperial Capital? But isn't a count a big shot?”

“He’s significant less for his title and more for being Isak's close aide.”

Apollia was a place name that existed within the Dukedom of Nike.

Therefore, the title of Count of Apollia was bestowed upon a vassal of Duke Isak.

But in truth, Nilion wasn't that prominent of a character in .

He was just like a supporting actor who had a fixed role in a movie.

“Then we must catch him.”

“We must.”

But there are different kinds of supporting actors.

Just a supporting actor, and a brilliant supporting character who makes the work shine.

I intended to make Nilion into a brilliant supporting character.

“Prepare ten men who are swift and good with a bow.”

“He’ll have escorts, so we'll need double that.”

“Then twenty men.”

“And I'm going too.”

When I stepped forward, Ryuba looked at me with eyes that said, ‘You can’t even ride a horse well.’

“You can’t even ride a horse well. You’ll only suffer if you follow.”

No, he just said it out loud.

“……”

The sorrow of having a Power stat of 5.

It wasn't for nothing that I came out in a carriage, saying I was going hunting.

But I had a secret plan.

“I can ride behind Theo.”

When Ryuba met his gaze, Theo's eyes widened.

At that reaction, Ryuba gave up trying to persuade him.

“Damn it. Theo, make sure your royalty doesn't fall off that horse. If he cracks his head here, Captain Zeta will crack ours.”

“Understood.”

“This is driving me crazy, really.”

Ryuba grumbled as he went to gather the retired soldiers.

“Anyone who wants to stretch their legs, first twenty people!”

“What? So suddenly?”

“Me! Me! Me! I’m going!”

“Ryuba, you sneaky bastard! You should share the good stuff, what’s with this cheap move!”

In an instant, twenty men were gathered.

Those who missed the chance by a hair's breadth stomped their feet in disappointment.

“Stop complaining and go get your horses and bows! Theo, you too.”

“Yes, mister.”

While Theo retrieved his gear from the carriage, I listened to the conversation among the retired soldiers.

“Damn, it looks like people of the Empire are about to shed each other's blood.”

“Kyrie eleison.”

“There’s no priest and no blessing has been given, where do you expect to find mercy?”

“For me, from myself. I’m a member of the Eastern Orthodox Church, you know.”

“You bastards. We should be praying to Vodan. How can a Snow Elf shamelessly seek an outsider's god.”

“But this isn't Selan, it’s Miklagard. Isn't it right to believe in the god here?”

“Oh, are you a genius?”

I chuckled listening to the retired soldiers' carefree conversation.

It was good to see them so relaxed before a battle.

Is this the confidence that only the retired veterans of the Empire's most elite unit, the Emperor's Royal Guard, possess?

“Of course not. Snow Elves are people too, people.”

It was Theo who broke my train of thought.

“No matter how many battles they've fought, it doesn't mean they can't get hurt. Just because they're Snow Elves doesn't mean they can't die. They're just all trying to relax beforehand.”

Because if you're tense, you can't fight properly in a real battle.

Because if I make a mistake, my comrades could get hurt.

Because I could die.

Listening to Theo's somber words, I pointed out one fact.

“But this is your first real battle too. Why do you talk like you've done this many times?”

“Ah.”

“What do you mean, ‘Ah’? Everyone knows you're a rookie. Now hurry up and get the horse ready.”

People have a tendency to get defensive when a fact they want to hide is pointed out.

Theo was no exception to this worldly rule.

Theo glared at me with eyes that seemed to burn with fire as he saddled the horse.

I ignored the prickling sensation on the back of my head and approached the horse.

And then I realized one problem.

……I have to ride this?

***

One of the problems with modern people is that, aside from fellow humans, they are not accustomed to creatures larger than themselves.

At most, it's like encountering a large dog on the street.

Even then, unless you're the owner, there's no feeling of living together.

It's only natural.

Modern people have said goodbye to traditional modes of transport and become familiar with new ones like cars and subways.

Thus, for me, horseback riding was an unfamiliar experience and, at the same time, a great disaster.

“I’m… I’m gonna die.”

“We’ve already arrived at our destination. Your Highness, please get off the horse.”

“Already? We've arrived?”

I looked around with a dazed expression.

The Snow Elves who had already dismounted were sending disrespectful glances my way, as if to say, ‘Why did we bring him?’

I briefly wondered if I could use my royal authority to make the horse kneel on all fours on its own.

A moment later, I came to the conclusion that I must have lost my mind.

“Theo, help me down. Carefully. Think of me as a glass that will shatter if dropped.”

“I knew you’d say that.”

Theo chuckled as he grabbed my upper body and helped me off the horse.

My legs, touching the ground for the first time in a while, trembled.

“Wow, I feel alive again.”

“I told you to learn how to ride. You're so out of shape. What are you going to do later when I'm not around?”

“How do people even ride horses? Is that even possible?”

“Wow, you suddenly make me sound like I'm not a person.”

The feel of riding a horse was completely different from that of a car.

Compared to a car, the horse swayed irregularly and constantly moved of its own accord.

Furthermore, the fact that my feet couldn't touch the ground and were just dangling in the air gave me a feeling of endlessly falling.

You wouldn't know how terrible that floating sensation was.

“What on earth were our ancestors thinking, taming a creature several times their own size? Did they not think at all that one small act would develop into the oppression of the entire equine species in the future?”

“Seeing you spout nonsense means you've regained your energy. Please get up quickly. It's embarrassing for others to see.”

“I just want to stay like this a little longer….”

Phung─!

As I sat collapsed on the ground, Theo's horse looked at me and snorted hot air.

I avoided the creature's tongue and scrambled backward on all fours.

I didn't dare to think of glaring at it.

Because I instinctively realized that if we made eye contact, it might bite my head.

“……”

“……”

This was clearly Theo's fault.

Theo is big.

To carry a guy like Theo, the horse naturally has to be big too.

Therefore, Theo's horse is also big.

The result of this perfect syllogism was a horse larger than I could have ever imagined.

The fortunate thing was that it was a herbivore and wouldn't eat me, and the unfortunate thing was that its mouth was large enough for my entire head to fit inside.

“You ride a creature like this so well.”

“It's just because he's big; he's much gentler than he looks. Just now, he was only playing around.”

“Biting my head was just playing around? Not attempted murder of royalty?”

“If you keep that up, shall I show you what real attempted murder is?”

Ryuba, who had been watching us pathetically, cut in.

“Is the play over? Then come over here and look at this.”

I staggered forward.

Down the road below the low hill where we were ambushed, a group was riding towards us on horseback.

“It's a bit far, but can you recognize Nilion among them?”

“One moment.”

Fortunately, my eyesight was quite good, so I could spot Nilion of Apollia in the middle of the procession.

He looked a bit different from his portrait in the game, but it was definitely the same person.

“The man in the middle of the procession not wearing armor is Nilion. It seems we arrived just in time.”

“Really? So we just have to leave that guy alive?”

“Can you eliminate everyone except Nilion?”

“Don't worry. I'll show you the hunting skills of a Snow Elf.”

The Snow Elves took out their bows, sat in a line on the hill, and nocked their arrows.

Watching them, I recalled information from the game.

In the game, you couldn't find any survivors of the Emperor's Royal Guard.

However, it was possible to hire the retired guardsmen who had returned to Selan, their homeland.

And they were all excellent warriors and archers.

The moment Nilion's party entered their range.

“Fire.”

At the single, quiet command, the archers released the bowstrings they had drawn taut.

Swish!

The arrows, flying in a straight line, descended upon Nilion's party.

Those riding at the front tumbled from their horses.

“It’s an ambush!”

Not expecting an ambush, Nilion's party immediately fell into chaos.

The rear, which had stopped reflexively, and the center, which was turning their horses, became entangled with each other.

Even in that situation, the escorts tried to surround Nilion somehow.

But the retired veterans didn't let them.

In , a regular archer unit's rate of fire is six times per minute.

But the retired Royal Guardsmen's rate of fire is fifteen times per minute.

The Snow Elves firing arrows without rest looked as if they were spraying machine-gun fire from atop the hill.

In the time it took to blink a few times, the situation ended with a pile of corpses instantly forming.

“How was that? Pretty amazing, right?”

Ryuba's shoulders puffed up as if they could reach the sky.

Honestly, it was an unpleasant sight.

He was like an uncle bragging about his skills after winning a game against his nephew.

I could have just acknowledged his archery skills and praised him, but I felt a sudden urge to tease Ryuba.

So, I deliberately spoke mischievously.

“It was serviceable.”

Ryuba wore a dumbfounded expression, as if he never expected to hear such words.

The other Snow Elves burst out laughing all at once.

“Puhaha. Ryuba is merely serviceable, he says.”

“His wit is no joke, huh?”

As if his wandering mind had returned, Ryuba soon spoke.

“Just like an Akardi. Turning someone's insides out with a smile, you're just like the Emperor in his youth. Are you perhaps the Emperor's illegitimate child?”

I grinned and retorted.

“While it would be fun to confirm who my real parents are, I think it would be better to focus on the problem at hand.”

“What problem?”

“I'm sure I told you to keep Nilion alive. But no matter how I look at it, it seems Nilion is down there, struck by an arrow.”

“God damn it! Hey, everyone, follow me!”

Terrified, Ryuba dashed down the hill.

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