Chapter 33

Chapter 33 - The First Subjugation War (4)

Upon arriving at the camp base, preparations for a banquet began at the tent of the wealthy knight, Galia.

"Sir Osram! My master would be delighted if you would grace the occasion with your presence."

"Sir Cain! My master requests that you surely visit and share a goblet of wine."

Galia's servants scurried about busily, inviting the knights. The other knights also sent their own servants to exchange greetings. However, no one sent a servant to Eugene, who was arguably the most famous among them.

"Does it feel strange that no one has come?" Valda asked as she massaged the legs of Might, who was resting.

Whether elven eyes and hands were different, the fellow was lying down comfortably.

"I thought they would at least offer a greeting, so it's somewhat unexpected."

"The knights still remaining in the city are those who are extremely starved for fame. It's only natural they would avoid you. For it's like holding a candle before a hearth; no matter what they do, they shall not receive attention."

"A hearth, you say. That is excessive praise."

"There is no need for humility. For one who leads a group, a certain degree of arrogance is necessary. Sometimes, that arrogance prevents unnecessary blood from being spilled."

"Regardless, would those who call themselves knights act so narrow-mindedly?"

"Though I know not of their valor, there are unexpectedly few knights who possess magnanimity. Especially those who have failed to catch the eye of a decent noble, as they have, lack room in their hearts."

Just then, a knight who had come out of his tent to loosen up happened to lock eyes with Eugene. When Eugene tried to raise his hand, he abruptly turned his face away.

"..."

"Even if you were to approach to offer a greeting, it would only be uncomfortable for both of you."

"I have no intention of visiting them." Though he too was a knight, he did not particularly like other knights. 'I am already starting to miss Karas.' The type he got along with were oddballs like Karas.

* * *

The subjugation force received supplies from residents and merchants along the villages and roads.

"How dare you try to overcharge us? Shall you only come to your senses once you've had some blood let?!"

"It's not as if you'll truly stab me, sir. If you loathe to buy, then do not. There are many others who want it."

"Is, is this fellow mad?!"

Those who usually bowed and scraped all played hard to get. It was because they knew that with other high-ranking mercenary groups, the Guard Captain, and the knights present, there were many eyes of high-ranking individuals, and thus they could not use violence.

"You there! Come here. We shall buy it."

"Master mercenary, you see?" The peddler smiled broadly and then departed. The mercenary captain wanted to kick the rump of that irritating fellow, but he had to endure.

Causing a disturbance before a major battle could result in being singled out. Punishing one fellow as an example to establish military discipline was something he himself often did.

"Endure it, Captain. You know the story of One-Armed Jackson, do you not?"

It's an incident where a mercenary named Jackson assaulted a farmer who came to the camp to sell apples. The reason was that five rotten ones were hidden beneath the basket of twenty apples. However, the noble lord who was commanding at the time severed Jackson's arm. The charge was that he had caused unnecessary commotion and made merchants avoid visiting.

It is an anecdote the Guard Captain always tells whenever he grows drunk, one he envies greatly.

"Hey, you rascal. That is the case when the commander is a noble; this time, it's a fellow who was doing the same mercenary work."

"There are five knights nearby. What shall you do if those humans come and growl at you?"

Bonk! The mercenary captain gave a rap on the head of the subordinate who was offering loyal advice.

"Ow, why did you hit me?"

"Since you spoke the truth, you must be hit."

"Sigh... it's hard to make a living as a mercenary."

"If you're so resentful, you be the captain then." The mercenary captain, who had vented his anger for no reason, spat on the ground. Indeed, in this mission, it was wise to suppress one's temper.

Nobles camp extravagantly. If they are wealthy, then as befits their wealth; if they are poor, even by incurring debt.

The place where the most merchants gathered was Eugene's camp. Since he had the greatest scale, both in reputation and in the subordinates he led.

"All of them?!"

"Yes, hand over all the chicken you have. Give me two jars each of salt and spices."

Eugene spent money lavishly, but only with the merchants who brought meat.

- Charge the supply costs spent with merchants to the city later. I shall reimburse all of it.

For Panis had promised so before departure.

- Since you are taking such good care of us, I feel almost apologetic.

- Are we strangers? Pray, keep it a secret from the other knights.

Thanks to that, Eugene could feed his subordinates as much meat as they wished.

"Put away the dry rations and jerky. Let us grease our bellies with fresh meat."

"We thank you, Sir Knight!" The Dark Elves gathered firewood while smiling and prepared the roast. Eugene was similarly in a good mood. Could there be any act more joyful than treating others to meat with someone else's money and acting important?

"This fragrant oil was brought from Roman. With your martial valor, Sir Knight, you would probably bathe in the blood of enemies; would you not require fragrant oil?"

"I have no need of it."

"Sir Knight! Look upon this candle brought by our merchant guild. It was made on commission from the Alchemist Guild, so it even gives off a pleasant fragrance. From the look of it, you seem to be lighting fires with hardened animal fat, yet this is far more dignified..."

"I have no need, so pray, go visit the other knights."

Since Eugene was one who knew shame, he had no intention of indulging in luxury with someone else's money. The merchants, who departed grumbling, soon ran off brightly at the call of a servant sent by another knight.

"If you see a merchant who has brought meat, do not miss him and bring him here."

"Leave it to us, Sir Knight. We are more sincere about meat than anyone." Rex replied with a smile. Contrary to his cold first impression, he quickly became close to Eugene.

'There is no value more precious than being strong.'

It's the common motto of the Dark Elves. To them, a born warrior race, Eugene's martial power basically bestowed great favor. Combined with a practical personality that was not like a knight's, his candidness, and his concern for his subordinates' meals, it was only natural that they became close.

The majority of the mercenaries, having finished their meal, rested in comfortable positions. There were those who played cards or threw dice, and those who chattered with young maids who followed the battlefields sitting upon their laps.

"Ho?" Eugene, who had returned from a walk scanning the surroundings, encountered an interesting sight in his camp.

The Dark Elves, who had changed into ordinary clothing, were loosening their bodies in bizarre postures. There were even those who were focusing on stimulating specific muscles.

'To think they know how to do stretching and weight training?'

It was the first time in this world he had seen anyone else besides himself and Homi doing such things.

'Tsk!' Rex clicked his tongue inwardly at the sight of Eugene observing this and that. For he was accustomed to gazes that mocked their tribe's traditional training method as a comical buffoonery.

"Sir Knight. Does our way appear bizarre to you?" Despite himself, it was unavoidable for his pride to be stung, so Rex's voice was somewhat edged.

"No. Since I was glad to see those who know how to train properly. Yes! Merely swinging a weapon like an ignorant fellow is not everything. One must know how to wring out and tune the muscles as you do."

"???" Rex's eyes widened. Indeed, as the Chief Magistrate had said, this knight seemed a bit strange.

Ten minutes later.

"To think such a movement existed."

"Should I bend my arm this much?"

The Dark Elves were surrounding Eugene. It was the first time they had seen a knight who sympathized with their tribe's traditional training method. Moreover, the muscle training method Eugene demonstrated was by no means inferior even compared to their own, which had been honed for generations.

"Did you call it a Plank? Though it's so simple, the muscles of the entire body are stimulated tensely. It's a tremendous secret." Rex, lying flat beside him, could not contain his admiration. Though it was a humiliating posture for a proud warrior to take, everyone accepted it easily as Eugene himself demonstrated it.

"It's indeed different, coming from a traditional assassin guild. To recognize immediately how good this is."

"Sir Knight. It's the first time today I have learned that the praise 'traditional' and 'assassin guild' can be used together." The Dark Elves laughed.

Rather than breaking through hundreds of enemies to kill a commander, it is easier to create a one-on-one situation in an unexpected location. For that purpose, the Blackhand tribe researched secrets to bend the body abnormally or to carve away fat and leave only muscle. The traditional training method developed in that process was similar to Earth's stretching, yoga, or weight training. It's a type of convergent evolution.

"Do similar things exist in other assassin groups?"

"It's rare for assassins to form a group. Especially as we do, a whole tribe sticking together and making a living of it... such a thing does not exist at all."

The occupation of an assassin is a task that those with unusually broken lives—among the likes of wanted criminals, robbers, and bandits—plunge into. It is the case of the Blackhand Dark Elf tribe, who researched and honed techniques to the limit as a type of martial art, that is strange.

"It's a relief. Since it would be troublesome if everyone and anyone knew such a splendid training method. Is it not right that good things should be monopolized among close friends?"

"Close friends... it's but an honor." Beside the joyful Rex, more than ten Dark Elves were now doing the Plank.

"This is truly decent."

"It requires little space and makes no sound." The Dark Elves who tried it were surprised by the efficiency, where the entire body's muscles were stimulated simultaneously while being static.

"I have only released one thing just now. It's too early to be surprised."

"Pray, release the bundle quickly!"

"We truly look forward to it, Sir Knight."

In but a single day, Eugene spoke with all twenty Dark Elves while laughing comfortably. He grabbed the legs, shoulders, and forearms of the Dark Elves and corrected their posture.

"Do it this way. Be careful not to let the shoulder blades rise."

"Ah, it's this feeling." Dark Elves loathe it when a human touches their body, to the point of abhorrence. However, they all accepted Eugene's touch while smiling as if it were natural.

* * *

A few days of smooth marching passed. The subjugation force was lucky enough to capture a scout of the bandit pack alive.

"A fork in the road with a large rock shall appear! T-There, if you go to the left, there is a large camp. If you go to the right, there is a s-small camp and the robber knight."

"About how many are in each?"

"Uh, that... I mean... in the large one, about sixty?! There shall be about sixty. In the small one, about twenty."

"Where are the rest of the fellows?" The lieutenants asked while pressing a blade against him. Their total number should be seven or eight times this.

"Eek! This is all I know! Pray! Pray, have mercy on my life!"

"Take him away and continue the interrogation." The Guard Captain sent a messenger after bestowing a large reward on the mercenaries who captured the scout.

"Inform the knights. Tell the mercenaries to clear the way."

As for the engagement policy, an agreement had already been reached. The heavily armed knights and the subordinates who followed them ran through the mercenaries without hesitation.

"Pray, trample those bandit rascals with ease!"

"Honor to the Sir Knights!"

As the mercenaries cheered with tact, some knights responded by raising their weapons. The mercenaries were grateful as they slaughtered the enemies instead of them, and the knights were happy as they could monopolize the achievements; so it was good for both.

After the knights departed, the Guard Captain was startled upon seeing Eugene's camp.

"Did you inform Sir Eugene of the discovery of the enemy's camp?!"

"Yes! He said that since sufficient knights have already set out, he shall remain in the camp and observe the situation."

"Whew!" The Guard Captain let out a sigh of relief. Had it been that his subordinate forgotten to report and Eugene was left alone, it was he who would have had to bear the Victorious Knight's wrath in its entirety.

"I thank you for letting me earn easy money! Master knights!"

"Do the hard work honorably in our stead!" As the knights grew sufficiently distant, the cheers of the mercenaries turned arrogant. There were those who lowered all other fingers from the waving hand, leaving only the middle one.

Meanwhile, the Guard Captain could not be at peace. "I requested them repeatedly to refrain from using torches; I know not if they shall follow it."

The victory of the knights was certain, and what the Guard Captain worried about was a forest fire. The beauty of an ambush is to trample the enemies after causing confusion in the beginning and making them scatter in all directions. Since tossing a torch into a tent can settle both killing and causing confusion in one go, it's a common means of attack used in an ambush. However, when fighting in a forest, if it is excessive, there are cases where it spreads into a forest fire. Especially here, where winds are frequent and there are many trees that catch fire easily, it is even more dangerous.

"In the past, I participated in another place as a mercenary and experienced it. I barely swung my sword, yet it was a spectacle to see more than half of the enemies burn to death." One lieutenant, who was a former mercenary, told his experience.

"Then did it not turn out well as a result? You repelled the enemy easily."

"We almost burned to death as well. Moreover, the fire spread to the mountain of the adjacent territory. The employer went bankrupt paying compensation since he burned down the noble lord's hunting ground there completely."

"What is that!" As everyone was laughing at the absurd ending, the order to march for the subjugation force was finished being delivered.

"What are you dallying for? Move quickly!"

"Do you think you were paid a high price just to take a stroll!" The mercenary captains urged their subordinates. Since it would be awkward to eat for free too far behind, they had to show this much nimbleness.

"Sir. Is it acceptable to continue matching your actions with ours?" Eugene had approached the Guard Captain's side according to the marching order.

"Since I know not how the situation shall turn out, at least one knight should be with the main force. As for honor, I have already earned sufficient, so I shall focus only on the success of the subjugation."

"I thank you!"

Following around knights who were obsessed with merit would only drain one's strength and bring little to gain. The Guard Captain, who did not know that a knight of Eugene's caliber would harbor such shallow inner thoughts, was simply moved.

As they were all marching together, a faint sound of a trumpet was heard from the other side of the forest.

"It seems they have swept away the bandit rascals' camp."

"Is it not natural? It's not one or two, but four knights! Four!"

"..."

While everyone else was laughing, only the Guard Captain and a few lieutenants who were sharp of ear hardened their faces like stone.

"What is the matter?" Eugene asked at the unusual atmosphere.

"That is not the trumpet of victory. It's the trumpet of a request for support." The Guard Captain spoke with a face that showed disbelief.

"The knights are struggling against the bandits from the start?"

"I, too, cannot understand it. Sir Galia is a knight who once cut down ten mercenaries alone, and Sir Cain is also a knight who subjugated a goblin den led by a hobgoblin on his own."

In Eugene's eyes as well, those knights were by no means mere nobodies.

"Between the Dhampir knight dying in the initial battle and this, it seems something is cursed about this subjugation." Eugene's murmuring was cut off by the trumpet of a request for support that was heard once again. It seemed he would have to give up on the plan to earn money comfortably.