Volume 8 Chapter 1 Part 12

Kurt declared as he was standing proudly.

「We are still fighting, so we don’t have any energy left. 」

Siluca answered tentatively. The reward for capturing the Black Witch, the perpetrator of 「The Tragedy of the Grand Cathedral 」was almost completely used up by them in the fight to recapture Artuk from Milza. This expedition is of course costly as well, so they have no choice but to continue with it if they want to make all of it count.

「I think I understand your situation, but without proper financial support, I won’t be able to maintain the services of the mercenary groups that I hired. If we retreat now, we will lose all the areas under our current control. 」

Kurt openly talks about his difficult situation.

「It is true that the Treaty was saved from a lot of trouble because the Earl of Leclerc invaded the northern part of the continent and expelled the Nord forces from it. 」

Lassic gave his opinion.

「Not to mention that the Earl is the only Lord from the entire Fantasia Union who’s actually willing to fight against the Factory Alliance.

Igor also nodded his head in agreement.

「I won’t know unless I ask my contracted Mage, but I believe that we can contribute some money from our country to your cause, Lord Kurt. I think if we call on the other Lords, they will also agree to back you up. 」
Petr suggested.

「What do you think about it, Siluca? 」

Theo turned his gaze towards Siluca and asked.

「I think we can offer as much as 10,000 gold coins to Lord Kurt. 」

「Got it. Let’s do it then. 」

Siluca nodded. She knew that this would be the decision that Theo would make. To be entirely truthful, 10,000 gold coins was almost the entire gold that they had right now, and one Elam Gold Coin was enough to sustain a small family for a month.

However, it is also true that without the Earl of Leclerc’s efforts to keep the Factory Alliance occupied in the northern part of the continent, Artuk Treaty would’ve been wiped out a long time ago. And it’s not like they won’t stay without any money at all, since they should be able to get at least some of that money back with the ransom that the families of the families of the captured Heavy Knights of Waldrind would pay in exchange for their freedom.

「Thank you, all of you. 」

Kurt had a relieved look on his face.

「If I’m going to have that much, then I should be able to continue fighting for a good while longer. In the meantime, let’s drive out the rest of the Heavy Knights of Waldrind from the north side of the continent. 」
「About that… 」

Although Siluca was still feeling hesitant about that, she ultimately decided to share her thoughts with Kurt.

「Could you please hold back on your offensive for a while? 」

「Why? 」

Klute stared back at her with sharp eyes.

「Actually, the Lords of Medinia, which belongs to the Alliance, and Furgard, which belongs to the Union, located in the center of the continent northwest of here, have expressed their desire to join the Artuk Treaty. 」

Siluca spoke up and explained the series of circumstances.

「In other words, the area under my control would be connected to the territory of the Artuk Treaty? 」

Klute’s expression lightened up as he understood the meaning of the two countries joining the Treaty.

「Even though it is no longer a Demonic Realm, Tree Dragon Forest is still not an easy location to navigate, so it will be difficult for a large army to come and go in and out of it however they please. However, it is still a valuable route connecting north and south. If we make appropriate preparations, our joint struggle will become a lot easier thanks to it. 」
Siluca nodded. Thanks to that, a defense line would be created that would cut across the entire continent.

「So you want me to just sit back and take care of myself for a while? 」

「If you could do that, it would be of great help to us. 」

Siluca bowed her head so deeply that she touched the desk with her forehead.

Kurt crossed his muscular arms and pondered that matter for a brief moment.

「…I understand the situation. I don’t think it’s a good idea, but just having a mercenary group will consume a large amount of your funds if you want them to stay by your side without ditching you. 」

「My Advice is that you should disband the mercenaries, and then return back to your home country at once. We might lose the control over this region for a while, but once we’re going to be thoroughly prepared, he will be able to put pressure on Waldrind from both the north and south, and then you should be able to reclaim it again. 」

「That’s… 」

Hearing Siluca’s words, Kurt made a bitter expression.

「I’m certainly fed up with working with mercenaries, but I also don’t want to lose the territories that it took me so long to take control over. I also feel like that would be a betrayal of the local Lords who are on the side of the Fantasia Union. 」
「But If you don’t give up on something, you’ll lose everything eventually. 」

Siluca makes a strong appeal.

「As a monarch, I understand your feelings, Lord Kurt. However, like the tides of the sea, you push forward whenever your luck is good, but when it turns for the worse, you have no choice but to retreat. I know it must be tough, but how about you accept Siluca Meletes’ proposal? 」

Lasik gently suggested.

「Once we are ready, we will rush to your aid. We will intensify our diplomatic negotiations to get the Fantasia Union to support you as well. So please, could you bear with us for now? 」

Theo calls out calmly.

「… how long will it take? 」

Kurt asked after a long silence.

「Half a year. 」

Siluca answered immediately.

Ender Serik Kuches was making good progress with the subjugation of Dartania, and Juzel Rossini was on a good way to quell the riots that have erupted all across Stark.

Other Lords have also begun to prepare their armies and stockpile food and supplies in their respective territories.

「…I will be relying o you then. 」

Kurt lowered his head towards Theo.

「I swear by my Crest that we will not let you down. 」

Theo nodded back at him vigorously.

「In that case, I will follow you. However, I cannot return to my home country. I will withdraw from Sandrene, but I will keep protecting Ranford and Vanberg. I will cut the mercenary group in half and focus on defense until we are ready to fight together… How about that? 」

「The rest is up to the Earl’s decision. 」

She was worried whether that would be okay with Theo or not, but since she didn’t know the other person’s actual situation, Siluca also thought that she couldn’t say anything more forcefully.

「Looks like our talks have pretty much come to an end. 」

Lassic grinned and looked around at everyone.

「Then, why don’t we make a toast to the Earl of Leclerc and pledge to fight together for the Artuk Treaty? There are also many things I would like to ask the Earl about, such as the state of the battle in the north and his earlier exploits when he single-handedly threw the enemy camp into confusion. 」

「It’s the same with me here. I would like to hear more about the battles that the Artuk Treaty waged so far. 」

Kurt said while still having a pouty look on his face.

Then, Emma and Luna immediately brought a tray with a alcohol cups filled with wine from Artuk. Irvin brought in a spare barrel of it as well.

Then, the cups were clanked together, and the drinking party began.

Thinking it would be long, Siluca got up from her seat after a while. Only men, and Lords, should be able to speak here. Above all, the aftermath of the war still remains to be cleaned up, and that was her job as Theo’s contracted Mage.

(First, let’s negotiate the ransom amount.)

She muttered to myself and took out her magic wand.

(I’ll get to hear my adoptive father’s voice for the first time in a while.)

* * *

The city of Bertha, the capital of Waldrind. In the center of the city, in the palace of the Kraische family, 7,000 of the Heavy Knights of Waldrind have gathered. This was the entire army that could be mobilized at the current moment.