After blowing up the Guild headquarters, I made my way to the plaza. It wasn't just soldiers from the Four Nations Alliance and Cartafus who had cooperated with me that filled the place — Baim's own soldiers and residents were there too.
Overcast skies. Addressing the crowd that had gathered since early morning, I made my declaration.
"You who have experienced war — how did it feel?"
My provocative words drew murmurs, and among the crowd were those radiating murderous intent. While watching their indicators shift from yellow to red using the Sixth Generation's Skills, I carried on.
"Oh my, are you angry? After all, you've been fighting this whole time with no intention of winning. I figured you were just waiting to be trampled."
Aria and Miranda, who were providing security nearby, turned their gazes toward me. They were probably thinking I shouldn't provoke a riot right here. And sure enough, it would have been easy to appeal to justice and pity — to win Baim's support the safe way.
That would have been pathetic. Oh, nobody could have predicted this, right? From now on, we'll be the ones to save you. ...Wonderful. It's almost too easy — I could burst out laughing.
But that wouldn't work in my favor. I was borrowing soldiers from the Four Nations Alliance, Cartafus, Janpea, Fonbeau — from a great many nations. Especially to Zayin and Rolfis of the Four Nations Alliance, and to the former subjects of Selva, Baim would look like nothing more than villains.
The residents' resentment was spreading, and their hostility was turning toward me. A favorable trend.
"You showed up just now?! You're too late!"
"Give them back! My family... give me back my home!"
"There are children whose parents were killed!"
Hearing the voices of Baim's residents, I scoffed.
"And? You've been making a fortune exploiting other countries all this time, but now that you're the ones getting hit, you cry foul? What a selfish lot. Oh, so you don't need my help after all? Fine — let's just go home then. Go ahead and let Banseim trample you clean. Might want to kill yourselves before they toy you to death, too. Honestly, I came here to help and it was a complete waste."
The moment I said that, incoherent shouts came pouring from the residents.
"Y-You're running away?!"
"Coward!"
"What kind of hero are you?! You damn fraud!"
It was truly awful. Any decent person would have concluded these people were impossible to reason with. But then, the Third Generation offered advice from within the Jewel.
"Well, this is about what you'd expect. In a situation like this, nobody's going to be calm. They probably can't even think clearly about what they're saying."
So I called Selma up onto the temporary stage that had been set up in the square. The moment the former saint appeared, the murmuring from the crowd quieted down a little.
When I gave Selma a smile, she nodded back. I hadn't planned on bringing her along, but this was a brilliant play on my part. I really am a man who's got it going on.
Selma spread both arms wide and addressed the people of Baim.
"Citizens of Baim. This war has certainly put you in a terrible situation. Zayin, too, followed Lyle Walt's words and dispatched troops. Among the soldiers here, there are some from Zayin. However, when the decision to send troops was made in Zayin, many soldiers were reluctant. For years, they suffered at the hands of mercenary companies dispatched from Baim. They paid money to hire them, only to have the villages raided, families killed, and everything looted by the very enemy nations that employed them. And yet they sent soldiers to Baim's rescue because it was the word of Lyle Walt — this nation's savior."
Voices of protest rose from the surrounding residents, though there were fewer of them than when I'd spoken. That was because Zayin's armed soldiers were glaring at the people of Baim.
"...The only reason we were able to enter Baim is that the merchants and guild executives who form Baim's leadership fled by ship. If not for that, we wouldn't have been able to rush here at all. And it was Lyle Walt who said 'rush here.'"
Sure enough, when a beautiful woman did the persuading, there were fewer objections than when I spoke. Now that things had quieted down, I decided to take over the speech from Selma. Not because of the content — I just wanted to let things sink in for a beat.
"...Listen up. You who have been abandoned. Will you drive me out and let Banseim ravage you? Or... will you follow me and hand over Baim? Surrender all of Baim to me. In exchange, I will give you victory. I will drive Banseim back and rebuild Baim. You can accept me as your king, or you can die right here! Let me make one thing clear — driving Banseim back once or twice doesn't mean much. When you consider Banseim's national power, they're fully capable of committing forces of that scale again in the future."
They were capable of it. But I never said they would. It would take at least several years, and I had no intention of giving them that time.
"Will you follow merchants once more and put those who fled on top? Will you leave your defense to adventurers, only to lose and get ravaged again? ...Let me be clear. I will not abandon my people. If you would follow me, then kneel!"
With gestures and expressions to boot, Eva was secretly activating her Skills — All Mind Language. A skill that bordered on a form of brainwashing. For Eva, who wanted to deliver her songs to listeners, it was the ultimate skill. What it meant was that it delivered the voice to the listener in a way they could fully understand.
The barrier of language. And it swept aside all manner of obstacles, turning words into something that resonated in the heart. For a Bard, there was no skill more convenient.
Eva had been hesitant to use it, but right now, delivering my voice took priority. Nothing could begin if they refused to listen.
Just as always, the Sakura knelt. There were quite a few of them mixed into the crowd as well, and as they knelt one after another, their numbers grew. Before long, several hundred people were standing there, albeit in a state of confusion.
"A-Are you people out of your minds?! Baim is an independent city of merchants! Y-You're just going to let that brat push you around in silence?!"
"That's Banseim's people attacking right now, you know!"
"His sister is Banseim's next queen!"
Sure enough, even with Skills and the Sakura, there were still those who resisted. But the majority had decided to follow me.
I spread both arms wide and raised my voice.
"Very well. From this day forward, Baim is mine. You have all made a wise decision. After all... you are following me! Bwahaha!"
Ah... with tens of thousands of people watching, I threw my head back in laughter and thought to myself.
That I felt absolutely wonderful.
--The knight leading the reorganized Banseim soldiers, their weapons now swapped out, took one look at the scene before him and screamed.
"You've got to be kidding me! How could you lot... This is supposed to be the other way around!!"
The blocked single road had a reasonable width to it.
They had figured that field equipment would be cumbersome in urban combat, so they had abandoned the longer spears they'd been carrying and charged in.
Large formations couldn't maneuver here, so they had reduced their numbers down to squad scale. This was meant to counter the adventurers, but what Banseim's soldiers now faced was a heavily armored cavalry force.
They came thundering down the narrow road with shields and spears.
When the knight cast a spell, it was easily deflected by the Magic Shield the cavalry had deployed. Expanding a Magic Shield and charging with mounted units was a fundamental tactic even for Banseim. The sight of Baim executing it was unbelievable.
And from the knight's perspective, that charge looked extremely well-trained.
"You lot -- you're not Baim's soldiers --"
The narrow road -- Banseim's troops, trampled by the cavalry force, took a devastating blow --.
"So you were blocking the path and clearing the rubble. Impressive."
Standing atop a building, I watched in admiration as the cavalry force led by Aria charged forward.
Surrounded by Monica, Valkyrie One and Two, and Three who had just joined up with us, I was on the rooftop with Miranda, surveying the situation around us.
Miranda, clad in green armor, had removed her helmet and was shrugging her shoulders.
"Aria came up with it. She can do it when she puts her mind to it -- I just wish she'd shown that motivation sooner."
She seemed exasperated, but also somewhat relieved. In other locations as well, reinforcements were arriving one after another, closing the gap in numbers. Banseim's advantage was beginning to crumble.
Miranda brushed her hair back.
"So, what are we going to do from here on out?"
I flashed a fearless grin. It probably suited me too well.
"We'll drive Banseim's forces out of the urban area, and from there, it's a frontal assault. This is the battle where I declare war on Ceres. There's no other way."
Miranda let out a sigh.
"Geez... Even if you talk about fair and square or head-on at this point, it won't matter. From their perspective, it's practically grounds for protest."
I ran a hand through my hair.
"That's not my fault. I deliberately positioned myself in front of Banseim. They're the ones who split their forces. I didn't do anything wrong."
From inside the Jewel, the Seventh Generation agreed with me. As expected of my grandfather.
"That's right. I set things up so they'd play out this way, but in the end, it was Banseim's side that made the call. Indeed! The one to blame is Banseim's general!"
With that, I drew the katana at my waist. Miranda was also looking in the direction of my gaze. I spoke to our guests.
"So Banseim has grouped their elites into a dedicated unit. Not bad, but it's made things tough for the rest of their forces."
Before us stood knights in full-body armor—full plate.
They must have spotted us since we were in such a prominent position. One of the knights spoke.
"The woman in green armor—there's a blue one too, but it doesn't matter. We'll kill you!"
They had to be Mana Tools. Their weapons and armor were reinforced with Mana Tools, and they came at us wielding their specialties. Miranda pulled down her helmet and swung her left hand.
A wire shot from her fingertips, sticky and aimed at ensnaring the knights—but it didn't catch them.
"That's all you've got?!"
One knight's armor burst into flames, burning through the wire as he charged. Was that the power of a Mana Tool, or a Skill?
"Interesting. I'll handle thi—"
Just as I took a step forward to fight, a knight with a greatsword lunged from the left. Valkyrie No. 1 caught the blow with wing-like binders.
"I won't let you."
"This guy!"
Valkyrie No. 1 effortlessly caught the strike of a knight who possessed both speed and power, then pulled the sword free from her binders in one smooth motion. She sent the knight flying, while No. 2 and No. 3 also took up their weapons.
As for Monica —
"Hmph, there's no need for me to step in."
She watched the Valkyries fight, shaking her head.
Miranda extended threads from the fingertips of both hands.
"Wire Frame... I wonder if they can burn through this one?"
She hurled a weapon she'd made by coiling wire into a spiral, aimed at the knight who had burned through her threads. The dagger plunged into the knight's flame-spewing armor, and Miranda yanked the attached wire, flinging the knight toward a building.
With everyone else holding their own, I reluctantly sheathed my katana and gripped the Jewel.
"Fine. Let's go for a grand reveal, then."
The Jewel in my left hand transformed into the shape of a bow, and unlike before, it now featured silver feather — ornaments. The grip bore an eagle-head decoration, giving it a fitting look for the Second Generation, who had been a hunter.
Monica looked at it.
"The shape is still different from before, isn't it?"
"Looks cool, right?"
I nocked the silver bow, and multiple arrows of light materialized. Their shape was different from before. I loosed the arrows at the knights who had been charging at us, and they spiraled through the air toward their targets.
"Scatter!"
The knight who seemed to be the commander shouted, and the knights began scattering in different directions. They must have judged the arrows of light to be dangerous, but —
"Too bad. This one's special."
The homing arrows of light bore down on the knights without losing any momentum. They pierced through, and one knight was sent flying all the way into a different building.
The knight who had tried to barely defend himself by sacrificing his arm had his arm pierced by a bolt of light, which then exploded.
Then the commander-type man started running straight toward me. It must have been a skill similar to Aria's — he closed the distance in a single burst and swung his sword down at me.
"Too slow."
I swung the bow I was holding. The feather ornaments on both ends were sharp enough to cut an opponent down. I felled the knight right through his armor, and the silver weapon drained his mana in the process.
Monica watched how I fought.
"Your power has gone up compared to before. It looks like it handles much better now."
I slung the silver bow over my shoulder and surveyed the area.
"Right? Now then, let me go ahead and collect the Mana Tools. I can't use them myself, but I wouldn't mind having them adjusted and handed out to the ones who distinguished themselves."
Miranda looked my way and said:
"So you say Mana Tools don't matter, but you're way out of the norm too, Lyle."
I said to Miranda:
"Let me explain. Skills are only worth something when you've truly mastered them. Even if you have a bunch of Mana Tools, it's meaningless if you can't use them properly. Besides… in the end, someone with a skill that's reached the third tier can't be matched by any tool."
That's right. The advantage of Mana Tools was that they let anyone wield Skills, but very few people could handle Tools engraved with multiple powerful Skills.
Just like back in the old days for me, most of the mana would get sucked into the Jewel, making the whole thing useless more often than not.
"Well, part of the reason is that I'm just too strong, I guess."
At that, Miranda took off her helmet and shot me a flat look.
"So you're saying we're weak?"
I looked at Miranda and turned the silver bow back into its Jewel form, then put it back around my neck.
"Don't be ridiculous. I got stronger because I want to protect you guys. Just take that as a young man's bravado and let it slide. I love you, Miranda."
Monica and the Valkyries started whistling.
"Every time you open your mouth, you whisper words of love. Honestly, you chicken are an unbelievable smooth-talker. Say it to me too, would you? I'll record it in the highest quality audio and video. I'll keep playing it on loop and rub it in the faces of the other foolish sisters. Come on! Whisper your love to me!"
It wouldn't hurt to say it, but teasing the one who wants it can be fun too. I looked at Monica.
"You're such an idiot. You're making me blush. You should be able to read my feelings without me saying it. Now then, shall we get back to work?"
Monica said:
"That's exactly the kind of evasive trick you enjoy, isn't it! I already told you I love that sort of thing! This is your reward, so keep teasing me more!"
"Aren't you cute. Alright, once this is over, I'll give you a lap pillow. Miranda, what about you? It was quite popular on the ship, you know."
Miranda looked slightly troubled. Then she glanced at me.
"...I'm still going to pester you even after you've come back to your senses."
I laughed.
"Come anytime. Accepting your love is my duty, after all. My love embraces even the world itself!"
Surrounded by applause from Monica and the Valkyries, I threw my head back and burst into hearty laughter right there on the spot.