Royal Road of the Extra Scribe

69

The prisoner-of-war camp set up in the Crossing’s military encampment.

I was wandering around here with Anton.

Though I was an outsider, no one found it odd with Anton by my side.

Anton scrutinized the list of prisoners handed over by Juras, explaining each key figure one by one.

“This man is Mana Tolkins, a battalion commander of Europa’s infantry. He comes from a noble background.”

“Let him through.”

“And this man… goes by the name of Lebron Deims. He’s a cavalry soldier, but his skill in single combat is quite remarkable.”

“Just by the name, we seem like a perfect match.”

Although I was intrigued, having exceptional skills to that extent was not common.

“I don’t see anyone particularly impressive…”

“It’s natural. There are already many outstanding individuals by the Lord’s side. Yumir, Gaspar, and Rutger are like that. My wife is the same.”

“What about Eonia?”

“Mirabel… has some… eccentricities.”

It seemed like he was teasing her unique loyalist temperament.

“hahahaha, don’t say that to her face. It might lead to a fight.”

There was no one particularly appealing. If someone seemed skilled, they were mostly nobles, making it difficult to recruit them, and selecting commoners was practically impossible.

“Just by bringing Prince Romelo, we’ve already made a profit.”

It felt somewhat disappointing.

“There’s nothing we can do. Let’s go back.”

“Yes.”

That was when we turned around.

“Wait a moment!”

A sharp voice that pierced the ears.

“That ash-colored helmet. You’re Wade!”

“…?”

It was a boy dressed in ragged clothes.

He might be about two years younger than me. His voice had just started to change. He looked sturdy, but not fully grown yet.

“Please! Release Mr. Brahms and Mr. Rampard! Both of them have wives who are pregnant with their first child!”

“Shut up!”

The guards around threatened, but the boy, with determined eyes, faced me directly.

“No! I’ll make a scene until you release both of them!”

“You arrogant brat!”

Thwack! Thwack! Other guards, to maintain discipline among the prisoners, beat the boy thoroughly.

“I don’t mind getting beaten as long as you release both of them!”

The boy remained stubborn.

Even with his swollen face and mouth filled with blood, his eyes showed no sign of surrender.

Intrigued, I gestured to Anton.

“That’s enough!”

As Anton signaled, the guards quickly backed off.

I approached the boy and spoke.

“He’s an interesting lad. But do you know your position? You’re going to become a slave of Crossing soon. Those who can’t pay the price all end up like that. It seems like you weren’t living well even in Europa, but instead of freeing those two, what can you do for me? Surely you’re not just asking to be freed based on recognition without any compensation?”

“I have nothing to offer right now! I’ll repay later!”

“How do you plan to repay?”

“By becoming a great general!”

“…What?”

The lad exclaimed confidently.

“I am a man who will become a grand marshal someday!”

A stunned silence ensued. Even the guards chuckled in disbelief.

“I heard your nonsense well.”

“What did you say!”

“Why is such a remarkable lad like you here being held?”

“T-That’s… I was trying to save the gentlemen…”

“If you were truly destined to become a general, wouldn’t you have found a way to rescue them? If so, you wouldn’t have been detained here facing this disgrace for no reason.”

“…I admit I am lacking now. But things will change soon!”

Anyone can talk big.”

As I turned away, the lad hung his head in disappointment.

The guards dragged him away, leading him to a narrow solitary cell.

I quietly said, “Anton, release the people he mentioned.”

“You don’t need to comply if it’s based on his words.”

“I wasn’t swayed by his words. Just that, we also have a pregnant woman waiting at home, right? It’s a somewhat similar situation, so I decided to show some mercy.”

“Ah….”

Anton probably understood it better from his perspective.

“Thank you for your consideration. I will handle it accordingly.”

“Please treat that lad too. If he dies like that, even in dreams, it might disturb the peace.”

“Understood!”

A grand marshal.

‘Pride is worth living for, but….’

In this world, for a commoner to become a grand marshal was like catching stars in the sky.

I thought that lad should be grateful to survive without starving, let alone dreaming of becoming a grand marshal.

***

Bringing Prince Romelo to my side also had strategic significance.

The reason Europa was fiercely opposing Crossing was to retrieve the prince. When I brought the prince back to the Galrun Mountains, Europa was left in disarray, like a dog chasing a chicken.

Attacking where I was located was out of the question since the Galrun Mountains were already fortified and untouchable.

Furthermore, unlike Crossing, known for not executing prisoners, my unpredictability made them cautious.

Realizing that rescuing the prince at this point was impossible, Europa withdrew its forces to the rear.

“Now I can finally take a breather.”

Tunkai, with both Europa and Crossing retreating, a stalemate had developed on the front lines.

Feeling the helmet becoming uncomfortable, I decided to entrust the command to Anton by giving him a grey helmet and planned to return to Alstro.

Upon returning to the unit after a long absence, the brothers greeted me with proud smiles.

“Well done, Alse. Thanks to you, General Dunan could peacefully close his eyes.”

“Marquis Ferzy, you’ve also endured a lot.”

Marquis Ferzy scratched the back of his head as if embarrassed.

“And that thing… ordering the promotion for me and Stina? There was no need to go that far.”

“What are you talking about? During that retreat, Marquis Ferzy achieved a great feat. It’s a fair reward.”

“Hmph, thank you.”

After unpacking my belongings in the tent, I aimlessly wandered around the camp.

It was to investigate things that were not visible when I held the highest command position.

During this, I ran into my comrade Bannings.

“Alse! You’re back! So, has your leg injury healed?”

No one found it strange that I evaded questions about why I went to the rear.

Bannings, with whom I had a conversation before going to the rear, knew that I hadn’t injured my leg, but even if I had gone out of fear, he understood and played along.

“It’s healed. But what’s all this commotion about?”

“Well… it seems that General Dunan’s body is on its way.”

Ah…

It turned out that Tunkai had agreed to hand over Dunan’s body. It was to gain diplomatic favor from Calipher for future prisoner negotiations.

They returned the bodies of other prisoners as politely as possible.

As the bodies arrived, a heavy silence fell over the army.

A soldier wailed in front of his comrade’s body.

“What was the point of this war…!”

The cost paid by the Allied forces in this war, with over 100,000 sacrifices, was nothing. Even the achievements made by the Chimera Alliance were meager.

Neither victory nor defeat, just emptiness.

The price of this war, where friends, comrades, and family were lost, was this sense of futility.

Dorothy, who received Dunan’s body as a widow, collapsed as if all strength had left her.

“Why are you like this, father? Please, get up…!”

Officers stood around Dorothy, silently mourning.

Beside me, Helian Duke approached and muttered softly.

“War is the cruelty of a monster. Whether victorious or defeated, the damn situation remains the same. Especially in these situations where neither victory nor defeat matters, it’s even more bitter.”

“…”

“That’s why I left the military and entered politics. I thought there might be a way to prevent war in advance. But in the end, it’s come to this. Damn it.”

From Helian, I felt something more than frustration.

It was like the righteousness I had sensed from the King of Paraine.

“But isn’t receiving the body at this moment unnecessary? The army’s morale has plummeted significantly.”

“It’s fine. Once the enemy attacks, we’ll be ready to repel them.”

There was a quiet anger brewing among the soldiers. It was more of a rise in spirits rather than a decline in morale.

“It may be so for now. But if the front line drags on, problems will surely arise. How long do you think this standoff will last?”

“At least a month. However, the likelihood of combat on our front is almost nonexistent.”

“It’s a long standoff. Alright, then let’s prepare a way to boost morale sooner.”

The method devised by Helian Duke was nothing other than this.

It was to conduct a large-scale visitation for the soldiers.

A week passed since the standoff began.

As the deadlock continued, both sides engaged in clandestine operations for the armistice agreement.

Soldiers were stationed at strategic points along the border to maximize territorial gains, while spies from both sides engaged in covert combat to gather information.

The covert war had truly begun.

Despite the tense situation, a warm breeze flowed through our military camp that day.

People were constantly coming and going at the reception area prepared throughout the camp.

Being situated on the eastern edge of the battlefield made it easy for us to accommodate guests arriving from Calipha.

Under the leadership of Duke Helian, the gloom that had enveloped the families and lovers of the soldiers visiting the reception area was dissipating.

Although I wanted to rest, the presence of Europa’s spies among the guests necessitated strengthening surveillance on Prince Romelo.

While I had been neglecting the reception, it seemed I, too, had guests.

Yumir approached and whispered, “My lord, Lady Claire and Miss Julia have arrived.”

“Oh dear. I told them it wasn’t necessary to come…”

My father and my brother Max, who knew I was Wade, must have shown consideration by not coming, but my mother and Julia did not.

Unable to greet them personally, I entrusted Anton with the task and made my way to the noble-exclusive reception area.

The reception area was set up like a party venue. Musicians were playing instruments, and nobles were enjoying dancing in a small space.

From Noble mtl dot com

The food, brought in as high-quality provisions, looked quite appetizing.

“What? All this food is here?”

It felt like I had missed out on half of military life.

With my stomach growling from combat rations, I was about to grab a table and get some food when Julia appeared.

“Young─!”

Julia called out, waving her hand, followed by six young girls.

They were the kids I knew and had befriended in Rainfall, the little ones I had given bouquets to before.

“Sister, we agreed to stop calling me ‘young.’ Elsie and Chelsea are the youngest now, right?”

“I thought so too. But reconsidering, among the brothers, you must be the youngest, right? So, you’re young─!”

“Why force it like that?”

“hahahaha! That’s the privilege of being an older sister!”

I seated them at a table and personally brought them food.

Their eyes lit up at the sight of the food.

For these commoner kids, it seemed like a rare delicacy, as they eagerly started eating non-stop.

Curious about the taste, I tried some myself, but compared to what Eoga used to make, it was nothing special, so I quickly stopped.

“hahahaha… It’s still the same here.”

“Sister?”

Julia looked around, smiling as if reminiscing.

“Are you regretting retiring?”

“Not really. It was to help with the estate. Still… I can’t help feeling sorry. It feels like I ran away alone.”

“But in return, I joined the military.”

“That’s true. If my ‘young one’ joined in my place, it must be much more beneficial for the military.”

“That’s why I said stop with the ‘young one.'”

As we continued our conversation,

Yuria whispered as she nudged her head.

“But why does that kid keep peeking at us?”

It was Erina who continued to glance over here. She had attended the gathering of Salion faction cadets, including Luan Chase, and seemed eager to join in.

“She looks like a high-class lady. Do you know her?”

“I got to know her when I was in servant training.”

“What? Gee. Our little one has another crush, huh. Anyway.”

“A crush…?”

“She’s infatuated! Otherwise, why would she blatantly peek like that?”

Yuria spoke firmly like a scolding.

“I warned you about poking your nose everywhere. I heard someone got stabbed in the belly for that, you know? Of course, our little one didn’t mean any harm… But… that’s even worse!”

Yuria looked as if she was about to drive a nail in, but at that moment, their mother, who had just returned from Pierre’s visit, appeared.

“Yuria, what are you talking about at the gathering? More importantly, go and bring Pierre back.”

“Ugh. Why me?”

“Because you’re twins.”

“That’s why I don’t want to go.”

“Stop the nonsense. I heard Pierre is getting promoted, so you should congratulate him too.”

“Fine, I got it. Kids, let’s go together.”

With a gloomy expression, Yuria led the group away.

Their mother sighed at the sight.

“Even though they’re twins, how come they’re so different?”

“Yuria has her own strengths. But why are you wandering around alone? What if you get lost? I’ll have Yumir accompany you.”

“I can’t burden you like that. But… I wonder why they haven’t arrived yet.”

Their mother looked around, as if searching for someone.

“Are there other companions?”

“Veril and Estelle came along. Estelle, being from Crossing, seems to require complicated procedures.”

“What? W-who?”

“Veril and Estelle.”

Veril understood. It was because Veril’s uncle, who was our mother’s younger brother, was involved in this war. But Estelle was different.

“Is that… No, she’s definitely here to meet me.”

“Of course. She must have begged to come along.”

“Mother, I’m feeling a bit sick…”

But it was already too late.

Soon, the gathering place began to buzz.