Chapter 3: Rogue Lords (3)

 

The question is how to survive, and I have several ideas.

The most important of them is that the Narja Kingdom Army doesn’t know about my existence at all. That means they don’t know the fact that I’m aware of the surprise attack.

I have to make the most of this; the only thing that worries me is my army’s current state.

How can the army underneath them be decent when the lords are in such bad shape?

In fact, in the game’s history, they were defeated without any resistance, so their condition must be terrible.

The first thing I need to do is to check my army. Because knowing yourself is even more important than knowing your enemy, it is the foundation of the art of war.

“Chamberlain, I’m going to the barracks.”

“The barracks? If you need anything, I’ll call the commander.”

“No, I’ll go directly to him.”

“Then I’ll have the carriage waiting for you soon.”

The chamberlain ran out the door in a hurry.

The notoriety of the lord is very useful at times like this. Several people seem to have lost their lives over a mistake.

The atmosphere is such that they don’t even ask if there’s anything I’m concerned about. I’m not in a position to explain every single thing I’m going to do, so that helped a lot.

The chamberlain returned, when I followed him, I found a carriage ready outside the lord’s castle. It’s a luxurious covered carriage. I was curious, but I didn’t show it on my face as I climbed into the carriage.

The inside of the carriage was not so spacious, probably enough for four people.

The chamberlain didn’t come inside, perhaps intending to drive the carriage himself. I looked around inside the carriage without a care in the world.

Immediately, the carriage started to move. I felt my body float with a clattering sound. Yes, the ride is the worst—this level of motion sickness.

Oops.

Every time it rattled, I felt like throwing up. It’s a terrible shaking as expected, and it is incomparable to a car. Well, there’s a big difference in technology.

As I was leaning against the wall, desperately trying to hold back nausea, the carriage came to a halt.

“Master. We are here.”

What good news, I quickly ran out and got my feet on the ground. The wind calmed my nausea a bit. It will take some time to get used to this; I took a quick deep breath and looked around.

The wooden barracks caught my eye. As far as I know, in the game, the city’s barracks are responsible for the security of the city. Besides, it was also where the command of the territorial army is located. Perhaps Aintorian should be the same.

I checked the information with my skills for now.

[Aintorian barracks]

[Troop strength: 1200 men]

[Morale: 20]

When I saw the information, I quickly held my head with one hand. The headache came over me again.

I couldn’t help but laugh, the morale of the troops is only 20. The maximum is 100, so 20 is almost the worst figure.

This is indeed Lord Erhin’s army. That’s why they couldn’t put up any resistance and got wiped out by the decoy forces.

This troop is not the entire Aintorian army, but the number of soldiers in charge of the city’s defense. It’s not too much, not too little, a good number.

In addition to this, there are multiple barracks in various parts of Aintorian territory. The city is the center of the territory where the lord’s castle is located. There are large territories with agriculture around it. Well, it’s the age of agrarian society.

The morale of the other barracks did not seem any higher. I managed to stave off the dizziness of this reality as I walked into the barracks. The soldiers were gathering here and there. I thought they were in the middle of training but soon realized it was a silly idea.

Soldiers were swarming all over the training grounds and holding gambling halls. All sorts of gambling were going on, starting with a simple sugoroku.

For a moment, I couldn’t believe my eyes. Is this the real state of the barracks?

It’s a big thing that the lord has entered the military drill ground, but no one has noticed anything.

“What the hell!”

The soldier who was pulled turned around angrily, holding the dice, and then his eyes met mine.

“Heeeeehee! Ryuu, lord! Sorry. I’m sorry when you visit ……!”

Erhin’s face is famous here, too, or he wouldn’t immediately prostrate himself on the ground at first sight. The notoriety of the lord is also very useful among the soldiers.

“That’s enough. Forget it; I want you to go get the commander right now.”

“Oh, cool! Ohhhh!”

The soldier immediately stood up and ran off in a frenzy. Thanks to him screaming like that, everyone around me was surprised to see me and stood up and took a cautionary stance. Some of the soldiers looked scared and frightened. At this point, isn’t the lord himself almost on the level of disaster?

Well, what matters now is the commander. I went to the building in the middle of the military camp or the military command center. It is also the place where the soldier I just saw ran into.

“Hey, what’s up with all the excitement?”

“That …….The lord…… The lord……is here to see you!”

The commander also played poker; it was a considerable amount of money here, much more so than the outside gambling. The soldiers indulge in gambling from the morning because their commander is like this; there is no hope.

“His Excellency is here? Ha! Sir!”

When the commander noticed me, he pushed past the soldiers and ran to me. The soldiers who were gambling with the man also stood up and straightened up when they saw me.

“Sir!”

This is how the high nobility from the duke to earl was called. It was also a term used by the nobility to refer to each other. Commoners call me lord, not sir. Aintorian Erhin is a high-ranking nobleman with a fief. Yes, now I was an earl.

And when it comes to the military commander, he’s also an aristocrat. Of course, lower nobility, probably only a baron. Besides, he is a vassal of the Aintorian family.

[Burke Gordon]

Age: 38 years]

[Martial force: 33]

[Intelligence: 23]

[Command: 20]

[Affiliation: commander of the Aintorian Territorial Army]

[People’s spirit: 10]

I verified the information. I knew it, the sheer incompetence itself. Even though he is a commander, his stats are lower than those of a soldier. He became a commander because he was a nobleman, well, that’s about it.

However, even though he may employ incompetent noblemen as his vassals, he had this kind of person as his military commander? No matter how incompetent Erhin is, this is terrible.

“What can I do for you this morning?”

Burke walked up to me and started laughing, rubbing his palms together. I could tell from the way he smiled. It seems that Erhin had appointed him as commander out of familiarity. It’s like he cared for his close vassals, not worrying about wrecking the army.

“Outside gambling is your call?”

“Yes, of course, because Your Excellency has allowed it. The gamblers are obliged to pay a gambling tax to me. Hahaha.”

Gambling tax? Ridiculous! I shook my head and whispered in the ear of the chamberlain.

“Yes, master.”

“He’s been the commander of the army all these years?”

“No. At the time of the previous lord, another person was……”

“Did I change it?”

“Yes, master.”

So that’s it, former lord, Erhin’s father died of illness a few years ago. Erhin has only been in charge for a short time as a lord.

After his father, who was controlling him, died, he began to do all kinds of evil deeds like a fish in the water.

“So, where is the former commander now?”

“……yes?”

“I’m asking where is your former commander?”

If Erhin replaced him, he would at least be better than the man in front of him. It’s an immutable truth that tyrants try to keep their loyal subjects away.

“Baron Haddin is in prison.”

“Ho, I see.”

Fortunately, he seems to be alive because he’s a nobleman. I’m glad to hear that searching for the right person for the commander position in a day is challenging. Still, when you have a strong candidate, it’s a different story.

Of course, I have to decide on that candidate after careful examination.

“I see. So you let the soldiers gamble during training time?”

“Yeah, right?”

Although he didn’t hear me and the chamberlain’s whispering, the man noticed that the atmosphere was somewhat suspicious and got a strange look on his face.

“Throw Commander Burke in jail now! Charge him with disrupting military discipline!”

Right in front of him, I gave a stern order. Burke jumped up and down in surprise.

“Ta, your honor! What does that mean!…… Erhin Sir! I’m Gordon!”

So what do you want me to do? I don’t have to answer.

He was a man who didn’t deserve to be dealt with anymore.

***

The prison was bleak; it was built underground, barely lit by candlelight. If I had been locked up for a long time, I would suffer from mental illness.

“Hey, let go! Your Excellency! Your Excellency! Why do you do this! Sir!”

I ignored Gordon, who made a lot of noise about being thrown in jail and headed for my former commanding officer. Perhaps nervous about the military commander’s confinement, the head warden guided me with robotic movements.

“Here, here …… Baron Haddin is locked up!”

“Okay, just shut up and open the cell door.”

The head warden hurriedly covered his mouth with his hands at my words. Then, snapping back, he opened the door to the prison and stepped back.

As I stepped into the cell, I saw a man leaning against the wall; he looked worn.

“Your……?”

I immediately used [Information Confirmation].

My life depended on tomorrow’s battle, so I eagerly checked the information.

[Merja Haddin]

[Age: 45 years]

[Martial force: 60]

[Intelligence: 57]

[Command: 70]

[Affiliation: no current affiliation]

[People’s spirit: 75]

Heh. Well, this level is not bad. After seeing Burke Gordon’s ability value, I felt like my eyes were purified when I saw his stats.

The average martial force of a soldier is about 30 to 40.

Although 60 is not a great value, it is a relief to know that there are some adequate people in the decaying Aintorian territories who can command an army.

It’s rare to find someone with an A-class ability value in this game; an S-class one is even more valuable.

Besides, it’s the command value that matters anyway. The immediate need for a commander is to lead a troop, but it was perfect with a command of 70.

“Your Honor! How can I help you?……”

“Baron Haddin. Have you ever been in a war?”

I interrupted him. Now is not the time to convince people to follow me soo it would be quicker to appoint them with the lord’s authority. It’s enough to survive tomorrow’s battle to get him to follow me completely.

“War? Of course. Twenty years ago, there were frequent battles of all sizes, and I was in the military then, too……”

I see he’s 45 years old now, so even though it was twenty years ago, he was 25 years old then. Even in the aristocracy, lower nobles often serve in the military, so it was expected.

“Baron Haddin I will now reinstate you as commander of the Aintorian Territorial Army!”

“What…..? Is it true, your honor!?”

“The first thing you need to do upon your return is to summon all the Aintorian forces, except for the border guards, to the south gate of the castle.”

I came out of the prison after I gave that order to Haddin, who just blinked his eyes in surprise.

The lord’s orders are absolute; the difference in status in a hierarchical society is indisputable.

I am a high-ranking noble earl.

Any uprising or rebellion would result in being hunted as a criminal throughout the kingdom.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that no one can resist the lord’s order.

Therefore, I will use this authority and notoriety to the fullest extent to develop a strategy for survival.

To survive!