“Muu…”
“With this, the enemy cavalry will be annihilated by the archers on the left. Our cavalry will hunt the archers at the rear of the enemy formation.”
“Due to the firing from the rear, the Caldera army’s right-wing infantry will suffer a morale collapse.”
“Then, as it is, move half of the left-wing infantry to the right wing, and semi-encircle the enemy’s central infantry.”
The man sitting opposite Crishet furrowed his brow deeply, and murmurs of astonishment spread from those around them.
Led by Bohgan, they had come to the army’s training grounds.
Crishet and the others were in one of its rooms.
In the center of the room was a large table.
Sand was piled on the table, and terrain features like forests and rivers were depicted using blue and green cloth, with numerous pieces arranged upon it.
Crishet issued commands to these countless pieces, moving them.
What was taking place was a strategy game called a wargame exercise, aimed at tactical research.
The pieces represented soldiers, each marked with a symbol indicating its unit type, and information such as whether it was elite or weak, and its troop count, was written on a separate sheet of paper.
Three umpires judged the results of combat, combining them with dice rolls to determine fortuitous battle outcomes.
The situation was clearly developing in Crishet’s favor, and the outcome of the battle was all but decided.
It might have been different in a siege or a positional battle, but this time it was a field battle.
In field battles, cavalry played a crucial role, tasked with disrupting the enemy’s rear by targeting vulnerable archers and delivering decisive blows to enemy lines, while also serving as a shield against such attacks.
Losing such mobility meant completely losing the initiative, and the side that lost the initiative would find it impossible to turn things around unless they possessed overwhelming numerical superiority.
Crishet deliberately deployed vulnerable infantry on her left flank, luring the enemy cavalry by inducing a morale collapse, and then deployed her hidden archers.
The enemy cavalry was annihilated, and Crishet’s archers proceeded to target the rear of the infantry that had broken through the left flank.
Those infantrymen, while under attack from archers from their rear, engaged with our reserve forces.
They easily suffered a morale collapse, and while her archers slaughtered the fleeing infantry, she advanced half of her reserve infantry to strike the flank of the enemy’s central infantry.
“…We’re retreating. Withdraw the main camp.”
“The cavalry will continue to engage the enemy archers. Our archers will conduct a sweep of the remaining enemies in the center.”
Crishet paid no heed to the enemy’s main camp as it began to retreat, instead focusing on reaping the remaining enemy soldiers.
With the retreat of the main camp, all enemy units suffered a morale collapse.
The battle, which began with five thousand against five thousand, concluded with a score of four thousand to one thousand two hundred.
She had wanted to whittle them down by another five hundred, but the opponent’s decision to retreat was swift.
Thinking, It can’t be helped, yet with a slightly dissatisfied expression, Crishet gave up and stood.
Bohgan stared at the board, lost in thought, while Selene pouted, her lips pursed, as she looked at Crishet.
Just a short while ago, Selene had suffered a narrow defeat against the same opponent.
“My, my… That was a complete defeat, I must admit. Selene-sama also possesses remarkable talent, but Crishet-sama, it’s hard to believe this is your first wargame exercise. Chrishtand is secure, indeed.”
“Haha… I’m surprised myself. I had her try it out on a whim, but for you to be defeated, Salva… Crishet, with such an advantage, why didn’t you target the enemy’s main camp?”
“…? Is that not allowed?”
“It’s not that it’s not allowed, but… knowing you, there must have been some intention behind it, right?”
Crishet searched for her words for a moment, then spoke.
“Crishet didn’t feel much need to target the enemy commander.”
“Why is that?”
“There are still a thousand elite troops surrounding the commander. To pursue and defeat them as they begin to retreat, we would have to use our cavalry, and in that case, Crishet’s cavalry would risk annihilation. Whether the infantry could catch up in time would be a gamble, and the chances of taking his head would be fifty-fifty. Even if we could aim for the enemy’s complete destruction, the risk is too great.”
Crishet pointed to the game board and continued.
“In contrast, the loss of enemy forces is a clear result. Rather than recklessly targeting the enemy commander’s thousand, sweeping up the one thousand five hundred remaining enemies that can be defeated without any losses on our side is far more appealing. …Besides, I don’t think an enemy commander who has suffered such heavy losses would be able to show his face on the battlefield again after returning.”
Although her remark was without ill intent, Salva, the lean, middle-aged man—adjutant to the Third Legion Commander—who sat opposite her, understandably winced.
Present here were battalion commanders leading a thousand men, and legion commanders leading five thousand, or their adjutants.
Bohgan, being a General, was the highest-ranking individual.
Towards Crishet, who had been formally adopted and held the position of the General’s daughter, they couldn’t openly question her statement in front of the General.
Nevertheless, everyone felt the atmosphere grow tense due to her recent remark.
The air became somewhat oppressive, and Crishet, while tilting her head at their reaction, continued.
“Of course, Crishet also wanted to defeat the enemy commander if possible. This time, since the enemy commander attempted an early retreat while still having sufficient forces remaining, I opted to expand our gains. However, it is regrettable that I couldn’t finish him off despite having such an advantage.”
When Crishet finished speaking, she looked up at Bohgan.
Bohgan nodded and said.
“Indeed, to decide to retreat at that stage despite being driven into such a disadvantageous position was a wise decision. Letting your guard down because your opponent was a novice, Crishet, and being cornered so badly is not commendable, but you handled things well after that.”
In reality, Crishet’s tactical judgment was skillful, and aside from the beginning, it wasn’t as if Salva had been holding back.
However, by saying so, Bohgan saved Salva’s face.
The tense atmosphere calmed down a little, and Selene brought her face close to Crishet’s ear.
“…I know you don’t mean any harm, but you should be a little more careful with how you say things.”
“…?”
Selene whispered so only Crishet could hear, and Crishet tilted her head, wondering what she had said wrong.
Selene sighed and, thinking, I suppose it’s useless telling you, she ruffled Crishet’s hair vigorously.
Crishet hesitated, wondering whether to protest that her hair was getting messy, but in the end, she succumbed to the pleasant sensation of her head being patted and let it happen.
About half a year had passed since Crishet came to the Chrishtand household.
Although her sense of rivalry towards Crishet hadn’t disappeared, Selene now doted on Crishet as if she were her real younger sister.
Despite displaying extremely prodigious talents, Crishet was honest and obedient.
She had a tendency to speak her mind too bluntly and was poor at discerning the subtleties of others’ emotions, but even for Selene, she had settled into the perception that Crishet was just a slightly unusual girl.
The fact that Crishet was a domestic girl who enjoyed cooking and housework also played a large part.
Perhaps because she, along with Berry, saw those aspects of her, from Selene’s perspective, Crishet, though a little odd, appeared to be a truly good-natured and well-behaved girl.
Bohgan saw great potential in her talents and began to provide her with military education alongside Selene, who originally aspired to such things, but Selene had started to wonder if this was truly a good thing.
It went without saying for combat skills, but Crishet also demonstrated talent in tactics and strategy; however, Crishet herself was a girl who, true to her appearance, loved cooking and sweets.
Berry was clearly opposed to it, and Selene also harbored doubts about the matter.
Crishet’s stance was, to the last, “only if necessary.”
Unlike Selene, she had no goal of succeeding her father, nor did she seek honor.
What Crishet desired was merely the strength to protect herself and those around her, and likely nothing more.
Selene, who knew the circumstances of how she had lost her parents, thought this way.
Therefore, she even felt a sense of guilt that Bohgan was making her learn these skills just because she was talented.
Crishet, though expressionless, had her eyes slightly narrowed.
She was happy about her head being patted. It was the expression she made when she was pleased.
As they spent more time together, one became able to read even her subtle changes in expression.
The more Selene saw such adorable aspects of her, the more she agonized over the current situation.
“Father, may Crishet and I go look around the training grounds for a bit?”
“Ah, alright. Just don’t interfere with the training.”
When Selene and Crishet went out to the training grounds, the soldiers’ gazes immediately turned towards them.
The throne of this Albeland Kingdom was not strictly patrilineal; depending on the generation, women had inherited it, and queens had ruled the government.
Therefore, women held strong authority, and the existence of female soldiers was accepted.
That being said, it wasn’t as if many women aspired to become soldiers, and those visible now were very few. Moreover, not all female soldiers were necessarily comely in appearance.
When exceptionally beautiful girls like Crishet and Selene appeared in such a place, it was only natural that the men’s gazes would turn towards them.
However, Selene had noticed that in those gazes, it wasn’t just goodwill or vulgar emotions, but something like fear was mixed in.
It was directed towards Crishet.
When they had visited the other day, Crishet had mercilessly thrashed the soldiers in training and demonstrated her overwhelming power.
Because of the display she had put on at that time, Crishet was feared by the soldiers here.
Selene sighed softly, took Crishet’s hand, and moved to the shade of a tree by the wall.
It was a relief that Crishet didn’t seem to mind those gazes.
Just how thick-skinned is she, Selene thought, as she asked Crishet.
“Crishet, is studying things like tactics fun?”
“…Fun, you ask?”
“Hmm, I’m asking if it’s fun like when you’re cooking, for example.”
“Compared to cooking, it’s not fun.”
Selene gave a wry smile at Crishet, who stated it as if it were obvious.
“…I see. You know, Crishet, you don’t have to force yourself to go along with me. Even if you don’t study these things, I think you could aim to be a researcher, a scholar, all sorts of things. You don’t have to learn these bloody matters; there are many paths for you, Crishet.”
“…Paths.”
“That’s right. I’ll succeed Father, and even if I can’t, I’ll provide for Berry and you forever. You don’t have to force yourself to do things you don’t like.”
After Selene finished speaking, she thought.
Just like this, forever. That was a very happy thought.
The reason Selene had said this lay in Berry’s words.
Berry had strongly opposed taking Crishet to the training grounds and raising her as a soldier.
It was the first time she had openly opposed Bohgan-sama’s decision, leaving both Bohgan-sama and Selene perplexed.
It was certain that Crishet possessed rare talent even as a soldier, and they had thought that letting it go to waste would be a great loss.
It could be said they had taken it for granted that she would pursue a military path.
“…Crishet-sama will surely fight more admirably than anyone. She might even become a hero whose name is etched in history. But the Crishet-sama I know loves cooking and is surprisingly fond of being pampered. …That’s why I’m against it.”
When Selene later asked Berry why she had opposed it, that was the answer she received.
“Crishet-sama is very pure and innocent. If asked, she will change in any way. She might be able to accomplish anything with ease. But I don’t want her to go down such a path. It’s just… my selfishness.”
Surely, Crishet would do well even on the battlefield.
If driven by necessity, Crishet would surely do so, and she had the power to do it.
However, being good at something and wanting to do it are different things.
She was happy when her head was patted, loved cooking, and was happy when she ate sweets.
She was surprisingly fond of being pampered and preferred to sleep with someone rather than alone.
The sight of such a girl before her, covered in blood—Selene certainly didn’t want to see it much either.
Seeing her being feared by the soldiers, that feeling intensified.
“If it were just a vigilante group, that would be one thing, but I think it’s a problem if soldiers who are paid and trained to fight and kill enemies are weak. Is something wrong with that?”
Crishet, who had thoroughly thrashed and instructed the soldiers.
When Selene said she had overdone it, Crishet had said so with a puzzled look.
It was an entirely sound argument, but an uncompromising sound argument tends to invite resentment and fear.
She wields sound arguments and has the power to execute those sound arguments as they are.
However, she cannot understand the feelings of those who, even if they wish to, cannot accept sound arguments as such.
Therefore, she doesn’t understand why she is feared.
And so, she gradually becomes avoided—
If asked whether such a figure of her was desirable to Selene, it was not; indeed, as Selene spent time with Crishet and grew to love her, such feelings only intensified.
And Selene also thought that Berry’s concerns might lie in those aspects of her.
To Selene’s words, Crishet replied after a little thought.
“…It’s true, I don’t particularly like it, but Crishet thinks learning such things is still necessary. I also have regrets.”
“…Regrets?”
“If I had done better, at least Kaa-sama wouldn’t have died.”
Crishet said it in her usual tone, as if it were nothing, and Selene lowered her eyes at those words.
“…Did you like your Okaa-sama?”
“Yes. She was good to Crishet, a foundling.”
Crishet recalled and nodded.
Truly regrettable—no, perhaps I should say sad.
Crishet continued, mulling over Berry’s words.
“Crishet doesn’t want to have regrets, so I want to have many options. Of course, Crishet wants to live cooking with Berry and Selene forever, though.”
For Crishet, the most important thing currently is cooking.
And Berry is a pioneer and comrade in that. Recently, Selene has also joined their ranks.
Crishet’s current blessed life is made possible by Bohgan-sama, and this community called a country protects it.
By gaining knowledge through study, and the more she saw with a broader perspective than before, the more she came to feel that her cooking life was sustained and protected by many things.
For Crishet, her comrade Berry is, of course, important, and Bohgan-sama, who maintains that life, and his successor Selene are also important.
And Bohgan-sama and Selene, who are her guardians, aspire to be soldiers.
In that case, she had also come to think that she needed to be in a position to help them if they were in danger.
Regarding the time the bandits attacked, the biggest failure was that Crishet had no voice and couldn’t command the villagers.
If Crishet had held significant power in the village’s public order vigilante group, it was a problem that could have been easily eliminated.
However, Crishet had passively entrusted it to others—and as a result, the tragedy of losing both Golka and Grace, who were to be her guardians, occurred.
If nothing happens, it’s fine to just enjoy cooking, but not being able to get involved when something does happen is somewhat problematic—that was Crishet’s conclusion.
Therefore, although Crishet wasn’t exactly proactive about it, she followed Bohgan-sama’s requests to learn military-related skills and showed off her abilities to those around her without hiding them.
Unlike in the village, in the military, where the ability to kill people is required, she believed there was no need to hold back in displaying it.
However, Crishet, who showed extreme loyalty to rules and principles, was unaware that, just as Selene perceived, this was causing those around her to feel fear.
“It would be troubling if the Head-sama or Selene were to die somewhere Crishet doesn’t know, so Crishet still wants to be somewhere within reach, if possible.”
“…Crishet.”
Though her emotions and processes might differ, Crishet cherishes those close to her.
Even if it was strictly something different from affection, what was expressed was everything, and what was felt was everything.
Selene chose the interpretation she desired, simply hugged Crishet, and whispered.
“Then, I’ll protect you forever so that you don’t suffer any terrible fate.”
“…I feel like Selene is in more danger than Crishet, though. You’re weak, after all.”
“…You know, I’m saying something embarrassing like this, so don’t interrupt me. That part of you is really irritating, honestly.”
Selene’s cheeks reddened, and she said, glaring.
“When someone says something like this, you’re supposed to just stay quiet, or say ‘yes,’ or ‘thank you.’ Got it?”
“…? I understand.”
“That’s good enough.”
She pinched Crishet’s cheeks with both hands and smiled.
“Fherene, mhy cheefs, ih hurths…”
“That’s enough of this strange talk. Crishet, could I ask you for a sword spar?”
“Fyes…?”
Selene released her cheeks and took Crishet’s hand.
And so, until two years later when the war broke out, Crishet and the others spent happy times together.