Episode 200: The Beginning of the Stampede
Having started the mercenary business, ＜Paraiso＞ was assigned to the villages west of the Forest Country (Lebresta).
The forces provided this time consisted of eight Multi-legged Tanks ＜Hopper＞. They would dispatch four teams of two machines each.
“Since we are within the range of the high-altitude power-feeding drones deployed near the border, no power supply vehicles are necessary.”
“The Royal Capital is also within the power supply range, isn’t it?”
The Royal Capital Linda was approximately 350km in a straight line from the nearest border. The Afrasia United Kingdom side was a barren wasteland, but flying drones overhead was not a problem.
And, if operating in a location west of the capital, it was possible to supply sufficient energy.
“Even so, it really went through smoothly. I thought it would be more of a problem normally…”
The Forest Country (Lebresta) quickly permitted and requested the Mercenary Dispatch from ＜Paraiso＞.
Normally, it would be impossible to entrust national defense matters to another country on the same day.
However, the 12 members of the Council of Elders (Le Elphia) had done just that.
They probably already understood that the rate of increase of the Big Moth monsters had exceeded the range of what they could handle.
Understanding the power of the Multi-legged Tank (Hopper), which could defend an entire city on its own, they weighed the pros and cons and decided to accept the Mercenary Dispatch.
However, since it was also necessary to gain some understanding on the ground, three teams were requested for the time being.
Three villages that had encroached into the Demon Forest.
It seemed that they had judged that if things progressed a little further, they would have no choice but to abandon them completely.
They were not close enough to each other to allow for mutual defense, they had to continue defending independently, and, being on the front lines, they were constantly under attack.
It was assumed that it would be better to abandon these places, move to a city further south, and concentrate their forces.
It would be ideal if these villages could be defended even after moving the deployed forces.
The withdrawn forces could be assigned to other locations. They could buy even more valuable time.
Also, if defense by ＜Paraiso＞ could be proven, the forces in other villages could also be freed up.
If they turned a blind eye to the problem of bringing the forces of another country into their own, that is.
“For domestic consumption, they seem to be proceeding with the argument that even if ＜Paraiso＞ were to invade, Lebresta’s forces would be concentrated, making defense and resistance easier. At worst, even if the territory is abandoned, it was originally judged to be indefensible, so it’s a net zero.”
“It’s forceful, but it’s a story that seems to pass reasonably well with the people, I suppose.”
“Freedom of speech within Lebresta seems to be controlled to some extent. It seems that everything is under control except for specific anti-government forces.”
A calm leader had reigned for a long time, and the education, or rather brainwashing, of the people had permeated.
As a nation, it was extremely stable, and perhaps if nothing had happened, it might have taken hegemony over the continent in a few decades or centuries.
However, at present, they were facing a national crisis due to the massive outbreak of monsters.
“At the very least, we need a road that transport vehicles can use to reach the villages we’re defending.”
“It seems that a minimum highway is open, so we will be reinforcing and widening it while developing trade routes. We need to transport ammunition and repair parts.”
“And, we were also asked to transport daily necessities, weren’t we?”
To be precise, they were granted the right to sell purchased food and daily necessities in the villages.
However, the caravans within Lebresta were almost destroyed due to the wartime regime. The current situation is that the transportation of goods has begun to stagnate.
If that were the case, ＜Paraiso＞’s transport caravans would become a lifeline for the time being.
“For the time being, we will use Multi-legged Tanks and Multi-legged Transports while widening the roads in parallel. Once the maintenance is completed, we will be able to start transportation using multi-wheeled vehicles.”
Multi-legged Machines demonstrate great power in moving over rough terrain, but if there is a road, wheeled movement is more advantageous in terms of energy consumption.
A complex mechanism is also unnecessary, the failure rate decreases, and maintainability increases.
“Also, it seems that Magic Tools made from Big Moth materials are also being manufactured in Lebresta. I hear that we can receive those as compensation to some extent.”
“Tools made from insects…”
By using Big Moths as structural materials along with Magic Stones, they become an ideal material with both flexibility and hardness. Until now, the number of subjugations was small, and they were treated as super high-end products, but now the supply is overflowing.
Apparently, they are used for vehicles that require durability, such as high-speed carriages.
If Lebresta overcomes this crisis in the future, the domestic transportation situation may change drastically.
“Yes, Ma’am. It shows approximately three times the strength of the structural materials we currently use. If we use this, for example, the weight of the Multi-legged Tank would be approximately halved. If used in a space shuttle, fuel consumption could be dramatically improved.”
“Hmm, I see? Using it for rockets isn’t a bad idea. I’m a little worried about the number if we use it for Multi-legged Tanks, though.”
“It will greatly contribute to the weight reduction of the rocket itself. I will incorporate it into the plan.”
“Please do. It would be good to have Asahi do it.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
◇◇◇◇
The Soul Butterflies—Big Moths—had overflowed.
There were already signs of it.
The monsters had crossed the line defined as the absolute defense line countless times. Although they were somehow managing to kill them with mobile strike forces, everyone understood that this would collapse before long if it continued.
And then.
The number of Big Moths increased day by day.
Many eggs were laid in the Hotspots used for breeding, and the fully grown Juveniles pupated and successively metamorphosed into adults.
The swarm of Big Moths, which had exceeded the sustainable capacity, began to move outward in an avalanche-like manner, aiming for new territories.
The swarm moved outward in a circular pattern, but the northern side was already overrun with Big Moths and other monsters. If that were the case, the final direction of movement would be south.
In other words, into the Forest Country (Lebresta).
“It was a little later than expected, but it’s started.”
“Yes, Ma’am. It seems that the number of subjugations increased due to our intervention, and the roller extermination by the Lebresta army that we moved was working well.”
Lebresta had invested almost all of its domestically mobilizable forces in hunting Big Moths. They shot down adults and hunted down Juveniles in Hotspots.
Even so, they could not reach the depths of the Demon Forest, which was the source of the outbreak, and it was only a symptomatic treatment.
It could be said that they had earned enough time to evacuate the people.
After that, it was just the decisive battle.
“Still, there are so many. I wonder if we can hunt them all down.”
“It seems that the number of Mana Hotspots decreases as you go further south. For example, the Royal Capital Linda has one of the highest Maso Density Hotspots in the country. It seems that the policy is to deploy troops in places where Big Moths tend to gather and hunt them down.”
It seemed that they would abandon some cities, hole up with the forces they could defend, and move north after hunting down the Big Moths in the surrounding area.
These needed to be executed quickly.
Otherwise, more adults would be generated in the abandoned Hotspots.
The immediate plan was to concentrate their forces and reduce the number at once before the worst-case scenario occurred.
“But, the source of the outbreak is in terrible shape…”
What Commander (Eve) was looking at was an aerial photograph of the Demon Forest adjacent to Lebresta.
The number of adult Big Moths marked there was not just a few hundred.
“The massive outbreak is temporary, and the future increase in adults will be limited to a certain number. After that, we will slowly push up the front lines over time.”
This Stampede had apparently occurred many times in the past, not just with Big Moths. Because the Forest Country (Lebresta) was adjacent to the Demon Forest, had developed it, and was gradually expanding its territory, methods for dealing with this problem were established to some extent.
“It seems that the retreat distance is shorter this time due to our assistance. As a result, we have more leeway in national power. As a supplier of irrational (fantasy) materials, we can expect great things from them in the future.”
“That’s right. If the materials increase, Olive and Asahi might deepen their understanding, too.”