“No, at least I don’t know now. There might be something left in the compressed memory (archive), though.”
“Right. These documents are about doctrine. These are about cultural styles. This one is an estimate of national power.”
“…Why are you pulling out all this stuff so easily?”
Amadio Silverhead was sitting face-to-face with Ixia=Ayame Zero, enjoying tea time. Or so it seemed.
Probably only Ixia was enjoying it.
Amadio flipped through the paper documents presented by Ixia and sighed deeply.
“Spybots have infiltrated. We’ve finally exceeded the standard penetration rate. The information density has increased, so the accuracy of the inductive estimation process has also improved.”
“Ah, I see…”
It was probably pointless to say anything about it now. It was better for his mental health to treat it as just another thing.
“The basic doctrine of the Prawa Theocracy is magic. A demon god who controls all magic is at the top, and clerics who have been granted the divine work of the god govern the country. The people can use magic to varying degrees, and those who are particularly skilled are appointed as warrior monks.”
“Is that why they look down on us so much…? We’re completely hopeless with magic…”
Amadio grimaced, perhaps recalling the resident missionaries (diplomats) of the Prawa Theocracy who had already been deported.
For them, humans who cannot use magic are not human. Only by serving the demon god with all their heart are they finally allowed to live, that’s about the extent of their recognition.
Of course, thanks to ＜Paraiso＞, fierce battles continue on the front lines.
Many warrior monks must have been sacrificed by the other nationals that the Prawa Theocracy looks down upon.
“I also copied the documents they call scriptures. There are traces of alteration, but I can determine that the source is from an AI that belonged to your forces.”
He then flipped through the copy of the scriptures that was handed to him.
It was just a quick glance, but with the performance of Amadio’s frame, he should have been able to memorize it without missing a single character.
“The demon god sleeps in a sacred place deep within the Demon Forest. The ultimate goal is to build a road to that place. All citizens bear the burden of the labor to build the road. Seriously, this is…”
“Yes. The Prawa Theocracy is still continuing to develop the Demon Forest, probably aiming for your base, ＜Trout Nursery＞.”
“…………”
The origin of the Prawa Theocracy was a child of god who had lost his way back home.
At that time, a tiny village on the verge of destruction in the frontier became its center.
The child of god was unable to move due to injuries, but while helping the villagers, he took the time to find the place he should return to.
However, he had become unable to go there on his own.
So, he asked the villagers, knowing it was an unreasonable request.
Someday, he wanted them to build a road to that place. He would die soon, but if possible, he wanted them to take him there.
The villagers, who had been greatly helped by the child of god, swore to fulfill the child of god’s wish in that village, which had already become a country.
That was the origin myth of the Prawa Theocracy.
“I have various thoughts, but their goal has been identified. To plunder wealth from other countries, secure labor, and build a road to the sacred place.”
“…Sorry, I can’t put it into words.”
Amadio closed his eyes with a difficult expression at Ixia’s explanation.
“You can indulge in sentimentality later.”
“Don’t you have a heart?”
“No. The problem is the unit called Chimyera that is developing the Demon Forest. If the battle situation on the front lines worsens, they may come out.”
The Chimyera Clan is a unit that enters the Demon Forest, defeats monsters, cuts down trees, and builds roads. According to doctrine, they have the greatest power, are allocated a huge budget, and are the elite of the elite who continue to develop the land every day.
However, the supplies supporting them are reaching their limit.
Therefore, the Prawa Theocracy has begun expeditions to other countries.
“…I see. So, holy knights who continue to fight in the Demon Forest will appear, huh?”
However, the expedition is on the verge of stalling.
The advance on the front lines has stagnated, and the damage to the dispatched units has also increased.
In addition, the rear was ravaged by the suddenly appearing ＜Fenrir＞, and the supply lines were cut off. Incidentally, many invasion units were also sacrificed. Fortunately, there has been no further expansion of the damage, but resources and territory have been seized by a powerful monster.
Probably, the plunder of supplies is not progressing as initially planned.
“To break the situation, they may dispatch their strongest forces. Since we haven’t been able to infiltrate that far, everything is just prediction, but the strength of the front lines is on a different level.”
“Knights who fight the monsters of the Demon Forest every day, huh? No matter how you look at it, that’s troublesome.”
“It would be easier to predict their strength if they moved to subjugate ＜Fenrir＞ first, but…”
“It’s highly likely that they will prioritize conquering other countries. They can just avoid Fenrir, after all.”
According to predictions by ＜Ayame Zero＞ and Strategic AI ＜Iris＞ in charge of the Prawa Theocracy, further forces will be deployed to the invasion units.
In terms of combat strength, there is a high possibility that powerful knights (Rytsar) with tactical or strategic-level power will be dispatched.
“A level where an individual can take on an army, huh? Well, that ＜Fenrir＞ seems capable of destroying a country with ease, so it’s only natural if the guys fighting it are that strong…”
“We’re not actually observing them, so it’s just a prediction. Don’t misunderstand. It’s just an inference from the information we have so far.”
“Speaking of Fenrir, I’m surprised that you guys have information on monsters that are the embodiment of such irrationality.”
“Based on past combat experience, Fenrir has the combat ability to put up a good fight against us.”
“Listening to you, I feel like your technology level is inconsistent…”
“I invoke the right to remain silent.”
“What right is that?”
While continuing such a heartwarming conversation, Amadio flipped through the documents at hand.
“…………”
Reinforcements from the Prawa Theocracy. Predicted combat strength.
The possibility that the assault rifles currently scattered on the front lines won’t even serve as a deterrent.
It’s uncertain whether even large-caliber heavy machine guns will be useful.
Power on the level of cannons is required.
However, preparing them is not easy.
The cannons themselves can be manufactured with the current technological capabilities of the Repuytari Kingdom. However, it is difficult to say whether they can be operated on the front lines. After all, the target is one person.
It is impossible to aim at such a target with so-called fixed heavy cannons.
What is needed is a cannon that combines great power and maneuverability. In other words, a tank.
“I tried not to push too hard because I thought you wouldn’t be able to decide immediately, but there’s no time.”
A few days ago, Amadio had made a request to Eve. He wanted her to prepare an External Processing Unit.
However, that was a consultation looking ahead to several months or years in the future. He didn’t think things would go smoothly between Amadio and Eve, who didn’t have a relationship of trust.
“What do you mean?”
“The situation is urgent. Is that recognition correct?”
“…………”
＜Ayame Zero＞ pondered. ＜Ringo＞ would be able to answer immediately with her abundant computing resources, but the undersea fortress ＜Ayame＞ does not have that much computing equipment prepared.
At a thinking speed of about several dozen times that of a human, she considered the possibilities.
“In some aspects, I agree. I don’t want you to misunderstand, but for us ＜Paraiso＞, it doesn’t matter which way it turns out.”
“…Ah, well, I guess so. Sorry, that’s my problem. That’s right. It’s my country’s problem. But, as you recognize, this is probably the watershed.”
The Repuytari Kingdom, a scientific civilization nation.
The Prawa Theocracy, a magical religious union.
For the Superintelligence entities belonging to ＜The Tree＞, it doesn’t make a big difference in the long run which country dominates this land. It’s just that they are siding with the Repuytari Kingdom to some extent due to the degree of civilization progress and the Commander’s intentions.
“I will change the affiliation of everything that belongs to me to your affiliation. Including myself. I can’t show all the value, but can you consider this condition?”
“…I will consider it.”