“Can’t we contact the Ganey?”
“No, brother. The ships we sent to the lake haven’t returned either. It will take several more days for the reconnaissance team to arrive by land.”
The members gathered at the Round Table in Holy City Staritsa were discussing the situation in a heavy atmosphere.
“We’ve sent scouts to various parts of the south, but 80% haven’t returned. Accidents are unlikely. It’s reasonable to assume they’ve been occupied by some force.”
“Hmm… Do the scouts who returned have any information?”
“…This way.”
A picture drawn based on the testimony of a returning scout was passed around.
“There were multiple testimonies saying that Monsters like this were wandering around the villages.”
“This is…”
It was a giant creature unlike anything they had ever seen. Judging from the multiple Legs, it was probably a spider or some kind of insect. However, the annotation stated that residents were seen walking around normally.
“Occupied by Monsters?”
“If it’s Monsters, then it’s the Chimyera Clan’s turn…”
“If the residents aren’t being eaten, does that mean they’re being domesticated?”
“I’ve never heard of domesticating Monsters…”
The problem was that they couldn’t gather any information.
“It’s not just Monsters. They’re taking organized action, at least hunting scouts and suppressing the Warrior Monks (Jechi).”
“Is there a possibility that some force has invaded?”
“If it’s the south, did they come from the sea?”
“It’s tough that we can’t gather any information about what’s happening…”
The High Priests stationed in the Holy Capital all held their heads in their hands.
Supply convoys from the southern cities had stopped, and at the same time, the flow of people had also ceased.
Naturally, food and other supplies carried by the convoys from the south were no longer arriving.
“Shouldn’t we summon the Chimyera after all?”
“But I don’t think the Chimyera will comply obediently.”
“If we do nothing, support will be delayed. That’s for sure. Can’t we use that as a bargaining chip?”
“But we’ve already summoned them once for that reason. They’ll be quite reluctant the second time, won’t they?”
“Last time was about the future, but this time it’s immediate. They can’t ignore it.”
The Chimyera are still fighting on the front lines of the Demon Forest. They continue to fight day and night, following their faith to open the path to the Holy Land.
Those in the rear are transporting many supplies daily to support the Chimyera.
Even if supplies from the south are delayed, there won’t be an immediate problem, because they are being transported from other regions as well.
However, the south is a major agricultural area that produces a lot of food.
There will be no problem for a while because there are reserves, but if a year or two passes, the impact will be very significant.
“Anyway, we can’t do anything until we talk to them. Brother, can you handle it?”
“Yes. I’ll go directly.”
“I’m counting on you. Also, we need information. Let’s send Rytsar out as scouts. They should be able to bring back information.”
“Indeed. If they focus on escaping, they shouldn’t be easily caught. I’ll arrange that.”
“Also, we need to retake the cities no matter what. We need combat power.”
“We’ve already sent the reserve forces to the front lines. It’ll be difficult to do more than that, won’t it?”
“There shouldn’t be any problem gathering priests. It’s only temporary. The Warrior Monks (Jechi) are in charge of the usual defense.”
“Well… that’s true. There won’t be any problems for a few months. We can handle it by increasing the number of巡回司祭.”
“Then I’ll contact each city. Hmm, it seems faster to go directly.”
Once the policy was decided, the High Priests moved quickly.
The reason why a great power like the Prawa Theocracy can operate smoothly is this speed of decision-making. Furthermore, the High Priests themselves travel to each region to deliver the message.
It’s a forceful operation unique to a magical superpower, but it’s not wrong because it keeps the country running.
“Then, let’s conclude this Round Table meeting. Brothers, all for Prahva-Bok, the Law God.”
““So be it (Amin).””
◇◇◇◇
“…. Okay. I understand. You’ve installed this in our place too, right?”
“Of course.”
“Don’t declare it so openly. But, I’m sorry, Amadio-san. We needed the information.”
Inside the Great Cathedral of the Prawa Theocracy, Amadio looked up to the sky as everyone watched the broadcast of the Round Table Council.
“Well, it’s fine. I personally haven’t done anything wrong. If secret meetings are exposed, it’s beneficial to me too.”
“Mr. Amadio was also a target of surveillance, but unfortunately, there were no noteworthy reports.”
“I told you I haven’t done anything wrong. Hey, what’s with that Overseer AI, it’s so sarcastic.”
“Now, ＜Ringo＞, calm down. Amadio-san, I’m sorry. This child was hesitant about your joining until the very end.”
“…Well, I understand. I don’t intend to harm you. We’ll be working together for a long time, so let’s get along.”
He seemed taken aback by the Overseer AI’s overly human, or rather childish, reaction. Amadio smiled wryly and waved his hand.
“＜Ringo＞, be rational. … Now, it seems the Prawa Theocracy has started concentrating its forces as planned. Also, there’s little information about the Chimyera unit, so I’ll increase the number of bots infiltrating them. According to data analysis, they seem to have considerable combat power.”
“From what I see, their ultimate goal is to open the path to the Holy Land. That place is a literal demon realm where Monsters… Threat Creatures roam. It’s not surprising that the highest combat power is stationed there.”
＜Ringo＞ nodded at Amadio’s words.
“The Chimyera Clan are said to be the most devout group in the Theocracy. Basically, they have no interest in anything other than opening the path. However, they also seem to understand the importance of support supplies from within the country, so they have agreed to join the invasion force.”
“If we negotiate well, we might not have to deal with them directly. At least, as far as they’re concerned.”
“That’s good news. Rooting them out is necessary, but I thought the magical technology would be lost.”
If all the Warrior Monks (Jechi) of the Prawa Theocracy were Zistroi, there was a risk that all the traditions related to magic would be lost. However, even if some were captured for that purpose, there was a high risk of leaving behind a source of trouble, so it was ultimately decided to Zistroi them all.
At least for the Chimyera, they found value only in the original faith of opening the path.
They are a kind of fanatic, but therefore they show little interest in anything else.
Therefore, it was judged that there was room for negotiation with the Chimyera.
“There are other places besides the Prawa Theocracy that have magic itself. It seems that they were somehow gathering Warrior Monks (Jechi) from within the country. Honestly, there’s no appeal in individuals honing their magical powers. If it takes 14 years to become useful, then it’s a bit much.”
“Ah… That’s true. It has to be able to be manufactured in 14 hours, or it’s no good. It’s probably no good.”
“14 hours is an exaggeration, but at least a week, maybe. Also, it has to be mass-produced. Only when we can do that can we judge that it has become a fighting force according to our standards.”
One-off machines are powerful, but their uses are limited, and the risk of losing them is too great.
That’s why Eve prefers mass-produced machines that can be prepared in any quantity.
A lack of striking power can be compensated for with numbers, and if they are lost, they can be replenished. The biggest strength is that combat power can be increased as much as possible as long as resources can be recovered.
One-offs take time to manufacture in the first place, and maintenance is also difficult. In order to compensate for that, it is necessary to increase the number, but then it becomes the same as mass-produced machines.
“Well, I think it can’t be helped if there are no resources and you can only put your efforts into that.”
“I agree with you on that, don’t worry. That’s why our country places emphasis on science and technology.”
Everything is leaking out. That’s terrible, Ringo-chan.