The video feed from the reconnaissance bot showed a peaceful village.
“There doesn’t seem to be anything particularly noteworthy, does there?”
“Yes, Ma’am. They appear to be producing wheat here, but there are no other remarkable features. Labor is provided by the villagers and their cattle. Additionally, livestock such as sheep, goats, and pigs seem to be grazing in the fallow fields.”
The reconnaissance revealed that the Prawa Theocracy seemed to employ a four-course rotation system similar to the Norfolk system in historical records. It could be said that their agricultural technology was relatively advanced.
“I’ve confirmed as much as I can within the reconnaissance range, and the farmland is almost identical to this. The farmers are also diligently engaged in their agricultural work.”
“Hmm… The food production in the homeland is going well. Their national power is high after all.”
Furthermore, the sprawling farmlands always had a network centered around a church.
“There are many urban areas with a structure of magnificent churches and towns centered around them, with farmlands spreading around them. It doesn’t seem like the entertainment industry is very developed. It must be due to religious control.”
“So religion is keeping them well-organized, huh?”
The church held large-scale gatherings once a week. The surrounding farmers seemed to treat that day as a holiday, moving to the town with the church from morning, listening to sermons, eating the meals prepared by the church, enjoying conversations until evening, and then returning home. Alcoholic beverages also seemed to be provided during the meals.
“Occasionally, disputes arise, but they are quickly suppressed by the clerics.”
The clerics seemed to be using some kind of magic. There was no doubt about it, as they were easily subduing violent adult men. It seemed their physical abilities were being enhanced.
“The church also seems to function as a hospital. And more than anything, its role as an educational institution is significant. There are also outposts like police stations in the villages, where they take care of young children together. After that, around the age of 5 or 6, they seem to be taken care of in the town with the church.”
Perhaps to allow parents to concentrate on farming, weaned infants were being collectively cared for in the center of the village. And at a certain age, they were entrusted to the church’s dormitory.
Visits with parents seemed to take place once a week on holidays.
Every family seemed to have a good parent-child relationship.
“Their education must be good. Adults are made to concentrate on agriculture, stabilizing food production. Children are given standardized education, preaching religious concepts, and teaching parental love at the same time. It’s a kind of controlled society, but it seems to have created a system where they can live healthily both physically and mentally.”
“Hmm… Well, I don’t really care about that, but it means they’re doing well, right?”
“Yes, Ma’am. There are no signs of revolution.”
The function of the hospital was also important.
Everywhere you looked, there were few injured or sick people.
“Presumably, some kind of magical treatment is being performed. There are certainly places like sanatoriums that accommodate terminally ill patients, but there seem to be fewer patients compared to the population. We were able to confirm cases of injured people being discharged from the hospital in a matter of days.”
The clerics were using some kind of magic to treat the farmers.
And that was probably a free service.
Of course, the operation itself was funded by taxes in the name of donations, but even so, it was synonymous with free service for the farmers. It was understandable that the church was gaining trust.
“I understand that it’s difficult to predict things because of magic.”
“We have infiltration reconnaissance bot groups in the city. If we take a little more time, we will be able to obtain more detailed information.”
“Okay. Then, next is the battlefield. You were able to deploy bots there too, right?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
Within the Prawa Theocracy, reconnaissance was progressing, centered on infiltration bases. Other candidate bases were also being selected, and soon the domestic situation would be completely transparent.
The problem was gathering information on the battlefield.
“The front lines of the battlefield are constantly changing, so rapid deployment and withdrawal are important. For now, we are mainly scouting areas close to the coast. We can advance the bots from underwater.”
“On land, it’s difficult to conceal the mothership…”
If it came down to it, they would have to fly aircraft at night.
For now, they were taking the method of releasing and recovering bot groups from the sea.
“We used bird-type bots that mimic seabirds native to the area.”
Since many seabirds resembling seagulls lived there, they were releasing bots that resembled them into the battlefield.
“We are analyzing the specs of the warriors on the Prawa Theocracy side. There are individual differences, but on average, their running speed is 40-60 km/h. Some individuals have been observed exceeding 80 km/h at their instantaneous maximum speed.”
“On two legs? That’s more high-performance than what we’re currently using…”
“Yes, Ma’am. Also, their body structure seems to be enhanced during combat. They can withstand direct hits from arrows and bullets without injury, and they can destroy stone walls with their bare hands.”
Horse barricades made on the battlefield were broken through head-on.
Even cities protected by stone walls were destroyed by body blows. There were scenes where they were buried alive due to the momentum, and their comrades dug them out and pulled them out.
Even so, they didn’t seem to be noticeably injured.
“Long-range attacks using throwing stones and spears are also possible. Their detection ability is also excellent, and we have confirmed several situations where they skewered enemy soldiers hiding in the shadows with a spear from a certain distance, along with the obstacles.”
“Seriously, they’re like tanks as single units…”
The Theocracy soldiers seemed to be able to exhibit body structure enhancement, detection ability enhancement, and strength enhancement. Furthermore, each individual could manipulate some kind of magical phenomenon.
“The most common is the ability to release fireballs and cause explosions and flames. In addition, we have confirmed those who can create water, those who can manipulate wind, and those who can manipulate voltage differences.”
“Voltage?”
“Yes, Ma’am. In one case, an electromagnetic pulse was confirmed, so it is thought that they are generating high voltage instantaneously.”
“They’re not just freaks.”
And the most troublesome of all seemed to be those who performed some kind of healing.
“They seem to have the power to heal external wounds through magical phenomena, such as visibly closing wounds and healing fractures. The Theocracy soldiers seem to be almost invincible in combat, but it has been confirmed that they can be injured when caught off guard, such as during movement. There is a record of a person who deflected an arrow on the battlefield being pierced by an arrow in a surprise attack.”
“Hmm. So, this body structure enhancement can’t be used unless they’re conscious of it, huh?”
“Yes, Ma’am. Also, there is a possibility that there is a limit to the duration. If they could use it without limit, they should just use it all the time.”
“Activation stops unless they’re conscious of it… In that case, there would be more injuries on the battlefield. So, the time limit theory is more likely.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
However, even if they were injured by a surprise attack.
If healing by magic was possible, it meant that combat power could be restored quickly.
“To neutralize the Theocracy soldiers, the only options are to make them all lose consciousness, isolate them by dividing them, or kill them instantly with a surprise attack. Or, perform a saturation bombardment that exceeds their processing capacity. Those are the only ways to deal with them.”
“Troublesome. No wonder the small countries around here can’t stand up to them.”
They might be able to defeat a small number of them by surrounding and attacking them with a large number of people, but that would result in a huge number of casualties. The question was whether the soldiers could continue attacking until the end without running away in that situation.
If they were trained professional soldiers, perhaps. But most of the opposing countries were conscripted civilians.
“We have no choice but to launch a guerrilla war. That would minimize casualties. However, guerrilla warfare would be nothing more than harassment against the Theocracy soldiers. It can delay the invasion, though.”
In the first place, the Theocracy soldiers were invading in small groups, and that was more like guerrilla warfare.
“It seems like major cities are being taken over by guerrilla warfare, which doesn’t make any sense…”
How great must be the distress of the national leaders who have to push this back?
“I have to give Amadio-san a care package.”