A Simple Strategy
We drive the carriage for about 30 minutes. We pushed the horses quite a bit, but thanks to that, we somehow arrived before the goblins turn up.
In front of the gate, the soldiers of this territory were panicking chaotically. A goblin horde is already approaching before their eyes, and yet they’ve not even prepared for the defence. What have they been doing?
And when our carriage arrives at the gate, the soldiers get startled and draw their swords. Even though they don’t have the time for such things.
“Wha, what’s with you people!”
“Put down your swords! Now’s not the time to be doing such things, right!”
Alexia yells dignifiedly at the soldiers, who are about to surround the carriage with their swords ready. Perhaps they’re the same soldiers as the time when Alexia previously came, the moment they saw Alexia’s face, they make surprised expressions and salute. Soldiers around, who are seeing Alexia for the first time, also confusedly salute.
“Your, Your Highness Alexia. It is dangerous here! Please evacuate at once……”
“I understand something like that! That’s why I came. Where’s Baron Mangus?”
When Alexia asks about Baron Mangus’ whereabouts, the soldiers’ expressions darken. Don’t tell me…….
“Did he perhaps escaped?”
When Alexia asks fearfully, all the soldiers nod uniformly. It’s a result that he brought on, and yet he left the civilians behind and escaped.
It appears that when Baron Mangus found out that the goblin horde came, he brought his close aide and lover and escaped first without even giving the instructions to evacuate to the civilians. It seems the Captain who gives the instructions also followed this and left. That’s why, nothing has been prepared huh.
It seems the only ones remaining in the mansion are, his wife, who’s bedridden because of her illness; his daughter, who’s nursing her mother; the maids, who stayed behind for the pair’s sake; and the butler, who’s been thrown into jail. It seems his son, who’s his successor, is 15 years old this year and is in the academy. He’s the same age as Ferris huh.
It appears that the butler has been thrown into jail because he pointed out the problems that Baron Mangus caused variously.
“I don’t want to think that he’s a fellow Baron family’s individual”
Cait, who’s a Baron family’s son, makes an irritated expression as well. I’m also pissed off as a fellow noble.
“I got it. I’ll give the instructions from here on out. There’s no time so please move quickly!”
Alexia is giving instructions to every soldier. We’re just watching that.
“What are we going to do, Lei?”
Aerith asks me. It appears that Cait and Ely are also around. I look at the goblin horde that’s visible from here. I understood upon coming here, but the number of goblins is more than we’d anticipated. We had thought that it’s nearly 2 thousand but it’s about 3 thousand.
We can cast magic from here, but if it’s not magic that’s very powerful, it’ll probably be a drop in the ocean. With that being said, even if we hole ourselves up, on top of having few soldiers, the wall is only about 3 metres. It’ll probably be destroyed or climbed over in no time at all.
As I’m thinking about such things, perhaps having finished instructing the soldiers, Alexia comes over.
“How did it end up, Alexia?”
“……It ended up with us meeting the enemy here”
……Seriously. Aerith and the others, as well as I, make astonished expressions. It isn’t gonna last with this wall.
“The reason; it’s so that the goblins are pinned down by us while the civilians are escaping. Right now, they’re evacuating nearly 1 thousand civilians without even letting them take their baggage through another door that’s on the opposite side, but it’ll take a bit more time until they completely evacuate. In the meantime, we have to stop the goblins”
Indeed, even if we escape without stopping the goblins, with the civilians’ speed, they’ll probably be caught up in no time at all. However, there are nearly 3 thousand goblins. In comparison to that, we only have slightly more than 100 people. ……’I guess it’s viable if 1 person defeats 30?’, as I was thinking about such things, Alexia’s conversation was moving forward.
“Firstly, until the civilians manage to evacuate, we’ll hold out here. Since the goblins should attempt to attack the humans that come into sight first. And when the civilians finish escaping, there are those who can use Earth Magic amongst the Baron’s Magicians, so I’ll have them seal the gate on the other side with Earth Magic”
Hmm, Hmm
“Then, I’ll have another Magician cast magic up into the sky, so when that signal is given, everybody will enter the territory”
Hmm, Hmm
“I’ll have the soldiers escape to the Baron’s mansion, Lei, Aerith, and I will cast our strongest magic and annihilate the goblins from the top of the wall. Cait-kun and Ely-chan will provide back up to the escaping soldiers. It’ll be fine if they escape to the basement of the mansion”
Alexia says, and Cait and the others also nod. I guess it’s true that this is about all we’re able to do for now. There are various things that I’m uneasy about, but it’s better than nothing huh.
We ended up lending the carriage that we rode here to the wife and the others who’d remained in the mansion. Like this, even the wife who’s immobile because of her sickness can evacuate.
“But, this town will end up in a state of destruction if we cast magic like that, you know?”
“It can’t be helped. Human life is irreplaceable”
Well, it’s true. This town too, it can be rebuilt if there are people. If they become sacrifices for the sake of protecting those humans, then I guess the buildings will also be satisfied, having achieved their goal.
“With that method, do you think we can defeat all the goblins?”
“Although all might be impossible, if we can defeat more than half, I think the rest will just escape. We’ll hold out for today somehow, and we’ll put together subjugation squads and annihilate those that escaped afterwards. I think that’s fine”
“Yeah. It’s better that way than to overdo it and fail”
When I say that, Aerith and the others nod as well. While we’re talking, soldiers are gathering before the gate. Because about 20 people have gone for the evacuation, it seems there are about 90 people remaining. Nearly 30 people climb to the top of the wall and ready their bows and staffs. As for the remainder, they’re readying their swords and looking at the goblins with nervous faces.
“Fufu, everybody doesn’t have to be that nervous. Since there’s a man who routed an orc army of nearly 100 when he’s 8 years old here”
Alexia, who says and places her hand on my shoulder. Aerith also nods, and Cait and the others also give off similar vibes. Now that I think about it, it was exposed by Aerith and the others during the time at Arcadia State.
When I look fixedly in Aerith’s direction, perhaps Aerith recalled what happened at that time, she averts her eyes. I pull the cheeks of such Aerith and
“Uu! Iii hurss! Iii hurss!”
she smacks my hand. Ooh, it’s springy and stretchy. What an indescribable sensation this is.
“Wai, stopp, rett go! Stop it!”
saying that, Aerith chops my head. Ouch! You didn’t have to hit that hard. Aerith glares at me while rubbing her cheeks.
Alexia is giggling beside her and Cait is sending his malice over. You get it over with and get together with Emma. Ely was stroking Eclat the whole time. She surprisingly likes cute things huh, Ely.
The soldiers around are looking at such a situation with slightly angry expressions. Well, they’re going to get mad if children younger than themselves are messing around even though it’s right before a battle that they’re staking their lives huh. It’s just that, in front of Alexia, it looks like they can’t get angry. When we’re playing around in such a manner
“Your Highness Alexia! The goblins came!”
shouts a soldier from the top of the wall. We, who were told that, change our expressions and look in the direction where the goblins come. As expected, it’s a lot huh. At the lead are goblins but there’s a variety at the back.
To the side, Alexia takes Twin Bell out from her Item Ring, and Aerith unsheathes Heat Haze(Kagerou), that’s hanging on her waist. Cait also unsheathes his dual knives and Ely also readies Barbatos, that she’s carrying on her back. I also take Rolgar out from my Item Ring.
Goblins. We aren’t gonna let you pass this place.
