| Credits | |
| Translators | PrimusCovenant, Caudyr |
| Editors | Miraclegrass, Caudyr |
Day 173
I expected the wind to blow the snow around today, but it seems that things won't be so easy for us. It's getting warmer, and there's blue sky spreading out above us, which makes it hard to believe that there was such heavy snowfall before. Nothing is obstructing the sunlight from pouring down, and the roughly 70 centimeters of snow that are covering the ground is shining as the sunlight reflects off of its surface.
Also, it's too bright to go outside, and those that do so have a hard time seeing the moment they go out. In these conditions, the Strong Grandson, who was in command of 2,000 soldiers and the Water Hero's party, started marching towards the approaching forces of the Tomboy Princess.
The fallen snow was hindering their march, though. For this reason, they were using brute force to clear the snow by installing iron plates on the heads of several of the Boruforu leading the march. These plates had wards that granted heat emitting enchantments on them.
As the Boruforu were massive, they vigorously cleared the snow in the same way a snowplow would. It looks like they weren't using their internal magic supply like they would with【Magic】either, so the soldiers were consuming a low amount of power. It seems like this is a cheap and quick way of clearing the snow.
As the Strong Grandson and his allies are marching in a column, they're picking up more soldiers as they pass through the territories of the nobles on their way to meet the Tomboy Princess's army. It's estimated that the final number of soldiers they've put together will reach 9,000.
From the speed that both of the armies are marching at, they will meet in approximately 2 days time. At any rate, I'll put the forces that have already left the Royal Capital out of my mind since they aren't worth worrying about.
One thousand private soldiers, ordinary soldiers, and the Rock Hero's party were left behind in the Royal Capital. More than half of the influential members of the Nobles Faction remained as well, including the Snake Grandfather.
The reason the influential leaders stayed behind was to take care of the work that had been delayed because of the coup d'etat. The Rock Hero's party staying back is the result of us continuing to harass and bewilder their troops.
For that reason, the Rock Hero is currently stationed in front of the entrance to the spire that the royal family is locked up in. He has placed his favorite weapon, the battering ram ≪Hammer of Isenbal≫, at his side and is being vigilant.
He had 4 of his【Companions/Sub-cast】surrounding him, and they were having a pleasant chat to kill time. By the way, if I were to give a simple description of these 4 people:
First is the【Torture Official】, Torturer Ikoi, a brutal man with a slender figure, thin golden hair, and silver-rimmed glasses that he wears over his golden eyes. He's wearing light armor, and he has a bar that's similar to a saw with rusted nails concealed inside of his violet cloak.
The next person is the【Large Cask Head Clerk】, Grasher Pie, a giant man with a size that's comparable to an Ogre. He's wearing full body armor that gives him a generally round form, making him look similar to a large moving barrel. He's equipped with 2 highly offensive, barrel-like shields that are made of metal, with many nails attached to them that are like many blades.
Next up is the【Indigo Blue Knight】, Christopher Bale Azurite, an excellent young man that has the appearance of an ordinary knight wearing a dark blue mantle, with indigo blue colored hair and eyes, and looks that made him appear to be faithful and strict. He's wearing dark bluish green colored metal armor below his neck, with only his head being visible.
Finally, there's the【Weeping Female Barbarian】, Jantuna Na, a crybaby Amazoness with gray eyes, long black hair, radiant dark brown skin, and full breasts. She's using a bow and machete as her weapons, and she's wrapped in native clothes made from beast fur that exposes a lot of her skin.
――That would about sum it up.
Except for the【Indigo Blue Knight】, who looks like he's your typical noble knight both in outward appearance and on the inside, I think that the members of this group are quite powerful. For this reason, we slowly and silently invaded the castle from the inside, so that the Rock Hero's party wouldn't detect us.
Among the 1,000 private soldiers that stayed in the Royal Capital, I already took care of approximately 200 of the nobles' soldiers beforehand with “Grass,” so the real enemy numbers are only around 800. The only ones that I should really be careful of are the 100 elite soldiers that stayed behind, though.
Also, except for the private soldiers, we finished winning over the regular soldiers in charge of the defense of the Royal Capital during yesterday's events. This was possible because they aren't a part of the Nobles Faction, but have been following them so far only because they would be killed if they didn't.
On top of getting caught up in this situation from the beginning without having any real choice in the matter, it was effortless to win them over because they had been mentally drained by yesterday's ghost attacks.
This allowed my clones to approach Snake Grandfather, as well as some others, where I efficiently neutralized them during their normal routines by turning them into my【Subordinates】through the use of【Parasite】.
Because the 800 soldiers that remained didn't know anything about this, I was able to command them freely. With this, it looks like the rebellion is nearly over. This is really disappointing. It was too easy, and it's regrettable that I can't even see the Snake Grandfather and the rest of the faction's last resort. It's a good thing that there's no damage to the castle, though.
However, because the Rock Hero's party is a little troublesome, they still remain a threat. It looks like they can sense the clones when they approach unskillfully, and it's also more challenging to use【Parasite】on beings above a certain level.
Although it's a very convenient ability, since the strength of my clones deteriorates considerably when they're compared with the real body, there is a slim chance that they would be able to successfully use【Parasite】to infect Heroes,【Great Heroes】, and their companions.
I discovered this when I experimented on the material from the Jadar Wyvern that I instantly killed in the arena. It's likely that even if they entered their body to use【Parasite】if the opponent is strong enough, then they will be immune to the parasites and the clones will surely be destroyed.
Although they were able to infect the Snake Grandfather and others like him, it looks like it would be difficult for them to affect those that are at the level of the Rock Hero and his party without their consent. For that reason, I decided to leave it to the Tomboy Princess to try and directly persuade the Rock Hero and his party tomorrow.
If they can be persuaded, I hope to acquire their loyalty for myself. That being said, if they can't be persuaded, then we'll have to use force. However, since the Tomboy Princess has firmly said that I'm not allowed to kill the Rock Hero and his party, I'd like to avoid fighting them if I can help it. This is merely stimulating my appetite pointlessly; it's so unpleasant.