Hey everyone!
Anyway, here"s chapter 82, I hope you"ll enjoy it!
Chapter 82
【"Here I said I wouldn"t be surprised by anything you say anymore, boss."】
When Kurats expressed his intention to aim for the Bolivia mine despite the danger, Bernard sighed and scratched his head.
【"Still, even if the mine is freed from the monsters" domain, it won"t be of any use if it can"t be mined, my lord. 70 years have pa.s.sed already, I wonder how safe can that mine be…"】
"It will take a lot of time and effort before we can reap any profit from it." Added Gilbert with a perplexed expression.
After all this time, many tunnels would have probably crumbled down from weathering and groundwater erosion.
【"It"s fine, we can put that off for now. All that"s needed is to find and check out the place."】
Besides, Kurats had not thought about the mining at all.
【"Easy for you to say boss, but that"s something only you can do."】
If the force of merely 100 mercenaries were to charge in the monster"s territory along with Kurats, they would be decimated in three days.
【"I never said I"d have you walk there with me."】
For Kurats himself, it didn"t seem like going to the mine would be particularly difficult. He could use his own speed or even his teleportation magic.
That being said, because of the after-effects from building the giant rampart, Kurats could not quite use magic, so teleporting himself was no longer an option, let alone teleporting others with him.
【"That is where I come in!"】
Frigga happily jumped forward.
She had brought her griffon Sh.e.l.lac from her home precisely for this type of situation.
Save for Kurats" all-out sprint, there was no better means of transportation than this.
【"That"s sneaky, Frigga! Let me come along!"】
【"It"s a shame, but I"m afraid Sh.e.l.lac can only take two people at a time."】
【"Uh…!"】
Lunaria once again bit her lip from frustration.
【"No. Sorry but I"m going alone this time around."】
【"W-what?! Why?!"】
Frigga could not help herself from yelling out. She thought she would get to enjoy some time alone with Kurats, but he had decided otherwise.
【"The territory will need your strength in case something happens as I won"t be able to use my teleportation spell for a while. So stay here for now, alright?"】
【"Yes! Leave it to me!"】
When Kurats put his hand on Frigga"s shoulder to ask for her help, she nodded happily.
It wasn"t rare for Kurats to rely upon her like this, she was used to it now.
Besides, she was quite simple-minded by nature, so she immediately accepted.
Kurats gently patted her head, saying "Good, good", and then turned towards Bruno and Bernard.
【"As for you, you"ll defend the territory. This rampart is very solid, only a humongous monster would be able to destroy it, so you should be able to manage. But if anything goes wrong, fire a Flash bullet in the sky and I"ll rush back immediately."】
【"Man, this is going to be hard."】
【"Still better than following him to the Bolivia mine."】
【"…Good point."】
Staying here and waiting for the monsters to make their move was not an option. It was too risky.
Well, as far as Kurats was concerned, even a new great invasion would not be worth fearing.
However, he was not going to stand by and watch the imminent economic crisis bring down the territory.
【"Well then, I"m going."】
There were thee generals under the demon aristocrat Treistella"s commands. All females.
Each of them commanded around 3000 soldiers.
Including Triestella"s personnal elite forces, she had 11.000 soldiers under her in total.
These numbers were comparable to the total forces of Lunaria"s homecountry, Lapland.
This was far too big an enemy for Bashtar, which was merely one remote territory of a kingdom.
To make matters worse, Bashtar"s forces were far weaker than they had been 70 years in the past.
However, having troops and the like did not really matter to Triestella.
And her peculiar views could be said to be shared by all demons. They tended to put individual strength on a much higher pedestal than the shared power of groups.
The power of the one, not the many. This was the very essence of their being.
For them, relying on numbers was a sign of weakness.
Moreover, any proper demon aristocrat could single-handedly kill 10.000 soldiers without any difficulty anyway.
However, humans beings were too weak to be worthy of a demon aristocrat"s personal intervention.
A monster army would be the perfect outrider to bring a true bloodbath upon those powerless humans who only knew how to fight in groups.
That being the case, Triestella"s three generals were currently fighting to be the first to step into battle for her.
【"Dear big sister, please let me go as the vanguard."】
【"No, I will go!"】
【"Humph, do you two really believe you"re fit to play that role?"】
Each of the generals was trying to persuade Triestella in her own way.
Looking at them with a loving gaze, Triestella took a rose from a water jug and granted it to one of them.
【"Crushiadra, I choose you. I see you seem confident."】
【"Indeed. If I may, I am serious with my work unlike some people who neglect their responsibilities in favor of personal time…"】
【"Oh, was your personal time with me boring you?"】
Triestella laughed mischievously while Crushiadra became very clearly fl.u.s.tered, with her tomboyish face turning beet red.
【"N-no, I-I"d never… Our private meetings with big sister always bring me utmost pleasure. I-it"s just that personal and official matters should be kept separate."】
【"Hold on! I never mixed official and personal matters!"】
【"Humph, who was the one that left her whole army by itself for three days to go look for some rare perfume?"】
When Crushiandra openly exposed this hidden scandal, the young-looking demon she was referring to awkwardly looked away.
It seemed like she knew she had done something wrong.
【"Meryl, you are not to come in my sleeping quarters this week."】
【"That"s—! Please forgive me, big sister-!"】
Though the young-looking demon called Meryl cried out her despair, Triestella shook her head from left to right with a cruel smile.
Giving affection was nice but giving punishments was not bad either.
In these moments, Triestella truly felt her own domination.
Though these three generals were her favorite demons, they were only her favorite when it came to satiating her desires.
They were in no way her lovers.
【"―― So I"ll be the one coming to the bedroom today."】
【"Ah! You"re being sly, Bertha! Today is supposed to be my turn!"】
【"Too bad, Merly, but your reap what you sow. Just give up!"】
The beautiful and voluptuous Bertha had been staying silent for a while, but she had ultimately managed to reap some benefits while the two other generals were fighting each other.
This gain translated itself into an enchanting, victorious smile on her face.
She had a charm that the very neutral Crushiandra and the young-looking Meryl did not have. Her slender body oozed with womanly pheromones.
Seeing Bertha"s triumphant smile, Crushiandra couldn"t help but feel unsatisfied.
【"Why does it feel like she won…"】
(No no no, I can"t think like that.) Crushiandra shook her head and regained her spirits.
No matter what thoughts came to her head, in the end, she was still the one who had gained the honor of being at the vanguard
If she brought a glorious victory to Triestella, she would surely be rewarded.
【"I will be sure to come back victorious, big sister."】
【""I"ll be waiting. Make sure to make this as brutal and gruesome as you possibly can. Make it so they"ll never even think of defying us again."】
【"Your wish is my command."】
Crushiandra gathered her soldiers together and started giving orders.
【"Prepare for battle! We will trample down those impertinent humans!"】
As Kurats headed for the Bolivia mine, he missed the marching group of demons by a hair"s breadth.
As for those keeping watch from above the rampart, it was going to take half a day more before they would be able to see the demons coming for them.