Here’s the chapter, enjoy~
Chapter 96 – Kingdom Collapse
“Everyone, I thank you for your hard work.”
A large wooden table was set up in front of the church. The meeting began with a somewhat theatrical declaration of victory by old Dwarf Heimann.
A victory report meeting for the Casemaian. To be more precise, it should be called a “strategy meeting” because we were planning for the future, but that was just a matter of mood.
We won the war.
“It was as I had expected, or even more so. Above all, the fact that we did not suffer a single casualty is the best thing that could have happened. We are a small army. People are our most important asset.”
The birth rate for Elves, who have extremely long life spans, and Dwarves, who are not as long-lived as Elves but longer-lived than humans, is low to begin with. It also takes time for them to grow up. They are physically strong and capable, but this is a clear weakness in the context of a war between nations.
Violence in numbers leads to accidental deaths. The “one-hit-size-fits-all” strategy means that if you lose one of your soldiers, it may be the same as losing a thousand of them.
Beastman, on the contrary, are fertile and grows quickly. They are important human resources that support the multi-racial nation of Casemaian, but their lifespan is slightly shorter than humans, so they tend to live and die in haste, which is a disadvantage.
“To tell you the truth, I’d like to make a toast, but I’d like to go over the situation first. Then, we’ll decide what our priorities are and how we will deal with them. Then we can celebrate.”
We indeed defeated the 30,000-strong kingdom army. In addition, despite the fact that we had managed to prevent the onslaught of the imperial cavalry golem unit, we remained alone and unaided, surrounded on all sides by hostile nations, hostile organizations, and inhospitable demon forests, and we still had the duty to rescue and guide our compatriots who had fled and fallen away.
“Now, from me.”
The first one to report to me was Luvia-san, who was leading the winged tribe. Overhead reconnaissance and surveillance are undeniably the lifelines that support Casemaian.
According to their reports, the Imperial Army’s mounted golem unit was completely wiped out. There are no golems in operational condition, including those in the imperial capital. The only survivors of the kingdom’s assault force (which did not even face the kingdom) are the accompanying infantry and transportation soldiers who abandoned the front line. The total number of those who abandoned their weapons and equipment and scattered and fled toward the capital was 22 in all. Whether they will be able to reach the capital safely while running and hiding are unknown, as they will have to go off the roads and through the dark forest.
“Their enemies are not only Casemaian or the Kingdom’s army, you see.”
“Magical beasts and beasts, eh?”
“Yes. In addition, now it is also the imperial army.”
The imperial army is said to bind its soldiers with hostages and magic, so it is another matter of whether they will be able to survive once they reach their destination.
“What is the enemy’s position at the moment?”
Kemich, the leader of the Casemaian defense force, waved his hand at Luvia-san.
“There is no enemy activity within 50 miles of Casemaian. We will continue to monitor for a while, but at the very least, the empire should not be able to afford to be involved in Casemaian for a while.”
While the Dwarves and Elves nodded their heads in agreement, the Beastman chiefs tilted their heads doubtfully and looked around them. Before Luvia-san could explain, Myrril told them about the results of the preliminary reconnaissance.
“As far as I’ve seen and heard, the Imperial Army is mainly composed of mages and magical tools. Infantry and cavalry are just pawns to protect themselves from arrows and bullets. It may sound good to say that they are an elite few, but if those elites are defeated, the strength of the army will immediately fall to nothing. They will probably have to defend their territory for several years.”
“That is true. The mages are mostly nobles, and nobles can’t escape factional struggles. The general’s faction, which has been advocating foreign expeditions, will lose its voice, and the prime minister’s faction, which advocates the expansion of domestic politics, will rise to power.”
The additional information from Rinko did not elicit a remarkable response from the Beastmen, who either found it difficult or uninteresting. Some Dwarves and Elves seemed to be a little interested, but that was another matter.
“I think it’s the development of the northern port area that has been shelved, pending the empire’s conquest of the south.”
Luvia-san raised her hand, and I encouraged her to speak up.
“The civil war of the kingdom’s army is almost settled north of the royal capital and has shifted to fighting in the southern noble territories. The area around the royal capital has been slumming with refugees and deserters, but it is impossible to construct a force that would be able to invade Casemaian. That is all for now as for the aerial surveillance of the winged tribe.”
“Thank you, Luvia-san. I appreciate your hard work.”
As for the empire and the kingdom, there are no pressing issues. Then, Myrril raises her eyebrows a little.
“Speaking of which, what happened to the story that the kingdom is on the verge of economic collapse?”
“Let me explain that to you.”
The one who raised his hand was Merel-san, a fox-man merchant. The information network among the merchants is based on magic, and although he says he judges the authenticity of the information, he uses it as a reference when he needs to gather information.
“Trading itself within the kingdom is declining, but that is probably due to the deterioration of security caused by the civil war rather than due to economic collapse. However, it seems that in rural villages and small settlements, there is an increase in the number of people who do not accept money and demand barter. Salt, weapons, and gold are popular in exchange for agricultural and livestock products.”
“Not gold coins?”
“Yes. In the first place, the circulation of gold and silver coins north of the royal capital itself has become stagnant.”
Merel-san smiled bitterly at my comment. Yes, it is my responsibility. I’ve already given them to Simon, so they won’t be circulating in the kingdom.
“The economy around the royal capital has already collapsed as the wealthy have been hoarding and transferring their assets to the southern noble territories in anticipation of the soaring prices. Theft, robbery, and looting are also on the rise, and if farmers and merchants are wary of these trends, the number of daily necessities on the market will decrease even further.”
“Is it only a matter of time before the kingdom itself goes bankrupt?”
“No.”
Merel-san shook his head at Myrril’s words.
“The largest trading center of the southern nobles’ territory is the southernmost trading port of Meteora, and the king, queen, and princess who had escaped there were detained. I have heard that they are only awaiting execution. The royal power has been usurped, and the royal family’s assets confiscated. Then, those who guarantee the value of the coinage itself to the outside world will disappear.”
Hmm, things are starting to get a little fuzzy here. I don’t know much about economics. No, wait, it’s not that simple.
“Is it because the value of gold and silver coins was set higher than that of unprocessed metals?”
“Yes. The country’s economic base and credibility are lost. There is no hope of recovery. From the merchant’s point of view, the kingdom’s politics and economy, or even the country itself, is already completely bankrupt.”
Chapter 97 – Expanding Dreams And Ruthless Reality
“Oh, Yoshua and the Jou-chan, are you guys going out?”
“We’ll go scouting to the kingdom and will be back in four or five days.”
Riding in a motorized with a side-wheel cart, I headed down the ramp to Casemaian.
Construction on the plains was progressing at a frightening pace, and the zoning and building of residential and commercial districts had already begun. Both Myrril and I scurry around as we slow down. When I first heard about them, I imagined they would be little more than open-air buildings, but they were all solid, permanent structures of varying construction, some made of wood, some of stone, and some of concrete.
The concrete buildings are placed at the crossroads, which is the center of each section, probably with the idea of making it an offensive and defensive base in case of an invasion.
When the idea of doing business came up, I released all the silver and copper coins that I had stored in storage. The amount was really 3 barrels (360 liters, I don’t know how much it was). At first, I used the kingdom’s currency, but it was the currency of a failed state anyway. Maybe we could mint them and make Casemaian coins.
“Wow… I feel like I’ve wandered into a strange town.”
“What are you talking about? Look on your own shoulders. Aren’t all of these your creations?”
“Ours, right?”
A barbed-wire fence was set up around the perimeter. It is meant to protect the inhabitants first and foremost, rather than to allow intruders from the outside in. The outer moat is crawling with dangerous creatures.
“Oh, well, Myrril, I thought you said it was a rain dragon.”
“You mean that big aquatic magic beast?”
“Yes, that’s right. When I appraise it, it looks like a troublesome creature.”
According to the information that came out, it speaks human language, kills people for fun, uses transformation techniques, and spits poison when it gets angry. I don’t know if this is true or not, but if it is, it is a complete monster.
It is said that an aquatic serpentine magical beast grows for hundreds of years to become a rain dragon and after another few hundred years grows to become a giant flying dragon. Stop it. I can’t even joke about such a thing swarming around the outer moat.
I slightly regret using them for disposing of the corpses of imperial soldiers. I think I might have given them a taste for human flesh.
“That’s a little too late for that. But I heard that Mizuchi and the others are monsters from the East. Why is it here?”
“I don’t know. That was not in the appraisal, so you’ll have to ask Heimann-jiisan.”
“If it understands human language, why don’t you ask him?”
“Maybe so, but I wouldn’t want to come in contact with a monster that spits poison or eats for fun…”
As we drove through the Urals, we came to the southern edge of the plain, the only entrance and exit outside the Dark Forest.
At the side of the bridge, a werewolf girl named Meifa-chan stood with her back straightened, her face completely matured. Behind her, a small werewolf troop of her subordinates was lined up like a guard of honor.
The M4 carbines they carried on their shoulders were mass-produced for small Beastman because they had been proven effective in test operations by the winged tribe. From now on, the M4 will probably be the main weapon, and the M1903 will be treated as a reserve weapon.
“Salute to His Majesty the Demon King!”
“”””Ha!””””
I raise my hand in response to their expression of the utmost respect.
“I’m leaving. Take care of things for me, Meifa!”
“Yes, I’m at your service!”
Perhaps happy to be praised, she suddenly breaks into a childish smile. The werewolf troop is also wagging their tails, which is adorable.
“What’s with your face, Joshua? Are you still the Demon King?”
“I’m not like that. I think it’s a good country when the children look happy.”
“Umu, you’re right. The Demon Kingdom is a good country!”
“I want to have children when things settle down.”
“Gefuhh!”
Perhaps caught off guard, Myrril began to choke violently. She turned bright red, writhing in agony, but she didn’t seem to be refusing it, so we’ll think about it together some other time.
Oh, but first, marriage. I wonder if people over here have weddings. It seems her parents are dead, but I’ll have to talk to her sister, Minell. And honeymoon… I don’t know where to go.
As for the new house… I don’t think Casemaian has the idea of a private home yet. I was thinking of building a sort of apartment complex for singles in the residential area we are building now, but I’d like to put small single-family homes with yards alongside those and have families live in those and support childcare and such. Maybe turn the church into a daycare center. There should be shopping malls and parks and stuff. Oh yeah, and build schools, education is important and…
Yeah, my dreams are expanding.
“Myrril, don’t you have a dream?”
“W-what is it suddenly?”
Her face is still red. She started biting and chewing, and her moist eyes were swimming. How cute!
“Dream. If you have a dream of peace and happiness, it will motivate you, won’t it? If you have such a dream, I want to make it come true for both of us.”
“Hmm… even if you ask me suddenly, I can’t come up with anything. In the first place, just to live peacefully with your fellow countrymen is a dream that I thought was unattainable.”
“That is true. There is no need to hurry; we will find it slowly from now on.”
“You, um…. w-what else you want to do other have had a… c-c-c-c-child?”
Myrril-san, you’re clucking too much and look like a chicken, though. Dream, huh? A dream…
“Yes, I want to be an adventurer.”
“Huh?”
“I want to register with the Adventurer’s Guild and form a party with Myrril. I want to hunt magical beasts with swords and magic, raise my level, and become a legendary S or SS rank.”
When I saw the Nojaloli-neesan tilting her head, I immediately became anxious.
“W-wait Myrril. There is an Adventurers’ Guild… isn’t there?”
“I’ve never heard of it. At least, there is no such thing in the kingdom, is there?”
…No way. I’ve been dreaming about it for a long time, but my dream was already shattered before I even started.
Author Notes:
Yoshua: “T-there’s still a chance in the empire!”
Rinko: “I know how you feel, but I’ve never heard of adventurers at all. In the empire, hunting monsters is a part of military service.”
Yoshua: “I-if it’s in the tribal union territories…”
Misnell: “Since they are a collection of small, independently governed territories, there is no organization itself that straddles the boundaries between each territory.”
Yoshua “No!”
At that moment, a ray of light came from old man Heimann!
(To be continued!)
Thanks for the chapter
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If the adventurer guild dosnt exist….make one!
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