Ch 98: The war of egos
<span style="font-weight:400">"Where is the recon group located?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"It is near the rear of the army." The knight pointed his finger.
<span style="font-weight:400">Over there, almost 10 kilometers away, a new armyes into view. This one far outnumbers the number of soldiers that are in the vanguard army.
<span style="font-weight:400">Apparently, they divided the army into two, vanguard and rearguard. The vanguard is the one closest to the river, while the rearguard is far away from the river and has the most members.
<span style="font-weight:400">After walking for several minutes, I got there.
<span style="font-weight:400">And then I realized something extremely important...
<span style="font-weight:400">''Can people hire horses to travel between armies? Because I see everyone riding horses around me! Haa, well, whatever. Now that I''m here, I can cast Space Travel on the sly and travel between armies with no one noticing.''
<span style="font-weight:400">"Where is the recon group?"
<span style="font-weight:400">By asking the knights for directions, I found the whereabouts of the famous recon group. I say famous because... There''s only one tent in front of me! All the other squads possess dozens of tents, but the recon group only possesses one!
<span style="font-weight:400">''If it wasn''t because Dorian seems to be a good person, I wouldn''te here.''
<span style="font-weight:400">[Cael] [Shadow Lvl 21]
<span style="font-weight:400">Cael is a man who is neither handsome nor ugly. He looks 41 years old and has slight wrinkles on his face and a piercing on his nose. His hair is ck, and he also has an extension of hair made of feathers of different colors reaching his knees. Despite this strange essory, he possesses a huge aura that prevents him from being despised?.
<span style="font-weight:400">Since the tent was open, I entered it and walked towards him.
<span style="font-weight:400">"You are Emir, aren''t you? I am themander of the recon group. Have a seat."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Yes...mander"
<span style="font-weight:400">I''m not used to military salutes, so I almost forgot to mention the mander'' at the end of the sentence.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Haa... Let''s see, let''s see... What do I do with you?" Cael sighed.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Mm?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"What do you know about the war? Do you only know the basics about the situation, or do you know some secrets? Which one?"
<span style="font-weight:400">"Eh... The basic concepts?"
<span style="font-weight:400">Cael: "..."
<span style="font-weight:400">''- This guy… someone wants to kill him!''
<span style="font-weight:400">Themander rubbed his face with his hand as if wanting to release some stress. After rxing a bit, he looked at me again.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Hand me that presentation you showed that alcoholic."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Yes, here you go."
<span style="font-weight:400">''Alcoholic? Does he mean Dorian?''
<span style="font-weight:400">He had only spent a few seconds reading the scroll when he suddenly froze.
<span style="font-weight:400">''- Does this guy have the backing of a Saint? What did hee to war for, damn it, to show off? Get the hell out of here!!!''
<span style="font-weight:400">''I feel a big deja vu here… And I''m not doing anything.''
<span style="font-weight:400">''- If this guy dies, most likely the Solus Temple will make a fuss just to show off in front of this Saint named Delia. We can''t afford to make an enemy of a Saint since, if we do that… The other Saints will most likely support her, and this army will stop receiving their miraculous healings! And, with that, the war will go to hell!!!!''
<span style="font-weight:400">Unlike Dorian, being in front of Cael is notfortable. Especially when he repeatedly stares at the scroll and then looks at me. All this whileplete silence reigns.
<span style="font-weight:400">Taking in his hands the same form that Dorian had filled out, he read it.
<span style="font-weight:400">''- Haa... Who was the malicious one who sent this guy here... ... This letter... That damn alcoholic is causing trouble on purpose to speed up his retirement!''
<span style="font-weight:400">Very exasperated, he handed me back the parchment as his breathing became chaotic. Only after calming down, did he speak again.
<span style="font-weight:400">"Well, well. I''ll fill you in on everything concerning this war of egos… To begin with, this war is in name only. In my eyes, this thing is nothing more than a military exercise in which the two kingdoms are taking part. Fighting over the Lucia River? Hahaha! This military exercise will cause more deaths than if the Lucia River dries up! The important thing to note is that the people who will die are those who have received training for years, those who have been raised with great care to be what they are today... They seek the death of talented people! Both kingdoms have not been at war for over 150 years since, in thest one, tens of thousands of soldiers died. The result was equally catastrophic for both kingdoms. After 150 years,es the most important question... Will the bnce have tipped to either side? Do you want to call this thing ''war''? Fine, let''s call it a war, but a war of egos! The Lucia River is nothing more than an excuse to find out if either of the kingdoms has been weakened, and if so, the actual war will start! A war to conquer the weaker kingdom!!! As long as both kingdoms have the same strength, this thing will remain as a military exercise because neither side wants to suffer the same losses as in the previous war," Cael ended with those words.
<span style="font-weight:400">''I see. While they check each other''s strengths, they will assassinate each other''s talents.''
<span style="font-weight:400">This brings to mind Delia, who lost her legendary Holy ss when they interrupted her pilgrimage ritual.
<span style="font-weight:400">And so, without knowing it, at some point the conversation went awry.
<span style="font-weight:400">"You look skinny. Do you even eat anything?"
<span style="font-weight:400">Emir: "..."
<span style="font-weight:400">"You don''t seem strong enough to kill a chicken." He shook his head.
<span style="font-weight:400">Emir: "..."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Are you sure you''re a man? Do you have something under your pants?"
<span style="font-weight:400">Emir: "..."
<span style="font-weight:400">''The abuse of power is present! At what point did the conversation go awry? I''m itching to use the sword in my inventory to sh him!''
<span style="font-weight:400">"Haa... You''re a waste of time. The first order I will give you is to collect 10 remnants of the Drial Cenit Kingdom knights. You have one day to drop them on my desk. Now get the hell out of here, I''m busy." He waved his hand arrogantly to push me away like a stray dog.
<span style="font-weight:400">''It itches me. I''m very itchy to respond to his insults. Calm down, calm down, calm down.''
<span style="font-weight:400">"Y- Y- Y- Y- Y- Yes,mander."
<span style="font-weight:400">From today onwards, I hate military formalities! Since I have to answer even when I''m treated badly!
<span style="font-weight:400">"You''re hopeless." He sighed and then said, "I''ll cross you off the list. People like you die every day. Even if you''re never seen again, no one will miss you..."
<span style="font-weight:400">''Huh? Wait a bit. That means...''
<span style="font-weight:400">"I can act on my ount..."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Stop babbling bullshit. Now go and die."
<span style="font-weight:400">"Yes,mander!"
<span style="font-weight:400">''- Hmm... He can take insults pretty well. He''s got the courage, but... does he have the talent? Well, it doesn''t matter. It''s none of my business,'' Cael thought as he tore the form written by Dorian Aranis to shreds.
<span style="font-weight:400">With this, I can perform missions freely, since he implicitly gave me the privilege to leave whenever I want. After all, he crossed me off the list of men under hismand, announcing that I was already dead.
<span style="font-weight:400">Future retaliation? Impossible. The names of the dead are not recorded; the dead are simply counted as a number to make future strategies. Only war heroes have the honor of having their names enshrined and remembered.
<span style="font-weight:400">And all this thanks to being under the protection of the adorable Saint Delia.
<span style="font-weight:400">It is already early morning. Our descent from the mountain took a few hours. And the travel all the way here with all the formalities included made it so long ago the sun went down.
<span style="font-weight:400">''Should I go to warm Delia''s or Alessia''s bed?''
<span style="font-weight:400">These questions keep me awake at night...
<span style="font-weight:400">''Today I was interrupted by those knights fighting on the mountain, but my original n was to make love to a half-asleep Delia... So, I will go to her. In the morning, I will go back to my parents'' house and tell them I was caught up in this war.''
<span style="font-weight:400">One good thing about the location of this battlefield is the extensive forest that surrounds us. It''s thanks to it that I can use the Space Travel magic without being discovered by anyone.
<span style="font-weight:400">"... Space Travel" After reciting the spell, the illusory door appeared in front of me.
<span style="font-weight:400">Passing through it, I appeared in front of the Solitary Temple. Only now, when no one is watching me, have I unequipped the mask and stored it in the inventory.
<span style="font-weight:400">It is the battlefield. I must hide my identity as much as possible.
<span style="font-weight:400">I carefully entered, producing no sound. It''s not the first time I''ve been to the temple. So, even when it''spletely dark, I know where things are.
<span style="font-weight:400">Then I opened the door to Delia''s room.
<span style="font-weight:400">Under the nkets, slightly uncovered, lies a beautiful 3-tailed fox girl with no underwear covering her at all. Since the religious seek to rid themselves of earthly desires, Delia possesses almost no belongings. And that includes sleeping clothes.
<span style="font-weight:400">''I''m liking this logic of thought more and more. At some point, will she shed all her clothes and walk naked through life? Hmm…Probably not. No, no... Wait a bit. It''s too early to take it for granted. After all... Will the bikini armor help her get rid of earthly desires? After all, angel sculptures have little clothing, don''t they?''
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