Chapter 4: When I Participated in the March…

AT HIS MAJESTY’S ORDERS, I CONTINUED TO SERVICE the roads and periodically build bases along them. As the march proceeded, I was asked to make a locking system for the bases, so I put together a simple internal one. Three days passed in this manner, and I found myself outpacing the march through the mountains.

“Wait a second… Wasn’t there something about one of my container bases collapsing?” I asked, turning around.

Till, sitting in the driver’s seat, blinked. “Oh, right. The only thing I ever hear about now is how well the march is going thanks to your efforts. Perhaps it was all just a misunderstanding?”

Khamsin, who was walking next to the carriage, nodded. “Exactly! There’s no way there were defects in something you made, Lord Van. Anybody could see that was a lie.”

I responded to Khamsin’s blind faith in my skills with a pained smile. “No, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that I messed up during the design process.

It’s too early to say, one way or the other.”

Arte poked her head out of the carriage window. “Lord Van, Murcia has arrived from the rear.”

“Big brother?”

Surprised, I halted my road work and turned around to find Murcia out of breath and wiping the sweat from his forehead. He was leading a group of knights down the freshly paved road toward us. Oh, and just for the record, Arte looked adorable poking her head out of the window like that.

“Lord Murcia.” Arte, Till, and Khamsin all bowed their heads and greeted my older brother, who raised a hand in response. Then he turned to face Arte, greeting her directly.

“Lady Arte, it is wonderful to see you again.”

I could hardly describe his warm smile and words as appropriate for a nobleman, but Arte seemed relieved as she returned his kindness. After they had exchanged a few words, Murcia quickly directed his attention toward me.

“Van, is everything okay?”

“Hmm?” I couldn’t help but tilt my head, confused at the first words out of his mouth. “Where’s this coming from?”

Perhaps he realized how abrupt his words were, because he nodded gently and corrected himself. “Sorry, I should have greeted you first.”

“No, no. It’s fine. What’s up?” I asked him again.

Murcia stared at my face, wearing a serious expression of his own. “I was worried you were pushing yourself too hard. You guys are making such speedy progress on the road that it got me a bit concerned. Though, if anything,” he added with a smirk, “now that I’m here, I’m surprised by how normal you’re acting.”

How unfortunate. It made me sad to think he might assume I was doing fine just because I looked that way. For the record, I was extremely dissatisfied.

“I’m exhausted, actually. I’ve been paving roads and building bases in between meals. An hour of hard work, then grabbing a meal, eating a snack… It’s all good because the food is delicious, but I’d really like to rest for at least half a day,” I grumbled.

Murcia gave me an exasperated look. “I was worried you might collapse from magic overuse, but it seems that won’t be a problem. I’m glad you’re doing better than I expected.”

Why had Murcia ignored my complaints? I tried frowning at him, but he simply smiled and drew his face close to mine.

“I’m sure you’ve noticed this,” he said in a low, warning tone, “but there are people who are jealous of you because of the way His Majesty favors you. Our father is one of them.”

Murcia was going out of his way to tell me something that would land him in hot water should Jalpa find out. I smiled. I swear, could my brother be any kinder?

“Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “I have the Seatoh Village Chivalric Order to protect me, and Dee is keeping tabs on the other orders from the rear. No one will be able to lay a hand on me. I’m spending my nights in a super-tough base I made myself, so there should be no issues there, either.”

We were marching to war with a neighboring country. With me as the infrastructure lynchpin, nobody could afford to cause me problems. His Majesty wouldn’t sit by and watch in silence if they did. I didn’t say that bit out loud, but it was implied in my response.

Murcia nodded. “Right. You’ll be fine as long as you’re careful. Besides, Lady Panamera has confirmed in the rear that there is nothing wrong with the bases, so I think it’s unlikely anything will happen on that front going forward.”

“Really? Thank you for all your concern.” Given Murcia’s personality, he’d probably also confirmed for himself that the bases hadn’t been messed with. My words of gratitude were earnest and genuine. After all, the knights protecting Murcia all belonged to Jalpa. Talking to me like this could worsen his position considerably.

Though I suppose His Majesty has already had some words with Jalpa and Murcia about their respective futures. Maybe I don’t need to worry much on that front…but nothing is set in stone, though. I should play it safe.

“This really is tough on the both of us, huh?” I whispered with a pained grin.

Murcia blinked a few times and then burst out laughing.

 

On the fifth day, there was a change in our march through the mountains,

cliffs, and rivers of the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range. Suddenly, we could see more of the sky. In other words, the mountains were a lot smaller than the ones we’d already marched through.

The further into the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range you went, the taller the mountains were. The environment grew harsher, and the monsters stronger. Cutting right through the mountains was said to be impossible, but it turned out that it was possible to sneak by along the edge. It was safe to assume that we were close to leaving the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range behind.

“Think we can make it out by tomorrow if we really put our minds to it?” I whispered that night inside one of my new bases.

Khamsin nodded decisively. “Yes. I imagine we shall arrive at our destination within a day or two. This is all thanks to your hard work, Lord Van.”

“Ha ha ha. Well, I gave it my all.” I grimaced. “To be fair, though, this all started because I got tired of my butt hurting.”

Till came over from the girls’ room I had set up next door. “Oh, Lord Van? Are you still awake? You should hurry to bed. You must be exhausted!”

She was wearing the sleepwear I’d made for her: a long, one-piece gown with a silky texture to it that I’d worked hard to replicate. Not to toot my own horn or anything. Shortly thereafter, Arte appeared from behind Till in the same gown, looking adorable as always.

“Yeah, you’re right,” I said. “But you two need to hurry to bed as well. If you need any bedding, let me know.”

Arte gave me a big smile. “Thank you very much.”

“Fear not!” said Till, smiling. “We have beds. We might be too comfortable, if anything!”

I’d created the beds on the fly, so they weren’t actually all that comfortable. The bedding and pillows were made from monster hide, so they were pretty cozy, at least, but the whole assemblage was kind of iffy overall.

Hoping to give them peace of mind, I said, “I’m sorry, ladies. When we get back to Seatoh Village, we’ll have all the comfy beds we could want. We just have to suffer through this a little longer.”

Till and Arte simply exchanged glances and giggled. Arte said, “These beds are plenty nice.”

“If anything, I would argue that the beds in Seatoh Village are too nice,” Till said. “His Majesty must be stunned right now.”

“Huh? Really?” I was genuinely surprised by their responses. I wasn’t particular about the materials I used, so the beds in Seatoh Village were more like cheap sofas—but according to these two, that wasn’t a problem at all.

I’d been so focused on creating clothing and shelter of late. Maybe my standards had gotten too high without my noticing it.

“That reminds me,” I whispered, recalling what felt like the distant past. “It’s crazy to think we started with straw beds. Brings me back.”

Khamsin nodded. “Indeed. I was shocked by how ramshackle the village looked at first, but you went and fixed it up in no time. At this point, it might be even nicer than the royal capital,” he added, looking proud.

“Ha ha ha. You’re going to get yourself punished for lèse-majesté, Khamsin.” His Majesty and the other nobles were resting in bases nearby, and here this boy was criticizing the royal capital. I was sincerely impressed by his bravery… but seeing him blanch at my words of warning, I retracted that thought.

We chatted among ourselves for a while, then headed back to our respective bedrooms for the night.

I worked really hard on construction today. Good job, Li’l Van! I thought, closing my eyes.

 

I woke up to someone shaking me. “Hrm… What?” I mumbled half-heartedly, turning my head to the side.

Khamsin’s all-too-serious face was mere inches away. Surprised, I sat up and quickly put some distance between us.

“Huh?! Khamsin, I didn’t realize you were into… I mean, that’s totally fine and I support you, but I’m not…”

“Lord Van, something is wrong.”

“Um, if anything, I’d say you’re the one moving kind of abruptly…”

With how confused I was, we seemed to be talking past each other. Khamsin gestured for me to be quiet, his expression unchanged. I followed his lead. I was finally awake, which meant my brain was working properly. I could hear noise outside, but nobody was speaking—almost like some burglars were trying to break in.

“Burglars? With all these knights around?” I whispered.

Khamsin put his hand on the Van-made sword at his hip and turned toward the entrance. He said quietly, “They are still outside. Please wait a moment.”

Watching Khamsin approach the entrance, I hastily changed from my comfy sleepwear into a set of light wood block armor. I also grabbed my twin orichalcum swords, my best equipment. If I was a little bigger and had more muscle on me, I could wear mithril armor, but wood block or monster scale was the best I could equip for now.

Geared up, I felt some of the fear drain out of me. “I just don’t get how burglars could show up with all these Chivalric Orders here,” I muttered.

Outside, the quiet night in the mountains was broken by the sound of something brushing against the trees. That was enough to instill a different kind of fear in me, and I’m sure the girls in the other room felt the same.

“Khamsin, are Till and Arte asleep?” I asked.

“I have been able to hear them moving next door for a while now, so I don’t think so.”

The base we were in had only a single floor. There was a living room in the front, with the two bedrooms off to either side. Of all the different kinds of bases I’d made, this was the easiest when it came to simple lodgings. (By the way, His Majesty’s base had a room for the royal guards to stay in and a bedroom beyond that. Both rooms were fairly spacious, and the men seemed happy with their lodgings.)

Unfortunately, I’d designed the interior specifically for resting. No matter how you looked at it, it wasn’t meant to be a defensive fortification. Khamsin understood this, which explained why he was moving so slowly and carefully toward the bedroom door. He managed to make the process completely silent, like some kind of ninja.

A loud noise came suddenly from the entrance, almost as if it were timed. It sounded a lot like someone was trying to kick the door down.

Khamsin leapt back, startled, then froze in place. Someone, or several someones, was trying to force the door open, and the noise was deafening. “Good thing it’s locked,” I whispered. The door was bolted shut from the inside with wood blocks, so breaking it open would be no easy task. At least, that’s what I hoped.

Just then, some kind of black stick poked through the gap between the door and the frame. It began to lift the wood block that was bolting the door shut.

“Oh, come on. That’s not fair,” I said, unable to keep myself from cracking a joke. I was really regretting not making that bolt a horizontal one, but there was no point crying over spilled milk. No matter how much I worried, it wouldn’t stop the door from opening.

“Lord Van, do not leave the bedroom,” Khamsin ordered without looking my way. He tightened his grip on his sword, ready to cut down any intruders the second they entered. His knees were bent slightly, keeping his center of gravity low. Seeing how tightly he gripped his sword made me even more tense.

But just as he was preparing to move, the sound of an explosion came from the entrance. It echoed through the bedroom, hurting my ears. There was no way to know what had happened without approaching the entrance, but maybe if I stayed close behind Khamsin, I could see something.

When I looked at Khamsin’s face, though, he was grinning. He turned around to face me. “I was right. Lady Arte was awake.”

“Uh, Arte?” Unthinking, I made my way to the door and looked outside. Two of Arte’s Aventador Dolls flanked the entrance. “What the—?!” I heard someone screaming outside, then more angry yells from afar.

“Who in the hell are you?!” bellowed one voice.

“Capture them at once!” said another.

Then came the sounds of fierce combat, metal clanging against metal.

“Lord Van, are you all right?”

Till and Arte approached us, mindful of their surroundings. A doll equipped with mithril armor was following Arte.

“I’m okay, thanks.” I sheathed my twin swords, feeling mixed emotions. It had been Arte who saved us this time, and that made me both happy and sad. “I really need to work out more.” Maybe I’ll ask Dee to increase my training hours.

Khamsin nodded earnestly. “I will accompany you!”

I offered him a pained smile and nodded. He wasn’t playing around.

Eventually, we heard more yelling outside. “Lord Van, are you okay?!” It was Dee who appeared this time, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

I waved at him. “I’m okay! Did you catch the intruders?”

Dee grimaced and drew his chin in. “It seems as though they had assistance from one of the Chivalric Orders, so unfortunately, they got away. But I do have an idea of who it was.”

His low, menacing tone filled me with dread. He must’ve been terribly aggravated about letting the culprits get away. I laughed dryly and shook my head.

“It is what it is. I asked you to assist the rest of the march—there was no way you could’ve been here with me. If anything, I’m impressed by how quickly you got here.”

“I slipped out of the formation,” he said with a smile.

“Thanks. I know I can always count on you, Dee.”

“Ha ha ha! Next time, I’ll crush those conniving bastards!” He smiled and thrust his chest out.

I smiled back politely, picturing the various Chivalric Orders that he must’ve passed after he left the formation. I’d have to apologize later.

 

Unfortunately for us, now that we knew the lawless jerks who tried to break in were backed by a Chivalric Order, we had to investigate. A noble could not let such an act go unpunished, and putting my power on display would have the side effect of indirectly keeping other nobles in check. There were plenty of reasons to do this, but the short version was that, as a noble, ignoring someone who tried to harm you came with its own set of problems. Investigating the attempted breakin was a pain in the butt, but I had to do it.

I sighed heavily, trailing behind a very angry Dee. Lowe and Arb joined us about ten minutes later, equally furious. Maybe it was contagious, because even Khamsin’s shoulders were shaking with rage.

Just for the record, the Seatoh Village knights guarding the area near my private quarters were angry too, and the two young men who were supposed to have been patrolling the area were deeply depressed. I’d been told that another Chivalric Order had approached them to swap shifts so they could go eat, and they’d accepted the offer.

More to the point, they’d been approached by two middle-aged knights in fancy armor. Those knights had told the pair of young guards that their duties kept them from moving around freely, so they wanted a chance to take a break and eat. In reality, high-ranking knights would never be assigned to night duty without being given ample time to rest, but the young men fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

I couldn’t blame them too much, though. They were part of an army on the march that was composed of nobles and their Chivalric Orders. It was easy to get confused about how things worked. Dee was furious with the two young guards, but I felt sorry for them. I’d often heard that when a person makes a big mistake, they never mess up in the same way ever again—and besides, nobody’d been hurt, so I wasn’t that fussed. In fact, I was willing to intentionally repeat the situation if I could bait our enemy into the open.

But the fact remained that we were in the middle of an attempt to invade Yelenetta. While it was important for me to make a show of my power as a noble and to give the enemy no quarter, it was hard to judge how far was too far. I’d be a fool to do anything that delayed the march. That could draw the ire of not just His Majesty, but the other nobles too.

That said, I also couldn’t sit back and do nothing.

I kept turning this difficult dilemma over in my head as I got back to paving the mountain road. I was in front of the carriage, laying down more wood blocks. “What am I going to do?” I whispered.

“Hmm? Did you say something?” asked Till, handing me a drink.

I accepted the cup and sipped the water inside. “Thanks. I’m just thinking about the culprit from last night. I’m guessing that either Viscount Tron or Baron Nouveau’s Chivalric Order made a deal with some assassins…”

I trailed off, and Till grimaced. “But you have no proof. Is that right?” she asked, sounding angry. It was a quiet kind of rage. Till was too sweet a girl for it to have much bite to it.

All I could offer her was a pained chuckle and a shrug. “Nah, I think I can find proof. Arte blasted open the door, so the person or people on the other side probably sustained injuries. Maybe their armor’s damaged, maybe they’ve got a door-shaped dent in them. The real problem lies elsewhere. Viscount Tron and Baron Nouveau are both part of a certain marquis’ faction. In other words, they have a powerful backer.”

I raised my head. Till, realizing what I was implying, looked back at me. “Marquis Fertio?”

I nodded grimly. It was unclear whether Jalpa’s objective really was my assassination, but considering nothing was stolen, I couldn’t think of many other options. It was possible he intended to threaten me into doing something, considering how highly His Majesty valued me.

If he really was gunning for me, him wanting to threaten me was actually the best possible scenario, as it would mean last night’s incident was just a warning. Far more chilling was the idea that he wanted to make me his puppet or slave, while the worst-case scenario was that he wanted me dead.

He may have been my own father, but he was a nobleman through and

through. His behavior here was foolish, though. He’d miscalculated the timing and method with which to bring me down. Regardless of the military might that had enabled him to claw his way to the top, I couldn’t imagine him acting so brashly.

It was possible that Tron and Nouveau had acted on their own, instead. If so, perhaps they wanted to make me their puppet so that they could use me to extort Jalpa in turn? The more I thought about it, the more likely that seemed.

“Okay,” I said finally. “I’m going to summon Dee and have him investigate. I’ll have him be obvious about it, so as not to worsen the situation.”

Till blinked and tilted her head. “Why be obvious?”

“Going directly after multiple noblemen would negatively impact the march. Making our investigation blatantly obvious reduces the likelihood of catching the culprit. I expect His Majesty will understand what we’re trying to do and provide aid, which will make it difficult for anyone else to target us.”

Till groaned, looking pained. “I-I see. But does that mean letting the culprit get away with it? I know nobody was harmed, but…”

She clearly wasn’t satisfied with the logic I had presented her. I shook a hand and smiled. “Don’t worry. It won’t be as simple as having some guards capture a bandit, but I will respond as befits a nobleman. In a way that nobody, not even Marquis Fertio, can complain about.”

 

I asked Dee to investigate the suspected Chivalric Orders, then indirectly informed His Majesty and Panamera of the attack. Needless to say, they were both furious, but because we were on our way to war, we couldn’t start fighting among ourselves. Nor could we investigate each Chivalric Order with nothing more than our suspicions to go on. They were the foot soldiers of the nobility, after all.

His Majesty was already busy handling the nobles at the top of the food chain, preventing any damage to troop morale. Luckily, even a simple, angry announcement from the king that my base had been attacked last night would serve to deter my enemies. At this point, the chance that I would get attacked again on the march was near zero.

 

For two straight days, I focused entirely on road construction.

“Lord Van, the mountains are getting smaller!” Khamsin announced.

I nodded. Previously the skyline had been dominated by the towering mountains, but now much more of the horizon was visible. Sunlight bathed the road ahead of us, which was also much wider than before. We weren’t far from our destination.

As expected, the culprits behind the attack had gone quiet after their initial attempt to break into my base, and we were able to continue our march in peace. Thank goodness, I thought with relief.

Just then, the adventurers who’d been on recon duty returned. No sooner had Ortho arrived than he began apologizing. “Lord Van, I am so sorry for putting you in such a dangerous position.”

Ever since they learned about the attack on me, he and his people had been overflowing with concern for my wellbeing. I was sure it was partially guilt over their scuffle with the Chivalric Order in question, but even when I told them it was okay, they kept apologizing.

“Seriously, I’m fine. You worry too much. More importantly, having you guys on guard is the only reason we were able to make such good progress on this dangerous path. You’ve all been incredible.”

Ortho bowed his head deeply. “It means a lot to hear you say that. I’m also here to pass along a report from the front that our destination is now visible.”

“What?” I yelled. “Seriously?! You should have started with that!” I wanted to hurry and pave a road to our destination so that I could finally head straight back to Seatoh Village.

Ortho clearly got the message, for he nodded, smiling gingerly. “Sorry. We should arrive within half a day.”

“Whoa, that’s awesome. I’m going to do my best to speed things up! When we get back to the village, it’s barbecue time!”

“Wonderful. I can’t wait.”

We exchanged smiles. Unfortunately, Ortho would be on guard duty for the march’s return trip too, so there was no way he’d be able to participate in the barbecue once I got back. I felt terrible about that, so I decided then and there to have another extravagant barbecue for him and the others when they returned.

After about three more hours of continuous road work, it finally happened. The landscape before us expanded outward, as if the mountains had split off to either side. In front of us was a road leading to a small hill.

“Beyond that hill is Yelenetta. There’s a fortress just past it, so it would be dangerous to cross.”

“Huh, really? Then what does His Majesty plan on doing?” I asked.

Then I noticed knights on their way over to me, accompanying a luxurious carriage that bore the royal family’s crest. Before it even arrived, everyone had taken a knee and lowered their heads.

“It is fine. Raise your heads,” said His Majesty, descending from the carriage. Nobody did as he said. He pointed at the hill. “The plan is to build a base of operations right here. It will be lower than the fortress wall, but the hill will provide a natural vantage point from which we can shower our enemies with arrows and treat the wounded when they return from past the hill. The problem is that once we pass the hill, we will have to cross a river and take their fortress. This will be a lengthy process.”

I nodded, looking in the direction he was pointing. “I see. From our enemy’s perspective, this hill makes it difficult to lay traditional siege, while for us, it serves as a simple partition. But since the hill is still lower than the fortress wall, it would be dangerous if they arc their arrows up to reach us… Of course, that all depends on the distance they’re firing from.”

“Fear not. The plan is to build a defensive wall made of logs. Of course, we could build much stronger fortifications with your aid…but I have not forgotten our agreement to not send you to war.” His Majesty’s smile was meaningful.

I laughed dryly. “Well, I can at least help with the pre-battle preparations.

How about a simple fortress on the hill?”

His Majesty nodded, satisfied. “I knew I could count on you. You are always one step ahead when it comes to intuiting the desires of others.”

“…It is an honor and a privilege, Your Majesty.”

The king boomed a laugh, his great mood undamaged by my snide response.

“I swear, you do not act your age in the least!”

I wanted to go home sooner rather than later, but here I was with more work to do. Unfortunately for me, I had an enemy whose peerage far outranked mine, so I needed His Majesty on my side. I would feel too guilty asking Panamera or Ferdinatto for help. With that in mind, I got right to work designing the new fortress.

“I’ll try and have this finished by nightfall.”

“By nightfall?!” Till and Arte replied in unison. They were right—my declaration was frankly absurd. Even Khamsin, who had parked the carriage off to the side of the road, turned around with a surprised look on his face.

I glanced at the soldiers quietly preparing for battle along the newly completed road. It was just wide enough for two carriages to travel side by side, and currently filled with the men and women of the Chivalric Orders. Could I build a fortress that could accommodate all these people?

That was what everyone was probably thinking. And it was true that if the enemy noticed what I was doing, there was no way I’d be able to finish the job. In fact, it would kick off the battle prematurely, and our troops wouldn’t be ready to fight back. His Majesty’s good mood would plummet like a roller coaster.

“I have a plan. Will you guys help me?” I asked with a smile.

Arte and Till exchanged glances and nodded at me. Further back, Khamsin said, “Of course!”

“Thanks. Okay, let’s be quiet about this. Could you tell the Chivalric Order to gather timber for me? Oh, and ask Ortho and the others to monitor the enemy fortress for any movement.”

“Understood!” said Khamsin.

Till said, “Yes, Lord Van!”

The two of them got to work. Arte, meanwhile, sat down in the chair I’d made for her.

“Could you tell me about your plan?” she asked.

Her gaze was filled with expectation. I smiled and nodded.