Running Away From The Hero! (Remake) Chapter 264

264

31. Originally, watching fights is the most entertaining way (11)

#13 Their Situation: The Situation of a Certain Hero

Suddenly, there was an aerial surprise attack.

I was caught off guard in ways I never antic.i.p.ated.

“Indeed, it’s the senior…”

Although it doesn’t seem like Iron Bat’s style, he learned from that professor.

He surely knows how to strike from behind.

The neighboring countries were unprepared for the sudden attack.

“Worst case scenario, a Kingdom could collapse.”

“Hmm…”

“The serious expression on the side was from Shuttle, or rather, Hill.

“With the rear support no longer needed…”

“A collapse in the rear will create more enemies.”

A situation where we could be surrounded from all sides might arise, worst-case scenario!

In such dire straits,

“Can’t we just eliminate them all?”

Mira tilted her head as if asking what the problem was.

“Excuse me, Lady Mira? Could you consider the common people?”

Maintaining the front line, utilizing geographical advantages, it was difficult to defend against the enemy’s strength.

With formidable power and magic resistance.

Moreover, an army of evil spirits who fear not even death and only seek destruction is nothing short of a disaster.

“Isn’t weakness the problem?”

“Ah…”

Indeed, a Professor’s student.

He was a human lacking something fundamental that one should possess as a person, just like the Professor.

“Is that so?”

“That’s right.”

Even though it lacked humanity, there was no choice but to nod.

Because Mira emphasized strength.

If one denied it here, it would be affirmed through force!

Even if it’s not right, affirming it is the best option.

Unnecessary beliefs only lead to suffering.

It was a significant lesson learned from the Professor.

“Can we send the Imperial troops to all the Kingdoms?”

The enemies only attacked the rear unexpectedly, and their numbers were not that many.

Over time, the evil spirit’s army’s numbers might become an issue, but not immediately.

In fact, in some Kingdoms, they had succeeded in eliminating the appearance of the evil spirit’s army in their own territories, and now sending just a few Imperial soldiers to one Kingdom would solve everything.

However,

“No, we can’t.”

Mira firmly refused.

“Why on earth?”

It was incomprehensible.

Mira’s goal is to capture the Professor and deliver her to Her Majesty, the Empress.

And the King is an obstacle to that.

Does Mira have a reason for just watching the masterpieces of the evil spirit’s army, knowing better than anyone that it’s not good if the enemy becomes stronger?

“Of course.”

“Wait, I didn’t say anything yet?”

I said ‘why on earth?’ but the response was ‘what could be the reason?’ Why the difference??

Could it be because of my mood?

“It’s not because of the mood.”

“Just say it’s because of the mood!”

Reading people’s thoughts as well? What kind of magic is this?

“It’s not magic.”

“That’s even scarier!”

The more I couldn’t understand Mira’s ability, the more fear grew.

“If you have this ability, you don’t need to use mental magic on me!”

Mixing up one’s memories is an unpleasant feeling that only someone who has experienced it would know.

Wait, didn’t this person try to torture me before?

“It’s better to be sure, isn’t it, to be sure~”

“This is…”

I wanted to say many things, but I was rendered speechless.

I couldn’t even think straight; it felt like my thoughts were being read.

“Isn’t it absurd to have such a being?”

“It’s the result of effort.”

I didn’t even want to imagine the effort required to become such a being.

Let’s forget about that and focus on what I originally wanted to ask.

“Never mind about other things, what’s the reason for not providing support to the other Kingdoms?”

Mira responded to my question in a somewhat dismissive tone.

“Because they’re enemies of the Empire.”

“Huh?”

Her words sounded plausible.

“Enemies of the Empire? Were such beings real?”

The Empire was a country that held undisputed power over the continent, with no nation capable of opposing it.

“You’re mistaken. There are nations capable of opposing it. In fact, almost every nation is opposing it.”

“What?”

“Not being able to win in a fight and not opposing are different things.”

Mira’s words seemed out of place.

“I feel like you’re misunderstanding. I’m someone bestowed with the t.i.tle of a Countess. And it’s hereditary.”

“Really?”

“No matter how n.o.ble one is as a child of the Grand Duke, it’s natural for someone who’s been erased from the family tree to know more about the current situation of the Empire.”

“Uh…”

Mira, looking at me with a cold gaze, wasn’t the Mira I had known until now.

What should I call her? Your Grace? My lady?

“Are you a n.o.ble?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Yeah, just a n.o.ble. But not the n.o.ble I knew; more like a splendid n.o.ble from a novel!

“Wait, hold on. I heard something strange, like it was just flowing naturally? Erased from the family tree? Why?”

Despite my dislike for my lineage, being erased from the family tree without consent was shocking.

“Laina Rel Swin decided to discard the name ‘Laina,’ which is the adult name of the family, and just live as a warrior Swin. And out of respect for his sacrificial spirit, the next heir of the Grand Duke’s lineage decided to exclude him from the family tree…”

“This is…!”

Risking one’s position is one thing, but cutting off a sibling from the family tree is outrageous.

If the King is overthrown, everything, including siblings and the family, will be turned upside down.

“I’ve instructed to relay the decision to the Royal Palace.”

“You instructed?”

“Oh, my mistake. I threatened.”

“Things have gotten worse, haven’t they?”

So what? What are we going to do about it?

I couldn’t offer any reb.u.t.tal to Mira, who was looking at me with such eyes.

I felt a moment of understanding akin to the villains in legends who would sell their souls to demons for power.

“Sir Knight…”

“It’s okay. I’m used to it.”

Beside me, Shuttle looked at me with pity, but I offered him a rea.s.suring smile.

Yeah, my opponent is Mira. This is how Mira behaves.

Similar to Mira, she embodies the essence of the Professor’s teachings more than any other student I’ve encountered.

Mira just disposed of the Professor.

“For now, let’s leave aside the discussion about the lineage…”

Satisfied with knowing one fact in exchange for being erased from the family tree.

This means that aside from the Emperor, Mira had the authority to threaten the next heir of the Grand Duke’s lineage, one of the Empire’s highest positions.

And that the next heir of the Grand Duke’s lineage quietly accepted it.

I was reminded once more of the importance of never provoking Mira!

“Well… In short, not all Kingdoms were left without support. There are several countries that have already sent support and defeated the evil spirit’s army.”

“A few?”

“Kingdoms that have signed military treaties with the Empire.”

“Military treaties?”

“Yeah. Because we need to avoid as many inconveniences as possible when capturing the Professor.”

Therefore, Mira’s words implied that the Empire’s army was only intervening in countries that permitted their troops on their soil to combat the evil spirit’s army.

“Isn’t that too much?”

Even if the world is in crisis! Isn’t saving the world the priority rather than excluding it!

“Yeah, no.”

“Oh, really?”

With such a definite answer, I just nodded.

“Many countries see the crisis as an opportunity. Those who are not helping us are the same. They exclude the Empire and try to solve things by uniting among themselves.”

Without the necessary power or capabilities.

Mira’s atmosphere, speaking coldly with an expressionless face, was very frightening.

Just like a commander. It felt overwhelming, like being surrounded by unreasonable monsters under a commander’s authority.

“So are we just going to let it be?”

“If there aren’t just fools, we can win.”

“Even if many people die?”

“We can’t help it. Those who reject us are the powerful ones there. It’s illegal for us to cross borders without their permission.”

Mira discussed the violation of international law in sending military forces but emphasized that it’s not unwillingness but inability to send them.

Is it my misunderstanding that Mira seems to emphasize the inability to send rather than a choice not to?

“They also don’t care about the world’s crisis. They’re just doing their best to benefit themselves, with the premise that the King will fall anyway.”

Mira didn’t seem to have a particular dislike for that.

No, the Mira I know would think that’s only natural. Mira was someone who would do anything to survive.

“So they’ll manage to survive on their own.”

It was a really irresponsible statement, but Mira’s words were correct.

Other Kingdoms didn’t want to see the Empire’s influence expand.

They rejected the Empire, sought unity for strength, and are now facing the consequences of their choice.

But,

“To defeat the evil spirit’s army and beyond that, to overthrow the King, we need to secure the rear.”

Despite my discomfort, I couldn’t simply stand by and watch the King’s plan unfold.

“Who said anything about standing by?”

“Huh?”

“Ha… This is supposed to be the strongest Knight? Give me back my childhood fantasies…”

“You had fantasies like that?”

“Yeah, I guess I did.”

“Okay. I was a naive girl too.”

“Huh…”

What’s this? It almost sounds like you’re saying the Professor was a decent person?

I felt like I had just heard an absurd story.

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

I shook my head vigorously at Mira, who met my gaze with indifference.

“Sigh… I’m too lazy to explain it all, so I’ll say it quickly. Why did the King send reinforcements to the rear?”

“Well…”

“As expected, you need to be hit by Iron Bat, just like the Professor.”

“That’s too hars.h.!.+”

There are certain things you shouldn’t say, you know. I looked at Mira, who had gone beyond insults to curses, with a resentful gaze.

“You need a lesson in what’s normal. Listen carefully. The reason the King withdrew troops is simple. He’s falling behind.”

“Falling behind?”

“Yeah. He’s falling behind in every aspect right now, so he’s trying to divert attention elsewhere and buy time for an opportunity.”

Mira grumbled as if recalling a lesson from the Professor’s cla.s.s.

“Turning crises into opportunities. ‘No matter how difficult the situation, as long as there’s a possibility of turning it around and people who can make it successful, that’s why the word ‘reversal’ exists in the dictionary,’ Professor used to say.”

“Oh…”

It seemed like one of the things I learned in Howling.

Additionally…

“Sending a small force to attack the rear is an example of that. But it’s not about succeeding in turning the tables…”

“If you succeed, it’s fifty-fifty. Even if you succeed…”

“It doesn’t mean the crisis is over.”

Mira nodded at my words.

“Yeah. They used their best tactics to overcome the crisis. But that doesn’t mean the crisis is over. In fact, it’s become even more dangerous.”

“True.”

The overall picture that hadn’t been clear before was starting to form in my mind.

“The evil spirit’s army that invaded the rear isn’t that numerous. They’re spreading across each Kingdom, not gathering in one place.”

“Right. But that’s considering the scale of each Kingdom.”

“When you look at the entire continent, it’s a significant number.”

The current active evil spirit’s army is in dozens of Kingdoms. And there are over ten Kingdoms where they’ve failed.

a.s.suming there were a hundred evil spirit forces in one Kingdom, that would mean over a thousand evil spirit forces in ten Kingdoms.

“The Kingdoms with fewer evil spirit forces have hundreds of them. The Kingdom with the most has thousands.”

And if you add them all up…

“It means there are more than ten thousand forces held in the rear, and that means the King’s forces have seriously weakened.”

Indeed, Commander. Thinking about all this by yourself…

“Professor used to say that we should learn from the enemy’s successful methods. The King’s methods, we should use them too.”

Since the evil spirit’s army attacked the rear, the King would think we’ll send reinforcements to the rear. They’ve divided non-existent forces into the rear, so the logic goes that they’ve sent a large number of forces to the rear.

So, “Tell the rear to fight, and let’s move to the sky and attack the King!”

The sky… the sky…

“Easy to say, but is moving to the sky not difficult?”

“Hehehe!”

Mira, who smiled for a moment, took out a small metal badge from her pocket.

“What’s that now?”

“It’s an Imperial Mage Pa.s.s! It allows you to always have access to the highest level of mages on the continent!”

Looking at Mira boasting about receiving it to capture the Professor for the Princess, I couldn’t help but sigh.

Professor, it feels like I made a mistake by making this person an enemy.

This person is the scariest, no, the scariest girl!

“I’m not that scary, you know?”

“I got gooseb.u.mps from how scary you were!”

Professor, did I make a mistake?