Chapter 262
The sound of sickness continues to the extent that I don\'t know if this is a conference hall or a general ward.
You deserve to lose your confidence.
In fact, to be honest, there is only one common-sense conclusion they will say.
‘I can\'t! Let\'s splash!\'
No matter how you catch the dragon, it\'s best to just bounce.
However, it is not possible to come up with a willingness to retreat.
Even in a crisis situation, face is a waste.
In addition, if the army is defeated here, the face of the kingdom of Ernesia is also meaningless.
But life is more important than face.
In fact, if this report reaches Big Brother, he will make the decision to retreat immediately.
His personality could be enough.
‘I\'m going to aim for that and show off the dragon.\'
Anyway, that bitch called the saint really hates me until the very end.
Anyway, the important thing now is to do something about this gloomy atmosphere.
If you don\'t recover the morale that fell because of one dragon, you won\'t win a fight you can win.
If the army under my command is humiliated because of a lowly mutant animal, I lose my face as a professional in my previous life.
“Arel-nim....
The Marquis of Henilton is trying to say something to me, as if reluctantly.
“The Marquess of Hannilton. Isn\'t that what you\'re trying to say? There is no chance of winning against the dragon, so we have to step back for now. do you want to say that huh?”
“...That doesn\'t mean anything like that.”
The Marquis of Henilton was breaking out in a cold sweat and was restless.
It must have been a hit.
Instead of being unable to speak properly, it was the Marquis of Guimment who was sitting across from him who conveyed his opinion.
“How can we not understand the feelings of anger at the evil deeds of Saint Arel?”
“Keep talking.”
“Yes, we also do not want to take it with a feeling of vomiting blood. But isn\'t there anything we, as humans, can do against dragons?”
What can we do against dragons?
Does it mean go home and eat some popcorn because there\'s nothing you can do?
There\'s nothing I can\'t understand.
“Even if we withdraw now, our army is not defeated. All we have to do is to come up with countermeasures for the future and raise the military again.”
In the world, ‘Leave and see! You bastards!\' It bounces while saying that.
His claim is not wrong.
Originally, it would be reasonable to step down at this point and then come up with countermeasures.
“…Hmm. In other words, what do you want to say? You can\'t come up with a solution right now, so you have to step down.”
Other aristocrats can\'t join in on the outside, but looking at his gaze, they seem to agree with his opinion.
Heck, it\'s even weirder when someone wants to fight a dragon.
“...isn\'t it possible to defeat the dragon?”
Only Kania noona licked her lips, as if regretting it.
I understand that she is also reckless, so I don\'t blame the other nobles.
“That makes sense.”
I too agreed.
“Even if we forcefully maintain the front line like this, there is no guarantee that even the soldiers will follow suit, let alone the knights.”
There is certainly a possibility that deserters will come out or will not act properly according to command.
If you get counterattacked in that state, you will lose big.
Will you fall into this gap or will you continue to fight here?
You have to make a choice.
“Summarize your argument. In other words, since there is no countermeasure right now, fighting the dragon is reckless, right?”
Instead of answering, affirm with a glance.
Ohh~ that\'s right.
I smile confidently.
“Then, if there is a countermeasure, can I take it to mean that it is worth fighting for?”
“?...ancient?”
Someone couldn\'t stand it and let out a hoarse sound from their throat.
Others barely made a sound, but their eyes were wide open like those of some bird.
“Oh Arell-sama, what are you saying right now…?”
“I asked if you could fight if you had a plan and means to catch the dragon?”
When I asked again, everyone was perplexed and broke into a cold sweat.
right?
There is no solution right now, so we have to step back.
Then, on the contrary, if there is a countermeasure, doesn\'t it mean that you don\'t have to step down?
“Arel! Can you catch that dragon?”
Kania noona\'s eyes lit up as if she had been waiting for those words.
For her, fighting was much more welcome than retreating.
Wouldn\'t it be great if everyone was as easy to understand as she was?
“Yes, with the current troops and equipment, it will be possible. Rather, now is the right time for that dragon to be stuck in the fortress. So I want to catch it now.”
“Oh Arell! Reckless though!”
One of the nobles trembled in contemplation.
“Anyway, it\'s a dragon.”
“Yes, it is a dragon. But what is it?”
I\'m at a loss for words on my question.
I got up from my seat and focused everyone\'s eyes on me.
“Even a dragon is a creature. It is not an absolute being. They are just stronger than other creatures. There\'s nothing you can\'t catch.”
“One… it may involve a considerable amount of sacrifice.”
“don\'t worry. The sacrifice will not be great.”
I confidently declared.
If I judged that we can only capture it after losing all of our troops, then I would just call back the troops and throw them away.
And... I must have chosen to secretly dispose of the dragon.
But it is possible for those who are here.
I believe so.
believe.
I believe that Ernesia-kun will do it.
You guys are the ones who can do it.
Be confident.
“It’s not just baseless arrogance.
There are reasons and there are ways to fight.”
“…What do you mean?”
“If you move according to my command, you can catch the dragon.”
Yes, it is difficult for humans to defeat dragons.
uh....? But then am I not human?
It is difficult for an ordinary human or creature to defeat a dragon alone.
So what if ten humans come together?
It\'s hard too.
A hundred people... a thousand people... and there are hundreds of thousands of humans here.
Is it still impossible?
I see it\'s possible
Think about it.
If hundreds of thousands of ants cling to each other, would they catch enough of a human?
It is not an unfounded belief.
This is an answer based on experience and calculations.
But those who don\'t know that will just be confused .
Therefore, persuasion is needed to boost their fighting spirit.
“I want to ask you guys. Do you guys really want to step down?”
Hesitation is visible on the faces of the others.
“Let’s step back. Then what will happen next? Do you think the saintess will keep that dragon quiet? Right after that, it could run amok in the kingdom of Ernesia. Are you going to ask us to retreat then?”
“???? that is that??????
The complexion is not good, probably imagining the scene.
“However, with the exception of that fort, no major damage will occur even if a battle takes place here. That\'s why we have to deal with that dragon here.”
“Haha... the human army is catching the dragon.”
“Is it possible.”
I asserted
“Looking at the records, it is said that His Majesty the first King captured the Red Dragon with 5,000 soldiers.”
“...Isn\'t that just a legend?”
“Maybe.”
I shrugged.
“But I am looking at what is possible.
20,000 yes. If 20,000 soldiers and Ernesia\'s competent knights play an active part, I think it\'s worth dealing with.”
When I made this confident assertion, the faces of the nobles were stained with bewilderment.
Some still think it\'s nonsense, and some say it that way.
It\'s good, I\'m slowly fishing.
“Or you... Are your knights less capable than your ancestors? Do descendants consider what was possible for ancestors impossible? Then pack up and go right away.”
It is impossible for us, who have greatly improved our technology and skills?
it\'s funny
If anyone truly thinks so, I will personally send them home.
“...I say that, but I can\'t force it. The final decision will reflect the wishes of all of you.”
I slumped back into the chair.
Then he leisurely crossed his arms and gave them a reprieve to think.
there\'s so much silence
“Fighting against a dragon... I\'m sure people who aren\'t here will laugh at how reckless they hear.”
“But Arel-nim\'s words also have some truth. If you step back like this, the next battle with the dragon will take place within the kingdom.”
“I see… you can’t even imagine the damage back then.”
“That is troublesome. Seongguk and my territory are also close... Then I\'m sure it won\'t be safe.”
After thinking about it, everyone began to draw conclusions one by one.
He understood that he couldn\'t back down.
....Now, to what extent are your thoughts organized?
I cross my arms and ask them for their final decision.
“Let’s decide…. However, we can never win without opposition. So, I won\'t make the decision to attack the dragon here unless everyone agrees.”
If even one person opposes, I will withdraw as it is.
He spoke clearly so that everyone could hear.
“Dragon is hunted here. Whoever agrees, raise your hand.”
I calmly said that and waited for their decision.
For several seconds, no one made a decision.
The first to raise her hand was, of course, Kania noona.
“I agree.”
She spoke calmly as if it was nothing.
Even though he swung his sword directly at the dragon, there was no sign of hesitation.
“If you don’t catch that right now, you will definitely regret it later.”
First of all, Kania noona agreed.
And after that, a nobleman raised his hand.
And that was the beginning.
“I agree as well.”
“Me too.”
“It is natural to fight.”
One after another, nobles raised their hands.
some sense of duty.
Some calculations for the safety of their estates.
Others are swept away by the atmosphere.
Everyone agrees with each other according to their own thoughts.
“Yes, it seems that everyone expressed their opinion.”
I nodded.
No one here has not raised their hand.
“good! It\'s a decision. We hunt dragons here.”
I slammed the table with both hands.
Although there is no additional effect of smashing the table like my father did.
Well, the sound rang just fine.
“Let\'s show it to the Holy Kingdom! It shows that nothing more than a dragon can overcome the wrath of Ernesia Kingdom!”
?
*
The Kingdom of Ernesia will hunt dragons.
This decision, finally made at the meeting, was immediately spread to the knights under each lord and to the soldiers below them in turn.
The knights generally follow the decisions of their lords obediently.
In the first place, the lords say they will jump into danger with a cause, but they can\'t oppose it.
They just follow the one who offered the sword.
On the other hand, the soldiers were greatly agitated.
“Dragon...
” “...There\'s no way that\'s possible, right?”
“Are the nobles insane!?”
To them, a dragon is just an unknown being.
On top of that, after hearing the story of encountering the dragon directly from the soldiers of the raid, the fear grew even more.
However, I couldn\'t openly show that kind of atmosphere.
Because it is a battlefield, military law is strictly applied, and anyone who recklessly makes a statement that destroys morale will be punished immediately.
The soldiers talked among themselves, avoiding the notice of their superiors.
“Maybe I should run away…?”
One of the soldiers said in a very low voice.
Another soldier hurriedly looked around at the disturbing story and scolded him.
“…Stupid! Desertion is immediately punishable by death.”
The other soldiers who heard the words also hurriedly looked to see if anyone had heard otherwise, and sighed.
“But to fight against a dragon...isn\'t it the same as telling me to die?”
I couldn\'t respond.
I don\'t know what the nobles are thinking, but to mere soldiers like themselves, it\'s just a call to die.
There is no one who sincerely thinks of deserting yet, but there is no choice but to remain anxious.