NOVEL NEXT Chapter 7: Dreaming of a Peaceful Life! / I'll Kill You, Alvatros!!!!!
【Morning, in the Bedroom of the Lord’s Mansion】
“Please have mercy! Please have mercy! Please have mercy! Please have mercy!♡♡♡”
“Ahh… (waaaaah!)”
Yes, it’s me.
Today, I’m being relentlessly attacked by the silver-haired L-cup war criminal maid, Nina.
She said she’d become my blanket, but damn it, what kind of lewd blanket is this?! I want a refund!
She should learn from the chaste and lovely medic, Clarissa…! (※Clarissa: A nurse who was everyone’s idol on the western counteroffensive front. She was blown to bits by a giant boulder magic cannon that came flying from the battlefield.)
“Hmm… We must further strengthen the walls to prepare for the enemy’s magic today.”
“Ahahahahahahahahahahah! My womb’s defenses have been breached!♡♡♡”
“We also need to prepare defense weapons. Magic soldiers are powerful, but only about one in five hundred. Therefore, we shouldn’t rely too much on magic soldiers; rather, by strengthening our regular soldiers, we can create a strong army.”
“Higuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu, a strong baby, is being madeeeeeee!♡♡♡”
…Nina, I’m happy that you like me, a celibate guy, but I’m scared you might set off a refugee fire if I disappoint you even a little…
“Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, the great Captain Alvatros, shining star of the Black Wing Mountain in the sky!♡♡♡”
And could you please do something about spraying breast milk all over the room…?
◆ ◇ ◆
【At the Outskirts of Alvatros Territory】
“Now, my people. I told you to gather more stone without rushing too much…”
“We did our besttttt!”
…In front of me was a mountain of stones, even more than yesterday, gathered by all 3000 citizens.
You guys overdid it! You’re all worn out! Sweaty and muddy, and some of you have crushed limbs from accidents during transport!
“Haah, you all worked too hard. ――Applied Art Formula ‘Contamination Removal,’ ‘Object Repair.'”
Like the other day, I cleaned the citizens and healed their wounds.
“Listen, even though I can heal with the ‘Creation Art Formula,’ don’t take your health for granted. Everyone, reflect on this.”
“We will commit suicide as repentance!”
Don’t commit suicide in repentance!
“…Just be careful, that’s enough. Anyway, good job.”
I’m a stoic guy, but I try to smile a little at their effort, and everyone shouts, “Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, the great Captain Alvatros, shining star of the Black Wing Mountain in the sky!♡♡♡” and rolls their eyes back.
You guys are scary, what’s with you!?
“…Well, okay. First, let’s make the ‘Star-Shaped Defense Wall’ perfect.”
It’s the hardest shape, where you can pincer the enemy from each point, used in the Goryokaku.
I quickly snap my fingers at the mountain of stones,
“Activate ‘Creation Art Formula.'”
Instantly, the mass of stones changes shape like clay, adhering to and integrating with the wall I built the other day.
In no time, the stone wall surrounding the city becomes higher and thicker, strong enough that even magic soldier attacks wouldn’t easily break it.
“Wow, as expected of our Captain! With this wall built by our Captain, we’re invincible!”
“I’ll lick the wall thinking of the Captain!”
“That’s a great idea!”
The citizens start licking the wall.
Stop it, stop it, that’s creepy!
“Don’t get carried away. Even if the wall is strong, we can’t conduct a siege with inadequate weapons.”
――In this world, weapons are mostly swords, spears, and bows.
Because there are “magicians” as weapons, the technology for weapons hasn’t developed much.
“For close combat, swords and spears are the best. For long-range, bows are good. However, sieges are mid-range battles. We need weapons that can hit enemies from a distance, like bows, but with the force of swords and spears.”
To survive in a world almost abandoned by the country, I decided to advance our armament technology using knowledge from my previous life.
“Nina, hand me that.”
“Yes.”
I take a bra from Nina.
…I then push it back into her cleavage.
“Eek!?♡”
“This is not it. I’m talking about the prototype I’ve made.”
“Yes, Captain!”
In a hurry, Nina spreads a large bag open.
Inside, there was a crossbow, an advanced form of a bow and arrow.
“Captain, that is…?”
“This is a ‘crossbow.’ Although its maximum range is inferior to a bow, its power surpasses that of a bow and arrow by several times.”
It was a weapon banned in my previous world due to its excessive lethality.
Unlike the original crossbows, which were difficult to reload, this is a semi-mechanical cranequin-style compound crossbow with pulleys and gears for easy string winding. On top of the main body is an arrow magazine, and a lever set under the grip allows simultaneous string pulling and reloading. This ensures a firing rate that could rival even clumsy archers.
“The string is also made using ‘Creation Art Formula,’ creating metal fiber strings that are difficult to produce with modern processing techniques. They won’t easily snap.”
This metal string should have much more power than the commonly used hemp or organic strings from animal tendons.
With this, we can tear apart knights in full plate armor. Even in plain battles, we can defeat sworders and spear-wielders from a distance before they can approach.
“Wow, the Captain also has the technology for military equipment development…!?”
“But that crossbow seems to use a lot of iron…!”
“Is the material needed!? Then we’ll gather more!”
I calm down the citizens who are about to rush out again. You guys need to calm down a bit. If you work too hard, you’ll die of overwork.
“Calm down. Iron is challenging to come by, unlike the readily available stone. There are no iron mines nearby.”
“Then please turn our blood into iron!”
That’s not happening! What kind of lord would turn his people into weapons, you fools!
“Captain, they say breast milk originally comes from blood. Then maybe this bitch Nina’s milk can be turned into a weapon…”
“Nina, be quiet for about three days.”
“Mmmph!?”
Your ideas are completely out of the question.
However, I commend the effort to gather iron from sources other than mines.
“Iron isn’t only found in mines. If we’re determined, we can gather it like this―!”
I hit the ground hard.
Immediately, “iron sand” rises from the surrounding area.
“Separate and mix. Form as I will.”
Following my command, the iron sand is completely purified from impurities and gathers into a large iron core.
“Now, we can secure as much material as we need. ――People of Alvatros territory, I promise to provide you all with armor and weapons of the next generation, rivaling knights!”
“Uooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!” “Mmmph!”
I’ll work hard to be liked by all the nobles and royalty!
◆◇◆
【At an Abandoned Mansion in the Forest】
“The fearsome Alvatros… That man must be killed!”
On this day, Jean-Jacques von Shurehito, the Margrave, was having a meeting in a secret mansion with a certain individual.
It was,
“The ‘Urus Kingdom’s’ brave warrior, Margrave Zukakipp!”
“Uhm…”
A dog-eared, dark-skinned middle-aged man.
He was a Margrave from the kingdom with a confrontational relationship with the Empire.
“Sometimes, you imperial people have looked down on us, the people of Urus, calling us ‘beast-eared brutes’ since ancient times, haven’t you?”
“Uh, well, that’s a common sentiment, but…”
“Don’t worry. I, too, think of you earless ones who sell war heroes as beasts.”
“What!?”
Angered, Shurehito stands up.
But realizing that quarreling here would be pointless, he forces himself to calm down.
“Huff… We, the royal and noble classes, are never despicable. Defeating the ‘Hero Alvatros’ is justice.”
“Oh?”
Zukakipp, tilting his dog ears, listens as he continues.
“Without a doubt, he is a disruptive force in the nation. Everyone around him, even lowly commoners, falls extremely devoted to him. How can such talent belong to the likes of them…!”
For the rulers, there was no more terrifying existence.
Beauty, physique, voice, combat ability.
Everything about him was as if crafted by gods of beauty and war. Just his presence made people blindly follow him.
“The ignorant masses are being driven mad by him. This could be better. Already, they are lifting him, calling for him to be made a great noble or even royalty. If this continues, the country will fall into chaos!”
“I see, that’s the situation.”
Zukakipp nods and sighs.
“Then make him a great noble or royalty. He should be absorbed into a suitable house if he has outstanding blood.”
“Idiocy!”
Shurehito is infuriated.
“Listen! You lowly beastmen and other subhumans might not understand, but we pure humans are considered closest to the bloodline of the ‘Goddess of Creation, Sophia.’ Especially the royal family and derived nobility, with blood purer and nobler than commoners, pride themselves on maintaining this purity. Understand!?”
Shurehito, after his outburst, takes a deep breath and sits back down.
“Alright? That’s why Alvatros, a lowly conscript from a village, should never ascend to higher positions.”
“Enough, I got it. …As usual, your religious views as earless ones are infuriating. Mixing it with politics and calling us ‘subhumans’ arbitrarily. Die.”
“What!?”
“I’m saying your pretense of being orthodox humans is infuriating, you trash…!”
The two glare at each other.
After a few seconds, Zukakipp is the first to break the stare down.
“I dislike you all. Especially you, I find particularly distasteful. …But, our feelings about Alvatros being a nuisance are the same.”
“Oh…”
That was Zukakipp’s compromise as a person from the kingdom.
“That detestable man. He alone pushed back the ‘Western Front’ that was a major threat to the Empire. I loathe him so much, wishing for his death every morning and night.”
With anger lingering in his words, he continues.
“Nina, the Flame Witch.’ That woman is also unforgivable. After the collapse of the ‘Western Front,’ she massacred a guerrilla team disguised as refugees, planning a counterattack after Alvatros was transferred! Has she gone mad!?”
Therefore, Nina was detested like a venomous snake by the kingdom’s people.
She and Alvatros, now having territories near the border, had caused great unrest in the Urus Kingdom.
“Everyone urges me in silence. As a lord with territories close by, they want me to destroy Alvatros’ land. But it won’t be easy to conquer… I was shocked to see their outer wall suddenly completed yesterday.”
“Yes, I also wondered how that happened…”
Despite their animosity, both were astonished and terrified by Alvatros’ capabilities.
“Therefore, I’ve been observing… But, Jean-Jacques von Shurehito, it’s different if you also find that man a nuisance. You’ve incited me, so you’ll cooperate, right?”
“! Yes, of course, Lord Zukakipp! If you attack, not only will I not aid Alvatros, but I’ll also take the opportunity to assassinate him!”
“Ha, that sounds good.”
The two share a dark laugh.
Despite their contempt for each other, their hatred for Alvatros and desire for glory bind them.
“If we can eliminate that man, I could become a great hero of the Urus Kingdom. Even joining the royal family isn’t a dream…!”
“Yes. If I fulfill the royal command, I might even receive a princess. The next time we meet will be at the international royal conference.
“Heh, not a bad deal.”
Thus, the alliance to eliminate Alvatros is formed.
Their malicious intent crosses borders.
“Alvatros has about 3000 men. But 2000 are poor people I gave away; they won’t be much of a fighting force.”
“Ha, a despicable strategist! So those 2000 are just trash eating up food.”
“What’s the plan?”
“―A quick strike! I’ll gather my forces tonight, and we’ll attack at dawn. We won’t give that hero time to train troops or gather weapons and food…!”
…Thus, while Alvatros thinks of “striving for a peaceful life,” deadly intent bares its fangs.