***Arc 6 One Who Pierced Through, Chapter 136 Loyalty***
Aleha and Waltza were temporarily assigned to work with Dagra and the others as Black Flag Special Force training instructors.
If possible, they would like to use them as generals or corps commanders, but considering the trust of others and the reputation of the Kingdom, they cannot use them openly for the time being.
Selene and Kreschenta agreed that it was best to avoid troubles in the current situation where meetings with each country are scheduled to coincide with the unveiling.
The problem was the Christand’s corps commander who crossed swords with him.
It was necessary to talk to them about this, so they gathered at the Christand’s mansion for a face-to-face meeting but――
"Hahaha, it's the first time we've met like this... but I remember it well. Even though you’re young, you’re skilled, if I have the opportunity, I would like to cross blades with you again."
"Yes, by all means. I would also like to have the opportunity to rematch."
"The general also regarded you highly, I am sure he would be surprised to hear that Aleha Sarchenka is here like this."
Laughing happily was a large man whose face was made of muscles――Second Corps Commander Kolkis Agrand.
Next to him, smiling wickedly, was Eluga Faren, former Fourth Corps Commander and assistant to the Marshal.
While smiling at Krische, who sat next to him and continued to eat cookies endlessly, he turned his gaze to Selene, next to Aleha and Waltza, who were facing him.
"General Verreich won’t be particularly opposed to what Selene-sama and Krische-sama have decided. He's a refreshingly straightforward person in that area."
"Yes, I was a little relieved. I was wondering if you guys will be against it."
Putting aside the surroundings, if those who had been with the Christand and her father’s subordinate were against it then she thought she would need to think it over again.
Although Aleha has the potential to become an excellent general, if it becomes a source of discord, the problem that it would create would be greater.
The problem was that Krische didn't care too much about it.
Even if she was killing each other, she would smile and say hello toward the other party when the battle was over.
In a sense, it could be said to be a healthy and wholesome way of being, but it was much too healthy and wholesome for the people around her to keep up.
Relieved to see the two reactions to it――Selene finally felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
Leaving the talking to Selene with the aura of ‘it was no concern of mine’.
Krische, who had turned into a cookie cracker, finally opened her mouth.
"For the time being, both of you will be appointed as aides to the Black Flag Special Forces. Due to the increase in personnel, there will probably be a shortage of people who can command...Krische is thinking of entrusting the Fourth Corps if there’s a chance."
"That would be good. Command and operation skills――they have more than enough ability for it."
The First Corps would be led by Keith, former commander of the 3rd Battalion, to whom Krische had entrusted various things in the past.
The Second Corps will be Kolkis, same as before.
The Third Corps will be led by Bagil, former commander of the first battalion. Since in the first place Bagil had that much ability.
But the problem was the Fourth Corps, which needed to be reorganized.
Assistant Marshal――in some cases, Eluga, who travels around various places as Selene's hands and feet, also needed some war potential, and the former Fourth Corps officers and soldiers were reassigned together with him as they were.
Since the Christand Army led by Krische would move to support the central government in various areas, there would be no major problem with the absence of one corps, but she wanted there to be four corps eventually.
However, there was no one who was suitable for the job.
The fourth battalion commander, Varga, did not get along well with Krische, and he was assigned as Keith's second-in-command to assist him.
The second battalion commander, Fagran, seems to like his position as battalion commander and was now under Bagil’s command. In addition, he apparently did not like the idea of being in the same position, as corps commander as his former superiors in the wolf pack, Bagil and Granmeld.
The commander of the 5th Battalion, Gaines, was also excellent, but he declined because he was a hunter and had little tactical knowledge, so he refused to become the commander of the 4th Corps.
They could have been chosen from the Third Army Corps led by Terrius, but the most important people were transferred to Nozan in the east, and Felworth in the west, who urgently needed to recover their strength.
There were many excellent officers, but when it came to entrusting a corps commander, the only ones left were those with poor track records.
It was Aleha who appeared right at that moment.
Originally, he was of General rank――aside from the various circumstances, he was a person who she could give a stamp of approval in terms of ability, and as a corps commander, he was the most suitable.
She had planned to use him as a general in the future, of course, but it takes years and a proven track record to be a general, and he had been an enemy general, so he needed to gain the trust of those around him.
However, the situation was still very complicated, with the reorganization of the 4th Corps not yet in sight, and the royal court was still in turmoil.
For the time being, they would be working under Dagra as an assistant to Krische and as a trainer for Mia and the other members of the Black Flag Special Force.
"It is quite a bold move to put a former general of an enemy country in the position of corps commander but..."
Eluga looked at Aleha and Waltza.
The two of them slightly adjusted their posture in the face of the cold and guileful gaze.
Although he held the position of corps commander until the other day, his military career and success on the battlefield were glorious.
The soldiers sometimes showed as much strong respect for such experience as those in high rank.
Having fought as enemies many times, they know that Eluga Farren was a powerful person who was not lacking for his current position.
That attitude was natural.
"He was not lying when he said that he had learned his tactics from Christand and respected Bogan as an opponent to be surpassed. I have always sensed that he had an extraordinary obsession with the tactics he used."
Eluga recalled.
"Even if I see them like this, they have clear eyes, I feel that these two men are worthy of trust."
"Is that so? Ehehe, Krische thought it would probably be okay, but if Skeleton says that, then Krische can relax."
Krische looked up at Eluga with a smile, and he gave back a wicked smile and stroked her head.
He was puzzled by the naming Skeleton, but when he realized that he seemed to have survived for the time being, Aleha bowed his head in relief and thanked him.
"If it's thanks then just say it to Krische-sama...just one thing."
"...what is it?"
"Krische-sama is more talented than anyone else and is an excellent warrior. And she is also a kinder and purer person than anyone else. …Will you pledge your loyalty here and now to never betray that trust, no matter what happens in the future? "
Eluga deepened his smile at Aleha, who looked a little surprised.
"I plan to live a long life for Krische-sama, but I am also old. I want to be able to face my final days with peace of mind."
As if convinced by those words, Aleha nodded with a serious face.
He then stood up, walked over to Krische’s side, kneeled down, and put his hand on his own chest.
"...Without forgetting this favor, I will dedicate this sword for the rest of my own life――as the sole warrior, I swear on this body, this name of Aleha."
"Uhhh...?"
Krische looked at Eluga as if troubled.
Eluga laughed and told her.
"I take thy oath to my heart, is the formula for such cases."
"Haa...I take thy oath to my heart."
When Krische said that, Aleha said thank you and looked up.
"It's a bit old-fashioned. It's good to remember it now, in case something like this happens."
"Hmm... there is a lot to it huh. There's not much about it in the books, and Krische is not very... Ah, you can sit down?"
"Yes!"
Krische said and then looked at Bery, who was standing next to her with good posture, as if she remembered something.
Berry tilted her head, her cheeks flushed slightly at the mention of the old etiquette, and held up a finger in front of her mouth.
‘It's a secret," her mouth moved silently, and Cliché smiled somewhat happily.
Selene stared at the secret exchange with a sulking tone, exasperated.
The underground laboratory of the royal palace.
"The framework is complete, Krische-sama."
The Black Flag Special Force Craft Squad, led by wounded soldier Nagar, nodded at the workmanship of the completed doll and called out to Krische.
In front of Krische, transparent glass and small bottles filled with powder and mysterious liquids were lined up, and looking or holding up the magic crystal, not much involved in making the doll.
Krische nodded and stood up when she was called out, and looked at the table in the center of the room――the iron doll lying there. Elvena, who was by her side, also followed her master.
It's something like an iron skeletal specimen with its body and head replaced with a birdcage.
Unlike the previous version, which was chained together, it used spherical joints, and magic crystals were inserted inside the joints.
Its limbs were roughly the same as those of the human body, but its legs were made thick in particular to withstand its weight, and two thick springs were attached to the Achilles tendon.
Considering the weight of the body, it was thought that the greatest burden would be placed on the legs, and this was an attempt to relieve that burden.
Its feet were about twice the size of a human and slightly crooked, and it was already wearing big wooden shoes.
Its shape was quite awkward, it would distribute the load better.
"I scraped and adjusted the finer details, so there shouldn’t be any problems."
"Is that so? Krische will start."
Krische held up the necklace and let her magic power flow.
The magic crystal on the pendant repeatedly blinked irregularly, and the magic crystal in the birdcage on the head――the core also blinked in a slightly different way.
The heart emitted light in a chain reaction, and the magic crystal emitted blue light as if it were connected to the limbs from there.
Krische told the Nagar to stay back a little and continued.
"First, let's do some warm-up exercises."
Krische’s magic crystal flickered again, and the core reacted.
With a ‘gigi’ sound, the iron doll raised itself up and stretched out on the spot, bending back at the waist.
This was a common action for Serene.
As soon as it got off the platform, it twisted its waist, bent its waist back and forth, left and right, and began to bend and stretch――it repeated such stupid movements, but the appearance was far more eerie than funny.
Elvena backed up slightly and hid herself behind Krische’s back.
The others watched in amazement.
"... What a strange thing. What should be for this to be like this, I completely have no idea."
"The waves of magic power are sent to each other. Long wave emission and short-wave emission――just combine them to create a pattern and operate it. The mechanism is simple."
Krische made it flicker again on the pendant——the transmitter.
that moment,
"Huh...!?"
"Kyaa!?"
As if suddenly baring his fangs, the iron doll swings down its sword at Krische.
But it stopped just before the sword hit her, and the iron doll froze.
"The human body itself isn't difficult when it comes to movement. Muscles either contract or relax, and it's not difficult to move, is it? All you have to do is tell a specific part whether to stretch or contract the imaginary muscle, and the timing and strength."
"...Haa, I kind of understand but also not at the same time."
However, whether you can understand it or not is another thing.
Thinking about how vast that pattern would be, the only one who could grasp it was this girl in front of him.
Elvena, who was about to sit up, shook her head at Nagar’s gaze while clutching Krische’s shoulder. She, too, has little understanding of the pattern.
When the transmitter flickered, the iron doll straightened its posture and saluted, making a ‘jaran’ sound.
The sound was made by the chains that had been extended to hold the spherical joints in place.
Krische thought for a moment and clapped her hands.
"Let's make it a Jaragasha."
"... Um, Krische-sama... that's"
"Look, the chain is jingling (jarajara), and the sound of walking is *shan gashan*. It's a very easy to understand name."
Krische nodded and looked at Elvena.
"Elvena was also at a loss as to what to call it, so it’s just right, right?"
"Y-yeah... Jaragasha..."
Elvena was dumbfounded as she looked at the doll that was named dumbly with pity.
Krische, who seemed satisfied with her reaction, told Nagar.
"This is just the template model for the time being. From now on, it will be able to connect directly to the weapon without making the hand, so Krische thinks it will be a little easier."
"...? We won’t make the hands?"
"The number of parts will increase, and it's too complicated, so it's likely to break as soon as it's put out on the battlefield. The weapons will also be larger than those that ordinary soldiers can use... and durability will also be a problem. Krische had a different purpose this time, so Krische made it."
Nagar and the others tilted their heads, and Krische pointed to Nagar's left wrist and to the feet of the seated work crew.
Those were parts of the body that had been injured and lost on the battlefield.
"It's inconvenient to have no limbs, so if you don't have them, Krische thought it would be good to make them fit your body. You guys can use magic, so if we adjust the size of Jaragasha's arms and legs and use wood or something else, you can use them as temporary arms and legs, right? "
;
‘It might be hard until you get used to it though,’ Krische said as if it was nothing.
Nagar and the others looked at each other, speechless.
Krische tilted her head and looked at Elvena.
Elvena, who had heard about it beforehand, laughed and told her they were surprised.
"...Going that far, for us?"
"What such a thing. It's a private army that Krische maintains at her own expense, so it's only natural to try to improve efficiency. It's troublesome that Krische has to help with everything, even carrying luggage, and even if it's temporary, if you have hands and feet, you can work a little more, right? In the end, Krische'd like to leave all this troublesome work to you guys."
‘Otherwise, there's no point in hiring you guys’, said Krische, putting her hand on her waist.
Nagar and the others looked at each other again and nodded to each other.
They clicked their heels and saluted in unison, though their arms were on different sides.
Some of them were so moved that their eyes welled up.
"Thank you. ……This debt, let us all dedicate our life to Krische-sama."
"Acting like Bald Eagle... Krische'll kick you out when you become old and useless, so you don't have to devote your life to Krische. Please work as hard as you can when you can."
"Yes, of course. ……Nevertheless, we will serve Krische-sama with such feeling."
The one-armed man supporting the one-legged man patted him on the head saying ‘What are you crying about’
However, the man's eyes were moist, and when it was pointed out, the sound of laughter resounded.
Staring at such a spectacle, Elvena told Krische.
She whispered with a gentle smile.
"I am also proud to have been able to serve Krische-sama."
"... You’re all weird people huh."
"Krische-sama is the weirdest one you know."
She let out a lovely smile and gently stroked her small head.
Then there was a knock.
"Krische, it's me. May I come in?"
"Ah, Selene"
Krische approached the door and invited her inside.
Four people appeared.
The four of them were Marshal Selene Christand, Marshal Assistant Eluga Faren
And the Queen of the Kingdom, Kreschenta Alberan.
Everyone stiffened at the sight of the faces who opened the door, and clicked their heels again in a panic and straightened their posture.
"Now now, come in Your Majesty."
And then, a shadow danced out before anyone else.
Everyone except Krische and Elvena saluted at the House of Christand's, who was now the greatest noble in the Kingdom,――servant, the buttocks of Anne Gitern.
