Chapter 75 – Forest of Black Trees (1)

Count Levi’s office.

The Count and Henry sat facing each other, with a cup of warm tea placed in front of each of them.

It was the Count who broke the ice.

“So, what did you want to talk about?”

“I will start with my assumption.”

“An assumption? Like where the bandits’ base is, or something like that?”

“No. It is a more fundamental assumption.”

“Fundamental.”

Taking a sip of tea, Count Levi smiled as if in anticipation.

“I will listen with an open mind.”

“I think there is an enemy within.”

“You have my interest. The evidence?”

“The fact that the soldiers of this land have not achieved any results so far.”

“Plausible. So, they knew in advance and fled? Where the territorial soldiers would head?”

“Yes.”

“I am a bit skeptical about that part. If they had, my soldiers would not even have been able to see the shadows of the bandits. It was too clumsy to say they knew in advance.”

“It was probably just close enough to be frustrating.”

“Just close enough to be frustrating?”

“I mean to say, it felt close enough that if they were knights instead of soldiers, they would have been able to catch at least one of them.”

“Hmm.”

The Count pursed his lips. As he quietly nodded and thought about it, Henry’s words were right.

“This might be an impolite question, but…”

“It is fine. Ask.”

“Is the Order… ah, is the Order of Knights guarding something?”

“I do not think that is the question you were going to ask. Sorry if I assumed too much, but the size of the Order of Knights is ten in total. It is embarrassing to even call it an Order.”

“…”

“As for their level, the Commander is 2-star, and the rest are 1-star knights. It seems I guessed right, didn’t I?”

“…Yes.”

Count Levi was a man whose wits were far too quick.

Also, as Henry had previously told the viewers, he was a person who pursued practical benefits over honor.

The Count shrugged as if it did not matter.

“As long as you solve the problem, whatever you do is not rude. Rather, you are doing me a favor.”

“It is only natural that I do it.”

“I am talking about what I feel, not what you feel. Keep asking. Ah, you asked what the knights are guarding, right?”

“Yes.”

“It is simple. They guard this castle. Everything of value is here. Deeds of mine ownership, a considerable amount of gold coins, artifacts, or… you can guess, right?”

“Yes.”

“Just as you said, I was actually in conflict. Should I send the knights? Then wouldn’t we be able to catch a couple of bandits? One wouldn’t be enough, right? But to send the entire Order of Knights…”

“The security of this place would weaken.”

“Precisely. That is why I had no expectations of you. It is not something that can be solved with a single knight. But as I said earlier…”

The Count took on an intrigued look.

“If you have that kind of ability, then it is a different story.”

A slightly excited voice flowed out.

The reason they had missed the bandits so far was that they would vanish from sight at some point during the pursuit.

The Count’s guards had to feel as if they were facing elves who were said to be the masters of the forest.

It was to the point where there was even a soldier asking if they had seen a hallucination.

“Calling it an ability is excessive. It is just…”

“Just because it is not recognized does not mean it disappears. At any rate, our topic of conversation is twofold. The uncertain enemy within and the definitely existing enemy outside.”

Having spoken that far, the Count asked with a gaze that seemed to promise anything,

“Well, which problem should we solve first?”

***

“He is very serious. Thanks to that, the situation has smoothed out easily. Indeed, since it is his own territory, it is natural for him to be in a hurry, but frankly, it is surprising.”

Immediately after the conversation with the Count,

Henry spoke as he returned to the training ground.

Count Levi was a truly unique human.

For a noble, he had no qualms about lowering himself, and he was the first to step forward and answer even potentially unpleasant questions.

Of course, it was a good thing for Henry.

Because it made it easier to perform the mission.

How many clients would be so cooperative?

“You were gathered here.”

At that moment, Henry spotted the people gathered in front of the command post.

They were the officers, including Guard Captain Mutai.

Although they seemed slightly surprised by Henry’s appearance, they did not display an attitude of trying to hide anything.

“Ah, you are here.”

“Fortunately, the conversation ended quickly. The Lord has many worries. As with the bandits, I also relayed to the Lord what I told you earlier, Captain.”

“Well…”

Mutai, who was about to speak, hesitated.

There were too many people around to use the term “enemy within.”

“That is correct. He agreed.”

Henry nodded in affirmation, swept his gaze across the officers, and spoke.

“However, the Lord is the Lord, and you are you. If I could have received your help with a single command, this process would not have existed.”

“Actually, regarding that matter…”

“Yes, Captain Mutai.”

“We have just finished our own meeting. Everyone, including myself, has decided to follow you. That is, with all our hearts, just as you said.”

“Thank you.”

“Honestly, I did not expect a person like you to come… but at any rate, it is a good thing. All sorts of worries have vanished, after all.”

Speaking awkwardly, Mutai added,

“As you said, the deadline is five days. We will follow commands even after that, but for at least five days, we will execute instructions with all our heart and soul. All of us.”

“That is enough.”

“Even if it is not enough, if we feel it is worth it…”

“No, five days is enough.”

“If so, well.”

“Instead, we must move quickly. To finish the job within the deadline, that is.”

“If necessary, right now is fine. The soldiers happen to have rested enough, and we also ended up this way unintentionally.”

“Great. Then let’s straighten out just one thing first.”

Henry held up his index finger.

The guard leadership, including Mutai, focused on Henry.

“As of this moment, all command authority has transferred to me. Is that correct?”

“That is correct.”

“I will temporarily assume the role of captain. Captain Mutai, please perform the duties of the vice-captain for five days.”

“…Understood.”

“For five days starting from now.”

At the sudden turn of events, the officers had somewhat flustered faces.

Regardless of that,

Henry pushed the situation forward as planned.

“I will not use honorifics with you. I will think, speak, and act as the captain of the guard. Of course, you must also do the same. Do you all agree?”

“…We will do so.”

Mutai answered awkwardly, and the officers also nodded in a slipshod manner.

From now on was the real start.

“Good. Rayleigh?”

“…Yes.”

“Organize and bring the entry and exit records for the past week. Right away.”

“Yes, sir.”

Rayleigh, who was the vice-captain until just a moment ago, ran off somewhere.

Honestly, he had a thought in his heart questioning if this was right, but the situation was what it was.

Henry looked at the officer next to him. He had long since memorized the names of the officers here.

“Hummel.”

“Yes.”

“I will give you one hundred soldiers. Patrol the outskirts of the territory and check for any abnormal entryways. I will send Rayleigh to you once he returns.”

“…By abnormal entryways, you mean…”

“All pathways that people can pass through, excluding the gates.”

“I will depart.”

The second officer ran out.

The remaining number was nine, including Mutai.

“The rest will inspect the interior of the territory. First, Mitra, Kane.”

“Yes.”

“You two, starting from the central square… no. A map would be better. Mutai.”

“…I will bring it.”

Mutai was no exception.

He ran hastily to the command post and soon returned with a neatly organized map.

Henry drew two lines in a cross shape on the map.

The map was neatly divided into four zones.

“Mitra and Kane will cover the northeast. Walter and Stuart will take the southeast, and Evan and Ascon will take the southwest. Shawn and Porter will cover the last remaining zone. Take fifty soldiers each.”

“Yes. Which parts should we inspect?”

“I assume you know the faces of the residents. Is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Find any cases where there is a face you see for the first time, or where someone’s behavior has changed. You do not need to bring them in. Just record it.”

“Yes.”

The eight officers ran off simultaneously. It was in the direction of the soldiers’ quarters.

Now, only Mutai remained.

Although he still had an awkward air, his face was not displeased.

Doubt was simply written all over his face, wondering if doing it this way was correct.

“Mutai.”

“Yes.”

“How many soldiers are left?”

“Seven.”

“We will head outside the territory with the seven soldiers.”

“…I will have them prepare.”

“Before that, I want to check your records. Are they in the command post?”

“If you mean the records of pursuing the bandits, they are on my desk. I will prepare them right away.”

Mutai took the lead and entered the command post.

He pulled out various materials from the drawers and spread them on a wide table so they would be easy to check.

“Do you need anything else?”

“No, this is enough. Have the soldiers ready.”

“…Understood.”

Mutai left the command post.

*Click.*

The door closed, and a sigh from Mutai could be heard from beyond it.

“His mind seems quite complicated.”

Henry spoke with a smirk.

In fact, it was natural.

It was far too radical to be a change that occurred in just a single day.

[But considering that, they listen pretty well lol]

[Actually, we have too much justification on our side]

[What is Sir Knight trying to do now?]

“I must catch the bandits. Rather than catching them, I will find them. They know our situation, but we do not know theirs. First, I need to grasp how things are running. And more than that…”

Henry grinned.

“Fortunately, I managed to ‘organize’ the guard in a day and get moving. This is a very encouraging situation. As long as I handle the situations that unfold after this well… Oops.”

“I will definitely catch them. Within five days.”

Immediately after the mission rushed in,

Henry checked the clock first.

Lunchtime had already long passed, and a little later, it would be a time zone that could be called early evening.

“…The situation has become more urgent.”

Tomorrow would be one thing, but to find the base within today, only seven hours remained.

Right away,

“I will concentrate for a bit.”

Henry practically buried his nose in the materials Mutai had prepared.

***

The Levi Earldom was located in the Heritz region, in the eastern part of the kingdom.

It was a vast plain area.

Although it had the advantage of being easy to farm, it also had the disadvantage of being difficult to defend against enemies due to its geographical characteristics.

Thanks to this, the lords of the Heritz region tended to put considerable effort into the boundary defense of their territories.

Count Levi, in particular, was exceptionally severe in that regard.

The reason was simple.

“To think there is such a forest in Heritz.”

It was because of the ‘Forest of Black Trees’ located near the territory.

Heritz was certainly a plain, but that did not mean its entire area was merely vast.

A forest of considerable scale was situated near the Levi Earldom.

Thick-leafed trees were densely packed, and bushes located everywhere tied up the feet of intruders.

“We call this place a swamp. Because the further you go in, the more your sense of direction gets strange, and even if you spot an enemy, you have to trudge through.”

“It seems so.”

Henry nodded at Mutai’s words.

From the moment he arrived here,

because the constantly shimmering flow of mana was visible to Henry’s eyes.

“Since it is such a place, they had no choice but to keep missing them.”

BJ Swordmaster