“Why is that? These items will be useful to you in the fighting to come, will it not? After all, you are a warrior-type, and you lack mana, so you might not even be able to use that necklace’s ability. Why don’t you take it and give it a try?”
Neia confessed her uneasiness in response to the Sorcerer King’s question. The Sorcerer King heard her words and simply smiled.
“How about this? Go onto the battlefield with the determination to bring these items back to me, no matter the cost.”
Neia had been resolved to do just that all along, but resolve alone could not break through her uneasiness. After hearing her answer, the Sorcerer King waved his hand in a magnanimous fashion.
“Oh, just take them. I have spells that can locate magic items. I can find them even if they’re lost.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, it is… all right, no need to stand on ceremony. Make use of them.”
If the Sorcerer King could make facial expressions, he would have probably been smiling ― those thoughts ran through Neia’s mind as she heard his kind words.
Now that he had offered them with such sincerity, rejecting them would be an act of rudeness. The notion of accepting his goodwill warred with the desire to apologize for incurring a loss to the Sorcerous Kingdom. Those thoughts swirled in Neia’s mind―
“Well? Can you not make me a promise? A promise to return them all to me afterwards?”
“!”
Come back alive. That was the meaning behind those words, and they moistened the corners of her eyes with tears. Only her parents had ever treated her with such kindness before.
The Sorcerous Kingdom is blessed to have such a merciful sovereign. As Neia thought that, she bit her lip and lowered her head.
“Thank you very much! I swear I will return them!”
“…Hm.”
She lifted her head, and wiped away the tears
She could not put the armor on here after all. However, putting on the gauntlets, necklace, and circlet should not be an issue. She began by fastening the necklace around her neck.
In the moment that she put it on, she immediately understood the abilities of the magic item and how to use them. It was as though the item was a part of her, and making use of it was as natural and effortless as using her own limbs
Next was the circlet. However, she did not feel anything special when she put it on. Still, according to the previous explanation, she would probably understand when the time came.
The last item was the gauntlets.
Unlike the others, she could clearly feel the difference.
Power coursed through her.
It felt very much like the time she had strengthening magic cast upon her. Her muscles felt like they had suddenly doubled and her movements were both swifter and more precise. In addition, she could make out tiny details, and even her cardiovascular fitness had improved. She felt full of stamina.
It was as though every aspect of her physical abilities had improved.
“This is amazing…”
Strength gained through training accumulated slowly, so it was hard to perceive. However, she could clearly feel the intense augmentation of her physical capabilities. More surprising was the fact that she did not feel any awkwardness in controlling her body given the differences between her previous and present self.
“Magic really is amazing…”
The Sorcerer King shrugged as he heard Neia react in awe.
“That’s true. In fact, I’ve been quite surprised by utility spells myself.”
“By that, do you mean…?”
“Spells which can create sugar and pepper and ice. Then there are spells which can even create ores, though they’re not very mana-efficient. Some cities also depend on utility spells to supplement their water supply… It would seem utility spells are closely linked to the development of this world’s culture.”
“Is… that so?”
Why would a great magic caster like the Sorcerer King be surprised by such trivial spells? Still, it must make sense, given that the Sorcerer King had said it. And indeed, utility spells had come to be of great use in many places; daily life might not have been possible without such magic.
“Also, there are those sewers which use slimes… or rather, coexist with them… ah, I’m straying from the point. Miss Baraja, pay me no heed and return to your work.”
In truth, there was no task more important than keeping the Sorcerer King company. However, it was also true that they lacked manpower, and Neia had a surprising number of things to do, While said tasks were largely related to standing guard, which anyone could do, they were still very important.
“Thank you very much, Your Majesty. I promise that I will return alive.”
“Ah, if things get really bad, then flee to the east. In all likelihood, that’s the only place where you might have a chance to survive.”
Neia picked up Buser’s armor and bowed before leaving the room.
Inside the operations room, Remedios Custodio and three paladins studied a force distribution chart.
Unlike how she would make people sigh in exasperation most of the time, her mind was nimble and perceptive when it came to warfare. While her younger sister would say, “You’ve got a great body there, all you need now is to study a little more,” she could not have gained her present fighting skill if she had heeded that advice.
That was because she was different from her sister, who had been blessed with three gifts ― wisdom, talent, and beauty.
Our fighting strength is 10,000. Theirs is estimated at 40,000. Our win conditions are to hold on until reinforcements from the south arrive, or the enemy retreats… we might actually be able to do it if there were ten of me around…
If the members of the Nine Colors who had been chosen for their fighting strength were present, they might have been able to put up a good fight, but the fact remained that the present situation was incredibly grim.
If we want to buy time, we need to counterattack the enemy hard during their first offensive. That’ll put the enemy on their guard and give us the time we need. After all, the enemy doesn’t know what forces we possess, right?
She had also seriously considered the proposal of launching a first strike.
They could gather their forces at the east gate and crush the enemy there in one mighty blow before wheeling around to head for the west gate.
However, she had quickly reached a conclusion ― all would be lost if they failed. It was very likely that the west gate would be lost to the enemy’s main force before they defeated the small detachment positioned at the east gate, and thus the city would fall.
And of course, there was the disparity between their forces. They had to compensate for that gap if they wanted to win.
But that’s impossible.
Remedios wrinkled her brow and looked at the tokens placed on the map.
She hoped for a flash of inspiration to descend from on high. However, no such thing happened.
“Do you lot have any ideas?”
“Yes. Personally speaking―”
She listened to the paladin’s proposal, shot it down, then asked for more ideas, and the process repeated until none of them could come up with anything. Just then, a knock rang through the weighty silence of the room.
“Captain, you’re here.”
The person who entered was the vice-captain ― Gustav Montagnes. It felt like she had been saved by the bell. It would seem the other paladins in the room also felt that way, as a faint glimmer of hope appeared on their crestfallen faces.
“Ahh, you came just in time. I wanted to ask if you had any ideas.”
Remedios gestured to the map sprawled across the table with her chin. It would seem Gustav had gotten her meaning, because he nodded.