That was why she was the Captain of the paladins, the highest ranked paladin of them all.
Remedios was the only one seeking her lofty definition of justice, and those who could not understand this were the pitiful ones.
Several paladins lowered their heads in shame. Perhaps they felt the same way.
If one considered the Sorcerer King’s justice of “killing one to save a thousand” to be a king’s justice, then Remedios’s justice of “one or a thousand, they are all the same” was an ideal — a shining form of justice.
Both sides were just. Neither was wrong. Even so—
Is there no justice without strength?
For instance, if Remedios were stronger — if she possessed a godlike power which Neia could not imagine, she could save the child, and save the inhabitants of the city. In that case, there would not have been any problems.
However, that was not the case.
She was stalled here because there was no way to carry on without sacrifice.
Carrying out justice requires strength. Ahhh, I want to become strong… that way, I can wipe away Jaldabaoth’s taint from this country...
“...Forgive me for interjecting while you are at a deadlock, but you will not reach a conclusion this way.”
That exceptionally cold voice blew away the building heat in the air.
“Your Majesty…”
“Captain Custodio. If this goes on, you will only serve to make the enemies know about the effectiveness of hostages. In my view, you will not be able to conquer this city without sacrificing anyone.”
“Certainly not. There ought to be a better way to do this. A way where nobody needs to be sacrificed and where nobody needs to be sad!”
In response to that voice, which sounded like it was being bled out of her, the Sorcerer King gave a flat reply.
“I don’t think such a way exists… we’ve wasted too much time. If this goes on, the past is only going to repeat itself.”
Remedios bit her lip tightly. A tiny rill of blood flowed down it.
“...Then… Captain. Just sacrifice that child.”
“That—!!”
“Hm. Leave the rest to me. Since so much time has passed, I doubt you will be able to resolve this with a tiny sacrifice, even if you charge in with the will to die”
“Is that really all right!?” It was Neia who could not help crying out. “Your Majesty has been conserving his mana to fight Jaldabaoth; won’t using that mana make the fight against Jaldabaoth unfavorable?”
“It is as you say, Ms. Baraja. However, there is no other way in order to save more people… while I cannot possibly guarantee that there will be no losses, at the very least, there will be far fewer than if you try. How about it? Will you leave it to me?”
“So there will still… be sacrifices…”
“Unfortunately so, Captain Custodio.”
Remedios bowed her head and left without a word. She walked toward the city — where the citizen-soldiers were looking with uneasy eyes.
“My apologies, Your Majesty. In the Captain’s place, please allow me, Gustavo, to beseech you to aid us.”
“Umu… Well, it’s a pointless question, but you will thank me for it, right?”
Everyone present was puzzled by the Sorcerer King’s question, but they immediately responded in agreement. Neia did not miss the uneasiness in their hearts over why he had asked such a reasonable question.
“Really now? Then I will pacify the city by myself. You gentlemen should keep an eye out for any fish that slip the net and kill them or take them prisoner. Personally, I would rather take them captive in order to question them for information. Also, I will be using the undead, so don’t get too excited.”
Saying so, the Sorcerer King set out for the city gates without waiting for an answer.
“「Greater Magic Seal」, 「Mass Hold Species」.”
The Sorcerer King did not stop walking as he cast his spells.
After incanting those two spells, he waved a hand and conjured several flickering shadows.
There were ten of them in total.
They radiated an aura unique to the undead, one which the living could not abide. Their translucent forms displayed expressions of misery.
They were Wraiths. Neia had once heard that they would take the shape of the species who saw them from her monster lore lectures. However, their bizarre appearances looked like three people’s shadows blended together, unlike what the lectures had said.
“You, High Wraiths.”
The monstrous-looking shadows followed the Sorcerer King as he walked. The grass by their feet crackled as it withered. Already brown from winter, they shrivelled up rapidly as they lost their water content.
“Go over there and wait for my instructions.”
The undead moved in perfect unison, unconstrained by gravity, and they floated swiftly into the air. In seconds, the undead melted into the azure sky overhead, and the fact that she could not see them with those eyes of which she was so proud only intensified her shock.
While she wondered if it was really all right not to explain in detail to those summoned undead, the Sorcerer King who could make such perfect battle plans would surely not have overlooked that point.
“Those, those were…”
“High Wraiths. Since they are incorporeal beings, they can pass through walls and other obstacles… of course, they can’t pass through things without limit… you probably don’t want to know the specifics, do you? Well, they’re part of my preparations for taking the city. Now then, please wait here, Ms. Baraja…”
“—Please allow me to accompany you.”
“Mm… in that case, please wear this item around your neck.”
“This, this is?”
The Sorcerer King produced a necklace with a five-pointed star pendant, set with a large carnelian in the center.
“This item grants immunity to fear. High Wraiths have the ability to emanate terror. ...Let me get this out of the way first. Afterwards, you will be walking into complete chaos. People driven by fear can sometimes show fearsome strength. Even I might not be able to protect you, so if you still wish to follow…”
“—Please allow me to accompany you.”
“U-Umu. Is, is that so? I understand.”
Neia fastened the necklace around her neck.
“Even so… good grief, they are at war, you know. How could there be a war without casualties?”
Neia smiled bitterly in response to the Sorcerer King’s slight jest.
Of course, that was not what Remedios had meant. The Sorcerer King could not possibly have missed the meaning of her words. This was probably the Sorcerer King’s way of cracking a joke, but even so...
His Majesty does not seem particularly talented at cracking jokes.
Perhaps this might be the Sorcerer King’s sole weakness. Just as that thought came to Neia’s mind, they had reached the vicinity of the city gates.
“Fall back, paladins. I am going to conquer this city now. Move to the rear… I believe you ought to get at least that far back, no?”
The Sorcerer King indicated the rearmost paladins and then, he walked into the city gates, like he was strolling into an empty field.
“Get back! If you don’t move quickly, this brat will—”
Soon enough, the Sorcerer King ran into the Bafolk who was holding the child hostage.
It was hard to tell what kind of expression the demihuman was making. It was probably shock. The other demihumans around the Bafolk probably had the same looks on their faces. No, even Neia would be shocked if she suddenly saw the Sorcerer King.
“...The, the undead!?”
With that, the word “undead” rippled through the demihuman ranks.