Episode 213 The Crusade of the Abyss – The First and Last Crusade (1)
Brest, a military port in northwest France.
It only took about two hours from departure to the battlefield, but a considerable amount of time was spent on emergency repairs to the captured ship and the seriously damaged and flooded ship.
After spending a night at sea, I returned to the port the next day and found Eris there to meet me.
“Your Majesty the Queen, please come out in person like this-”
Christine was trying to politely bow to Eris, but had to stumble while trying to catch Eris who was just hugging her.
“Your Majesty’s manners….”
“Thank you for your hard work!”
Even though she is wearing a veil, just by hearing her voice, I can tell that she is smiling brightly with joy.
Christine, who was about to say something, ended up laughing.
Erisra in white robes being hugged by Christine in the admiral’s black uniform…
It’s a nice picture.
While I was thinking that, Eris turned her gaze towards me and I had to flinch.
“Ah, Marquis Lafayette, you did a good job too. “Well, I was worried when I heard that you came back from the dead… but you’re in better shape than I thought.”
I think I hear this line quite often.
I feel strange, perhaps because it’s not Christine this time, but Eris…
A shy laugh naturally came out, but I said what I had to say first.
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“yes? Suddenly? What? “I was just waiting here…”
Eris, who got out of Christine’s arms, answered in an incomprehensible voice.
Although he is said to have used a sacred power amplification crystal, he has completely forgotten about himself as if he had not done anything even though he gave powerful blessings to all of us.
She looked like a saint who prayed for someone else even while facing an unfair death before returning.
Actually, Eris would be disgusted if she found out that I was thinking this, but I smiled and added again.
“Thank you, saint. …and to God.”
Eris blinked a few times and asked with a very worried look on her face.
“The Marquis said all those things. That seems like a good thing, but are you okay? “Did you see a flash of light?”
Those words, which I would have thrown without thinking, were so appropriate that I answered with a laugh.
“Yes I did. “Thanks to you, I was very scolded by the admiral.”
Eris made a sound and turned her gaze back to Christine.
“Are you okay? Usually, when the Marquis de Lafayette is in bad condition, the Count suffers more.”
Christine smiled slightly and answered.
“I am grateful that Your Majesty understands my feelings.”
That really hurts the listener.
Anyway…
Christine and I, together with our allies, took the risk and managed to clear the way.
Well, now it’s time to see the results.
“A messenger was sent, right, Your Majesty?”
Eris responded with a grin after hearing what I said.
“Sure. “Now it can truly be an Allied war.”
* * *
Other countries in the central continent had received various agreements from Franzia and had decided to enter the war, but they were concerned that they would rashly dispatch troops first and end up spending only military money.
First of all, a landing attempt would only be possible if the naval battle was won or at least a two-way strategy was achieved, but most of them predicted that the Abyss Corporation would have the upper hand.
In such a situation, when news spread that the continent’s combined fleet had won the fleet battle against the Abyss Corporation, it instantly swept across the entire Central Continent, surprising everyone.
The fearsome fleet of the ‘Ras’ company, which no one had dared to cross until now, collapsed, and a sea route to an island that mankind had never set foot on was opened.
When victory against the doubtful Abyss Corporation seemed within reach, the countries of the central continent rushed to dispatch their troops and send them to Franzia.
The first army to arrive in Brest was from the Kingdom of Krafte.
“Thank you, Your Majesty, for coming so far to join the Allied Forces.”
In front of the welcoming Eris, Henry I got off his horse and answered briefly.
“This is what the previous king signed as a formal treaty, so we must abide by it.”
“For that reason, you came the fastest from the farthest place.”
When Eris smiled slightly and opened her mouth again, Henry I was silent for a moment and then answered with his eyes shining brightly.
“It seems that it would be difficult to hide the fact that Krafte has been waiting for this day in front of Her Majesty, the Queen of Saints.”
Should we really call it the Krafte Kingdom?
It has not yet been three years since the heavy losses suffered in a war in which the entire standing army was deployed.
Nevertheless, they arrived with an army that appeared to maintain fairly strict military discipline and an elite officer corps with experience in the past war.
“Ugh…”
Damien de Mirbeau had a pale face, as if he was remembering the time when he fought against them, so I said with a chuckle.
“Don’t worry too much, he’s on our side this time.”
“…That’s incredibly reassuring. Ha ha ha….”
I’m about to go against even more terrible demons with those strong people, but sometimes I see Damien and his sense of danger is somehow strange.
Well, there’s no need to fuel anxiety by saying this.
The next thing to arrive was the army of the Iberica Brotherhood.
Amid the crowds of people watching the unusual procession of enormous orcs, goblins following them, and humans and beastmen –
“We meet the king and his brother!”
The soldiers of the brother countries lined up in unison and shouted with such force that it seemed as if the city was about to evacuate.
“Hahaha, welcome!”
Anyway, it’s Crocs.
I automatically turned my attention to Eris.
There is also Eris, who is clearly the queen, so it is not good to prioritize me like this.
Fortunately, Eris gestured as if it was okay, but since we are a multi-national alliance, cultural differences are difficult.
Still, the orcs led by the one-eyed orc Karokk will be reliable reinforcements against those demons.
The next army arrived a few days later, but its presence was impressive.
“Oh, they are…”
“The army of the living faith…”
The Pope had no intention of sending them, and Eris personally went to see them and dragged them halfway by the collar, but their majesty made even me admire them. .
Those who ride on pure white horses wearing full silver plates decorated with black crosses and holding dazzling lances and shields in their hands that are consecrated with divine power.
Even the Kingdom of Francia, the so-called kingdom of knights, was overthrown and the last group of knights risked their lives for faith and chivalry on a continent where faith in God was increasingly fading.
There are as many as 500 such knights, and their servants number in the thousands.
Since it is a Holy Church that makes a lot of money by leveraging the power of religion, it must still be able to maintain a group of knights of that size.
I wonder what it would be like to be an old-fashioned nation without a single battleship because maintaining them would be a burden…
Still, it is intimidating to see those carrying flashing lances jumping off white horses all at once and clanking their silver-colored armor that reflects the sunlight. amazing.
The sight of all those great knights taking off their helmets, kneeling down and bowing to just one woman.
In fact, the woman who was the target was only wearing a plain white robe, but at this moment, everyone in the city was half-enchanted and kneeled down to her.
“We meet Her Majesty, the Holy Queen, the living proof of the Holy Knights’ faith!”
“We welcome the Holy Knights who have come a long way. “I look forward to your performance in this war.”
Oh my god. Perhaps because of the situation, even Eris’s voice sounds sublime and dignified, like that of a saint.
As if the fanatical paladins were indeed moved, they answered in full chorus.
“I will sing of faith and honor for Her Majesty the Saint Queen until the moment this body crumbles into dust!”
…That’s right. It’s a sight that could only have been seen hundreds of years ago.
In any case, they are the strongest group of knights who have made it impossible to ignore the Holy Church even today, when the power of faith has weakened significantly.
The opponents are none other than their main enemies, demons, so I guess I can help them…
Once again, I feel like admiring Eris for attracting people whose brains seem to be filled with faith and muscle.
Honestly, I have the urge to lift the veil and see what Eris’s expression is…
And the last one.
Among the commanders of the army that arrived from the Germanian Empire was a person I had never imagined.
“Gilles de Lionel?”
Jill responded by shaking my hand lightly as I stood there half-stiffened.
“Now I am Gilles von Leonhardt, Marquis Pierre de Lafayette.”
“How on earth could you join the Imperial Army…”
Gilles de Lionel, or rather Gilles von Leonhardt, smiled, shook his hand and said.
“You probably knew that the empire was implementing military reform and recruiting foreign officers, right? “We submitted a military reform plan based on our fighting experience and doctrine in Krafte and Francia, and requested nobility and the implementation of the reform plan.”
“…her.”
While I was dumbfounded, Jill responded with a grin.
“Her Majesty Empress Cecilia personally summoned me and met me privately, and she accepted both the nobility title and the implementation of the military system reform plan.”
…So you became the commander of the imperial army and a nobleman of the empire.
-…I’ll watch. My enemy who paid tribute to my father. You say that even though you regret, you cannot atone, and that you are just doing your best on the spot.
He said that in a city filled with gunfire and screams.
-The day when you sell out your old alliance and prove that you were just speaking the truth, enjoying the government and power of the corrupt commoners. …I will come find you.
The man who disappeared in the rain, leaving only those words behind, looked at me and opened his mouth.
“Isn’t life really fun? “I never thought we would fight under the same banner like this again.”
“…I didn’t expect you to come to me like this…”
But at least.
“Do you think I’m still doing my best?”
Jill smiled and answered my question.
“I heard that you risked your life to single-handedly kill the admiral of ‘Ras’ company. “If that isn’t the best, everyone in the military should take off their clothes.”
“It just happened to me while I was aboard the flagship of the Count of Aquitaine.”
“Haha…”
Jill laughed softly and then looked at me and grinned.
“Then please take care of me, Marquis Lafayette.”
“Please take care of me, General Liani Leonhard.”
Lastly…
“Oh my gosh, Count of Aquitaine! Ah, thank you for your hard work! Do you know how much this old man was worried that the beautiful earl’s body might be harmed during the naval battle?”
“Welcome, Lord Mage Tower. But first, to Her Majesty….”
“Oh oh that’s right! This is my first time seeing you in person, Her Majesty, Queen of Francia! Although Her Majesty the Queen is not a supporter of our Magic Tower, she is a major customer of divine power amplification crystals and is a great help to the Magic Tower’s finances-”
“Master Shi, please!”
Louis, who was trying to stop Eris from being embarrassed in front of the snobbish magic tower lord without any solution, only had to listen to her scolding.
“Oops! “How dare you interrupt while the teacher is speaking!”
The magic tower lord, who was like a storm in many ways, joined the magic division and the entire army of the central continent gathered.
Revolutionary Kingdom of Franzia Kingdom of Krafte Kingdom Germania Empire Iberica Brotherhood Kingdom of Magic Kingdom Holland Holy Church and even the Eastern Empire.
Armies with completely different political systems, religions, and even races came together – for the first time.
A war in which the countries of the Central Continent, who have fought each other by shedding blood, will fight against the evil that is the culprit of it all.
“At this moment, I declare an expeditionary war against the Abyss Corporation of the Central Continent Allied Forces!”
“Waaaaaa-!”
At Eris’s declaration, everyone raised their weapons and shouted – a war that must be the last.
The crusade against the threat of the abyss has begun.
