Chapter 27 – First Steps in Cooperative Missions
One thing I’ve come to realize recently.
It is a fact that sometimes goodwill can be more burdensome than hostility.
Enmity can be met head-on and destroyed, but goodwill cannot be dealt with in such a simple way.
It is even more so if it is an affectionate favor from the opposite sex. All the more so if the target of favor is not one.
‘Where are you going again for a while? You should have told me about that! Why do you make me worry!’
‘Captain. Now, if I can’t feel the captain’s mana in my stomach, I feel completely empty. Ho, just one more time before we leave… ‘
Looking back on the things I went through the day before I left for the mission, that fact touches my skin so desperately.
Of course, the outrageous favor is quite eager, but at the same time, there is also a feeling that it is slightly difficult to handle.
Suddenly, I recall the advice that Master gave to me, who had just returned to Jedo after the war.
I heard that if I return to society after staying in the battlefield for a while, I will feel like a stranger.
At the time, I was enjoying the feeling of liberation, so I tilted my head wondering what the hell you were talking about, but now I think I know roughly what it feels like.
I feel like I’m a puberty boy now that I’m thinking about these strange worries even though I’m a grown adult.
As a result of fighting and fighting from the time he was just growing up, his body grew up to be strong, but his mental growth still stopped somewhere in the past.
“Whoa…”
I sighed with a complicated feeling and opened the mission order with the royal seal.
Now wasn’t the time to be worrying about things like this.
– – –
Captain of the Knights of the Black Lion, Wolfgang von Schwarz.
I give you the following mission.
In the name of His Majesty the Emperor, I command you to subdue the group of rebellious elements that threaten the order of the Empire.
An anti-state organization, commonly known as ‘Eclipse’, formed as a result of a collusion between the puppet government and devil worshipers in the north, is reaching out to the land of Count Fersen, a loyal servant of the imperial family.
Make it the top priority of the mission to determine their precise purpose, and immediately stop any direct or indirect hostile acts by the disquieting elements in the course of the mission.
For the smooth progress of the mission, you may exercise legal command over the counterintelligence agents and priests of the Celestial Church until this mission is over.
However, it is limited to the line that does not infringe on their rights and obligations.
In addition, I grant you the right to arrest and summarily dispose of the disquieting elements and their collaborators until this mission is completed.
– – –
Unfamiliar synopsis and unfamiliar authority.
I am worried about whether I will be able to perform well. It’s the first time I’ve ever done a mission like this.
I folded the mission order tightly and tucked it into my trouser pocket, staring at the suspicious procession behind me.
“Captain… No, Captain. I’m ignoring you, but is this really true?”
Lois, the 1st centurion from the county family, wore a bearskin cloak and muttered with a sad face as he held his twin axes in both hands.
Seeing him in a barbaric outfit, the opposite of his usual aristocratic and dignified attitude, the corners of his mouth seemed to twitch without even realizing it.
I’m sure you’ll get hurt if you say it’s a pretty good match.
I deliberately stiffened my expression as if I was as reluctant as possible and answered.
“It can’t be helped. But you’ll get used to it soon. Don’t worry.”
“All right…”
The 1st Centurion wasn’t the only one wearing bizarre costumes.
“It’s good to be a mercenary, but do I have to be like this?”
“It can’t be helped. They say that in order to avoid being identified, they have no choice but to look as ridiculous as possible.”
The elites of the Black Lion Knights, carefully selected for this mission, were clumsy to anyone, dressed as mercenaries from southern barbarians, and were staggering.
Still, it would be better if the attire was a bit bizarre, how would I feel if I took off my top and wore a lion skin all over, and even put on makeup on my face?
Come to think of it, I wasn’t in a position to laugh at the appearance of the centurion commander.
Because the one with the most hideous face was none other than me.
“Pu-pu-heap…! Hey. Were you originally a mercenary commander? Or maybe, your hometown is the Southern Great Forest? How could that look suit you so well…”
“Shut up your mouth, Sir Randolph. No, Randolph. Would you like me to rip that goddamn snout off?
Looking at the cause of all this situation, I muttered with sincere intentions to kill myself.
“Yes! That’s it. Hey, I just got goosebumps! Why don’t you try changing your course from now on?”
“It’s my fault for suddenly trusting you when you insisted on leaving the makeup to me. I’ll definitely pay you back this time, so please know.”
The whole story was like this.
The result of the final meeting prior to the joint mission of the Black Lion Knights, the Imperial Counterintelligence Department, and the priests of the Celestial Church and the Heretic Questioner.
Considering the overall factors, such as the possibility of hostile forces identifying our personnel and the overly conspicuous appearance of the personnel, it was concluded that this mission would be carried out under disguised status.
Since knights and priests couldn’t be good at disguise or acting, naturally, the counterintelligence department specialized in that field decided to take care of the preparation for the camouflage status.
The executive officer of the counterintelligence department, Lord Randolph, who had decided to join us on this mission, had put aside such an unfunny prank.
Seeing that the two of them took on the appearance of modest merchants with their usual camouflage identities, the embarrassment is further doubled.
“May the glory of the heavenly god be with you. The heavenly god will surely remember you as you renew yourself to purify the evil group.”
“Thank you, priest.”
No, I hope you don’t remember this appearance.
The priests of the Celestial Church seemed to have expected this to happen in advance, and it seemed that they had prepared a decent disguised identity as a gathering of scholars accompanying the procession of the upper ranks.
It was my fault for trusting Lord Randolph.
However, as he said, he will be able to properly avoid being wary of having a specific status, so should it be considered fortunate among misfortunes?
Who would think that our true identities are honorable knights after seeing this?
Something that has already happened. Try to think as positively as possible.
On the other hand, there was one member of the Black Lion Knights who was the only one who was given a proper role.
—Knock!
It was Vice-captain Agnes who took on the role of superficial leader of the group because her appearance was too conspicuous to play the role of a mercenary.
“Um. Mercenary Captain? No… Mercenary Captain. I-I can’t get used to this. To think I have to treat the captain…”
The vice-captain lowered the window of the carriage he was riding in and called me to her side.
She took on the appearance of a wealthy commoner girl, befitting her role as the daughter of a top merchant who first went up on her father’s orders.
“What’s the matter, employer?”
“Captain, no… I have something I want to talk to you about, so please get in the carriage for a moment. No… Get on.”
Vice-captain Agnes seemed to be unable to adapt to the given role.
Well, no matter how much acting it is, you have to treat your boss like a savage overnight and treat him badly. It’s not just her suffering.
“Is there a strange feeling developing between the barbarian leader and the wealthy commoner girl? Hmm, that’s a pretty good picture too.”
—Fuck!
“Kuhehehe!”
I hit Sir Randolph on the muzzle, who was talking nonsense next to me, faithfully fulfilling his role as the leader of the barbarians.
It was one of the most common quarrels that mercenaries from the south immediately punished with force the central courtiers who behaved rudely in front of them.
It took a little bit of strength from the emotions, but since he is a fairly strong man, he will be able to withstand this much.
“Oops, a mistake. I was overly immersed in the role… Are you okay, merchant?”
“Keukheuk… Kkeuheuuh…”
It seemed that his mouth sank a bit, but as Cardinal Malleus guaranteed, very faithful priests were with him on this mission, so there was no need to worry about that much.
Just like that, Sir Randolph was carried to a carriage with a bishop-level priest disguised as a professor by the hands of counterintelligence agents who looked at their superiors with extremely pitiful eyes.
Sometimes, I get confused whether that person is a senile counterintelligence enforcer or just a scolding middle-aged man.
However, even such a seemingly sloppy appearance would surely be nothing more than acting to hide one’s true self.
I would have been fooled if I had been swayed for a moment. He was also someone who should never be caught off guard.
“My God, did some ogre attack you? It’s been smashed really well.”
I lightly ignored the skit that was taking place in the distance and boarded the vice-captain’s wagon.
“Captain. But I’m the head of the cooperation organization… Is it okay if I treat you like that?”
“It’s okay. I’m doing that on purpose to show closeness. More than that, I won’t let go of talking to me about this mission. But for the time being, you’re my boss.”
The appearance of the vice-captain, dressed in a neat dress that is not too flashy befitting her status as the daughter of a high priest, is quite new.
The modest appearance comes with a different feeling from the lively plain clothes of the last time.
—Rush!
One minor problem was that whenever the wagon rattled, her breasts continued to shake as well.
It’s just an extremely ordinary dress, but since the person wearing it is the owner of such a strong body, I feel dizzy for no reason.
I couldn’t help but hold my brow while watching it. It seemed like it would be better to stay inside the carriage as much as possible.
“Why, why? No… Why but, savage? Ahhh… This is really embarrassing…”
Anyway, the vice-captain’s stuttering tone had to be fixed somehow.
Normally, she doesn’t have as many of her trustworthy subordinates as she does. She looks so hot right now.
After all, this expedition is a much more important mission than the previous monster raid. It creaked like this from the start.
Of course, it wasn’t that she didn’t practice her subordinates in advance, but since everyone was wielding only a sword, it seemed like they couldn’t exert their full strength in this area.
No matter how much we need to add military force in case of emergency, it is a little worrying that it is at this point.
Maybe it’s because we have the most people, and according to the order, I have the authority to command.
In other words, if I succeed in this mission, most of the credit will come back to me, but if I fail, I will take full responsibility for it.
My shoulders are really heavy. However, no matter what, you must do your best to overcome this adversity.
This mission… Will it be okay?
