We had managed to start our discussion with the Demon Lord, somehow. ...How did we get here, again? Leon was only tasked by the god on-site to bring about order to the world. That’s kind of vague. She wasn’t asked to destroy humanity nor to save the monsters. She just naturally took the side of the monsters since she had taken the form of a Hellion. This seemed inevitable; a Hellion couldn’t very well waltz around a human city without expecting any trouble.
“So, you started by waging war against our nation.”
Ruey grunted and crossed his arms. While he might not have liked it, this seemed only natural too. The ruin of Gannes was already inside Noura territory. However you slice or dice it, the first obstacle the monsters had to tackle would have been the kingdom of Noura.
“But you had no intentions of destroying Noura. You wanted to go north.”
Leon nodded at Tiamat’s confirmation. She went after that important port to access the travel roads.
“So you were already looking for a new land to settle in, Miss Leon?”
“Mm. That’s correct, Eiji.”
The plains to the far north, where no human had touched before. She had her eyes set on it from the very beginning.
“There would be no progress while we stayed in Gannes. Would have been too late if we waited,” the Demon Lord added matter-of-factly.
She meant that, if they had to fight eventually, she had to make a move while they still had the strength to win. Incredibly strategic for a highschooler. She had a good read on the future, and was decisive and even charismatic. I wished that she could be my boss.
“Was that the right strategy for them, Ruey?” I asked our only trained military personnel.
“I can’t really justify anyone forsaking their headquarters, Sir Eiji. However, the most terrifying thing about monsters is their ability to appear anywhere. It’s scary to know that they aren’t attached to Gannes.”
“Hm. I see.”
I crossed my arms.
“Why don’t you be honest, Eiji?” Tiamat asked.
“...I don’t see. At all.”
Well, could you blame me?! I was no expert!
“Well, no matter how well they try to hide it, Noura would have eventually found Gannes, like we did today. While we wouldn’t reach this conclusion this early into war, if we were to fight many more battles anyone would see that we’d have to strike their headquarters. There’d be no use trying to hide it then. As long as it was serving its function as a base, there’d have to be some manpower and resources going in and out of it.” Ruey broke it down for me.
All right. The city of Ebetsu, next to my hometown of Sapporo, tries to remain self-sufficient as much as possible, which means that they try to live off of things they make in the city. While that is a noble pursuit, it is difficult for that alone to cover all of the city’s needs. Many things have to be acquired from outside of the city. That’s economics.
“Once this location is discovered, a full-blown attack would follow. Then, Gannes would fall.”
“Wait, why? With all of the powerful monsters here?”
“There would be no need for combat. Once we trap them in and stop resources from going in, I believe the monster army would crumble on its own.”
“You’d starve them out!”
“I can’t say ditching your only headquarters is a good idea, but sometimes it’s required to stay hidden. If they already had a plan to find a new home, I could see merit in ditching the city and starting the move early. Like I said, monsters are truly formidable out in the field.”
Wow. It finally clicked. What a good teacher he’d make.
“...Weirdo,” the little Demon Lord mumbled.
You already said that. You know I can hear you, right?
“In any case, the quicker they get on the move the better, right?” I asked.
I got it. No more monsters around, no more battles. Perfect.
“We can’t.”
“Right, you can’t... Wait, why not?”
Leon chimed in so naturally that I couldn’t help but join in. How embarrassing.
“Since we couldn’t take Mostail, we’ll just be attacked if we go on the move.”
“Oof...”
I clasped my head. We did contribute in defending Mostail, after all. Now that war had begun, a band of monsters walking down a travel road like refugees would, of course, be attacked. What to do...?
“Help me, Tia-emon.”
“Stop being so pathetic in front of a teenager.”
Tiamat sighed as I easily resorted to begging for help. What was I supposed to do? I was not a strategist, nor did I have any knowledge of military action.
“No one is expecting you to have any. You have to use your talents to your advantage.”
“Oh!”
“Mm. We can negotiate with Noura with the recent turn of events in mind.”
The dragon princess laughed. The monster army attacked Mostail, only to be driven away by Eiji the Hermit and his companions. The Hermit’s party followed the monsters to their headquarters; there they negotiated with the Demon Lord and secured a promise to leave the kingdom of Noura. That’s our story.
If we could get the kingdom of Noura to swallow this, there would be no more bloodshed. There was the issue of reparations for the war, but maybe giving the castle of Gannes to Noura would take care of that. I wasn’t sure.
Of course, there is always an element of give and take in negotiations. Logic alone won’t cut it. Pinning the opponent down to the ground doesn’t count as negotiating. In fact it would be a miracle if such a thing could change one’s mind.
“I think we can do it...?”
I nodded, calculating our next moves in my mind. First we would save Noura from warfare, then from beriberi.
“Then it’s settled. Our next destination is the capital of Noura,” Hieronymus concluded.
Still, we couldn’t very well leave the same day we had arrived. For the night, we had decided to find lodging in Gannes.
“Domestic violence is actually a rather serious issue,” Tiamat said, as she sprawled out onto the bed.
It was well into the night, and she and I were once again sharing a room.
“Even I know that is a serious issue.”
“Mm. That’s why you’re not sure how close you can get.”
“Yeah.”
Generally, I try to speak to others in a polite manner, almost out of habit. At my job, a little informality could swiftly get me in trouble. That being said, I speak frankly to my coworkers, and, of course, to my friends and girlfriend.
As for Leon, I was having a tough time deciding how to speak to her. She was the same age as Syfer and Ruey, but I couldn’t exactly speak to her the same way I did to them. I hadn’t interacted informally with Miss Cielz, who serves Leon. Ordinarily I should keep things businesslike, regardless of age, since we were on opposite sides.
Now, it was a problem that Leon had been abused. It was a sensitive issue, and I had no firsthand experience. I was never struck by my parents nor was I ever bullied in school. I just knew about these things like something I read in a book. Even when I tried to get close, I felt myself being fake, somehow. I couldn’t tell how best to speak to her.
“That’s all right. You can’t be in her shoes. Neither can I, of course.”
Tiamat was being vague, but I understood the gist.
“I don’t really know how to act around a teenage girl, either. I don’t think it’s right to treat her like I do Syfer or Ruey.”
Those were boys. They could take a little less delicate treatment.
“That’s what we call sexism in our field of work. Just treat them the same.” Tiamat chuckled.
“Really?”
I was asking about the second half of her statement, by the way. It didn’t really matter how I spoke to Syfer or Ruey.
“Walk on eggshells around her and you’ll only hurt her worse. It’s imperative that you don’t treat her like an outlier.”
“Okay. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Now, it’s a crime if you flirt with her.”
“I won’t! She’s a highschooler!”
“And with Cielz?”
“...I won’t.”
“I won’t ask why it took you longer to answer.”
The dragon princess teased me and stretched her jaws open in a yawn.