Sérignan and I went to the back of the inn once we finished eating, as Ralo’s note had requested.
“Aah, there you are.” Ralo greeted us, the air about him markedly different compared to earlier. “You’re the Arachnea’s queen or one of her lackeys, right?”
“What makes you say that?” I asked, taken aback.
I didn’t know how he knew who I was, but it certainly made me uncomfortable.
“The Arachnea’s queen is about the only one who’d be looking for an antidote to the Witch’s Blow right about now. News about it is already out; a minion of hers was poisoned by the Witch’s Blow. Our intelligence network reaches as far as the Eastern Trade Union.”
Really, now? I guess it was naive of me to think I could keep it under wraps.
“So what are you going to do?” I asked him coolly. “Hand me over to the authorities?”
“As if.” Ralo shook his head. “I want you to help us change this country.”
He wanted my help with that?
“Our current ruler, King Alfonso IV, is completely under Nyrnal’s thumb. He has an embargo set up that blocks off everyone but Nyrnal’s ships. In fact, the only thing he seems to care about is licking Nyrnal’s boots.”
That matches what I’ve heard before.
“The Nyrnal Empire’s merchants use that to their advantage and put ridiculous prices on merchandise from the continent. They’re lookin’ down on us is what they’re doing. But if we can resume trade with the Eastern Trade Union, we can put a stop to that.”
I see. If Nyrnal is their only outlet for trade on the continent, their merchants can basically do whatever they want. This means that the Nabreej archipelago is basically a latent colony of Nyrnal’s.
“If you’re the Arachnea’s queen or her messenger, we want you to lend us your military strength. With your help, we’ll be able to attack the castle and force King Alfonso to abdicate. Then we’ll resume trade with the Eastern Trade Union. If you don’t, we won’t be able to fight, and our country will end up becoming one of Nyrnal’s vassals.”
“I see. So you want to stage a revolution.”
They wanted to depose an incompetent king and stop his harmful policies. Not a bad idea. Plus, cutting off one of Nyrnal’s friendly nations would contribute to our own war effort.
“How can you prove this isn’t a trap?” I asked, staring straight at Ralo.
“I...can’t prove that. But I do want you to believe me. If we can get the king to abdicate, we’ll get you the antidote you need.”
Well, this was quite a pickle. I wasn’t sure if I should get on board with the revolution.
“What about the king’s guards?” I asked.
“There are two companies of soldiers in the castle, and another one set to guard the capital itself. Our country’s army is poor in both size and quality.”
So basically, it was just one battalion’s worth of soldiers. Even if they were heavy infantry, we wouldn’t struggle much.
“Fine.” Heaving a sigh, I agreed to comply. “We’ll have our soldiers ready by tomorrow, and we’ll regroup with you. Where do we meet up?”
“I’m grateful to ya. We can meet up on the fork of the highway leading up to the capital’s west gate. The guard captain watching over that gate is from our rebel faction. He should open the gate for us.”
They even had double agents. This regime was already on its deathbed.
“Are you ready to stage your uprising tomorrow?” I confirmed.
“Yeah, tomorrow is fine.” Ralo nodded. “We’re basically always ready; we just needed more troops.”
Hmm. Still, they hadn’t truly kicked off the rebellion yet, so I wasn’t sure how much I could rely on them.
“I’ll prepare my troops, then. I hope your revolution succeeds.”
“Aye. I’ll pray to the God of Light.”
Well, I won’t.
♱
“The Worker Swarms are finished, I see.”
After leaving Litight, I headed back east to our base, where I’d left the Worker, Genocide, and Toxic Swarms on standby. By now, the Worker Swarms had completed building our power source and Fertilization Furnace.
“Everything is ready for your use, Your Majesty,” the Worker Swarms told me, assuming their obedient pose.
“Thank you. We’ll need to bolster our forces, so let us begin production in haste,” I ordered. “Produce Genocide Swarms.”
Thankfully, our structures functioned on something similar to the game’s mechanics, and we could utilize teleportation magic to move our stock of meatballs over. This saved us the bother of having to gather resources here on the island. This also allowed us to evacuate all the resources we’d gained from destroying Maluk, despite the land being currently occupied by Nyrnal. Convenient.
I started by producing twenty Genocide Swarms. The enemy had one battalion, and some of them were inevitably going to switch sides, so I didn’t think I’d need that many soldiers.
“Produce Toxic Swarms.”
Once I was done with the Genocide Swarms, I produced ten Toxic Swarms. Our current domain offered us a trickle of incoming resources. However, it wasn’t as large as when we destroyed Maluk, so I had to be conservative about how I used our stockpile. Nevertheless, this battle was the first step to saving Lysa, so I couldn’t hold back either.
“Your Majesty, are you sure we should trust them?” Sérignan asked me as I was working.
“We have to. Or do we want to waste time going to the capital and hoping we can find a place that’ll sell us the antidote? I think helping the rebellion is about as aimless as going on that wild goose chase, but if they’re telling the truth, they really will procure us the antidote.”
I didn’t fully trust Ralo. Maybe his rebellion had other objectives in mind. Maybe Alfonso IV was actually a kind king. In any case, none of that mattered to me. My only interest in this country was the antidote that would cure Lysa. Their future was none of my concern. My stance was to let them manage themselves however they liked, so long as they didn’t ruin their own country.
“So that’s your position on the matter,” Sérignan said, sensing my thoughts. “Understood. I will abide by your words, Your Majesty. Order me as you see fit.”
“Yeah. I’ll be counting on you, Sérignan.”
We’d be going into this operation with small numbers, so I’d need Sérignan to carry the fight for us. I wasn’t sure whether thirty Swarms—even if they were upgraded units—would be enough to take down a battalion-sized force. The enemy probably didn’t have many heavy infantrymen, but I had to account for unexpected developments, lest the situation spiral out of control.
Even with all the disadvantages, I had to do it. This revolution had to succeed if we were going to get that antidote.
To make that happen, I focused on making more Swarms. I compared our influx of resources and our reserves to calculate how much I could spare. Once preparations were complete, I slid into bed and went to sleep.
♱
Morning dawned, and I reached our agreed-upon meeting place. I approached it cautiously, staying alert in case it was a trap.
“There you are!”
Thankfully, it wasn’t. There was a group of armed men and women waiting there. Their gear was mismatched, and the only uniform thing about them was the white armbands they wore. They were clearly more of a civil militia than a real army.
“I’m sorry I kept you waiting,” I said. “I’m ready. What about you?”
“Ready whenever you are,” Ralo replied. “But, uh, wow... Some company you’ve got there.”
The revolution army was visibly terrified of my Swarms. I’d brought them along since he had asked me for an army, so I didn’t much appreciate their reaction. They should have been more welcoming.
“So, what’s our plan?” I asked, moving things along.
“We’ll pass through the west gate and storm the castle. Once we take that, the other rebels hiding in the Ritsuka—the capital—will rise up to join us. A simple plan is best, right?”
So long as it’s not simple to a fault, I thought, but I kept it to myself.
“All right. We’ll open the way,” I told them. “Follow us.”
“Roger that. We’re counting on you.”
I wasn’t comfortable letting this militia go up against real soldiers, so I’d decided we would handle this. Mainly, I was hoping they wouldn’t end up stabbing us in the back.
“Sérignan, Genocide Swarms, Toxic Swarms, cut open a path to the castle. Defeat anyone who stands in your way,” I ordered them.
“By your will, Your Majesty!” Sérignan shouted.
Sérignan led the Genocide and Toxic Swarms ahead and crossed the western gate. The guard captain stationed there really was on the revolution army’s side, and he left the gate open for us.
“Wh-What are those?!”
“Monsters!”
The people of Ritsuka saw the Swarms as monsters marching through their streets. Their judgment wasn’t too far off, but they sure were quick to brand anything that wasn’t human a monstrosity.
“Guards! Guards!”
Ritsuka’s citizens called out for the guards, and about 180 guards showed up to stop us. They were cavaliers—a pesky opponent. Their charge could end up slaying the Swarms. But I wasn’t going to let that happen.
“Sérignan, defend.”
“By your will.”
The Genocide Swarms entered a defensive position as well. This maneuver was all we needed to intercept the enemy.
As it turned out, I had nothing to worry about. Just seeing the Swarms struck fear into the hearts of Nabreej’s soldiers. The speed of their charge fell, and most of them stopped before they could clash with their targets.
Sérignan cut down those pitiful soldiers. Their heads went flying, like they’d been waiting for Sérignan’s blade to set them free. Blood gushed from their necks in an almost artistic display.