Chapter 10:
Revealing Fortress City Murcia
DEE AND ARB GRABBED A FEW DOZEN MEN AND hastened for the front gates. Even from a distance I could see the massive line of Chivalric Orders trailing down the road, the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range at their back.
One of the men atop the gates looked down, awaiting orders. “Open it!” I cried. “Open it!”
Dee and I positioned ourselves in front of the gates as they were thrown open. The first people we saw were Count Ventury and his Chivalric Order. Ventury, who had gray hair and the fierce gaze of a seasoned warrior, looked over at us and pulled his chin in.
“Ah, Marquis Fertio’s eldest son. Lord Murcia, is it? You were given charge of this stronghold, then? I am glad to see you well.”
“Th-thank you. I am also relieved to see you well, Lord Ventury.”
Greetings out of the way, Ventury looked behind me and folded his arms. “That must be the famous dragon slayer, Sir Dee. Did you poach him from Lord Van?”
Before I could respond, Dee began to chuckle. “No, no. I may currently be the Murcia Chivalric Order’s acting commander, but I will return to Lord Van’s side soon enough! I wouldn’t leave the Seatoh Village Chivalric Order to anyone else.”
Ventury blinked a few times and turned back to me. “The Murcia Chivalric Order? Don’t you mean the House Fertio Chivalric Order?”
His gaze was sharp. I’d never had cause to speak to a high-ranking head of house before, so I was a bit nervous, but I decided honesty was the best policy. “I received orders from His Majesty: from now on the Yelenetta invasion is to rely heavily on Van’s powers, so I am to assist him however I can. Van—Lord Van—put me in charge of this new fortress city. We’re already prepared to welcome the royal army, so please make your way to the central castle.”
Ventury squinted and cast his gaze behind me. “This place does seem to have undergone significant changes, and its unique qualities definitely come from Lord Van. So, what is this new stronghold’s name?”
I fell silent.
Ventury frowned at me. “What is the matter?”
“…Th-this is Fortress City Murcia,” I admitted, resigning myself to my fate.
Ventury burst into laughter. “I see! Let me guess: Lord Van’s work?”
I nodded. “That is correct.”
Ventury continued to laugh. “How very like him! Now, would you be so kind as to tell me where the Chivalric Orders will stay?”
“O-of course! The fortress city itself is rather complex in its design, so the M-Murcia Chivalric Order will serve as your guide.” I turned around and called out to the man standing next to Dee. “Marcos, please show House Ventury’s Chivalric Order to the small castle in the back.”
Marcos straightened up and stepped forward with a vigorous “Yessir!”
He was one of the knights with whom I had the longest relationship. While small in stature, Marcos worked hard to become an elite, and he also wielded useful magic.
Even when faced with the commander of the House Ventury Chivalric Order, a man who stood a full head taller than him, Marcos puffed out his chest. “I am Marcos, a private in the Murcia Chivalric Order. This way, please!”
He led the way, and the Chivalric Order bowed to me and followed him. Ventury’s troops moved with perfect coordination, clearly well used to warfare. Once they were gone, Ventury pointed past the gates.
“I will stay here until His Majesty arrives. Where should I wait?”
Oops. I’d forgotten to prepare a resting spot. “Ah, right! Please wait a moment while I prepare a tent for you.”
Trying to hide my panic, I instructed a nearby soldier to prepare a tent. When the next Chivalric Order passed through the gates, I greeted the nobleman and commander and advised them to head further back, and in the meantime, my people finished setting up the tents.
“Right this way, please,” I said to Ventury.
“Mm.”
I guided Ventury and the others to their resting areas, complete with chairs. Two more Chivalric Orders arrived immediately thereafter, but they were both smaller orders, so I was able to finish greeting them relatively quickly.
Eventually came a group bearing the royal banner. The four-horse carriage passed through the gates, and Ventury emerged from his tent.
His Majesty poked his head out of his carriage. “Oho, to think this fortress could change so much! The last I saw it, it was in shambles. I cannot wait to tour the interior!”
I had to be cognizant of every word that passed my lips. I could not afford to be disrespectful to him in any way. As I took a deep breath, I felt a single bead of sweat roll down my forehead.
“Your Majesty, welcome to Lord Van’s new territory. I hope you will enjoy your stay.” I lowered my head, trying to swallow my nerves.
His Majesty slowly descended from his carriage. He looked at me. “Hmm, you seem to be performing your duties splendidly. How would you like to give me the tour yourself?”
When he smiled, relief settled over me. Thank goodness. He’s in a good mood. I bowed and said, “It would be an honor to serve as your guide, Your Majesty.”
“Excellent. Then lead the way.”
It was a short exchange, but I was too nervous to carry on extended pleasantries. All I could really do was try to avoid making a bad impression. Other nobles and Chivalric Orders continued to arrive while all of this was happening, but His Majesty took priority. I shot Dee a silent glance; he issued some kind of order to Arb, who made his way to the front gates, leaving a handful of knights behind. It seemed Arb would be in charge of handling the rest of the nobles as they arrived.
Dee, Arb, and the machine bow squad, all tasked with defending the fortress city, were Van’s people. Once the Murcia Chivalric Order was filled out, they would all return to Seatoh Village. Could I really handle things without Dee or Arb? The Chivalric Order I commanded had many talented men like Marcos, but they lacked experience, and it wasn’t just them; I was inexperienced, too. In fact, I had significantly less experience than they did.
But perhaps thinking this way was my real problem. I lacked confidence. How could someone as unreliable as me be trusted with the defense of a key stronghold? And how could I keep doing so without His Majesty noticing how short I fell in every regard?
With all of these negative thoughts racing around my head, I failed to explain any of the facilities on the tour. I only spoke if His Majesty or Ventury spoke to me first.
“Lord Murcia, what are those small castles?”
“O-oh, right. As you can see, it is exceedingly difficult to get to the center of this fortress city without navigating a complex path. These smaller castles beyond the wall function as defense points. We also have multiple vantage points on the wall for archers, where they can take out enemies trying to attack the small castles.”
Ventury looked up at the wall. “That sort of design became outdated long ago. In an age of powerful mages, some would argue that such a trap could easily be countered by knights standing at the vanguard to block the arrows. What would you say to that?”
He wasn’t trying to insult the design, merely asking a question born of true curiosity. Given his status as a veteran soldier, his question directed everyone else’s attention to me. Van and Dee had told me all about how this fortress city could be defended and the applications of all the facilities within it, but if I didn’t display confidence as I explained how it all worked, my words would fall over deaf ears.
I strengthened my resolve, then faced Ventury directly. “Fear not. In addition to the walls surrounding the fortress city, a contraption called a ‘sengan’ provides further protection. It is not easily destroyed. Lord Van has also developed multi-shot machine bows that can be used from above this sengan. Even if heavy infantry protected the mages, they could not block all of the arrows fired their way. In fact, this structure is designed to make taking out any mages who manage to break past the walls simple and efficient.”
Ventury raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Ah, I see. I suppose an ordinary mage could do little against Van’s fearsome ballistae. Mages like us could always destroy the wall from afar… No. No, in that case the fortress could simply attack us with the ballistae lining the walls. I see. This superstructure is indeed impregnable!”
The other nobles began voicing their agreement, one after another. “So it would be difficult to strike with magic from afar, but also to attack with brute force… I see now. I pity anyone who tries to take this fortress city.”
“As expected of one of Lord Van’s designs!”
“Quite right, quite right.”
A slight sense of inferiority washed over me as I listened to them, but I was also genuinely happy to hear my little brother receive so much praise.
I raised my head and said, my voice coming out a bit louder than intended, “Exactly! This fortress city is nothing like it was before! And the surprises don’t end with the small castles or the city’s interior design: there are countless little traps and systems all over the place! I heard from Van that he wanted to add more, but as it stands, I doubt any fortress city out there is more deserving of being called impregnable! As the person in charge, I can state that definitively!”
Crap, I screwed up already! I was so excited to hear them praise Van. Funny, I don’t think I would have rambled like that if it were me instead of Van. I just don’t have that kind of confidence in myself…
Cold sweat rolled down my face while I waited for His Majesty’s reaction. The man burst into laughter and gently patted me on the back. “Ha ha ha! I see, I see! I thought you to be a bit unreliable at first, but I clearly could not have hoped for a better governor! That confidence of yours recommends you,” he said, more jovially than I could have anticipated. “Actually, I realize now that I have yet to learn the name of this new fortress city. Judging by how definitively you called it impregnable, surely it must have a name?”
I swallowed hard, but there was no way to avoid answering him. “Fortress City Murcia,” I said quietly, making everyone blink a few times.
I led our visitors to the castle tower at the stronghold’s center, even as they chuckled at me. My face was blazing, yes, but at least now His Majesty and the others were conversing freely with me, so perhaps this was for the best. They’d gotten the impression that I was a confident governor. Personally, I was pretty embarrassed about gushing about my much younger brother’s accomplishments as if they were my own, but…all was well that ended well.