NOVEL NEXT Chapter 287
When we arrived at Jog Castle, what greeted us was a scene of devastation so severe it was hard to behold.
“How could this happen……”
Burnt-down houses.
The farmland was damaged beyond cultivation, and the streets were filled with suffering and groaning territorial people sprawled everywhere.
Not only had the troops disappeared, but this was somewhat expected. Even the complete depletion of supplies fell within our predictions.
But—never in our wildest dreams could we have imagined that our army would be prevented from reorganizing by having the territory utterly destroyed.
This place… wasn’t it the territory under Brance Army’s control for generations in the Central Continent?
“This is… too much.”
“Truly… we can absolutely never forgive this…”
The voices of General Iren and Reika echoed nearby.
While Reika’s half-sobbing reaction made sense given her more civilian background, even Iren—who had weathered countless battlefields and scenes of hell—showed such a response. Clearly, none of us had anticipated this level of disaster.
At that moment…
A local villager grabbed my foot, pleading desperately.
She wore tattered clothes, looking almost like a beggar, as she begged:
“S-Save us, General! We swear, no matter what happens, we will never cooperate with a witch like Serpina! Please, please… save us!”
“…”
It seemed she mistook me for someone from Chel’s forces. Slowly kneeling down to meet her gaze, I replied:
“Don’t worry. We won’t harm you.”
“R-Really…?”
“Yes. The Serpina Army would never pointlessly massacre innocent territorial people.”
As relief crossed her face, it immediately froze upon hearing the name “Serpina Army.”
“Wha… What did you say…? That, that means—”
“Calm down.”
I placed a hand on her shoulder.
“I know what you’re trying to say, but we have no intention of harming you.”
“A-Ah…”
“It’s fine. You can answer slowly. We’ll wait.”
I waited patiently, maintaining eye contact without rushing her. Iren and Reika, who followed me, also quietly awaited her response.
Finally, she spoke.
“Th-Then… Lord Chel…?”
“He fled.”
“But… but what about the story about collaborators within the Serpina Army?”
‘That was just their excuse.’
So burning the livelihoods of the territorial people was all for that reason? Surely not the real goal. This was likely done to ensure our army couldn’t properly resupply long-term when facing them in battle. Their actions suggested they intended to throw everything they had against us one last time without regard for consequences.
Given this destruction, it was clear the loyalty of the territorial people would crumble—a move that shouldn’t have been made if Chel aimed for the unification of the continent.
“…There are no collaborators within our ranks.”
“But how… why…!”
As I denied the existence of collaborators, tears streamed down the woman’s face. Her expression twisted, as if something that should never happen had occurred.
“If there are no collaborators, then why… why did my husband… why did my children…!!!”
“Calm down! First of all—”
“Swen.”
At that moment, a familiar voice called out from behind me.
“Serpina Lady…?”
“Would you mind stepping aside for a moment?”
Silently, I moved aside to let her take over. Serpina knelt before the woman just as I had, meeting her eyes.
“D-D-You are…”
“Serpina von Einhardt. That is my name.”
“!!!”
“You need not fear. I have no intention of harming you.”
“…!!”
“Judge not by hearsay alone. Look directly into my face with your own eyes.”
“How do you feel? Are you still afraid? Do you see me as some wicked witch?”
The woman trembled, unable to respond, yet it was evident she had regained some composure compared to when speaking with me earlier.
“Chel Brance abandoned you. He burned your homes to cause us losses.”
“H-How could he… Why would Lord Chel…”
“That’s the kind of man he was. From the start.”
Upon hearing Serpina’s words, the woman collapsed to her knees, staring blankly at the barren wasteland before her, devoid of hope.
“Why… why did you do this…”
The woman began to sob uncontrollably. Iren silently bowed his head while Reika wiped away her own tears. Whatever happened here must have been horrific, judging by her reaction alone.
Amidst this, only Serpina maintained her calm.
After several minutes, as her crying subsided and she gradually calmed down—
“Do not worry.”
With an unusually gentle tone, Serpina addressed her.
“You will now be under the protection of the witch.”
“Y-Yes…?”
“As long as you are under my rule, nothing like this will ever happen again.”
“!!!”
“Judge whether or not I am a ruler worthy of your trust. In these tragic times, resisting someone unworthy is one of the few rights you possess.”
Having finished speaking, Serpina slowly rose and looked down at the woman she had just faced.
“But I fear no such judgment. Soon, you will understand which path to follow—Brance or Ainhardt.”
“Serpina… Lady.”
Without responding to the woman who had uttered her name for the first time, Serpina turned and walked away. After gently calming her, Iren, Reika, and I followed after Serpina.
*
Our first action after occupying Jog Castle was damage control.
At this point, Chel’s strategy had partially succeeded. Although it would ultimately cause him great losses in the long term, it managed to delay our progress effectively.
Elite soldiers from our occupying forces stepped forward to reconstruct the houses, and plans were established to revive the market.
Just then, I recalled rebuilding Jeilrant Castle amidst repeated battles and storms.
“Here is today’s food supply. There’s plenty, so you don’t need to worry for now.”
“Thank you so much…”
Distributing food wasn’t overly taxing for us. During the plague outbreak across the Central Continent, we had solidified our internal strength significantly. With no issues in our supply lines and ample provisions, securing the loyalty of the territorial people was crucial as we sought to become their new rulers.
As we distributed basic rations to the territorial people, a male voice called out from behind.
“Strategist, you’ve worked hard. Let’s switch shifts.”
The speaker was Irian. Since becoming the nation’s strategist, he had addressed me formally.
Though I held a higher rank than General Irian as the nation’s strategist, being addressed respectfully still felt unnatural. Initially, I told him it wasn’t necessary, but given his firm resolve, I eventually stopped pushing the issue.
“How’s the situation?”
“The restoration of Jog Castle is almost complete. However… the scouts we sent out earlier have returned.”
“The ones we dispatched recently?”
“Yes. As you predicted, every single area under Chel’s control has been completely burned to the ground, except for one place—Alcanwood Castle.”
So the enemy had gathered at Alcanwood. It was the only logical choice if they wanted to prolong the conflict, though bypassing all territories would likely consume more time.
“Understood. Do you know where General Iren is?”
“She’s at the barracks.”
After switching duties with Irian, I headed to the barracks where I found Iren encouraging the soldiers.
“Thanks for your hard work, Swen.”
“Same to you. How’s it going?”
“The morale of the soldiers is at its peak. Each soldier training has an intense look in their eyes. They’ve seen how mercilessly the territory was burned; Chel made a grave mistake. His attempt to slow us down has instead ignited our fighting spirit.”
“That seems accurate.”
Even if our progress has been delayed, if this incident improves public sentiment toward Serpina even slightly…
Though it might be disrespectful to the territorial people to think this way, I couldn’t help but entertain such thoughts.
At that moment,
Iren looked at me seriously and asked,
“…Swen.”
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Hmm… yes.”
Iren hesitated briefly, then nodded as if making a decision.
“What is Lady Luna like?”
“Wha…?”
An unexpected question about someone I hadn’t thought about in a while.
“I’m asking about her character.”
[!– Slider main container –]