Chapter 76

"General, new people have come from the village."

"From the village? What do you mean, Balgas?"

"Probably because they heard about our victory here. Some might think they can join the winning side and receive magic, so they’ve decided to join us."

"I see, that makes sense."

"That’s how it is."

Balgas came to report to me. The content was that new people had arrived from two villages. It seems they came for the sweet rewards. However, right now, I need as much fighting power as possible. I decided to take in the newly gathered people under my command.

According to the information I got from the captured knight, the 500 Fontana troops were indeed just a part of the Fontana family’s forces. They were gathered only to capture the boys from the village at the edge of the territory, and they never expected to engage in a group battle with people who use magic. The presence of 30 knights among the 500 was even considered an exceptional force.

The next question is what action the Fontana family will take. The Fontana family is a noble family, but in terms of military strength, they have about 5,000 troops, and even if they gather all they can, it’s only around 7,000 to 8,000. Given this, our victory over 500 troops and the capture of six knights must be seen as a threat.

Whether they will gather the remaining forces and try to crush us in one go is unclear. However, a pleasant surprise was that the knights believed there would be no intervention from other noble families. If the Fontana family can't handle a village uprising in their own territory and has to ask for help, it would be a huge loss of face and they would owe a significant debt to that power. The Fontana family wouldn't want that.

"Still, it was good that Balgas had a knight acquaintance. He gave us a lot of information because he’s a commoner by birth."

"We fought side by side a few times."

It was fortunate that we could extract valuable information without resorting to rough methods. Balgas’s presence was truly significant. We need to make good use of this information.

"Alright, then let’s strengthen our defenses here. We’re going to build a castle, Balgas."

"Sure, leave it to me."

If the Fontana family doesn’t intend to rely on other powers, we can use that to our advantage. It seems that in this area, noble families who govern the land are often in conflict over territory. The longer it takes, the more disadvantageous it is for the Fontana family. Some suggested a direct assault on Fontana town while the momentum is high, but given that we are a group of complete amateurs in battle, a siege would be impossible. It would result in significant casualties. Therefore, I think a war of attrition is also a viable strategy. When the enemy gets impatient, we might be able to bring them to the negotiating table under the pretext of returning the prisoners. Yes, I’ll ask the old man to spread the word about our righteousness and victory to other villages. With this decision, I began to improve the camp on the north side of the river with the 300 people we now had, leveraging the old man’s merchant network.

***

Building a castle.

The purpose is to protect us, but the ultimate goal is to bring the Fontana family to the negotiating table. The main objective of this conflict is to ensure my safety and gain freedom. I don’t want to wipe out the Fontana family, turn this land into a wasteland, or make it my own. Even if I took over the territory, I wouldn’t be able to maintain it, given that most of the people around me can’t even write properly.

However, as just a commoner A, I wouldn’t be seen as a negotiating partner by the nobles. Therefore, I needed them to see me as a dangerous opponent who won this battle. But the current situation is that we’ve only won one field battle, and the strength difference is still significant. So, I need to make them think that it would be unwise to continue fighting us. That’s why I want to build a castle to make that point.

"That’s why I want to build a castle that will instill fear in the enemy and have proper defensive capabilities. You’re good at construction, right, Gran?"

"Hehe, I never thought such a day would come, Lord Ars."

"What? Can’t you do it?"

"What are you saying? For a builder, building a castle is like a childhood dream. I’ve thought about building a castle countless times."

"…So, you’ve never actually designed a castle before. Are you sure you can do it?"

"It’s just that I never had the opportunity. There are no madmen like Lord Ars who build castle walls on a whim."

"…Are you making fun of me? And did you come here with that in mind?"

"It’s not the only reason, but it was one of them."

"…Alright, fine. I can level the land and build walls, but I’m not good at constructing buildings. I’m counting on you, Gran. Please help me, Gran."

"Understood. I’ll build a magnificent castle that will surprise even the nobles, Lord Ars."

Gran turned out to be more resourceful than I thought. However, I knew he had construction skills from when he built my house. I started discussing the castle’s construction with Gran, exchanging ideas and opinions.

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