Chapter 246: Gourmet Cavalry

We have received two more reviews since the last update.

And today, June 25, Volume 4 of the manga was released, which mainly focuses on the battle against the Black Dragon Knights......... the battle against Civit. The tension of the battle against Civit, Touka’s dark coolness, and Seras’ majestic beauty, as well as the combination move of Touka and Pigimaru, were especially drawn filled with intensity. In addition, The manga’s Volume 4 includes content that is exclusively told in the manga. It tells the story of how Civit “was taken in by Bacchus Empire’s Gartland family and rose to become the leader of the Black Dragon Knights”, which wasn’t really described in detail in the novel. I had written a scenario for this manga-only content and handed it to them, but Uchiuchi Keyaki-sama and Uyoshi Shou-sama took that scenario and incorporated it into the manga in a very vivid way. The quality is excellent, and it shows how Civit came to be known as “Humanity’s Strongest”. We hope you enjoy reading it.

And with that, that’s it for the foreword’s thanks and advertisement.

Well then, I hope you enjoy the main story.

[Reporting!]

Reports are coming in one after another.

[Enemies are approaching from the right flank! The estimated number of enemy soldiers is around 100 to 150! This information has also been sent to Ser...... K- Koudelka-sama, and we have already been given instructions!]

(T/N: Right flank from their perspective, left flank from Faraway Country’s perspective)

The Leopardkin messenger who finished conveying the report turned back.

The messenger who sent me such information is a Leopardkin.

The place I’m in now———— is already the front line.

The area in front of me is partially a forest area.

Within the surrounding rocky terrain———— greenery spreads out near their center.

It’s as if that spot of greenery was an oasis in the desert.

Once there, Gio and the others waited for the enemies.

Thereupon, another Leopardkin arrived.

[T- This is a follow-up report on the Dragon Light Army that had engaged the enemies————]

I could feel some tension in his voice.

[O- Our side is winning! The enemy, who called themselves the Fourth Cavalry, seems to have retreated temporarily! On the other hand, the casualties on our side is minor......!]

Hearing the messenger’s words, I quickly pulled out the map and unfurled it.

I then confirmed to him the area where they fought.

[Did they fight around here?]

[Y- Yes.]

He nodded his head in excitement.

He must have felt the atmosphere of the battlefield firsthand and was getting excited.

According to his explanation...... It seems that they used a certain “secret path”.

It’s a secret path we found while we were surveying the terrain......

If one successfully draws the enemy forward with a bait———-

They can use the secret path to go around and attack them from behind.

On the other hand, if the other side can get through that secret path, it’s possible that a group would be caught in a pincer attack.

[It seems like they did exactly as they were instructed.]

It seemed like they didn’t get hasty and charged in blindly.

It’s just that......

[It seemed like Niko played quite the role in the battle huh.]

Wielding a large sword that was more than her height, she apparently slayed a large number of enemies.

[The Four Warlights’ combat power is greater than I thought......]

Looking away from the messenger who was already on his way back to the main camp, I turned my gaze ahead.

The main force on the left flank is the Dragon Light Army, led by Niko.

The main force on the central flank is the Leopard Light Army, led by Gio.

The main force on the right flank is a mixed force of the leaderless Horse Light Army and monsters.

The right flank is being led by Roa, the Cerberus.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Horse Light Army, Qir is acting as the Chief Commander at the main camp.

The only group that doesn’t have one of the Four Warlights leading them is the right flank.

I’ve heard that that Cerberus is also a very capable fighter though......

[.........................]

Tenth Cavalry Captain, Aigis Wine.

[Now then.]

Aigis plaited her long black hair and let it hang down her back.

Repositioning her spectacles straight, she held her halberd up on her horse.

[It’s about time for us to move, isn’t it?]

The blade part of her halberd resembled a meat cleaver.

The Tenth Cavalry was also known as the “Gourmet Cavalry”.

[It would be great if there are some Demi Humans that we haven’t seen before. Don’t you think so too, Torres?]

[It is as you say.]

Lining up his horse at Aigis’ side is Torres, her Deputy.

He is a slender, mature man with a mustache.

There are many light burns on his burly arms.

The burns were caused by cooking.

Behind the two————are more than a hundred cavalrymen.

[It sure is great, being able to procure provisions on the spot, isn’t it?]

[It is as you say.]

[Spice and other stuff are of course——–]

[Yes, all of them are prepared.]

[And the cooking utensils———-]

[—–were all set.]

Munch!

Torres chewed through the dried meat in his hand with gusto.

[The new cauldron that you had asked to be prepared was also brought.]

[Good.]

Aigis brought her hand on her chin.

[There are also many monsters that can be eaten as long as they are properly prepared. Depending on their race, there are also some parts of Demi-Humans that can be eaten as is...... But a good Demi-Human really depends on the skill of the chef, doesn’t it?]

[I, too, have a lot of experience handling Demi-Humans.]

Edible livestock.

Monsters.

What are the criteria for categorizing these two?

One of them is whether or not they are edible.

“Monsters, even if they’re edible, taste bad.”

Hence, even in underground ruins, provisions aren’t procured on the spot.

The only time that adventurers would eat monsters is in an emergency.

[Ahh, I wonder if they have centaurs or something like that!? We’re gonna have horse meat! Horse meat~~!]

[Even with available supplies at hand, they certainly weren’t beings that humans wanted to eat...... Though I say that, horsemeat is indeed pretty difficult to cook. Well———– That also makes it most rewarding.]

[Ahh, I hate fighting humans! They just aren’t tasty at all! I don’t want to fight against humans! I hate them!]

[Worry not, for our enemies this time only consists of Demi-Humans and Monsters.]

[That’s the greatest! Vysis-sama, for giving us this battle, please accept my love! Hey, you!]

Aigis called out her subordinate from the back.

[You lot prepared a good number of nets to catch them, right!? Right!?]

[Hahh! We brought as much as we could!]

[Well done! We shouldn’t just thoughtlessly kill our enemies after all!]

The freshness of one’s ingredient loses over time when they are killed.

One would also need to worry about rigor mortis.

That’s why, it’s best to catch prey alive and dismantle them only when they’re about to be cooked.

(T/N: Rigor Mortis is the process of a corpse stiffening after their death.)

[But then, dismantling is so much fun! However, dismantling livestock while trying to keep them alive...... is just so d*mn annoying! They just won’t keep their mouths shut! That’s their only problem! How depressing......]

[Hfuuu...... It is indeed a chef’s fate to face such burdens. However, talking about it like this makes my hand itching to get started right away...... Aigis-sama.]

[Excellent! That’s what makes us chefs! Ah, yes, as for their other remains like their pelt, horns and other such parts, let’s just sell them off to the Eight who like processing such things......]

[Now then, Aigis-sama......]

Holding the jagged-bladed dismantling weapon in hand, Torres asked.

[For this battle...... What percentage of the enemy should we leave alive?]

[Hmmm, I think we should leave about 30% of them alive. If there’s a family or a parent and child, serving them on the same plate would just be the best♪ Also, make sure that you would always keep at least a pair alive for each species, okay!? Am I clear?]

[Your order has been received.]

Thereupon, with exaggerated movements, Aigis turns to the people behind her back.

[You lot, have I made myself clear?]

The soldiers behind her responded with vigor.

Morale is high.

“When facing against them, they’re the unit that I don’t want to be a prisoner of.”

The only unit most mentioned other than Alion’s the Sixth and the Ninth are them......

The Tenth Cavalry.

Their strength is well-known.

They are people driven by their appetite.

One of the three major human needs had become the source of their power.

Being one of Alion’s Thirteen Cavalries, they can’t be weak.

At that moment, a messenger arrived.

[The Fourth has begun to engage the enemy on the right flank.]

[So, the enemy’s species...... The species!?]

[It seems that their main force is made up of dragonewts.]

[Ahh, dragon meat!? That sounds delicious! Why the heck weren’t they on this side!?]

Another messenger arrived.

[Reporting! They’re still some distance away, but we’ve spotted a herd of centaurs ahead! We think that they’re headed this way!]

[Ahh...... How about we intercept this group first?]

[Yes. Centaurs aren’t that bad.]

Yet another messenger had arrived.

[Haahhh...... Haahhh......! Reporting......!]

[Hmm? You are...... from another unit, right? My, oh my...... You look quite battered up. You look terrible! You look astonishingly terrible! Seriously, get your dirty self away from me!]

The messenger’s gear was dirty and smeared in blood.

There were two arrows lodged in his body.

His breathing was shallow and he was very weak.

His legs were wobbly as he drew closer.

From the looks of it, he might not have long to live.

What could have happened to him?

[We were attacked by the enemy and our troops were almost annihilated...... and we dispersed......]

[It seems like there’s someone incredibly skilled among the opponents.]

[In the grove near the central path, w- we were hidden Leopardkins...... ambushed us.]

[Were they that strong?]

[They were indeed strong...... but there’s that one stupidly strong monster among them...... He looked like their general. Red eyes and black fur...... larger than the other Leopardkin...... I think his name was Gio?...... He wields two blades...... and a large katana...... Guhhh....... A- Against a monster like that...... A monster like———- There’s no way we can......! There’s no way we can win!]

As if he’s remembering what happened when they were ambushed......

[Hyiiii......!]

The messenger collapsed in front of Aigis.

Hugging his knees, the messenger’s body was trembling......

However, this messenger is still a member of the Thirteen Cavalries.

As a soldier, he shouldn’t be weak.

[Nfuuu......]

(A large black Leopardkin......)

Her grip on her halberd growing stronger, Aigis turned her gaze towards the central flank.

[Leopardkin huh...... That could also work. How about we go to the central path instead? Feels like we’re getting a feast over there instead...... I want to dismantle them. Especially Demi-Humans and Monsters, unlike when we dismantle humans, it doesn’t hurt at all to dismantle them, which is quite great.]

[—————- —————-]

[ ? ]

————–Crickle, crack—————

Still facing towards the central path, Aigis came to a halt.

No......

She can’t move.

Out of the corner of her eye, she managed to catch sight of “him”.

His trembles had stopped———– That messenger just now.

Pweeet!

The messenger whistled with his fingers.

Aigis wondered if that was some signal.

But then, she noticed it.

She’s been mistaken.

That blood......

It probably isn’t his.

Thinking about it again......

The dirt on his equipment......

She wasn’t able to identify what unit he was in because it was dirty.

“Could such a thing be a coincidence?”, she wondered.

At that moment, the rear started to notice that there’s something strange in the front.

Standing up from the ground————- The messenger pointed his hand towards the rear.

[————– ————–]

[W- What just......? Aigis-sama? Speaking of which, which unit are———–]

[Ghaaaaaa———-!]

[Uwaahhh, oi!? What the heck is with you!? Gyaahh!? Did you just freaking bit......!]

[You b*staaaaard! Wait until I get my hands on you! I’ll butcher you to pieces!]

[ ]

[ ! ? It...... became darker......!? No, my eyes......!?]

It seems that not all of them couldn’t move their bodies.

However, the rear was engulfed in chaos.

(Did something...... happen?)

Though she thought as such, one thing she’s sure about is that there’s an enemy.

The remaining able members of the unit should somehow be able to take care of the man who disguised himself as a messenger————

[Gurururururuuuuu......]

She turned her attention back ahead.

On the other side of the rocky area————- near the turning point.

Appearing over there was a flock of monsters.

Seeing the monster leading the flock of monsters, Aigis became stunned.

(Three-headed...... canine monster...... Don’t tell me...... A- A Cerberus!? The real thing!?)

With a low growl deep in their throats, the flock of monsters slowly drew closer.

There are also Monsters that she’s only seen in illustrated reference books.

They aren’t Golden-eyed Monsters, but they’re atrocious———— Incredibly ferocious beings.

However, they looked very regulated.

That’s when it happened.

The messenger turned back to the front.

The rear seemed to be restless and was causing quite the ruckus.

Or rather......

[A- Aigis-sama! What should we do!?]

Perhaps, trying to ask for instructions, they were trying to come towards the front.

Unable to speak though, Aigis couldn’t give them any instructions.

The messenger quickly snatches the halberd from Aigis’ hand.

Just after he snatched it away, the messenger swung the halberd.

——–Fwooooshh!———–

Still atop her horse, the brandished blade slashed Aigis’ throat.

[Aghaa.............—————]

Riiip! Kriiiip!

The messenger pulled off the arrow that had been lodged in his shoulders.

Yes, it wasn’t actually pierced into his body.

It’s just that the arrow made it look like he was seriously injured.

In other words————- his frightened self was also an act.

The messenger snorted.

[I’ve been thinking about how disturbing your weapons are...... What were you lot planning on dismantling with that? What’s with those big-ass cooking utensils? Dismantling Demi-Humans and Monsters...... was it?]

The face dyed in fear wasn’t there anymore.

In fact, the man was unusually calm for someone who should be on the battlefield.

Even though she was about to die, the only thing on Aigis’ mind was her fear for that man.

His cruel eyes emotionlessly reflect the chaos Aigis and her group were in.

Holding no mercy, nor compassion.

[Well, I can already imagine your thought process...... but thinking about all that happened, I no longer care anymore.]

That’s when it happened.

Speaking human words, the Cerberus asked the man.

[Are we capturing them?]

[For the time being, capturing them isn’t necessary. There’s also a number of people I couldn’t paralyze because of the headcount limit, and they’re coming towards us instead of fleeing...... If it’s possible, don’t let anyone escape.]

[With my speed and this terrain, I would still be able to hunt down escapees.]

[Good.]

At that moment, the Cerberus gave out a single howl.

Thereupon, the growls of the monsters became more vicious than ever.

They looked like they were about to attack.

Their demonic eyes are also filled with ferociousness.

Is that man...... Is that human......

—–controlling these monsters?

Slightly looking up, the man glared towards Aigis.

Or perhaps, he was looking at her with disdain.

[Kill them.]

Raising the halberd aloft————- The messenger man pointed towards the Tenth Cavalry.

[Charge.]

□

13:45 ———————- Tenth Cavalry, Annihilated.