The news of the disaster was unexpectedly spread to the people before it reached King Loseys.
　While King Rosais was trying to find out the source and the truth of the rumour, Bartolo Manlius's letter arrived.


　The enemy general was the famous Gallic general, Clew.
　Enemy strength is now less than 9,000. However, it may increase with reinforcements from the home country of Roselle.
　We have 11,000 men left.
　Morale is so low that we are in a siege.
　I'll give it at least one month. However, beyond that, it is unknown.
　We need reinforcements as soon as possible.
　The enemy has a hairy monster in tow, so a lot of explosive spears are needed.

　This is what Bartolo's letter said.




　'Now, let's have a meeting of the great families. The agenda this time you all know what's on the agenda. How many reinforcements do we have to send?

　I look around at the bigwigs and say, "Peace is not an option.
　Peace is not an option. The enemy is outnumbered by 9,000 men, and the local army is superior to ours.

　If we send in reinforcements as soon as possible, we can win this war.

　The first to speak was a former Dibelite.

　He said, "The enemy is about 9,000 men, and the local army is 10,000. The local army is 10,000. If that's the case, why don't we send a few thousand troops, additional food and explosive spears, and we'll have no problems?
　''If we can get reinforcements from the Equus tribe and build up our cavalry force, we can definitely win!

　That's a strong statement.
　I agree with you.

　Yeah. I think 2,000 is enough for reinforcements. If I lead them directly, their morale will be boosted.

　As I said this, I checked the expressions on the faces of the great families. They don't seem to have any objections.
　Well, let's vote on it.

　All in favor.

　I was just about to say that.
　A slamming sound rang out down the hallway.

　Then the door opened vigorously and a soldier shouted loudly.


　'Excuse me, sir!　Urgent report!　King Belvedere's army is marching on our borders!　We have five thousand men!


　My heart is going to jump.

　It's okay calm down.

　Fifteen thousand, just barely at the limit of what our country can currently produce. Three thousand of which are on their way to construction and eight thousand to Domorgal.

　So we can move 4,000 of our standing army combined.
　Reinforcements will have to come later, but it's not too late to take out Belvedil.

　Enough to respond.........

　That was when I thought that. Loud footsteps echo in the hallway again.
　A soldier covered in sweat shouts.

　'Excuse me!　It's urgent!　King Evil's army is marching toward our borders!　Five thousand, sir!


　Well the enemy forces have increased to 10,000.
　But we can count on the Equus to help us. At least they're getting trampled and that's better than having the country fall from grace.

　My king!
　I know. We'll send emissaries to the Equusians as soon as possible!　Somebody get me some paper!

　I shout and I hear people running down the hallway again.
　I don't know who it is, but you've got good ears.

　The soldier opens the door without asking permission.
　He has a piece of paper in his hand it's already sealed.

　'Excuse me, sir!　Urgent report!　Civil war broke out among the Equus!　Prince Ledus has raised his troops.　King Equus and Crown Prince Methyl are avenged.　Mr. Muzio and two hundred others have asked for asylum in our country!

　It literally went dark in front of me.






　I greeted Muzio and his friends at the capital's gates.
　Their bodies were wounded. His clothes were tattered and his face was worn out.

　When I said there were a hundred men in the post, there must have been four hundred. And two-thirds of them are women and children.
　Muzio steps forward.

　He looks so depressed that it's hard to believe that Muzio is always smiling pleasantly.
　Muzio steps forward and laughs self-deprecatingly.

　'Hey, smile for me. My friend ... the poor man whose father and brother, his vassals and friends were killed and his country and wife taken from him ...

　.........
　I tap Muzio on the shoulder and say.


　'I accept your asylum. For now ... take a bath, eat your food and sleep for the night.






　Muzio, can you rest?
　...Yeah, I got a little sleep and I'm tired.

　After giving Muzio a two-hour nap, I summoned him to the Grand Council.
　The truth is, I'd like to give him a break like the rest of the Equus, but there's no time to waste.

　"First of all, what's going on?
　It's good. I know where to find the guy.

　While Muzio is resting, I've been talking to some of the leading figures of the Equus tribe, who are relatively healthy.


　It seems that in the middle of the night they were taken by surprise by Redus.
　Ledus had one hundred men and King Equus and Crown Prince Methyl had a thousand.

　But somehow, forty percent of the horses on King Equus' side were not feeling well. Moreover, several generals fell ill at the same time.
　Thus, Redus killed the king and the dauphin and became the chief.
　Muzio escaped with his life and that's what happened.


　But it's unnatural to think of it as a coincidence.

　'As soon as our country is defeated by Roselle, the two countries declare war at the same time. Information is circulating too quickly. On top of that, a political change in an ally. It's a bit of a stretch to assume that this is a coincidence.

　In other words, Roselle is behind this.
　It's not a surprise.

　Hey, Muzio. Don't you have a sorcerer with a Gallic accent in your country?
　The Gallic accent?　You mean you're from Roselle. I think there were quite a few of them. We don't have many good sorcerers in our country, and there aren't many of them. That's why we often recruit foreigners. What the hell is that....no, no way....

　There's no denying it.
　A sorcerer is a doctor. If you're a doctor, it's not that difficult to say that you're going to examine a horse or some other appropriate thing, and make some tricks up the day before.
　The sickness ... can be poisoned or cursed if you make careful preparations in advance.

　''But most of them have been working for King Equus and the Dauphin for ten years now, you know?　I can't believe you've been planning this for ten years...
　Their goal is to control the Adelian Peninsula. In that case, it wouldn't be strange to make a prearranged decision.

　Roselle has a lot of cavalry. In other words, it's a country that understands the importance of cavalry.
　If that's the case, it's not surprising that they've spent a long time crafting to incorporate the Equus race under their control.

　There are people in that country who have lived for five hundred years.
　I'm sure he could pull off a long shot like that.



　As Muzio and I were talking, the door suddenly opened.

　"Excuse me!　It's urgent!　A letter of intent from Prince Ledus, who calls himself King Equus.

　I'm going to read the letter I got from the soldiers.


　First, I demand that we break our alliance with King Losey's country.
　I demand that all fugitives under Muzio be returned to me.
　If you do not accept these demands, I will declare war on your country.
　You have three days to do so.


　I will read it and give it to Muzio when I'm finished.
　Muzio looks over the letter for a while, then grabs it and rips it off.

　'You've got to be kidding me!　Don't talk about the entire Equus tribe about the chieftainship that was taken away by surprise and other cowardly means!

　And Muzio looks at me and says.

　'King Rosais. I would like to ask you to lend me your troops. I will take back my chieftainship.

　I look around at the great families.

　Raimondo raises his hand.
　'King Rosais. I disagree. Our country is currently in a state of crisis. We cannot afford to make more enemies under these circumstances.'

　That's fair enough. You can't add another country to that when even two countries are a problem.
　But.....

　"My kingdom has pacted with King Equus. If we do not obey and avenge our alliance, we will be in breach of it.
　'But now King Equus is Ledus. And he has given us notice to break the alliance.

　Exactly. That's the logic that goes with it.
　I mean, who would be better for my country, Ledus or Muzio, the king? That's the question.

　And with the current information, the disadvantages are too great with Muzio as king.
　So what we need now is the advantage that Muzio offers.

　"When I am king, we will maintain our alliance. We will have more trade than ever before. Also, when Ledus becomes king, the Equus will become puppets to Roselle. Wouldn't that pose a great security problem for your country?
　"The question is whether or not our country can win against the Redus. We're dealing with two countries, even for free.

　If this was the Equus tribe alone, I wouldn't have to worry about it, I'd make Muzio king.

　'Redus has only attacked and destroyed the capital. The Equus are scattered throughout the land. Now that Methyl is dead, the next chief will be a strong one. Many of the Equus still don't know the measure of that. That's why the Redus can only move three thousand at most.
　'Isn't 3,000 cavalry a tricky number?　And you can't win by attacking with infantry against cavalry.
　Unless he kills me, he can't unite the Equus. If I show my face on the battlefield, he will come down for sure. If I lead him into King Losey's country, there will be no escape, no matter how many horsemen he is.

　So that means I need to turn my country into a battlefield.
　Honestly, I think we can win enough with the explosive spear, and I'm willing to support this guy.

　But.........

　'King Loseys!　I don't agree with scorching our country for the sake of another country!

　Raimondo shouts that he disagrees. The great tribesmen in agreement with him the great tribesmen who are in contact with the Equus tribe's territory nod widely.

　''Muzio, we need another push. Muzio, we need another push. When you become king, I will give you all the cavalry you need to defend the country, but not the minimum number. Free of charge. And whenever my country sends an army to you in the future, you will have to send your own. And I will be the one to put a crown on your head.
　So you want me to be a vassal?
　We're just friends.

　I reply, and Muzio smirks.

　'It's fine. Tributes are unnecessary, right?
　I don't take tribute from my friends.

　I reply, and Muzio puts his hand over his heart.

　'I understand. Muzio Equus Sulpicius and the Equus tribe swear to be the eternal friends of King Rosais' kingdom.

　That's it.
　I look around at the great families.

　From the expressions on their faces, I'd say 30 percent for, 50 percent against, and 20 percent neutral.


　Gentlemen, it may be strange for our country to shed blood for Muzio. But Redus killed his father, the patriarch, and his brother, his successor, in a cowardly manner. Is this permissible?

　Patriarchal rights are strong on the Adelian peninsula. Adelnians are also a family-oriented people.
　There is no worse crime than killing your father or brother.

　"When we hand Muzio over to Redus, we take a knee to a coward. Is that what you want, gentlemen?　You don't want to bow down to a coward and spill your blood.

　First of all, it stimulates the pride of the Adelnians and the pride of the great families.
　Then..........

　If we help the Equus now, the Equus will help us. I think we all know how strong their riders are. Thousands of horsemen. They can easily beat back Belvedere and Evil.

　The risk is great. But the return is great.
　It will take a big gamble to break this siege.

　"Listen, this is Rozel's plan. Lozell has resorted to these measures in order to break the bond between our country and Equus. Roselle is afraid of the cooperation between our country and Equus. If we continue to abandon Lord Muzio, we will be at the mercy of Roselle. I believe that the power of Equus, and the power of Lord Muzio, is essential to get through this crisis.

　I concluded shortly.
　Well, there's nothing more to say.

　Well, I'd like to adopt a resolution. I want to remind you in advance that I will respect the outcome of the Australian Council, regardless of the outcome of this resolution.


　The result.....

　Seventy percent for and thirty percent against.

　Thus the decision was made to open war with the Equus tribe.







　'The question is how to hold back Evil and Belvedil while we fight the Equus.

　The Equus tribe is three thousand. If we are going to kill them with infantry, we will need at least the same number.
　The number of men we can move at this moment is 4,000. And 3,000 against the Equus, that's 1,000.

　We can't stop 10,000 men from attacking us with 1,000.
　So.....

　"Cancel the construction. And put 3,000 men in arms. That will bring the number of men we can apply to Belvedere and Evil to 4,000.

　Four thousand wouldn't be hard to hold off 10,000 for a while.
　A combination of fortifications and scorched earth tactics will do it.

　And on top of that...

　Call the Earl. Tell him that we are to make a deal with King Zoldiath. We don't need Zoldiers' army. But while I'm negotiating with him, Evil is too afraid to move well behind me. And about King Belvedere we're going to need Rezad to rescue us.

　It's going to get expensive, though.
　Huh....

　'O king. Shouldn't we ask Gehenna to rescue us as well as Rezad?　The Pretender (King) over there is Lord Tetra's grandfather, isn't he?
　''Well yes. I'll send relief to Lord Abraham as well.

　I don't want to let that old turd intervene, though.
　I can't say four or five.

　'Then I'll send out a messenger as soon as possible. Bring me the paper!


　After sending a request for reinforcements to both Rezad and Gehenna, and a letter of intent to Nemeth asking for neutrality, I ordered my men to gather them.

　If we don't act quickly, Evil, Belvedil and Equus will come.

　'King Rosais, it's bad news!

　The great clan that was supposed to have ordered him to gather the soldiers shouted with tears in their eyes.
　What's next........


　'The men working on the construction project have refused to serve!
　Huh!