Chapter 90: A King and his General (3)
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“Hmm.”
Barbatos gave me a sidelong glance. She even added a nasal noise. Her gaze being strangely sexual despite her being a brat is troubling. I’d be grateful if she refrained from using her sex appeal in a public place……. Look. Brother Beleth and Brother Zepar are both acting restless because of you. A young child shouldn’t tease adults.
“Our weasel Demon Lord with a bag of tricks, Dantalian. What sort of malicious scheme have you thought up of to be able to raise your hand so confidently?”
I smiled awkwardly.
“Let us put humans forward.”
“Put humans forward? What do you mean?”
“The margraves’ army consists mostly of cavalrymen and conscripted soldiers. The conscripted soldiers are villagers who have voluntarily gathered because they are afraid of Demon Lords. We will persuade these villagers. We will declare to them that we will not harm those who surrender to us. We will allow them to live their lives as usual. However, they must pledge their loyalty to us. If their lives are guaranteed, then even they will want to avoid going to war. This will greatly weaken the margraves’ forces.”
It’s not like farmers join the military because they feel some sort of loyalty to their territory. It is simply because it would be better to gather in a single place and retaliate together as a group rather than try to fend off the Demon Lord forces alone. An army that has a thorough understanding of each other’s interests, thus they are able to display a strong, focused power. ……However, it is also an army that could collapse at any moment if we offer them a better offer.