Inn Overlord: Reincarnated with Enhancement Magic, Now Worshipped as a Divine Messenger! - Chapter 48

(Thomas Wade, One of the Four Imperial Knights – Perspective)

Since morning, something has been noisy in the direction of Barmuller.

─Has it started…?

Thinking that, I stepped out of my night camp tent. Then, a soldier who was on night watch came to report.

“From the west side of Barmuller, reinforcements from the Kingdom have appeared, but─”

─Is this about Margrave Burlington…?

“The soldiers inside Barmuller shot arrows at those reinforcements!”

“What!?”

“And those reinforcements, who were shot at, are now moving from the west gate toward the south gate and attacking the Kingdom soldiers who were camping in front of us!!”

The other Imperial soldiers don’t know that Margrave Burlington betrayed us. So, they see the Kingdom’s confusion as a good chance to act.

But now that our plan—to take over Barmuller from the inside—has somehow failed, achieving our original goal seems impossible.

─The strange events in Noonan Village…

─That magic soldier with a helmet in the Kingdom’s left wing…

─And now Burlington’s betrayal has come to light, and his soldiers are attacking, trying to surround our Imperial army…

Many unexpected things are happening. But this doesn’t feel like the usual unpredictability of war. It feels like someone who knows our plan is trying to stop us.

Even if we attack now and defeat the soldiers camping outside Barmuller, we still won’t be able to take the city. Also, if we retreat, there’s a risk that the Kingdom’s soldiers will hit us from behind.

“We’re retreating.”

“Huh?”

“All troops, retreat!!”

───────────

(Robert Zappa, Mayor of Barmuller – Perspective)

The soldiers who were camping outside were being attacked by Margrave Burlington’s army. And Prince Abel’s troops moved out from the west and south gates of Barmuller to attack Burlington’s army.

“If the Empire attacks at the same time, the battlefield will become complete chaos…”

“No, that won’t happen.”

Just as Prince Abel said that, a messenger arrived.

“The entire Imperial army is retreating!”

Excited from our side’s victory, the messenger shouted. I questioned him.

“Why are they retreating!?”

It was a good thing, but I couldn’t understand it. The messenger looked puzzled.

“It’s no surprise you don’t understand.”

Prince Abel then explained how Margrave Burlington and the Empire came to work together.

“Burlington betrayed the Kingdom because he wanted to take back his land. The Empire helped him take Barmuller. In return, he agreed to let it become Imperial territory.”

“Why would Lord Burlington agree to that?”

“To him, it didn’t matter whose land it was. What mattered was that the land belonged to him. This place is like a holy land to them.”

“I-I see…”

“That’s why, when the Empire realized Barmuller wouldn’t fall, they decided to retreat early. A wise decision, even if they are the enemy.”

Once more, I looked toward the battlefield from the high wall surrounding Barmuller. Then, a new report came in.

“Burlington’s soldiers attacked the camping infantry unit. Their formation was broken, but Prince Abel’s troops have arrived and are now driving Burlington’s army away!”

The guards and other messengers near me let out sighs of relief and praise.

“The general of Burlington’s army, his eldest son Greg, must be captured─”

Just as I was about to say that, Prince Abel interrupted me.

“There’s no need to focus only on capturing him. Leave it to the field commanders.”

“B-but this betrayal must be punished clearly in the name of King Ingobell─”

At that moment, a report came in that General Greg had died in battle and Burlington’s soldiers had surrendered.

“I see… Then capture the surrendered soldiers─”

Again, Prince Abel stopped me.

“Kill them all.”

I was shocked by his words.

“What!?”

The messengers and guards were also confused.

“Excuse me?”

“W-what…?”

I spoke back.

“T-there’s no need to go that far─”

“Of course there is. This is treason.”

“B-but wouldn’t it be better to keep them alive to use as evidence─”

“Judging them takes time. Until then, we’d have to feed them, guard them, and pay the officials to decide their punishment. Why should the people who were just almost killed by them have to pay for all that? Your families are in Barmuller, aren’t they?”

Prince Abel said that as he looked at the guards and messengers, then continued.

“If I hadn’t come, you and your families might’ve been killed by those traitors. Even so, you want to be kind to them, give up part of your pay, and let them live?”

Everyone except me started to agree with Prince Abel’s words. Then he looked at me and spoke.

“Don’t worry. I have the written documents proving their betrayal. And by now, my men should have reached Burlington’s mansion to capture him. Asking him directly is the best proof.”

Then, another new report arrived.

“Margrave Burlington took poison and died!!”

“What!?”

The betrayal of Margrave Burlington and the Empire’s invasion came to an end—unsatisfyingly and full of questions.