The hundred-man army Ekkart. Those were the main forces of the Tayar region and they have been on the rise in their performance recently. At the encampment, the cheers continued. The war was pretty much already won. The regular soldiers would be able to go back to their home, and the dreams of the mercenaries and irregulars were welling up with ideas of what they could do once they got their payment.

“You are so noisy, Frank. It´s not like you guys were doing anything.”

Ignahts puffed up his cheeks. (TL note: I swear that´s exactly what is written there! 0.0 ->イグナーツは頬を膨らませる

“But you know, how bad would it be if he wasn´t here…  The reason why we could move around freely as we well wished was because those two smashed through everything into a path for us.”

Frank looked downwards to Ignahts due to their difference in height. Ignahts showed an angry face and straightened his back. Even so, it was to no use. Frank tilted his head, wondering about the curious action, and Ignahts twisted his face in annoyance.

“All was because of Willian-san´s… Rather, all was because of Karl-sama´s strategy. We simply attacked at the places they would told us to. And then, we would gladly take the enemies on…”

“Haven´t Willian-san said so himself before? That strictly speaking, even pebbles count? As long as you can put some amount of pressure, anything is fine. That´swhy.we were useful too. He said numbers are also important after all.”

“Hah, you can´t put the rewards we will receive and the ones the little pebbles will in the same level.”

“I guess. But I still think that we are getting it very easily. It doesn´t change the fact that all we have been doing was following what was being told to us.”

“With you putting it like that, it feels like we are pretty weak.”

Iknahts sat down. Frank followed him by lowering his head. In the end, there wasn´t anyone that could work their heads other than Willian, and except for the centurion of the Ekkart army, all  the other ten-man captains had already perished.

“Ah, sorry for having you wait, you two. The meeting is over now.”

Karl suddenly showed up from the tent and approached the two people who were waiting for him.

“No, please don´t mind. So, how did it go?”

Iknahts, who was sitting down, stood up, and Frank also corrected his posture.

“Hm, I guess it is the same as always?”

The three exchanged glances and quickly left the place. Once they were far enough, Karl sighed.

“However, as to be expected, it is really depressing. The way people talk about the plans Willian came up with as if they were mine…”

With an angry face, he let out those words.

“But even so, didn´t Willian-san said that was fine?”

Karl´s face became even more frowny because of Iknahts´ question.

“Rather than having accepted it, it is more like he is entrusting it to me. He said that it would be more persuasive if I was the one talking to them.”

If it was by Karl, he would have everyone know about Willian´s incredibleness. He was feeling guilty because of how it looked like he was taking all the fame for himself, and he also didn´t like how he was using Willian.

“Perhaps this might be a bit rude, but as to be expected, I believe that the words of a n.o.ble and those of a foreigner have different weights. Perhaps, from an outside perspective, it might be easier and better for people to accept if Willian-san is the sword and Karl-sama is the head.”

It was an explanation very much Frank-like. It was probably the truth, but Karl had many things he couldn´t accept about it.

“Well, wouldn´t it be fine to just put up with it? If we follow Willian-san´s plans, we will never lose, right?”

“I don´t think it is good to be proud about that…”

“Yes, yes, Frank is really the goody two shoes.”

“Ahaha, I guess for now we should go get Willian and ready the arrangements for tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” “Yes.”

In order to have the arrangements prepared, the three went to where Willian was waiting for them.

The three went inside the tent that was given to Karl´s ten-man squad. The tent wasn´t big or s.p.a.cious, but it was still an incredible item that could be carried around by packing it, was light to carry and also could protect them from the wind to some extent.

“We are bac… Hm?”

Willian, who would normally be there thinking about the battle plans with the map spread out on the small table, would be greeting them now, but this time…

“……..”

Willian was sleeping.

“…….”

The three of them were dumbfounded. He was sleeping, peacefully breathing while sitting on the stool and having his mask on.

“…H-how early… I just witnessed something unbelievable.”

Iknahts expressed his surprise with a low voice so that he wouldn´t wake Willian up. Frank silently nodded, agreeing to him. Karl was also surprised, stupiditly looking at that scene.

“Wh-what´s the matter?”

In surprise, Frank hurriedly asked Karl.

“…Let´s for now leave the tent.”

As if all the three had been already planning on doing so from the start, they left the tent.

The three were being surrounded by a mood that made it hard to talk.

“So even that person sometimes does show his weak side just like that.”

Frank quietly muttered. Inahts responded, saying “Indeed”.

“He looked tired these last few days, so I guess even if it is Willian we are talking about, there will be times he can be like that. Yeah.”

“Well, we were in a series of battles after all. We didn´t get to go back to Arkas for some time.”

“Also, these last days, it had been pretty much Willian-san that was moving our hundred-men army from behind the scenes, so I guess he would be having a proportional amount of anxiousness.”

Through Karl, Willian had been giving proposals about the movement of their army. In order for the proposals to be accepted, they also had to do things like bribery and flattering so that they would get Ekkart´s favor. It was only the obvious that Willian, who was by himself being responsible of the forefront work and the work behind the scenes, would get exhausted. In addition to that, he had to constantly keep their military exploits at the top, so what he was doing was not something ordinary.

“What will we do about our strategy meeting?”

Because of Ignahts words, Karl gave an irritated groan. After thinking for a bit, he said.

“Let´s more or less think about our plans, and then tomorrow, we will have Willian check it up. If we don´t rest for a bit, Willian will punish us.”

“Right. Since right now we are pretty much at a winning position, there shouldn´t be anything that would give us problems… What do you think about it, Ignahts?”

“I will leave that for you to think. After all, I´m not good at thinking just like you and Karl-sama.”

“Well then, let´s the three of us think about tomorrow´s plans… and then, let´s go sleep together!”

“!?”

Karl was being all excited. Yes, because the tent was being occupied by Willian, Karl needed to stay together with the other squad members. Karl, who had immediately risen to be the leader of a ten-man squad after the great battle of Raconia, had the privilege to sleep inside a tent. However, Karl himself wanted to sleep outside together with everyone. Right now, Willian, who would keep babbling about his image, wasn´t nearby like he would usually be.

Even though they were at a winning position, they wouldn´t wake up Willian, who was needed for the planning. All this resulted in Karl being able to sleep outside. This was the outbursting of Karl Von Teirah´s supreme plan.

“Bu-but for the o of the Teirah family to be sleeping outside…”

Frank let out a trembling voice. If it became known that Karl had slept outside, it couldn´t be imagined what Frank´s father, whose company was affiliated to the Teirah family, would say to him. What was even more scary was if that would incur Lord Teirah´s wrath. In the worst case, his family would be wiped out. Ignahts, who was more or less in the same position, also had his face become pale.

“At the end of the day, father is just some rich upstart. Now, now, let´s have our strategy meeting, and then, we are all sleeping together.”

“…It can´t be said that a n.o.ble family that had just three generations is just a simple rich upstart family though…”

“The other n.o.bles say that though!”

“The-then, the conduct a n.o.ble should be taking…”

“Really, I will stop asking then. This is an order. The order of a n.o.ble!”

While the two couldn´t even let out any sounds, being in a different page, Karl was all cheery, seeming as if he was mistaking all this as some kind of sleepover. And then, the two…

“”That can´t be good.””

….said in unison.