Surviving The Game As A Barbarian Novel - Chapter 709
Chapter 709: Conscription (4)
After leaving the post of District Seven, I took the military magic circle and quickly arrived in the royal capital of Karnon. I was greeted by a group of knights as soon as I opened my eyes, catching me a bit off guard.
“We are here to escort you, Baron Yandel.”
Those prideful knights of the palace actually came here to greet me. Maybe it was because we were in the middle of a war.
“Please board the carriage.”
With that, I was escorted by the palace knights and headed towards the Palace of Glory, a place I had visited a few times already thanks to the ceremonies I attended during my progress as a noble.
It certainly feels like we’re in wartime.
The Palace of Glory I arrived at was completely different from usual, and I was just talking about the general air it gave off.
“We have confirmed Baron Bjorn Yandel’s identity.”
The identification procedure at the gate was severalfold more thorough, for one. As I entered the large open area beyond the gate, I could see what looked to be a military camp, though it did look a little different from the standard image that term might bring to mind.
Looks like there are only officers here.
Since we weren’t at the frontlines, there were multiple communication pylons stationed around the camp, with soldiers who seemed more proficient with the pen than the sword standing in front of them. Those soldiers were also discussing something in serious tones with a map spread before them.
“The headquarters are this way.”
I saw a few more familiar faces once we crossed the threshold of the Palace of Glory.
Count Ferdehilt.
Viscount Mülbark.
Count Alminus…
Something about their acknowledging me with their eyes from across the hall had me feeling a bit uncomfortable. Nowadays, it felt like I was more used to seeing people of this caliber than knights, officers, Adventurer’s Guild branch managers, and high-ranking civil servants.
Even that Count Ferdehilt over there. I first met him at the banquet hall…
There, I became a barbarian warrior and fought against the knights, earning myself the nickname of “Knight Crusher” and the item Garphas’ Necklace as my trophy in the end.
It’s already been a few years since then…
Now, I was exempt from most regular laws and had become a titled noble who was only punishable under noble law. I’d even become the chieftain of one of the six races that made up the city and was the captain of a clan of my very own. Yet for some reason…
I still think I enjoyed that time the most.
Recklessly fighting against rank 6 monsters, watching the mana oversaturation phenomenon on the third floor, and living life while competing against other adventurers we met inside the labyrinth.
Whenever I felt mentally exhausted, I thought back to those times even though, from an outsider’s perspective, my current position was unbelievably better and stronger.
“The supreme commander is holding a meeting, so could you wait here for a moment? You may go anywhere within the military complex.”
“Sure.”
The knight who guided me here then left, and I took the remaining time to look around the general area and get a feeling for the mood.
“Just how long were you off training in who-knows-where?” said a familiar voice.
A woman of the White Rabbit Tribe approached me.
“Ah, Baroness Lirivia.”
She was a member of the nonhuman noble alliance Melbeth and the house head that favored me the most and nicknamed the Rabbit Baroness.
“Just how much stronger are you trying to get?”
Since we were pretty close, the Rabbit Baroness began the conversation with a joke rather than a proper greeting, and I smirked in response.
“Have you been well?” I asked.
“Quite well, until all this happened.”
“Is that so? Still, it’s good to see you. Do you know what’s going on here? Is there anything I should know?”
The Rabbit Baroness took a moment of pause as if she didn’t expect my question. “Hmm, how should I say this…? Baron Yandel, how much do you know?”
“I don’t know much because I came here in a hurry. Pretend I don’t know a thing and just tell me everything.”
The Rabbit Baroness actually did just that, giving me a detailed rundown of what she knew from start to finish.
“They managed to invade the royal capital…?” I echoed, shocked.
“Not the main force, but a small elite unit.”
On the day the barrier around Bifron disappeared, the Noarkans who went outside created an elite unit and entered the royal capital. However, they didn’t do much damage in the end, and after being spotted by a single search unit, the army hadn’t been able to find any trace of them.
“Did you not see it on your way here? The entire city was overrun with dozens of units.”
Hmm, I did remember seeing some soldiers, but I assumed they were there to defend the capital.
“We don’t know why they tried to infiltrate the capital, but they haven’t been able to find any damage done as of yet.”
In conclusion, there was a chance that the elite unit of Noark was still somewhere within Karnon.
“Still, you don’t have to worry too much about it. A unit of that scale can’t even dream of stepping foot in the royal palace. This place is safe.”
The Rabbit Baroness seemed to genuinely believe it. Her faith wasn’t particularly misplaced either. Considering the number of soldiers stationed in the palace, there was chances were high that even an elite squad of over thirty people would be dealt with within a few minutes.
But they aren’t morons either…
My worry about the squad of Noarkans began to grow.
It’s safer to assume that the palace isn’t a completely safe zone either, I decided, still listening to her take on recent events.
There were quite a few new pieces of information I got from the Rabbit Baroness since she was a titled noble of some renown. Naturally, she had a lot of difficult-to-get intel that ordinary people couldn’t even dream of obtaining.
“The Noarkans were pushed all the way back into Bifron after using the Magic Weapon, but the military command suspects that they planted spies in the process.”
I learned from her that the palace was doing a man-hunt within the many districts that were housing refugees, as they were wary of spies.
“From what I hear from the rumors, it seems the military command is planning on taking all the soldiers into Bifron and cleaning them all out.”
I also heard about the plan of attack as well.
“You said your clan is currently in District Seven? If that’s the case, you may have some casualties on your side as well.”
That, and a muttering I couldn’t afford to ignore. “What do you mean?”
“You…can’t tell this to anyone, alright?”
“Of course.”
After swearing me to secrecy, the Rabbit Baroness glanced at our surroundings before lowering her voice as much as possible as she whispered to me, “Unrelated to the invasion by Noark, the palace apparently determined that the adventurers have grown too powerful.”
“What?”
“Don’t you see it too? Beginning from the war that started on the seventh floor’s Dark Continent, the adventurers are becoming noticeably stronger as time goes by.”
Ah, so that was what she meant.
I…did agree with what she said.
The palace needed to reward the adventurers throughout the entire war.
“To overcome a time of strife, many medium-sized clans were combined and grew into powerful forces in their own right. When they joined the war, they behaved as if they were mercenary companies, and their adventurers were able to grow significantly faster using the equipment and essences they received from the palace.”
“Then the reason they used the extreme method of sealing the labyrinth wasn’t simply to just control the Noarkans.”
“No. Although no one has heard the palace officially declare it as such, many people suspect that this is their true motive.”
“But why is the palace so worried about the adventurers?” I asked, finally voicing a frustration I’d held for a long time.
The Rabbit Baroness responded with this:
“Isn’t it natural? The stronger a group becomes, the louder their voice is in turn. They begin to desire more things, and greed leads to blood. An absolute authority is required to rule this city.”
Hmm, it made sense from a political perspective, but I got the feeling that it wasn’t as simple as that.
The adventurers’ voices became louder as they became more powerful. From what I could tell, the palace wasn’t wary of that so much as the fact itself that adventurers were becoming more powerful.
It’s like they’re trying to stop the adventures from reaching the deepest part of the labyrinth…
The thought slipped into mind as if it were inevitable that I’d arrive at such a natural conclusion.
Ba-dump.
No, wait.
If what I just thought was true…
“Look over there, it’s Baron Yandel.”
“If he is here, it must mean that the clan he leads has reached the frontline as well.”
“That’s good to hear. Compared to a large clan, they’re small in numbers, but each member is as strong as a hundred soldiers.”
“There’s a rumor that’s been going around. If the first adventurer in a thousand years to reach the tenth floor appears, they’ll be Baron Yandel and his allies.”
If that were true, wasn’t my clan in the most danger?
***
The third command center was built by commandeering one of the biggest buildings situated near the city wall of District Seven.
Knock, knock.
A knight-looking petrified entered the room with a knock.
“Commander, an urgent message was sent from the military command.”
“Speak,” demanded a man who sat in front of a huge map laid out on the central table.
The knight who had entered the room carefully gave his report.
“The first news we received was about the sweep operation of Bifron. My rank doesn’t allow me to view the document, so you will have to check it yourself, commander.”
“Got it. What’s the second piece of news?”
“It’s the report that Baron Yandel has arrived at the military command.”
The commander paused. “I see.”
After receiving the report of his subordinate, the man took a moment to steady his thoughts before taking the folder and ripping open its folds to view the documents within.
The day of the operation, the time, the formation of the troops, and so on. It was information that was priceless in times of war and must never fall into the hands of the enemy.
After reading through all the details, the man froze when he saw the proposed formation of the soldiers.
So they’re all going to die.
The elites of the military would be stationed at the back while the adventurers would be at the most dangerous frontlines.
The intentions were all too clear. There was even a final comment at the end of the document.
We hereby notify you that Baron Bjorn Yandel will be stationed at the military command and is not to be transferred elsewhere under any circumstances.
There was no need to even guess what the higher-ups of the military wanted here.
The hand holding the document fell as the man let out a long sigh.
“So do well. Because that won’t happen again.”
The frightening warning left by the barbarian echoed in his mind.
“I don’t like this.”
He was too uncomfortable with the order that came down from above. Regardless of whether the situation actually called for it, he was still just a person in the end.
I don’t know what the palace is thinking…
The man put the unpleasant document on the table and called for his servant again.
“This is the strategic formation given to us,” he said. “Share this with only the highest-ranking officers of each unit, and be discreet about it.”
“Um, this…”
The servant also immediately realized the intentions as soon as he saw the document.
An understandable reaction. The man didn’t like the contents of the document either. However…
“This is a command directly from headquarters, so I won’t allow for any comments.”
If he wanted to continue living in this city, he couldn’t just do whatever he wanted.
“Nia Rafdonia!”
He, at least, wasn’t a barbarian.
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