417

Episode 417: Can't Close It Yet. (3)

"My lord!"

The knights of Fenris rushed to Giselle. They were exhausted, but none of them were as seriously injured as Giselle.

Jiselle said with a weak smile.

"Good job everyone."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess I'll need some treatment."

Giselle took out a bottle of potion and drank it. Seeing this, the knights each took out their own potions and poured them on Giselle.

Jiselle waved her hands as her clothes became soaking wet.

"You can stop spraying. The external wound is fine now. The internal wound is the problem, so you need to rest first."

"No, but we still have to be safe!"

"Of course! You are precious!"

Some people just opened the potion cap and threw it at their faces, splattering it. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like there was quite a bit of emotion mixed in there.

To begin with, Giselle's face wasn't that badly injured.

"… …Stop it."

"...yes."

Anyway, everyone breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that Giselle's life was not in danger.

When Giselle's breathing stabilized a little, Gordon asked.

"What are these? Why have they all suddenly turned to dust?"

"That's because the monster is dead. This place hasn't been eroded yet."

"Erosion?"

"We're changing the environment so that those coming out of that crack can operate. That monster came out to do that. They're not allowed in this world."

"… … ."

The knights were speechless, for they had no idea what Giselle was talking about.

Jiselle shook her head several times after seeing the knights' blank stares before continuing.

"Just know that. You'll get used to it eventually."

"So… … what do I do with that crack now? Why won't it close?"

The crack still existed as a hole. The giant monster was gone, and everything else was gone, so why was it still there?

People looked at the crack with slightly anxious eyes.

"Leave it alone for the time being. We can't close it yet anyway. All we can do is surround it and monitor it."

"Yes? You say we should leave it alone? Then people can't live here?"

"Yes. There's still one left to come out. We have to get rid of that one so the crack can close. It's too small to come out right now."

People looked tired at those words.

The things that have come out now are monsters beyond imagination. And yet, there is still something left.

They say that it's because the hole is too small that it can't come out. Even though the hole has already gotten as big as it could be.

'I wonder how big of a monster this is… … .'

It was terrifying to even think about. Isn't it possible that someone much stronger than me will appear?

Even though Jiselle was injured while fighting off the monsters that emerged from the cracks, in the end, it was as if an entire city was lost.

The knights helped Giselle up. The first priority was to find a safe place to rest.

Jiselle, who got up with the support of the knights, raised her head and looked at the crack again.

Swish.

Suddenly, eyes began to appear again through the cracks. Those eyes were bloodshot and glaring at Giselle.

Jiselle looked into those eyes and snickered.

"See you again soon."

Did Giselle get through? Her eyes began to fade again, blending into the purple darkness.

and....

The eyes, shrouded in darkness, seemed to be smiling.

* * *

"No, what is going on!"

Count Selverk, who became the new administrator of the West, was surprised to see Giselle, who had come to him in a mess.

Giselle took Count Selberg to Linderstein's office.

This was usually the seat where Count Selverk would sit and enjoy himself, but he had to give way when his master arrived.

After explaining the situation in detail, Giselle asked.

"Have you dealt with all the crack candidate sites in the West?"

"Yes, we were barely able to subdue them with the troops sent by the Marquis of Branford."

The location of the crack was discovered, and the Salvationists were struggling, making it increasingly difficult to deal with them.

However, areas other than the south were eventually suppressed as the military pushed forward.

"Although there were some places where it wasn't there, the 'altar' existed in most of the locations you told me about."

At first, it was called by various names, but now everyone has unified the name as the Altar of the Church of Salvation.

There were also times when there was no altar in the place that Jiselle had told me about. The information I had heard before becoming the King of Mercenaries was not very accurate.

But since such places were really rare, I wasn't too disappointed with the information Jiselle gave me.

'There will still be places left.'

But there must have been cracks in places that Jiselle didn't know about. Didn't they appear in the Pinlos territory this time too?

Those cracks will soon begin to open, one by one.

"Write the statement quickly."

At Giselle's words, the knights who had been forcibly taken from the Pinros territory bowed their heads. They were the ones Giselle had brought in on purpose in order to secure testimony from those who had directly seen the crack.

After a while, Count Selberg was also surprised when he saw the statement written by the knights of Pinros.

"You're saying that the monsters' strength is superhuman? And that monsters stronger than soldiers keep popping out?"

"Yes."

I knew something would pop out, since the Salvation Church guys wouldn't have offered sacrifices for no reason. But it turned out to be a monster with superhuman strength.

If just one had popped out, several territories would have been destroyed in an instant.

Giselle said to Count Selverk.

"Please deliver this letter to all the lords as soon as possible. I will personally deliver it to the Marquis of Branford."

"Oh, I understand."

While Count Selverk summoned the knights and delivered his orders, Giselle glanced over the papers lying in his office.

While it was important to convey detailed news of the rift, it was equally important to quickly stabilize the West.

Soon Count Selverk returned and reported on what had happened.

"The defeated soldiers have almost all been recaptured."

"Yes, everyone surrendered right away when I told them I would share the food. That's because the Count's rumor spread far and wide."

It is rumored that Giselle accepts those who surrender well and provides them with plenty of food.

Thanks to that rumor, the stragglers who had become a band of bandits surrendered one after another as soon as they learned that Giselle had taken over the West, and Linderstein's army now numbers close to 30,000.

But even if most of the bandits were gone, it would take time for the West to stabilize.

It was a problem that the people were being exploited for war supplies, but it was also because some lords were still committing evil deeds.

There were still people who killed people as if they were eating rice and forcibly exploited them. In this situation, there was no way that the situation would improve even if food was released.

"Now that the confusion has been somewhat resolved, it's time to get things straight."

"How do you say that?"

"We need to make an example of some lords who are hindering stabilization and make them our direct fiefdoms."

"… … That, that."

Count Selverk swallowed hard.

The Margrave of Rodrik became a direct fief of Fenris, but the vassals surrounding it had sworn allegiance to Giselle and surrendered.

If you strike them down, you will be heavily criticized.

"Then it will be a great stain on the Count's reputation in the future. And the other lords will not surrender to the Count."

"I know. I'm not saying I'll kick them all out. I'm just going to take out a few really bad guys as examples."

"Do you really have to go that far?"

Fenris had already taken over the yolk lands of the West. If he took his time and slowly stabilized them, he could make a lot of money.

Anyway, the border lords who did not follow Marquis Rodrik were all of average level.

But Giselle shook her head firmly.

"If I could take it slow, I would have done the same. But right now, we have to solve a problem that involves the lives of many people. We can't let the personal greed of a few ruin things."

That's true. The existence of the crack was revealed and socializing was rampant. A civil war with the Duke's family was also bound to break out.

If there are guys like that in a situation where we have to move in unison, everyone will suffer great damage.

Jiselle looked at Count Selverk with profound eyes and said.

"You can't deal with a crack with a half-hearted attitude. Everyone has to be alert and move with one mind. This isn't a personal fight."

Count Selverk could no longer object. The rights of the barons were important, but if they were to be protected alone, even those rights would disappear.

What's the use if everyone dies?

"I don't want my people and I to suffer by taking advantage of the circumstances of such evil men. Do you understand? I'm saying that I'll only kick out those who have a good reason to kick out."

It was an unusually thorough explanation for Giselle. It was the best Giselle could give to Count Selverk, the agent of the West and a high-ranking noble.

"… … Okay. Then what should I do?"

All kinds of policies began to flow out of Giselle's mouth without stopping.

"Our officials will select those who will be made examples. Send in the army and get rid of them immediately."

"And to prepare for the monsters in the rift, eliminate as many small villages as possible and move people to cities and fortresses."

"All resources will be directed to producing food and war materials."

"If you do that, there will be a lot of jobs. Give the people of the territory enough food as compensation."

"Increase the military. Spend more of your resources on the military than ever before."

The policies that had been implemented in Fenris came out one after another from Giselle's mouth. The face of Count Selverk, who had been listening quietly, gradually turned pale.

"How can you do all of that at the same time? Right now, the administrative power is in shambles and we are barely able to maintain public order."

"It's okay. Our guys are experts at such things. Aren't the Fenris officials here right now?"

"That, that's right… … They're currently assessing the situation in the West and dealing with urgent matters… … ."

"It should be over by now. Hey, call the person in charge."

At Giselle's command, the knights moved, and soon a man entered the office with a smile.

"Your Majesty, it's been a long time."

The man who was chuckling was Billy, the administrator and Claude's friend.

He has been in charge of Fenris' administrative affairs for a long time since he was dragged there by Claude after being scammed at the Academy.

Having been through all sorts of hardships, he has acquired the ability to turn over several estates.

"It's been a while. Are you done organizing?"

"Yes, I have selected a few lords to be put to death as examples. I have selected only those who kill their subjects as if they were eating rice and embezzle our aid, so there will be little opposition. And there is sufficient justification."

"Yes, let's just beat them up and send the managers. Count Selverk will prepare the troops. The rest?"

"We have selected the cities and provinces to which we will relocate the people. There is enough land and population to be reclaimed, so if we offer reasonable compensation and send in workers, it should be settled quickly. We also plan to repair existing facilities and focus on building new ones… … ."

Billy's mouth began to flow with words about how he was going to turn the land upside down.

Count Selverk, who was listening to those words, opened his mouth wide.

"Wow, that's amazing. You've already prepared everything like that… … Don't the Fenris officials sleep? Come to think of it, the lights always seem to be on, even at night."

"… … ."

"I wish our administrators were as good as the officials of Fenris."

'And then they all die... ... .'

Billy couldn't continue speaking and his eyes filled with tears.

In Linderstein, not only the administrators but also the priests who had been dispatched with Piote were present.

To wake up the managers when they collapse from overwork.

In any case, the plan was set. It had been successful in Fenris, where there was nothing, so there was no way it would fail in the West, where resources and manpower were more abundant.

Jiselle nodded with a satisfied smile.

"Ask Fenris for anything you lack. In the west in particular, the aftermath of the war still remains, so there is not enough food, so don't hold back and give generously."

"All right."

When it comes to food production, it is no exaggeration to say that Fenris is now the best not only in the kingdom but on the continent.

If you spread them around indiscriminately, public sentiment will quickly calm down and many people will be able to be deployed to the construction.

Jiselle looked back at Count Selverk and said.

"Your Majesty, please use your army to put special effort into public security. You must have heard that new bandits have recently appeared in the western vicinity."

"Yes."

"Don't bother trying to subdue them. I'll bring my army and wipe them all out, so just focus on security and defense."

"All right."

Giselle consulted with Count Selverk and Billy, and also gave direction on other small matters.

With Billy having a lot of experience at Penrith, it shouldn't be too hard to stabilize the West.

Now we need to prepare for something more important.

"Did you bring the medicine?"

Billy nodded with a stern expression at Giselle's question.

"Yes, but it's not enough to feed everyone in the West."

Although Fenris was producing medicine like crazy, there wasn't enough to distribute to all the residents.

Jiselle nodded with an expression of obviousness.

"For now, it should be administered primarily to soldiers participating in battle. A shortage of quantity is unavoidable."

Count Selverk also asked with a slightly nervous expression.

"For now, we are gathering as many materials as possible and making it according to the recipe you sent us. But… … Is that really true? Are you saying that something like that really happens?"

Count Selverk had also been informed of Giselle's intentions a while ago. He did as he was told, but the count could not believe Giselle's words at all.

As it was a natural reaction for a count, Giselle nodded and spoke calmly.

"Yes. We need to prepare for the coming pandemic."

Because that is the beginning of the tribulation.