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CHAPTER 224: A PLAN
~3rd Person Perspective~
A few days later.
The scouts who had been sent to investigate the fort of the bandits returned home.
The castle had been slightly renovated by former Sights soldiers.
The number of enemies was larger than expected. It seems that not only the soldiers of the Sights but also the ragtag band of mercenaries who had originally been in Canale were involved, and they had become a bigger and stronger group.
As for equipment, mercenaries from the former Sights army have reasonably good equipment, but those who joined later do not seem to have very high-quality armor and weapons.
Also, there is no confirmation regarding magic soldiers.
If there are magic soldiers, it will not be possible to deal with them with just Braham’s troops, so reinforcements will be needed.
“Well done scouting! …However, there are more enemies than I thought…” (Braham)
Braham heard the report and frankly thought so.
“Shouldn’t we request reinforcements for this?” (Zat)
Zat, his second-in-command, suggested.
“Hmmm……” (Braham)
Braham pondered what to do.
In fact, if they could not beat them in terms of strength, they would have to call for reinforcements.
However, Braham thought that although it was a difficult enemy, they were not necessarily impossible to defeat.
“They are stronger than I thought they would be, but not so strong that we couldn’t beat them. It’s not like they can use magic. I’ve been entrusted with this mission, and I can’t let them keep getting in our way.” (Braham)
“However, it’s a mission that can’t afford to fail.” (Zat)
“Reinforcements require a lot of money and provisions. It would also take time to prepare, which would increase the time it would take to take down the bandits. We can’t leave a bandit group of this size unattended for long.” (Braham)
“That’s right, but…” (Zat)
“If it’s too big to take down, then reinforcements are unavoidable, but not to that extent. If we call for reinforcements because we don’t think we can beat this thing, we’re going to disappoint the county lord’s trust.” (Braham)
Zat did not argue with Braham’s words.
He did not want to see the reputation of his elite unit damaged. In some cases, he might be forced to quit as second-in-command. If that happened, his career would be lost to him.
“I understand. I guess I was a little too timid.” (Zat)
Zat agreed to fight.
“But, captain, you’re unusually cleverer than ever today.” (Zat)
“A-Are you making fun of me!? I’m not the same person I used to be!” (Braham)
Zat’s light-hearted remark was angrily retorted by Bramham.
“I’m not going to go charging in there this time without a plan! I’m going in with some kind of plan!” (Braham)
“A plan…? Specifically…” (Zat)
“That’s… we’ll all think about it now!” (Braham)
“Well, you can’t grow that fast, can you?” (Zat)
Nevertheless, Zat thought, he’s grown a lot, just not trying to fight ineptly like before.
“These bandits are expanding their forces by adding new personnel, aren’t they? I assume that they are probably recruiting every single one of the ones who drifted in.” (Braham)
“Maybe so. Otherwise, there would be fewer.” (Zat)
Braham nodded in reply to Zat’s words.
“They probably don’t even check the identity of those who have drifted in properly, since they are bandits. In other words, it’s easy to infiltrate their ranks.” (Zat)
“…I see! If we let our allies infiltrate the enemy, we can gain an advantage in battle! Let’s go!” (Braham)
Braham is quick to adopt Zat’s opinion.
“No, umm, I’m sorry to say that I’m the one who suggested this, but infiltrating soldiers is still dangerous and quite difficult, so even if we do this strategy, we should think more about it before making a decision.” (Zat)
“Hmm… Indeed, I think it would be better to make a more thoughtful decision on this operation. It is true that it is dangerous to sneak into enemy territory. If the situation calls for it, it is better to go with someone who is strong enough to escape… then I’ll be the one to infiltrate!” (Braham)
“Huh!?” (Zat)
Zat was surprised at the outlandish suggestion.
“I’m the best fighter in this squad, and if I’m in danger, I should have the best chance of making it back in one piece!” (Braham)
“No, no, this is not the kind of mission a captain would undertake. Also, the captain certainly has the best chance of coming back safely, but the person who should be selected should be the one who has the best chance of succeeding in the mission.” (Zat)
“Are you saying that I won’t succeed?” (Braham)
“Yes, sir. It’s impossible for you to infiltrate without being noticed, right?” (Zat)
“Ugh……” (Braham)
Braham could not object to that.
“I will go instead.” (Zat)
Zat said next.
“What? No, Zat is my second-in-command and should stay with the squad.” (Braham)
“Is that a line coming from someone who tried to go while being the captain? I am your second-in-command, and you can manage without me. I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I’m good at sneaking around in the field.” (Zat)
“But it’s dangerous.” (Braham)
“I know how dangerous it is. However, I have a good chance of succeeding. Besides, if I succeed in this kind of dangerous mission, I may get a special reward from the county lord.” (Zat)
“So, that’s what you’re aiming for…” (Braham)
“Yes.” (Zat)
Zat nodded, grinning a little.
“I get it. I’ll leave it in your hands.” (Braham)
“I have received your trust. However, it’s hard to do it alone, so I’d like to select a few people to go undercover with me, okay?” (Zat)
“That’s fine.” (Braham)
Braham nods.
Zat then selected the members to infiltrate with him and started the infiltration mission.