\u201cI have returned, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Benimaru and I chatted for a while, Diablo returned, looking visibly drained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHey. Thanks for handling that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo, no, it was hardly anything difficult, but now I\u2019ve lost the time I meant to spend with you, Sir Rimuru\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight, if you\u2019re not tired out, let\u2019s begin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cVery well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Well, if he was still capable of talking nonsense, I figured he was fine. Diablo looked like he wanted to say something, but I was sure it was the same old crap as usual. No need to worry about it<\/em>, I thought as I began our briefing with Benimaru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n As I mentioned earlier, we were seeing increased immigration into the country. One issue this creates is how to get all these new people working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our employment rate was very important, as it was for any nation. Having all our citizens working diligently in one position or another was vital for improving our productivity. If your employment stats were good, that also bumped up personal consumption and, in turn, the economy. If they were bad, that could lead to harder times and a rise in crime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Managing this figure was the job of a nation\u2019s leadership, but it was an incredibly tough one. Immigrants came to Tempest with a wide range of abilities, but we had only so much demand for unskilled labor that anyone could do. We were a rapidly developing nation at one point, experiencing a huge boom in construction, and that helped us keep things going for a while\u2014but that era was coming to an end, and we had to think about what was next.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Skilled people wouldn\u2019t be a problem. Artisans with technical talents and people who could keep a roof over their head with their skills were easy to accommodate. The issue was the people without the proper know-how or ways to make money. You could give a farmer land; you could bring an artisan to a studio. The Dungeon was ready-made for adventurers, and performers could be hired at a theater. But how should we handle anyone who lacked those talents?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The answer I came up with was to establish educational facilities. During intake, we\u2019d ask applicants about their skills and give them opportunities to learn based on their responses. These facilities were where they\u2019d learn, and it\u2019d be managed by Benimaru\u2019s forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cImmigration is on the rise, and we\u2019re attracting a lot of volunteers for the army. I can\u2019t say how qualified they are, but they ought to be able to handle security within our borders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was the approach we had been testing out, but apparently the army was dealing with even more<\/em> volunteers these days. Enlistment guaranteed you\u2019d be fed, taught a trade for free, and even get referrals to civilian jobs\u2014those were the rumors going around. Thanks to that, they were seeing not only new transplants, but adventurers and mercenaries as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, given that we took on national-defense duties for the Western Nations, we did<\/em> need to address expanding our military. With that in mind, I wouldn\u2019t call this a problem for now. We had little issues here and there, but nothing that couldn\u2019t be handled internally. The problem was that it was starting to look more and more like war with the Eastern Empire. We couldn\u2019t put raw recruits on the line for that, so it was time to reorganize our forces. I had asked Benimaru to provide me with a new organizational chart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is the new structure we\u2019ve contemplated,\u201d he explained as he took out a sheet of paper and spread it on my desk. \u201cSome of the assignments are rather bold, I would say, but I think they can work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benimaru would remain commander, with me maintaining supreme command (including the right to appoint officers). These used to be basically the same thing, but I split them up and assigned one to Benimaru. My thought was that you can\u2019t let a military amateur like me attempt an army command, so I wanted Benimaru to have first say in all military affairs. This meant that Benimaru\u2019s orders outranked mine within the army\u2014but not when it came to strategic maneuvers. I could appoint people to upper command, and I could declare an end to an ongoing war. Benimaru could name whoever he wanted to positions lower than general, but I was allowed to establish army corps and appoint generals. Thus it was up to me to check over Benimaru\u2019s org chart and decide whether to consent to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHmm\u2026 Well, if you think it\u2019ll work, I don\u2019t intend to complain about anything\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even if I didn\u2019t intend to complain, I still had stuff I wanted to say. Given my appointive power, I\u2019d have to answer to my assignments if something went bad. But we had already heavily debated over this organizational structure, so all that was behind us anyway. And in the end, the only appointment I really insisted upon was Gobta as leader of our new First Army Corps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhen you first suggested naming Gobta as a general, I honestly didn\u2019t know what to think\u2026 But now, I agree this really suits him,\u201d said Benimaru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As his reaction indicated, there were differing opinions on promoting Gobta to general. Certainly, I could understand if the idea of giving that fool Gobta actual responsibility made people anxious. He\u2019d be making decisions that could affect his army\u2019s lives, so Benimaru and the other staff officers were naturally going to be hesitant. He slept through a lot of meetings, and it wasn\u2019t like I thought it\u2019d go problem-free\u2026but I also knew that he had undergone special training in secret\u2014and that he wanted to keep this nation safe as much as anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cRight?! When push comes to shove, that guy really steps up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when it doesn\u2019t, he<\/em> doesn\u2019t. But his men trusted in him, and in his own way, he cared a lot about others. Most of all, I<\/em> trusted him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe\u2019s one of the Big Four as well, after all. I\u2019m sure you\u2019re not incorrect in your judgment, Sir Rimuru!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPrecisely,\u201d chimed in Diablo. \u201cAlso, just in case, I will deploy Testarossa as an observer. If he falls out of line, she\u2019ll<\/em> fix him up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shion and Diablo, his fellow Big Four members, were just as enthusiastic about Gobta\u2026and I supposed Benimaru accepted him, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell,\u201d he said with a grin, \u201cas chief of the Big Four, I can\u2019t say no to him. And Diablo\u2019s right\u2014if something comes up, we can just offer him some support, right? Let\u2019s give him the job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAh, he\u2019ll be fine. He may not look it, but he\u2019s a really good guy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And so Gobta was now an army general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n I eyed the org chart carefully, checking out the other corps generals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three corps had been established in all, underneath Benimaru\u2019s command. We had just discussed the First Army Corps, led by Gobta with Hakuro as a military adviser. The corps was staffed as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 100 Goblin Riders<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each one of them had grown to an A-minus threat, wielding lieutenant-level powers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 12,000 of the Green Numbers<\/p>\n\n\n\n The original 4,000 would receive promotions, while the 8,000 new recruits would sign on as privates. I was told they\u2019d operate in groups of three.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We had gained a lot of soldiers in the past year, mostly monsters native to the Forest of Jura. That led to few difficulties, reportedly. The newer foot soldiers would be ranked no better than D or C, but the veterans had been raised up to a B, and I could expect them to be a pretty formidable force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next we had the Second Army Corps, led by Geld. This force was currently deployed across the continent on intelligence and engineer duties; in times of war, we planned to call them back and have them serve as our main army. They consisted of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 2,000 of the Yellow Numbers<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is the corps of high orcs who had served Geld since the bad old days. Each one was pretty powerful, ranked a B-plus, and they could form an iron defense that operated in lockstep with Geld himself. I\u2019d have them serve as platoon leaders bringing together the younger troops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 35,000 of the Orange Numbers<\/p>\n\n\n\n The newer high orcs were brought on as volunteers to this force. As a team, they managed a C rank, but only the veterans\u2014some 15,000 soldiers\u2014would get involved in actual combat. We planned to have the remainder provide rear support and engineering work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That left the Third Army Corps, our elite flying commando unit, finally ready to see some action. Their general was Gabil, founder of the unit, and they were composed like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 100 members of Team Hiryu<\/p>\n\n\n\n These guys needed no introduction\u2014they were the best Tempest had to offer. Every member was an A-minus threat by themselves, combining flight skills with effective commanding abilities. Some of them even made the grade for a solid A rank, capable of tapping the Dragon Body skill in a pinch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 3,000 of the Blue Numbers<\/p>\n\n\n\n This was the group of lizardman volunteers who joined the force out of sheer love for Gabil. As the original members of the group, they only ranked a C-plus individually, but that didn\u2019t let you see the whole picture. The Blue Numbers\u2019 most unique trait was their fighting skill while flying on wyverns, securing air superiority and wielding the most devastatingly concussive force of any battle. However, we currently had just three hundred wyverns ready in our stables, so not all of them had a mount yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the most part, their duties will involve backup support and wyvern management; it\u2019ll be a while before they really get to shine. But don\u2019t count them out just yet. Wyverns are a subspecies of Lesser Dragons, monsters worth a B-plus ranking. Gabil has found a way to capture and raise them, and he says expanding their flock is his next goal. Once every Blue Number gains their own, that\u2019s<\/em> when the squadron will really prove their worth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Those were the three corps answering directly to Benimaru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo Geld\u2019s leading the Second Corps, and Gabil, the Third? Doesn\u2019t sound like a problem to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, I considered a number of possibilities, but these seemed like the safest bets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He didn\u2019t need to remind me. These<\/em> were generals I could rely on. I didn\u2019t even see any issue with Gabil. Sure, he got way<\/em> too full of himself, but he was well versed in combat, always performing excellently in our drills, and even Benimaru considered him a rival. I didn\u2019t think he was a particularly good strategist, but his tactical mind on the field was sharp. He also cared deeply for his troops, unafraid to pull them back if needed. A fine candidate for the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd this,\u201d Benimaru said as he pulled out another sheet of paper, \u201cis the same as I showed you before.\u201d It listed three more military forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One was Team Kurenai, Benimaru\u2019s elite guard of three hundred troops. The A-rank Gobwa was their leader, and every one of them was ranked A-minus or higher. Now they also managed the army\u2019s general staff headquarters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seeing her in combat training, I was struck that someone like Gobwa could hold her own against an upper-level magic-born like Gelmud\u2014or maybe even fare better than that. Looking at the rest of the unit, I saw at least a few who scored an easy A in my eyes, some who could take on a paladin and win. There was no guessing how deep their fighting skills went.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For the most part, a monster\u2019s strength was evaluated based on their magical power\u2014their magicule count. If a monster was innately strong, the whole level-assignment system couldn\u2019t really apply, but in addition to their natural physical capabilities, our troops had received military training, granting them strengths better geared for battle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t think it\u2019s out of line to assume they\u2019re better than what the standard judgment criteria would suggest. I could tell because, even with exceptional cases like Hakuro, it is plain to see across the board. The fact is, this unit\u2019s full of real warriors, well-honed troopers who managed to survive Hakuro\u2019s hellish training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next was Team Kurayami, Soei\u2019s group of a hundred or so intelligence officers. This unit was a mystery in a lot of ways\u2014it was under Soei\u2019s complete control, and few people knew it even existed. As far as I was aware, however, they were pretty damn good fighters. Soka was a definite A ranker, along with the four squadron leaders serving under her, but that wasn\u2019t even the cream of the crop. There were a few special-A people on the team, Glenda Attley among them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s more, a few folks who went through Tempest\u2019s justice system managed to work out plea bargains with Testarossa to serve under Soei in this squad. This included Girard, who headed the Sons of the Veldt mercenary team, along with the elementalist Ayn under him. Both of them were well past the A rank and now serving as excellent secret agents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I once teased Team Kurayami by calling them a rogue band of special-forces problem children, but now it really was<\/em> starting to look that way. Soei warned me not to expect much from them in battle, but I didn\u2019t believe him\u2014they seemed pretty good at assassinations, for one, and if you have that<\/em> many dudes ranked above an A on one team, how could they not<\/em> be total badasses? Honestly, I\u2019m not completely sure what direction Soei was taking with these guys. You occasionally heard some ominous rumors about the unit, and I couldn\u2019t blame anyone for spreading them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last but not least was Shion\u2019s Team Reborn, a hundred members in all. The one unique trait about this unit was that they just didn\u2019t die. Taking advantage of their astonishing regeneration skills, they had undergone incredibly severe training, making every member B-plus or above. Considering they only managed C level before, that was the most growth out of anyone on our force. They had all proven themselves in combat against the Crusaders, too, so for all I know, maybe some of them broke the barrier and scored an A rank. Team Hiryu was likely the strongest of them all for now, but as far as I was concerned, if any unit had the potential to snatch that title, it was Shion\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What\u2019s more, Benimaru had assigned Reborn to be my personal elite force, a kind of imperial guard. I wasn\u2019t such a fan of that, but using them for missions that took advantage of tenacity\u2014decoy runs, for example, to buy time for the rest of the force\u2014was what they excelled at the most. I guess if things really got screwy, I could use Team Reborn as bait and run for the hills\u2014that\u2019s how Shion proudly explained it to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It should also be mentioned that although they were my personal guard, they didn\u2019t accept orders from me. They were there to protect me, and they were forbidden from abandoning that mission, no matter what I told them. Even if I asked them to leave, they wouldn\u2019t hesitate to sacrifice themselves for my sake. It was such<\/em> a menace. (That being said, they were happy to run little errands for me, but I better not say that to Shion. Gotta keep up appearances sometimes.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n By the way, Shion also headed another force, a secret one not listed on these charts. I say \u201csecret,\u201d but it was the kind of open secret that everyone was aware of. This was her personal force, a kind of guard team for her, but in effect, it was quite literally her fan club. I didn\u2019t know how big it was; probably not more than a thousand at most, I thought. Officially, it wasn\u2019t a \u201cforce\u201d per se, so they weren\u2019t under Tempest control. We also knew nothing about their abilities. Were they gonna be okay, even? I didn\u2019t want anyone to die for this\u2014but Shion was training them on the sly, so I really had no idea what was up with them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Still, Daggrull\u2019s sons were apparently squadron leaders in this so-called force, and it also included some adventurers with battle experience. Maybe they\u2019d come in handy later on, but I was more anxious than expectant. This wasn\u2019t the kind of force you wanted on the front lines, and it was obvious why Benimaru didn\u2019t put them on our official rolls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I handed the sheet back to Benimaru and said, \u201cLooks good to me. Seems we\u2019ve got more firepower now, but I don\u2019t see any need to change up these forces. Neither of us needs to interfere with them, I\u2019d say.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed. After all, I raised Team Kurenai under my own personal care, and I imagine Soei and Shion feel the same way about their own forces. I will refrain from adding them to the official hierarchy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shion nodded her approval, and I had no objection, so I told him, \u201cAll right, make it so.\u201d If you developed a team yourself, after all, you\u2019d like to keep it near you. And really, we didn\u2019t need to list Gabil\u2019s Team Hiryu either; that was his suggestion, and we accepted it. (Gobta didn\u2019t raise the Goblin Riders, exactly, but he was their colleague, their comrade in arms, and someone whose strength was without question. I wanted to keep that in consideration, even if we wound up switching commanders later.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now Benimaru took out a third sheet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo here\u2019s what we need to discuss. These are all the forces affiliated with people besides me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally. The first two sheets simply outlined preexisting forces and their current numbers; the only real eye-opener was Gobta leading the First Corps, and I was the one who suggested that, so it wasn\u2019t a surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now what have we here? I looked down the sheet, a bit excited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n What I saw were two diagrams marked as the left and right wings. The right wing contained numbers for our predefined corps\u2014roughly twelve thousand for the First Corps under Gobta, thirty-seven thousand for the Second under Geld, and three thousand for the Third under Gabil, for a total of around fifty-two thousand. This was Tempest\u2019s standing force, and a scarily large force it was. We still had room to cultivate them, too. Our nation\u2019s population had just passed a million, and it was going up like a bullet. If you think about it, this was some pretty amazing growth, and it\u2019s what allowed us to maintain an army this size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That, and treating the Second Corps like a construction team was what allowed us to maintain this level of force. It would\u2019ve been tougher, I thought, if they were incapable of producing anything outside of combat. I really had to hand it to Geld and his soldiers\u2014without them, we\u2019d be down to a force of fifteen thousand, and that wasn\u2019t nearly enough to tackle the Eastern Empire. That was an issue Benimaru and I spent a little while stewing over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOnce war begins, we can call back Geld and his corps then,\u201d said Benimaru. \u201cThat much will work as planned\u2026but it is still not enough. The Western Nations each retain their own militaries, I know, but having them deployed presents its own problems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah. We\u2019ve taken over the Council and all, so we\u2019d be losing out if we didn\u2019t use them, but I think we\u2019d have a real backlash on our hands.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd should a problem arise within the Western Nations, we\u2019d have no deterrent left. That could lead to a bad situation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHmm. Everything\u2019s fine here in Tempest, but if the Western Nations\u2019 citizens start to question our governing, that\u2019ll make future work harder.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n We had gone through conversations like that several times. Benimaru\u2019s answer, I supposed, was the forces listed in the left wing of this sheet. It said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2014Western Deployment\u2014150,000<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2014Magic-Born United\u201430,000<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2014Volunteer Army\u201420,000<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh. Pretty big numbers. What kinda forces are these on the left?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese are forces under our command, more or less. The Western Deployment is the forces serving the Council, like I discussed. These are treated as different from each nation\u2019s standing army. They\u2019re directly employed by the money sent by the Council\u2014or really us, for the most part.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fair enough. If the Council had given us military rights, that gave us command of the forces that directly served it. I knew that, but\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut were there really this<\/em> many?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n This Council force existed well enough on paper, but they were chiefly knights and soldiers brought in by councillors from their home nations. They numbered around a thousand, and their main assignment was security at the arena in Englesia\u2019s capital and the like. As a rule, each Western Nations member retained their own national military, charged with keeping the peace in their country. The Council itself almost never sent out military forces of its own, so there was no real need to maintain an army. (That\u2019s part of why they so readily handed military control to us.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Really, though, I didn\u2019t ask for those rights because I wanted to boss them around in times of crisis. All I wanted to do was construct magitrain railroads connecting these nations, and asking for approval every time I sent Tempestian engineers out on the field was a pain in the ass. If there really was<\/em> trouble, we\u2019d send out our own army\u2014and with that decision, we had the soldiers contracted with the Council sent back to their home nations for the time being.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition, we decided to establish a peacekeeping force, under the condition that we funded it. This was recruited locally, since we figured people would be more comfortable with a force of humans, instead of monsters and demi-humans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, we disbanded the army once, and then it grew even bigger. According to Testarossa\u2019s report, rumors spread around that joining the force ensured you free meals and lodging, so once we started recruiting, people showed up in droves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, but isn\u2019t this a peacekeeping force? We don\u2019t need one hundred and fifty thousand people for that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Each nation had the right to police itself. If we started rounding up criminals, we\u2019d be overstepping our authority. A peacekeeping force\u2019s work is mainly disaster prevention\u2014really, just helping engineers and providing rear support. I didn\u2019t think we\u2019d even need ten<\/em> thousand people, much less a hundred fifty thousand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, the way Testarossa put it, that was the demand we received from all the nations,\u201d Benimaru began before explaining it all in detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once Testarossa assumed control of the Council, she started advancing a pretty bold set of reforms. I had approved them all, but they had even bigger repercussions than I imagined. All these reforms were to be spearheaded by the individual nations; we\u2019d simply provide the needed advice and technology. Foreign aid, essentially\u2014\u201cofficial development assistance,\u201d to use government jargon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The way it worked was that the Council would provide public funding, and we\u2019d provide nationally backed labor to help with whatever the nations needed. We\u2019d hire on local people, provide technical assistance, and manage regional demands. That gave Tempestians work and a salary, and it afforded our partners the vital support they needed\u2014a win-win kind of relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But there\u2019s no such thing as a free lunch. There was another side to this support system. For example, the way we covered our construction costs was to take back that amount in local water rights. If we built train tracks in an area, we\u2019d apply a tax to train usage fees, collecting a profit on a permanent basis. Just like with the highways, we\u2019d handle all maintenance in exchange for customs waivers and other rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Truly<\/em>, the work of a demon lord\u2014act all kind and charitable, then do some pretty vicious stuff behind the curtain. But we were<\/em> helping improve people\u2019s lives, and our partners didn\u2019t lose on the deal, really. They were just paying us in profits on matters they couldn\u2019t foresee doing yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The larger nations, of course, would likely prefer to handle things themselves. Maybe they couldn\u2019t yet, but once they saw what we were doing, they could always copy us, steal our tech, and run it themselves. I took that as a given.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026And so even the large nations are pushing us with demands for railway infrastructure as soon as possible,\u201d said Benimaru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd since we don\u2019t have engineers in Tempest to handle that, you deployed the people we brought on as rear support instead.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s right. But apparently not even they were enough, so we\u2019ve been fielding local people and having them join us\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2026And thanks to that, we now had a ridiculously large group of soldiers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I had granted Testarossa full rights to act on my behalf as a diplomatic officer. I also told her that she could settle smaller affairs without having to report them to me, so not even Benimaru knew about this until fairly recently. Thanks to that, we had employed a massive number of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut isn\u2019t that what the large nations want?\u201d I asked. \u201cIf we train a bunch of technicians for them, that\u2019ll make it easier to operate things themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019d be more efficient than industrial espionage\u2014and maybe it\u2019s harsh for me to say, but I didn\u2019t mind that approach. It was something that\u2019d occur to any leader. The experienced personnel this cultivated would become pillars of their native country. We\u2019d lose some of our interests in the region, which was sad, but if the ensuing tech development led to more competition, that was pretty exciting, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t seem to be that way. They wouldn\u2019t want to let go of those technicians then, would they?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n No, maybe not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Wait. Are you saying that you took the support troops Testarossa gathered and put them all<\/em> in this Western Deployment?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s right.\u201d Benimaru grinned, watching my surprise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019d be a waste to train these technicians and just let them fade away. Better to establish a real, full-on peacekeeping force that could train for disaster rescue, provide bodyguards for dignitaries, run civic defense drills, and so on. That was the rather bold decision Benimaru made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTestarossa was about to let them go\u2014she was done with them, essentially, but that seemed like such a waste to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, I\u2019ll bet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat, and I thought I could find work for them, so I went on my own to name them the Western Deployment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I see. That made sense. Of course, I wasn\u2019t going to expect miracles from this force after only a year, but if they kept up their training, I could picture them as disaster-rescue experts or the like. They\u2019d be good for handling accidents, and as Benimaru said, we could use them in a variety of situations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAll right. That was a pretty good decision, Benimaru.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh, no need for praise,\u201d he replied, although he looked a bit bashful about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the Western Deployment, huh? One hundred and fifty thousand is a big number, but if we were going to deploy them across the West, it almost wasn\u2019t enough. And if it let us retain our interests in those lands, they\u2019d certainly be earning their keep for us. It all came as a surprise, but it was certainly news to rejoice about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So next up\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOkay, I get the Western Deployment, but what\u2019s this Magic-Born United?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n They numbered thirty thousand in total\u2014were they conscripting monsters from the Forest of Jura or something?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s a force primarily composed of the magic-born who served under Clayman, actually. Geld had them working as prisoners of war, and we borrowed the ones particularly suited for combat. In exchange, we\u2019re filling the holes with the high orcs who were working on now-completed construction projects.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n From the way Benimaru put it, he was making sure none of this shuffling affected the progress of Geld\u2019s construction work. If so, then\u2014well, sure, having experienced fighters would make for a better force than amateurs. But:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThose guys wouldn\u2019t be too cooperative, though, would they?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clayman\u2019s force was mostly B-rank magic-born, though some were in the realm of A and beyond. Powerful as they were, they were actually kinda weak as a group\u2014just a horde of monsters ruled by terror, not at all a challenge for well-trained career soldiers. Even if you gathered them all up, I didn\u2019t think there\u2019d be nearly enough time to train them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThanks to Geld, you won\u2019t find any selfish, violent ones in the force. Even if there were, well, I shut them up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Uh-huh. I\u2019m sure it\u2019d be easy for Benimaru to overpower any of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, fine, but aren\u2019t they used to regular work by now? I\u2019m not sure forcing them into battle is such a hot idea\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s all right,\u201d Benimaru assured me. \u201cThis is something they suggested. They wanted to show you, Sir Rimuru, that they could be of use to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was a surprise, coming from him. As selfish as all those magic-born were, now they were volunteering for duty?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt comes down to good food, good company, a boss who says they need them, and decent work. That\u2019s what they valued, and they want to stake their powers on protecting it. They were quite enthusiastic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey were\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was an unexpected stroke of luck, but one I really appreciated. Conscripted forces, after all, were useless in actual battle. If they were defending their homeland, maybe there\u2019d be no other option, but otherwise, it\u2019d be much smarter for them to unconditionally surrender.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nobody wanted to be a slave to another country. If you were going to be colonized and taxed to oblivion, you\u2019d feign obedience but constantly seek out a chance to rise up and take revenge. But unless the invaders truly were cruel and abusive, you could decide to put up with a few disadvantages in the meantime. An invader could never ignore the feelings of the people living there; those people needed to take responsibility for the future they decided on, and a ruler had to answer to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s why I thought conscription was among the worst things you could do to people. It\u2019s why you never tried to force patriotism down their throats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tempest operated under my protection, and I had no intention of listening to outsiders pushing their own arrogant demands. As long as I wasn\u2019t willing to easily give up our rights, there were always going to be differences of opinion. If the other side wouldn\u2019t bend, that\u2019d naturally lead to war, and I didn\u2019t want opposition to that. If someone didn\u2019t feel like protecting their own country, I honestly didn\u2019t mind if they just went off somewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One thing I wanted to make very clear was who I felt it was important to protect. Naturally, I\u2019d prioritize my companions who\u2019d stuck by me through thick and thin from the moment I established this nation. Anyone who came along later, talking about their own rights, I had no intention of going quite that far for. If I had no citizens to protect, I\u2019d probably bug out as well\u2014and then I\u2019d build a new nation somewhere else, with companions I saw eye to eye with. After all, I had no great affinity for this land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But at the same time, if these people loved Tempest, this land we all belonged to, I was ready to live up to every bit of that. No matter who attacked us, I\u2019d smash them with every ounce of my might. Hell, even if it was Guy doing the attacking, I was ready to use any trick in the book to kill him. I mean, he was a freak of nature, and I hoped<\/em> it wouldn\u2019t come to that, but still.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey certainly seemed enthusiastic enough to me, and I\u2019d say they were being honest with their feelings. In addition, we also had volunteers among people across the Forest of Jura who heard rumors of an impending war. That\u2019s what the Magic-Born United is composed of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benimaru chuckled a bit as he added, \u201cI did reject a lot of the weaker-looking ones, though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, excellent. It gave them a chance to really work hard for me; I was glad for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Volunteer Army, meanwhile, was a force composed of human beings living in Tempest or its neighboring areas. If we lost this war (no matter how it happened), the entire Forest of Jura would fall into ruin. Better to cooperate with us from the beginning, then, and that\u2019s exactly what this band did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This army was chiefly composed of adventurers and mercenaries, many of them immigrant volunteers we had accepted into the country. We also had a lot of the idiots we saw constantly staking their lives in the Dungeon, only to be eaten alive by my friends\u2019 and my avatars each time. They numbered twenty thousand in total, and while I didn\u2019t expect too much from them, that was still a pretty decent force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s the composition of the left wing. So the main difference between the left and right here is the degree of loyalty to you, Sir Rimuru.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMe?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe forces on the right consist of nothing but those ready to stake their lives for your nation or you. On the left, meanwhile, are a bunch of people with different motivations. Some may have had lofty intentions, but we hardly had the time to interview each one of them, so I went with this organizational structure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI see\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shion and Diablo were nodding behind me. I could already hear them saying some pretty disturbing things\u2014\u201cThey\u2019re disposable pawns, then\u201d; \u201cLet us give them a trial and pick only the true elites among them\u201d; that kinda thing\u2014but surely it was just my imagination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo the next issue is who to name leader of each force.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now Benimaru was tackling the real task at hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s start with the Western Deployment. They were the biggest force, but their members were still scattered all across the land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn terms of sheer numbers,\u201d Benimaru began, \u201cwe\u2019ve got a quarter million under our command, but I believe it best to keep the one hundred and fifty thousand in the Western Deployment where they are, instead of moving them around.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah. They still technically belong to the Council. Maybe we\u2019re free to move them, but I doubt we\u2019ll have to call them all the way over here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n If we could get them all in one place, I\u2019d be able to magically transport them in one fell swoop, of course. But managing a crowd of one hundred and fifty thousand is a huge responsibility; without a chain of command in place, they\u2019d never act like a sensible army. Best to get a solid security structure in place, just so imperial agents can\u2019t start diverting their attention around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI agree with you, Sir Rimuru. I have the power to manage them, I believe, but let\u2019s keep the Western Deployment where they are. There\u2019s no single leader for them, but I\u2019m thinking that Testarossa, our diplomatic officer, can handle those duties as well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI like that idea\u2026but if war breaks out, I might wind up calling Testarossa back here. If I do, I\u2019m worried about how she\u2019ll stay in contact with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n How would she keep in touch with a force dispersed across such a wide range? We had successfully built a communications network connecting each nation and their main cities, using magical calls, communication crystals, and magisteel wiring. But the infrastructure didn\u2019t extend out to the individual town-and-village level yet\u2014in fact, that\u2019d be a job for our corps of engineers. Each squadron in the Deployment had at least one magic practitioner, so magical calls would be possible at least, but\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat will not be a problem,\u201d said Diablo. \u201cMoss is capable of managing hundreds of squadrons at once.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYes, that\u2019s what Soei told me as well,\u201d added Benimaru. \u201cMoss was working with him in intelligence gathering, but it sounds like he can also handle inter-squadron contacts on the side.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He can<\/em>? What an incredibly useful demon!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, want to name him unit leader, then?\u201d I offered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2026would feel bad for him if we did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed. Given Testa\u2019s temperament, it would be a tragic situation for him. It hardly matters to me, of course, but I cannot help but feel a twinge of sympathy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026All right. Let\u2019s make Testarossa the provisional leader for now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Not only Benimaru, but even Diablo voiced pity for Moss. I could read between the lines well enough, so I withdrew my nomination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For now, the Western Deployment would focus on its primary peacekeeping mission. Barring extraordinary circumstances, deploying them elsewhere would only be done as a last resort. Testarossa would lead them, but this was meant to be temporary\u2014I made it clear that we\u2019d replace her once someone suitable came along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Next, the Magic-Born United. Why don\u2019t I appoint Benimaru for that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPersonally, I would suggest Sir Rigur,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oh, Rigur? True, Rigur had experience leading a security force, and his over-A power was nothing to sniff at. But he was also an assistant to Rigurd, and I wasn\u2019t sure he had time to lead a full army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If at all possible, I wanted to settle this war with our standing forces alone\u2014but right then, we had no idea how much military strength the Eastern Empire had ready. We had our spies en route but hadn\u2019t gained any intel within imperial borders yet. Still, based on the snippets we learned about their training exercises, current estimates stated that at least three hundred thousand troops were going to be deployed. There was even a chance they\u2019d send out over a million, a truly massive force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If it came to that, we couldn\u2019t afford to keep the Magic-Born United on ice. Along those lines, I had no issue with Rigur\u2019s command, but I was still anxious. Managing a ragtag army with essentially no rehearsal was a dangerous job for anyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Hmm. I really do want to leave this to you, Benimaru. And in the future, we can call this mixed force the Red Numbers. I\u2019d like you to select some captains from Team Kurenai to make this force into a coherent unit. We\u2019ll make them into the Fourth Army Corps, and I want you to be their direct commander.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019d call them red because they\u2019d stop<\/em> anyone in their way. Get it? My first dad joke in a while!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Right. I\u2019ll just keep that one to myself. Don\u2019t want to kill the mood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite all these ridiculous thoughts, I managed to retain my composure as the briefing hummed along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cVery well. In that case, I accept the appointment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It looked like Benimaru thought I might ask that of him. He seemed ready to agree, not letting it faze him at all. He has the unique skill Born Leader, letting him cover for any lack of refinement among his forces, so he was the perfect person to lead a motley bunch like this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So in addition to being my supreme commander, Benimaru was just appointed leader of the brand-new Red Numbers. That left the Volunteer Army.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNow, what do you intend to do with the Volunteer Army?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benimaru winced. \u201cAh, there\u2019s the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n These volunteers included a large number of humans. Employing a monster as commander, Benimaru worried, could lead to unnecessary dissatisfaction among their ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGood point. If word starts getting around that humans can\u2019t advance in the land of monsters, that\u2019s gonna hurt our image.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnyone with such insipid thoughts is a weakling. A loser,\u201d Shion cut in. \u201cThey would never make anything of themselves anyway. You have no need at all to worry about them!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cShion, I\u2026 Okay, maybe I don\u2019t, but if someone doesn\u2019t know much about us, that\u2019s gonna sound an awful lot like the truth to them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTrue. Humans can be a fickle bunch to deal with.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Shion may not appreciate it too much, but a brand image is a precious thing to maintain. It\u2019d be ridiculous if we let this issue make us out to look discriminatory, so I thought it required serious debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut is there really anyone suitable for the role?\u201d Diablo asked. There wasn\u2019t, really. That\u2019s why Benimaru was so troubled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI hear you there,\u201d I replied. \u201cThese are volunteers, besides. We didn\u2019t even plan for them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut we can\u2019t let them go idle,\u201d said Benimaru.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No, we couldn\u2019t. I appreciated the humans\u2019 ardor to serve us, and I didn\u2019t want to let that go to waste. But if we wanted to make good use of them, we needed a talented commander. This Volunteer Army was even more ragtag than the Magic-Born United\u2014the Red Numbers\u2014and if you asked me who could make them into a united force, Benimaru was about all I could think of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So now what\u2026?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow about Girard, in Soei\u2019s force?\u201d Benimaru suggested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo way,\u201d I said. \u201cWe picked him up as part of a secret arrangement with Englesia. I\u2019m sure he won\u2019t want his face seen in public.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n I didn\u2019t hear what kind of deal Testarossa struck with him, but having Girard bump around where everyone could see him had to be a bad idea. He\u2019d been branded a traitor to all humankind. If we didn\u2019t treat him as dead\u2014at least in public\u2014it\u2019d set a bad example for everyone else. I didn\u2019t have any duty to cover for him, but there was no need for him to take center stage for us, either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cStrengthwise, I\u2019d have no complaints, but it\u2019s not very realistic, no\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benimaru didn\u2019t seem too serious about pushing for him. I suppose he just lobbed the idea out for its own sake before he moved on to the next one. Restricting it to human beings was<\/em> a pain, though. We went through several names, but none of them seemed to really fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Suddenly, Shion spoke up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPerhaps we could enlist the Crusaders for a little help?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Benimaru and I looked at each other, then back at Shion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2014 I\u2019d hardly think so.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, that wouldn\u2019t be a\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThen how about Sir Masayuki?\u201d she countered before I could tell her it wasn\u2019t a good idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Masayuki. Hearing the name struck me like lightning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s it<\/em>!\u201d I shouted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAmazing, Shion!!\u201d Benimaru hollered in tandem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That was the exact moment we decided to appoint Masayuki to be our Volunteer Army\u2019s leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n This was decided, of course, without consulting the guy himself, but it was one decision that pretty much anyone would agree with. The only one less than convinced was Masayuki.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhy me<\/em>\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He brought a hand to his head when I gave him the news. But I didn\u2019t have much to say to him. As sad as it was, this was war. What people wanted didn\u2019t factor into it. I know I was thinking the opposite a moment ago, but I couldn\u2019t worry about Masayuki\u2019s feelings here. After all, things ought to be fine if I leave the Volunteer Army in his hands. In times like these, he was a valuable ally to have.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cI have returned, sir.\u201d As Benimaru and I chatted for a while, Diablo returned, looking visibly drained. \u201cHey. Thanks for handling that.\u201d \u201cNo, no, it was hardly anything difficult, but now I\u2019ve lost the time I meant to spend with you, Sir Rimuru\u2014\u201d \u201cRight, if you\u2019re not tired out, let\u2019s begin.\u201d \u201cVery well.\u201d Well, if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tak-berkategori"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3540"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3540\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3541,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3540\/revisions\/3541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novel.mdtaal-aminii.my.id\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}