In a World of Reversed Chastity, I Strive to Become an Honorable Male Knight, but Lustful Women Keep Targeting My Body - 275

Chapter 275: The Kukkoro Male Knight and Standing Together

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Even though the martyrs’ side had already been at a disadvantage, our simultaneous charge annihilated them. However, they were barbaric elves. When they should have retreated, they instead fought to the death, which made them nothing short of troublesome. The fact that it was indoors, where numerical superiority was hard to utilize, was also significant.

Though we had great difficulty, we somehow managed to cut down the “martyrs-dono” and were finally able to make it outside the Senate. I let out a small breath and looked around. There were still no enemies within visual range, but the elf village was enveloped in an unmistakably ominous atmosphere.

“Great Elder-sama, we heard the sounds of battle. Just what happened?”

“The youngsters were gathering armed. Has a war started?”

The villagers gathered and surrounded Lady Dalaiya. Apparently, they were not enemies but ordinary civilians unaware of the situation. That said, in the case of elves, even ordinary civilians were heavily armed. Among elves, everyone except retired soldiers and the married were warriors, making for a terrifyingly dangerous social structure.

“That Vanka fellow has finally raised her banner in rebellion. Just when food from Liseben had begun to arrive…”

Lady Dalaiya let out a long, deep sigh and pressed a hand to her forehead. Casting a sidelong glance at the dejected loli grandma, I called over the marines who had been waiting outside. …Incidentally, the reason I had not deployed the marines inside the Senate was to avoid confusion. Recklessly sending a large force into a confined space would only result in heavy casualties.

“Report the situation.”

I addressed the captain of the marines who had approached.

“Our scouting unit has already made contact with the enemy vanguard. However, since they are not forming ranks and are moving completely scattered, their size and deployment remain unknown.”

“I see.”

If they had been nothing more than a collection of peasant levies or citizen militia, I would have judged them a rabble… but they were elves. It would be better to treat them as a guerrilla commando force. Extremely troublesome.

“Is combat unavoidable?”

“Yes, certainly.”

“Okay, understood.”

I really did not want to fight elves in the forest. 

This is going to be a nightmare.

Though I felt gloomy inside, I deliberately plastered a confident smile on my face. The longer one served as a commander, the better one became at acting.

“Walburga! Bring my armor!”

“Yeah, Aniki!”

Sonia and the other guards were fully armed, but I was still dressed in formal attire. In such clothing, there was no way I could engage in full-scale combat. I called over the familiar bear beastman carrying my armor chest and prepared to don my enchanted armor.

My attendants gathered and began dressing me in armor. The knights tried to form a human wall to block the surrounding gazes, but I stopped them. At present, every second counted. I wanted to face Lady Dalaiya and the others directly while we spoke.

…That was what I thought, but the moment I began removing my formal jacket, the elves erupted in excitement. Some even shouted, “It’s the live changing of the male knight!” Though I was not stripping naked, I truly did not understand why they were so excited.

“Blondin-dono, what do you intend to do now?”

While glancing over here repeatedly, Lady Dalaiya asked. Apparently, this loli grandma was also extremely interested in my changing. Doing my best to ignore her gaze, I removed my jacket. One elf shouted, “Stop teasing! Just go all the way!” and was promptly punched by Sonia. 

I’m not teasing anyone, though?

“There’s not much to consider. Now that it has come to this, we have no choice but to return to Liseben for the time being. This does not look like an environment where talks can continue.”

“…Oh?”

“In any case, until the civil war is settled, both negotiations and food aid will be suspended. Once peace returns, contact us again.”

They had continued civil war for a hundred years. How many decades would it take before peace returned? Of course, my statement was meant as a provocation. Those martyrs seemed to regard us of Liseben as enemies as well. We could not leave them alone. We needed to crush them before they began laying hands on our territory’s people.

“Just fine. Albert-dono, allow us to accompany you. The main force of the ‘Legitimate’ is waiting near this village. If we drive those people back, we have sufficient strength.”

Blushing and averting her gaze, Lady Orphan said this. Unlike the lecherous loli grandma Lady Dalaiya, she appeared rather innocent. However, what she said was quite shocking.

“…What!?”

The main force of the “Legitimate” was near Runga City? Hey, hey, hey—what was this barbarian princess doing amid all the chaos!? Depending on how one looked at it, this could easily be taken as preparations for a surprise attack…

…No, perhaps she truly had been preparing one. Unlike the relatively robust “New,” the “Legitimate” had no future left. If this meeting collapsed, they were headed straight for ruin. With inferior forces, the only way to gain even a slight advantage would be to launch a surprise attack…

“If you would allow the hume noncombatants who cannot fight to board your ships, we can prepare immediately to be combat-ready. Leave the escort to us.”

Wow, they had even brought noncombatants. So regardless of the outcome of negotiations, the “Legitimate” had intended to press toward Liseben… Well, their food situation was so dire that it could not be helped. If they hesitated, they would starve to death without even fighting. If I were in Lady Orphan’s position, I would likely have made the same arrangements.

In any case, we wanted escort strength. To return to Carrera City, we would have to sail upstream along the Elfen River. Continuing to oppose the river’s current using only sails and oars was quite difficult. Therefore, it would be necessary to tow the ships manually (horses would be preferable, but unfortunately we had not brought a single horse to Runga City). No matter how many hands we had, it would not be enough.

“…Understood. I’ll be counting on you.”

As I replied and put on my gambeson—the woolen jacket worn beneath armor—the onlookers booed. 

I am not putting on a public strip show here. Stop complaining.

“Leave it to us.”

Lady Orphan smiled brightly. …Though it was for survival, she was quite calculating. That said, unlike the “New,” the “Legitimate” had consistently maintained a friendly stance toward us. It would be difficult to abandon them. And it was not as though taking them in would bring only disadvantages.

The problem was Lady Dalaiya, who would be left behind in this situation. How would she react? When I glanced at her, she gave a faint smile and shrugged.

“…Now, now, do not rush things. For now, repelling those people is the top priority. You would not find it amusing to be threatened from behind during your retreat, would you? I apologize, but I would be grateful for your cooperation.”

“I see. Very well.”

In any case, another battle was unavoidable. Let us handle it as a joint force of the Liseben army, the “New,” and the “Legitimate.” Ideally, I would have haggled and forced concessions, but with the enemy already close at hand, there was no time for that. I nodded immediately.

“If that is so, we will fight under Albert-dono’s command. I rather like that fierce leadership of yours!”

One of the elders who had sided with us said this, raising her wooden sword. …What!?

“Yeah, me too!”

“Dalaiya-dono’s command is too overbearing. I shall serve under Albert-dono as well.”

The elders of the “New” voiced such claims one after another. Lady Dalaiya, who had effectively been abandoned, merely smiled and nodded.

“Oh, do as you please.”

Don’t just approve it! 

Could it be that Lady Dalaiya has arranged something? No matter how one looked at it, this was strange. It was impossible for an outsider like me to have the “New”—and even their upper-echelon elders—voluntarily enter my command. Elves were notoriously rebellious… or so I thought.

“To fight in order to protect a man… That is the flower of an elf. We cannot possibly display a shameful performance. Right?”

“Yeah, that’s right. You men can rest easy. We’ll protect you!”

As they said this while glancing repeatedly at our male servants, I understood their intent. Simply put, they wanted to look good in front of men. If I had been a woman, this might have complicated matters, but since I was a man like them, openly rejecting me would hinder their attempts at courtship. These idiots were thinking with their lower halves…

Well, regardless, unifying command authority was important. As I fastened my breastplate, I gave them a sly grin.

“Very well. If you insist, I shall rely on you. Show me the full measure of elven valor!”

“Leave it to us!”

As the elven elders raised their swords and shouted, Lady Dalaiya smirked. …You definitely arranged something, didn’t you? When I looked toward Bishop Fiorenza, she gave a solemn nod.

“As expected, she is not an opponent who can be handled so easily. Leave her to me.”

“…My apologies. Please.”

As Bishop Fiorenza approached and whispered this, I could only nod. Our opponent was a loli grandma seasoned in a hundred battles. A military fool like me would find it difficult to contend with such a veteran. It would be best to leave her to a specialist in people relations.

…That aside, now was the time to focus on the gunfire. Having finished donning my armor in no time with the help of my attendants, I raised my saber to the sky and shouted.

“Alright, prepare for battle! We will intercept the rebel army!”

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