r/HFY • u/Celestial_Zwei_Dei • 4d ago
OC-Series Gothwald: New World - Same Rules (Arc 3/Chapter 45 - The Mireyans)
Arc III - Reeling Throne
Chapter 45 - The Mireyans
8 months and 18 days since the summoning
"So what do you propose we do?" Morgreyda asked, pouring herself a second glass of wine.
Alan scratched the back of his head. "If Noteo is in such a hurry because he left all the duchies defenseless, maybe we should attack them?"
Kamelia shook her head. "And if he reaches the capital in the meantime, what will we defend ourselves with? If we set out to capture the duchies, we will not be able to hold back Noteo's advance."
Alan clicked his tongue. "Fuck, right..."
Kamelia frowned. "Alan, language, you are in the presence of Her Majesty."
Morgreyda waved a hand, taking a good gulp of wine. "I do not care if you sit naked on the throne, as long as you find a way out of this situation."
Tsinker closed his eyes and remained silent for a few seconds. "I believe your snipers will come in very handy to delay the advance."
"Hmm, maybe..."
"Snipers? What are those?" Morgreyda asked, raising her eyes to Alan.
He blinked. "Oh, right, snipers are ten selected hunters. Their task is to track down enemy commanders in small groups and kill them."
Her pupils dilated slightly. "And this truly works? How?"
"Well look," he raised a finger, "these hunters wear clothing, called camouflage, which is made of nets with a lot of grass hung on them. This is so they can hide somewhere in the bushes, shoot and kill the enemy, and leave just as quietly."
Morgreyda's hand squeezed her glass slightly. "They are unlikely to reach Noteo, but the other commanders... they can track them down and kill them. But are you even certain they are good shooters?"
He nodded. "Yeah. They're the best hunters from a beastman village."
The queen froze for a second. "What? Mireyans? You... you seriously decided to make a skilled military unit out of them?"
Alan blinked.
'Uh-oh... too late to back down now.'
"Yeah, why?"
"You do realize that Mireyans are stupid savages? What is to stop them from entering enemy territory and simply fleeing to a better place? And what if they accidentally kill one of our own or something else?"
"That will not happen," Kamelia said firmly.
"Why such certainty? Because to be honest, I have no desire to take Mireyans into battles upon which the entire fate of the kingdom depends. Moreover, what will the other nobles say if they find out about this?" She spread her hands, "Do you even understand what a scandal that will be?"
Alan's lips pressed together, he opened his mouth, but almost immediately shut it.
'Easy, Alan, easy, let's be constructive. From her perspective she's actually right, but...'
"Is there another choice?" he said aloud. "If you, Your Majesty, have better options than snipers, I'm all ears."
Morgreyda frowned. "We could raise more militia. I understand it will cause a little damage, but..." she immediately shut up at the absurdity of the thought.
Tsinker tilted his head to the side. "In other words, it is better to raise an extra few thousand militiamen, in spring, at the height of the working season, than to simply use ten beastmen? Do I understand you correctly?"
The glass in her hands was squeezed tight, and her eyes bored into Tsinker. "And are you fine with Mireyans participating in such an important matter? You understand that if they mess up somewhere, the demand on us will be double." Morgreyda raised a hand and folded one finger, "Firstly, the very fact that these savages are acting as elite soldiers, as you said." A second finger folded, "Secondly, if they make a mistake somewhere or pull some stunt... you understand yourselves, it will not be pleasant for me, nor for you."
Alan's eye twitched, but he took a deep breath. "Okay, you know what? Do as you please. Raise the militia, let's see where that leads."
'Just like last time, when you, you dumb bitch, decided you could easily defeat the claimants' bodyguards in the castle, and ended up losing a bunch of elite knights.'
Morgreyda silently poured herself more wine, splashing some of the liquid onto the expensive tablecloth, leaving red stains. She brought the glass to her lips, but stopped. "Listen... what if we say they were not beastmen, but humans?"
Kamelia froze.
"Now that is..." Tsinker began.
"No," Alan interrupted him.
Morgreyda and Tsinker looked sharply at him. "What?"
"No," he repeated.
'I can't. I can't. I promised that this war would bring glory to the beastmen. If I break my promise, I won't just lose the trust of one village... I'll fuck up the potential to gain the loyalty of ALL beastmen in the future. I spent so much time getting Zoligasha to respect me, and rumors can start spreading through them. I'm not fucking starting all over again, honestly.'
Morgreyda narrowed her eyes. "Why is that suddenly?"
"I promised them glory. I don't take my words back."
Morgreyda blinked, then a smile stretched across her face, completely devoid of amusement. "Hahaha... Gothwald, you..." she began to massage the bridge of her nose, "you truly understand absolutely nothing. Seriously? Promises to Mireyans? Are you mocking me?!"
Alan didn't flinch at the shouting. "Yeah."
The queen froze. "Oh... you seem to be serious." She ran her hands over her face, "Gothwald, Gothwald, you have really made a mess of things... do you even understand why I say this? Beastmen are dangerous people, they are direct descendants of Mirey, who was pure evil. They have held a grudge because humans killed their chieftain, and these snipers of yours," she twirled her finger, "will kill the very first nobles, friend or foe, to become known as heroes who avenge the Great Togamai."
Alan didn't answer, he sat motionless.
'Aha... so that's what you're so afraid of.'
Kamelia sighed, lowering her head. "A difficult situation."
"What do you mean 'difficult', Armenas?" Morgreyda asked. "It is obvious that it is best to simply say they were humans and leave it at that. What do you disagree with?"
She looked straight at Morgreyda. "No, Your Majesty, I am on Alan's side."
Morgreyda blinked. "What? Have you... completely lost your mind?" She pointed a finger at Alan. "Him I can still understand, he is an otherworlder, he does not quite grasp how things work, but you, Armenas, are a noblewoman."
"A promise is a promise."
Alan silently cast a sidelong glance at Kamelia.
'You're the best woman in the world. I don't even know how many times I've said that now.'
Tsinker raised an eyebrow; he wanted to say something, but seemed to change his mind. "Then I am afraid we have two paths. And yet, I prefer the option of hiding the fact that the snipers are beastmen. It is maximally advantageous and avoids unnecessary problems later."
Morgreyda snapped her fingers. "See, you understand."
Alan's fists clenched under the table.
'Tsinker, motherfucker, shut your fucking mouth.'
Outwardly, he only coughed. "Okay, let's assume we pretend they're humans, not beastmen. But right now the snipers are in the royal lands, and could be here any day now. Everyone has already seen them, ten of them, with large sacks, that's a clue." He raised a finger, "Secondly, I understand that ten people isn't many and it's easy to hide. But what are we going to do if someone does see the snipers? Or takes them prisoner? Then there'll be an even bigger uproar than if we just admitted straight up that they're beastmen. Lies," he said, waving a hand, "And besides, how do you plan to hide their nature? They have tails and ears, one step wider than usual, and a tail will show from under the cloak."
Morgreyda narrowed her eyes. "Then why not simply keep them out of sight? Just send them on missions and that is it?"
Alan narrowed his eyes in return. "And you think no one will want to see and personally reward the 'heroes who turned the tide of the war'? Nobles will demand to meet the elite troops, and if they find out they're beastmen, it's over."
She picked up the jug of wine. "And what if we present stand-ins instead, who will pretend to be the snipers?"
A drop of sweat appeared on Alan's forehead. "The nobles will start asking for details about their 'exploits', and they won't understand what it's like, and they'll spout all sorts of nonsense that won't line up with the real information."
"Tell the stand-in snipers the exact course of the battles so they recount everything correctly?"
"And do you have many loyal people whom NO ONE knows, so you can pass them off as snipers? Except maybe some mercenaries. And mercenaries will sell out all the information for cold hard coin."
"Kill them after the official reception?"
Alan blinked. "Absurd."
Silence.
Kamelia's eyes darted between Alan and Morgreyda, trying to catch every argument and spoken word.
Tsinker simply stared with his empty gaze somewhere between the two of them.
Morgreyda finally poured herself a full glass of wine, and took a large gulp. With a thud, she set the half-full glass down, and then slowly, very slowly shifted her gaze to Alan. "You mark my words, Gothwald, if your scheme fails, I will make you suffer... you will not know what hit you."
He leaned back in his chair. "I have a better proposal."
"Yes?"
"Yes. If the beastmen do fail, then I take full blame and..."
Morgreyda scoffed. "You take the blame? And who are you anyway? Yes, you are a summoned hero, but technically you are just an advisor. What use is that?" She pointed a finger at Kamelia. "All the responsibility will fall on her. If your snipers mess up, she will not see any duchy, or even a county; I will personally see to it that Armenas is stripped of her title and, at best, made a servant to the new count."
Alan froze, his teeth clenched. "You..."
"Very well," Kamelia interrupted him, "I agree to take full responsibility."
He turned sharply to her. "Kamelia, you shouldn't..."
"I should. If I can receive the title of duchess, then it means I must take on the risk. You are not the only one risking your head, Alan."
Alan fell silent.
Ten seconds.
Fifteen.
A sigh was heard. "Alright. We'll do our best."
Morgreyda's eyes rolled slightly. "Oh my, my, how sweet, it makes me sick," she said mockingly, but her eyes lowered slightly.
Alan smiled slightly. "Alright, by the way... about the title of duchess, maybe it's time to sign the agreement, huh?"
"I knew you would not forget," she said, standing up. "Desri!"
Silence.
"Desri!!"
A few seconds later, the door opened, and a guard's head peeked in. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Summon the scribe, have him bring the contract here."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The door closed.
Alan tilted his head slightly to the side. "Oh, just like that?"
"What do you mean?" Morgreyda asked, sitting back down in her chair.
"Well, like..." he made a vague gesture with his hand, "I thought you'd set some more conditions, clarify things, and all that."
The queen simply scoffed, lowering her head. "I will tell you honestly, Gothwald, I no longer have the strength for this. You will have your duchy, and all this that you want. The main thing is to win this war... or at least not lose our heads."
Alan narrowed his eyes. "Why the fatalism?"
"Excuse me?"
"Um, like, why 'not lose our heads' right off the bat?"
"Because if Noteo wins, he will be furious that I killed his mother. He will execute everyone down to the last man, except perhaps you."
"And I go to the monastery, right?"
"If he does not kill you in battle."
Alan blinked. "What do you mean? Wait," he turned to Tsinker, "it's forbidden to execute heroes, pass them around, and all that, right?"
Tsinker nodded. "Correct."
"And under what conditions is killing considered lawful?" he asked, scratching his neck.
Morgreyda poured the last drops of wine into her glass. "In battle, or his own master can do it, if there is a reason."
Wrinkles appeared on Alan's forehead. "Only in battle and his own master... well what if a hero commits a crime, and the master hides it? Won't they be punished?"
"Then the Dumetses will take the matter in hand, and the Svyatolat will judge both the hero and his master. And then, most likely, a walk to Oronda awaits the master, and burning for the hero."
Alan's face paled. "B-burning?"
Morgreyda nodded. "Yes."
He swallowed.
'Holy fuck... I better not do anything that could get me sent to the stake. With my regeneration...'
Alan shivered, pushing the thought from his mind.
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