A report came in a few days after Rei had joined up with the rebel army.

Today, Rei was using Overlord’s Armour once again to teach the rebel soldiers what a strong opponent was like, while also practicing himself to become as good at it as possible, when a messenger came to him.

「Hiiiii-!」

It seemed like it was the messenger’s first time seeing Overlord’s Armour and they screamed the moment they saw Rei.

That said, the fact that it was just a scream and that they didn’t freeze up showed the soldier’s high level of ability.

Hearing the messenger scream, Rei deactivated Overlord’s Armour.

At the same time, the soldiers who had been enduring Rei’s aura all let out a sigh of relief as they sat down on the ground.

It was true that they had faced Rei’s Overlord’s Armour several times, but it still wasn’t something they could get used to right now.

An absolute predator facing off against prey. Given the circumstances, it was unlikely they would be able to adapt in the short term.

Rei turned to look at the soldiers, then to Set, who was lying nearby, before turning back towards the messenger who had just arrived.

「So, what’s the matter? Have you come on some business?」

The messenger, who had screamed out in shock, came back to his senses at Rei’s question.

He quickly recalled why he had been sent here.

「Theorem-sama has asked you to come to the main camp as soon as possible.」

「……Huh?」

He was in the middle of training……training the soldiers to survive even if they encountered a strong enemy like himself. Rei could guess that it had to be an urgent matter if he was called for at this time.

「Understood, I’ll be right there.」

It was only that the soldiers looked relieved upon hearing htat.

They’d only been facing Rei’s Overlord’s Armour for a bit over ten seconds. It was a short period of time, much less than a minute, but even so, they had been severely drained of both physical and mental strength.

However, compared to the first time Rei had trained with Karaza’s troops, the sense of intimidation they felt was slightly less. It was only a small difference, but the training that Rei himself had undergone in the past few days had undoubtedly improved his magic power manipulation skills.

Even so, it was true that facing Rei like this was tough for the soldiers.

That was why they were happy to get a temporary break, but……

Nodding at the messenger, Rei turned to Set before speaking.

「Sorry, Set, can you take my place?」

「Guru~?」

Me? Set seemed to ask as he tilted his head and gave a cry while the cheeks of the soldiers all twitched.

It was true that the sense of intimidation Rei gave off was incredible and it was all they could do to endure it. However, there was no doubt that Rei was a human, and that was part of the reason why they had been able to endure it.

However, the next one to train them was a Griffon, an A rank monster.

If it were another human, they would probably manage somehow, but when they thought about how they’d be facing a monster instead, they couldn’t help but cower.

「Um, Rei-sama. If possible, that is……」

A soldier in his mid-twenties called out to Rei timidly, but Rei didn’t let him finish as he continued speaking.

「I’m telling you, we don’t know what methods the enemy will use. So it makes sense to make the maximum preparations to deal with it, right?」

The soldiers all agreed among themselves that there was no way they would bring out an A rank monster, but Rei didn’t care as he called out to Set.

「So, Set, I’ll leave them to you. Don’t cause any physical harm.」

So you’re fine with causing mental harm!? The soldiers wanted to shout out, but there was no way they could do that.

In the end, Set stood between them and Rei, who was leaving with the messenger, and they couldn’t chase Rei any further.

And then……

「GURURURURURURURURURU~!」

Set’s high pitched cry, using King’s Awe, made the soldiers freeze in place or collapse to the ground.

Some of them even let out screams in shock and fear……but that’s a story for another time.

 

 

「R-Rei-sama. I think I heard terrified screams from back there.」

The messenger turned to look at Rei, who was walking next to him, upon hearing Set’s cry.

However, Rei, the target of such words, shrugged his shoulders without showing any signs of concern.

「Well, don’t worry about it. Set has been bored too lately. He’s full of motivation.」

「……Motivation, you say?」

If Set was going to be that motivated, couldn’t at least not be towards his allies?

The messengers wanted Set to be as motivated only when facing their enemies.

That was what the messenger truly believed.

There was some confusion among the camp when Set had first cried out, but since nothing followed after, the commotion quickly died down.

It was already known among the soldiers that Rei……also known as Crimson, had tamed a Griffon, and was serving as their ally. Many of them also knew that Rei was training the soldiers, so they quickly understood what was going on.

As he talked with the messenger guiding him, making their way through the camp, they eventually arrived at the magic tent where Rei had made his appearance at previously.

There was a knight guarding the entrance as before, but the difference was that they made way for him without a word after confirming his arrival.

(Even if they had been told beforehand……did something serious happen?)

While thinking about the knight’s behaviour, Rei entered the magic tent alongside the messenger who had guided him.

The people who had been present when Rei was previously introduced were all inside the tent, in addition, there were also some people that Rei hadn’t seen before

These people had joined the rebel army over the past few days and this was their first time meeting Rei in person.

Even so, none of them looked at Rei with contempt, probably because they had seen in train in the past few days, heard about him from their subordinates’ reports, or heard from the others present.

Those who had joined the rebel army knew that they were at a disadvantage.

To be honest, given their situation, they probably wanted to avoid doing anything that would worsen their relationshipt with Rei, an undoubtedly powerful fighting force.

Another big factor was that Rei was also the man Vihera loved.

……That said, since there were some who held feelings towards Vihera, many of them held mixed feelings.

「Pardon me, I have brought Rei-sama with me.」

When the messenger escorting Rei spoke up, Theorem nodded and began to speak himself.

「Thank you for your hard work. Please stand down.」

「Yes sir!」

Rei turned to look at the messenger as they left the tent.

He realised that the reason for sending them out was because Theorem didn’t want htem to hear the conversation that was about to take place.

(It seems something has really happened.)

Thinking like that, Rei turned his gaze towards Theorem again.

Seeing that Rei was prompting him to start, Theorem started to explain.

「Actually, we have received information from the people we left behind in the Imperial Capital. Incidentally, this information has come from multiple sources other than Rhodes, who infiltrated the First Prince’s faction, and most importantly, this report was made after visual confirmation, so it is an indisputable fact.」

Rei, who guessed what the report was about from Theorem’s strangely cautious words, smiled as he spoke up.

「The enemy has arrived.」

「That’s right. The punitive force numbers about three thousand soldiers, excluding the supply troops. That’s about a thousand more than us.」

「……Only a thousand?」

Rei couldn’t help but be puzzled at Theorem’s words.

In reality, it shouldn’t have been that difficult for the Imperial Army to send out a force in the tens of thousands.

So, even though it was larger than the rebel army, the punitive force only outnumbered them by a thousand.

No matter how one looked at it, it didn’t seem like they were being treated seriously.

「There’s also the issue of how long it would take to gather such a force……」

「Anyway, the role of this punitive force seems to be to test us. All the people incorporated into the punitive force are considered incompetent, even within the Second Prince’s faction. They’re really just expendable pawns.」

Mercurio spoke up, interrupting Theorem.

Expendable pawns. Hearing this, Rei finally showed a look of understanding.

in that sense, it was certainly a good idea to gather incompetent people together to form a punitive force. They could check the rebel army’s fighting strength while getting rid of the incompetent people on their own side. It was truly a plan that killed two birds with one stone.

However, some doubts still remained.

「I know it’s effective, but is it the Second Prince’s faction? Aren’t we fighting against the First Prince?」

「It’s not like I’m on particularly good terms with any of the others aside from Kabajid. In the first place, it was Kabajid, Shurus, and Frizione who conspired to keep me under house arrest. ……I didn’t think Shurus would be the first to march out though. No, I guess it makes sense, considering Shurus’ militant personality.」

Even thought a punitive force was approaching them, Mercurio was still smiling without any signs of panic.

Seeing that, the surrounding nobles realised how panicked they had been as they regained their composure.

(Wow.)

It was unclear whether he intended to do it or not. But, it was a fact that he had calmed down the somewhat concerned nobles. Rei felt like he had seen a glimpse of Mercurio’s abilities that Theorem admired as he quietly voiced his own admiration.

「Rei, I asked you to come because I wanted to hear your opinion on what to do from now on.」

「……Me?」

「Yes. Even including my sister, you are the strongest person in the rebel army. You also have a tamed Griffon and it has been decided that you will work as an individual reserve force. In other words, even if you are alone, you are still considred the leader of a unit.」

The others didn’t object to his words.

Of course, some of them had their own thoughts about it, but having seen the extent of Rei’s abilities in the previous mock battle and in Rei’s training, they didn’t voice any opposition.

Even those who had just joined kept silent, as they had all heard about Rei from those who had gathered earlier.

Meanwhile, catching Mercurio’s gaze, Rei spoke without any particular excitement.

「If that’s what you want, I can crush them head-on by myself.」

Rei’s words made the nobles doubt his sanity as they looked at him.

The only exceptions were Vihera and Theorem, who both knew Rei well, Tilleyle, who was an ardent admirer of Vihera and therefore believed that her thoughts were naturally correct, and Gurgast, who had crossed swords with Rei.

Even Mercurio showed a little surprise, as he hadn’t expected Rei to say that.

Gurgast desperately signaled to Rei with his eyes taht if he was going to do that, he should let him join as well, but Rei ignored that without seeming to care at all.

First of all, according to Mercuio, the enemy this time was a group of incompetents. If asked whether a large number of troops were necessary against such an opponent, the answer would be no.

Rather, from Rei’s point of view, they were a suitable opponent for training his use of Overlord’s Armour.

(However, unlike magic that allows for wide area attacks, Overlord’s Armour is a skill that is more effectively when fighting small numbers of enemies. And, the opponents this time are a group of incompetents. Considering that, they will probably all run away in the middle of the fight.)

Thinking of that, Mecurio turned to Rei, who also seemed to be thinking about something. Eventually gathering his thoughts, he spoke with a slightly apologetic look on his face.

「Rei, I know I’m saying this after asking you to come all this way, but could you please leave the handling of the punitive force to me?」

「……You mean you don’t want me to fight?」

「That’s right. I’ve heard about your strength from my sister, and I’ve also learned from our interactions after arriving at the camp. You’re incredibly powerful. If you wipe out the enemy, it will certainly boost our morale. But, at the same time, we’re a ragtag army, so we need to gain more combat experience and practice our teamwork. If the enemy is weak, it’s the perfect opportunity to gain experience, right?」

Having said that, Mercurio turned to look at Theorem, who was standing next to him.

Perhaps understanding what his lord wanted to say from his gaze, Theorem spoke up.

「Besides, they probably don’t know you’re here yet, Rei. They may be suspicious, but they can’t be sure. With all that said, there’s no need to show our trump card to the punitive force.」

Rei hesitated for a moment at those words, but decided that if he wanted to practice Overlord’s Armour, it would be better to do so against a stronger enemy rather than a weak one, so he nodded reluctantly in response.

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