CHAPTER 228: THE REWARD

　A few days have passed since I gave Braham the task of exterminating the bandits.

　So far, I have not received any reports on Braham’s case.

　To be honest, I was beginning to feel a little uneasy about whether I had really done the right thing in giving him the mission.

　It is true that success in an actual battle is essential for Braham’s growth, but if he fails and dies, there is no way he can grow. Wouldn’t it have been better to try it with a safer opponent?

　I know it’s too late to worry now and I know I have to trust Braham, but…

　I’m thinking a lot of negative things,

“Lord Ars, Sir Ritsu has something to report, is this a good time?” (Servant)

　A servant of the castle said.

　Could it be that bandit subjugation is over?

　It wasn’t like I was doing any particularly important work, so I went straight to the office where Ritsu was waiting for me.

“Lord Ars, I am sorry you had to come all the way here.” (Ritsu)

　When I entered the office, I found Ritsu was with Braham, who was supposed to subjugate the bandits.

“I don’t mind. More importantly, Braham, have you just arrived?” (Ars)

“Yes! We succeeded in defeating leader of the bandits who had settled in the fortress!　There were no casualties in our squad, except for a few injured soldiers, but their lives are in no problem!” (Braham)

 

　Braham said cheerfully.

“Well done!” (Ars)

　These words came from the bottom of my heart.

　I had been worried about what would happen, so I was overflowing with feelings of relief and joy when I heard that he had succeeded.

　Then, I quickly appraised Braham’s status and found that his Command had increased to 77.

　Originally, it was just 68.

 

　How could it have grown so much after just one successful attempt to subjugate bandits?

　Well, the opponent was an ex-Sights soldier and his base was a fortress, so it must have been just like a real battle.

　Even taking that into account, he’s grown quite a bit.

　Maybe his growth is fast because of his high growth rate.

　Maybe he’ll easily grow to the mid-80s.

　With that status, it is no exaggeration to say that he is now a first-rate commander.

　It seems that it was not a wrong decision to entrust him with the actual battle.

　Then, I received a report on what kind of battle it was.

　It seemed that Zat, his second-in-command, was the most active in the battle.

  

　I was a little chilled when I was told that he might have died. Zat is also an excellent person. His Command talent is not that high, so he is not suited for leading soldiers, but his other abilities are high, so he is suited for an adjutant role. Zat seems to have been in charge of planning the operation.

　I decided to offer a special reward to both Braham and Zat.

“You’ve met my expectations. I will reward Braham and Zat with more gold.” (Ars)

“Yes! Me too? Is that okay?” (Braham)

“Yes, you have led your unit well, and it was thanks to Braham’s leadership that Zat was rescued.” (Ars)

“Oh, thank you very much!” (Braham)

　Braham bowed his head in gratitude.

“And, uh, oh, yes. I forgot! There was something I had to tell you!” (Braham)

　He said this with a look of remembrance on his face as he raised his head.

　The leader of the bandits who the subjugated this time, Buigo, was fired by the aristocrats he worked for and came to the fortress.

　The location of the castle was said to have been told to him by the nobleman.

“Fumu… it’s certainly possible that it’s a scheme from Sights.” (Ritsu)

　Ritsu, who heard the information from Braham, thought a little and said so.

“Do you think so?” (Ars)

“I can’t say for sure that it is, but it seems quite possible.” (Ritsu)

　From what I’ve heard, I thought it sounded like there was a scheme.

　It’s possible that they pointed the fortress for Buigo’s sake, but normally if you think of rewarding them, you’d usually find them a job in the state of Sights or some other method.

　But if that were the case, then Sights would not have told Buigo about the location of the old fortress in Canale County.

“If so, are Sights going to attack Canale again?” (Ars)

　I asked Ritsu.

“Yes. …I think the fact that they have taken this roundabout way is proof that they think that fighting a war right now is not a good move. So, it would be difficult for Messiaen to use this event as an excuse to attack Sights, since there is no solid evidence. Still, I think Sights has no intention to reconcile with Messiaen and will attack us eventually, so they have moved in harassing us.” (Ritsu)

 

“I see…Then it doesn’t seem likely that they will attack us right away… But I think it’s safe to say that they are likely to harass us a few more times like this in the future.” (Ars)

“Yes. I think we should be more vigilant about those.” (Ritsu)

　This time, we were able to easily eliminate the bandits before any major damage was done, but in some cases, it could have caused a lot of damage.

　I honestly can’t predict what kind of tactics they will use next time, but we have to be vigilant.

“Thanks for the information. Please go and thank Zat on our behalf.” (Ars)

“Yes, sir! Well, whatever the enemy is up to, I’ll take care of it!” (Braham)

“…Braham. …You’re getting a little carried away.” (Ritsu)

“Ah, that’s right. Excuse me, Master Ritsu…” (Braham)

　Ritsu said to reprimand Braham, who was getting overconfident due to his achievement.

 

　Even if I say that his personality has changed somewhat, it seems that his roots have not changed.

　Anyway, I’m happy that we got through this time safely and that Braham has grown.

　I hope that he will continue to grow steadily and become a military commander that surpasses Ritsu and Mireille.