How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom: Volume 14

1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7183-0926-5
Verlag: J-Novel Club
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 250 Seiten

Reihe: How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom

With Souma's defeat of the giant monster that menaced the Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago, the people of the Kingdom celebrate his achievement. However, as far as the rest of the world is concerned, someone else has done something even greater-reclaim a piece of the Demon Lord's Domain. That is what Fuuga, King of Malmkhitan, has accomplished.

Within the Union of Eastern Nations, Fuuga's power and influence rapidly expand. Unable to accept this encroachment, the anti-Fuuga faction launches an unsuccessful attempt on his life. This sparks all the nations of the Union to be drawn into a massive conflagration?! When this conflict ends, the world will move on to a new stage.

Here is volume fourteen of the revolutionary administrative fantasy series!

Autoren/Hrsg.

Dojyomaru

Weitere Mitwirkende

Fuyuyuki

Mccann, Sean

Leseproben

Prologue: The Young Tiger Awakens

— Summer of the 1543rd year, Continental Calendar —

Approximately three years before Souma was summoned to this world, in the steppes northeast of the Union of Eastern Nations...

Above the broad blue sky and the towering cumulonimbus clouds; below the vast carpet of grass that seemed to stretch out forever. With no great mountains, only gentle hills, if you strained your eyes, you could see far into the distance. Four mounted knights raced across those steppes like the wind.

The four knights all bore arms and wore armor. The orange-haired mounts they rode were like a cross between a mountain goat and an oryx. These animals were called temsbocks, and they were raised to serve in place of warhorses. A temsbock could leap to great heights with a rider on its back, giving birth to the leaping cavalry, a type of troop that only existed on these steppes. Riding at the lead of the group was a big man who was a little over the age of twenty.

The big man turned back to shout, “Ha ha ha! You’re falling behind, Kasen!”

“H-Hold on!” the youngest of the group, the boy riding at the very rear, practically screamed in response. “Lord Fuugaaa!”

The one leading the group was Fuuga Haan. He was the twenty-two-year-old son of Raiga Haan—the unifier of the steppes. This was before he met Durga the flying tiger, so he rode a temsbock like the others. But even at this time, he already had the appearance of a general.

The boy at the rear, who had a quiver and bowgun on his back, was Kasen Shuri. At thirteen years of age he was the youngest of Fuuga’s cohorts, but his skills as a mounted archer were good enough to leave any of the others speechless.

“Bwa ha ha ha ha! If you keep whining, we’ll leave you behind, Kasen,” said one man in the middle of the group. He rode atop a saddle with decorations that could have competed with those of the Polish Winged Hussars for showiness.

Kasen frowned. “The way those wings jangle is too noisy, Gaten!”

“Ha ha! Too bad! These wings are my trademark!”

His name was Gaten Bahr. He was the only human present, thus having no wings. He was vain and superficial, but a talented commander who used the iron whip he kept at his waist to fight using a highly variable style of combat.

“Heh heh, Lord Fuuga doesn’t need laggards following him.”

“That’s what you said when you left Moumei behind...”

Kasen glared resentfully at Gaten who shrugged.

“There was nothing else to be done about Moumei. He rode on a steppe yak.”

Moumei Ryoku, the man they were talking about, was even larger than Fuuga. He was a powerful warrior who wielded a big hammer. However, due to his massive size, he was unable to ride a temsbock. Instead he rode a steppe yak—a large, woolly cow-like creature raised on the steppes. That left him unable to keep up with Fuuga and the rest, so he would have to catch up with them at his own slow pace later...

“If you two keep blathering, you’re going to bite your tongues,” Shuukin Tan, Fuuga’s childhood friend, warned. Being the same age as Fuuga, he was a superb warrior and strategist. It was expected that he’d become Fuuga’s closest aide the day Fuuga took his father’s place as king.

Shuukin brought his temsbock up alongside Fuuga’s.

“Anyway, Fuuga, just how far do you plan to go?”

“As far as I can.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t you think it’d be fun to keep going until we run out of land?” Fuuga said, looking at the horizon with a laugh.

Shuukin pressed his fingers into his forehead, shaking his head with dismay. “We’re heading north right now. If we keep going, we’ll end up in the Demon Lord’s Domain, you know?”

“So? We’ll make the Demon Lord’s Domain part of our domain too.”

“Are you insane?! Even your great father was pushed to his limits just unifying the steppes,” Shuukin said, but there was a glint in Fuuga’s eye.

“My old man had to start with just a single tribe. That’s why unifying our homeland into the single nation of Malmkhitan was all he could manage. But I’m starting with Malmkhitan. Shuukin, my friend, do you think me a lesser commander than my father?”

“No... You are greater than he.”

Knowing Fuuga as well as he did, these words were not mere flattery, but something he genuinely believed. Martial prowess, strategy, command—Fuuga lacked in none of them when compared with King Raiga—and he had a greater charisma that drew others to him.

Fuuga smiled widely and thrust his fist towards the heavens.

“I’ll race from this steppe and go as far as I can. The routes we take will become our roads; the things we see will become our land. We’ll expand our country to the utmost limit!”

“.........”

It was a bold claim. And yet, Shuukin didn’t think it was impossible. Ever since the Demon Lord’s Domain appeared, the people of the continent had tended to look down. They stopped hoping for things to become better, and instead prayed that they could face a tomorrow no worse than today. Despite that, Fuuga had his eyes set on a bright, distant future. This was how a leader ought to be.

“Lord Fuuga! I will follow you anywhere!” said Kasen.

“Ha ha ha! It’s fun to run with a commander, after all!” agreed Gaten.

The two had been listening to their conversation.

Fuuga and Shuukin looked at one another then laughed at their reaction.

“Of course. I’ll be with you too, my friend!”

“Yeah, Shuukin! Come on the endless journey with me!”

The two of them drove their temsbocks to run even faster.

? ? ?

However, that winter, the moment of destiny arrived: Raiga Haan, founder of the steppe nation Malmkhitan, suddenly passed away.

The cause was an epidemic disease, but his death came so suddenly that rumors spread saying it was the work of an opposing political faction. The fact that every tribe began making disquieting moves shortly afterwards only poured fuel on that fire.

The day of Raiga’s funeral came. The tradition of his tribe was to dig a hole in the open steppe, lay the body and funerary accessories to rest, then finally slaughter a horse and bury it with the deceased. Raiga had asked for that kind of traditional burial when he was still alive.

Fuuga thought as he looked down at his father laid in the ground.

As Fuuga contemplated, his ten-year-old sister Yuriga clung tightly to his side. He put a hand on her shoulder, pulling her even closer...

Suddenly, a messenger arrived, shouting, “I bring a message! The tribes hostile towards Raiga have banded together and are headed this way now!”

Given their words, it was likely another messenger would rush in before the funeral ended.

“Damn! They must see Lord Raiga’s passing as their chance to strike!” Shuukin said, his voice full of distaste.

Yuriga squeezed Fuuga tight. “Big brother...”

“Don’t fret, Yuriga...” Fuuga gently placed a hand on her shoulder to push her away, then called out to an old muscular wolf-eared soldier nearby, “Gaifuku!”

The man’s name was Gaifuku Kiin. He was of the mystic wolf race, but unlike Tomoe, he had not left as a refugee, having served the House of Haan under Raiga.

Gaifuku crossed his arms and said, “Sir!”

“Gather the men at once. Just the ones who can come.”

“Yes, sir. Should I put out the call to our allied tribes as well?”

“No need. They’ll want to stay out of this until a victor is made clear. I’m sure they’re waiting to see if I’m a worthy heir to Raiga Haan. And that’s exactly what I’m gonna show them.”

Next Fuuga looked to his young friends.

“Shuukin, Moumei, Gaten, Kasen!”

““““Yes, sir!””””

“Each of you, gather the men you’ve trained for this day. We will show our prowess. Those who oppose us and those who choose to wait and see shall come to kneel before my feet.”

““““Yeah!””””

The enemy had rounded up around three thousand men. Fuuga’s personal forces numbered a thousand. And yet, this did nothing to erase his indomitable smile.

“Gaten, take a hundred riders to attack their right flank! Make it showy and draw their attention!”

“Understood, Commander.”

“Kasen, take a hundred mounted archers to shoot at their left flank. Make them break formation!”

“Yes, sir!”

Having received their orders, Gaten and Kasen went to attack the flanks. Taking advantage of their swift temsbocks, they stuck to tactics that damaged the enemy while limiting their own casualties. It was similar to flies swarming around the mass of enemies that all rushed towards them in one group.

The enemy that had tried to overwhelm...