Chapter 97 – Untouchable

(PoV of an Imperial General)

“General, we have just received a report from our scout unit, they found nothing worth worrying about.” One of my men reported.

“I see… Continue marching towards the capital then.” I replied.

“Yes sir!” He said and the troops continued moving.

To think it’s already been a week since the war with Hermagne officially started, and yet we have had no big conflicts so far… We certainly didn’t expect Margrave Wallace would declare neutrality and give free passage to both troops of the Kingdom and the Empire, it is quite helpful, but I cannot stop thinking it might be a trap… It doesn’t seem right for one of their main lines of defense to give us free passage to the capital.

“… I want more information soon.” I said to nobody in particular.

“Information, sir?” My officer asked.

“Yes, some sort of guarantee that this path is safe. I don’t trust Margrave Wallace.” I told him… We can’t risk being flanked by the royal troops and the Margrave’s troops after all.

At that moment, I noticed a strange man carrying a large sword, “Who’s there!?” I asked.

“… You talking to me?” He asked back…

“Just who else is there aside from you!?” I answered his annoying reply.

“… Quite a lot of people?” He was really getting on my nerves.

“They are my subordinates…” I answered while getting ready for combat, just in case he tried attacking us.

“Ah, well… I’m a pla… Migrant. I’m on my way to the royal capital.” He answered. That’s quite convenient, migrants are neutral parties, so they shouldn’t have any reason to side with us or the kingdom. It should be easy to buy his favor and get him on our side.

“I see. You may be in luck lad, for I have a wonderful offer for you. If you can show us a safe path to the royal capital, I may give you quite the reward.” I told him.

“A reward for this little? Sure.” He instantly replied and turned his back on us, walking towards the direction that we know to be the one that will lead to the capital.

“… I suppose that should be alright.” I said to myself. That man is strange, he shouldn’t show his back to us so easily without worrying about being attacked. Are all migrants that carefree?

I decided I should ask him about his path of choice, “Will it take long to get to the capital?”

“Not really. Unless we stop by the villages and towns on the way that is.” He replied… So his ‘safe’ path is just a straight line? I was unsure if I should trust him, but perhaps moving quickly to our goal might be for the best. As our scouts found no interference from the Margrave so far, we might be able to get to the capital before he has the time to assemble any troops if he wishes to betray us.

For now, I suppose I should keep the conversation going with him, just in case he is trying to send some signal to some hidden troops, it should be harder for him to do those if he is involved in something else, “Hey, what’s your name?” I asked him.”

He pondered for a bit before answering, “It’s fine to call me Jerusalem.”

“An unusual name, I suppose. Does it mean anything?” I asked him to keep the conversation flowing, even though the name was obviously false. He seems to be smart enough to not give his real name in front of an army he doesn’t quite trust yet.

“Nevermind that, the capital is right ahead.” He said as he pointed forward… Its walls really were visible already, and no traps got us so far. It was a good bet to just move forward quickly, “Then was that all that you needed?”

“Yes, that should be it.” I replied. We should now prepare for a siege on the capital as more troops come as reinforcements while pillaging the towns and villages on the way to give us extra resources… We will take this Kingdom swiftly and make them regret declaring war on the Empire.

“Well, then I guess my job is done… Oh.” He was saying something strange. Wasn’t he supposed to ask for the reward now? But instead he was moving away… Did he stop because he just remembered it? How could one forget the whole reason he ‘guided’ us in the first place?

“Is something the matter?” I asked him.

“My karma… Has dropped.” He replied mysteriously…

“Are you saying that our army is evil!?” This insult cannot be left alone… I signaled to my men to prepare their weapons.

However, there was something amiss… Instead of being hostile at us, he just seemed… Upset. It was a strange reaction for one that just threw an insult at us.

“To think it fell down by 50 in one go…” He murmured something strange… Just what is he getting at? “Seems like I have no choice… In order to raise this karma, I’ll have to kill you all.” What!?

My lieutenant’s head flew away in the next second. Just how did he do that!? Why did he go from no hostility to an enemy in an instant?! Why would he even take us to this place if he meant to fight us all along!? There should be no other troops nearby to aid him!

“… This crazy man… Everyone, prepare for battle!” I told the men who were already unsheathing their swords.

“Ashley, Rwanda, grant me your strength.” The man said something weird and his gauntlet and necklace shone momentaneously… After that, my subordinates started screaming as he suddenly got behind them… Fast!

“Close formations-“ I tried ordering, but…

“Guess I gotta start with the head!” As he said that, everything turned upside down, and then it was all dark.

******

(Absolutely Inviolable Area’s PoV)

“<Eternal Invincibility: My Glory>” I said as I beheaded one of their commanders. Their numbers were quite large, so I would need to use some buffs to beat them, “<Spiritual Resonance: Magic Dominion>.”

As they approached me, I made a shockwave by punching the ground, then started killing the staggered soldiers while using more buffs, “<Absolutely Immovable: Inviolable Area>.”

After doing this much, things became mostly easy. The soldiers just couldn’t keep up with me and I could kill them without much worries about whatever they tried doing to retaliate.

<Your Karma has increased>

Oh, that was a nice message. I was a bit worried that I might not be able to recover the Karma from just killing these troops, but it seems this will do… Then, as I smiled at this prosperous future, I continued annihilating them.