第９２８堀：戦力の正体 (Part2)
The first thing that caught my eye was...
"The average level of the army is around 20. Is that surprisingly high?"
As Taiki pointed out, the average level of the enemy forces was indeed noteworthy.
"I can't say for sure, but... hmm. A maximum of 153 is quite formidable. Queen Seraria, what is your take on this data?"
"Well, it’s about the same as my homeland. The average soldier level is around 23, and the highest level in Roschur is our Royal Guard Captain, Ares Lester, at just over 120. Looking at these documents, it’s safe to say it’s no different from the levels on the Rogari Continent. However, there is still something strange about this."
Indeed, a level of 153 is high enough that even Roschur doesn't possess such an individual. But more than that, the point that truly bothered me was...
"I’m sure you’ve noticed it too, but there is no way they could command a large number of wyverns with levels this low. A wyvern is a monster that even a party of level 40 adventurers would struggle to subjugate, even if the wyvern itself were only single-digit level. And yet..."
"Ah, now that you mention it, that is strange. With levels like this, they shouldn't even be able to capture a wyvern, right? But maybe they were wiped out by John and the others' aerial assault?"
"Well, that possibility isn't zero, but it’s also possible that they had beast tamers or trainers who had broken them in, don't you think? Even on Earth, it wasn't historically uncommon to bring animals onto the battlefield as a fighting force."
"Eh? Is that so?"
I had thought I’d made a major discovery, but I was even more surprised by Taizo’s remark.
"Queen Seraria, I assume there are people in this world who capture monsters and use them for spectacles, right? Even if there is a level gap?"
"Ah, that is certainly true."
Now that he mentioned it, he was right. Even if they weren't as skilled as Aslin, there is a profession known as a Tamer who captures and commands monsters, so it wouldn't be strange for them to be using wyverns that way.
"Haa, and I thought I’d made such a huge discovery."
As I sighed in disappointment, he continued.
"Ah, Seraria, your intuition is undoubtedly correct."
"What do you mean? Like Taizo said, isn't it more likely that there was a tamer like Aslin who succeeded in breeding and training them? Why are you so certain?"
"Please look at the second page of the document Steve just brought in."
" " "The second page?" " "
Prompted by this, we flipped through the documents almost simultaneously with Taizo and the others. It was a list of supplies captured from the enemy, and it looked like it would span several pages... wait!?
" " "Magic Gear!?" " "
Yes, at the top of the list, highlighted with a fluorescent marker, were the words "Magic Gear."
"As Taizo-san said, the possibility of successful wyvern breeding exists, but since the captured commander was carrying this, the connection is clearly stronger here."
"No, there’s no doubt in my mind that this is the reason they were able to command wyverns."
"I agree. I appreciate you supporting my opinion, but I am also certain this is the cause."
"I mean, why are you only telling us this now!"
"Well, we only figured it out during the meeting with the Gusdo Kingdom. We had to recover all the supplies abandoned by the 80,000-strong enemy army and examine them in detail before it finally came to light. Besides, could I really have said in front of the Gusdo Kingdom representatives that the enemy’s strength was due to items leaked from Seasypho?"
" " "..." " "
There was no way we could say that. We couldn't even tell the Seasypho representatives who were present, and on top of that, it would put Kagura’s homeland, Haiden, and the position of the Haire Church, which Enora serves, in a very precarious situation.
"Ah!? Menou and General Lake aren't here, right!?"
I turned around to check immediately, but the two from Seasypho were nowhere to be seen.
"The two of them returned to the Seasypho capital to report this situation the moment the meeting with the Gusdo Kingdom concluded," Kirue informed me, and I felt relieved.
The problem was...
"...Ah, why did it have to come to this right after getting married?"
"This isn't just some simple international issue. If things go poorly, the Haire Church might be finished..."
Kagura and Enora muttered, their faces turning pale.
"Still, gods really are cursed, aren't they?"
I agreed with Yuki’s words from the bottom of my heart. They get in our way no matter where we go! Akuenoki!
"Drag Akuenoki out here immediately! Make them spit out exactly how much they produced!"
They curse us no matter how far we go! They’ll do anything to get to us! They’re coming, they’re definitely coming!
Well, that’s enough of that. The Pokémon anime started, didn't it! Yahoo!
The *Winning Dungeon* game also started its full-voice collaboration event, so man, we are busy!