第１５５０堀：到着前会議 (Part2)
"Ah, I see. So that’s why they drove them out."
"Likely so. I doubt it stems from any soft-hearted concern about involving civilians. It is far more probable that they were simply in the way, so they were pushed toward Hinsua."
"I’m genuinely curious, though. Wouldn't having civilians around be better for us? You know, using them as hostages to restrict our movements?"
Agil voiced a point that was perfectly logical, and Light, standing beside her, nodded in agreement as she spoke up.
"We are heading to the old Vinoshia royal capital to provide relief to the populace on behalf of our respective nations. In other words, the people are to be protected. To the enemy, they are resources to be exploited, are they not? Besides, soldiers cannot act without orders. That is doubly true when civilians are involved."
As a soldier herself, Light seemed particularly baffled by the decision to force the civilians to flee to Hinsua.
Well, while it’s true that there are plenty of bandits or conscripted soldiers who consider looting their primary reward and would gladly slaughter the defenseless, most armies avoid it unless absolutely necessary because it cripples the functionality of the towns and villages they intend to occupy. That’s what I’ve heard from Jessica, Agil, Samantha, Kagura, and Show.
I suppose in the case of smaller nations, they might raze a city to the ground just to diminish the enemy’s national strength, but that’s a different story.
My thoughts wandered, but it seemed Light and Agil both assumed that, from the perspective of the Dark Guild, it would be far more advantageous to leave the civilians behind to serve as human shields or pawns. I could understand that logic, which made me wonder why Yuki-san seemed so convinced otherwise.
"That’s because there’s a more reliable method than using civilians."
"Meaning?"
"It’s simple. Rather than relying on civilians whose movements are unpredictable, it is far more certain to use the Dark Guild’s own operatives. I mentioned that half of the data I provided involved guild members, but in truth..."
"The other half are basically just drifters—or rather, people who didn't have the strength to make it as far as Hinsua," a voice chimed in.
"Wait, wouldn't those drifters just gather at the Vinoshia church?"
"Agil-aneesan, you’re so naive. Those drifters know exactly who the Dark Guild folks are, so they stay far away. That means the only people we’ll encounter when we enter Vinoshia are the guild members themselves. Whether they take hostages or do whatever else, it’s all being orchestrated by their own people. In other words..."
"It’s a self-directed performance where they can do whatever they please. Whether it’s theft, robbery, or murder, they can use those incidents to pin down or ambush Lulua-sama and the others as they head to the church. And in the end, they’ll be trapped there."
"And that’s when they go *boom*. Making the enemy immobile is a nuisance, sure, but it also makes them much easier to handle."
"..."
I understood what they were saying, but the sheer cowardice of it made my stomach turn. It wasn't just me; an unpleasant, stifling air settled over everyone.
"Still, though... that’s only if we don't realize what’s going on, right?"
Lilishe-sama spoke up, and Hairen followed suit.
"Exactly. Even if they’re all Dark Guild members, if they call for help, we save them—and crush the enemy’s schemes in the process! That solves it, doesn't it?"
Hmm. That’s true in theory, but if it were that easy, we wouldn't be having this much trouble.
"I think it’s fine. It might actually catch them off guard."
To my surprise, Senal, who also serves as Hairen’s guardian, agreed. But wouldn't that just be walking straight into their trap?
"That would be interesting in its own right. They want to divide our forces, and if we try to escape, they’ll chase us down. If we can suppress that, we’ll have exceeded their expectations. Well, if we can pull it off, that is."
Yuki-san agreed with Senal’s opinion while pointing out the risks.
That’s exactly it. I understand the idea of diving into the enemy’s trap and tearing it apart from the inside, but since the enemy isn't relying solely on brute force, we can't just rely on it either. If we do, Lulua and her team will inevitably be pinned down.
"Well, let’s keep that in mind when we plan our formation."
And so, we set out to step into the old Vinoshia royal capital.
Half of the old capital is filled with enemy operatives?
Well, we’ll see how that plays out once we actually get there.