Side Story 4. The Eastern Expedition (4)
Although scholars have differing opinions on whether the origin and spread of human civilization was from east to west or west to east, and often take a highly political stance, the general consensus is that humanity originated from a single group.
That's because the characteristics of the human race are unique compared to other races, especially demi-humans.
They do not have long lifespans, nor are their claws or teeth sharp.
They do not have outstanding dexterity or the ability to command spirits, and their overall physical abilities, including strength, are below average.
Nevertheless, over many generations, they have built powerful empires and kingdoms in the east and west of the continent.
The reason is unknown.
So say it is due to the unique flexibility of the human race, while others say it is due to their vigorous reproductive drive or their special affection for their offspring.
The conclusion is still 'unknown.'
At least, that is the judgnt of the scholars of the imperial court of the empire ruled by Ash.
Anyway, despite being nations that ca from the sa root and were located on the sa continent, the scenery of the Eastern Empire was quite different from that of the Empire, just by being divided by a single mountain range.
Caw- caw-
The sky was strangely higher and bluer.
Bizarrely shaped rock formations—called floating islands—dotted the sky like islands.
The occasional trees had wider leaves and were taller than those of the Empire.
A mixture of unfamiliar spices and dust slled from the wind.
Karen beca friends with a crow-shaped spirit during her journey.
“This friend is a spirit of good and bad fortune.”
Caw?
“He says a lot of good energy is coming from the two of us. He's been vetted by Skywind and Ifrit, so he must be a good friend.”
“Maybe it's because I've only seen them on the battlefield, but I thought crows were fierce…. He's strangely cute.”
Caaaaw-
The party moved towards the front lines, following the cities of the East.
The Empire and the Eastern Empire—now renad the Imperial Territory of the Eastern Cloud Nation—also had vastly different buildings.
The city's buildings were predominantly light and elaborate wooden structures instead of heavy stone ones, and the eaves of the roofs were gently curved towards the sky like a bird's wings.
The windows were covered with thin paper on a wooden fra, allowing a gentle sunlight to filter through even when closed.
People in wide silk clothes ca and went on the streets.
What caught Alina's eye the most was the expressions of the people.
The exhaustion or fear that is usually seen in a land that has experienced war was hard to find.
On the contrary, the atmosphere in the pubs, inns, and squares was one of the tranquility of a stable daily life.
Although it was an occupied territory, the tyranny of the conqueror was not seen.
The attitude of the soldiers, who were wearing the familiar armor of the Empire, who were in charge of maintaining order on the streets, must have also played a part. Instead of patrolling nacingly, they were buying food sprinkled with unfamiliar spices from a street stall and exchanging jokes with the rchant, or kindly telling a child who asked for directions.
She had felt it when she was uniting the divided empire, but Ash was not a monarch who simply took land.
He was establishing a new order and looking after the lives of the people.
And so, a fortnight and three more days passed.
“There it is.”
A campsite on the mountainside of a high mountain.
Karen pointed out the window of the mana car with her finger.
Down the mountainside, on the plain near the horizon, countless lights were gathered.
Alina, who had amplified her senses with a miracle, could see the identity of those lights.
Torches.
Thousands of barracks.
A dwarven-made improved mobile barrier surrounding them.
And the imperial flags fluttering in various places.
When she looked up at the sky, she could catch a glimpse of the fleet of aerial battleships, with most of their bodies hidden among the clouds.
From their long battlefield experience, the two won knew imdiately what the situation was.
The stage of cleaning up the battlefield after successfully finishing a big battle.
It was a good ti to proceed with the event.
The two won, as planned, placed a large pot on a campsite campfire.
It was about a half-day's journey to the imperial army camp.
At this distance, they would be able to finish cooking, avoiding Ash's sensitive senses.
The key to a surprise event is, after all, in the 'surprise.'
“Now, shall we begin?”
Alina rolled up her sleeves with determination.
A simple brazier, a pot, and a few simple cooking utensils were placed.
The nu to be prepared was a mixed stew suitable for the battlefield.
It was not a dish that required complicated techniques.
The most important thing was the atmosphere of the scene.
The second was fresh ingredients that could not be found on the scene.
For this purpose, they had procured various fresh ingredients from the imperial mainland, the dwarf holds, and the local area in the East, and had stored them in an expanded backpack with a spoilage prevention function.
“Sister, can you make the fire a little weaker?”
“Yes. Ifrit, a little weaker. Shall I chop the potatoes?”
“Yes, please.”
“Skywind, a bite-sized piece. You know what I an, right?”
The ensemble of the two won and the spirits began.
The campfire heating the pot was controlled by the fire spirit, and the wind spirit, with its sharp edge, instantly peeled the potato skins and began to chop them up in the air.
Alina was suddenly impressed.
William, the genius inventor of the Empire, was said to be developing a potato peeler. Was this what the convenience of civilization that her future children would enjoy would be like?
She laughed as she put the at and vegetables into the pot where the water had begun to boil.
“As expected, having you here is reassuring, sister.”
“Don't ntion it. But Alina.”
“Yes?”
“Stew doesn't usually… foam this much, does it?”
“Uh, oh dear?”
Ominous bubbles were boiling up from the pot.
***
The imperial army camp was noisy.
It was only natural.
Because last night's battle was against the strongest of the Eastern Empire's remnants, the Hu people.
The result was a perfect victory.
Led by the Hu people, who had the physical abilities of orcs and the intelligence of humans, the Suin coalition army of a hundred thousand strong was literally annihilated.
On the other hand, the number of friendly casualties was only in the double digits.
“Uhaha! Cheers! Another one!”
Following the loud voice of the heavily drunk Brol, shouts of self-congratulation for the victory echoed noisily from all over.
On the other hand, my barracks was quiet.
It wasn't because I didn't want to mingle with the soldiers, but because I had just finished an important task that needed to be checked.
“...I almost died.”
“It was certainly a fierce battle. I didn't expect the resistance of the Hu people to be this strong. Nevertheless, you have achieved an overwhelming victory, so you are indeed His Majesty.”
“No… that's not what I'm talking about, Gabir.”
“Then what is it?”
“……”
Well.
Should I say I just prevented an unintentional assassination attempt?
Personally, before I crossed over to this world, I used to check the strategy map of Warlord Conquest displayed on the monitor once in a while.
Although it moves sluggishly, almost like a pause, with the ga victory screen not going down, you can still see what the situation is like.
I don't know if it was intended, but various notifications, including quests, also pop up normally once in a while.
And about a month ago, in the ti of this world.
I confird that Alina and Karen were suddenly coming east.
The notification in the lower right corner of the monitor had the title 'Quest: A Surprise Cooking Event for the Emperor!'
“I just checked while I was sleeping for a bit, and fortunately, it says the quest failed.”
“……Yes?”
“There is such a thing. I'm tired, so I'm going to sleep again. If anything happens, wake up imdiately. Ignore it if Brol is looking for because he's drunk.”
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
Gabir bowed his head and left the barracks.
I smiled as I buried myself in my sleeping bag.
Although the cooking event or whatever ended in failure, my mood itself is not bad.
No, it's good.
My beautiful wife and the monarch of a reliable allied nation have co all the way to this foreign land, so how can I be in a bad mood.
Before the sun rises, I should go out to greet Alina with a surprise event from this side.
Because she might be a little downcast about the cooking failure.
First, after eating ran with two eggs.
Author's Note
Hello, this is Coral.
First, I would like to express my infinite gratitude to the readers who have followed Ash's journey this far.
Personally, 'The Commander of a Failed Ga Copies Skills' was a work where a lot of gratitude and regret coexisted.
The gratitude was, of course, for the readers who enjoyed reading it.
The regret was for myself, for not being able to repay you with a more interesting work.
It was my first attempt at a strategy-focused work, not a narrative one.
I enjoyed playing Warhamr Total War for a while, so I thought it wouldn't be difficult.
It was a mistake.
It was by no ans an easy task to portray the disputes and diplomacy between nations beyond the individual's perspective, while also taking care of the narrative of the protagonist and the surrounding characters.
It beca increasingly difficult to unravel the story, but nevertheless, I really wanted to show the originally planned ending (a protagonist who has obtained both the real world and the ga world / a protagonist who has grown by soothing his pain even in a corner of his room for several years, compared to the Warrior, the protagonist of the first playthrough / an ending where the Warrior also completes his growth process through the protagonist Ash after repentance).
The reason the developnt speed of the latter half beca so fast is probably because of that greed.
In fact, I wanted to relieve the regret of hastily finishing the main story in the side stories.
So I prepared a side story of about 25 Chapters, but when I actually started writing, due to the change in perspective and for so reason a feeling of spoiling the completeness of the story, the speed beca unprecedentedly slow and the words did not co out.
In the end, I regretfully ca to the conclusion that it would be better to finish only the first Chapter and release the rest of the content to the readers for free.
Below is the rough plot of the remaining side stories that were planned after side story 1.
[Side Story 2]
Around the ti of the unification of the Empire, the pirate group of the Eastern Great Sea discovered a new continent.
The pirate coalition called themselves 'pioneers' and advanced into the new continent, and at the sa ti, various forces of the old continent, including the Empire and the Theocracy, advanced and are engaged in a struggle for supremacy in the new continent.
The main figures sent from the Empire's side are Randal, Karok, and Ella Siollus.
Randal found the battles of the Eastern Empire uninteresting after fighting a few tis, so he asked the protagonist to send him to the new continent.
Ella Siollus rushed over because she heard that new magics were sleeping in the new continent.
Karok was dragged along because he had been a set—perhaps a porter—with Siollus for a long ti.
These three people have left the dispatched troops to other commanders and are acting as a detached force, searching through the ruins like a fine-toothed comb to find ancient artifacts that will win the new continent war.
In that process, small anecdotes arise, such as Siollus dropping a huge fireball on the head of the pioneer group—the pirate coalition—or Randal having a scuffle with the knights from the Theocracy.
The story of Randal defeating the Northern Archduke with his own hands during the imperial civil war was also scheduled to appear as a campfire tale.
Ah, Ella Siollus unknowingly develops feelings for Randal.
It might be a scene that reminds you of a certain couple from a previous work.
[Side Story 3]
The Vampire Duke and the Princess of Blood are expanding their territory into the southern Great Desert.
Since their original territory beca a good place for humans to live after the purification work, Ash handed over a significant part of the developnt rights of the Great Desert instead.
The Great Desert was originally a land where only so nomads lived because it was difficult for people to live there.
Those nomadic tribes were mostly killed or fled when the Lur Legion marched north.
The undead, who are not particularly affected by the high-temperature environnt, have built undead cities on the sand dunes of the ownerless Great Desert.
Of course, there is also a human city built by the Empire.
In the trading city of 'Beleka,' where Kambad Darwin was appointed as the lord, trade between the new-Indika, which is being rebuilt by so of the surviving Indika royalty, and the Empire is actively taking place.
And one more thing in secret.
They are secretly sending the oil discovered in the desert to the Empire.
William is building drilling and refining facilities in cooperation with the Vampire Duke and the Princess of Blood.
In this process, the undead-machine modification that he was trying as a hobby (?) works better than expected, and side story 3 ends with the appearance of the Vampire Duke's undead cities being transford into undead-machine cities.
[Side Story 4]
A considerable amount of ti has passed since side stories 1-3.
The Chapter begins with a ga of chess between Archduke Gabir, who has now beco an old man, and Marquis Pewin, who is well over 100 years old.
At this ti, Archduke Gabir congratulates Marquis Pewin on seeing his great-grandson (the son between Alina and Ash!).
Pewin grumbles that he would have preferred a girl, but the corners of his mouth are, well, already ascended to the heavens.
“Well, still, now that I've seen my great-grandson, I have no more regrets. I can die tomorrow and offer a prayer of thanks to Luark.”
“What are you talking about. The Marquis is the pillar of this country.”
With this, the chess is half-forgotten, and the two begin to reminisce.
The story of how the young Gabir beca friends with the emperor, the tragic story of the Pewin family who lost all their family in the plague that swept through the Pewin viscounty decades ago, leaving only their granddaughter Alina, the two's own speculation about Alina and Ash's first eting and the developnt of their relationship (?), the story of the early Burken battle and the Wolfskrig siege, and so on.
“Oh dear, I've lost. It's hard to beat the young blood these days. What are the Archduke's plans now?”
“I have an appointnt.”
“Actually, I knew. It's the eting with him, right?”
“……I can only apologize to His Majesty.”
“His Majesty knows. No, on the contrary, he asked to tell the Archduke not to worry about this part at all. That's why I asked for a ga of chess today.”
“……”
“Please tell Sir Olif as well.”
Afterward, Archduke Gabir ets with Olif.
The two ride a carriage north together.
For reference, Olif retired at the end of the civil war and is spending the rest of his life as a hermit knight in Burken, teaching a few disciples.
The two arrive at the emperor's grave, near the old Imperial Capital, which is still in ruins and contaminated by the plague.
Olif quietly bows his head, and Gabir kneels in front of the grave and speaks calmly.
About how the Empire is developing.
“After the death of your loved one, the Empire that Your Majesty decided to love has now developed so much. So now… please rest in peace with your loved one, by Luark's side.”
[Side Story 5]
[Side Story 5]
This is the story of the Warrior, the protagonist of the first playthrough.
It depicts scenes of him starting as a rcenary on the Arrogant Pioneer difficulty (very easy) and beating everyone up, achieving victory after victory.
Since the minimal UI option is turned on, there are no notification windows, skills, or anything.
You can think of it as a kind of if-world where there are no notification windows.
He ets most of the supporting characters that Ash t, but because the protagonist keeps starting wars according to his own level, they all end up dying.
The protagonist finally surpasses his limits, defeats the existing God of War, and is faced with a choice.
To beco the new God of War.
Or to return to his original world.
“Fuck. What's the point of going back? If it's just dead people here and there, then here, where I'm at least strong, is better.”
The Warrior, who did not have enough ti to heal his wounds in reality, decides to beco the God of War.
And he jumps into an endless battle, and becos stronger and stronger, until he finally becos strong enough to see into the tilines.
And he finds out.
That he could have stopped the tragedy of this world that is destined to be destroyed by war forever, but he could not.
Feeling the breath of the dead people in the dozens, hundreds of worlds as vividly as if they were right next to him, the Warrior decides to stop this.
But no matter how vast his power, he cannot cross over to other tilines.
If he becos the God of War and crosses over to the next world, that would just be another branch of the tiline where 'an outside being has beco the God of War,' and the tragedy would only be doubled.
After much deliberation, the Warrior decides to change the existing Sacred Relics themselves, instead of crossing over directly.
He splits his own power to create the Outer Gods, connects the Sacred Relics, which had no particular role before, to the Outer Gods, creates the concept of Naless Ash, and even splits the most essential of his powers so that it can be accessed with the key of the Sacred Relic.
And the Warrior, through the key he has made, begins to observe the changes that have occurred in the subsequent tilines.
It was not easy.
Because after the first playthrough, they were all high difficulty.
But finally, observing the tiline where that key has reached the protagonist Ash, the Warrior mutters softly in the middle of the battlefield.
“Thank goodness. Really… thank goodness.”
The God of War muttered weakly.
In front of him, the grand giant body, the size of a mountain range, with its jaws wide open, montarily flinched at that mutter.
He had rushed in, thinking it was an opportunity when he suddenly collapsed during the fight, but a being like the God of War is not strange no matter what trick he uses.
[Geruk?]
“Don't worry. Continue what you were doing. I have achieved everything.”
The God of War dropped his sword.
No, he let it go.
His grip seed to have no strength to hold the sword.
The powerful presence that had been swirling within him was also gone.
The God of War before him was no longer a god, but a re mortal with no power.
The monster tilted its head.
Well, all it has to do is eat.
He opened his jaws wide.
Tens of thousands of teeth gracefully tore apart the body of the old God of War.
The expression of the old god as he t his death was, for so reason, as peaceful as if he were asleep.
***
The Naless Tentacle, the first-born Outer God, the vanguard who had destroyed thousands of worlds, and now the statue called 'Kkumteuli,' suddenly raised his head—his regular octahedron.
A single tear flowed down a corner of his regular octahedron.
It was a tear that had ford even though he had no eyes.
[Uh……?]
After showing a mont of bewildernt, he soon bowed his head.
He wiped his tear with the tip of his tentacle and brought two tentacles together in front of his head.
[Master, may you rest in peace.]
-End-
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