Putting the Hero's Shield, which was very heavy, on the back of the carriage, it took two days to reach the border with the Republic of El Santo. Just as they had heard in Brannor, the checkpoint remained closed. The four of them and the carriage stopped in front of the stone checkpoint.

"I wonder if they'll let us through."

"Even as we speak, the Demon King may begin to invade the world."

"That won't happen," Belhard muttered to himself, but he approached the wooden gate large enough for two carriages to pass through and knocked several times.

"Excuse me, I have business in El Santo!"

After calling out several times, the gate finally opened and a guard appeared.

"I'm sorry, but the country is currently in turmoil and we can't pass through."

"Is this still not enough?"

Belhard showed the Builderna permit he had received from Elliot. "What is this..."

The guard stared at him for a while as if he was seeing something strange, then he seemed to remember something, and said "Please wait a moment," and went inside.

The story of the hero should have reached him, though...

After about three minutes, the guard from before returned and showed his face.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. The carriage can't get through, so please park it outside, and everyone please come inside."

Elliot took hold of the reins of his horse and parked the carriage against a nearby tree, and the four of them entered the gate. The gate was double-layered, and inside it was dark, lit only by two candles. There was a door on each side between the gates, and they were guided to the one on the left. Inside was surprisingly spacious, and there were several rooms for general affairs. The four of them were shown into one of these.

In the fairly spacious room there was a large desk, and several guards were taking a nap on the floor. An old man was sitting at the desk, leaning his cane against a chair.

"Nice to meet you, Hero-sama. I've been waiting for you. I'm one of the councilors of this country, Adora Naza Ronoa. Please call me Ronoa."

"Nice to meet you, Ronoa-sama. My name is Elliot. This is Belhard, Whis, and Karna."

The three people introduced gave a slight bow.

"And me?" Kate muttered, but Elliot continued speaking.

"I heard that monsters are rampant in this country."

"Yes, there were a certain number of monsters, but at one point, monsters that created monsters appeared, and the monsters they created filled the forests, plains, and roads, causing the country's economy to stagnate. At first, our troops were able to suppress them, but their proliferation was overwhelming, and we had to close the checkpoint with Brannor."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

"Approximately how many monsters there are?"

"At least 2,500, but a rough estimate would be around 4,000."

"Elliot, is that the Demon King?"

"No, I don't know. At this stage, I don't think he's that strong. How many troops do you have?"

"I think there are 36 people who can move at this checkpoint, and about 100 left in the capital. I don't know about the cities."

"The towns and villages are also closed off, aren't they?" Elliot spreads out the map. "On the map, there's the capital and six cities..." "One of those cities has fallen. It's Linus, the city just before the capital. It seems that the monster that creates monsters, Bastillo, is still there."

"It's just before the capital. Whis, do you know what kind of monster it is?"

"I only know from books, but I do know that it's quite intelligent. I think it creates about 10 to 15 monsters a day."

"If that's the case, they might be aiming for the capital. From our perspective, we might be able to hit Bastillo from behind. How many potions do you have in stock?"

"The other day, Brannor sent us about 150. We get food from Brannor, so I think that should be enough."

"This is going to be a long-term battle," Belhard muttered.

"Belhard, you're very knowledgeable about military strategy, aren't you?"

"Yeah, even if I look like this, I'm still a member of the Royal Knights."

"If you have any good ideas, please tell me."

Elliot's unusual attitude of asking for advice made Belhard worry that other countries might be caught up in the disaster.

"That's right, I can't say for sure because I don't know the strength of each individual, but each soldier should fight in groups of four to protect each other's rear. We should connect the highways first and create a supply route. The monsters in the forests and plains can be dealt with later. And the top priority should be to defeat Bastilo. While we still have the strength, or to build up our strength in other cities, we can cut off their retreat and destroy them all at once. Then we should create a flow of supplies to the capital. Karna, can you send a magician from Brannor?"

"Probably not. There are only a handful of magicians. They are in charge of politics, so I don't think they will openly participate in the battle."

"I see..." Belhard put his hand on his chin in thought. "Well, Elliot, this is your chance to show your heroic strength. Let's get pumped."

"Yes!"