Somewhere in the city, a top secret operation was taking place, and being managed by Marquis Meril. He was using a building he rented to be used as temporary headquarters. He had a couple of buildings he owned, but he didn’t want any clever enemies looking into them.
Better to use something out of his records. Although it was unlikely to be looked into by any opposition, it was better to be safe. Even Estelia agreed.
At the moment, he was having a meeting with one merchant that Estelia forced into submission. Sina Indira, head of a transports company. She was stiff as she sat on her chair.
“I see. Very well, I’ll allow you to search for more men.”
There was an issue of needing more labor to create the other paths. They were rushing things up, and had to scout and prepare the logistic paths simultaneously if they were to reach the target goal.
“Just be careful of the ones you choose.”
“Of course, I’ll make sure there will be no leaks. Also, my lord, the need for more carts and carriages. With my resources alone, I cannot prepare the number needed in such a short time. In addition to requiring additional means for transporting the items essential for our current needs.”
Meril leaned back in his chair. “Everything’s too heavy right now, huh? Can’t we get outside suppliers of the carts and horses?”
“We can, but I would like your permission for it. And, it will be quite expensive.”
He sighed. “Finance is not an issue. We don’t want you to dry up as well. I will give you the budget. Make sure you buy what we need from all over, not just at a single supplier or anything.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Anyways, how’s your map doing?”
“It’s being updated with the newly made paths. But, from what I can see, it’s not halfway done, and we have to consider the new paths we just made or are about to.”
“... Of course. Keep updating as much as you can until the crown says they need it.”
“Certainly.”
“As for the food to store? How is it?”
“A few warehouses and storage facilities are done, but we have more to fill.”
“Are we moving too fast?”
“... I’m afraid we’ll hit a shortage of food to store at this rate. Resulting in more empty warehouses we prepared.”
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Meril massaged his temple. Of course the task Estelia gave him was never easy. If only she handled this, then she would be the one having the headache.
“Outsource if needed.”
“Yes. I think rations will be our primary concern in this. The weapons, on the other hand, are going smoothly. They have plenty of reserves we can use.”
“Uh-huh. But we still need the weapons we give to the draftees.”
“Draftees… Of course.”
They pretty much can’t give them sticks to fight with.
“My lord, is there no way to slow down? It’s taking a toll on the men and our resources.”
“Unfortunately, we can’t. The prospect of war has been pushed closer. We need to make as much progress as we can. To lessen the burden and crisis we may face.”
“... Understood.”
“Have the Empire not contacted you lately?”
She shook her head. “No, they have not.”
“I see. They really are willing to just throw away their hard work. But this is good, we have less things to worry about.”
Then they had some more discussion before Sina left the building.
The next to step forward was the other person in the room, the knight Ayana.
“Ayana, so, what news? Do we have any troublemakers?”
“None. Nothing seemed to have leaked yet or anything. The knights made sure the new workers knew the punishment if they violated confidentiality.”
“Let’s hope to keep it that way. There’s already much to adjust in our new pace, I don’t want another foolish idiot making foolish decisions. What about your hunt for the elf?”
Ayana lowered her gaze. “Nothing… We have exterminated the signs of bandits around the capital and nearby villages, but no sign of the elf.”
“Do you think he had fled the country?”
“... I don’t know.”
“Hm. So the remaining hiding bandits are erased?”
“We got rid of what we can find.”
“Then I hope that’s enough to convince whoever's hiding to change career paths.” Maybe they have completely wiped out all the bandits nearby, which was also a good outcome. A much safer Wisteria for the people. “Progress on teaching the Princess’s ciphers?”
“The other elite knights are still practicing it.”
“You got the hang of it already?”
“Yes.” She appeared confident. “I’m sure we can expect good results in the coming week, or the next. But I worry about those remaining in the palace. More than half of our knights are still there, and many that do not know how to do the ciphers.”
With the Empire present in the palace, they also didn’t want the knights learning it there. They didn’t want the Empire to learn of their ciphers or a leakage. Ciphers were state secret. Still, Meril was flabbergasted that Estelia could make those kinds of ciphers. With those, they could communicate with their forces with less worry about the Empire intercepting and reading through their letters, spoiling their plans.
“There’s nothing we can do about it while those envoys are still there.”
Ayana frowned. “Does Tornridge want to torment us before invading?”
“Hm, perhaps. But they’re planning something. Still, we have nothing to worry about. Estelia is there, she can take care of it, I can feel it.”
“... I see… The war with the Empire will be chaotic. Do you think we’ll win, Lord Teristro? Against a nation of that size.”
Meril closed his eyes. That’s what he wanted to know, and what he sought his Intuition to answer. He wanted a bright answer. However, it only had one response…
“It will exact a heavy price.”
“... Of course it would. Many will die.”
“... Yes.”
But it felt like his Intuition was not referring to the number of people alone. He was involved in his own Intuition, so he wondered, if someone among those close to him will perish? Was it a heavy price for him? A heavy price for the nation? Or for someone else more important? It was not clear. Nothing was ever clear with his Intuition these days.