Chapter 851: I Am Peace Haven’s Future

Pabos leads the Ninth Warband to a rest stop for a brief night's rest.

On the march the next day, Pabos suddenly stops. "General Dimir told us something yesterday."

"A garrison legion nearby was heading toward the Five Forts."

"He said it would arrive today. Why haven't we encountered it yet?"

"Perhaps it's taken another route," Ruchi says.

Pabos gives him a look. "What other route is there? With a military situation this urgent, they have to take the shortest road."

"Send out scouts. Have them spread out and look for the legion's tracks. Tell the men to prepare for battle. Enemy troops may have slipped through."

Half an hour later, the scouts return with a report.

A calamity bandit army suddenly appeared tens of kilometers away and scattered the garrison legion sent to reinforce the Five Forts.

The enemy is now heading toward the Five Forts.

Pabos has someone bring a map and asks the scout to mark the location.

After a brief look at the map, he reaches a conclusion.

The five thousand elite troops in this calamity bandit army intend to attack the Seventh Warband at the Five Forts, then join the enemy at Palm Tree Lake.

Pabos puts away the map. "All troops, hear my orders..."

Ruchi raises a hand and grips his arm. "Young master! This isn't our mission!"

"For this many elite calamity bandits to appear at once, someone in Lumir must have deliberately loosened the river defenses and let Subterranean River Bandits from other areas come to their aid."

"Someone may even have opened a gap in the cavern defense line to get the Seventh Warband killed. Especially Dimir."

"If we know that, all the more reason to intercept them," Pabos replies.

Ruchi shakes his head, his tone stern. "General Pabos, this is an internal matter for Lumir. We cannot interfere too much."

"They're bringing ruin upon themselves and letting this whole area fall apart. Why should our soldiers die for that?"

"You are a commander, not a ranger chasing justice."

"You have thousands of lives in your hands. Thousands of families are waiting for their loved ones to come home!"

"This isn't a war-game simulation or some battle game. This is a bloody war."

"Every decision you make costs blood and lives!"

Pabos says nothing. Ruchi softens his voice. "Young master, let's leave."

"Once we meet up with the horses, we may have a chance to rescue Viscount Dimir."

"Picking a fight now would be far too dangerous. We'd be gambling with our soldiers' lives."

Pabos stays silent so long that Ruchi begins to think he has persuaded the young commander. Then Pabos looks up.

"All troops, hear my orders! Head for the combat area at once. Prepare to intercept the enemy!"

Ruchi tries anxiously to intervene, but Pabos raises a hand to stop him. "I'm not being reckless. And I'm not spending our soldiers' lives to make a name for myself."

"Hear me out."

"First, what worries you most isn't our losses in battle. It's my safety."

"Plenty of people in Peace Haven worry about keeping me safe."

"But I haven't come here to make a name for myself without taking risks. Nor am I here for a leisurely outing."

"Right now, I am a soldier of Peace Haven first, and my father's son second."

"From the moment I was born, I was never just a son. And in the future, I won't be just a husband or a father either."

"I'm more than my parents' son. I am Peace Haven's future."

"And Peace Haven's future does not need an heir who schemes, calculates, and shrinks from battle."

"I am meant to be Peace Haven's field commander. My future is on the battlefield, not in politics."

"I am the blade that will expand Peace Haven's borders, and the extension of my father's will!"

"That's why my father sent me out during this Calamity War: to let me grow with as little political interference as possible."

"Many people, my mother included, think he is too coldhearted."

"In truth, it's the greatest kindness my father could give me."

"He knows that only during the Calamity War do political concerns in every country carry so little weight."

"On the battlefield, I only have to watch for calamity creatures, not knives aimed at my back by people inside and outside our own ranks."

Pabos pauses, then continues. "I also know what a great many people in Peace Haven want."

"They want the other countries weakened as much as possible during this Calamity War."

"You take pleasure in seeing Lumir tear itself apart. You want its internal struggles to grow even worse."

"Then, when we conquer Lumir, we can win over the reform faction more easily and make annexing the country less difficult."

"But there is something you have failed to understand."

"The reform faction has always existed because of the threat posed by a powerful Peace Haven."

"Peace Haven does not grant noble titles, so the conservative nobles will not come over to our side either."

"Unification has always meant fighting our way forward, not playing factions against one another. At least, playing those games isn't what my father wants."

"It might save us a great deal of trouble now, but it would leave the roots of that trouble intact."

"Those dangers would remain. If we had to cut them out someday, we'd pay a far greater price."

More than ten officers dare not meet Pabos's eyes.

Pabos speaks again. "I know you are the best men from Peace Haven's various factions."

"Protecting me isn't your only task. Your factions have given you others."

"You want to shape my views, draw me closer to your factions, and get me to accept your ideas. Through me, you hope to influence my father's decisions."

"So my father sent me out and let you try to influence me."

"The message to your factions is simple: my father's will cannot be changed."

The words hit hard. The officers are shaken.

Everyone says Pabos is clever, a younger version of Henwell.

Only after dealing with him themselves do they realize how clever this boy who has just turned eighteen really is.

Pabos rests a hand on his sword hilt and lifts his chin. "That's all I mean by what I've said. None of it is the main reason I decided to intercept the enemy."

"The real reason is that we're soldiers. We're the warriors the people of Peace Haven cheered as we left our homeland."

"We're not here to play politics. We're here to fight our way across the continent and kill calamity creatures!"

"We all serve in the Mobile Strike Group. When another unit in that group is in danger, we cannot stand by and do nothing."

"My father has never betrayed an ally. I will not be the one to ruin our family's reputation!"

The officers look into Pabos's fierce, burning eyes and think of the men who came before them. Now they understand why those men always speak of Henwell with such fervor.

A leader like this has a way of winning men over.

What soldiers need most is a leader who can face death calmly at their side.

The officers turn away to issue their orders. Watching them go, Ruchi gives a wry laugh.

"Heh... My lord really is the clever one. So many people want to influence you, General."

"They don't realize you'll be the one influencing their prized students instead."

Pabos smiles. "I'm only doing what's right. Relatively speaking, at least."