Thanks to my standing, I received quite a welcome despite being an occupying force.

Everyone seemed bewildered by the unfamiliar experience of welcoming an occupying army.

It almost felt like I was a liberation force.

Being able to march in unopposed without fighting a single battle was thanks to a combination of factors.

Geerhilt’s loss of control and the influence of the Ladwig atrocity loomed large, and amid all that, they’d lost the will to resist the Euz invasion.

So by surrendering to me, whose standing had risen through relief efforts, they could secure their livelihoods and property. Öderlen had made the best possible choice.

Kindness given comes back as a blessing someday.

I came to grasp the true meaning of those words deep in my heart.

Unlike at Boeven, I had publicly declared that I’d personally deal with anyone who didn’t mind their conduct, so my men couldn’t put on airs as an occupying force at all.

Instead, I had them gather the spoils from the corpses strewn about outside.

It’s a common enough sight on a battlefield, but it’s still revolting and I have no desire to get close to it.

For better or worse, the sight of mercenaries cheerfully rummaging through the dead’s weapons and pouches made them look like men crazed for money. Then again, they are men crazed for money.

Most of the routed troops had been mercenaries who, on their way back, had underestimated Öderlen and attacked, only to meet fierce resistance and ultimately scatter to the winds.

Charging in without proper siege equipment had been their fatal mistake.

They’d apparently taken the border village for a pushover.

A border village is the first place to take a beating when skirmishes break out between territories, so naturally it had built up its defenses accordingly. Even with siege equipment mobilized, Boeven had taken three full days to fall.

The fact that they’d noticed the combined cavalry’s approach and prepared an ambush alone proves these were no docile folk. Because I’d shown kindness, it came back to me as an unexpected reward.

Had they chosen to resist, I’d have been left twiddling my thumbs until Fried arrived with the siege equipment. Waging a siege with cavalry is madness, after all.

"This is the specialty herbal tea of the Öderlen forest."

The girl serving me tea with a bright smile was indeed the same girl I’d caught when passing through Öderlen. Her name was Iris, wasn’t it?

She’d introduced herself, saying the name came from the German iris.

This child’s older brother is the youth captain who leads Öderlen’s militia.

And by actively heeding Iris’s advice, he had earnestly persuaded the village chief and estate manager to beware of mercenaries, earning merit by crushing the band of routed troops who had approached posing as allies.

I’d heard he was a highly promising talent with much expected of him.

In my view too, he was well deserving of the high praise.

"Thank you. Hm, this has a lovely fragrance."

I suppose I’d call it a sweet scent?

Delighted, Iris puffed out her chest with pride.

"Of course. It’s tea made from precious chamomile gathered in the forest."

"This is chamomile tea?"

It was my first time drinking chamomile as a tea, and unlike its scent, the taste was on the bitter side.

Add a bit of honey and it would have just the right sweetness.

It had been one of the medicinal herbs Madame Arzt prescribed for Hilda, and I’d been told it had long been considered effective for expectant mothers. But that was as a medicine, and this seemed to be the kind you steep into tea.

"I caught you gathering herbs alone in the forest—fearless as you were?"

"My father chewed me out something fierce over that. Tch."

She seemed quite put out about being scolded.

Hm, it’s like looking at a thoughtless daughter of my own.

"Of course you should have been scolded. What do you think would have happened if it hadn’t been me but mercenaries who caught you?"

"I’d have gone to the Lord’s side. Even I know that much."

"No, they don’t just kill you. You’d be violated until you died, to the point that a clean death by the blade would be a mercy. No food, no water, and no mercy, even with blood running down your lower half."

Slurp. Mm. It’s lukewarm, but there’s a warm feeling to it too.

The way I spilled out something so horrific without batting an eye drained the color from Iris’s face, but I’d seen such scenes countless times in occupied territories.

At Boeven, such horrors had reached their peak. Hell on earth was more common than you’d think.

Why else would I have thrown away seven gold coins like it was nothing?

"You are a truly lucky child. You understand what I mean, don’t you?"

"...Yes. I’ll pray in thanks that I met you, Sir Knight, that day."

Crestfallen and on the verge of tears, Iris crossed herself and prayed.

She ought to always carry gratitude for having met me back then.

In any case, the chamomile tea’s fragrance was wonderful.

Until now I’d done nothing but guzzle the ordinary rose tea, day in and day out.

"But if you can gather herbs in the forest, you must have considerable knowledge?"

"Sniff, y-yes. Actually, I learned from a book in an old cabin deep in the forest, one that described herbs in great detail. They call it the last forest keeper’s cabin."

My curiosity piqued, I had Iris bring me that book. I wondered what kind of book it was, and it turned out to be quite old, recording some thirty herbs native to this forest.

"Wait, it even describes cultivation methods?"

"Yes. That’s why I have my own little garden in the forest."

Crestfallen one moment, full of herself the next.

This pretty little girl apparently isn’t the least bit afraid of the forest. It’s thinned out a lot now, but even so, you still see wolf packs often enough.

Then again, that’s how she got caught by us.

Consider yourself truly blessed by heaven.

I don’t know who the author of this book was, but there’s no doubt they possessed considerable knowledge and powers of observation.

Places that cultivate herbs in large quantities are fewer than you’d think.

Is it tricky to grow? I’ve never tried, so I wouldn’t know.

Since forest keepers gather and sell herbs that grow wild in nobles’ managed forests, supply falls short of demand, which makes their price correspondingly steep in the cities.

Herbs have all sorts of uses: they serve as spices, go into cosmetics and perfume ingredients, and are used in bath products, dyes, and more. Their versatility is boundless.

Having a specialist book is no guarantee of cultivation success, but with my passive skill, wouldn’t it be worth attempting?

We’re at war now, so I decided to take my time thinking about that later, and finished writing my report while enjoying the sweet fragrance of the chamomile tea.

I also drew up a plan to set up a supply base at Öderlen and advance on Baschurten. I emphasized that nearby Ladwig and Leben, having been destroyed, held no strategic value.

But then I received a report from the cavalry I’d sent on reconnaissance.

"Reporting to my lord! We’ve spotted an armed unit of unknown affiliation south of Öderlen."

"’An armed unit of unknown affiliation’ is usually just a band of routed troops. Assemble the men."

Alongside the Euz-Basel war, the rebel remnants wreaking havoc all over the place caused even greater problems than direct occupation and plunder.

There was said to be one more village south of Öderlen.

That village may well have been hit.

Thud-thud-thud-thud!

The farther south we went, the more traces of the routed troops we found. We could track them easily enough just from their campsites and footprints.

And the corpses abandoned here and there served as signposts.

May these poor souls be granted passage to a better place.

Through the Commander Scouter, I located a band of some fifty routed troops.

It was a fine chance to test the halberd Leto had gifted me.

[Gale Knight VIII Quest]

[Crush the bands of routed troops wandering Baschurten]

[Routed troop bands 0/3]

[Reward - 5,000 points, 5 gold coins]

[Item Reward - Training 200% Boost Scroll (one week)]

[Danger Rating ★★☆☆☆]

They were attacking a small hamlet.

True to the saying that old habits die hard, they were busy plundering.

Men engrossed in plunder make easy prey for cavalry. Only when we’d closed to point-blank range did a routed soldier finally notice us and cry out in alarm.

"E-enemy!"

Thwack!

And in an instant, I sent that soldier’s head flying with the halberd. The heavy, solid impact felt far better than I’d expected. I never knew it would feel this satisfying.

When striking down at an enemy with the short cavalry sword, you always have to lean your body forward. But with the halberd, there’s no need; you can chop down very comfortably.

Thanks to the Horsemanship Manual (Stage 3), I could ride Mont Blanc with the reins dropped, leaving both hands completely free. Beyond the axe blade, stabbing them to death with the spearpoint was convenient too.

Why hadn’t I used such a convenient weapon sooner?