Chapter 383: Eastward (3)

“Her Majesty… the City Council has approved Your Majesty and Your Majesty’s army residing in the area.”

This was Spardia City’s position as relayed by the delegation. It was closer to lacking the power to refuse Eugene’s stay rather than genuine approval.

Defending against Eugene’s attack while leaning against the city walls was one thing, but charging at his army or castle in the open field was suicide.

Eugene alternated his gaze between the city faintly visible in the distance and the delegation.

“The distance from here to Spardia City shouldn’t exceed a day, yet it took you quite some time to arrive. Was there something happening in the city?”

“Ah, well, that’s…”

The delegation glanced at each other and hesitated. Eugene didn’t know it, but the city council had been in a state of panic immediately after the Moving Castle’s descent.

The Western world knew of the legendary magical castle associated with the Ancient Kingdoms. So though the shock of seeing the real thing was considerable, they had adapted somewhat.

But the Eastern world had absolutely no legends about a Moving Castle. Seeing a massive fortress appear overnight could only lead to great misunderstanding.

-That’s a Wild Hunt! You must never approach! Your soul will be dragged straight to the afterlife!

A sinister procession carried out by countless evil spirits and demons. This was the closest thing in Eastern legends.

-Does a Wild Hunt ever appear in the form of a castle? What I know is clearly…

-Then how would you explain that massive castle that suddenly appeared overnight? Does it look like something humans could build? Surely all sorts of evil spirits and demons are swarming inside.

Though it differed greatly from a Wild Hunt, humans were creatures of rationalization. Many feared it as they tried to match legend and reality, delaying the delegation’s formation.

“After children and women were seen walking on the castle’s balcony, we were able to depart.”

The delegation leader explained as carefully as possible, trying not to offend Eugene.

“With such folklore spreading, misunderstandings are understandable. Appearing in a thunderstorm made it worse.”

“We’re grateful for Your Majesty’s generous understanding.”

“Generosity has nothing to do with it. After all, you are the masters of this land, and I came only as a guest.”

Eugene stepped aside and extended his arm toward the lobby.

“Will you accept my invitation? Tension and misunderstandings are best resolved with delicious food.”

Expectation naturally arose at a king’s feast. Swallowing saliva with a mix of tension and anticipation, the delegation entered the magnificent lobby.

*

“May blessings be upon the first guests to visit the Three Sisters Peninsula. I’ve prepared abundantly, so please eat to your heart’s content.”

With Eugene’s toast, a lavish feast began.

In the Moving Castle’s cultivation rooms grew the fruits and root vegetables Eugene had collected from around the world. The indoor aquaculture tanks raised plump fish and shellfish, and fresh meat could be obtained from the stables where animals had just been slaughtered.

In an era where preservation technology and distribution networks were limited, even nobles often had to eat spoiled food.

A table laden with dozens of dishes, all fresh—this was a luxury only a Caliph could enjoy. This wasn’t something money alone could achieve.

“Your Majesty honors us beyond what we deserve.”

While the group reached for food frantically, only the delegation leader hesitated.

The misunderstanding about the Moving Castle had been resolved, but a king who brought an army was still dangerous to the city.

The experienced delegation leader didn’t take Eugene’s claim of “I’m going to become the Mercenary King” at face value. He kept searching for hidden motives.

“You are the first guests to visit the Three Sisters Peninsula. The first time means something deep to me.”

After drinking a glass of wine, Eugene continued.

“Moreover, I’ll soon be entering Spardia City, and I’d like to request your cooperation in various ways.”

“Y-you’ll be entering the city! And c-cooperation means…”

As the real conversation finally began, the delegation leader licked his lips.

“I came to explore the Eastern world and make friends. I chose this area as a base for that. As you know, there’s no location better for interacting with the surroundings.”

People called the area where Spardia City was located the heart of the peninsula. Like the heart sending blood throughout the body, it was perfectly positioned to circulate goods and mercenaries.

“I entered by force at first, but I don’t want to ignore Spardia’s rights. So I want to formally register and operate as a mercenary captain.”

“…Honestly, I don’t understand. Your Majesty is the King of Britainia and possesses this magical castle. Is there really a need to go through the trouble of yielding to us?”

Forget a Caliph or king—even a high-ranking noble would often treat a mere free city with contempt.

The delegation leader couldn’t understand why Eugene was being so polite.

“Everything depends on the first button. If my first actions in the East are marked by rudeness and aggression toward the host, how much would that reputation hold me back later?”

Landing the Moving Castle at the finest location was the one major premise he would enforce, and for everything else, he would show maximum courtesy—that was Eugene’s policy.

“I’ve heard about Spardia City’s Mercenary Company Priority Pass. With that, you can pass through most of the Three Sisters Peninsula’s regions, is that correct?”

“That is correct. For generations, we’ve supplied mercenaries throughout the peninsula, driving out monsters and pirates. It’s a privilege gifted by various free cities and lords in recognition of maintaining the peninsula’s security.”

“Excellent. What are the conditions for issuing the priority pass?”

“You need to register a mercenary company in our city’s Mercenary Guild and pass the examination.”

In this type of examination, reputation or credit earned in other regions had little effect. Proven achievements in the local area were what mattered most.

“Is there a way to pass the examination quickly?”

“You can succeed in consecutive high-difficulty requests…”

The examination evaluated not only the mercenary company’s strength but also its credibility. Those who fought well but pillaged civilians indiscriminately couldn’t receive the priority pass.

However, some requests served as proof of credibility simply by being completed. The most typical example was the extermination of a monster’s nest.

With no nearby civilians to pillage, it was a rescue of something harmful to the entire peninsula’s safety.

“Good. My biggest concern is resolved.”

Eugene nodded without even hearing what the requests were, as if nothing was impossible before him.

“……”

The delegation leader stopped doubting. At this point, he could tell the young king’s sincerity.

*

Dark elf families were combat families composed of active and reserve members. As a result, a custom developed within each family in the Moving Castle to prepare a separate room for combat readiness.

There, bows and arrows for hunting or conscription, and consumables were stocked. Active warriors had already packed their personal equipment to be ready for deployment at any time.

“Deployment order!”

So even if an assembly order was issued the day the delegation visited, they could respond immediately. Moreover, the current situation of being in the East was already equivalent to wartime.

“We have four hours! Move quickly!”

“The castle master is establishing a mercenary company. During our stay in the East, we’ll operate under a mercenary captain’s identity.”

“Wait, why all of a sudden?”

“How should I know!”

“Hahahaha! Back to our roots after so long!”

The dark elves were all excited. The nomadic blood that had cooled while living a semi-sedentary life boiled over again. Like Eugene and Valda, they were also fated with wanderlust.

Those doing personal training, enjoying sports or hobbies, or in the library completed their deployment preparations in under an hour. Perhaps it was the privilege of an environment where workplace and home were unified.

“Ahem.”

“Captain Rampage. Something about the atmosphere…”

Watching the busy dark elves, the dwarves felt an ominous premonition. Having served under Eugene for so long, their instincts had sharpened.

“Mercenary company registration will be filled only with Black Hand Tribe members.”

The instinct for being left out.

“Your Majesty?! What about us?”

“Dwarves will remain on standby with the Lantzheim warriors inside the castle.”

“Oh no!”

Eugene consoled the facepalming Rampage.

“This is a foreign land with different language and writing. My title of Western king would inspire more wariness than respect. We won’t be able to get cooperative supply provisions like in the West. We’ll be moving around the peninsula, so activity levels will be high.”

Naturally, the size of the force needed to be reduced. Dwarves with low mobility and enormous appetites had poor operational efficiency.

On the other hand, dark elves were the lightest and most agile among intelligent species, skilled in ranged combat, and could minimize losses.

“Don’t be too disheartened. Once we establish a base here, I’ll mobilize you too. According to Nur and the delegation, work has been overflowing lately. There’s even a monster nest extermination that’s been on hold for ten years.”

“Monster nest… that smells like money.”

The dwarves clenched and unclenched their fists with regret.

Even in places humans couldn’t reach—extremely rugged mountain valleys, cliff faces, deep undersea—monsters moved freely.

Monster nests often contained rare items obtained from such places. Or they stockpiled plundered goods from attacking humans.

“The grass doesn’t seem very lush here.”

“Leave the big ones behind. Bring the ugly ones.”

For cavalry that doubled as scouts, they chose ponies that had proven their worth in the Midgard campaign. Easy to feed, good on fuel, there was no better partner for operations in unfamiliar territory.

“Isn’t our battle line too short?”

Hind worried at the highly distorted unit composition.

Maximizing efficiency naturally meant archer corps and Cassandra’s guerrilla force would make up the majority. Melee troops, including hippo knights and their attendants, were less than 15%.

This meant outstanding mobility and ranged firepower but poor defensive balance.

“If we had known, we should have stopped by Britainia to recruit knights. Even 50 hippo knights deployed…”

Hind was also enchanted by the taste of free knights commanded in the king’s name, just as Eugene was.

“This expedition, I want to lead the unit comfortably as a single mercenary captain. The knights’ combat power is tempting, but bringing them in means too many things to worry about.”

Bringing in 100 external knights was like bringing in 100 commanders. Even Eugene as king and supreme commander couldn’t completely control their independent actions.

They were especially troublesome in non-combat situations. During the Elven Great Forest episode, knights who went hunting without permission caused trouble with local elves.

“Moreover, the more external participants there are, the less my subordinates’ share becomes?”

“That’s true.”

The Moving Castle was like a huge family gathering. As the saying goes, even Hind wished for friends and neighbors to share the expedition’s wealth.

“In the East, they tend to wear armor less thoroughly than the West. They’ll all fall before they even get close to us.”

Archers were traditionally protected by infantry. But when the archer corps’ skill and experience were abnormally exceptional, operations beyond battlefield common sense became possible.

The only variable was ambush situations, but this was also the world’s best army for handling such cases. Eugene’s heat-sensing eyes, Homi’s senses, and the dark elves’ acute hearing made it nearly impossible to deceive them.

“This time, I’ll also join the expedition. I’ve been feeling suffocated without being able to go outside.”

Since it was a rare region move without seasonal changes, Marbas could also participate.

“It’s reassuring to have you with us, Elder.”

“Building friendships with the East is important, but our cause is ultimately preparation for the tide. I can’t be absent.”

Marbas glanced at the unit composition, heavily skewed toward archers.

“The Dragon Tooth soldiers will firmly guard our army’s battle line.”

“Finally, we can see the results of your research.”

“All thanks to Your Majesty.”

Marbas had been studying the dragon teeth Eugene had recovered from the Dragon’s Grave. The Moving Castle, rich in magical power and with various supernatural phenomena actively responding, had greatly shortened Marbas’s research period.

“Undying warriors with no concept of death or blood will lead the charge. More than capable of replacing a hundred men each, I’ll put your mind at ease about the lack of vanguard.”

With Alzhar’s clay golem and Marbas’s Dragon Tooth soldiers, they could easily fill the role of an infantry unit. This was the second reason Eugene could assemble such an archer-heavy unit.

*

“I stake my life to guarantee it. The King truly desires to become our friend.”

The delegation leader who had returned to Spardia City spoke before the council members. Over the days they had spent together after the feast, he had become a devoted follower.

“He drops the castle right on us and then talks friendship!”

“If he respects us that much, would he obediently leave if we asked him to leave? Hmm?”

The hostile council nobles’ reactions were surprisingly less than half.

“Fact is, we have no grounds to refuse if the King of Britainia wants to register as a mercenary and accept requests.”

“Look at the castle outside. Even a Caliph can’t wield such power. When such a monarch extends his hand to us of his own volition, why would we reject it?”

An open window of opportunity for all mercenaries.

A path to success where fighting spirit was the only ticket.

This was the principle Spardia City had established when rising to become the Three Sisters Peninsula’s premier mercenary city.

“His Majesty promised to move the castle within a few months at most, two years at the latest. Here is his personally signed document.”

“Hmm.”

The council’s atmosphere began to tilt toward accepting Eugene.

“His Majesty also agreed to enter the city with only 200 subordinates, following the city’s customs.”

“At this point, I want to see that face in person.”

Even a marquis or duke would find these conditions disagreeable, but the king readily accepted, leaving no grounds for refusal. If they shut the door after this, it would be the city’s rudeness.

“Frankly, I see this as an opportunity. Among the requests we’ve received, many have been on hold for a long time. This is our chance to entrust them to His Majesty.”

Excessively dangerous monsters or high-difficulty nest exterminations made most mercenary companies refuse. But leaving them unaddressed would blemish Spardia City’s reputation.

“Would the king accept such things? If he has any sense, he’ll know we’re dumping dangerous work on him.”

The delegation leader beamed at those words, as if he had been waiting for them.

“I stayed at the Moving Castle and saw what His Majesty had defeated. No monster lurking on this peninsula could survive if he targeted it. They’d simply be turned into taxidermy and displayed in the castle.”

*

The delegation leader, smiling happily, informed Eugene that entry had been approved and led the way.

“Unlike Hesed, this is fitting for a mercenary city.”

The pleasure city of Hesed was filled with statues of women in suggestive poses.

Spardia, on the other hand, was decorated with statues of muscular warriors covered in sweat. They wore hoplite equipment reflecting local characteristics, commanding the battlefield.

Passersby also showed many of the distinctive brown skin of Easterners, with black people walking here and there.

Noblewomen in carriages covered their faces with translucent scarves. Some noblewomen outside the Eastern cultural sphere showed their faces openly, smoking water pipes.

Eugene’s subordinates wore fascinated expressions at the exotic scenery.

“There will be a welcome banquet for Your Majesty this evening.”

“Let me register at the Mercenary Guild first.”

Eugene was guided to the city’s largest building.

“A-a fairy?”

“It’s really a Moon Fairy.”

The dark elf warriors escorting Eugene drew attention wherever they went. Certainly, the name used for them was far more favorable than in the Western world.

“We’ve confirmed the mercenary company name.”

“Please also register this symbol.”

Eugene handed the cloth with the mercenary company’s symbol to the nervous clerk. It depicted the profile of a dark elf woman with flowing silver hair.

It was a design that actively appealed to the characteristics revered as auspicious in Eastern culture.

“The Silver Mercenary Company?”

“The castle master’s naming is a bit plain.”

“I think it’s good? It matches the flag perfectly.”

The mercenary company name seemed to be somewhat divisive in terms of likeability.

*

As Eugene had visited the entire Western world, mercenary guilds and adventurer guilds existed there too, but naturally, they couldn’t provide systematic management or information sharing.

Even nobles with both power and wealth ran their territories by the seat of their pants—how could they manage drifters living day to day like wild dogs?

But surprisingly, Spardia City’s Mercenary Guild managed this task across the entire peninsula. It was a system built over centuries through countless bribes, disputes, and suppression.

“Congratulations on founding your mercenary company, Captain… no, Your Majesty!”

It was a line the clerk had recited dozens of times, which was why he made the mistake and quickly corrected himself.

“Thank you. I’m truly pleased.”

Eugene received the mercenary company plate with a smile.

“This is the first time I’ve made a mercenary company since leaving my village for adventure. I’ve gained a good life experience in Spardia.”

“We wish you luck on your path ahead. Our guild will also assist you with sincerity.”

The plate recorded four types of information.

Mercenary company name.

Captain and vice-captain names.

Issue (renewal) date.

The guild’s evaluation of the mercenary company’s grade.

The last section displayed the resplendent ‘Bronze.’

“When receiving requests on the peninsula, always present this plate. You can still conduct mercenary activities without a plate, but it will be difficult to officially recognize achievements from missions.”

Generally, a mercenary company that completed a mission well would receive a recommendation letter from the employer to build reputation. Naturally, it needed to be from a significant trade guild, free city council, monastery, or lord to hold value.

-Count. You don’t need to pay—just write one recommendation letter…

-A mercenary company that withstood three cavalry charges in the vanguard is requesting your recommendation letter instead of reward money. What should we do?

Even Eugene had experienced mercenaries begging for recommendation letters during Rome’s civil war.

Naturally, those qualified to write recommendation letters didn’t do so casually. If the recipient caused trouble, it would circle back and damage their own reputation.

Here, the Spardia Mercenary Guild guaranteed that recommendation system.

Beyond simply informing about a mercenary company’s credibility, they provided various information services, road usage fee discounts, benefits in supply procurement and trophy sales.

The plate was also useful for recruiting new members or scouting veterans. Everyone wanted to belong to a verified group.

“The mercenary company plate can only be used by the captain or vice-captain. Others presenting the plate will receive limited benefits.”

“That’s unusual. In the West, the mercenary company name is important, but who the captain is doesn’t carry much weight. Leaders are constantly being overthrown in the mercenary world—wouldn’t that be troublesome?”

“It’s a system designed to mitigate that. Frequent leadership changes also negatively affect a mercenary company’s morality.”

That was true. In a structure where the leader could change at any time, there was urgency to produce immediate results. This naturally led to get-rich-quick thinking, with the risk of degenerating into a bandit group.

“So it’s a system to guide mercenary companies toward long-term operation, even at the cost of some short-term losses.”

“Exactly.”

“Are there plates issued to individual mercenaries?”

“There are, but they’re not issued regularly. They’re honorary qualifications awarded when a member of a mercenary company achieves merit.”

Managing centered on mercenary companies was natural. When you never knew when you might die or disappear, registering and managing each individual was impossible.

Moreover, no matter how outstanding a mercenary, the power an individual could exert was extremely limited. A small mercenary company of ten D-rank mercenaries was overwhelmingly stronger than a single A-rank mercenary.

“However, individual gladiator plates also have many uses. They serve as qualification requirements for gladiators in trial by combat or tournaments, recruiting personal guards for nobles, missions requiring small elite forces, and more. Knights also seek them frequently.”

“Knights use them too, so it’s called a gladiator plate instead of a mercenary plate? Interesting.”

The clerk glanced at Eugene, a new mercenary captain and knight.

“Of course, if someone of Your Majesty’s caliber desires one, we could immediately…”

“What value would a plate obtained that way have? I’ll earn it through legitimate achievements. Thanks for the explanation.”

And so, the first Mercenary King was born in Spardia.