Chapter 19

The War, the Allies, and the Hypocrite?

The attempt to secure Baroque's sanctuary failed when all but one of the soldiers sent there was killed and the survivor was barely able to mention anything in her rambling except something about cannibalism and a black winged monster holding a mask. She ran before Knight could return to his human form leaving him with no other choice but to inspect what's left of the sanctuary in the hopes that the only person left to tell what happened was a madwoman.

Because of the incident Claudette made it clear that she will not waste any more resources that can be used against the remaining nobles that are rebelling against her but not before trying to order the execution of both Myra and Liz for what she described as desertion.

"You can't do that" Will said in protest to her orders, "Myra had to go through days of torture and Liz proved her loyalty by helping us. I don't care what reason you've got for it I'm not going to just stand on the sidelines while you think it's okay to punish someone just because…"

A bolt of lightning shot right passed him to a nearby column making him stop his verbal protest as Claudette said, "I will tolerate such disobedience Will. You may have more experience in these matters but you don't know what it means to rule the continent. If I allow such actions to pass without my consent or punishment, it will cause even more chaos in my domain then this worthless rebellion".

"And acting too harshly will make you a tyrant and give them proof for their cause" he had no choice but to swallowed what little pride he could have when he continued speaking to her, "So…I implore you, Eternal Queen Claudette" he then kneeled, "show them mercy and I assure you that they will have a much better purpose than to be used as an example of those who would oppose you. The last thing I need is to go up against her right now especially since Knight had to be involved in this so please let this work".

It a moment before she said, "Alright then, I will show them mercy but they will be assigned to you from now on, you'll be officially recognized as Ymir's second in command, and on that notion you will be held responsible for all military action regarding the Swamp Witch. Only those that I assign under your direct command will be allowed to assist you in dealing with her forces. . Think of it as a token for showing such…compassion".

Despite how it sounded it was a punishment then a reward; first he will have to deal with an undead army, not have direct access to the army despite rank, and there is a good chance Knight is going to become a common sight for him. The first to be assigned under his command were Liz, Myra, Lily, and even Nyx.

Will's POV

Recognized as Ymir's second my ass, she just turned me into a trophy for the army and I only get what she gives me for a unit. At least she didn't make me her personal boy toy or worse Elina's and she gave me some paper proving that I have a Right of Conscription which is just a fancy way of saying that I can recruit just about anyone that isn't already involved with the military. Even though the people she allowed to help me seem like the best choices from their experience it was better for me to ask them instead of forcing them to join.

Liz: If you have to fight, then I will stand by your side Will-sama.

Lily: After what they did to Myra. Of course I'm in.

Myra: I won't let Lily fight this alone.

Will's POV ends

Nyx was the last person that Will wanted to get involved despite being her own powerhouse. Mostly it was of how Knight showed an interest towards her with the reasons behind it remain unknown to him. He walked to where she was living in the city unable to stop thinking about what could happen if she agreed; everything could turn out okay, she could be captured by Knight, lose control of her powers, or even killed. The thoughts of these things becoming reality made him question this decision even more until he finally reached his destination, a tavern for the soldiers called, "Funikura's Embrace". She started this place to help bring in extra money and it's proven to be a success thanks to her cooking even though she would scare the more degenerate customers when they tried to grope one of the girls working there. She had a life of her own here with her cooking and he didn't want to bring her back to all the fighting. Despite how he felt and how he was against it she said, "I'm not going to let you do this without me Will-chan. So expect me to leave nothing but ashes".

He just sighed before he said, "Guess I can't convince you to say no. Alright but try to be safe Nyx".

Meanwhile in a village in the middle of nowhere

Despite being in the middle of nowhere the village was able to get enough travelers for them to have a small tavern. Knight sat at one of the tables with a small stack of plates and bowls shielding him from the sight of an eight year old girl eating like she was unwillingly been fasting for a month on the other side. The owner stopped by asking how he will cover for all of this when he simply told him to hold out his hand as he gave him a small bag of gold and offered more to help find the girl a place to call home. Despite the offer, the girl continued to follow him even if it meant messing with a hornet nest.

Hollow: Well that's done now what to do for the next chapter.

Sigui: I hope your doing anything blasphemous in their Hollow.

Hollow *gulp* I-I'm just finishing up some work. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and see you all next time.