Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 126

Constructing the Human Empire with Subordinates 128

Human Ranch (8)

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“You’re going to cross the mountain range?”

Sumontehma, the king and Incarnation of Teocal, asked again.

He had been warily following me, concerned that the Imperial Army might cause trouble while passing through his kingdom. When I said I would cross the Spra Mountains to reach the capital of the Uakan Kingdom, he let out a hollow laugh.

“Do you even know how treacherous those mountains are?”

Of course, I know. How could I not?

A natural fortress, higher than the highest peak of the Alps, with glaciers on top, that not even a single cold-blooded Lizardman could cross. So, my saying I would cross those mountains must sound absurd.

But I could do it.

I had already crossed them several times.

I remembered it so clearly that I didn’t even need a guide.

“Although you humans are less sensitive to temperature changes than we are, this is reckless. Go somewhere else now. This is advice from my generosity.”

Sumontehma bothered to dissuade me.

It would be a loss if the Imperial Army died in vain. He wanted us to maintain our strength as much as possible and clash with other kingdoms.

I firmly rejected his advice.

“…Your greed will ruin things, and then you’ll remember my advice, human.”

Sumontehma grumbled, looking displeased.

“Everyone says that.”

As he said, crossing the mountain range is not easy.

Why is the title of crossing the Alps emphasized even though great generals like Hannibal, Suvorov, and Napoleon achieved numerous feats?

The military maneuver of crossing a mountain range is itself very difficult, so it is to praise the ability and will to overcome the hardship.

“There will be quite a few non-combat losses.”

Minister of Military Affairs Gerhard and Army Chief of Staff Zekt also warned.

“I expect so. But we must cross it.”

Hannibal, who crossed the Alps, lost about half of his army, and Suvorov and Napoleon, though less, still suffered considerable damage. But did they cross the mountains without knowing this?

They crossed the mountains knowing the losses but also knowing the greater gains. I was the same.

“Going from Teocal to Uakan through the border where the fortresses meet will only repeat the same thing. Just like in Teocal, we’ll have to occupy the border fortresses and wait for the enemy leader to come. This trick only works on Sumontehma.”

I knew the personalities of Sumontehma and the other two Incarnations well.

The Sumontehma I knew was not the type to wage an all-out war just because one border fortress was occupied. Rather, he would feel threatened by my actions and try to approach cautiously.

However, the other two Incarnations were different.

Unlike Sumontehma, as soon as they realized the appearance of the Imperial Army, they were the type to recall the expeditionary force in the Mycenae Empire and wage an all-out war against me.

“We must avoid an all-out war. But if we conduct a show of force at the border as we did in Teocal, it will lead to an all-out war.”

What if we aimed for the heart of the enemy, the capital of the Uakan Kingdom?

If we pushed them without giving them time to recall the expeditionary force?

“If we pressure the palace instead of the distant border, the enemy won’t have time to respond. We can bring the opponent to the negotiating table in a dominant position.”

Didn’t Sun Tzu say in *The Art of War*?

The best victory is to win before fighting.

Turning around and winning a battle that is impossible to win is great. But it is more important not to create a battle that is impossible to win. Or create a situation where you can win overwhelmingly.

What value is there in winning a fight if the damage is great?

“Beyond those mountains, there is an enemy who believes they are safe and doesn’t suspect anything. They don’t know that we fought with Teocal, and they don’t know that we will arrive before them.”

Imagine if an army suddenly appeared in front of your capital one day.

Even if the number reaches 60,000?

What would you think?

“No matter how fierce their temperament, they wouldn’t dare to fight.”

So, I led 60,000 Imperial soldiers across the mountain range.

“I-It’s cold…”

The cold of the mountains covered in perpetual snow.

“Be careful! It’s slippery!”

A path of untouched nature.

60,000 soldiers, excluding the supply unit, had to pass through that place.

It would have been better if it were just people, but we crossed the mountains dragging military supplies, including siege cannons weighing tons.

“Wind, subside.”

I used the magic of the soul to open the way.

I cleared away the snowstorm that raged in late spring and crossed the mountains, following the path that remained clear in my memory.

As a result, non-combat losses were less than 10%, and it took less than ten days to cross the mountains.

“Occupy the city at the entrance. The capital of Uakan is half a day away from here. There is frequent traffic between the two strongholds, so if we leave it alone, they will immediately realize our presence.”

As soon as we crossed the mountains, we occupied a small city at the foot of the mountains.

It was a city built by making the mountain range a natural fortress because the weather became warm as soon as you came down from the mountains. However, because of that, the defenses were weak, and when we advanced with the subordinates, there was no resistance at all.

“Once the city is occupied, the Rifle Brigade will descend first and go straight to the enemy’s capital. Zekt will command the follow-up troops to follow.”

“Are you going to attack with just the Rifle Brigade?”

“It will take several days for the artillery and spearmen to descend. That’s enough time for the enemy to realize our presence. Then there will be no element of surprise.”

I led an advance party of about 9,000 people, including subordinates and the Rifle Brigade, and headed for the capital of Uakan. We perfectly caught the enemy off guard.

They hadn’t even received the news that the Imperial expeditionary force had appeared in Teocal. But now, a human army had arrived right in front of their capital, so the shock would be doubled.

Ding— Ding—

The city I witnessed by sending a Familiar [a magical being] was in complete chaos.

The citizens, who were enjoying their daily lives without knowing about the approach of the Imperial Army, tilted their heads at the sound of the bell ringing from the spire. Soon, when the watchman shouted, ‘Enemy! It’s a human!’, their eyes widened.

“It’s a human! A human army has appeared!”

I heard the screams mixed with the ringing of the bell through the Familiar’s ears.

The citizens inside the city screamed and hid in their homes, and the citizens outside the city froze as they saw the Imperial Army rising from the horizon.

The city was in so much chaos that the Imperial Army was still far from the city gates. Even though there were countless citizens outside the city, they locked the city gates.

“Open it!”

“I can’t get in!”

The citizens who hadn’t managed to get inside the city gates were shouting.

“Will you besiege it?”

“No. Gather at the west gate and wait.”

The only forces that had arrived in the capital were the subordinates and the Rifle Brigade.

The number was less than ten thousand, but how could we besiege a city where nearly a hundred times as many citizens resided? We didn’t even have siege equipment.

“Gerhard will remain here to command the army. If the enemy attacks while I am away, or if there are signs of such, respond decisively.”

“Understood.”

I led Calliope and the Imperial Guards closer to the city gates.

As in the border fortress of Teocal, all sorts of attacks were launched against me, but they were blocked by Calliope. After a long time, when the enemy realized it was futile and became quiet, I announced.

“I am Edar Lundringen, the Emperor of the Human Empire. I have come to meet your king, Koahmik, and have a conversation, so open the gates.”

The enemy was silent for a moment and then tried to shout at me.

“Don’t be ridiculous—“

– Let him in!

A voice echoed in my head.

It was a voice uttered with the magic of the soul.

The guards on the wall flinched and closed their mouths.

They wanted to hurl abuse at me, but they couldn’t disobey their master’s words. They hesitated and slowly opened the city gates.

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I moved to the palace surrounded by Uakan soldiers.

In my memory, the Lizardmen’s city was like an ant nest, with a class belonging to the workers busily moving around. But it was eerily quiet.

There were hardly any people on the roads.

Who would think this city was the capital of the kingdom?

‘Because no race other than Lizardmen has ever brought soldiers to this city. They are wary of me.’

Moreover, I am a human who is treated as livestock.

The worker-class citizens hid inside the buildings and peeked at me. The only ones out on the roads were the human slaves who had been abandoned because they couldn’t follow their masters into hiding.

The slaves stared blankly at me as I passed by.

“······.”

The atmosphere of the palace was grim.

The moment I entered the audience chamber, the king’s guards lined up on both sides of the audience chamber exuded murderous intent towards me as I walked between them.

【Lv. 83】

【Lv. 78】

【Lv. 81】

But I felt nothing.

I was no longer an ordinary human, and I had the Iron Man trait. I only knew from the feeling that an intense aura was pressing down on me, Calliope, and the Imperial Guards.

“A monkey…”

Some of the Imperial Guards, provoked by my indifferent reaction, took a step forward. With their hands on their hips and murderous intent, they were ready to cut me down at any moment.

I had few escorts right now.

It seemed like a good opportunity to kill or pressure me.

“Don’t do anything foolish.”

But the Imperial Guards couldn’t take a step.

The moment they took a step, Calliope looked at them.

Her cold eyes swept over them, and they trembled.

It seemed they belatedly realized that the aura she exuded overwhelmed the murderous intent of the Imperial Guards. It wasn’t easy to grasp the expression of a lizard, but I read bewilderment in their expressions.

“Step back.”

【Lv. 90】

Koahmik, the Incarnation of Uakan, sitting on the throne, announced.

The Imperial Guards bowed their heads and stepped back.

I stood before Koahmik with my escorts.

“What trick did you play, human?”

*What trick?*

I waited for the exact question to come out.

“I mean, how did you come to this city?”

“You omitted the words ‘without being detected by me’.”

Koahmik looked down at me without a word.

He wouldn’t have heard any news from the border.

I wondered what trick he used to bring his army to the capital.

“Sumontehma opened the way.”

“Sumontehma?”

Koahmik blinked.

He still seemed puzzled.

“But even if he opened the way, you would have to cross the border to get here—“

“The border refers to the boundary that divides the territory of countries. Does that boundary necessarily have to be a fortress? There are also rivers and mountains.”

“Mountains? You crossed the mountain range?”

Instead of answering, I smiled.

Koahmik muttered that it was impossible.

But he must have realized that there was no other way.

He was speechless for a moment.

“…What is your purpose? Why did you come to me?”

“You must already know.”

“You’re a human.”

“Yes. I want to buy humans from you. I know that you have ranches and raise humans there. I also know that you sell humans at a high price.”

“······.”

“Sumontehma promised to hand over the humans to me. What will you do, Koahmik?”

Koahmik frowned deeply.

Originally, he would have said absolutely not and threatened me.

He would have tried to kill me while scolding me like Sumontehma.

But right now, he wasn’t prepared at all.

“…Okay. I’ll sell them. But not all of them.”

He replied that he would only sell half.

I scoffed.

“I want all the humans you employ.”

“No. From the beginning, I was only planning to dispose of half of the humans. Unlike the other guys, I had no intention of disposing of my capital. It would be the same even if you weren’t the trading partner.”

“Even if I offer good conditions?”

“Under no circumstances.”

Koahmik asserted.

I looked him in the eye and asked.

“Even if I bet Kuirau’s head on any condition?”

“What?”

Kuirau was the name of another Incarnation.

Sumontehma, Koahmik, Kuirau.

The three Lizardmen Incarnations.

“You’re going to kill Kuirau?”

“If you hand over all the humans to me safely, I will kill Kuirau for you. Will you still refuse?”

“You’re arrogant, human.”

“Arrogant.”

I chuckled.