Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 340

340

Turkey Hunting in the South

The Second Army finally began its march, bidding farewell to Queen Vanessa and the people of the kingdom.

The journey involved a fluctuating pace: slowing down to accommodate soldiers arriving from the north, then resuming their original speed once they joined, uniting with the remaining forces in the east, and finally crossing over to Nudia.

Meanwhile, Zion, leveraging his accumulated funds, Queen Vanessa’s support, supplies from the Margrave Clausen Territory and the Marquis Ledenen family, and even Helen’s assistance, was preparing a menu that soldiers on a standard march could only dream of.

Ordinarily, soldiers carried several days’ worth of supplies, with the remaining provisions transported by a unit following behind. However, Zion had modified dozens of wagons, commissioned from the Hynes Merchant Guild, in a rather unconventional manner.

‘The road to Nudia Royal Castle is long.

No matter how quickly we travel, it will take at least two weeks.

Right now, the soldiers are fueled by a sense of duty and national pride, but that will only last a few days.

Even the knights will start to grumble after a week of marching, let alone the ordinary soldiers.’

It was inevitable.

When the body is exhausted, the mind falters; no one can be blamed for that. There’s a reason why they say a strong mind resides in a healthy body.

“Um, Vice Commander.”

Just then, a young knight approached Zion hesitantly.

He wasn’t hesitant out of shyness; if he were truly shy, Zion would have been suspicious and on guard.

“Prince Ludwig.”

The young knight, Ludwig, was simply unsure how to interact with someone who used to be a friend—or rather, someone he used to treat with a lack of respect—but who was now someone he couldn’t even afford to offend.

‘He had a rough time during the last war with Nudia, and now he looks like he’s about to die.’

During that time, Zion participated as Marquis Volko’s aide, while Ludwig served as a guard knight, so they rarely interacted.

Now, with Zion openly appointing Ludwig and bringing him to the battlefield, Ludwig was forced to face Zion whether he liked it or not.

‘It’s written all over your face, you idiot.

You’re worried I’m going to get revenge for how you treated me before?

You cowardly bastard, a guy who became a formal knight suddenly turned into a scaredy-cat.’

In fact, Ludwig’s reaction wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

Even if he wasn’t the commander-in-chief, the vice commander was still a powerful position.

Furthermore, Marquis Volko was secretly supporting Zion, and the knights and soldiers had all fought alongside Zion on the battlefield at least once.

What about his reputation?

Immediately, the name Ludwig Ledenen was only known to nobles who would say, ‘Ah, that’s the prince of the Marquis Ledenen family!’

On the other hand, the name Zion Clausen was recognized by everyone in the kingdom, a person worthy of the title of hero.

Even the beastmen and elves knew about Zion Clausen, so Ludwig, who was about the same age and had a similar family background but was living a completely different life, couldn’t help but feel intimidated.

“You seem to have something you want to ask. Is there a problem?”

“Ah… well, that.

Those wagons following behind.

I have no idea what they are.”

“You’re making it awfully difficult to admit you’re curious.

The Ludwig Ledenen I’ve known all this time wasn’t so reserved.”

Ludwig’s face showed his concern about how to respond to Zion’s joke.

Until recently, they were still friends, but now he had to serve him as his direct superior and show respect, so he looked a little awkward but also stiffened by the sense of duty that he had to do so.

“Prince Ludwig Ledenen.

If you’re that curious, just ask.

I’ve appointed you as my adjutant and personally selected you, so it’s only right that you do so.”

If they were in a private setting, he would have continued to call him by his first name comfortably.

However, for the sake of the Ledenen Marquis family, and considering the eyes of those who were subtly watching them, it was better to show respect to Ludwig, the heir to the Marquis family.

“It’s a little strange, isn’t it?

That we, who used to talk so casually, are now like this.”

“Yes.

It’s a little, no, very strange.”

“You’ll have to get used to it.

Just like Marquis Volko and Margrave Lichten did, we too, even if we bicker in private, will have to work together in these public settings to face the enemies.”

“I’m keeping that in mind.”

Still, Ludwig wasn’t the kind of weakling who would be frightened in front of the elves and beg for his life or cry that he didn’t want to die.

A man who fought to protect the name of a knight, his pride, and died honorably on the battlefield.

He was a character who often received comments from readers telling him to just die because he kept picking fights with Kim Yoo-hyun even though he didn’t have the skills.

And when such Ludwig died quite knightly, or rather, like a supporting character, the readers reacted with regret that he was dead.

‘Even if he’s not skilled, at least his nature isn’t evil, so I can use him.

If I’ve decided that I can use him, I have to find a way to utilize him somehow.’

This war wouldn’t end with just one or two battles, and the battles wouldn’t end in just one battlefield.

All sides were battlefields, and conversely, Zion himself was just one person.

He couldn’t go to other battlefields himself, so he needed someone he could trust to take on the minimum command and prevent these soldiers from collapsing helplessly.

Above all, in this war where morale, the will to fight, was important, if the soldiers lost that will, they would collapse in an instant, so he definitely needed someone who was human.

“You said you were curious about those wagons, Prince Ludwig.”

“Yes.

They look like baggage carts, but when you look inside, there’s something strange inside, and in the first place, the supply unit is following behind, but those wagons are moving with the main unit.

I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“Prince Ludwig.

What do you think is most important to soldiers going to the battlefield?”

It was a question out of the blue.

Zion just asked it without any thought, but Ludwig was nervous, wondering if this was a test that Zion was giving him, and quickly thought about what answer he wanted.

‘Honor?

No, no.

Zion has always shaken his head when I say that.

He said that for soldiers, more than honor, it’s important to win the war and survive.’

Ludwig hesitated for a moment, trying to give an answer that would at least be recognized by the kingdom’s hero and the Second Army’s vice commander, and then carefully gave his answer.

“Wouldn’t it be… the reason to fight?

For their families, or for their hometowns.”

“Not a bad answer.

Certainly, that’s important too.

But it’s a little different from the answer I wanted.”

“Am I wrong?”

“Rather than wrong, it’s more like your approach was too idealistic.”

Even with Zion’s words, Ludwig still looked like he didn’t understand at all.

In the meantime, the marching column stopped, and the soldiers began to prepare for a break.

It seemed like it was time for a meal.

“It’s just the right time.

Follow me, Prince Ludwig.”

Zion, guiding Ludwig, approached the wagon that he thought was a baggage cart.

Afterward, Ludwig couldn’t help but exclaim ‘Huh?’ because the wagon, which he thought was simply carrying supplies, was too different from what he had expected.

Inside the wagon were various food ingredients and cooking utensils, and cooks were riding along.

Originally, when marching, the designated cooks would do the cooking, but now those cooks were preparing meals with much more skilled movements than the soldiers.

Of course, the cooks were also assigned to the fire or auxiliary work that required human power, but the overall meal was being prepared by the cooks.

“What is this…”

“I think like this.

For soldiers before a fight, the most important thing is, ironically, to show them some of the rewards they will receive after the war.

Of course, it’s also important to let them know why they have to fight, but people can’t always live on a sense of duty alone, so we have to stimulate their desire for reward and draw out their ultimate abilities.”

Zion naturally returned to his usual comfortable self when the two of them were alone.

Ludwig stared blankly at such Zion and then opened his mouth as if he didn’t understand.

“No, Zion.

Even so, such a meal for those going to the battlefield…”

“We have to show them that they are being treated well.

We have to signal that the battlefield they are going to is dangerous and important.

And we have to let them know that if they win that war, rewards that can’t even be compared to this treatment will be waiting for them.”

At first, he had considered starting from the royal castle and having the people of the eastern kingdom cheer and throw flowers on the road the Second Army was going.

However, Zion decided that it would be a little better to give those heading to the battlefield a meal that they could not have imagined, even a few times along the way.

He thought it would be quite effective because a good meal for those who were going to the battlefield and might live or die right away sometimes had the effect of greatly increasing combat power.

“You might worry that they’ll relax.

But that’s what inexperienced rookies do.

Almost all of them have participated in the war at least once.

If a vice commander, a hero of the kingdom, does something like this, they won’t relax, but rather become more nervous.

Doing something that has never happened before means that the things that will happen in front of them will be twice as difficult as usual.”

No matter how well you speak, if you end up giving an order for a difficult task, it is equally painful for the person giving the order and the person following it.

Zion had already given all the speeches he could give to the people, so trying to move them with words again beyond this was close to being excessive.

At such times, giving something like this would make both the person giving and the person following a little more comfortable.

Let’s cheer up and move forward, let’s go forward and fight bravely, let’s fight and win.

Zion was subtly emphasizing that part this time in a way that pleased their tongues rather than his own tongue.

―

‘It’s really grateful that Lord Zion attached that man to me.

But….’

As he headed south, Count Bremen kept glancing at Kim Yoo-hyun.

It wasn’t for any other reason, but because he was clearly the same human being, but he exuded an aura that couldn’t be seen as the same human being, so he couldn’t even say a word of greeting or ask him to take care of him in the future.

‘How on earth could Lord Zion be so nonchalant with such a person?’

Count Bremen was a person who had fought pirates and even wielded a sword himself.

However, the aura felt from Kim Yoo-hyun and his coldly sunken eyes possessed something so sharp that even Count Bremen could not approach him carelessly.

However, Kim Yoo-hyun was in a situation where he had to work with him, helping each other and taking on the affairs of the south.

Count Bremen tried to calm the heart of a herbivore in front of a beast and approached Kim Yoo-hyun, who was slowly riding his horse from behind.

“Sir Kim Yoo-hyun?”

“…”Yes.”

Kim Yoo-hyun, who was thinking about other things, answered about a second late.

However, Count Bremen interpreted Kim Yoo-hyun’s appearance as if he was contemplating for a second, ‘Is this bastard talking to me?

How should I tear him apart?’

Clearly, he was the head of a prestigious noble family in the south, and even a person who had received the position of commander of the Third Army from the queen, so he thought it was strange that he was so nervous.

However, at Kim Yoo-hyun’s gaze waiting for the next words, the count eventually retreated, deciding to talk to him next time.

“Ah, no.”

“…?”

What on earth is he doing?

That was Kim Yoo-hyun’s inner thought.

He could assure himself that there were no negative emotions such as annoyance or anger at all.

However, as he frowned slightly, it was literally a horror special from Count Bremen’s point of view.

The story of him slicing and dicing the Nudia army with just one sword came to mind, so he even waved his hand and tried to return to his place.

“Count Bremen Isik.”

From Kim Yoo-hyun’s point of view, it was a word spoken in his usual voice, but to Count Bremen, it sounded like the voice the Grim Reaper would make when delivering a death sentence.

Count Bremen barely managed to twist his mouth, which was about to answer ‘Yes!’ momentarily, and barely looked at Kim Yoo-hyun as if asking why.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“A favor…?”

“When I arrive in the south, I will act independently.

If you have any objections to that, please tell me.”

If Zion was next to him, he would have given him a scolding, saying, ‘How can you say such a thing while exuding an aura that would make me rip out your tongue if you said any objections or complaints?’

However, unfortunately, Zion was heading east, and Kim Yoo-hyun was left, wanting to finish the affairs of the south as soon as possible and go straight to Nudia beyond the east.

“Ah, well.

It would be really nice if you could tell me the reason…”

“Others may get hurt if they get caught up in it.”

He was saying it out of concern for others, but Count Bremen wanted to hit his head hard because he kept hearing it as ‘If you interfere, I’ll just kill you.’

“Is it an important matter?”

“Lord Zion Clausen personally requested it.”

“Ah.”

Count Bremen was breathing a sigh of relief several times inside.

It wasn’t just because he was afraid of Kim Yoo-hyun, but because he had an excuse to say that he had no choice but to listen because there was a request from Zion.

“Then do as you please, Sir Kim Yoo-hyun.

You are the one who faced Nudia’s elite army alone, so it might be better to move alone!”

I guarantee that if this man gets really angry because he doesn’t like something, a disaster beyond imagination might come, Count Bremen thought.

People who have lived in the sea for a long time have good senses, and it seems that that saying is not wrong.

―――――――Afterword―――――――

Don’t mess with the food that soldiers eat, and don’t pick fights.