Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 355

355―――――

To the Battlefield of Justice!

King Saradin and Ive stared blankly at Zion, dumbfounded by his words.

‘Our holy war? What on earth is he talking about?’

“It’s not difficult.

We do exactly what they do. We call those whom we consider evil as evil, and we call those who call us sinners as sinners. When they ask us if we have fallen, we retort by asking them if they have not fallen, and when they shout at us for betraying the light, we retort by asking if they were ever the light in the first place.”

“But… wouldn’t doing it that way make us no different from them? No different from those followers of light who torment our Nudia and your Hispania!”

‘As expected, he is just an immature boy, someone who has not received the education to be a ruler.’ He seemed to have some strange fantasies, and Zion decided to shatter them without hesitation.

“You are mistaken, Your Majesty King Saradin.

That is what the position is originally like. Standing above others is like that. Did you think it would be a noble and beautiful position? Absolutely not.

The dirtiest, smelliest, and most hideous position is exactly where Your Majesty, Ive Gie Restian, and I, Zion Clausel, reside. In a rotten world, no one will recognize you for fighting righteously alone. You will only be ridiculed and die in defeat.”

“But…”

For King Saradin, who felt deep hatred for the ways of the Holy Prussen, Zion’s suggestion to fight back in the same way was difficult to accept. Moreover, there was a crucial problem. While he tried hard to show the dignified appearance of a king, in the end, he was still just a young boy who was slowly learning about the world. He was naturally drawn to things that were ‘meotjigo’ [cool], ‘hwaryeohago’ [glamorous], and worthy of praise from others, rather than the ugly aspects.

‘In that regard, acting the same way as the enemy’s annoying aspects would be difficult to accept easily.’

Hispania had already taken full advantage of that point to get this far. ‘It’s not my fault, it’s someone else’s fault; I have no problems, only you are wrong.’ Everything that can say, ‘I am right, and you are wrong,’ must have certainty. Even if that certainty is just nonsense without any logic, if many people shout that the nonsense is correct, then it becomes not nonsense but the voice of the majority.

“I am disappointed, Young Master Zion Clausel. I had some expectations because you are said to be an honorable and great war hero of Hispania. Ive and the other nobles are wary of you, but also trust you as a reliable person with definite skills. But in the end, all you say is to proceed in the same way as those who torment our Nudia, only that.”

“Are my words unpleasant to hear?”

“Isn’t it obvious! I naturally want a different plan…”

“Then I have no choice.”

With those words, Zion suddenly bowed his head and apologized to King Saradin. Amidst the two people from Nudia being taken aback by the sudden action,
Zion continued to speak with his head bowed.

“Your Majesty, to reign over others and have obligations is like blooming a flower in a mud pit. People see the flower, but we must see the mud pit. We must only think about how to produce that beautiful result in that dirty place.”

“…”

“I was so saddened by the current situation of Nudia that I said things that were very rude. Please forgive me. If you tell me to step down as is, I will step down and prepare to move the army in the way that Nudia wants.”

King Saradin was silent at Zion’s words. He stared at the foreign guest who was bowing his head for a moment before letting out a small sigh. And he ended up saying the words that Zion was subtly hoping for.

“…In your eyes, is that the only thing our Nudia lacks?”

“There is a will to fight, the ability to fight, and considerable combat power. In the current situation where those warriors are enduring at their limit, what is lacking is exactly what I said: conviction. That conviction that we can become demons and kill them all, that conviction that harming them is the true path to serving the light.”

Nudia is more influenced by the teachings of light than Hispania. Even those who are not deeply immersed in the teachings of light unconsciously avoid suspecting or cursing the descendants of light.
So, the soldiers cannot have conviction when fighting against those who preach the teachings of light. They cannot know if they are being deceived or if they are truly sinners.

‘In an era like now, where people clash and fight directly, such a mindset is fatal. The Hispania army underwent work in advance to prevent such things, but Nudia received a sudden invasion from the Holy Prussen before that could be fully achieved, and even the Celestials showed themselves directly, giving a visually large shock. It’s enough to be psychologically intimidated.’

Ive may have been thinking about that part as well. However, Nudia was short on time, and unlike Zion, she believed that the right path was more correct, so she would not have been able to proceed in such a way as to boldly incite the people of the kingdom.

“Hoo.”

As if having sorted out his thoughts, King Saradin told Zion, who was still bowing his head, to raise his head and muttered that perhaps he was just acting out. In a situation of imminent crisis, he said that they should think about how to win by any means, and if they were to consider other things, the entire royal family, as well as the people of the kingdom, would be harmed.

He roughly turned King Saradin’s mind around and received permission. In this case, it would be good to step back slightly and give the impression that Nudia’s opinion was being fully accepted. After all, Zion had been pushing so strongly until now only to find out the state of this young king, and he was thinking of giving Nudia a slightly different prescription than Hispania.

“Your Majesty, if you are still uncomfortable, although the end will be the same, we can start differently and approach in a different way to increase the combat power of the Nudia army twice as much as it is now.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“The Nudia army and the Hispania army are unknowingly in a competitive relationship. Of course, that competitive relationship is a bit twisted, but I wonder if it would be a good idea to stimulate that part.”

‘What is this again?’ It is obvious, but King Saradin himself and Ive are people from Nudia, and Zion, who is telling the story, is a person from Hispania. But to stimulate the rivalry that the two countries’ armies have with each other, the two people from Nudia reacted in a way that they could not understand what this absurd remark was.

‘It’s not difficult.’

As he said, there is nothing difficult. It’s simple. It’s a very simple logic. There is nothing more envious than those who you thought were on par suddenly moving ahead. In the world of men, all you have to do is subtly fan the flames of that competitive spirit, and it will burn on its own.

“My opinion is this.”

After that, Zion began to convey his opinion to King Saradin and Ive. Listening to the story, they blinked their eyes and nodded, and at the same time, they let out sighs and showed quite a fresh reaction. Zion’s story was not long, and as the situation was very urgent, their meeting came to an end. Just as Zion was about to leave the reception room after finishing the conversation with King Saradin,
Ive’s voice stopped him from behind.

“Sir Zion Clausel.”

“Speak.”

“Is it really okay? Even if you use that method.”

“It would be most certain to use the same method as the Holy Prussen, but the King of Nudia is very uncomfortable with it, so we are using a second-best option. Or are you not satisfied with that either?”

“Of course not. Rather, I am asking if the Hispania army will be okay.”

“Of course, there is no problem at all.”

It’s crazy if one person does it, and it’s embarrassing if two people do it. But if three people do it, it becomes a performance, and if more people do it, it becomes a social action. And originally, human beings are easily swept away by that social action, and they are also easily influenced to shout and act together with those who are next to them.

“As I said a little while ago, the Hispania army will immediately move to the current Nudia defense line. Since there are many plains in the south, the warriors from the north will head there.”

“Nudia will take care of all the support while the Hispania supply unit comes.”

Zion nodded at Ive’s words. After telling her to move Nudia as well in line with the movements of Hispania, he left the Nudia Palace. Lilith, Rishifa, and Ludwig, who were waiting outside in advance, immediately approached Zion and were in a mood to explain at least a little about what stories had been exchanged.

“Ludwig Redenun.”

“Yes, Vice Commander.”

“When you return to the main army, immediately bring Zhan Temujin. Because we will have to move to the defense line immediately to help the Nudia army and push back the front line.”

“Understood.”

The fact that the enemies’ offensive has weakened since a while ago means that the Celestials have largely left. The demons keep bothering them from behind, so the Celestials, who don’t need to show the sight of harming humans, seem to have left to quickly clean them up first, and that very moment was a perfect moment for Zion.

‘Since there are no guys to cosplay as angels, there is no one to counter even if we make a fuss.’

The Nudia army is only shouting that they have to stop the invading enemies. On the other hand, the Hispania army was armed with this side’s holy war to judge the false light.

―

Another battle has ended. This time as well, the Holy Prussen army failed to break through the defense line, and the Nudia army let out a sigh of relief, sending the casualties back and filling the empty spaces with reserves. The biggest reason was that the momentum of the Holy Prussen army, which had rushed in with tremendous momentum as if to burn everything at first, had suddenly decreased a little while ago. The arrows that flew in like ghosts and killed soldiers and commanders alike had also decreased, and the Celestials, who suddenly appeared on the battlefield and eroded morale by showing off their brilliance, were no longer visible.

“Did you hear? The Hispania army is about to arrive.”

“Isn’t it a bad idea to call them in? Until recently, they were fighting like crazy with us, but if they suddenly hit us in the back of the head at a time like this, at that moment…”

“Shhh. It is said that His Majesty and the nobles have decided. The commanders also said that it is absolutely not allowed to spread strange rumors and create a strange atmosphere between the two armies!”

The conflict between Nudia and Hispania was not something that happened in a day or two. Because of this, the soldiers still questioned the news that Hispania had come to help them, and worried that they would come into Nudia again this time and do strange things like last time. But they also said that they came to help them, and it is true that Nudia’s situation is not good, so the soldiers could not openly suspect or antagonize them, so it became a daily routine for them to just gather in groups of three or five and worry about what would happen to this country.

“Hey, hey, hey! Did you hear the news!”

The Nudia army suddenly became noisy as the soldiers who had escorted the wounded back to the rear returned. They returned to their respective units with their eyes sparkling as if they had seen something very surprising and amazing, and told them what they had seen and heard, and what would happen on this side soon.

“The Hispania army has just reached near the defense line. But those guys, they are not going to stop the Holy Prussen, but they are going to attack them?”

“…What nonsense are you talking about? How strong is the Holy Prussen army!”

“Did they win one or two battles in the war with us and have nothing to fear? The opponent is a guy who even has the Holy Knights. Are we idiots for just blocking them here like this?”

“No way. It’s just nonsense. I can’t believe that.”

The soldiers’ reactions were, of course, mostly dumbfounded and foolish. They are the ones who are immediately fighting a bloody battle with the Holy Prussen. That the Hispania army is stronger than before, and that Nudia has been defeated several times, well, that is a part that they acknowledge. But if you ask if the Hispania army can beat the Holy Prussen indiscriminately like in the war with Nudia, the soldiers would confidently say no. They are well-trained, have a large number of soldiers, and, above all, are armed with strong beliefs. One thrust of a spear, one swing of a sword, is a terrifying belief that they will surely judge all the enemies and move everything in the right direction.

“Column to the left!”

“To the right!”

In the meantime, with the order to move the firmly closed formation, a group of new troops appeared from behind the Nudia soldiers. They were the army that had come to support them from Hispania, giving a feeling that was similar to Nudia but also clearly different. Originally, the support that they had expected from Hispania was only in the form of reserves. In other words, everyone in Nudia thought that they would operate in a way that would immediately fill the gap if Nudia’s formation was damaged and a gap was created, and that was the natural way to support a foreign country. But the scene that started next was something they could never have imagined.

“Align the ranks and advance!”

“Let’s judge the false ones! If they are not the light, then we who have been seeking the light are the true light!”

“Let’s go! We will execute justice with our hands!”

Those who they thought would defend the defense line together were aligning their ranks and advancing. Raising their brilliantly shining weapons high into the sky, as if they were the agents of God who had come down from the sky, as if they firmly believed that those who were waiting for them in front were evil, injustice, and darkness!

“Wh-what? What is it?”

“Crazy bastards? It’s already hard enough to block them, but what kind of counterattack are they suddenly launching!”

It was only natural for the Nudia soldiers to show such a reaction. It hasn’t been long since a round of offense and defense ended, and of course the enemies are also tired, but if Hispania is defeated in reverse, this side is tired from the continued battle and cannot even support them, and on the contrary, if they are pushed back and run away, they cannot even accept them. Even though Hispania could not have known that, they had intense flames in their eyes. A thirst for victory and a sense of mission to punish evil and set the light right!

“Wh-what is it?”

“Why, why are they doing that?”

The Hispania army was once no different from Nudia. They thought of each other as rivals, and the common conclusion of the Nudia soldiers was that they were still worth trying, even though they had been defeated several times. The sight of those Hispania soldiers shining more brilliantly than ever before and heading towards a new battlefield was gently stimulating something in the hearts of the Nudia soldiers, who had been constantly pushed back while fighting a difficult battle.

‘It’s okay, that’s normal.’

Zion thought as he rode his horse at the head of the Hispania army. The world of men that women cannot understand well, the common part that if he runs, I run too, and if I run, you run too, was a common part regardless of the world.

―――――――Author’s Afterword―――――――

The magic of everyone becoming a veteran when one guy does it seriously during reserve forces training.

Charge forward OOOOOO Guwaaaaa Owaaaaaaak!