I Was Connected to Earth’s Black Market From Another World With The Skill [Market]! (WN)

Chapter 307

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Chapter 307 – Run・Over・Run

Oh, this is the worst. Why do I have to do this? I drive the car without a thought, savoring the sensation of the Casspir’s large tires crushing various pieces of metal, large and small, through the steering wheel and seat. Occasionally, the sound of a PKM light machine gun, an M79 grenade launcher or a UZI would echo from the gun emplacement, but basically, it was my job to look after the various soldiers. That’s what I decided.

“Well then.”

Of course, Myrril doesn’t like to kill either. But if we don’t, they’ll come back to us or to the people we’re trying to protect, so there’s no escaping it.

“…But, you know…”

I mutter in a voice no one can hear. The invading forces of the Imperial Army were neither running nor hiding but were positioned on the snowfield, waiting for the armored personnel carrier and attacking it. Of course, swords, spears, and bows were no match for it, and they would be destroyed, but these idiots still stood their ground without running. They stood in the path of the Casspir. A huge hunk of iron, over ten tons in weight, two and a half meters wide and nearly three meters high, roared towards them, and anyone would understand that no flesh-and-blood human could possibly stand up to it. Even after their comrades had been crushed and their unit destroyed, and they knew they were no match for it, they still made their way to the nearby friendly troops. And since they don’t step into the snowfield but move along the tracks, we have no choice but to shoot or run over them in our path. I didn’t want to go into the snowfield because Casspir would get stuck, and we needed to get around the fortress quickly to take out the artillery position on the west side, so we couldn’t keep up with the foot soldiers’ speed. We haven’t heard the Imperial Army’s artillery since we left Ecla-san and the others, but until we know what’s going on over there, we have no choice but to hurry.

A few hundred meters ahead, I saw a group of soldiers, apparently survivors of the artillery position to the north, fleeing in a daze.

“Oh, shit.”

Don’t you at least have enough sense to run where you won’t get run over? I’ve already run over a hundred people. Even though they are the enemy, I feel the worst. I can still accept being shot as a result of a fight, but it makes me feel more and more depressed.

After clearing out the east side, we went around the north gate to the west side. It had been a slight climb from the east side to the north side, but now it was a gentle descent. The outer wall on the map was almost three kilometers long, so even a car would have had a hard time.

“I don’t see… any enemies.”

The forest surrounding Fort Ilm had been cleared and leveled up to about 300 meters from the outer walls. Scattered across the snowfield were the corpses of men and horses and the wreckage of artillery positions. No one was moving. It seemed that the battle was still going on inside the castle, but the sounds and metallic clashes were barely audible. Well, since I asked Ecla-san to help, at least Saint Miyuki is still safe and sound.

But still…

“Something is different from what I thought.”

“What?”

Myrril gets out of the gun emplacement because she doesn’t see any enemies and sits down in the passenger seat.

“I’ve heard that Fort Ilm is an impregnable fortress that withstood numerous attacks by the Imperial Army during the border disputes with the Republic. But I don’t get the impression that it’s such an excellent fortress. It’s more like… rather messy?”

It doesn’t look like it could hold that many soldiers, nor does it look like it could be used for resupply or self-sufficiency. Even with only two hundred defeated soldiers, the castle lacks supplies and is in a state of defending itself. Indeed, the clumsy-looking Immortal soldiers easily scaled the fortress walls.

Hjelmar, who had been firing attack magic from the gun sight in the rear compartment, walked up to the driver’s seat as if he had done what he had to do.

“The fortress has been abandoned for almost 30 years. The supply lines have been cut, and the satellite cities that supported it have also fallen into disrepair or disappeared. The fortress itself must have been destroyed to prevent wild bandits from entering, and the wells must have been filled in. I have heard that some of the walls are crumbling as well.”

So, is there no functionality left from the days when it was a solid fortress? I don’t know if my subtle impression is due to this problem.

“I think it was seventy years ago, when they took over the northern port cities, that the border between the two countries became less and less useful as a defensive point.”

From the invaders’ point of view, it is the big cities that they want to invade, and in a country with a sea, it is usually the open coast. For a large-scale invasion, it is better to send ships from the sea, which can carry large numbers of troops and supplies.

“But you know what? The capital of Hagwai is inland, even though it is a maritime country, could it be that the capital has been moved?”

“How do you know that?”

Hjelmar sounds surprised at the question: “What is it, child elf? Do you think I’m an idiot?

“I don’t know, but if I were to rule the Republic, I would move the capital to Cassmeer. It’s exposed to naval gunfire in its current location, so the capital functions should be a bit inland.”

“Cassmeer is the former capital. It was moved inland after the Empire took the port city in the north.”

I felt that Cassmeer had a lot going for it as a regional city, perhaps a remnant of its former status as the capital. Still, while it’s good to move inland, isn’t two hundred, or about 320 kilometers, too far?

“What was the current location of Hagwai before the capital was moved?”

“I was told it was the fiefdom of the Northern Territories.”

“Oh? So this place was not a central territory.”

“Until about a hundred years ago, the Northern Territories were quite superior politically, economically and militarily. The territory was much larger than it is now, and more than half of the Republic’s food came from the Northern Territories.”

“Why did it fall? Did the central government’s envy diminish its power?”

“No, the rumor is that the Western Territories, backed by the Empire, sent a group of armed bandits there.”

“That is outrageous. They have not grown at all.”

We slowly made our way along the tracks and came to a quiet plain. There were no artillery positions or soldiers to be seen in the wide open snowy field, 500 meters square. Even though we had defeated many of the invading soldiers, there should still be several hundred left.

“The Imperial Army is not here.”

Several deep, rutted tracks extended to the south. The almost circular rampart seemed to dip sharply from west to south towards seven or eight o’clock. The ruts were in that direction.

As I was about to lead Casspir forward, Hjelmer raised his voice.

“Watch out, demon king. Something’s coming.”

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