This army numbers about one thousand.
A Chief that can command a thousand men should be highly-experienced, I presume. He should be someone who's reputable, but when Veirya appeared at the entrance, the Chief with a red cape immediately stood up to salute her. According to my observation, it appears that ordinary soldiers wear white capes, some Chiefs wear green capes while the one before me wore a red one. However, Veirya wore a white cape.
Veirya is an ordinary soldier. An ordinary soldier than can slay the Demon King.
The Chief maintained his salutation posture. Veirya then saluted him back, before he finally sat back down. Veirya seems to hold the highest rank in the military. After all, being able to slay the Demon King is the greatest glory and honour attainable for a soldier. Although money and power are still useful in the military, the most valuable thing is still military accomplishment.
We sat down opposite the Chief. Veirya looked at me and indicated I could speak. I scanned the Chief in front of me. My prediction was correct. The Chief in front of me was past middle-age. The colour of his hair on his temple had started to fade. The skin on his face was no longer smooth. In fact, he had lots of wrinkles. I struggled to read his gaze, though. Perhaps I'm still a little young.
I looked at his desk. His desk was very ordinary. There was a notebook, pen and ink as well as a picture frame. I looked at the picture, which was a picture of a Chief holding a child gently, with a woman seated next to them with an elegant smile. Though it was a drawing and not a photo, it was very well drawn.
I pointed at the photo and with a smile, asked, "Is that your wife and kid?"
"Yes. My wife gave birth to our child three years ago. I've been eager to return home to see them while on the battlefield. Thanks to Lord Veirya successfully slaying the Demon King, I can now return home to see my daughter. My daughter is very cute. She'll, definitely, be a pretty girl in the future."
Whenever this topic is mentioned, even tough soldiers will reveal a gentle smile. He looked at the drawing and touched the frame. I noticed that the colour of the frame had changed a little.
I smiled and said, "We didn't really come for anything too major. We just heard about the famine and refugees. Lord Veirya is concerned about the safety of her territory, so she came here to ask around and find out more about the situation."
The Chief chuckled then waved his hand and responded, "Lord Veirya, you are worrying needlessly. Our citizens can still hang in there. Those outside are just pagans. They have nothing and won't be able to cause any big issues. They've been locked down here by us. They'll be fine as long as we give them food on time. They won't run to your territory."
Veirya nodded and replied, "Good."
I noticed the Chief let out a sigh of relief. It seems like these Chiefs don't just purely worship her, but are actually somewhat afraid of her. The soldiers outside felt the same way. They half admired and respected her and half feared her. Veirya isn't just a comrade up a weapon in battle to them.
She's, essentially, a drawn blade. Though it can take enemies off their horses, you could hurt yourself with it as well.
I kept my eyes on the Chief. I then followed up by asking, "But what about inside the city? Aren't you worried about the people inside the city? You do have all of your forces focused on the walls after all. Can you guarantee that you'll be able to maintain safety within the city if the people riot due to tension? Can you bring a map here?"
After hearing my question, he looked at Veirya with an odd look, as though it wasn't her intention to ask the question. He was somewhat baffled as to why we'd inquire about this. Veirya is a soldier, not a Chief, so why did she care about this stuff? I believe the Chief in front of me was very baffled. But Veirya just nodded. The Chief then looked at me and said, "Really? You want to see the map of the city…? But that's… a secret."
"Are you worried that Lord Veirya is hiding ulterior motives related to your city? This city exists today, thanks to Lord Veirya. If it wasn't for her, this city would've been overrun by the demons in the last war, yet you're suspecting that the saviour of this city is trying to do something to the city?"
"No, no. That is not what I meant… It's just that Lord Veirya is no longer military personnel, so… so… according to the military rules and regulations, I cannot show you the map."
"Who sad Veirya isn't military personnel now? Veirya still considers herself military personnel! Veirya is a successful soldier. What, are successful soldiers not military personnel?!"
"I want to see it."
Five words from her ended my argument with the Chief. The Chief looked at Vierya, dumbfounded. He was at a complete loss for words. Veirya looked at him sternly and repeated herself, "I want to see it."
"See… the map of the city?"
"That's right."
Veirya nodded. Leah who was next to he looked at her slightly surprised. It seems that this is the first time Veirya has spoken up during a discussion. Well, it actually is. Normally, it's me who talks to the other party, while they stand to the side silently.
This time however, Veirya spoke up.
The Chief looked at her. He rubbed his head like he was a little irritated. He then sighed and agreed, "All right."
I looked at Veirya with a hint of excitement, but she didn't look at me. She maintained her upright posture as she looked at the Chief.
The map was soon brought over. The Chief sighed and spread it open before us. Leah leaned her head in to look at the map, due to curiosity. She then exclaimed with surprise, "Papa, don't we live there?!"
It looks like Leah instantly located the hotel we're staying at. I looked at the map. I then noticed that the location seemed to have some connection to the place that was assaulted. What was there in the past wasn't a hotel, but an army camp. No wonder why Veirya went straight there. But that wasn't what I paid attention to. What I paid attention to were the places with red marks.
"These places are where our army is designated. We have prepared supplies to defend the city. Said supplies is the food the city has accumulated. It's safe for sure. There's a food merchant's warehouse next to this place, but we don't know how much food a private warehouse has."
I looked at the map and responded quietly, "Got it."
Veirya looked at the map in silence. She then listened to the Chief explain the deployments before nodding and sitting down.
The Chief looked at us with a slightly fearful expression and asked, "Do you have any other business then?"
It looks like he really doesn't want to get involved with us. He's eager for us to leave right now and never return.
But, whatever. I've already gotten what I'm after.
I stood up and replied, "Since that's the case, we're reassured. I hope you can fulfil your duty and protect our Queen's lands."
"Yes."
The Chief tried to hide his laughter when he responded. I know that it's a little comical when that sort of stuff comes from me. I, commonly, go red in the face. I just wanted to make our departure look normal, though it looks like my goodbye doesn't suit military personnel. Veirya stood up and saluted him. She then held Leah's hand and turned around to leave before Leah could put up a resistance.
Just as I went to turn to leave as well, the Chief behind me suddenly asked me, "May I ask, how are you related to Veirya? Are you her husband?"
I tuned my head around and shook my head gently. I then replied, "No, not her husband. I guess you can consider me someone who serves Lord Veirya for her benefit."
He then asked me in a very confused tone, "So what does examining our map have to do with Lord Veirya's benefits?"
"It has lots to do with her benefits. It has to do with Lord Veirya, it has to do with Lord Veirya's territory, it has to do with the food merchants, it has to do with this city and even has to do with you, Chief." I chuckled softly as I shook my head and continued, "However, I do not need to tell you any more. Chief, you do not need to worry, we are not thieves. We will not snatch your supplies, so you need not worry. But perhaps, I'm saying perhaps. Perhaps you will be able to go home to see your family."