V6C27 Speedy Independent Battalion - Santairiku Eiyuuki

At the time when chaos overtook the palace of the Kingdom of Cerda due to Jebe's approach... The Lemuria army led by Jebe had already moved within a hundred kilometers of Cerda City. "Captain, shouldn't we decide where to make camp for the night? The sun's already setting." "Hmm, you're right about that." Nodding at his subordinate's suggestion, Jebe began searching for a suitable place to stay. Riding along the path for a while, they eventually discovered a village of reasonable size. "That place should do." Jebe's cavalry of 3,600 horsemen directed themselves towards the village. As the sudden appearance and steady approach of the cavalry caused quite an uproar amongst the villagers... "Prepare your bows, men. But don't fire yet." Giving this order to his subordinates, Jebe slowly approached the village gate. An old man emerged from within the village. He looked like a canine-type beastman, a warbeast. In halting Beastman language, Jebe spoke, having just learned it: "We are Lemuria army. Let us stay. Or die." We are the Lemuria army. Allow us to stay in your village, or resist and be killed. This message was relayed to the Village Chief by Jebe. The Village Chief, understanding Jebe's intent, turned pale. "Let us stay. We will be calm." Assuring that nothing would happen if they were allowed to stay, Jebe spoke. The Village Chief knelt before Jebe and slowly responded. "Understood. General of Lemuria, please, this way." Thus, the Village Chief invited Jebe and his men inside. Once they entered the village, it was as good as theirs. Jebe demanded additional supplies like food and barley for the horses. Though the cavalry consisted of 3,600 men, each took along four spare horses, making a total of 18,000 horses. While the grass growing along the road was adequate, better feed was preferable. Naturally, the Village Chief argued that providing so much barley would lead to starvation among his people, but when Jebe posed a choice between "die now or die of hunger later," the barley was reluctantly offered. They also demanded pigs and cattle be slaughtered to prepare fresh meat and seized a few promising horses by force. Although the men desired alcohol, Jebe deemed it too dangerous to indulge while in enemy territory and vetoed the request. Instead, Jebe demanded of the Village Chief: "Send young women." There was obvious resistance to this demand, but when Jebe replied with "Then die," women were reluctantly handed over amidst tears. "Captain, aren't you partaking?" "I'm busy, as you can see." When a soldier, having finished enjoying himself with a village woman, asked Jebe, he replied disinterestedly. Indeed, Jebe's declaration of being "busy" appeared genuine as he compared maps they had with newly acquired ones, marking information gathered from the village while planning the next move. To his men, however, Jebe seemed to have no interest in women at all. "Captain, is it true you're rumored to be the Emperor's lover?" "That can't be true." "But the captain is adorable, isn't he?" One of the soldiers pointed out. While many elves of the Long-Ear Tribe boast beautiful appearances, Jebe's somewhat feminine face stood out among the independent raiding squad, making him adorably conspicuous. Surrounded by rugged men, he could be taken for a pretty young girl. "Surely, the captain really is cute." "If only he were a girl, we could have wild orgies every day." "Fool, he's the Emperor's. Touch him, and you're dead." "Well, truly, he belongs to the Emperor." Annoyed by the teasing comments from his soldiers, Jebe lightly swung his hand. Swish! A knife grazed a soldier's cheek and embedded itself in the wall, freezing the atmosphere. Jebe slowly stood up. "I have a wife. Doesn't that refute those unfounded rumors about me being the Emperor's lover?" At Hercule's prodding, Jebe had an arranged marriage a few years ago with a half-elf from the Long-Ear Tribe and was very pleased with his kind, blond, lovely Lemurian bride. "Those who mocked me, step outside. If you don't, you'll die." Jebe's voice was low as he spoke. The soldiers, turning pale, hung their heads and stepped outside. He demanded they form groups of ten. There were thirty soldiers between the jesters and their audience. Thus, three groups formed. Once the groups were set, Jebe issued a low-commanded mandate to the three groups. "We will now enact decimation. Prepare yourselves." With that, Jebe summoned the other soldiers in the village and even gathered the villagers to witness. "What are you planning to do?" "A festival." Jebe said to the anxious-looking Village Chief. The Village Chief observed a strange scene unfolding. Three soldiers from the Lemuria army were tied to trees. They each held a target over their heads, their faces contorted with fear, legs trembling. A hundred meters away from those trembling soldiers, twenty-seven others stood with bows, faces ashen. "Cap, Captain! We're so sorry! Ple, please forgive us!" One of the tied soldiers cried out. Jebe acknowledged the man's apology with a nod. "Do you regret your actions?" "Y, yes, I do." "Very well." Jebe slowly approached the man, then drew his sword and severed the man's head. The gathered villagers screamed. The Lemuria soldiers, perhaps accustomed to death, simply held their breath, turning pale but not screaming. Jebe then approached the group of nine men from the tied soldier's group. The men's faces were ghostly white. "Choose one." "Y, yes!" Per Jebe's order, the nine men drew lots, choosing a new target, and tied him to the now vacated tree. With this resolved, Jebe instructed the team of twenty-nine soldiers. "Each of you, fire one arrow. Hit the target held up by the base. If you succeed, you're forgiven. If you miss and the base dies... choose another from the nine to serve as the base." That day, resulting from Jebe's punishment... Three soldiers met their end. The next morning, at the break of dawn, Jebe prepared to leave the village. "Thank you for your hospitality." "N, no... th, there's no such thing..." The Village Chief said, pale-faced. Deep down, he undoubtedly hoped they would leave as soon as possible. Not only did they forcibly requisition supplies, but no one wanted to host a general who would execute such a brutal punishment for long. "Here, take this." Jebe handed a bag to the Village Chief. With trembling hands, the Village Chief accepted it. From the opening of the tightly packed bag, the contents were partially visible, glittering in the morning sunlight... Lemurian gold coins. "What is this?" "Barley. Meat. Women. Payment." With those words, Jebe turned on his heel and vanished with his cavalry. The Village Chief, looking at the bag of gold coins, murmured to himself. "...If we received this much, I'd have been fine with them staying for ten more days." "What should we do next, Captain? Attack the capital?" "That would be dangerous. We'll get a bit closer, then linger for three days, or five if possible, before heading back." Ten days to reach there, five days of causing havoc, and ten days returning. This plan would allow them to return to Teripol City within thirty days. "Stay sharp... the real enemy counterattack will come soon enough. Not that we intend to engage them." Jebe's objective was to disrupt the enemy. His goal was to mentally corner the enemy, not actually fight them. "It's impossible for them to catch us." With their ability to march a hundred kilometers a day, it was nearly impossible for the Cerda army to catch up with Jebe’s forces and engage them in battle. Jebe had absolute confidence in his unit's mobility.