From the walls of Heim, Hel looked down at Vivian, who was standing in Heim Square beside Lily, helping to assign tasks to the townsfolk.
Whenever anyone showed signs of dissatisfaction, Vivian would take a few members of the Church and go comfort them.
To Hel's surprise, every time Vivian did this, several of those people would suddenly generate loyalty traits toward her.
The increase was small — one or two points at most — but even so, it was an impressive feat.
"This Vivian really is quite the talent," Hel murmured with admiration.
After a moment, she turned toward Sebastian.
"How many people are there in Heim now?"
"Seventeen thousand in total," Sebastian replied. "Of those, around twelve hundred are soldiers. About three thousand are their families, another three thousand belong to the retinues of other nobles, and the remaining ten thousand or so are commoners of Heim.
If you're considering how we might retreat, my lady… I wouldn't recommend taking them all. After all…"
He trailed off, but his meaning was clear.
Given the current situation, evacuating the Mandrake Duchy would be the most logical move — but to take all of Heim's population with them would be impossible.
"Of course, I understand," Hel said softly.
Her gaze drifted to the commoners below, who smiled brightly over the small wages they had just received.
Her expression hardened slightly.
"But I don't like people who abandon their own just to survive," she said. "And I don't intend to become one of them either.
However…"
She shifted her gaze back to Sebastian.
"My mercy only extends to those who are truly mine.
So I need to know — among the people of Heim, who are our own, and who are just fence-sitters that failed to flee in time.
Perhaps I'll need an opportunity soon — a way to test who truly swears loyalty to me. And that chance… might be coming sooner than we think."
As she spoke, Hel turned her eyes toward the distance beyond the walls.
It had become rare to see any of the small beastmen nearby these days.
As she had noted before, the Mandrake Duchy simply couldn't sustain that many of them. It was only the first stage of their invasion.
Whether for survival or for faith, they wouldn't linger here long.
And though their numbers were immense, they weren't endless.
Now that most of the small beastmen had pushed deeper into the human lands, those remaining behind in Mandrake were no longer such a serious threat.
Which meant… there were many things that could now be done.
And clearly, Hel wasn't the only one who thought so.
From her vantage atop Heim's walls, she could see — far in the distance — a large force of riders charging toward the city.
Judging by their banners, they weren't beastmen.
"A black field with a red flower… looks like the Mandrake family has arrived," Hel said calmly.
Sebastian narrowed his glowing eyes. Since becoming a dracolich, his vision had improved dramatically — enough that he could see the emblem clearly even from this distance.
"The Mandrake family? Are they trying to retake their lost lands now that the small beastmen have marched past the duchy?
But what's the point? Once the beastmen come back—"
Hel suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
She realized something troubling.
If her and Sebastian's suspicions were correct — that the small beastmen were intentionally spreading plague among human lands — then why would they return at all?
Of course, that was a secret Hel and Sebastian had only uncovered through their insect spies. Those infected small beastmen were deliberately hidden away — impossible to detect from a distance like this.
Clearly, the beastmen didn't want their true intentions exposed too early.
So then, how could the Mandrake forces possibly be so confident that the small beastmen wouldn't come back?
Could it be that the Empire had sent Saint-tier powerhouses to intervene?
Or… perhaps they never actually intended to reclaim the lost territory — perhaps this cavalry detachment was only sent to confirm whether she was still alive.
Hel found the latter far more likely.
But whatever the truth was, she'd find out soon enough.
Before long, Hel and Sebastian made their way to the city gate.
A rider from the approaching force soon arrived to deliver a message — or rather, an order.
It was a command from the Grand Duke of Mandrake himself.
The decree stated clearly: Hel was to assist the Grand Duke's eldest son in defending Linhaven.
"Defend Linhaven?"
Hel frowned as she looked at the document, which one of her guards had fished up from below with a small bamboo basket.
"So they really do intend to reclaim their lost lands?"
"Either the Empire has gathered overwhelming forces for a counterattack," Sebastian mused, "or they've sent Saint-tier champions. Otherwise, the Grand Duke would never risk an offensive at a time like this."
He examined the document carefully.
"Judging by this, it seems the Duke's forces may have already retaken Riverkeep and Linhaven. If they can hold both fortresses, even tens of thousands of beastmen could be held back with ease."
"Then it's as you said," Hel replied.
She took the parchment from Sebastian and, without hesitation, tossed it off the battlements.
"If there really are powerful champions who can destroy the small beastmen before the plague spreads, that's good news for us.
But we won't bet our lives on them. When it's time to run, we run."
"…Understood, my lady," Sebastian said quietly, watching the parchment flutter down through the air.
Below, the messenger knight stared in disbelief as the paper drifted toward him — before it smacked directly into his face.
He tore it off, fuming, and shouted up toward the wall:
"Count of Heim! Are you refusing the Duke's command!?"
"Refusing?" Hel snorted, leaning over the parapet. With her two small hands gripping the stone edge, she raised her voice so the knight below could hear.
"According to Imperial law, one only reaches adulthood at fourteen.
A minor lord is not required to fulfill any military obligations until then.
And unfortunately for you, I'm still more than a year away from turning fourteen — so I am within my rights to refuse.
What's wrong? Does the Grand Duke of Mandrake intend to defy Imperial law?
Or perhaps he thinks that being this far from the Neth Empire's capital means he no longer has to respect the authority of our glorious Emperor?"