WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: Abood

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Friedrich's Battlefield

Chapter 7: Battle Preparation (1)

The bandits would likely arrive by tomorrow morning, or even tonight if they moved quickly. With so little time left, there was only so much they could prepare.

Most of the adult men remaining in Volga had never even hunted wild animals, let alone fought bandits, so a complex strategy with coordinated maneuvers was out of the question.

Given the circumstances, Friedrich came up with a simple plan.

The city walls were low, making a siege unviable. An open battle outside the city was just as hopeless. So instead, he decided to lure the enemy inside the city, then trap and destroy them from within. He based this idea on the military histories and war stories he had read over the years.

Their fighting power was weak, and their weapons were few. There was no time for training. The only real advantage they had was the element of surprise. The bandits would never expect ordinary townspeople to resist in such a way.

Friedrich first divided the townspeople into two main groups. One would rest and eat while the other prepared for battle, rotating in shifts.

Then he split those groups further and gave them simple instructions.

Thanks to everyone’s willingness to follow his lead, the town was now deep in preparations, working through the night to ready themselves for the coming fight.

“Sir Friedrich, is this way of blocking the alley okay?”

The compromise between Friedrich’s dislike for formal titles and everyone else’s insistence on respect settled on this form of address. Friedrich headed over.

“No problem. Keep blocking the other alleys like this.”

“Leave it to me, Sir Friedrich! I’ll get right to it!”

The middle-aged man who had called Friedrich nodded energetically and ran off.

“Where should we store these weapons, Sir Friedrich?”

The next person to call out to Friedrich was a middle-aged woman helping the men make weapons.

“Let’s move these to the second floors and rooftops of the buildings facing the street beyond here. For now, put four in each spot.”

“Got it. I’ll tell everyone.”

The middle-aged woman smiled brightly and returned to the corner of the square where the weapons were being made.

“...Um—”

Friedrich turned when someone called him again. There stood Bruno and two of his followers.

“F-Friedrich, no, Sir Friedrich. I mean, uh, sorry for what we did before—no, I mean, I’m sorry, really...”

Bruno bowed his head repeatedly with a pathetic smile that was hard to tell if it was apology or trying to suck up. Friedrich spoke without expression.

“There’s no time now. We’ll talk after this fight is over.”

“Y-yes...”

Bruno lowered his head, his face darkening at the cold response.

Thinking about how Bruno… the same guy who’d been rough and wild since childhood, was now showing such a weak, almost vulnerable side made Friedrich smile quietly.

“You’re big and strong. I’m counting on you to do well. If you prove yourself, I might introduce you to my father and help you become a knight.”

“Y-yes! I’ll do my best!”

Bruno’s face visibly brightened at the kinder words.

Of course, Friedrich knew there was no way a nod from an illegitimate noble would get Bruno knighted. And honestly, someone who didn’t have the guts to volunteer for the subjugation squad wasn’t fit to be a knight. Wasn’t he just being stupid?

Unaware of Friedrich’s inner thoughts, Bruno walked away.

“...Everyone really believes you're the noble’s son. That’s a relief.”

At a distance so close her lips almost brushed his ear, Yurika whispered.

Friedrich turned to her and smiled with a hint of awkwardness.

“When I stood on the platform in the square, I didn’t plan for things to get this serious.”

“But if things keep going like this, don’t you think we might actually beat the bandits? Everyone’s fired up like crazy.”

Yurika’s cheerful voice swept across the square as she glanced at everyone preparing for battle.

She was right, Volga’s residents were full of morale. They truly believed they could win this fight, that they had at least a fighting chance.

And all of it was because they believed in Friedrich’s words.

“......”

What would happen if everyone found out it was all a lie right now? The thought sent a chill down Friedrich’s spine.

Of course, Friedrich wasn’t smart because he was a noble’s son. Just like Yurika’s extraordinary strength, it was simply a matter of individual talent. He just happened to be good at using his mind.

The times he visited the domain capital were simply to enjoy the feeling of the city.

He didn’t have the courage to leave Volga and move to a place where he had no trust or work connections, but he couldn’t accept the fate of growing old in a dull job, trapped in a small rural city. So he spent time in the domain capital, which was at least more urban than Volga, and took comfort in knowing the pleasures of the city, telling himself he was different from the people of Volga who looked down on him.

I have to admit, it was a terribly bitter and spiteful hobby of mine.

The hero Matthias Hosenfeld, I’ve never met him. I don’t even know what he looks like. I just blurted out his name on the spot because among the famous nobles, he seemed the strongest and most convincing. I have no idea who my real parent is. All I’ve heard is that I was found abandoned on the road and brought to this church in Volga by kind merchants who discovered me.

That’s what I am. A petty, twisted person with a high, useless pride and a bit of cleverness. And today, I added “big liar” to that list. The truth is, I’m in no position to look down on the hardworking people who live and work diligently in this city every day.

If I survive this battle, I’ll have to confess that everything I said was a lie. I wonder what faces they’ll make. Will they be angry? Will they be disappointed?

I’ll try not to think about it now. For the time being, Friedrich looked away from those thoughts and focused on what lay ahead.

Footnotes:

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried