"What is the meaning of this? Speak plainly."
"Y-Yes, My Lord! To tell you the truth..."
Grom began his explanation, appearing thoroughly cowed.
He reported that the Holy Staff Kingdom and the Technomagic Kingdom were currently clashing near their shared border. The scale was strictly limited and minor—little more than a border skirmish for now.
The Technomagic Kingdom lay far to the southeast of the Demon King’s Domain. Positioned on the opposite side of the Holy Staff Kingdom, the two nations were locked in conflict at their frontier. Consequently, there was no immediate danger of the Demon King’s Domain being caught in the crossfire.
The spark for this conflict was apparently a series of demands the Holy Staff Kingdom had levied against their neighbor. They had demanded technical expertise and the transfer of weapons; when those demands were ignored, they retaliated by sending a disguised strike force to the border.
Publicly, they were maintaining the facade of a simple bandit group.
(Their methods are far too heavy-handed. Are they that desperate after losing the Saint?)
As I listened to the report on the Holy Staff Kingdom’s behavior, I felt a deep sense of exasperation. I could understand the need to maintain appearances through aggression, but even so, this was excessive. Honestly, it was hard to believe.
The Technomagic Kingdom’s refusal was perfectly natural. I remembered the Holy Staff Kingdom as a far more rational nation back when I was human. Their leadership must have changed over the last decade, sparking this transformation. Their current level of selfishness was beyond my expectations.
Having processed the situation, I stood and issued orders to my two executives.
"Grom, you will accompany me for reconnaissance. Luciana, you are to remain here. Compile whatever information you can find regarding these two nations."
"Understood, My Lord!"
"Yes, yes~ safe travels!"
Luciana waved us off airily as Grom and I teleported away.
We arrived in the heart of a forest and immediately vanished into the thickets. Ahead of us loomed a stone fortress. My perception magic picked up the frantic movement of many soldiers within. They were the forces of the Technomagic Army.
Meanwhile, a different group was laying siege to the fort. These humans wore filthy cloaks and hid their faces behind cloth. There were roughly a hundred and fifty of them—the Holy Staff Army, almost certainly.
They were masquerading as bandits, no doubt to maintain the pretense that their kingdom wasn’t officially involved. It was a clumsy, forceful tactic. Their claim likely wouldn’t fool a soul, but the Holy Staff Kingdom seemed prepared to insist upon it regardless.
The soldiers within the fort were mounting a fierce defense. Clad in matching sets of full-plate armor, they crouched behind stationary shields and rained down crossbow fire. Huge bows were fixed to the fort’s battlements—ballistas, I presumed. They swiveled up, down, left, and right, peppering the "bandits" with bolts.
The Holy Staff Army countered by utilizing defense magic to weather the storm while returning fire with bows and spells. However, the relentless barrage kept them from closing the distance, forcing most to hunker down behind the trees.
We watched the skirmish from afar. Cloaked in concealment magic, we went unnoticed. We could focus entirely on observing as neutral third parties.
(Ballistas. How rare.)
The ballistas used by the Technomagic Kingdom were magic weapons capable of launching various types of ammunition. While they lacked the portability and convenience of a standard crossbow, their destructive power was in a class of its own. Both weapons were inventions of the Technomagic Kingdom, and they were rarely seen in other lands.
Looking back at the wars of the past, that trend hadn't changed much in ten years. Crossbows themselves had never gained much traction in other nations. While they offered more power than a traditional bow, their internal mechanisms were complex and prone to frequent failure. Their range left much to be desired as well.
The flood of low-quality imitations that had once hit the market probably didn't help matters. After failing consistently on numerous battlefields, the crossbow’s reputation had soured. Since they weren't cheap to produce, the prevailing military philosophy was that long-range combat was better left to bows and magic. This sentiment was even more pronounced regarding the ballista, which had failed to see any widespread adoption.
Yet, the Technomagic Kingdom chose to lean into its technical expertise. They didn't produce legendary mages or peerless warriors; instead, they excelled at raising the baseline of their entire military's strength. Folding crossbows and attribute-infused ballistas were prime examples of this philosophy. Rather than individual training, they focused entirely on the efficacy of the weapons being fielded. One could say they viewed the value of magic through an entirely different lens.
The battle was currently a stalemate. The Holy Staff Army was hesitant to advance against the relentless hail of bolts. To stick one's head out was to invite immediate death, as evidenced by the corpses littering the field.
On the other side, the Technomagic Army was content to keep firing without sallying forth. They stayed within the fort, utilizing its sturdy defenses to minimize their own casualties. It seemed they were simply waiting for the Holy Staff Army to lose heart and retreat.
"Do you intend to intervene in this battle, My Lord?"
"No. We’re only here to watch."
This was a perfect opportunity to gauge the Technomagic Kingdom’s capabilities. There was a chance they might reveal a new weapon. Regardless of who won, we stood to lose nothing.
"Grom, let me know if anything catches your eye."
"Understood, My Lord!"
As we watched, the fort finally made a move.
The gates ground open with a heavy rumble. I immediately sensed a massive surge of magic power from within—a concentration and volume far beyond the reach of any human mage.
Dozens of stout, humanoid metal figures marched out from the gateway. They were golems—magical puppets granted a semblance of life within inanimate matter. By threading magic power through them like a nervous system, they could be controlled like living creatures.
A caster within the fort must have created them. Golems could be made from many materials, and while it was a specialized field, they were highly versatile. However, the golems emerging from this fort were different from any I had seen before.
Even from a distance, their craftsmanship was incredibly precise. It looked as though they had been meticulously assembled part by part. Usually, golems were cruder things, often cobbled together on the fly. These were clearly refined as dedicated weapons of war.
"Oho, those are magnificent golems, indeed!"
"Quite."
As we spoke, the golems began their advance toward the waiting Holy Staff Army. The Technomagic Army clearly intended to outsource their frontline combat to these unmanned weapons—a rational plan to avoid human casualties.
(But can they really handle this with golems alone?)
I watched the unfolding strategy with skepticism. It was common knowledge that golems were sluggish and predictable. Normally, they were used as durable meat shields to soak up damage while human infantry followed behind to do the actual fighting. Sending golems in alone rarely posed a significant threat; one only had to avoid their heavy-handed physical strikes.
Furthermore, the golems from the fort weren't even carrying weapons. Without them, they could do little more than throw punches. I suspected the Holy Staff Army could easily dismantle them with magic from a safe distance.
Sure enough, the Holy Staff Army began chanting from the cover of the trees. They intended to obliterate the golems in a single volley before they could close the gap.
The chants were soon complete. Leaping from the shadows, the Holy Staff mages unleashed their spells simultaneously. But as the magic converged on the golems, it struck a series of translucent barriers and dissipated into mist.
Grom’s jaw dropped at the sight.
"T-That was..."
"Defense magic."
There were no hidden casters nearby. The golems had cast the spells themselves. Judging by the flow of mana, the magic formulas were integrated directly into their bodies.
(I’ve never heard of such a thing. Did the Technomagic Kingdom develop this tech on their own?)
Having weathered the assault, the golems raised their arms in unison toward the Holy Staff Army.
In the next instant, a series of sharp cracks echoed through the air as bullets erupted from their fingertips.