Chapter 140.2. Northern Stronghold
"Ah, you scoundrel. You must know your attacks won't work against us!"
"Poison can be troublesome, Shingen-sama."
Within the smoke, the scales of Poison Butterflies got mixed in, causing everyone to cough violently in agony. Though the poison didn't last long, even elite soldiers got slowed by the intense pain.
"Haha! Soldiers tread the path of demons. I, Sanada Masayuki, am not a general who will easily yield! Even with armored vehicles, don't think you can win!"
An old man who identified himself as Sanada Masayuki shouted proudly from the shadows of the ruined building. He was a cunning and petite elderly man.
"You were saying that if we submit to the control of the Tenjinbara Corporation, we could live a good life!"
"I said that we'll talk about it after defeating our army! Indeed, you seem to have everything: equipment, armored vehicles, and skilled soldiers. You must be a large community! However, our army is also formidable! Kanrakanra."
"Don't just say Kanrakanra with your mouth!"
That damn old man cunningly set traps to fend off our attacks. Using smoke bombs mixed with poison, luring demons with wooden dolls, and launching attacks with archers aiming for openings. Not only that, even while hiding in the ruins, he sets traps like pitfalls and falling rocks.
Many soldiers were injured, and we couldn't make any headway. Using Shadow Tiger would make it easy, but it's forbidden, and Yukihana, the girl, just yawned and watched from above. She doesn't seem interested in helping.
"What a nuisance old man!"
"It goes both ways! Kakakaka!"
The 2 old men glare at each other, but amidst the coughing, the subordinates exterminate the monsters and destroy the wooden dolls, and Masayuki and his men leave.
As the enemy departs, Shingen and his troops return to the ruined building they were using as a rear base. I set my tents and joined about 30 soldiers who were guarding the rear, sitting down exhaustedly on the floor.
"Did we go too easy on them? What do you think?"
"Hmm... Killing them would be easy, but as that gentleman said, perhaps we should minimize casualties to put them under our control."
Baba said with a troubled expression. It's frustrating to not be able to kill that damn old man despite wanting to dominate. He seems to be quite a clever boss.
The Tenjinbara Corporation, lacking in manpower, has been gathering capable individuals from the ruined city. The era of simply killing and conquering is over.
"It's troublesome, just as Sanada Masayuki's name suggests. He knows I'm holding back!"
Shingen pounded the concrete floor with my hand, frowning. We have armored vehicles. We should know we could breach their walls and cause chaos. It was a mistake to deflect their arrows with ease. They don't hesitate to attack us with arrows.
Yet, despite understanding this, we don't stop resisting. They are gauging our strength, trying to demonstrate their own.
"They're trying to sell us high... it's too much trouble!"
"Let's just storm them already. It's foolish to cause casualties to recruit people."
Hmm, Shingen hesitates at Baba's words. They recently acquired the Tsukuba Line Fortress, and the manpower shortage is critical.
But staying as we are isn't good either. We need to decide before the casualties escalate. While pondering what to do, one of the subordinates rushes over with a commotion.
"Huh? What is it?"
"Ah! Shingen-sama, a military-looking guy has come for reinforcements."
Reinforcements? As everyone tilts their heads in confusion, a middle-aged man in combat gear enters the ruined building.
Smiling at Shingen, the man approaches with a friendly demeanor, yet he is unfamiliar to everyone.
"Hello. My name is Date Masamune. I got told to come here to provide support. Oh, hand this over."
Masamune hands over an envelope, which Shingen receives and opens.
"Hmm? From him, you say. Do you know what's inside?"
After reading the contents, Shingen's face becomes suspicious. What's this? When he turns to Masamune to ask, he shakes his head in denial.
"No, what does it say?"
"Well... since it's from him, it must be reliable. Alright, I'll have you come up with a solution. And you don't need to be so formal."
The letter flutters lightly in the wind.
[That man is clever.]
That's all it said in the letter. If Sakimori vouched for him, he must be clever indeed. And he did. He must be clever in a cunning way.
With a nod, Shingen talks to Masamune, who changes his face to a smirk with interest.
"Got it. Let's come up with a plan. It's simple. We can counter cunning enemies with surprisingly simple strategies."
Shingen agrees with confidence in the military man's laughter.
It's evident from his demeanor that he's of the same breed as Sakimori. And it seems we've gained a reliable companion.
And so, what Masamune prepared was.
Cardboard boxes.
Using armored vehicles, people place about 5 cardboard boxes in front of the enemy's base door and then leave.
Of course, the enemy suspects it's a trap but still retrieves them cautiously. Once confirmed, they take them back.
After repeating this several times.
A white flag gets raised at the base. Despite their strong resistance.
Sanada Masayuki, with a wry smile, opens the base door and waits.
"What a sneaky bunch! Though I can't acknowledge this kind of battle. There's no help for it. Strategy is the path of the demon. But it's also the way of survival. People are soldiers."
Easily entering the base, Masayuki's people inside were hopeful, while the soldiers outside looked resigned.
"Isn't turning meat into boxed goods despicable?"
What Masamune left behind was an assortment of smoked meats. They were ordinary food, but...
"Wrote a note asking to betray Masayuki as a gift, isn't that sneaky? Hey, you!"
They glare, but it wasn't Shingen's doing. It was the man next to him.
"In a base full of bugs, you can't even eat meat, right?"
Masamune shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly.
"Yeah, you beasts! If this continues, the air will get worse!"
Meat. It's not something available at the Core Store. And if these were provided, among those who couldn't eat meat, there might be some whose hearts would waver. It was unbearable for their community to become like that. It was a losing battle from the start. And they quickly surrendered before the resistance became futile.
"It's simple. The outcome of the battle got decided from the beginning."
"I see... then let's just put the northern region under our control entirely."
It seems a reliable strategist has joined them. With a wry smile, Shingen makes a new proposal. Let's expand the new market as it is.
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