Lazy but the strongest in the dimension

010 Deployment (1)

Despite the insults, the saint’s body did not waver.

“It is not my fate.”

“That humility is something we humans should learn, I think.”

“I am a lazy deity who has taken sloth as my fate. A great journey to eradicate evil? That’s something a passing dog would laugh at.”

“…”

The saint did not speak.

Naturally, she wore an expression of disbelief.

She seemed to think that I had a fate to eradicate evil, but that was a misunderstanding. However, from her perspective, it wasn’t so.

“Though I may be overstepping, I know,” she said.

“Know what?”

“That you are acting this way to disguise yourself from the demons. It’s something that only a deity could do, not an ordinary human.”

The misunderstanding deepened.

For some reason, I felt like the more I talked with the saint, the worse it would get. She hears what I say but interprets it strangely. Of course, communication wouldn’t be easy.

“Alright, tell Caldona to meet with me sometime,” I said.

“Yes! I will tell her that when the next prophecy comes.”

Creeeak.

I stood up from my seat.

Since I couldn’t communicate with the saint, I figured I should focus on recovering from the shame of my laziness by drinking today.

The deployment was already three days delayed.

I had spent the past three days just sleeping.

It wasn’t that the deployment couldn’t be postponed; it was more that I had no desire to move. The thought of throwing myself into war didn’t even cross my mind.

It seemed like I would play a major role in this war as well, but I knew all too well the kind of troublesome situations that would unfold if that happened.

Thinking about the time spent saving the Earth was horrifying.

The fatigue accumulated in my soul felt like it would require about 50 years of rest. I hadn’t even completed 3 years of rest yet, so moving was difficult.

“Young master! Please permit us to deploy!”

“Here it comes again.”

Why not deploy already? How long are you going to just lie in bed?

“I told you, I’m fatigued.”

I pulled the blanket over myself.

I didn’t want to leave the warm room even for a single step.

However, the loud cries of the knights pierced through the door, and with the holy energy mixed in, it was nothing short of noise pollution.

Bang!

Now Andrew had barged in. Of course, he had been pestering me to deploy for the past three days.

“Young master! Will you deploy today?”

“I’ll try to make a decision.”

“How many days does it take to make a decision!? Aren’t your back and waist hurting? A normal person wouldn’t be able to sleep like that for so long.”

“Why don’t you go play outside if you’re going to nag?”

“If you don’t deploy today, His Majesty’s wrath will fall upon you!”

“Heh, let it come. Even the Emperor can’t punish me once I’ve received a prophecy. And it’s not like I’m saying I won’t go.”

“You’re asking for trouble!”

“I’m going back to sleep.”

In the end, I stuffed cotton in my ears.

Even though I did this, I could still hear the knights’ voices, but it was a bit quieter than before. I decided to get some more rest.

The Lord’s Castle – Great Battle

The delay of three days for the deployment was putting pressure on Count Linus just as much as anyone else.

His son had locked himself in his room and refused to move. At this rate, it was clear that the Emperor’s wrath would soon fall on the territory.

“Why hasn’t he moved yet!?”

“He says he’s resting.”

“Resting? He’s been sleeping for three days, and he’s still resting?”

“Perhaps it’s the will of the Goddess.”

“……”

Count Linus furrowed his brow at the words of Amos, the deputy priest.

It was true that his son had received a prophecy and that he had undergone a transformation to become a knight. These could all be considered blessings from the Goddess, but he couldn’t understand how sleeping for three days could be the will of a god.

“Amos, is that truly what you believe? What kind of divine will is there in laziness?”

“It’s to deceive the demons.”

“Even if it’s to deceive demons, defying the Emperor’s command will surely have serious consequences…”

At the mention of deceiving demons, Count Linus’s voice became somewhat quieter, but he still couldn’t fully comprehend Valen’s actions.

What was keeping him from fully understanding was the face of the saint. Being tied to the church meant that even the Emperor’s power was somewhat limited. Still, there was a limit to how much he could tolerate.

As he watched the situation unfold, Baron Clovian, who had been observing quietly, stepped forward.

He was a talented civil servant and had been appointed as a military officer for this campaign.

“My Lord, may I speak?”

“What is it?”

“Not long ago, the young master ordered 3 million gold to be used to reinforce the expedition’s weapons and armor.”

“What!?”

A murmur spread throughout the room.

Valen had barely left the house until now, so there had been no reason for him to spend money. While it was known that he had some money, 3 million gold was a hefty amount. Where had he gotten that kind of money?

“The blacksmiths are busy at work. The reinforcements to the weapons should be completed either today or tomorrow.”

“Really? Where did the money come from?”

“I’m not sure, but…”

“Could it be the Goddess’s miracle?”

At last, the mystery was solved.

Now t, here was something to report to the Emperor.

Given the prophecy, it was likely that the Count’s army would take the lead, risking their lives alongside the Holy Knights. It would make sense to report that the equipment was being reinforced.

The Emperor would surely accept this reasoning.

Count Linus had a serious expression for a moment, then burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! So that’s what’s been going on. He’s been training with the Holy Relic in his room. That guy, after receiving the prophecy and the fate of a hero, it seems even his character has changed.”

“That’s not it. He always had a good character, but he just pretended otherwise. Every one of his actions has a reason behind it.”

Clovian was convinced of this.

The vassals in the territory nodded in agreement.

In the Empire, it was rare to find someone who wasn’t religious, so interpreting this strange logic and applying it wasn’t difficult for them.

The deployment was delayed by a full week.

During this time, I had tried to make a decision several times.

Since I had already decided to accumulate all the karma of my fate in this life, I had to move, but I was simply too tired to do so.

Fatigue was a problem, but deciding to embark on such a troublesome journey was no easy task either.

And today, I finally made up my mind.

Are we finally going!?

“It can’t be helped.”

Wow, you’re lazy! How are you even resting if you’re so bothered?

“Shut up. If you keep chattering, my resolve will break.”

…….

Finally, I stepped out into the yard.

There, the knights were kneeling on one knee as if staging a protest.

The commander’s eyes lit up.

“The young master has finally come out!”

“Wow!”

I sluggishly stood in front of the knights.

I yawned and called for Military Officer Clovian.

“Clovian.”

“Y-yes, Commander!”

“Is everything ready?”

“Of course! The morale of the soldiers is very high! Although we don’t have new equipment, everything has been reinforced and polished to look like new. We also have plenty of supplies, and everyone is touched by the special meals we’ve prepared.”

“Really?”

I scratched my head.

The pressure had been building on me mentally as the deployment day approached, so I had called for the soldiers. I also remembered giving 3 million gold and telling them to use it as they saw fit.

Reinforcing the equipment for the army was something that had to be done eventually, but more than that, I just wanted to rest, so I threw some money at them. If they were touched by that, it wasn’t a bad thing.

“Then, let’s rest for one more day…”

“That’s not possible! This is the final deadline, Commander! If we delay any further, we might incur the Emperor’s wrath!”

“Ugh, it can’t be helped. Let’s deploy.”

“Wow! The young master has finally allowed the deployment!”

“Wooo!”

“Prepare for deployment quickly before the young master changes his mind!”

“How long will it take?”

“Fifteen minutes!”

“That’s fast?”

“I ordered emergency deployment readiness since yesterday. And for the past few days, we’ve been training to deploy quickly.”

I got chills at Malik’s words. Had he already figured me out completely?

The commander stepped closer and spoke.

“I know that you’re moving strategically to deceive the demons. So don’t worry.”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

“Truly, as the appointed hero, you remain steadfast in any situation.”

Malik looked at me with admiration.

‘Excessive delusion is a kind of mental illness, right?’

I waved my hand dismissively.

It felt like today was the day for deployment.

Before the Linus Plains, 3,000 soldiers stood in formation.

At the front, the knights were waiting.

For this day, I had prepared the best carriage. To ensure I could sleep comfortably during the march, I had craftsmen recruited to modify my father’s carriage.

They created springs that didn’t even exist in this world,d attached shock absorbers to the wheels, and replaced the entire floor inside the carriage with the finest seats.

The carriage also had a wine cellar. It was packed with dry snacks and the finest wines, and it was fully equipped with soft bedding.

The army’s formation was managed by Commander Malik.

Supreme Commander: Valen

Vice Commander: Commander Malik
Advisor: Saint Sylvia
Military Officer: Baron Clovian
First Thousand Leader: Deputy Commander of the Knights, Hermin
Second Thousand Leader: 1st Division Commander of the Knights, Cain
Third Thousand Leader: 2nd Division Commander of the Knights, Marso

The soldiers were all infantry, but they all carried crossbows. Additionally, they had folding spears strapped to their backs, allowing them to serve as archers or spearmen when needed despite being infantry.

Although there were no specialized cavalry or shield-bearers, they wore round shields on their backs alongside their spears, providing them with a reasonable degree of defense. Since everyone knew how to ride, they could easily transform into cavalry if the need arose.

The tedious deployment ceremony continued, and when the war spirit began to take over my body, the deployment finally began.

I had been dozing off, but I woke up when the cheers of the territory’s people erupted.

“Waaah! Long live the Goddess’s army!”

The cheers were so loud it felt like my eardrums would burst.

My father placed his thick hand on my shoulder.

“Go out and accomplish great things!”

“Well, if I can…”

“Boy, deceiving demons is all well and good, but shouldn’t you at least say something like ‘I’ll be back safely’ in times like this?”

“Well, I’m not sure if I can achieve great things. But if I can, I do plan to erase the forces of evil.”

“Good. That’s the spirit you need for war!”

I climbed into the carriage.

“Ugh, I thought I was going to die from sleepiness.”

Finally, the march began.