"Swen. As you instructed, I've built a simple altar that you can step onto..."
"Very good."
After hearing Irene's words, I checked the altar she had built near the fortress wall.
It had small steps on both sides, and if I climbed up to the center, it would be quite visible even from outside the fortress. Still, I thought I should ask just to be sure.
"Excuse me, Lady Irene."
"What is it?"
She approached me closely.
She came so close that I could feel her body slightly brushing against mine.
Moreover, she wasn't wearing her heavy chest armor at the moment to make carrying bricks easier.
Naturally, her impossibly large chest pressed slightly against my arm.
Somehow, the usual distance between us seemed to have changed subtly.
Well, if she was showing me trust, that couldn't be a bad thing.
"For example, that hill over there. When soldiers coming down from there look at me... will they be able to see me clearly?"
"It's a gentle slope... I think they should be able to see you."
"Really? That's good then."
"...But I'm curious why you asked that."
Yes.
I should probably explain to Irene...
Of course, I couldn't tell her everything honestly.
But what's important was that she 'recognized' what I was doing.
"Lady Irene. Can you promise not to be surprised by whatever I might say?"
After hearing my words, Irene answered without a moment's hesitation.
"I promise. Swen, I won't be surprised by anything you say."
"..."
I slowly closed my eyes.
This was it.
From this point on, I needed to take action.
Yes.
First, I needed to deceive myself.
From now on, I would perform a miracle by calling down 'lightning,' one of nature's disasters.
However, it couldn't be implemented in the form of magic. If I claimed to use magic, people would start talking about wizards and demand proof.
Obviously, I didn't have the ability to cause natural disasters, so proof would be impossible.
Of course, magic does exist in this world.
It's just that wizards were entities that only appeared very late in the game.
It wouldn't be good to be prematurely labeled as the continent's first wizard when not a single wizard had emerged yet.
My current lord, Lynn Brands, had a personality that disliked talents she couldn't contain within her vessel.
If I became a wizard, she might cause trouble for me.
Therefore, this had to be presented as a result I achieved through means other than magic.
So—with an expression as if I had realized something,
As if receiving divine revelation, I spoke with a slightly trembling voice:
"Last night, I looked at the sky. Seven stars were shining particularly brightly."
"Seven stars...?"
"Yes. And three of those stars... shone brightly before my eyes and suddenly disappeared."
"...?"
Hearing my words, Irene tilted her head in confusion.
She couldn't help it.
She probably had no idea what I was talking about.
Of course, I had no idea what I was saying either.
I was just stringing together plausible-sounding sentences at random.
How could someone else understand words that even I didn't understand?
But.
That was fine.
All this nonsense I was spouting would be reevaluated after the miracle occurred.
"The energy of the sky is unusual. This flow... if I can interpret it favorably, I think I might be able to achieve a miracle."
"A miracle...? What kind of miracle specifically?"
"A miracle that can eliminate Serphina's army in one stroke."
"!!!"
Surprised by my words, Irene asked:
"Can... you explain in more detail?"
I wanted to tell a big lie like 'I'm going to make lightning strike,' but...
The weather was still clear.
In a situation where I only vaguely predicted that a natural disaster would occur, but didn't know what kind, it would be problematic to reveal my hand.
"In a few more days... I think I'll be able to read the flow of the sky clearly. That's why I had to ask you to build an altar. I need to communicate with the sky."
"Is... that so?"
Irene tilted her head to the other side, clearly not understanding.
She looks cute like a small animal.
But then she closed her eyes, slowly nodded, and said:
"...I understand, Swen. I don't know what you're talking about... but I don't think you would talk nonsense."
While Irene's words were appreciated, I felt guilty for deceiving her.
Still, the results would speak for themselves.
"Thank you for believing in me. From today, I plan to communicate with the sky here for a few days. If it's alright with you, could you bring me some simple food to eat during that time?"
"That's not a difficult request."
Good.
Now I just need to sit here for a few days, looking like I'm doing something.
Well, let's try communicating with the sky.
I looked up at the sky.
Then, as if in a trance, I stared blankly at the sky.
Amusingly, this time was becoming a great healing moment for me.
I briefly wondered what I was doing, but...
After checking my predictions and the rules of this game world that I knew, this was the answer.
'It's okay. It will go according to my plan. That was the only possibility.'
And so.
On the altar, I sometimes made gestures that looked meaningful, or quietly recited lyrics from pop songs I had heard in my previous world.
And this scene was being firmly imprinted in the eyes of the soldiers in the fortress, including Irene who brought me food.
*
A soldier ran up to Irene as she was attending to matters inside the fortress.
"Excuse me, Lady Irene. I have something to ask."
"Speak."
"Um... Sir Swen is asking for two drums to be prepared..."
"Drums?"
"Yes, instruments that make sound when beaten."
"I know what drums are... but he asked for them to be brought?"
"Yes. He said they don't have to be finished products, just something similar, but I'm not sure where to get them..."
Irene fell into thought for a moment.
'If we carve wood and cover it with cowhide meant for food... we could make something similar.'
"Um... Lady Irene."
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Is this right? I mean... how should I put this..."
The soldier was speaking in an extremely cautious tone.
As if he felt very apologetic for bringing up such a topic.
"I don't understand at all why Sir Swen is asking for these things... Serphina's army is about to invade this fortress soon, isn't it? We barely have enough time to check defensive facilities and make additional arrows, but he's... dancing and singing in strange languages on that weird altar... I, in my humble position, cannot understand what Sir Swen is trying to do."
Though he was being very careful with his word choice, the conclusion was clear.
He couldn't understand Swen's behavior.
He was just a soldier and Swen was a commander, so he would follow orders, but he was appealing to Irene, who was in a higher position than Swen, to see if this was really okay.
And Irene could quickly understand what the soldier really wanted to say.
Is he asking me to explain this incomprehensible behavior?
"I understand your concern. I too haven't figured out exactly what he's trying to do."
"Then—"
"However."
Irene slowly closed her eyes, then nodded, opened her eyes, and looked directly into the soldier's eyes as she spoke:
"I guarantee this. Swen is not a man who would engage in useless actions. Can you follow my orders here, as Irene Juliet?"
"Your orders... you say."
Yes.
Honestly, the soldier didn't know much about this man called Swen.
But if Irene, the general, was taking responsibility for all this, the soldier could follow.
Who was she?
Among all the commanders of the Brands army, she was the one who cared most for mere soldiers like himself.
"...I understand."
"Good. While we're at it, I'd like to make a request."
"Anything, General Irene."
"I'd like you to prepare wood and cowhide."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Soldiers had eyes too.
They were witnessing all of Swen's strange behavior.
Not just the soldier who asked, but quite a few soldiers approached Irene with similar questions, but she managed to quell all complaints at her level.
If Irene, who was trusted by the soldiers, hadn't stepped in to mediate, Swen, a new commander without the soldiers' trust, wouldn't have been able to even set up the altar properly, let alone do anything else.
'Swen. I believe in you. Now... I won't hesitate anymore.'
In this way, she was firmly protecting the man she had newly decided to protect.
* * *
Indeed.
After a few days, as if on cue, the sky began to grow overcast.
Fortunately, it didn't immediately affect visibility.
'As expected!'
It seemed that lightning, the most likely natural disaster after landslides, would strike Serphina's army.
Since I had anticipated lightning and talked to Irene about the sky, I felt relieved inside.
So, today too, I was repeating actions that looked meaningful but were actually meaningless—mumbling nonsensically, selecting two soldiers to beat drums freely, bringing paper to place certain patterns on the altar floor and weighing them down with stones so they wouldn't blow away in the wind.
"You're working hard today too, Swen."
"Lady Irene."
She brought my daily provisions again today.
It wasn't particularly luxurious food, but it was just the right amount to satisfy my hunger.
"Thank you so much every time."
"Not at all. You're the one working hard. So, how is your communication with the sky progressing?"
"Smoothly. Before Serphina's army arrives... I think I might be able to twist the flow somehow."
"I see."
And.
While I was doing all this nonsense, Irene never questioned me once and just brought me meals while taking care of various parts of the fortress that I couldn't attend to.
Gathering soldiers for training, persuading soldiers who questioned my actions, or handling them according to regulations.
While also caring for the wounded, she must have been much busier than me who was just doing this nonsense.
"I'd like to brew tea, but... unfortunately, there are no tea leaves in this fortress."
"Brew it for me when we return home."
Hearing my words, Irene smiled faintly again.
Recently, she had been smiling much more often.
"I will. We'll definitely be able to return together."
Seeing her smile made me genuinely want to create a miracle.
Of course, I was planning to do so anyway... but having a place to return to makes a person feel fulfilled.
'It will work out.'
So I kept muttering to myself again and again that it would work out, as if brainwashing myself.
*
The enemies revealed themselves just as the sky was growing overcast, looking like it would pour rain at any moment.
"The enemy is coming!"
"Serphina's army is in sight!"
Even without the soldiers shouting, it was easy to confirm.
"Swen! I heard the soldiers' voices, could it be...!"
Irene, who had rushed over after hearing the news, stood beside me and looked toward where the enemy was coming from.
"...They're here."
Serphina's army was approaching.
The number of soldiers looked overwhelming at a glance, and there were an incredibly large number of siege weapons.
It seemed excessive to bring that many siege weapons just to attack one fortress.
Normally, the fortress walls would have collapsed in less than a day. The defensive capabilities of fortress walls were dimensionally inferior to those of castle walls.
The moment the soldiers got close to the walls and the catapults were within range to hurl rocks would essentially be the last moment for this fortress.
Then.
If my prediction was correct. And if my guess was right.
'Now.'
This is it.
At this distance, lightning should strike Serphina's army.
From that moment on, everything would be crucial.
I slowly rose from the altar.
"Swen...?"
I spoke to her casually.
"Lady Irene. I will bring you victory without fail."
Then, I looked toward where the enemies were gathering.
'Come.'
Thinking that, I spread my arms wide.
The once-in-a-lifetime show I was betting everything on was about to begin.