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Knowing I was troubled by a lack of manpower, my master apparently reached out to Merlene and Firniel on my behalf.

“Geez, Senior, you really are hopeless. Fine, I’ll lend you some of my troops.”
“Why are you grinning? Is Tübahn’s defense going to be alright?”
“I’ve got skeleton soldiers… I can’t move them though…”
“Alright, then I’ll send you one of my vampire necromancers to handle command and management of the skeleton troops. But in return, I want some centaur soldiers too.”
“Ugh, you shrewd!”

Thanks to that exchange, the centaur corps led by Firniel was reorganized into units of 500.
Cavalry—at last, cavalry has arrived!

“Name’s Seisches…”

The one who arrived at the northern gate, leading 500 centaur warriors, was a rugged young centaur.
His deeply chiseled face was set with a deeply furrowed brow.
Why does he look so angry?

“I’m not… angry… actually, I’m… smiling…”

Seisches muttered in a low voice, still looking completely sour.
I really couldn’t tell if he was smiling or not, so I decided to ask.

“Can you make a neutral face for me?”

He nodded and looked just as grumpy as before.
Didn’t help.

“Now make an angry face.”

Again, he nodded—and still looked exactly the same.
It’s the same expression!

“It’s different… I swear…”

What a difficult guy…

According to Firniel, he’s a warrior held in high regard among the centaurs. Not quite at Firniel’s level, but close.

“You’re… questioning me?”

Okay, now you’re skipping half the conversation.
Still, the way he picked up on what I was thinking so sharply means he’s not just some stoic weirdo.
But honestly, I have no idea how to deal with him.

Then suddenly, Seisches stripped off his top and beckoned me forward.

“It’s… a warrior’s greeting. We’ll understand each other… through battle.”

Oh boy. As expected of demons—things always come down to brute strength.

“Pin your opponent to the ground, and you win… no other rules…”
“Sounds fun. I’ll take you on.”

If I back out here, both the centaurs and my own werewolves will lose respect for me. There’s no avoiding this fight.

“Hey, the captain’s going to wrestle a centaur!”
“Get everyone over here!”

Damn it, stop drawing attention!

In the end, tons of werewolves gathered, and I ended up wrestling Seisches in front of both units.
Looking at him again—he’s got a hell of a presence. A veteran warrior, no doubt.
He probably has absolute confidence in grappling. If I try to force a contest of strength, it might drag out.
But I’m the Vice Commander directly under the Demon Lord.
I can’t allow myself to lose to someone clearly lower in rank like Seisches.
I’ll end this in one move.

“Come…”
“Then here I go!”

I transformed and activated one of my always-ready spells.
It was an acceleration technique that drastically boosts brain and sensory response speed. With it, I can react to even the slightest movement.

“There!”

I slipped behind Seisches in a blink.

Centaurs, with their horse-like lower bodies, are weak to rear attacks. Their blind spots are massive.
They hate being flanked more than anything.

“Don’t underestimate me…”

His hind leg shot out like lightning—a well-trained, calculated strike, not a wild animal’s reflex.

But this was exactly what I’d been waiting for.
Thanks to my magically enhanced visual tracking, I read the trajectory of his hoof perfectly.
Since it was so precise, it was actually easier to predict.
I dove under and launched a sliding tackle—targeting his front legs.
I made solid contact.

“I… can’t believe it…”

Still on his back, Seisches lay stunned.
The werewolves erupted in cheers, praising my victory.
I placed my hand on his horse-like torso, just to confirm.

“You’re pinned. Is that enough?”
“Yes… Veit wins…”

He nodded seriously and stood up with ease. He’d taken a perfect fall, and didn’t seem hurt at all.
Even the centaur soldiers clapped for us both.

“You predicted… my kick?”
“If Firniel entrusted you with a unit, there’s no way you wouldn’t be prepared for your weaknesses. And since you weren’t carrying a weapon, you had to kick.”
“Makes sense…”
“But when a centaur kicks, they have to balance on their front legs. That’s what I aimed for.”
“I see…”

He nodded several times.

“You acknowledged me as a warrior, anticipated my move, and baited me into it… You really are the fierce general they say commands the Demon Lord’s army.”
“You’re suddenly pretty talkative.”

I pointed out, and Seisches scratched his head awkwardly.

“Sorry… when it comes to battle… my mouth moves faster than my mind…”

Then he held out his hand.

“We’ll… follow you, Veit. Looking forward to it.”
“Likewise.”

I gripped his hand firmly.

Just then, Kurtze came running out from the castle gates in a panic.

“Sir Veit, urgent news! You must return at once!”
“What happened?”

Catching his breath, he leaned close and whispered so no humans could hear:

“A Hero has appeared on the Northern Front. A human Hero.”