“It’s a big problem! The storage barn where we stockpiled food!”

A trainee knight rushed in, panting heavily, and shouted. Merem, who was wiping off the demon’s bodily fluids on his sword, and Enrique, who had just descended from the sky with Shail, simultaneously had their expressions hardened.

In war, there was no need to elaborate on how crucial supplies were. Especially in the Tarhran Marsh, where only demons thrived, no animals lived. It was the worst environment imaginable, where local hunting for supplies was impossible.

“Your Majesty, upon inspection, 80 percent of the food has been lost.”

A while later, the head of the Crusade reported with a grim expression.

Sitting in the strategy meeting, I calculated how long an army of this size could endure with the remaining food.

‘Even if we ration it out, it’ll last for at most three days.’

It was indeed a precarious situation.

Enrique’s original plan was as follows:

First, divide the entire force into A-team, B-team, and Z-team. The Z-team would enter the marsh, and the A-team would guard the food and supplies. The B-team would follow Z-team with a time gap.

This way, the leading team would have cleared the path, making it easy to move supplies. And when Z-team got tired, they would return to the camp, and this time, A-team would enter the marsh following B-team.

By dividing and rotating the teams, physical stamina could be conserved, and the risk of a wholesale massacre could be avoided.

Enrique had experience killing demons, but not all demons had the same power. Since we didn’t know what kind of demon we were facing now, a cautious strategy was planned.

‘But now that there’s no food, the plan has completely fallen apart.’

Now, what should we do?

I scrutinized Enrique with an interesting expression.

“When is the next supply coming?”

Reporting to the chilling Emperor’s voice, the commander raised his head as if he had no composure.

“Well, in ten days. However, the problem is, I don’t know how far the attack has spread, but all the nearby roads have turned into a mess. It is expected to face difficulties in receiving supplies.”

Ugh.

The atmosphere in the barn sank.

The problem was storing all the food in one barn. Without dispersing it, such an incident wouldn’t have occurred with one attack.

‘And to make matters worse, we piled medicines together with the food in the barn.’

I silently clicked my tongue.

Meanwhile, some of the deputies raised their voices.

“We can take out some people to procure food from nearby villages, Your Majesty.”

“Yes, that’s right. If Your Majesty eradicates the demons in this marsh, the people will be safe, and they will gladly provide food.”

The followers, who had reluctantly followed Enrique, thinking of him as something like the son of a god, had no equal. If he were truly the son of a god, he should be able to perform miracles and transform three days’ worth of food into ten days.
“If you can’t do that, then what?”

“Demon extermination is important, but we cannot take away the food of the people here for that purpose.”

Enrique spoke reasonably.

At that moment, a middle-aged nobleman whose head was bare jumped up.

“Oh, this is not plundering! It’s giving the people an opportunity to participate in such a great cause. They will surely gladly contribute!”

He wasn’t one of Enrique’s followers, nor was he particularly necessary for this expedition.

If we were to be exact… he could be called a sponsor.

He had donated a considerable amount of money and food, trying to discreetly insert his name into the list of ‘historic figures who defeated demons.’

He bought a ticket to participate in the great undertaking with money.

But now that the food was gone, it would be a waste to die.

It was clear that food distribution would be biased towards knights and soldiers who could engage in combat rather than non-combat personnel. Hence, he jumped up like that.

“Yes! If we have enough to eat for a few days, won’t the supplies come by then? We won’t demand that much.”

A priest who had been quietly listening intervened, realizing that these guys were trying to take advantage of the situation to plunder the people’s granaries.

“I prohibit it.”

Fortunately, Enrique promptly cut off such foolish remarks.

When the Emperor sternly intervened, those who had been making noise couldn’t speak anymore, and now the atmosphere inside the barn returned to silence.

“The remaining food is only for three days.”

After leaving it as it was for a minute, and no one presented a solution, I finally pursed my lips.

“That’s when everyone minimally shares it. Supplies are coming in ten days. However, the roads are damaged, so we don’t know how delayed it will be. That’s the current situation.”

With a calm observation, everyone’s attention turned to me.

I smiled mischievously, tilted my head, and raised my chin.

“Well, the solution is obvious. Am I the only one who sees it?”

“Hmm. Empress, do you have a solution to this situation?”

Exactly.

I took the bait.