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C757 - Goggles

After being cut off before he could go on yet another emotional tirade, Goggles could only mumble under his breath about building an HR department and how much abuse he was suffering through.

Toward this, Leonel could only shake his head while the meeting tent burst into shorts spurts of hidden chuckles.

"… Titled Knight isn't just a randomly handed over title. In other societies, a Titled Knight is still beneath the lowest noble. Even a Baron could easily look down at them. However, to Alexandre the Apex, his Titled Knights represent something completely different.

"He's able to breathe power to their Title, giving them a buff they can use in battle. In addition, beneath the flag of a Titled Knight, their army gains the same buff, making them extraordinarily powerful."

Leonel finally perked up with interest.

"An ability?" He asked.

"Yes. Alexandre the Apex has the ability to breathe power to a word. Due to the fact he is a King, he can also mobilize Royal Force to fuel his ability and make it far stronger. As such, within the borders of the Kingdom, his Titled Knights are even more powerful."

'Royal Force…' Leonel narrowed his eyes.

This name was the one used by this world. However, Leonel had already learned about it long ago despite not having heard it referred to with this title.

This so-called 'Royal Force', wasn't Royal at all. Or, rather, it wasn't exactly related to the Kingdom. It was more likely that Alexandre had spread this myth so that he could establish his sovereignty.

But, the truth was that this Royal Force was actually World Force. World Force was a strength one gained access to so long as you wielded at least a quarter of a World Spirit. It was similar to Universal Force in that it gave a strong boost to one's overall techniques, however, there were some differences.

For example, World Force could be used to directly strengthen one's ability. But, Universal Force couldn't be used so flexibly, especially when it was anchored to one's comprehension of the Universal Cycles.

This said, World Force also had its own weaknesses as well. For one, it was capped by the potential of one's world whereas Universal Force's only limit was one's comprehension. And second, it became weaker the further from one's World one got.

"I see." Leonel nodded. "Well, here's the plan."

Seeing Leonel go from listening to his concerns to listing off their next plan of attack left Goggles feeling like he should find a wall to bang his head against. Was his explanation not clear enough?! They should be running!

"We'll split the army into four. We'll attack here in exactly three weeks."

Leonel pointed toward a location on the map.

"A week later we will attack here. Two weeks after that here."

Leonel continued to point.

"I will personally head every battle. Don't worry about how I plan on crossing so much distance, just trust me.

"Once those attacks are completed, the first army will take this route… the second this… the third this… And will all meet with the fourth army exactly two weeks from now.

"That day will be when their Titled Knight falls. Alright, everyone is dismissed. Rollan, you will lead the fourth army. Concealment is your main objective until the second month arrives. Goggles, stay here for a moment, I have a task for you."

Goggles groaned. "… More danger for me, yay. How could I not be excited? Torture me more, daddy. Clearly, I'm a masochist for staying here."

Rollan laughed uproariously, patting Goggles' shoulder.

"You'll be fine. Stay safe out there."

All the military officials shuffled out. Not a single one of them seemed to even care for Leonel's plan. It was either they truly couldn't be bothered, or they had already built a trust in him that was irrefutable.

"Goggles. Your task is the same as always, you're the key cog here."

Goggles rolled his eyes. Of course he was.

"You want to take advantage of their slow network to hit them from the back, right? But the only way to make sure information doesn't spread too fast is little old me?"

Leonel grinned. "Well isn't that so?"

Goggles glared at Leonel. "And my reward?"

"What do you want?" Leonel laughed.

"I want to marry my goddess, Elise!"

Leonel gave Goggles' forehead a karate chop. This young man could never stop screwing around. How was he supposed to promise him Rollan's wife?

"Fine, fine!" Goggles slinked off, his shoulder exaggeratedly slouched. "I'll just slave away for the cause until one day I die on a nameless battlefield, no one to remember my name, and no woman to call wife.

"OH! DESTINY! Why do you treat me so?!"

Leonel shook his head, laughing.

Goggles was indeed an important part of their operations. He had a sensory type ability, but it was quite unique. It was similar to Leonel's simulation ability, except for the fact it all occurred on its own without conscious thought.

This ability allowed Goggles to not only sense a problem before it happened, but also understand exactly what sort of cause and effect would force it to occur. This thus allowed him to stop this 'problem' before it even began.

The only drawback to this ability was that Goggles needed enough foundational information. The broader his target, the more vague his understanding of cause and effect was. The more focused his target, the sharper his senses became.

At this moment, Goggles only had one task: Take out all the messengers of the opposing Kingdom. Not only that, but he had even one extra step of specificity, he only had to focus on messengers carrying information about the movements of their armies within a very specific timeframe. His job was essentially to make their information late and dated.

For Goggles, this sort of focused and specific task practically made him like an oracle who could gaze into the future. When Leonel first met him, he almost mistook him for a savant.

This kind of chess piece… It was the kind any King would kill to have.

Yet, as 'cowardly' as Goggles was, he had chosen to join their cause.

To be continued