The Knights' Honor (1)
“So, Ian has made a second game?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. You may look forward to it.”
The emperor and the Crown Prince sat facing each other and spoke for the first time in quite a while.
“Yes, I am looking forward to it. But at the same time, I am somewhat concerned that you persuaded the knights with that game. I fear you may go back to caring only about war again.”
Until recently, the emperor had been troubled by the Crown Prince, but lately, those worries had eased.
It was all thanks to the game ‘Civilization Development,’ created by Ian Maxwell.
The Crown Prince, who had neglected his studies, spent his time with knights, and cared only about war and conquest, had begun showing some interest in other things after seeing the many impressive technologies and institutions featured in the game.
“Your Majesty, it is not that I have only ever cared about war. I simply believed that war would come whether the Empire wanted it or not.”
“…I cannot exactly say you are wrong.”
At a glance, it seemed like a peaceful era.
But even now, the Empire and the surrounding nations were all watching for opportunities to stab one another in the back.
For one thing, troops had to remain permanently stationed in the north and along the Demon Realm front.
Things were relatively quiet at the moment, but how long would that last?
Even if the Empire did not seek war, war could still come looking for the Empire.
“In that respect, this new game will provide great inspiration to the Empire's knights.”
“Do you believe they will be able to accept change?”
“Many of them will.”
“Which means there will also be those who will not.”
At the emperor's observation, the Crown Prince nodded without denying it.
But there was not the slightest hesitation or uncertainty in him.
Instead, he spoke with unwavering conviction.
“Yes. But there is no need to worry.”
“Why is that?”
“Because through that game, they too will be able to find their own path.”
“Oh? Is that so?”
Seeing the Crown Prince's confidence made the emperor curious.
Just what sort of game could inspire him to say such a thing?
“Then I suppose I should try it myself.”
“When you do, why not play with me? It will be entertaining.”
“You rascal. Do you think I cannot tell that you are plotting to beat me?”
“My, you caught me.”
The emperor and the Crown Prince traded jokes and, for the first time in a long while, laughed openly together as grandfather and grandson.
Not long afterward, the new game Honorlord was released.
***
“I'd like to change the sales method a little this time.”
“In what way?”
“I was thinking we should sell it to knights first.”
The main customers for ‘Civilization Development’ had been nobles.
Part of that was because, in this era, anyone wealthy enough to afford an expensive artifact was generally either a merchant or a noble.
But the bigger reason was that we simply couldn't produce many units in the first place.
This time, however, things were different.
Unlike the last time, when we'd practically forced our way through production, we'd managed to make the process somewhat more efficient.
It was still a handicraft operation using trainee mages, but a modest division of labor had improved productivity.
“Knights… Considering the concept of this game, that is not a bad idea. But those fellows do not have much money, do they?”
“We'll give them a discount so they can afford it by saving a bit of their salaries. Only knights, of course.”
“Would that not mean a loss for us?”
“It's not a loss. It's an investment. They'll spread the word for us.”
“Hmm… True. We used a similar strategy last time. If we can spread word of mouth first, the nobles will become even more interested.”
The department head agreed with my proposal, and we immediately released Honorlord.
At first, the department head gifted copies of the game to a few high-ranking knights he knew.
I also provided free copies to the knights who had helped me after being introduced by the Crown Prince.
“Everyone, try this game. I am certain you will find it impressive as well.”
“This is… remarkable. The combat has been recreated with such realism.”
“With this, it seems we could fight under conditions modeled after actual battles.”
As expected, every knight who encountered Honorlord for the first time praised it.
And once the knights began praising it, the nobles naturally became curious too.
“The second game from the developer of ‘Civilization Development’?! I will buy one immediately!”
“Unfortunately, we have none available at the moment. We sold them to the knights first.”
“I have already heard every knight praising it to the heavens. None of them would sell me theirs even when I asked! Just what kind of game is it?!”
“Heh, I recommend buying one next week and experiencing it for yourself.”
The nobles had to wait until additional units were produced before they could buy one.
Even then, competition was fierce, and they often had to pay a premium.
“Remarkable. I feel as though I have truly become a knight or a commander on the battlefield.”
“Haah, if only I could lead an army into battle like this.”
“Then why not enlist in the Imperial Army?”
“Ahem. It was merely a figure of speech.”
Those who bought the game praised the new release just as highly.
Once again, the new game became a major topic of conversation in high society.
This time, however, people talked about it in a somewhat different way.
“Everyone, watch closely! I will show you how brilliantly I command an army!”
“The enemy has somewhat greater numbers. Do you not think you are likely to lose?”
“He will lose. He has far too much cavalry compared to infantry and archers. Without an anvil to absorb the damage, the cavalry will gradually suffer losses until they probably…….”
“Aaargh! My precious cavalry!”
“…are wiped out. Pfft!”
Unlike with ‘Civilization Development,’ nobles often demonstrated the game directly at social gatherings to show off their skill at commanding troops.
“This time, we shall finally settle things!”
“Settle things? You have already lost to me at least five times.”
“Ghk, all of those were invalid! This time is the real one!”
“Ha ha, if you insist. I will win anyway.”
Others used the newly added multiplayer feature to hold mock duels.
There were even cases where serious duels were replaced with the game.
As life-or-death duels were replaced by matches in the game, the number of nobles losing their lives in duels dropped dramatically.
In that sense, the nobles mostly remained faithful to using the game for entertainment.
At the same time, however, the knights had become somewhat more serious.
“Everyone here has played ‘Honorlord,’ I assume? There cannot be anyone who has not tried it even once, so I will ask directly. Raise your hand if you have ever defeated a ‘gun’ one-on-one in the game.”
The question came from the organizer of a meeting attended by knights from the military.
Slightly less than half of them raised their hands.
“Not many. Then let me change the question somewhat. Raise your hand if you have defeated an army armed with guns.”
This time, quite a few did.
A little more than half.
“Of those, who won without using guns yourselves?”
At the follow-up question, however, most of the hands went down.
Only a tiny handful remained raised.
“Haah… It seems we have no choice but to acknowledge the tactical utility of guns.”
“General! It is only a game. Reality will be different.”
“Even after seeing how complete that game is? Well, as you say, in reality, we may currently be more skilled than those wielding guns. But do you believe that advantage will last forever?”
“Th-That……”
“Those who wield guns will also become more refined and stronger with time, training, and actual combat experience. It seems we must acknowledge that guns are superior weapons to spears and swords.”
Of course, guns still had many weaknesses ‘for now.’
Their effective range was shorter even than that of bows, their reload time was long, and their accuracy was still inadequate.
But all three weaknesses could be overcome through tactics.
If the range was short, they could simply fire from closer distances.
Repeated training could reduce reload times.
Accuracy would inevitably improve as technology advanced.
Or they could compensate for low accuracy through massed volleys.
“That is correct. Guns are the weapons that will lead the next generation of warfare. The Imperial Army must embrace them before anyone else. We ourselves must become proficient with them immediately!”
“Have you no pride as a knight? Will you cast aside teachings passed down through long tradition merely because one new weapon has appeared? Such a vulgar weapon can be used without difficulty even by ignorant common rabble!”
“That is precisely why we must accept change! How long do you intend to remain bound by such antiquated thinking and reject it?!”
“As long as we remain knights, we must preserve our values! I can feel it. That weapon called the gun cannot embody the ideals of chivalry that we pursue!”
The knights split into two camps.
The reformists argued that the new weapon called the gun had to be actively embraced.
The traditionalists argued that they must not forget the old teachings and should devote themselves to them even more deeply.
At first glance, the former seemed more reasonable.
Refusing to use a superior weapon merely because of pride or tradition appeared foolish.
But in truth, the traditionalists were not entirely wrong either.
“It certainly is difficult to use Aura through a gun. Infusing Aura into the gun or the bullet made little difference.”
“And if you know how to use Aura, you can resist guns to some extent. The game reflected that rather well too.”
“The problem is that knights capable of using Aura are uncommon in reality. And even those who can use it all stand at different levels.”
“It is impossible to train Aura through a gun as well. Guns are powerful, but they are also far too easy to use. They are not weapons that can guarantee the hardship and training required to attain Aura.”
Guns were simple and powerful, but they were not weapons through which Aura could be trained or properly utilized.
If the knights completely abandoned tradition while adopting guns, then the power of Aura itself might eventually be forgotten alongside those traditions.
“What if we compromise? Preserve tradition while also making use of guns…….”
“That would merely be a temporary patch. If handled poorly, we could end up neither properly adopting the new weapons nor preserving tradition. Moreover, with opinions this divided, such a half-hearted decision would only deepen the conflict.”
“Then…….”
“We have no choice but to divide them and operate both separately. One force will adopt the new military system, while the other will maintain the traditional methods.”
Dividing the military in two was not normally a wise choice.
But in a transitional period like this, it could be an exception.
There were also certain advantages to separating the two.
“Let us actively introduce firearms and devise new tactics centered around them!”
“If we use guns, infantry forces will become more important than before. We must train soldiers with such strict discipline that they will never flee.”
“It may be better to use knights as commanders from now on rather than as cavalry.”
The reformist modernized forces studied tactics that made use of guns and devised new methods of warfare, while beginning to reorganize their military system accordingly.
“We will never compromise! We will fight and die as knights until the very end!”
“Let us show them the last pride of the knights!”
“Honor is everything!”
Meanwhile, the traditionalist knights threw themselves even more fiercely into the traditional hardships and training.
In truth, they were little more than men preserving their pride one last time in the face of a downfall that already seemed inevitable.
But no one would ever break their stubborn resolve.
And while the knights were walking down those two separate paths, news arrived of a massive invasion from the north.
“The opportunity has come to show the power of a new era. Let us prove that we are tomorrow's rising sun.”
“We are the brightest stars shining at the end of dawn! Knights, advance!”
The knights walking those two paths immediately headed for the battlefield.
Each in pursuit of the honor they had chosen.