Meanwhile, in the camp of the tribal chief Gundar, a meeting was also in progress.
"Your abilities are truly amazing. I never expected you to hold back the devil under the mountain!"
Gundar praised Dmitri, the leader of the foreigners, with an excited expression.
The devil under the mountain was the nickname that the tribes at the entrance of the northern mountains gave to Andersson, the superhuman.
Even the strongest warriors among them would fall like dead leaves before the superhuman, but these people astonishingly succeeded in blocking him by forming a group.
'To be honest, I didn't fully believe them, but if this goes on, I might really be able to stop the foreigners under the mountain and become the ruler of the north!'
But there was a voice that interrupted his optimistic thoughts.
"It's not over yet. We also suffered some losses, to be frank."
"Hmm, of course I know that."
Gundar answered awkwardly, and Dmitri continued with a cautious expression.
"Keep gathering the forces of the tribes as you are doing now. Even if we have to take some damage, as long as we successfully stop the knights, we have the mountains behind us, which are a natural fortress. The enemies will eventually get exhausted and retreat."
Gundar nodded.
"So you mean we should drag out the time and negotiate with them."
"That's right. Why would the empire bother to take over these worthless mountains? If we show them that we have a unified leadership and some strength, even though they used to regard us as barbarians who only know how to plunder and don't listen to reason, they will have to make some concessions at the negotiating table."
Gundar and the leaders of the Storm Wagon tribe nodded.
It made sense.
It was impossible and pointless for the empire to wipe out all the immigrants in the mountains.
The empire was already spending a huge amount of military expenses by sending a superhuman and elite knights to the north.
If they couldn't subdue them with additional troops, they would have to wage a large-scale war against the entire northern mountains, which was not a matter of power difference but a bad deal.
If they gave up a little bit of their share to them, it would be much more profitable for the empire to safely develop the idle plains in the north.
'Then our food problem will be solved, and I will sit on the throne of the true northern tribal chief!'
Gundar had a grand dream and ordered his subordinates to persuade more tribes nearby.
"Gather more warriors and troops from around the mountains!"
Dmitri watched him with a triumphant smile inside.
'Your grace, your mission will be accomplished safely.'
They were among the best forces that His grace had secretly cultivated.
As the result showed, they had enough ability to hold back even a superhuman for some time.
'Of course, it's not without damage.'
Today they blocked Andersson while suffering some irreversible injuries, and Dmitri himself was full of wounds all over his body from fighting against him.
'But it's enough to hold on and fight a war of attrition.'
No matter how much a superhuman was beyond human limits, he couldn't turn the tide of war by himself.
In the end, he needed the power of his knights, but their quality and quantity were inferior to theirs.
On top of that, they were constantly reinforced by warriors from the mountains.
Even if they considered the reinforcements hastily assembled from the capital, they could handle them.
'And then, Prince Eurius won't be able to achieve any merit in this war!'
That was what His grace intended.
In fact, they didn't care whether Gundar became a tribal chief or not.
They just had to buy time.
And after news spread that Eurius was struggling in the north, His highness or Second Prince Leonhart would sweep them all away.
Then all credit for stabilizing the north would go to His Second highness faction.
But at that moment.
There was another group talking about that issue.
…
"Maybe that tribal chief guy and his suspicious companion have something like that in mind."
"I roughly understand it. You also had quite a complicated situation?"
Eurius and Nuada were discussing their next attack.
"This is also a suggestion for you. If things go according to His highness plan, then almost all of tribes will suffer near annihilation. You don't want that, do you?"
Nuada nodded as well.
"I don't like them very much, since they are weaklings who depend on plundering, but they are still brothers who live in the mountains."
"To minimize the damage, we have to defeat that tribal chief guy in one go."
The longer the war lasted, the more damage both sides would suffer. Eurius proposed a quick decisive battle.
"But how? I know that the number of tribes that have gathered is quite large…"
Eurius chuckled here.
"You probably know better than me, don't you?"
"…!?"
"What do you mean, I know better than you?"
Nuada looked puzzled.
"It's exactly what it means."
Eurius stopped laughing suddenly and stared at him with a serious expression.
"Nuada, you are already an unmatched warrior in this northern mountain range. According to your words, the superhumans who are called great warriors are rare even in this whole land."
"…"
"And I think you have your own reasons for opposing that chief who united the six tribes, am I wrong in my guess?"
Nuada closed his eyes slightly.
'He seems to know me as if he had known me from the beginning. Or maybe it's natural?'
In fact, his reason for confronting Gundar was very simple.
He would not mind if he was a powerful warrior like Eurius who could defeat him one-on-one, but he could not tolerate him ruling over the north as a loser with the help of some suspicious people.
"As I said before, I came here to offer you an alliance."
Eurius extended his hand to him with a solemn expression.
"I'm not saying that I will make you a loser of the north like that chief, but I trust your abilities that I have personally witnessed! That's why I brought up the word alliance."
"…"
Nuada remained silent, looking at his outstretched hand.
Eurius finished his words strongly.
"It's not what I do for you, but what we do together. I want to prevent unnecessary sacrifices here, and protect my people! You want to fulfill your ambition with the tribes of the mountain range!"
"Put forward your hand."
"…!?"
Eurius clenched his fist instead of his hand. They bumped their fists three times and then finally shook hands.
Nuada opened his mouth after that.
"I still can't fully trust you. You know too much about us for a foreigner."
Eurius sneered inwardly.
'Well, at this point in time, there is no one who knows their customs as well as I do.'
The exchange of fists and handshake just now was a ritual of pledging to form a friendship between the chiefs in the north.
"But I owe you my life. And you even promised me a chance to challenge you again when I grow stronger."
Taking him to the village was actually not even worth asking. And he was not the type to live with debt.
"Since it has come to this, I'll trust you once! Let's call this debt paid off for sure."
Eurius also relaxed his serious expression and smiled slightly.
"I look forward to working with you."
Nuada answered in a blunt tone.
"We don't need to say that between friends who have already made a vow. By the way, I have a rough idea of your plan, but can I ask?"
Their opinions were still in agreement.
"We need to gather more forces first."
"And we need to strike down Gundar's power in one breath by surprise."
The cooperation of the remaining tribes who kept neutrality in the mountain range! And a surprise attack from behind!
It seemed simple at first glance, but it was not an easy task.
"If we can bring the tribes that have not joined us at the entrance of the mountain range into our alliance, we will have enough troops to inflict great damage on the enemy."
But Nuada looked doubtful.
"But there is no good way for me to deal with the tribes that declared complete neutrality…"
In fact, there were quite a few tribes that did not respond to Gundar's coercive recruitment. The key to this surprise attack was to bring in these neutral tribes!
Even if they attacked from behind, it would be difficult to deal a fatal blow with the current troops of Eurius' alliance.
"The tribes that have not left the mountain range probably have the same judgment as you."
"That's right. In fact, they would not dare to touch the foreigners of the plain rashly, because they would not be safe even inside the mountain range."
"But you are different from Gundar. You are the strongest warrior in this mountain range and a reliable ally."
"Hmm…"
"If you offer them a clear benefit, you will be able to attract them."
Nuada looked puzzled again.
"Is there such a thing? I thought you meant to challenge them to a duel and force them to join us by strength."
"Of course, for some stubborn tribes, that method might be necessary."
But it would be hard to bring in all the tribes with just that.
Eurius finally got to the point.
"What do you think is the most lacking thing for you?"
"…!?"
"Probably food, right? I swear by my name as the first prince of the empire, I will solve the food problem for the tribes that follow you."
Nuada jumped up from his seat.
"Is that possible?"
He lost his composure for the first time.
If he offered such a condition, there would be no reason for the neutral tribes not to follow him.
"Of course. But first, we have to get rid of that Gundar!"
The cooperation of the tribes that did not leave the mountain range! And a surprise attack!
It seemed simple at first glance, but it was not an easy task.
"If we can bring the tribes that have not joined us at the entrance of the mountain range into our alliance, we will have enough troops to inflict great damage on the enemy."
"Hmm…"
He slumps back into his seat after hearing Eurius's confident answer.
"Is this related to your visit to our tribe?"
'He's quick to catch on.'
Eurius clicks his tongue inwardly and pretends to be relaxed.
"It's not completely unrelated."
"So you're saying you'll tell me later?"
Nuada grumbles, but he doesn't look annoyed. He's already allied with him. He owes him a debt, so he doesn't doubt him anymore about that issue.
'It was worth it to beat him head-on, even if it was a stretch.'
Eurius smiles inwardly and changes the topic.
"By the way, what will you call yourself if you unite the tribes? What will be your title as the leader?"
"Just the Great Chieftain, I suppose?"
"The Great Chieftain reminds me of that Gundar guy, so I don't think it's a very appealing title."
"Is that so?"
Nuada frowns. He definitely doesn't like thinking about that idiot.
"We call the ones who rule over our clans kings. How about you use this title too?"
"King?"
"Yes. You'll be the king who rules over the northern mountains. How about the King of the Mountains… or Mountain King for short?"
"Hmm…"
Nuada doesn't answer, but he thinks that the title sounds oddly good.
'King of the Mountains… It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?'
'You'll be called that way, even if I don't give you that name.'
Eurius thinks of his nostalgic title from his previous life and asserts inwardly.