Arc-6 Ch-27

“If there were a sure way to win against the royal faction, that would be fine too. But there isn’t.”

“May I take that to mean it is tactically and strategically impossible? Or is there some other factor?”

“It depends on how you define victory. Against those five, it is possible to avoid direct combat, devise plans, and seal them. They are invincible pieces that always win in battle, but they are only a single piece. Even if they win local engagements, if every other battlefield is lost, it means nothing.”

The five super-first-rate heroes move across the battlefield without disorder and cut down enemies. Indeed, everyone in this country admires the invincible heroes while simultaneously fearing them. When Angie and the others were kidnapped, Jilk and Greg, with just two suits of armor, destroyed an gang of over twenty suits and a large airship. The shock of seeing their heroic figures shoot down more than ten times their number without a scratch is something I still cannot forget. As allies, they are reliable, but to enemies, they are nothing less than the incarnation of death itself; the most troublesome opponents one never wants to face.

Yet their strength is the strength of a group that miraculously meshes together. None of them is absolutely invincible individually. When I considered a military clash between the Redgrave house and the Holfort royal family, I assumed those five would be the strongest enemies.

“Their armor is the latest model, further customized to each individual’s characteristics. On top of that, the pilots themselves are super-first-rate warriors. They are unmatched on the battlefield. However, their numbers are a little short to decisively determine the outcome of a war.”

“Can you really defeat those five?”

“Heroes or not, they are only human. They cannot exert strength without food, and when tired, they inevitably need sleep. If we keep launching saturation attacks without pause, eventually fatigue will reach its limit. Or we use division tactics. Their strength exists precisely because they cover each other’s blind spots. We simultaneously attack at least three key strongholds, preferably five. Put skilled knights in the newest armor and surround each of them with at least ten suits, preferably twenty; we could at least force mutual destruction.”

“Even after going that far, only mutual destruction?”

“I still think that estimate is optimistic. I question how many casualties we would suffer just to weaken them, and whether there are nobles in the ducal faction who would obey an order to sacrifice themselves to take those five down.”

After endless trial and error in my head about how to beat them, the conclusion I squeezed out was the extremely simple method of overwhelming them with sheer numbers. Continue attacking day and night with forces exceeding the total enemy army, giving them no rest. When fatigue and attrition reach their limit, force them into a situation where they must divide their forces with simultaneous invasions. I had no confidence I could kill them without throwing in that much military power. Moreover, the royal faction has armies besides those five. To face them all at once, we would need to be prepared for considerable sacrifices on our side as well.

“There is also the problem of morale. Over there are heroes protecting the royal family; no matter how we dress it up, we are rebels. Compared to a few years ago, the kingdom’s governance is considerably better now. Last year’s invasion by the principality was not the royal family’s fault; considering the initial response, they did well. On top of that, with the treasury nearly empty, the king is selling his private assets and frantically working to rebuild the country. No matter how many blunders the royal family has made in the past, people will hesitate to raise swords against them.”

“Lord Bartfort, that almost sounds like you are defending the royal family.”

“I am prepared to be taken that way. Many nobles misunderstand, but I am no genius who can turn unwinnable battles into victories. I prefer defense over offense, and I like fewer sacrifices. Rather than creating something new from scratch, I am better at removing the bad parts of what already exists while keeping the good. I am just an ordinary person who is good at solving problems through unglamorous repetition.”

Killing the principality army’s commander in the previous war was a mistake. Because the usually arrogant nobles fled the battlefield, the bold words I shouted to rally the soldiers on the ground unexpectedly worked. Even I never thought a reckless plan to charge the enemy position would actually succeed in taking the commander. I myself do not know why I did not run away. Was it because I did not want to be the same as those who fled? Was it patriotism or the desire to protect the place where my family lived? Or was I simply too cornered to make rational judgments?

Probably all of them applied, and the plan just happened to succeed by sheer luck. I do not know if that luck was good or bad. I swore firmly never to do anything that reckless again and to fight only with full preparations from now on. The re-invasion last year was the same. I stubbornly maintained the battle line to delay the principality army’s advance as much as possible while minimizing casualties among my territorial troops. Since my troops alone could not hold, I helped nearby nobles and created obligations, which led to me being treated as an incredibly good person; it was troublesome. I wished they would resent a young upstart like me taking the leadership role a little. Do not push such a heavy responsibility onto me. I focused on defense to avoid casualties and resentment, then repeatedly attacked the principality army’s openings, and it succeeded.

The front I was in charge of held the longest with the fewest casualties, and I began to be praised within the kingdom. In exchange, the principality army and nobles who hate me started calling me the villainous knight! I am just desperately scraping by in the moment; I am not some convenient strategist who guarantees victory for allies. I read tactics books desperately because I do not want to die, gather information, and devise plans that seem effective; that is all. The only time I deviated from orthodoxy was that single charge into the enemy position; no matter how much people praise that miraculous single occasion, something unwinnable remains unwinnable.

“Besides, this power map is no longer accurate. The situation is different now.”

First, I remove several red ducal faction pieces from the map and replace them with black pieces. Next, I change some royal faction blue pieces, though far fewer than the ducal faction changes. Red, blue, white, and black; four forces now mix and color the map vividly. The Duke and Gilbert are trying to figure out what this means, while Angie looks somewhat amused.

The Duke notices first.

“The Roseblade earldom, the Mottley earldom, and other lord nobles who were on our side. Conversely, the Field and Seberg houses from the royal faction are also mixed in. All of them are the ones who agreed to Angie’s reform plan.”

“Exactly.”

At the Duke’s observation, Gilbert shows a shocked expression. It is not that Gilbert is stupid. For someone thinking only in terms of ducal faction versus royal faction polarization, it is hard to spot the common point of the black pieces.

“In other words, you are saying this: ‘If you oppose the reform plan, nobles will successively defect from the ducal faction.’”

“Yes. Most of the nobles who joined the ducal faction are suffering from financial difficulties. Of course, many harbor anger toward court nobles and the royal family, but the majority joined simply because of money. To put it bluntly, they follow the Duke only because he lends them money.”

“That is insolent, Leon-kun!”

“Calm down, Brother.”

“But it is the truth. I myself married Angie and received loans from the ducal house. If someone says I became a ducal retainer because I was lured by a woman and money, I cannot deny it.”

They side with the ducal house because it lends money. Then what happens if somewhere else lends even more money?

And without lording it over them, and without needing to participate in power struggles?

Everyone would flock to that side. When people cannot eat, the will to resist a ruler who squeezes taxes and imposes misgovernment wells up. Conversely, when food, clothing, and shelter are secure, few will fight to destroy their current life. This rebellion arose because the Duke took advantage of the stagnation in the kingdom’s reconstruction. If funding and personnel for reconstruction go smoothly, most nobles will lose the will to oppose the royal family and quietly return to managing their territories.

“The feudal nobles who agreed to Angie’s reform plan believe the Duke is involved. ‘The merciful Duke Redgrave is using his own daughter and son-in-law to create a new financial institution to save the feudal nobles.’ The reason this plan did not leak is that I told them to keep it absolutely secret to avoid being crushed by the royal family. Conversely, the royal faction believes ‘Be careful of information leaks in case the ducal faction opposes; this is an order from Her Highness the Consort.’ Those who oppose are undoubtedly seen as people trying to enrich themselves by obstructing the kingdom’s reconstruction.”

BAM!

The map, counters, and tea set on the table rattle loudly. The Duke glares at us with bloodshot eyes. Scary.

“You schemed well. Using the family name to secretly gather supporters behind our backs. Rather than helping crush the royal family, you lend a hand to prolonging its life; have you gone mad? The old you would never have chosen this.”

“Calm down, Father. There is no guarantee this plan will succeed. It could very well end with nothing more than an increase in kingdom-run moneylenders. After all, it is the first attempt of its kind in this country; if it fails, the royal family’s credibility will plummet.”

“…And when that happens, use it as material to criticize the royal family; is that what you mean to say?”

“It is harsh coming from the person who devised it, but even if you destroy the current Holfort royal family and take the throne, there is little profit, and it is hardly worth the cost. The treasury is nearly empty, domestic politics are unstable, and even if you crush the royal faction nobles and distribute their territories to the ducal faction, there will be no one to govern them. Even if you consider actively appointing talent, that presupposes the current administrators remain safe and sound.”

Angie supplementing my explanation is truly helpful. Could she just handle it all the way to the end?

I can manage tactics and simple politics, but I am bad at explaining complicated political matters. When I look at her pleadingly, Angie urges me with her eyes to “hurry up and continue.”

I think my wife could be a little kinder to me without divine punishment.

“Um, about twenty percent of the kingdom’s nobles in total, both feudal nobles and court nobles, agreed to Angie’s plan. The reason the ducal faction shows large changes on the map is that most supporters are frontier or heavily war-damaged feudal nobles. Meanwhile, the royal faction shows little change because many supporters are court nobles without territories. Removing them makes the previously near-equal forces of the royal and ducal factions disadvantageous for the ducal side.”

Black pieces are now mixed in among the previously solid red ducal faction formation. If we treat those who agreed to the reform plan as enemies, we must eliminate them. But fighting the royal family while purging defectors would guarantee defeat.

“What will you do? Send supervisory troops?”

“Don’t be stupid!”

Gilbert’s shout echoes through the room. I wanted to be close like real brothers with him, but I have been yelled at nonstop. I am definitely hated now. Supervisory troops are special units given authority to watch so that one’s own soldiers do not flee and, in some cases, execute them. Actual combat puts lives on the line; frightened soldiers running away is hardly rare. Every commander has headaches over it, but some resort to extreme measures like killing fleeing soldiers as an example. By the way, when I was in the kingdom army there was a noble-born fellow who strictly monitored soldiers’ behavior and reported everything.

In the battle against the principality army, he barely fought and treated tattling on subordinates and soldiers, true or false, as his job; a thoroughly unpleasant guy. One morning he was found dead in the forest near the barracks. He was discovered naked with clear signs of assault, but no detailed investigation was conducted and the case went unsolved. War is an abnormal situation; there are always those who end up killing superiors because they do not want to die. No matter how high-ranking a commander is, he is only one person among his own troops; if all the subordinates rebel, he can be overwhelmed and killed. The same applies to the Duke.

Certainly, the power of the Redgrave house is on the scale of a small country, and ordinary lord nobles are no match. But what happens if he successively destroys nobles who oppose him?

Ducal faction division becomes inevitable. If the representative of feudal nobles dissatisfied with the tyrannical royal family starts acting dictatorial, he becomes nothing more than a tyrant in name only. The Duke himself would be seen as someone who lured nobles with sweet words because he simply wants to be king and treats them as pawns, breeding backlash. In the worst case, defections appear one after another, and he ends up isolated and executed as a traitor.

“Nobles who are not even retainers have no loyalty toward the Redgrave house. They see it only as the foremost feudal noble house, comrades in condemning the royal family’s misgovernment. Any tyrannical behavior would make defeat certain at that point.”

“So you are saying choose admonition instead of rebellion? That political reform rather than usurping the throne is the more advantageous path?”

“It has only been one year since the war. I understand Your Excellency want to struck while the royal family was weakened, but the feudal nobles have not fully recovered from war exhaustion either. A war of attrition would only drag the entire country down. A rebellion with many sacrifices and little reward.”

“…”

“Moreover, under these circumstances, there is a way to easily destroy the Redgrave house.”

“There is still more…”

I fully understand the two of you feeling fed up, but please hear me out to the end. Everything up to now was the persuasion plan Angie and I discussed beforehand. What comes next is something I thought of myself that Angie does not know about.

“As you see, areas near the capital and around Redgrave territory have relatively solid power blocs. The frontier, however, is a jumble of ducal faction, royal faction, and neutrals. The closer to the border, the more pronounced it becomes. When that happens, a single path emerges.”

I use the spoon to trace from Redgrave territory to a certain point. The territories along the way are all royal faction or neutral; attacking from this direction there is nothing to stop advance to Redgrave territory. Finally reaching the edge of the map, I tap the name written there with the spoon. The map reads “Field Margrave Territory,” and I place the spoon beyond the edge of the map. Everyone in the clever ducal family should realize just from this.

“You mean the Fanoss Principality—no, Duke Fanoss would attack?”

“At least that is how I read it.”

“No, that is impossible, Leon.”

“Why do you think so, Angie?”

“The principality had its military dismantled after defeat, its forces confiscated, and was annexed. It will be treated as the Fanoss ducal house from now on, but reparations, travel restrictions on citizens, and various other penalties have been imposed. They are in no state to fight.”

“Then let me ask: between the Redgrave ducal house and the Fanoss ducal house, which is more dangerous to the current Holfort royal family?”

“That would be…”

Hearing my opinion from completely outside her expectations, Angie looks perplexed. My wife is unbearably cute. The other two also cannot hide their surprise at being blindsided. This is a feeling only someone who actually fought the Fanoss Principality can understand. Even now, kingdom maps circulating do not include the former principality territories, and neither nobles nor commoners recognize the Fanoss duke as a kingdom noble. It is never “the Fanoss ducal house of the Holfort Kingdom” but instinctively “the ruler of the former Fanoss Principality.”

Because of that, the existence of Duke Fanoss falls out of consideration. They unconsciously assume a defeated foe under servitude is no threat and will not intervene in the conflict between the Holfort royal family and the Redgrave house.

“Eventually a royal was supposed to marry into the Fanoss ducal house, right? Of course for surveillance purposes, but that would create another quasi-royal ducal lord noble house. Since ducal houses are insurance in case something happens to the royal family, there should be no need to deliberately keep the rebellious Redgrave house.”

“That is too extreme. What benefit would the princess or former principality citizens gain?”

“There are plenty of benefits. Reduction of reparations, easing of restrictions, exemption from labor duties. If they can be treated as normal people in the kingdom, few would complain even if used by the royal family they hate.”

“…But the current Fanoss ducal house has no military power to oppose the Redgrave house!”

“There is the magic flute that summons massive numbers of monsters.”

“That was supposed to have been destroyed by Olivia and the others!”

“Who testified to that?”

“!!”

Angie cannot retort. Of course she cannot. In the previous war, it was the Saintess and heroes who defeated the princess. In this war too, it was the Saintess and heroes who captured the princess and destroyed the Lost Item. Both times it was people on the royal family’s side. No one else even knows what shape the magic flute had or whether it was truly destroyed.

“It is stranger to take the word of the enemy you are about to fight as truth. Trump cards are kept carefully hidden and used as dead cards only when there is no other choice. They are for moments exactly like this.”

“That the moment is when the Redgrave house rebels?”

“In the previous war the magic flute was destroyed; that was the testimony, and because the Saintess is here the entire kingdom grew complacent thinking the principality would not attack for a while. Yet the flute still existed, and they reinvaded in merely five years. There is no guarantee a similar item does not still exist or that it cannot be repaired.”

“…Frustrating as it is, I cannot refute that.”

“We do not know what that magic flute thing is like, but we have no idea if it is as difficult to repair as the royal flagship. To begin with, it is unclear whether the Holfort royal family is even telling the truth.”

“…You are saying the royal family might deliberately be lying to smoke out troublesome elements like us.”

“Yes. The ones claiming the princess was captured and the flute destroyed are Lady Olivia and Prince Julius and the others. What happened to the destroyed flute? Why was the princess not executed? There is room for doubt.”

“I see…”

“Even if the flute’s destruction is true, the possibility that Duke Fanoss could be made to join the war cannot be denied. Simply directing the kingdom-directed resentment toward the Redgrave house would make for excellent stress relief.”

The three seem to have no words in response. Even I would not have thought this way a month ago. The turning point was the recent adventure: meeting that ball in an undiscovered dungeon. Seeing it repair what I thought were broken Lost Item airships and mechanical humanoids made me wonder if other Lost Items could be repaired too. Even setting aside the matter of the principality’s flute, it is entirely possible that the Fanoss ducal house could cooperate with the Holfort royal family to pincushion Redgrave territory. In fact, the Lost Item talk is merely a convenient excuse to make them accept it.

“Lastly, the movements of foreign powers are concerning. The Rachel Holy Kingdom or the Voldenova Holy Magic Empire are carrying out covert operations within the kingdom. The Redgrave house is one of the targets.”

“We have already confirmed the matter of the Forest of Ladies. But is it not premature to say we are being targeted?”

“The foundation of my tactical theory is to doubt everything. If there is even the slightest possibility, it is better to be cautious.”

I shift a little closer to Angie; from here it is teamwork as husband and wife.

“As you probably already know, the sky pirates who were trying to raid the airspace near Bartfort territory and the remnants of the Forest of Ladies that His Highness and the others defeated are the same group. My men and His Highness’s forces cooperated to exterminate them.”

“I have heard. It seems they shamelessly kidnapped Angie.”

“…Exactly. Because of my own inadequacy, I put Angie and the child in her womb in danger.”

Even now the memory makes my guts boil. Zora exploded and died after the battle, and I was informed by Prince Julius that Rutart and Merce were quietly executed after forced confessions, but I wanted to finish those guys off with my own hands.

“The fallen noble leading the remnants had ties to the Bartfort family. Out of grudge against me and my father, he targeted Angie and my sisters. What is important here is the part where Angie was targeted.”

“Was it not a crime born of grudge against you?”

“If so, killing me outright would have been more effective. Yet he kidnapped Angie and fled.”

“I myself confirmed they had multiple airships and a large number of armor suits despite being remnants. That scale was difficult for Bartfort territorial forces to handle. It can hardly be called sky pirates anymore; it would not be wrong to call it an army.”

“An army-scale remnant kidnapped the lord’s wife instead of directly attacking the territory; indeed there are many suspicious points.”

“They were planning to flee abroad. Doesn’t that seem strange? They neither demanded ransom for kidnapping her nor anything else; they simply chose escape. In other words, they had connections abroad.”

“You mean targeting Angie was a check against us?”

“Yes. At the very least, that is how we and the royal family interpret it.”

It is true that Zora and the others were in the Forest of Ladies. It is true that the Forest was receiving support from some country hostile to the kingdom. That Zora and company were acting under another country’s orders is completely false. The moment they learned Angie was the Redgrave heiress, those cowards got scared. They attacked a civilian airship on a whim and happened to capture Angie and the others aboard; that is all.

There is no way those idiots could carry out a planned crime to threaten the Redgrave house. Judging from His Highness’s report, it is natural to consider it an accidental incident. But we will use the unclear parts in a way convenient for us. Those guys were finally useful to me after death. If they had been useful to others while alive, they might not have died. Zora, Rutart, Merce. I will use your existence to sway the Duke. The trick to deceiving someone is to mix a small amount of lie into a large amount of truth.

“Kidnap her and use her as a bargaining chip. If used well, the Holfort royal family and Redgrave ducal house would start fighting and destroy each other, then finish off the survivors.”

“Exactly. The current kingdom has gained the upper hand over other nations. Once the sacred tree grows with the Republic of Alzer’s support, we will receive priority supply of magic stones, and by annexing the Fanoss Principality our territory has expanded to an unprecedented size. Is it truly just paranoia to think countries that see the kingdom as a threat targeted me to undermine us from within?”

“…Indeed. To gain diplomatic advantage, both countries are capable of it. At worst, they may have even formed a secret alliance.”

“If you rebel against the royal family now, it will only benefit foreign powers. Do you and Brother truly desire to gain the throne and destroy the country?”

Though harsh, Angie’s words are reasonable. The Duke probably struck while the royal family was weakened, but the same opportunity exists for other countries. Knowing there are parties trying to cleverly exploit one’s actions makes reckless moves impossible. Sorry, but you will have to give up the throne and everything. After hearing Angie’s words, the Duke closes his eyes, covers his face with his hand, and groans. Gilbert watches him worriedly.

“Very well.”

Heavy words come from the Duke’s mouth.

“I understand your thinking. I must admit it is an opinion worthy of serious consideration. Causing upheaval was never my intention.”

“Father…”

“Thank you, Father.”

“However!”

The voice that resonates in the gut freezes Angie’s joy and Gilbert’s worry. My body, which had relaxed thinking the negotiation succeeded, instantly tenses. He is calm, but his eyes shine with an abnormal light. This is bad; did we backfire?

“In exchange, I will present conditions. If you cannot agree to these, I will not hesitate to turn against the royal family and wage war.”

“…We will hear them.”

“First, the current Holfort royal family must be forbidden from interfering in governance. On top of that, recognize the new king we put forward and promptly confine the current one.”

“That is impossible, Father!”

“Then negotiations are broken. I will add one more condition.”

“…We will listen.”

The Duke’s eyes reflect me and Angie.

“Your divorce.”

“…Huh?”

The sound that came from my mouth was incomprehensible even to myself.

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Authors Note

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Bartfort couple divorce crisis. Homage to parts in the original where sequel Leon did not know about Hertrauda’s existence or that multiple magic flutes existed. The otome world is harsh; no matter which country you are born in, war seems unavoidable, so I thought it sufficient as material to persuade the Duke. There are still various troublesome points, but they are carried over to the next chapter.

Addendum: At the requester’s request, illustrations by shii-sama and -sama. Thank you very much.

shii-sama: Pixiv  

mataaoune-sama: Pixiv (adult content warning)

I would be encouraged by your thoughts and impressions.