Dye Yourself in My Colors
Around this time, a single faction took shape within House Kruzenstein. It was the Torgenberg faction.
Composed of former commanders from the Torgenberg Duchy, it was, in essence, the successor to the old royalist camp.
Among them, Adelheid von Ignati was granted an additional hundred and twenty thousand gok of land for the capture of the imperial princess—territory vast enough to field roughly three thousand soldiers.
Franz Meyer's own standing rose with it, for he had been the one to recommend her. More than that, the Torgenberg faction's great achievement left the whole group feeling its influence swell.
The moment Adelheid's merit secured the princess, the family's line of advance was fixed. Toward the heart of the Empire. Westward.
If House Kruzenstein simply marched on the imperial capital of its own accord, the act would be usurpation—treason. But if it marched with the princess in hand, the same campaign became the enthronement of a new emperor: the deed of a loyal subject.
We've got the princess. Politically, the advantage is ours. The real problem isn't political superiority—it's military superiority…
Politically, House Kruzenstein stood closer than anyone to becoming the world's master. Militarily, three mountains still barred its path: House Ambrosia in the center, House Carter in the west, and House Albrecht in the east.
There were dark horses besides, but for the moment only those three houses could claim national power greater than Kruzenstein's.
Franz Meyer already knew the truth, though. Leona would topple all three and become the continent's hegemon.
The quest given to Franz Meyer, however, was not "become the continent's hegemon." It was "unify the continent." He had to go further than the original story.
Simply following the fixed future isn't enough. I have to change it.
And to change the future, he needed power. More power than he held now—vast, overwhelming power.
"My lord."
Leona von Kruzenstein called to me from the garden of Kruzenstein Castle. She was not in her usual armor, but in a single thin nightgown, fanning herself. The unseasonable heat had flushed her face.
"Ah, Sir Franz. You've come."
"Yes."
It was a garden, so no other retainers were present—only a few bodyguards and maids. Through the thin fabric of Leona's nightgown, pale skin showed in glimpses. I couldn't help but tense. In more ways than one.
"The day is hot, yet you come in full armor. Aren't you sweltering?"
"I ascended at my lord's command. I thought it only proper to present myself in attire befitting that summons."
"Stiff, aren't you. House Setia might care for such things, but House Kruzenstein has little love for empty ceremony. We were never so grand a house to begin with—my great-grandfather's generation were ordinary clergy. Without the chaos of the age, we could have died and been reborn a hundred times and never become great lords like this. So when you deal with me, don't be so rigid."
At those words I glanced around before I could stop myself, wondering if anyone had overheard. Leona only smirked.
"Why so startled? It isn't a secret. Don't tell me you actually believed the propaganda—that House Kruzenstein goes about claiming we are a cadet branch of some great house, and that people swallow it?"
"My lord, please mind your words."
"Mind my words? Amusing. Hear me, all of you! House Kruzenstein was, in truth, a family of clergy!"
"M-my lord!"
I raised my voice, but Leona did not stop.
"Yet in the civil war of my great-grandfather's day we won victory after victory and rose like lightning—and that is the House Kruzenstein of today! Do you all understand?"
"…"
"See? No one reacts. None of them are fools. Even without studying history, everyone already knows that much."
"Even so, a house has its dignity."
"Dignity, is it."
She sat back down.
"How long do you mean to stand there? Sit comfortably."
"But where—"
"Anywhere by the grass. Plant your backside wherever you like."
"…"
I sat more or less at random. My clothes would be ruined, but a lord's command left no room for argument.
"Franz Meyer. If you've heard the rumors, you already know I despise empty formality. Form cannot save the world. It is nothing but a device for people who have nothing to be proud of but their house—so they can feel superior."
"…"
I did not agree with Leona's words. But I understood perfectly why she thought that way. From childhood, her mother and younger sister had scorned and hated her while placing great weight on etiquette; her dislike of formality was pure reaction. And in the end, the one who had won was the girl who had cultivated ability rather than ceremony. How deep must that resentment run?
"Dignity, etiquette, seniority—none of it helps you win. Raise the capable. Dismiss the incapable. That alone is enough to keep a house running efficiently."
It was a frontal denial of everything I had been taught. Yet I could not refute her. Because she was my lord? No. Because her life itself proved her words true.
"But you are far too stiff. I suppose that is natural. House Meyer is a distinguished line in its own right, and you will have been drilled thoroughly. Recognize, however, that the situation has changed. You are no longer a vassal of Setia. You are a vassal of Kruzenstein. You are mine now. So…"
She came toward me. Very slowly. Then she laid her hand against my face.
"Dye yourself in my colors. Do that, and you will receive still greater favor from me."
"…"
"…"
A stretch of silence made the air awkward. Her face was redder than before. The unseasonable heat, no doubt.
"Ahem. Ahem. Well—enough of that. Let us move to the real matter."
"Y-yes."
She spent a moment straightening her clothes. The nightgown seemed to bother her. Then why not change into ordinary dress from the start? The thought crossed my mind, but I kept it off my tongue. Then she spoke.
"House Kruzenstein has toppled its longtime rival, Setia. No power remains in this region that can threaten us. What should we do next?"
"Carry out internal administration of the occupied lands—prevent rebellion and win the hearts of the common people."
"My thoughts exactly. The problem, however, is what kind of internal policy to pursue. Kruzenstein and Setia differ enormously in their approach to governance. Setia is conservative and strict about order; Kruzenstein is open and concerned with practical gain. Between two wholly different regions, which should we center on, and in what direction should we guide change? That is the question before us."
Internal administration. A difficult problem. If I merely recited what Leona had done in the actual game, it would not be hard—and that alone would earn a solid score. But I was greedy. I had prepared a scheme for precisely this moment.
"First, restrict the Church's privileges."
"The Church?"
"Yes. The Church has sunk deep roots into the Torgenberg Duchy. The reason is simple. Henrik von Setia, who had no power base of his own, drew in the Church to consolidate his authority and weaken House Ignati. But you, Lady Leona, already hold the ultimate power—the imperial house itself. You have no need of help from an outside force like the Church."
"…True enough."
"Cut off the vast support flowing to the Church. Abolish the old power structure in which Church and nobility collected taxes together, and channel every tax into House Kruzenstein. That alone will markedly increase the Torgenberg Duchy's productive capacity."
She nodded, a hint of admiration in the gesture. In truth, it could only be the correct answer. It was exactly what she had done in the game's story.
"Next…"
"Next?"
"Relocate the capital."
"Relocate?"
"Torgenberg Castle is a natural fortress shielded by the terrain itself. That is why House Setia, despite fielding a weak army that was strong only in numbers, could withstand your powerful assaults. But if you—already possessed of formidable military strength—entrench yourself in Torgenberg Castle? No one in this world will be able to touch you."
"Hmm… That is true as well. And more: having succeeded in this war of conquest, I will have to distribute large tracts of land to my vassals as rewards. The direct holdings of the Kruzenstein Duchy will shrink of their own accord, and my territory will split between Kruzenstein and Torgenberg. So your real design is that I should simply hand the entire Kruzenstein Duchy to my vassals as rewards, move to Torgenberg myself, and turn all the surrounding lands into my personal demesne?"
"…!"
I was honestly startled. I had not thought that far—yet hearing it, she was right. I had merely laid out the choices she made in the game's story.
"You think rather deeply."
"Th-thank you."
But from here on, it was time to show my true worth. I would prove I had not transmigrated for nothing.
"One final scheme."
"What is it?"
"That would be…"
I told her the plan I had prepared in advance. When she had heard it all, Leona's face lit with open admiration.