Chapter 246
Chapter 246
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 246
Chapter Title: Invasion of Warsaw (3)
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Warsaw Grand Duchy, Royal Palace Conference Room
Normally, unless something truly extraordinary occurred, the Grand Duke of Warsaw adhered to the principle that displaying anger was unbecoming of his dignity and grace.
Even when a servant had spilled wine on his brand-new ceremonial robe that had cost three hundred gold, twisting his guts with frustration, he had gently reproved the offender in a soft voice rather than raising a shout—such was the mild temperament of this sovereign.
Yet today, Stefan von Batory, the Grand Duke of Warsaw and twelfth in the line of succession to the princely title, was breaking that principle for once. In front of the assembled nobles, he bellowed at the top of his lungs.
"That damned Peter Jaeger bastard is one thing, but how can lowly bureaucrats be this arrogant and corrupt! If you lot have mouths attached to your faces, then spit out some excuse! Do it!"
With that roar, Grand Duke Batory hurled his empty glass to the floor. It shattered with a crash, shards flying everywhere.
This was an outburst of fury unfit for a king of a nation to display before the core figures of its military and administration—generals, ministers, and great nobles.
Yet no one in the room could bring themselves to tell the Grand Duke to calm down.
Having made the atmosphere even more tense with the breaking glass, the Grand Duke lowered his gaze, then snapped it back up, glaring at Count Hunyadi as if he would grab the man by the collar if no eyes were watching.
"Count Hunyadi! The corruption in the coastal cities and villages under your jurisdiction is beyond imagination! A mere village head raking in two hundred gold! A bailiff with a thousand, and one of the inspectors—some madman—hoarding ten thousand gold in bribes! If you've got anything to say with that gaping mouth of yours, say it! And he's the Chief Inspector, no less!"
Count Hunyadi, the first target of the reprimand, felt an overwhelming sense of injustice that left him speechless.
After all, countless other nobles were entangled in this corruption besides himself, and he had simply been unlucky enough to be the first one named, singled out as the representative to take the heat.
So he shot a pleading signal toward Marquis Radom, the head of his faction... but the marquis pretended not to notice and shook his head slowly.
It was a signal that there was no way he could cover for him—handle it alone and die quietly.
"What excuse could I possibly offer, Your Highness? I accept full responsibility. I shall resign all my public offices immediately and accept any punishment you deem fit."
"Is that so? At least our Chief Inspector has some shame left. Very well, let's proceed right away."
With those words, the conference room doors swung open, and dozens of administrative officials from the Inspectorate, clad in silver armor, poured in.
They seized the arms of Count Hunyadi, the Chief Inspector, and several other nobles.
"By order of His Highness the Grand Duke, we place you under arrest. We ask for your cooperation."
Caught completely off guard, the nobles whose arms were grabbed protested loudly, their faces filled with fear and indignation.
"Do you even know who you're arresting, you scum! I am Major General Jan von Konin, commander of the 1st Legion of the Warsaw Grand Duchy!"
"I have no idea what evidence you have to arrest me! You there—what's your rank and name?"
"Your Highness! This is a misunderstanding! We are innocent! Spare us! Release us! We can explain everything!"
Meanwhile, the remaining nobles who had escaped arrest this time tried to protest to the Grand Duke that this was going too far...
But the Grand Duke ignored them all.
The Inspectorate officials who had entered placed stacks of reports about fifty centimeters high on the conference table.
Atop the pile was written [Warsaw Grand Duchy Noble Inspection Progress Report], and summary copies were distributed to the attending nobles who had avoided arrest.
The Grand Duke shouted at the nobles reading their copies, his voice thick with rage.
"Blood and Intestines, you took five hundred gold in exchange for pulling strings to promote the second son of the mayor of Swibsk to captain! Minister of Justice of Kalisz! You covered up the madness of Marquis Radom's only son raping a low noble's daughter after getting drunk! Is this what nobles who have served the Warsaw Grand Duchy for generations do?"
These were facts they had hidden well enough that they wouldn't normally come to light.
However, after Major Jaeger submitted ledgers of local officials' secret corrupt crimes through his spy operating covertly within Warsaw...
The Inspectorate agents cast a spell on the guilty local officials that made them want to confess everything, revealing the crimes for which they had bribed their superiors.
One confession led to another, dragging even the sins of those at the pinnacle of noble society into the open.
Having said that much, the Grand Duke could no longer contain his fury and ground his teeth.
"For insulting Deus and me, you and your families will pay dearly! You damned bastards! Drag them away and interrogate them at leisure—now!!"
At his command, the Inspectorate officials and knights dragged out the nobles who, until moments ago, had lorded near the top of Warsaw's hierarchical pyramid, basking in wealth and glory.
They wailed desperately, clutching at any slim chance of survival as they were hauled away.
"Your Highness, consider the loyalty my family has shown all these years and forgive us just once! Please, have mercy!"
"Your Highness, this is all a frame-up! It's that Peter Jaeger's scheme! Don't fall for it!"
"I am innocent—give me a chance to prove it!"
Listening to their voices as they were dragged out, the Grand Duke thought it might indeed be someone's scheme.
However, the ledgers that lower nobles in the Inspectorate and administration had supposedly obtained by chance were all verified as genuine.
And further investigation confirmed that the contents matched every crime, so as a monarch, he could not ignore it.
As the nobles were hauled away, a chilling atmosphere like a blizzard swept over the remaining people...
"Hah. According to the Deputy Chief Inspector's investigation, the ones who compiled those ledgers were in 'collusion' with that infernal Jaeger commander. They were promised lavish pensions beyond their station, plus perks like good marriage matches and academy admissions... With so many traitors breeding inside our own country, how can we hope to win a war!"
The Grand Duke cried out like that, then spent the next fifteen minutes cursing the traitors and their instigator Peter Jaeger, calling them all Satan-spawn born from men coupling with men back three generations.
The surviving nobles desperately chimed in to appease the Grand Duke, whose eyes were rolling in righteous fury.
As his anger gradually subsided through their flattery, Batory remembered that those still here were relatively clean and reined in his remaining wrath.
"The situation is dire, but what can be done? I can't entrust my army to unreliable, corrupt fools. Those confirmed guilty and dragged away are relieved of duty effective immediately and will face strict investigation. Does anyone object?"
"I agree with Your Highness. But that will leave too many vacancies—how do you plan to fill them?"
At those words, the eyes of the remaining nobles sparkled.
The arrested ones were as good as dead—best to pray for their souls—but who filled their spots was a matter of life, political standing, and survival for themselves, their families, and factions.
"If you know suitable candidates, recommend them. We'll review quickly and assign posts."
At the Grand Duke's casual remark, as if he'd cast off all burdens, the survivors inwardly toasted their fortune while sharpening knives to finish off rival factions.
'No matter what, our faction must claim more seats than Marquis Radom's—better ones too. Otherwise, we might get saddled with the purged fools' screw-ups.'
'We must outpace Marquis Usuf's faction at any cost. Fail, and we could be purged next. Losing the war hurts bad, but losing this faction war endangers the entire house.'
"I'm in no mood for state affairs today, so I'll rest. Recommend suitable personnel, and I'll do a preliminary review. You have three days for division chief level and above. Village heads get a month—handle it well."
With that, the Grand Duke slammed the door on his way out.
Afterward, he drank heavily and spent the night in wild passion with his new concubines, only rising the next afternoon to console himself from the shock.
Everything had unfolded exactly as Major Jaeger intended.