Chapter 277
Chapter 277
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 277
Chapter Title: Merit Awards
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Reich Empire Imperial Palace, Grand Conference Hall.
By convention, the ministers from the Ministry of Military Affairs—like the Minister of Military Affairs—and the Ministry of Justice—like the Minister of Justice—should arrive well before the emperor and await his arrival.
Summoning busy ministers and making them wait idly for the emperor might seem a bit inefficient, but there was a reason for it.
A minister arriving at the conference hall later than the emperor was, naturally, something that absolutely should not happen. It was a show of loyalty, demonstrating that the empire's ministers were always ready to answer the emperor's call at any moment.
However, the newly ascended Emperor Michael von Reich broke with this tradition, choosing instead to enter the conference hall at the same time as the ministers.
Seeing this, some ministers showed surprise at the breach of convention, but no one disliked it.
After all, it was far better to wrap up official business as quickly as possible and head to the banquet hosted by the emperor to drink and revel heartily than to wait around doing nothing under the pretext of tradition.
"I, Michael von Reich, the 23rd Emperor of the Reich Empire, solemnly swear before Deus today to fairly handle the merits and punishments of those who greatly distinguished themselves in the conquest of Warsaw. Do you ministers also swear before Deus to harbor no personal feelings or corrupt intentions?"
At those words, the ministers replied in unison.
"Yes, Your Majesty. We vow to set aside all personal thoughts and judge solely based on clear facts."
With the formal exchange of greetings concluded, attendants from the imperial palace next distributed documents summarizing the achievements of the generals who had participated in the recent battle.
As stacks of documents were placed at each seat, the emperor and all the others quietly began reviewing their contents.
The emperor and ministers had approached the reading with the resolve to maintain their composure this time—no matter what "Peter Jaeger antics" might appear in Peter Jaeger's reports—aiming to process everything with dignified poise without any surprise or fluster.
But that determination crumbled after just three minutes.
"Division Commander Jaeger pulled it off again. Fighting an enemy force fifty thousand stronger than ours and slaughtering sixty thousand of them? No one miscounted the twos or threes here, right?"
"That naval battle at Griffino Sea? It's enough to rewrite the entire Imperial Navy doctrine. Encircling an enemy fleet three times their number by using islands to their advantage, then recruiting local fishermen for a fire attack? Is this really a strategy a human could devise?"
"Sinking ninety-seven out of one hundred and twenty enemy ships? What on earth do you have to do to rack up results like that?"
Emperor Michael of the empire, seated slightly higher than the ministers and looking down upon them, kept smiling silently with his mouth corners nearly reaching his ears.
In his heart, he wanted to boast outright, "Peter Jaeger is the talent I personally scouted back when I was crown prince!" But he held back, knowing that siding too openly with Count Jaeger might provoke backlash among the ministers.
'The Minister of Military Affairs said that even our Division Commander Jaeger might have lost at Griffino Sea, and suggested preparing contingencies in case a single defeat led to his discharge from the military. All that effort went to waste.'
Over twenty thousand gold had already been spent on maneuvers to protect Peter Jaeger's position. It had all come to nothing.
Yet for Michael, this victory had solidified his power base even further, so the twenty thousand gold lost on insurance felt trivial—his mood was too euphoric to notice.
After roughly two hours, during which the emperor had reviewed the military merits of the eighty general-level candidates for rewards, the prime minister stood and spoke.
"The strategic gains the empire has secured from this victory are as follows: The Grand Duchy of Warsaw has completely lost access to the sea, while the Reich Empire has seized full control of the southern Baltic. This southern region is a vital trade hub with the Northern Continent of Europa and a rich fishing ground for vast quantities of herring, granting the empire economic benefits beyond monetary calculation."
Monopolizing maritime trade with the Kingdom of Stockholm and the Rus Federation states on the Northern Continent wouldn't amount to much compared to the empire's economic scale.
The Kingdom of Stockholm and Rus Federation nations were too cold for much besides furs, leaving them with few specialties and mired in poverty.
But by securing all of Warsaw's coastal areas, the empire now monopolized herring fishing—known as the "millet of the sea" in Europa. Manage distribution well, and it could feed every subject in the Reich Empire solely through herring alone.
The prime minister continued enumerating the economic, military, and diplomatic significance of the war's victory. Midway through, the ministers alternated between applauding the staggering achievements and wearing dazed expressions.
'Damn it, why can't my boy even match half of what that Jaeger punk does?'
'I used to feel jealous of Jaeger, but now? Nothing.'
'That bastard's set for forty years as Marshal. In other words, my son and grandson will die without ever making marshal.'
Once the explanation ended, the deeply moved emperor, impressed by Jaeger's exploits, clapped and said,
"As expected of Division Commander Jaeger! He's never disappointed me once! Now, Minister of Military Affairs—what do you think?"
"A great victory for the ages. He deserves generous rewards. However, there's no higher rank beyond division commander, so how about granting him lands and bonus gold?"
Hearing this, the emperor fell into thought.
'Considering the scale of Division Commander Jaeger's merits, I could push him straight to marshal if I strained a bit. But with his father-in-law, Marquis Venner, already holding marshal, no need to leapfrog him. Time to elevate his status a notch...'
"Peter Jaeger, Count, though a commoner orphan who cannot pass on loyalty through heirs, has merits each grand in scale. How about promoting him from count to marquis? We'd need to adjust the rewards accordingly."
Keitel, now Minister of Military Affairs, neither approved nor opposed, while the other ministers buzzed with discussion.
"Earl is one thing—plausible in a single bound. But marquis? Isn't that the highest title for nobles unconnected to the imperial family?"
"Don't you know one of Count Jaeger's wives is Her Highness Princess Louise, Minister of Finance?"
"Judging purely by merits, denying him marquis would be unfair, Minister of Justice. Think of the other soldiers' morale and the precedent this sets."
Michael watched the debate unfold, and as time passed, opinions generally coalesced in favor of promoting Division Commander Jaeger to marquis.
In truth, title promotions fell entirely under imperial authority. With Warsaw's navy and army annihilated and a grand duchy annexed to boot, any opponent would simply be branded a jealous malcontent.
With consensus reached, the prime minister summarized and presented it.
"Division Commander Peter Jaeger was appointed lieutenant general at twenty-five—a precedent rendering past cases irrelevant. The ministers support promoting Peter Jaeger Division Commander to marquis."
"Very well. Then allow me to propose my reward plan."
With that, Michael took a deep breath and continued.
"Promote Peter von Jaeger, Count, to marquis, and grant him the counties of Aarhus, Esbjerg, and Odense marquisate. Additionally, bestow 200,000 gold for territory development and 120,000 gold as bonus."
When Peter Jaeger had first acquired the north five years ago, it was near-barren wilderness needing development funds.
Now, the north was a viable territory, so nominally "development funds" were unnecessary—effectively handing him massive bonus gold under that guise.
No objections arose; before merits including the slaughter of over 100,000 enemies, none dared complain.
"Furthermore, to Laura von Venner, who commanded fishing boats as fire ships in the Griffino Sea Battle and led the knights' vanguard in the Griffino Plains to greatly contribute to victory, grant the baronies of Danzig and Jena, along with promotion to lieutenant general. To Viscountess Anastasia von Kerzhit, grant the viscounties of Leipzig and Flanders."
The emperor cleared his throat a few times and continued.
"All fishermen who shone in the Griffino Sea Battle and their families are formally freed from serfdom. Those who wish may undergo minimal training and enlist directly in the navy, or receive 20 gold. Their ranks and bonuses will be awarded separately based on thorough review of positions and contributions."
Discussions of merits and rewards continued thereafter, culminating in repatriation orders for the entire Warsaw Grand Duchy expeditionary force.