The Fuse of the Great War
I don't particularly trust medieval people. ...Ah, except for those of the Elium Kingdom and the Church, of course.
The geographical advantage of being located at the center of the continent was both a blessing and a curse for the Elium Kingdom. I'm not talking about trade. I'm sick to death of that topic by now. The real issue was the balance of power.
Five kingdoms surrounded us: Zenith, Franz, Ilium, Cross, and Orion. These five kingdoms surrounding the growing Elium Kingdom meant that if we ever went to war with one, the others could stab us in the back at any moment.
Looked at this way, it was a disadvantage. But the reverse was also true. The advantage was just as clear. The reason the Elium Kingdom hadn't been swallowed up despite being a weak nation was precisely because of these five surrounding kingdoms.
If any one kingdom went to war with Elium, they faced the risk of a third kingdom swooping in to devour both weakened nations. That fear created a mutual deterrence.
Though, despite that, we've already had two wars. Given that the Elium Kingdom was destined to vanish in the future, it meant this balance of power was slowly but surely reaching its end.
In the end, the logic that holds true in both medieval and modern times is the same: military might, raw power. The law that forces everyone to keep their promises and respect one another.
Through two wars, the Elium Kingdom had proven it was no longer a weak nation, and we had gained a degree of economic freedom through Holy Water.
Elium was no longer a super-super-super-super-weak nation. We could be proud. We were now merely a super-super-super-weak nation.
It was a peaceful time, with the paperwork nearly finished.
"Kill meee— The, the paperwork is—"
Anyway, it was peaceful.
Having finished my share of the documents, I was thinking of taking a break. I could feel the political situation of the surrounding kingdoms growing unstable, but surely I could afford a brief moment of rest? I was just about to call Yerin and stuff her cheeks full of delicious food when—
Someone rushed toward the office and immediately pounded on the door.
Bang, bang!
...The sound of the knock was highly ominous. It felt like a familiar pattern I had experienced before.
Bang, bang!
Another urgent knock echoed. The eyes of the slaves—who had been working their hands to the bone—all turned toward the door. I couldn't keep them waiting outside forever, so I gave permission to enter. No way. Surely not. Please, just tell me the price of Holy Water crashed and the economy is ruined instead.
"Prophet... It—it's war!"
I squeezed my eyes shut at those words. My hopes were ruthlessly shattered. Still, clinging to a sliver of hope, I kept my eyes closed and asked, "Where?"
"In the south. The Krits Kingdom launched a surprise attack without a declaration of war, and the Taland Empire has—"
"…That's enough. You don't have to say any more."
Even though I had heard the news that it wasn't our kingdom, my voice remained dark. In fact, it was much darker. Because I remembered this war.
The surprise war between Krits and Taland. The beginning of the Great Game that would drag the entire continent into chaos. This was the exact point described in the historical lore of the game's intro cinematic, right before the actual strategy game began.
The war was merely the beginning. The real problem lay afterward. The Empire would move. This couldn't be stopped. No, it was impossible to stop. It was the flow of the world. It wasn't as if Elium, a super-super-super-weak nation, could march up to a superpower and shout, "Stop the violence!" like some school anti-bullying campaign.
The critical issue lay elsewhere. During this war, the Karis Empire would awaken to its own true power. Its vast territory, abundant resources, massive population, and peak magitech.
Until now, they had been too focused on domestic affairs to project their power outward. But things were different now. The foundation was laid, and it was time for their inward gaze to turn outward. And right on cue, one of their vassal states sent a signal.
“Help us.”
Help. Exquisite timing. Moreover, they had a justification. Krits' undeclared surprise attack. And behind them stood the Taland Empire, the rival Karis despised the most. The moral high ground was entirely on Karis's side.
Would they let this pass? If it were me, I would throw myself into it with everything I had. And my anxiety soon became reality. A communication arrived stating that an ambassador from the Karis Empire had departed for the Elium Kingdom.
On the surface, the message read: 'We express our regrets regarding the surprise war and outline our justification. We expect Elium's cooperation in this conflict.' This was no request for cooperation. In reality, it was an order. Both they and we knew very well that it could not be refused.
Furthermore... there was no way the Empire was ignorant of the grain Elium had recently purchased with the funds earned from the previous wars. Seeing that the message explicitly demanded grain support, I slammed my forehead straight onto the desk. I want to seek asylum.
I leaked rumors. That the ambassador of the Karis Empire was coming. The exact time, the size of his entourage, and the purpose of his visit. It was information that would have spread even if I hadn't leaked it, since he had been causing scenes in every village he passed through on his way here.
However, there was a vast difference in impact between me simply tolerating it and actively spreading the rumors myself. He had forcibly extorted crops under the guise of "gifts," forced village chiefs to kneel on the ground because the food didn't suit the delegation's tastes, and in one village, he had even drawn his sword.
The entire Elium Kingdom was flooded with articles about him. Normally, we should have suppressed these articles to avoid giving the Empire any pretext to complain. But I didn't stop them. I left everything as it was. I let the citizens of Elium see with their own eyes how the Empire treated us.
And, finally, the delegation of the Karis Empire entered the capital.
He seemed to believe that no one in this kingdom would dare lay a finger on him. Indeed, he entered the capital without a single knight escorting him. Unarmed, with only a few servants in tow. Yet his steps were slow, and his attitude was arrogant, as if this country were already beneath his feet.
Even the Queen showed him courtesy when receiving him. But he didn't care for any etiquette or protocol. Armed with nothing but his title of ambassador, he swept through the palace as if he were walking into his own living room.
After a brief audience with the Queen, he came straight to find me. Pushing the door open, his voice filled the room.
“Kaimu Doyunes.”
The air in the room shifted with that single name. Without breaking his gaze, he slowly scanned me from head to toe. “You must be well aware that this war is no ordinary affair.”
I nodded. “Yes, I am aware.”
He let out a short laugh. “So you're no fool. I won't beat around the bush. Elium won't last long anyway. You know this, don't you?”
“A pathetic size. A cursed location. You are far too wasted to remain in a country like Elium.”
“Come to the Karis Empire. I will give you a position, authority, a title... everything.”
Those words... in the past, they might have swayed me. Actually, they did sway me. Just for a split second. Ahem. But there were too many eyes watching me for that. Eyes that looked as if they would sink into the earth if I uttered even a single word of agreement.
I walked over to the terrace. Misinterpreting my movement as a sign of agreement, he lowered his voice to a much softer tone. “I heard you are a man who follows justice.”
“Justice is about keeping faith. And faith can only be kept when one has power.”
“But Elium right now...” He trailed off, his lips curling upward. The sarcasm was loud and clear even without being spoken. He wanted to say we had 'betrayed our faith.'
I pondered what to say for a moment, then gave up. In any case, I had reached my desired position. The edge of the terrace, right where the curtains hung. I slowly turned around.
“…Did you say faith?”
The curtains were drawn back.
The plaza was already packed with people. The stories spread through the newspapers, the commotions they had created themselves—all of it was fueling the rage of the citizens of Elium. I slowly turned back toward the ambassador. Not a single soul welcomed him.
"Faith is..."
"Whoaaa—!"
"Raaaaah—!"
The moment he revealed himself, the plaza shook. The air vibrated as if an earthquake had struck, and the ambassador stumbled, losing his balance.
I looked at him and said in a low voice, "…That is not what faith is."
He stared at me, but the arrogance that had filled his eyes when he first entered was gone. Instead, his gaze drifted toward the crowd beyond the terrace. The ambassador swallowed hard. This was an atmosphere that shouldn't exist for anyone but the Emperor of the Empire. Yet, right now, the crowd was pouring their absolute loyalty not toward an emperor, but toward this man standing before him.
As I slowly clenched my fist, the cheers of the plaza surged like a wave and then died down. In that silence, I slowly opened my mouth. I wasn't trying to say sweet, empty words. I was only speaking the truth.
“I am faith, I am the people, I am the spokesperson... and I...”
At that moment, his eyes met mine. I paused for a brief second, then quietly added,
“…am the state itself.”
I turned my head to look at the citizens and spoke again. “The ambassador of the Empire has arrived.”
Just one sentence. But it was enough. The citizens of Elium already knew what those words meant. That we had always been plundered, and they had always been the plunderers.
Silence. This war, that war—none of them were any different. The only difference was the scale. A trigger? Unnecessary. A motive? Anything would do. The fan in my hand fell onto the stone floor of the terrace. A short, clear metallic ring. It was the signal.
At that moment—
"War!"
"War!"
The chants erupted. The crowd shouted in unison, their voices echoing across the plaza.
Someone shouted in a voice mixed with resentment. "Damn it... do you really think you can defeat the Empire? You leech-like kingdom bastards!" The words, flying quietly through the air, pricked the people's emotions like sharp needles.
I slowly opened my mouth. Every eye turned toward me. Looking directly at the ambassador, I said, “Ambassador, it has indeed been a very long time.”
“A relationship that has persisted as if we were master and servant.”
“Under the guise of 'requests,' our food was plundered, and in worse cases, even our people were taken.”
He stared at me, a sneer playing in his eyes. "S-So what of it?!"
“Therefore,” I cut him off.
“Let us decide once more. Who is the master, and who is the servant.”
Though he didn't move an inch, his eyes shook slightly.
“And who the victor standing at the top will be.”
I took a step forward and stood right in front of him. “That... will be decided not by the Empire, but by this land.”
Taking a deep breath, I delivered my final words. “Go back to your Empire and tell them this: Elium will never submit.”
...I've done it now.
I heard the sounds echoing from outside. Before I knew it, the chants had changed.
"Salute Lord Kaimu Doyunes!"
"Glory to the Elium Kingdom!"
"Long live the Ifrit Church!"
Acting Capable of Deceiving Even Demons is currently active.
[The Mustache Demon King wears a satisfied smile.]
Joseph Hitler: "You've really done it now!"
I only wanted to scare him a bit to gain the upper hand in negotiations, but the situation had flown off to a place billions of light-years away from what I had intended. It's my own fault for humoring that warmonger.