A Diplomatic Taboo

"Prophet?"

I had just given a magnificent speech about war and whatnot in front of the crowds, right to the face of the imperial ambassador. But now, as the actual owner of this body, I was the one who had to deal with the aftermath. What on earth was I supposed to do? I had to think of something. The Karis ambassador's anger gauge was currently at its absolute limit. Naturally, my own survival instincts had also sharpened to a razor's edge, screaming at me that I was in deep, deep trouble.

"Prophet?"

But wait... is seeking asylum really such a bad thing? As long as a human being exists, they have rights. And doesn't that include the right to move somewhere else of their own free will? I'd just be moving a little further away than usual. Hypothetically speaking, if I were to seek asylum, what should I pack? I'm not actually going to do it, of course, but there's no harm in imagining. First, I'd deposit all my money in the bank, and then—

"...Prophet!"

A high-pitched voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked up to find Yerin holding my face between her hands.

"Did you really mean what you said to the ambassador earlier?"

"Of... of course."

"I was actually a little scared..."

Well, I'm about to die because of it. Oblivious to my internal panic, she beamed brightly.

"But you have a plan, right?"

"Of... of course."

My mouth moved on autopilot. My mind was a complete blank, but Yerin's eyes sparkled as she nodded in admiration.

"That's a relief. I was worried... and thinking about what we should do with the ambassador if things went south."

Do something with the ambassador? Like what?

"I mean, it's highly unusual, but the ambassador came this time without any escort knights—just a few servants. So I was wondering if we should just 'snip-snap' him to keep his mouth shut."

My mind froze at her words.

"But then again, no country kills an ambassador."

No country kills an ambassador.

To be precise, "never" is not a fixed, immutable law of the universe. Just because it hasn't happened in the past doesn't mean it can't happen in the future. Right now, the Elium Kingdom was in an exceptional situation. And in exceptional situations, it was only natural for exceptional things to happen.

If the ambassador died... it would take time for the information to reach the empire. Amidst the chaos and the time it would take for their communication network to reorganize, we could make our move. Whether we prepared diplomatically, sorted out our internal affairs, or even reorganized our front lines—it would buy us invaluable time.

I stared at her quietly. Yerin was still smiling innocently. But to talk about 'snip-snapping' an ambassador so casually... For some reason, her bright smile was starting to look a little terrifying. I made a mental note to never get on her bad side.

Avoiding her gaze, I spoke.

"...An ambassador is an ambassador."

"Killing one is a diplomatic taboo. However..."

"The fact that no country does it simply means no one has dared to try."

Yerin's eyes went wide. She seemed to grasp the hidden meaning behind my words.

"...So, are we really going to 'snip-snap' him?"

"No."

"We won't kill him."

Then, I whispered softly.

"...At least, not ourselves."

In my opinion, diplomacy is not about submission. (And this was absolutely not an excuse I was making up to pathetically justify my actions.) A nation's power might be weak. But a nation must still know how to bluff with dignity—especially in a public forum, under the watchful eyes of everyone. Even if you bow your head behind closed doors, you must keep your chin up in front of your people. We had to show those who relied on this kingdom that Elium was a nation worthy of respect. That was the bare minimum of courtesy we owed to the citizens who placed their trust in us. We couldn't let them fall into anxiety.

Because people didn't just see me as an individual; they saw this country through me.

"So, what is it you're trying to say...?"

Justice, who was standing in front of me, interrupted the heavy atmosphere with a question.

I pressed my finger firmly against a point on the map, then dragged it to trace a line to another location.

"Reroute the carriage along this path."

The ambassador smugly finished his preparations to depart. He had been utterly dazed by the shock yesterday, but after a night's sleep, his calculating mind had started working again. The Elium Kingdom wouldn't dare harm him. After all, this country placed a heavy emphasis on 'diplomacy.'

When he arrived at the loading dock and saw the massive piles of food stacked next to his carriage, the last lingering scowl vanished from his face.

"As expected, those kingdom bastards are all talk..."

The ambassador clicked his tongue, muttering to himself.

"They were going to prepare all of this anyway. Yesterday was nothing but a political show. I almost feel sorry for their citizens."

Despite his arrogant words, his footsteps were hurried. Unbidden, the scene from yesterday flashed in his mind. Countless people placing their hands over their hearts, reaching out toward a single man standing on the balcony. It looked like a display of loyalty where they were offering up their very hearts. An overwhelming, almost abnormal level of support.

The lingering image made him hasten his steps toward the carriage. Because of his haste, he failed to properly check the coachman and the servants accompanying the carriage.

"We have the food, so that's enough. Let's go. I don't want to stay here a second longer."

As the carriage began to move, he drew the window curtains shut. The glares of the citizens lining the streets made him uncomfortable. It was pure, unadulterated hostility. But the ambassador didn't care. All he had to do was reach the empire. Once he was back, it would be his stage. He planned to poison the Emperor's ear with every horrible thing he could say about Elium. Food? A measly offering like this wasn't nearly enough to appease his anger.

"Hurry up!" he muttered under his breath, gritting his teeth.

Just you wait, Doyunes. I will personally carve your name into the Emperor's ears. It's too late for regrets now. I'll make sure your tribute demands are doubled. You must have gotten fat and comfortable over here, hehehe.

The carriage rolled smoothly out of the castle gates.

The night after the audience with the ambassador.

After agonizing over my conversation with Yerin, I finally made up my mind. I hadn't wanted to play this card. The risk was too high. But the risk had already materialized. When risk management has already failed, what was the point of trying to play it safe anymore? It was time to use everything at my disposal.

When the imperial ambassador first arrived, I had sensed something strange. Considering the distance between the Karis Empire and our kingdom, it made no sense for him to arrive at this exact timing. It was almost as if he had set out knowing beforehand that a surprise war was about to break out.

However, looking at the ambassador's behavior, and considering that the Taland Empire—which had launched the surprise attack—was a superpower easily on par with the Karis Empire, the likelihood of him knowing about the war in advance was very low.

In that case, let's make a different assumption. What if they were facing a situation that required a massive consumption of food? What if they needed external procurement, which ultimately led them to Elium?

In the game's lore, there was another event that occurred in the Karis Empire around the same time as the surprise war.

The so-called "Barbarian Massacre."

An internal purge to eradicate the last remaining "impurity" within their borders—the barbarians. What I had once dismissed as a minor event might actually be a very big deal.

If we allowed this food to fall into the hands of the Karis Empire under these circumstances, it would give them the breathing room to "clean up" one of their dual fronts. The empire would regain its stability and concentrate its military might on the remaining front. The scales of a war that, in the original history, had been a tense stalemate with Karis holding a slight advantage, would tilt drastically in their favor.

There would be absolutely no room for an ultra-weak nation like the Elium Kingdom to intervene.

Normally, that is.

But things were different now. Elium now had a perfect justification. The imperial ambassador had insulted and looked down upon the citizens of our kingdom. As the High Priest of the kingdom, holding supreme authority over its economy, politics, religion, and various other affairs, I could hardly overlook such insolence.

The empire was still a tiger. However, it was a tiger that had been starving for days. Its claws were sharp, but its ribs were showing.

In that case, I had to exploit that weakness to the absolute limit.

"Prepare a letter."

The unpaid administrative slaves paused their busy hands and looked up.

"...Where should we send it, my Lord?"

"To the Baba tribe."

"To the barbarians?"

"Yes."

"But the Baba tribe... aren't they a minority group within the empire? There shouldn't be anyone in the Elium Kingdom who knows ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠their language. Let me ask around and see if—"

Without a word, I picked up a pen.

"There is no need for a linguist."

Language was not an issue. The imperial ambassador had spoken in pure Karis imperial tongue, not Elium. Yet, I had conversed with him without the slightest difficulty. This proved that I possessed no language barriers in this world.

Pax quietly brought over some parchment. As she poured me a cup of coffee, she placed it near my fingertips, her gaze filled with curiosity. I immediately set the pen to paper.

The complex, metaphysical characters unique to the Baba tribe began to etch themselves onto the parchment.

The empire would eventually eradicate the Baba tribe. This was not a matter of faith or ideology; their very existence was a threat. Much like how America had swept away the Native Americans in the past. The only difference was that while America wanted the land, the Karis Empire feared the raw strength of the Baba tribe itself—to the point of calling their campaign against a minority group a "war."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I wrote the first sentence.

To the Chieftain of the Savages...

Scratch, scratch. I crumpled the paper and started over. Spending too much time around these racist medieval folks was rotting my brain.

The imperial ambassador would, unfortunately, meet his end in an attack by a passing band of barbarians. It would be nothing more than an unexpected tragedy on the road. No one could ever label it a "planned assassination," because no one could prove it. Furthermore, the carriage just so happened to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠be loaded with the food Elium was sending as tribute at the Karis Empire's request.

Oh, dear. What a shame.

Politically speaking, the blame would fall entirely on the Baba tribe, allowing Elium to wash its hands of the matter. Best of all, we would be giving the empire a massive middle finger. Of course, I had no intention of avoiding war. The incident in the plaza was far too grand; word of it would eventually reach the Emperor's ears anyway. War was inevitable.

And if war was going to happen regardless, then we would be the ones to initiate it—at the moment when the empire was at its weakest, and from a position and environment that favored Elium more than anyone else.

Pax's eyes widened as she read what I had written.

"Surely, you don't mean... with the Karis Empire?"

I nodded and spoke.

"I am giving you a mission. For the time being, you are excused from all paperwork."

"Take responsibility and prepare about ten thousand Apprentice Priests of the church so they can deploy at a moment's notice. And Pax, Justice, Blue."

At my call, they answered in unison, their voices booming.

"Yes, Lord Prophet!"

"As of this moment, you are promoted to official Priests of the church."

"Th-thank you!"

"Thank you, Lord Prophet."

Their faces lit up with joy. I nodded in approval.

Ooh, praise be to Ifrit!

Wait, aren't you guys a little too happy? Is it really just because of the promotion?

"Since you were part of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the revolutionary army, you must have skills you honed there."

"Guerrilla warfare, mobile warfare—that is your specialty."

"Pax will temporarily take on the role of Senior Priest and team leader. The other two will support her. Begin your training immediately."

Conveniently, the armaments sent from Franz had arrived in Elium at the perfect time. On top of that, there was a skill I had been wondering when to use.

The day to use this was not far off.

"One week. Make sure you finish everything and return within that time."