Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: I Won't Abandon a Single Citizen (4)
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Arrogant though she might be, she possessed talent to match, along with boldness and overflowing ambition. She was a talent who would surely become a great asset to the Empire in the future.
Yet despite all the endless praise from those around her, she had never once felt her heart stir.
It might come across as arrogant, but from her perspective, it was as natural as breathing.
She had begun understanding and applying military tactics at the tender age of just seven.
And at the outset of the war, she had seized control of the eastern front, securing supply lines and even advancing to besiege the capital itself.
She had certainly proven that her famed title was no mere flattery.
Without that man who had appeared like a comet, the kingdom wouldn't have lasted even a year.
Unshakable as a mountain, he had pierced through her strategies with bold insight. She had even felt a shiver at his desperate resolve against an evenly matched foe.
Though they had crossed blades as enemies, she couldn't deny his ability.
'I heard Lord Blackguard made a deal with my brother. Unless he asked to open the path, it doesn't make sense.'
The advantageous high ground they had solely captured had been lost due to the incompetent king's folly.
So now, surrender or fight to the death were the only options... And knowing that man, he would unhesitatingly choose the latter.
Loyalty deserved high praise, but in the end, it amounted to nothing more than a dog's death.
'Lord Blackguard at least knows the difference between recklessness and loyalty. So why is my brother hiding it instead of telling me?'
It was such a simple puzzle that anyone could solve it with just a moment's thought.
Yet her brother's reason for withholding the answer was obvious. He'd always taught her that way.
He never handed over answers directly but guided her to find them herself.
But in a situation where the answer was so blatant, it would only hurt feelings.
She was now a commander leading a great army... or so she had thought. Until the gates opened the next day.
Morgana was left utterly speechless by the incomprehensible sight.
The massive gates groaned open. The first sounds to reach her ears were the thunder of cavalry hooves and the clashing of metal.
Of course, they would gather the soldiers. They were the most vital resource in war.
But that was only a fraction. Soon, an unexpected throng followed like a surging tide.
Women, the elderly and infirm, children.
People who were nothing but baggage on a battlefield trailed behind.
The gray wave of humanity filled the road, marching at a painfully slow pace.
To her especially, it was an absurd scene that left her mind blank.
These weren't just the citizens of the earldom. There would be plenty from the east who had fled the war to seek refuge there.
With nearly all the eastern populace gathered, the number had to exceed 100,000 by far.
'He's taking all those people without abandoning a single one? Why make such an inefficient choice...?'
An army must move with utmost speed. A sluggish army consumes resources excessively,
and the enemy's defenses thicken with time, their vigilance rising sharply.
Especially now, during a retreat rather than an offensive. What they called citizens were little more than burdens.
How would they feed so many? How would they carry the supplies?
How long would it take to reach the capital, dragging along elders and children who could barely walk?
Yes, before the harsh logic of war, it was mere stubborn denial of reality. Some things had to be discarded.
That was what she had learned and believed until now. But that belief was thoroughly shattered.
By the very man—the sole rival she acknowledged—who had handed her her first defeat.
And he emerged last through the gates. A black-haired man with dark eyes, shouldering a jet-black greatsword.
Cain Blackguard.
When their eyes met, he gave a small nod of acknowledgment before hurrying to catch up.
The answer for the still-shocked princess came from none other than Second Prince Oren.
"That man demanded it as the price for releasing you."
"Keeping your promise so readily... That's hardly like you, brother. Have you been swept up in some heroic tale you read?"
"Do you know what that man wrote in his letter? He threatened that if you weren't released, he'd kill you and fight to the bitter end."
"You don't mean..."
"Yes, he'd make a last stand with his back to the river and fight desperately to the end."
A cornered rat will bite a cat. How much more a beast instead of a mere pup?
And for an imperial royal to die conquering a minor kingdom? It would cast doubt on the Empire's might.
It would be a long-term loss. Losing a talent immediately, and with a royal dead, retaliation would be inevitable.
That would give the alliance just cause to join the war.
Even now, the kingdom's clear provocation had split alliance opinions, preventing intervention.
But to not retaliate? The imperial authority would plummet.
'Above all, how many could remain calm after losing precious kin? Even we of dragon's blood are no exception.'
Just a letter, yet every line brimmed with desperate resolve.
And the stratagem that perfectly read the continent's situation, striking at its sore spots.
In the end, Second Prince Oren couldn't deny defeat. It wasn't just strategy; he'd been outclassed in magnanimity from the start.
With his precious kin already captured, he had no choice.
[...Thus, with my foolish mind, I humbly beseech Your Highness to uphold honor and, in His Majesty the Emperor's name, show mercy to these pitiful citizens, thereby exalting his fame for generations to come. I dare to implore with the fervor of one whose forehead bleeds against the earth.] "This is what Lord Blackguard himself wrote..."
"Threatening the imperial family deserves a hundred deaths. But what can one say to a man who drew his sword to save his people? Moreover, he humbly lowers himself at the end, considering the imperial dignity—truly, no fault to find. Ah, if you've finished reading, hand it over."
"...I'll keep this letter."
Princess Morgana, reading the letter herself, found herself admiring the intense emotion conveyed in the words.
The cold ruthlessness of gripping the hilt and stabbing at weaknesses. And contrasted with noble care for his citizens...
In that moment, the embers buried in her heart reignited fiercely.
'Cain Blackguard...'
I hope we meet again someday...
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Ah, fuck.
The regression had finally lifted. I sighed, recalling last night's events.
At first, I wondered if my hypothesis was wrong. But I soon realized it wasn't.
'Even writing a single letter proposing a deal couldn't be done lightly... Fuck.'
I'd started simply: release the princess, and we'd open the path.
But the reply demanded consideration, and right after receiving it, Defeat Regression triggered.
I ended up writing over 20 letters. Even that was barely passing, squeezing out every bit of knowledge like dried squid.
At least I'd firmly learned how crucial pushing and pulling was in negotiations.
'But thanks to that, I figured out the regression criteria.'
I'd long wanted to investigate Defeat Regression more.
How could I rely on a power when I didn't even know the trigger conditions or how save points were set?
I'd at least pinned down how save points were determined.
'It seems to regress to the point with the highest chance of victory for that mission.'
When capturing the princess before, it regressed to a day before the imperial forces arrived.
The imperials were weary by then, but it also gave enough prep time.
And a day's buffer to try other options if things went south.
Last night's letter was the same. If the deal failed, that was it.
I'd either lose the princess to imperial schemes while crossing enemy lines or hold out and become a traitor.
So it regressed to right before the failure.
'I still don't know exactly what counts as one chapter, though.'
I'd gotten a feel for it, but unknowns remained.
But the scenario as the basis. And regressing to peak odds of success. Those were clear.
Bit by bit, I'd learn to wield Defeat Regression actively someday.
'And if my guess is right... the prince is probably struggling alone in the capital by now.'
Incompetent king and corrupt officials rotting the country. The foretold disaster they brought.
Yet the prince thinking of his nation to the end, fighting lonely battles.
The player becomes the prince to save the kingdom on the brink of ruin...
📜 Scenario: Prince of the Fallen Kingdom 📜 A hellish difficulty scenario where even veterans fail with the slightest misstep. That has to be the one.