VI. The Enemy Draws Nearer (2)
VI. The Enemy Draws Nearer (2)
"Lord Rasau is a goddamned son of a bitch."
Those were Count Bogenberg's opening words.
Keldric took an uneasy sip of wine.
"I'll reserve judgment."
"For now, simply listen. Lord Rasau... no, that bastard isn't worthy of being called a lord. A lowborn shepherd receiving a noble title..."
The conflict between Count Rasau and Count Bogenberg that Alisa had described was plainly real.
Otherwise, Count Bogenberg, who normally resembled a kindly grandfather, would never have reacted this way.
"Those who work and those who fight are separated by divine providence... What happened is unnatural. God Himself should punish it."
Those who prayed, those who fought, and those who worked.
Those who prayed were the clergy who served and spoke for God's word. Those who fought were the nobles who protected king and Church. Those who worked were the commoners and serfs responsible for production.
This tripartite view of society had become an absolute theological principle in this age.
Feudal authority was believed to descend from Heaven.
Nobles possessed land and authority through divine grace, making their station sacred and beyond challenge.
In other words, God had assigned warfare and government to the nobility.
Even if he was the Emperor's bastard, Count Rasau had been born a commoner and lived as a shepherd. In that sense, Bogenberg did not consider him a true noble.
That was Count Bogenberg's argument. Keldric listened without interruption.
"That lowborn shepherd doesn't know his place. Greed boils out of him because he can't escape his origins."
"..."
"He has abandoned the greater good and run wild. If he dares set his sights on my land, I will not remain idle."
Count Bogenberg had to defend both his seat on the Elector Council and his territory.
Count Rasau, meanwhile, needed to swallow the County of Bogenberg to strengthen his legitimacy and authority.
In the end, it meant war.
No wonder the North had felt increasingly ominous.
"Sir Keldric, will you help me defeat that lawless man? I will reward you generously."
Keldric closed his eyes and considered the offer.
Count Bogenberg's argument might have sounded absurd.
By the standards of this age, however, nearly everyone would have found it reasonable and sided with him.
A common shepherd boy rising to count and then aspiring to the imperial throne sounded like a joke.
Because his authority and legitimacy were weak, Count Rasau readily pressed against neighboring territories to strengthen both.
Conversely, he accepted almost any noble willing to join his faction.
Baron Gofrit, who had plotted the night attack on House Bellaf, was one such man.
Gofrit served Count Rasau and had committed the atrocity without hesitation for whatever scraps his patron might throw him.
Hilmer and Lady Bellaf had nearly died because of it. Fritz, deceived by their scheme and crippled by Keldric, was another consequence.
'Yakov.'
Putting everything else aside, Keldric could not forgive Yakov's death.
From the moment Keldric witnessed it, Baron Gofrit had occupied the highest place on his mental kill list.
Confronting Gofrit alone would have been idiotic, so Keldric had waited for the proper time.
That was also why he refused to join Count Rasau.
Yakov had been like a father to Keldric.
He was not Keldric's true father, but the warmth he had shown could not be dismissed.
The foolish servants who betrayed House Bellaf had killed Yakov, but Baron Gofrit had been the real power behind them.
Keldric had reasons for refusing Count Bogenberg's earlier offer of vassalage.
Chief among them was his expectation that the tournament would raise his value.
He had also wished to avoid the resentment of the Imperial Faction and the awkwardness of swearing vassalage during Lent.
This time, however, Count Bogenberg was not proposing a vassal contract.
It was closer to paid military service.
Rather than receiving a fief in return for service, a knight could honorably raise his fame and prestige by selling his sword.
The Church would have little reason to object.
The Imperial Faction might be displeased, but they would bear less resentment toward Keldric if he was merely a hired knight.
"I intend to raise my army in earnest as soon as Lent ends. They won't expect us to move immediately afterward."
If the conflict began after Lent, the circumstances changed considerably.
Keldric slowly nodded.
He still needed to hear the terms, but Count Bogenberg would have to be insane to offer less than before.
"I do not say this from selfish greed, but I can place my sword only where God's will directs it."
"Hmm..."
"There must therefore be a reward that would convince God my sword is being drawn for a worthy cause."
Asking bluntly how much he would be paid felt crude, so Keldric invoked God's will without a second thought.
He had won a tournament held in Saint Venancio's name. Pretending to be devout and talking about divine will was hardly suspicious now.
"A reasonable point. I feel I've made my offer too abruptly."
"Not at all."
"I appreciate you saying so. In that case, let us discuss your compensation."
Keldric tensed and clenched the hand hidden beneath the table.
"What if I grant you the rights to any territory you capture?"
Count Bogenberg's offer was far greater than Keldric had expected.
"The rights to captured land...?"
"Indeed. The territorial war will likely be fought around Yaven and Gofrit. Any land you personally capture will be recognized as yours."
The Barony of Gofrit was not vast, but neither was it insignificant.
It contained several villages and a proper castle where its lord resided.
Count Bogenberg was offering Keldric the rights to whatever part he captured—especially if he took the castle.
The offer was extraordinary.
Being formally granted the title of baron would be difficult because it required imperial approval.
But if Keldric occupied Gofrit and established effective control, even the Emperor would have few options.
If the Emperor refused to recognize him as baron, Keldric would have no legal feudal obligations and could do whatever the fuck he pleased.
He might lack legal legitimacy and formal recognition as the land's lord, but with Count Bogenberg as a powerful backer, there would be little to fear.
With the Empire already divided into hostile factions, allowing territory to exist outside feudal obligation would give every noble an excuse to openly rebel.
The Emperor would never want that.
Count Bogenberg and the other nobles wanted only Count Rasau removed and formally barred from the imperial succession.
They might oppose the Emperor's wishes, but they had no intention of deposing him.
The Emperor had gambled to strengthen his authority, yet even in the worst outcome he could still preserve his throne.
For the future, it was better to keep the feudal obligations intact.
In short, Keldric had been offered a chance to become a baron.
"The harder you fight, the greater your reward. I also promise that my army will not interfere with any territory you are in the process of taking."
If Count Bogenberg even created conditions that allowed Keldric to claim the prize for himself, the offer was practically free land.
Keldric found the proposal powerfully attractive.
If he acquired the Barony of Gofrit, he could step out from House Bellaf's shadow and establish a family of his own.
He could found his own house.
Gofrit was not a title of immense authority, but no one could expect everything at the first step.
If Keldric intended to stand on his own, no better opportunity was likely to appear.
"Lord Bogenberg, your proposal has moved me."
"That means..."
"I accept."
"A wise decision! There is no reason to delay. Let us formalize the contract at once—I'll send for a priest."
Even without naked greed, nearly everyone harbored some desire to rule.
Winning fame as a knight was satisfying, but it had limits.
Keldric wanted to rise higher.
☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩
After signing the contract before an elderly priest hastily dispatched by the Church, Keldric officially entered Count Bogenberg's service.
That allowed the conversation to move into more sensitive territory.
"I will explain the present situation."
"Understood."
Keldric studied the map Count Bogenberg indicated.
A roughly drawn and highly abstract map lay across the table.
At best, Keldric could estimate locations from rivers and mountains.
"My territory enjoys excellent conditions. It's no wonder that lowborn Rasau drools over it."
The County of Bogenberg connected the Empire's north and center, making it a strategic region of unusual importance.
To the north it bordered the Empire's Everfrost, providing a steady supply of quality hides. To the south, the Ronaun River connected it to the central Empire and even the republics farther beyond.
The Bishopric of Kamnon lay to the east, making cooperation with the northeastern Church easy. To the west lay the County of Rasau, and beyond that the Archbishopric of Marchen.
Broad southern plains provided abundant food, while iron and silver mines gave the territory considerable industry.
Even among the Empire's richest lands, Bogenberg ranked near the top.
"My own county isn't in immediate danger. Salzhoff and Yaven are."
"Salzhoff and Yaven..."
"Salzhoff is close enough that it's easy to defend. Yaven is not."
Keldric listened carefully.
"Lord Salzhoff is my vassal, but his house is also allied to Lord Spitzenberg by marriage."
There was nothing inherently wrong with Baron Salzhoff, Count Bogenberg's vassal, maintaining good relations with neighboring nobles.
The problem was that Baron Spitzenberg, tied to him by marriage, was weighing Count Bogenberg against Count Rasau.
Worse, he already leaned slightly toward Rasau.
For Count Bogenberg, the matter was urgent.
"So if Spitzenberg were to... go over to Lord Rasau..."
Count Bogenberg moved a carved wooden piece.
The map beneath it bore the name Spitzenberg in elegant script.
The County of Rasau lay west of the small territory, while the Baronies of Yaven and Gofrit crowded its north.
"Yaven would be surrounded on three sides. It's not that no road connects it to us, but there are few villages along the way that could serve as bases, and the route is little more than a single narrow passage."
"The territory's outer reaches would be exposed."
"Exactly. Bellam would effectively be isolated."
Indeed. Keldric silently nodded his head.
As Count Bogenberg explained, if the wavering Baron Spitzenberg joined Rasau, Baron Yaven would be completely fucked.
Spitzenberg would block the road south, while the County of Rasau and the Barony of Gofrit stood to the west and northwest.
Count Bogenberg had to act.
"A territorial war won't begin immediately. Before then, there is one task I'd like to give you."
"What is it?"
"Go to Spitzenberg and deliver my position to Lord Spitzenberg very clearly."
Count Bogenberg's intended message was simple.
I intend to have it out with Count Rasau. If you are going to choose a side, choose mine. If you plan to keep playing games, stay out of the way.
A letter might have sufficed, but sending a knight in person carried a powerful warning.
"There is no need to rush, but I want the message delivered before Lent ends."
Keldric nodded without objection.
He could rest in Bogenberg for a few days and then travel directly to Spitzenberg.
"I shall do so."
"I will cover the journey's expenses. Travel without concern for the cost."
Keldric's next destination was decided.