Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Like Commander, Like Soldiers (1)
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Windler continued delivering his reconnaissance reports.
"Plundering, are they?"
Typical Imperial average.
They lure non-compliant nations to ruin, then invade the crumbling ones without hesitation to pillage.
"Keep scouting without getting spotted."
"Canelian, Silvret. Stenno's capital is completely destroyed right now, and the Imperial Army is in the midst of plundering it."
"The Imperial Army?"
"Already?"
Both Canelian and Silvret flinched in surprise.
"Does that mean Prince Belheim the Second dragged the Empire into this?"
"To leapfrog over the First Prince and claim the throne, he'd need massive chaos. Nothing beats a monster break for that."
"To go that far just to become king..."
Canelian seemed deeply shocked.
"Canelian, let's go see your father."
"Yes."
The audience chamber, attended only by high-ranking nobles.
The duke's expression grew grave as he heard our report.
"According to my son-in-law, Prince Belheim deliberately let the capital's crisis fester to seize the throne?"
"There's no other explanation for why Prince Belheim crossed the border after the monster horde."
"But wasn't that just to gather the refugees around the borders?"
"Gathering refugees is a selfish act to boost his own prestige as a prince.
He had a critical mission to bring reinforcements as quickly as possible. He ignored it."
The essence was shirking a vital duty for personal greed.
"You're right, son-in-law. But without evidence, we can't just arrest Prince Belheim outright."
"I've already ordered thorough surveillance, so don't worry."
"Oh, I see. Well done."
"I was just following Your Highness's lead."
At that moment, one noble raised his hand to speak.
His haggard face clearly showed he'd been wrung dry by administrative duties.
"Your Highness, the total number of Stenno refugees who've entered so far is 200,000."
"Hmm, that's quite a lot."
"And there are roughly over 500,000 refugees waiting at the border checkpoints."
"What?"
The nobles paled and began murmuring.
Canelian and the duke's expressions weren't good either.
"More are flooding in even now."
"With our duchy's capacity, how many can we take in right away?"
"Even factoring in Arcana's support, 300,000 is the limit."
This time, my treasurer, Prime Minister Marquis Ruindra, spoke up.
"Your Highness, Arcana can't absorb all those refugees at once either.
Major national disruptions are expected. Food shortages will drive up prices first..."
"Even if we accept them, we need to do it gradually over time."
"With the Empire stepping in, things will stabilize eventually."
"Focus on me for a moment."
They'd all thrown out their objections one by one, but quieted down when I spoke.
"Do you understand what it means to the people when central authority evaporates in an instant due to the capital's collapse?"
Chaos, plunder, disorder, starvation.
No one there was ignorant of it.
"If comprehensive measures aren't taken swiftly, at least hundreds of thousands will starve this year alone."
"We deeply admire Your Highness's noble intent to spare lives. However, politics and governance demand cold objectivity..."
A cautious objection from the duchy's marquis.
I met his eyes and spoke deliberately.
"Let me ask: Is this meeting about how many Stenno refugees our kingdom and duchy can absorb?"
The nobles tilted their heads in confusion and murmured, until the duke spoke.
"Of course that's the purpose, isn't it?
To discuss the Empire's ambitions, Prince Belheim's suspected treason, refugee aid, and realistic compensation we can demand later..."
"Your Highness, if I may be so bold, the very purpose of this meeting is misguided."
"The purpose is wrong?"
"How many Stenno refugees can we absorb? That's not a good question. We need to reframe it."
The duchy's high nobles murmured.
Even my treasurer, the prime minister, cocked his head trying to grasp my intent.
As expected, Arcana and its vassal states were far too soft compared to the Empire's ruthless worldview of betrayal.
"If the Stenno Kingdom falls, who should claim its lands?"
The moment the prince spoke those words, Canelian felt a thunderous shock.
She wasn't alone.
Her father the duke and the other nobles were stunned into a daze as well.
Arcana's Prime Minister Marquis Ruindra gaped in surprise.
"I don't know what price Prince Belheim promised the Empire, but pledging to relinquish kingdom status and become an imperial duchy is likely the biggest card he could play."
"Not just ceding some territories, but fully incorporating as a duchy?"
"To that extent?"
"Anything less, and the Empire wouldn't move to back a rebellion.
And a second prince who fails to become king is worthless anyway."
"..."
"..."
"Stenno joining the Empire? That means we lose a neutral nation, but gain another border with the Empire."
Canelian saw the older nobles now leaning in to listen to the prince.
Her father was stretching forward, utterly focused on his words.
Seeing that made her heart race.
It felt good, a swelling pride.
"Even if we can't digest them all at once and our bellies burst, we must swallow fallen Stenno. Otherwise, we'll be trapped in the Empire's encirclement."
Prime Minister Marquis Ruindra murmured in agreement.
"We should treat the refugees not as foreign evacuees, but as 'our own disaster victims.'"
"We will follow Your Highness the prince's will."
"We'll empty our private stores and fief emergency supplies to embrace the Stenno refugees."
The strategic objective was decided in an instant.
Accept Stenno refugees without limit to win their hearts massively.
Thus, when Stenno's collapse is certain, secure a solid justification to march in openly.
The prince, having set the grand direction, quietly observed afterward.
The duke nodded along to his vassals' arguments and discussions, occasionally glancing at the prince with a pleased eye.
That atmosphere warmed Canelian's heart and set it fluttering.
"Professor. Doesn't the prince seem cooler than usual today?"
Silvret hesitated, then whispered into Canelian's ear.
"I want to kiss the prince too..."
"Huh? W-what's that out of nowhere?"
"..."
"D-did you see? At Pendragon Lake?"
Stenno Royal Palace, Imperial Army camp.
Count Buenno, an Imperial Sword Imperial-grade knight, was directing the search of the ashen ruins of the Stenno Royal Palace.
"Find any survivors! Decapitate anyone caught smuggling valuables! Return everything to the Stenno royal family without exception!"
In his forties, he was the youngest Sword Imperial-grade knight in the Empire, touted as a potential future Swordmaster.
The Empire currently has no Swordmasters.
Caron purged.
Trapford fell in the monster subjugation at Caron territory.
Windler mysteriously missing.
Drunk on the euphoria of being the Empire's strongest knight, Count Buenno threw himself into his duties more fervently than ever.
If I can just become a Swordmaster, I'll be the Empire's grand duke!
No need to worry about the suspicious emperor's scrutiny.
The Empire was in a state of emergency.
Monsters erupting across the continent, minor kingdoms pleading for aid, and all Swordmasters lost.
If we'd moved a bit faster, we could have saved Stenno.
Regrettable, but unavoidable.
Marching without full strength would mean massive losses to the horde that overwhelmed Stenno.
The Empire had already lost a third of its knights in the Caron territory operation.
The imperial expeditionary force had come to Stenno's aid with maximum force.
But arrived just a hair too late to a capital reduced to ashes.
Was it really just a hair's breadth?
Count Buenno harbored suspicions that they'd used "full force assembly" as an excuse to let Stenno's royal castle fall.
His Majesty would absolutely be capable of... No, what impious thoughts am I having?
"Secret basement! Survivors found!"
"The Stenno royals are alive!"
Good news arrived then.
Count Buenno rushed excitedly to the secret basement and confirmed the Stenno royals emerging, supported by knights.
"Your Majesty the King! Your Majesty the Queen! Your Highness the Prince! You're all safe! Thank goodness!"
The exhausted Stenno king asked weakly.
"Where are Arcana and Elryad's relief forces...?"
"We didn't see them."
"So my second son failed to convince Arcana for aid and went begging the Empire too?"
"I merely set out on orders to rescue Stenno."
"Hmm..."
The king exchanged uneasy glances with the first prince.
When the monster horde first erupted, they hadn't requested aid from the Empire.
They'd believed the kingdom's forces sufficient to suppress it.
The Empire must be stretched thin right now. How did they arrive so quickly?
Deep ties with the Empire brought nothing good.
Especially the current emperor.
Exiting the charred palace, the king shuddered at the sight of the imperial camp.
This isn't a hastily assembled force.
For this many troops, preparations must have started before the monster break.
Under escort, the king whispered cautiously to the first prince as they moved.
"Something's off."
"I sense it too, Father."
"If things go south, flee to Arcana without looking back."
"Father, but."
"Stenno lives as long as you do. We can't all escape anyway."
"Ugh... Underst... ood..."
Count Buenno treated the exhausted royals with utmost courtesy.
Once they'd recovered some strength after a day, he prepared a lavish carriage.
"Calligos territory is fortunately still functioning. We'll escort you there."
"Thank you, Count Buenno. I'll never forget this grace."
Heavily guarded by escort troops.
But the king felt only unease.
The Empire's suspiciously large force moving with such speed.
Worries about his second son, with no news.
But there was no escaping the imperial army's grasp now.
After the royal family departed for Calligos.
Count Buenno returned to his tent in high spirits.
A messenger awaited, saluting and handing over an order.
"Read it here and burn it immediately, per His Excellency the Duke's command. I must witness the incineration."
"Understood."
The moment he unfolded the order, Count Buenno's eyes bulged, his entire body trembling violently.
Exterminate them all.
Leave no evidence.
Only then did Buenno grasp the full picture of the suspicious pieces he'd forcibly overlooked.
He silently tossed the order into the brazier.
That night.
Wearing a mask, Count Buenno slipped out of camp unnoticed and tracked the royal family's carriage.
Hiding in the shadows, he silently killed the Empire's border sentries first.
After dispatching all the awake guards, he infiltrated the first prince's tent.
The instant he thrust his sword into the sleeping figure's chest without hesitation.
"Guh! Kek!"
Not the first prince?
At that moment, a valet sleeping on a cot in the corner bolted awake and fled without hesitation.
He's the prince?
"Assassin! Assassin!"
The voice confirmed it—the first prince.
Count Buenno unhesitatingly hurled a dagger infused with aura.
The first prince, back pierced, spewed blood and toppled forward.
A fatal wound that would kill even if not instant.
Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!
Harsh warning bells rang through the encampment.
Count Buenno tied his face cloth securely again.
Precious imperial soldiers—I wanted to minimize losses, but...
No choice now. All must die.
"Assassin!"
"His Highness the prince is down!"
"Protect His Majesty the king! Alert the follow-up units!"
Count Buenno inwardly cheered his brave, clueless subordinates as he raised his sword.
I'll send you painlessly!
The moment he lunged first at his long-time adjutant.
Boom!
A fully armored knight suddenly dropped from the sky onto his path.
Blocking his attack with a massive two-meter shield.
Blocking an aura-infused sword with a shield?
The unfamiliar knight slowly straightened from his slight knee bend.
Clearly no ordinary foe at a glance.
Damn it!
Sensing things had gone awry, Count Buenno ripped off his mask and shouted.
"I am Count Buenno!"
"Huh? Count?"
"The c-count himself ambushing...? Ah! I-I get it!"
"Adjutant, if you understand, rally everyone and kill that bastard!"
Grab him first, then wipe out the soldiers to silence them.
Catch him, and maybe the count will spare us?