Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Betrayed Marshal Betrays
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Our group headed to the prison located deep underground in the royal palace.
Andrei quickly regained his energy and spent the entire walk teasing me and chuckling to himself. When we arrived at my cell, I finally understood why.
The place where I was locked up wasn't some typical prison with iron bars.
We stopped in front of a solitary confinement cell made entirely of stone, right up to the door.
Inside, there was only a roughly hewn stone bed and a deep, narrow pit. Aside from a small window high up on the wall and the food slot in the door, there was no connection to the outside world.
The room was so small that once inside, even stretching would be difficult.
"How long do I have to stay here?"
I asked Andrei, who was grunting beside me as he fiddled with the door.
"I can't say."
"A day? Hmm, probably not. Three days? A week?"
"Cut it out."
"Doesn't seem longer than that. Five days?"
"...Fuck."
Thanks to Andrei, who couldn't hide his twitching eyes or shaky gaze at all, I quickly gleaned the information.
Judging by his utterly transparent reaction, it seemed I'd be stuck in here for about three days.
He didn't even properly untie the ropes binding me before shoving me urgently into the room.
"Let's see if you're that full of vigor when you let me out."
"Good luck."
"...Gah!"
-Thud.
As the door slammed shut, the interior plunged into complete darkness.
Confirming no light seeped in, I let go of the rope I was holding.
I'd already secretly loosened the sloppy knots while we walked, so the moment I released my hands, the ropes fell to the floor.
"What a moron."
Fundamentally, when locking someone in solitary, you should remove anything that could be used for self-harm or escape.
Sharp objects are obvious, but didn't they realize these ropes could serve multiple purposes?
Well, Andrei, who spends his days sipping tea with other nobles, might not know.
"Hoo."
He got lucky. He should be grateful.
If they'd thrown some vicious criminal in here, it would've been a problem, but I planned to be the model prisoner.
My goal was to appear as the blindly loyal subject who devotes himself fully to the nation, obeying even unjust orders.
Since my abilities were already proven, I didn't need to worry about side effects like seeming incompetent or dim-witted.
The plan was to show loyalty to the king as usual, then—when the emperor provided the right opportunity—join the empire with a line like, "You've swayed my heart," pretending I couldn't resist.
In the persuasion process, I'd play hard to get to raise my value, then instill the belief that once they secured my loyalty, I'd serve as diligently as I had for the previous king.
I didn't know how the emperor would approach me, so "playing it smart" would be key, but I'd gained plenty of confidence in reading situations.
If I got too anxious, I could always make excuses like my resolve weakening and accept right away—no big deal.
For all this to work, I needed to behave impeccably in solitary.
Fortunately, I had more confidence in staying put in a place like this than anyone else in this world.
I groped around with my hands to find the bed and lay down on it.
"Let's do this."
Closing my eyes comfortably and focusing my thoughts, the small minimap expanded to fill my vision, morphing into the tactical map.
The familiar UI from The Great War grand strategy game spread out before me.
I'd discovered this function back in my Officer Academy days when I used the minimap often. Remarkably, this tactical map included combat simulation capabilities.
Like a game, beyond battles I'd personally experienced or major ones from the game, I could create and command my own using known terrain and unit types.
Life became incredibly enriched once I learned this.
Whenever I had free time, I'd dive into simulations. I'd pulled a few all-nighters that caused issues, but I'd never been bored.
And I could apply that experience to real battles, making it a total win-win.
"Time for some prep work."
Since I'd soon be commanding imperial forces, I started simulations focused on fighting the armies of nations bordering the empire—pitting them against imperial troops.
"...Impressive."
Unlike the Ruth Kingdom army, whose equipment and scale were utter trash, just looking at the numbers, the empire's superior quality filled me with a budding loyalty toward it.
Being in solitary meant no interruptions from others, so I immersed myself fully in the battlefield unfolding before my eyes.
Lately, I've been in a pretty good mood.
The so-called Noble Faction—those fools who strutted around like kings on their own lands—have quieted down a lot.
I hated watching them make noise about how well their little war was going, but now I didn't even need to step in.
"Your Majesty!"
"Speak."
"Why did you reject the supply request? Without the agreement, General Paul might have been stranded in the heart of enemy territory!"
Whenever one of those irritating voices spoke up,
"You lot were the ones insisting no support was needed from the start! You never mentioned managing occupied territories or handling the aftermath, but now that it's risky, you come begging for help? Is that acceptable?!"
The Emperor Faction—clumped together on my side—jumped in first to counter.
"That's...!"
"Do you not realize you're alive in this room only because His Majesty wished to halt the war?!"
I'd hired some of them, others not, but I didn't know why they were in the Emperor Faction anyway.
Still, silencing the noisy nobles wasn't bad at all.
"But...!"
"Enough. We're not gathered here to judge right and wrong."
"Theodore...!"
"Duke Offenstadt, please. I am a proper duke myself."
After a heated argument over faults, they fell silent at Duke Theodore Offenstadt's mediation.
He was a noble who'd approached me separately to join the Emperor Faction, and with his capable handling, he'd quickly become its leader, attacking the nobles.
The Noble Faction, which seemed poised to grow, weakened from Theodore's assaults and the Northern War's failure. As the Emperor Faction's mainstay, Theodore—still in his twenties—gained influence rivaling older dukes.
These days, the atmosphere even saw him as the real power behind the throne, not me.
"Your Majesty."
"Hm."
"The negotiation team is nearly here."
"I see."
Theodore's demeanor was outwardly polite and deferential, befitting the Emperor Faction's representative, but I didn't like him much.
I often glimpsed vast ambition beyond his gaze, unsatisfied with merely leading the faction.
Not content with gathering his own forces beyond my reach, he sometimes cast lecherous glances my way.
Those eyes, laced with lust and greed, sent chills down my spine each time, making me regret my beautiful appearance.
Unfortunately, I lacked the power to oust him immediately.
Even wielding the legendary Sword of Bloodline to secure legitimacy, I didn't yet have the authority to arbitrarily remove a high noble so close to real power.
I'd realized too late that I needed to build my own strength amid the factions' checks on each other, but it was already too late.
The Noble Faction had weakened to the point where calling them rivals felt generous.
Still, I couldn't leave things as they were.
Even those I'd personally selected had joined the Emperor Faction banner, and now its leader seemed to harbor other intentions.
I needed to distinguish truly trustworthy people.
Those I'd invested trust and nurtured but aligned with Theodore could become serious problems.
"...Are you sure just him will suffice? They might demand more..."
"No. He's enough."
That's why this negotiation was crucial for me.
I needed someone uninfluenced by Theodore.
Someone capable enough to check the arrogant Theodore, unconnected to existing nobles, and trustworthy.
There was one person who met all these tricky conditions.
"They call him Invincible. I'm curious."
Invincible, Victor.
For now, I was pinning my hopes on him.
"Do you plan to use him?"
"I'll have to see. If he's useful ma... material."
If the rumors held true, he was worth trusting.
No greed for power, proven competence, and famous enough among imperial folk to scare children awake with his name.
If he had talent for internal affairs too, I'd keep him close, build his strength; if only good at military strategy, send him as governor of the Ruth Kingdom conquests, have him conquer post-truce to solidify foundations.
If truly nothing else...
Pity, but I'd have him executed to vent my frustration.
"...Understood."
Theodore wore an expression like something bothered him, but affiliation meant little to me.
They're all the same people anyway.
Flags mean nothing if needed—that's my view.
"Then, this meeting ends here."
"Yes."
Rumors said his looks were decent too.
Sip.
My weary heart, dulled amid unappealing nobles, began to flutter with long-lost anticipation.