Chapter 130
Chapter 130
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 130
Chapter Title: The Armistice Negotiations
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The armistice negotiations began in Ballast with the resident diplomats from each nation pointing fingers at one another.
But this was merely an appetizer of sorts.
The real talks would take place on the fifth day, with heavyweights from each country in attendance.
I was scheduled to participate on that fifth day.
There was plenty of time geographically speaking, but the problem was that going straight from Crossing to Ballast meant passing through Albad.
With Albad viewing both Juras and me as thorns in their side, we couldn't predict what mischief they might pull en route, so for safety's sake, we decided to detour through Bekavia and Eurofe before entering Ballast.
As a result, we arrived a bit late for the heavyweights' meeting on the fifth day.
"Tch. That's why I said we should leave a day earlier."
I was annoyed, but Juras claimed it was all for the best.
"No worries. After all, the star of the show always makes his entrance at the end."
With that, Juras brazenly flung open the conference hall doors, a full four hours past schedule.
"The Prime Minister of Crossing, Juras Pamillion, enters!"
At the herald's announcement, the negotiation hall fell deathly silent.
Everyone was too busy scrutinizing Juras. The man had that kind of presence.
It wasn't due to his massive build or striking looks.
He was just... ominous.
I'd grown somewhat accustomed to it by now, but there was something viscerally repulsive about him.
Just being near him made my skin crawl and chills run down my spine.
"...Heh."
His cryptic chuckle sent shivers through the crowd!
Ballast's Prime Minister Dialu, who was overseeing the talks, swallowed dryly before speaking.
"You're late..."
"Unavoidable circumstances held us up. I trust you'll forgive the delay."
"But... who is that helmeted figure beside you...?"
"I'd assume no one here is unfamiliar with him."
Eyes turned toward me. The stares were every bit as intense as those fixed on Juras.
I casually scanned the notables in the hall.
'Impressive lineup.'
It was a testament to the gravity of these negotiations.
Every king had turned out in force. With the exception of Crossing, represented by Juras, and Byulang, whose coronation hadn't yet occurred, every nation's monarch was present.
Albad's king made no secret of his disdain for the absence.
"Hey, is your big brother not coming or what?"
Isaac Melbird, king of Albad. His original name was Isaac Malorn, the younger brother of Parain's king.
Narrowing his eyes, he glared at Juras.
Juras replied with a gentle smile.
"My godfather has delegated full authority to me. No need to worry about the talks derailing due to the lack of a king."
"That's not the point. It's about basic decorum! Even the elderly King Gares dragged himself here. Showing up late is bad enough, but no king at all? What the hell does Crossing think of this summit!"
Behind King Isaac stood Gillas Melburn with a stern expression. Grand General Kaien was nowhere to be seen.
"Haha! Come on, Isaac, that's enough."
King Lorenz Veron of Bekavia. I'd heard he wasn't on great terms with his brother, Parain's king, but as allies now, he was running interference.
Wink! Sitting beside him, Sophia Veron shot me a playful wink.
I took my place behind Juras as he sat.
The facilitator sighed before speaking.
"Now that everyone's here, shall we dive into the real discussion? How to navigate this chaotic era."
Crossing held the knife in these talks, but there was a prerequisite matter that had to be addressed first, regardless.
Determining who bore the greater fault.
Evidently, they'd already been at it before we arrived, as voices rose in heated argument.
"I'll put this to Byulang!"
One of Caliper's representatives, Duke Helian, stepped forward and bellowed.
"Your baseless invasion has thrown the continent into turmoil! We demand an explanation!"
Byulang was represented by princes from its three major factions.
First Prince Oscar spoke on their behalf.
"I'd prefer to hold off on that for now. We're still verifying the details."
"Verifying?"
Duke Helian bellowed, eyes bulging.
"So you're saying you launched a war on an unverified pretext!"
Murmurs rippled through the hall.
Since Duke Helian's point rang true, Byulang's side was at a loss for words.
As Oscar faltered, Second Prince Barion took over.
"It's embarrassing to admit, but Byulang recently suffered a profound loss. The late king's absence shattered our unity and sowed communication breakdowns. This incident was a tragic accident born of that chaos. We've executed the responsible parties who invited it, and we're investigating any signs of third-party involvement. Can't we let this slide in light of that?"
"Ridiculous! That doesn't erase the damage from your invasion!"
Caliper pressed Byulang relentlessly.
Having heard the other nations' views already, the facilitator turned to Juras.
"What say you, Prime Minister Pamillion? As Caliper's ally, we'd like your thoughts."
"Hm. Allow me to sum it up simply."
Juras lobbed a bombshell with a calm expression.
"I am the one who ordered the assassination of Byulang's King Wilfried Schwarzer."
The hall went pin-drop silent, then exploded in uproar.
"And of course, I was also the one who incited Byulang to invade Caliper."
I could only stare at Juras in stunned disbelief.
"You bastard! You really...!"
"Seize that man at once!"
Byulang's delegates leaped to their feet, radiating killing intent.
Most had suspected Svenner or the Westerners of the regicide, but plenty eyed Crossing suspiciously too.
Juras's confession in this setting was bound to provoke such a reaction.
He flashed them a grin.
"Of course, I was joking. Why take it so seriously?"
"What...?"
"I was merely mocking Byulang's behavior. That's exactly the sort of stunt they pulled this time. They could pin the blame on anyone, anywhere. Caliper was just their chosen target. Can we truly trust such a nation? Crossing strongly condemns Byulang."
Crossing's official denunciation left Byulang's side smacking their lips in frustration.
Juras seized the reins of the meeting.
"Byulang has always been a duplicitous actor. They lured nations in crisis into their alliance through half-coercion, swelling their ranks. That's Byulang's true nature—fattening itself on others' misery. And now, a war without justification. Does such a nation have any rightful future?"
"What are you getting at?"
To the facilitator's question, Juras declared:
"I propose the dissolution of the Byulang Alliance. Let us form a treaty barring the alliance from obstructing any faction seeking independence."
"Nonsense!"
Byulang's delegates erupted in protest.
It was only natural. Accepting Juras's terms would spell Byulang's de facto demise.
Curses flew at Juras thick and fast as Byulang's side lost all composure.
The other nations, meanwhile, were busily calculating the pros and cons.
Juras's statement was tantamount to calling for an anti-Byulang coalition. Once they'd crunched the numbers, all showed positive reactions.
Svenner, who had long coveted Byulang, was especially eager to jump on board.
But at that moment, Juras flicked his sly tongue.
"Calm yourselves. I seek only the alliance's dissolution, not a change in leadership. Handing southern dominance to another nation would breed greater chaos, so Byulang's factions should retain control there, as before."
"What do you mean by that?"
"In other words, let's give Byulang time to rebuild properly. For the next five years, all nations forbid invasions of current Byulang territory. Violators face severe penalties."
A Byulang-exclusive non-aggression pact, to be signed by all nations.
"With no foreign incursions for that span, Byulang can surely solidify itself again. Isn't that right?"
Byulang's side perked up at his words.
For a nation already gearing up for civil war, Juras's proposal was ideal.
They'd held off precisely out of fear that other nations might exploit the chaos with invasions.
Juras had just eliminated that worry.
It was an offer too good to refuse for Byulang. Sensing the moment ripe, Juras continued:
"The mood seems to have swung in Byulang's favor. To balance the scales, allow me an additional proposal."
He then demanded massive reparations from Byulang for the Caliper invasion and that Svenner's incursion and the Westerners' civilian massacres be overlooked.
"This evens the terms, no?"
Juras was flawlessly fulfilling his role as war mediator.
The other nations nodded in agreement.
Most had no strong feelings about Byulang anyway.
They simply didn't want Svenner gobbling it up and growing stronger.
This treaty would block that. No reason to refuse.
The sticking point was Svenner.
"Hm..."
King Skarro of Svenner eyed Juras with a conflicted gaze.
The situation had turned delicate.
Refusing here would publicly broadcast Svenner's naked ambition to conquer Byulang at any cost.
Diplomatic opinion would sour instantly.
Already on thin ice from the Westerners' civilian slaughter, further backlash could spell disaster.
An anti-Svenner coalition wouldn't be out of the question.
After huddling with his diplomats, Skarro finally nodded.
"No objections..."
They judged leaving Byulang be for now was fine.
Among Byulang's major factions were Western-aligned ones; if they won the civil war, Svenner could absorb Byulang organically.
From Svenner's view, keeping other nations out of Byulang's civil strife was preferable.
"Looks like we've reached consensus. Shall we proceed on that basis?"
All signaled silent assent. The facilitator began drafting the treaty.
Juras insisted on including the Western peoples.
Svenner agreed to persuade them somehow.
A treaty to be signed by every continental power.
Chills ran down my spine.
'This sly fox.'
Juras wasn't aiming for Byulang's mere reconstruction.
This treaty paved the way for the nation I'd found later to conquer Byulang effortlessly.
My future kingdom wouldn't sign it, so invading Byulang amid its civil war would raise no issues. The signatories, however, would be barred from intervening.
That was the design.
The heavyweights, oblivious, moved to sign.
Then he stepped forward.
"A moment, if you please?"
Byulang's Third Prince Eldric Schwarzer.
"Prince Eldric, what is it? Objections to the treaty?"
"No complaints about the treaty, but I'd like to raise a fundamental issue first: who is truly behind all this?"
"What do you...?"
"I assert that Crossing is the mastermind of these events."
A heavy silence descended on the hall.
"We may not know who killed King Wilfried Schwarzer, but I'm certain Crossing was the third party that incited the Caliper invasion."
The facilitator asked:
"Any evidence?"
"No hard proof, but strong suspicions. And another to back it up."
"Suspicions..."
It was absurd to press claims on mere hunch in such a forum, but Juras's infamous reputation had everyone willing to hear him out.
Prince Eldric continued:
"Crossing schemed amid the Byulang-Caliper war, aiming to trap us and later threaten our territory. Eurofe's invasion of Tunkai and the ensuing chain of wars disrupted that, shifting the battlefield too much. Had things stayed the course, Crossing would have joined Caliper against us. Given that chain of events, it's reasonable to suspect Crossing orchestrated our invasion of Caliper. We fabricated a pretext to attack Caliper; conversely, Crossing could have fabricated one to attack us."
"So in truth, this was Crossing plotting to invade Byulang?"
Riddled with holes, but the logic held together. As Prince Eldric described, that scenario would give Crossing casus belli against Byulang.
Juras had no such intent, but no one else knew that.
Juras listened leisurely, as if daring him to keep talking.
The facilitator pressed:
"Yet I hear Crossing stayed completely out of this war."
"What if they didn't?"
"What...?"
Even Caliper's side looked puzzled, tilting heads at the idea of Crossing aiding them.
Prince Eldric pointed straight at us—at me, precisely—and shouted:
"That explains it, with mercenary Wade from Crossing fighting on Caliper's side!"
"But we never heard of Wade joining the fray."
"He fought unhelmed, in his true identity."
"You mean... you've uncovered this man's true face?"
"Exactly."
He didn't hesitate.
"The man's real identity is Als Ilrain, Caliper's second general and a direct royal house commander!"
Prince Eldric's bombshell revelation.
With that, the armistice talks veered into strange territory.