Chapter 257: The International Conference (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 257: The International Conference (5)
Silence hung heavy in the air.
With Count Fabius having already withdrawn, Edwin Hector spoke, his voice laced with an inability to accept reality.
"...What are your thoughts, King of Redford? Do you truly believe Dmitry can wage war against the Kronos Empire on their own?"
It was a meaningless question. Both Edwin Hector and the King of Redford knew this. They knew it defied all common sense. No matter what miraculous feats Roman Dmitry had displayed thus far, they meant nothing in the face of the Kronos Empire.
The King of Redford finally spoke. "I am a bit confused myself. My mind recognizes how utterly absurd this is, but Redford has already made its decision. Roman Dmitry is the savior of the Redford Kingdom. No matter what path he takes, Redford will share its fate with Dmitry."
He stood up, pushing his tangled thoughts aside.
"While Redford suffered through its times of upheaval, I endlessly pondered our future. The world is changing. Soon, every kingdom on this continent will face a moment of choice: cling to the Empire to prolong a pathetic existence, or stand and fight. Even if following Dmitry leads to our ruin, Redford cannot tolerate losing its very identity as a nation. Therefore, Hector must also decide its own future. Now that Dmitry has declared war, the words we speak can never be taken back."
They were heartfelt words. The King of Redford took his leave first, leaving Edwin Hector alone to sink into the heavy silence.
What is the right choice for Hector?
Dmitry. They were Hector's ally. That fact remained unchanged, but Roman Dmitry's methods were far too reckless. They were a one-way ticket to destruction.
If his common sense could calculate even a sliver of a chance for victory, he wouldn't be agonizing like this. This was a realm that even Edwin Hector—a man hailed as a genius—dared not predict. That was why, despite his prior resolve to follow Roman Dmitry, he couldn't help but hesitate. Hector had been pushed to the edge of a cliff. Knowing that a single misstep would plunge them into ruin after enduring endless famine and war, Edwin Hector spent a long time contemplating the countless permutations of this crisis.
The King of Redford is right. In the coming future, Hector cannot become Kronos's dog.
Kronos was the true culprit behind the famine. Since Hector could not live under the same sky as them, Roman Dmitry was clearly their only hope.
If so, what should Hector do? Was it right to simply take a step back and watch the situation unfold, just as Roman Dmitry had suggested?
To navigate this, I need to grasp Roman Dmitry's true intentions. Why didn't he attend the international conference? The answer is simple. He judged that the Kingdom Alliance would never agree to his goal of taking revenge on the Kronos Empire. If so, in this current situation where Dmitry intends to exact revenge entirely on their own, there is only one reason why he sent us back to the international conference.
He expanded his train of thought. Rather than passively accepting the situation, he actively pondered the best choice available to him.
His intention must be to draw out the true sincerity of the Kingdom Alliance by showing a clear example that Dmitry can face Kronos on their own. A situation everyone deems strictly impossible. Therefore, if Dmitry can produce a meaningful result even once, it will surely cause a massive stir unlike anything seen before.
His mind cleared. Even if this wasn't the absolute correct answer, he was certain it was the right choice for Dmitry. It seemed he would have to attend the international conference once again.
*
It was pure irony.
The international conference, which had just ended in disaster, was reconvened in the exact same manner by the exact same people.
The King of Odelia spoke up. "What on earth do you mean by that? How can Dmitry's declaration of war have nothing to do with your two kingdoms? Are you saying that Dmitry intends to wage war against the Kronos Empire entirely on their own?"
His eyes were wide with disbelief. When they first confirmed the declaration of war, they assumed the two kingdoms had finally joined forces with Dmitry, but Edwin Hector's words painted a completely different picture.
"We do not know the detailed circumstances either," Edwin Hector replied calmly. "After the last international conference, while we were waiting to meet with Dmitry, we heard the news that they had declared war on the Kronos Empire. That is why we are attending this gathering. Have you, Your Majesties, truly heard nothing about this?"
He hid his true intentions. He maintained a firm stance of non-involvement, acting as if he were completely ignorant of Roman Dmitry's true motives.
The kings' expressions turned grave. The King of Odelia, in particular, was deeply shaken; he had never expected such an unprecedented development.
"Dmitry has gone utterly mad. It wouldn't even be enough if they borrowed the full strength of the Kingdom Alliance, yet they declared war on the Kronos Empire all by themselves! Everyone, we must keep our wits about us from now on. The Kronos Empire will never forgive anyone who points a blade at them. Since Dmitry originated from Cairo, both nations will surely be destroyed because of this. The problem is that the fall of Cairo and Dmitry will directly affect our Kingdom Alliance as well."
The Kingdom Alliance. It had been established specifically to oppose the Kronos Empire. Cairo and Dmitry were not included in it from the beginning, but that did not mean their existence was meaningless as a buffer.
"The moment Kronos swallows the northeastern territories, they will secure a bridgehead for continental conquest. At the same time, they will no longer have to worry about their rear and can focus all their military might on the Kingdom Alliance. Before, they had to watch out for a joint attack from Cairo and Hector during any war with us, but from now on, they won't need to. Hector, sandwiched between Kronos and Valhalla, won't be able to do a thing, and the Kingdom Alliance won't be able to avoid the Empire's onslaught. Therefore, let us abandon Dmitry without hesitation. If we suffer even a slight loss of military power here, it will truly be the end."
It was the most logical judgment. The King of Odelia spoke of a way for everyone to survive, but the King of Redford reacted firmly.
"I refuse. As I said in the previous meeting, the Redford Kingdom will share its fate with Dmitry. Since we are not part of the Kingdom Alliance, we have no obligation to accept your proposal, King of Odelia."
"This is no time to be so stubborn!"
"No matter what you say, it is useless. Redford will prepare for war and await Dmitry's call."
He allowed no room for compromise. Once the King of Redford set the stage, Edwin Hector added fuel to the fire.
"It is the same for Hector. If the flames of war grow fierce, we intend to step forward for Dmitry."
"This is madness!" the King of Odelia fumed.
The other kings chimed in as well, but the King of Redford and Edwin Hector refused to budge an inch. This meeting was a complete breakdown of communication. The Alliance had assumed the two kingdoms accepted the international conference because they wanted a change in strategy, but their representatives merely confirmed they hadn't anticipated Dmitry's declaration of war while refusing any compromise.
If this was the case, it was a truly dire problem. Since Dmitry alone could never be a match for Kronos, the Alliance had to prepare for the fallout of their inevitable downfall.
Screech.
His chair scraped harshly against the floor.
"Let's end this meeting here! From now on, let everyone find their own way to survive!"
The King of Odelia stormed out.
The Second International Conference. Once again, the heads of state had failed to produce any positive results.
*
It was an absolute disaster.
Left with no clear path to survival, the King of Odelia trembled with anxiety. "At this rate, it's all over. The moment Cairo and Dmitry fall, it's only a matter of time before the flames of war spread to the Kingdom Alliance."
Irritation boiled up inside him. What on earth did Redford and Hector believe in to blindly follow Dmitry? No matter how positively he tried to frame the situation, he could not fathom their decision to throw themselves directly into the jaws of death.
He now stood at a critical crossroads. In this irreversible situation, standing idly by was no longer an option.
If even the Redford Kingdom is destroyed in this war, the Kingdom Alliance alone won't be able to deter the threat of the Kronos Empire anyway. In the end, a choice must be made. Either we lend our strength to the Dmitry Duchy to prevent their destruction, or we cling to the true powers like Kronos and Valhalla to carve out a way for Odelia to survive. We can no longer expect the current peace to last.
"Damn it."
He was furious. Roman Dmitry. Beyond being merely foolish, he was an arrogant bastard who didn't know his place. Although the King acknowledged that Roman possessed immense talent as a swordsman—enough to defeat Barbosa—declaring war on Kronos for the sake of revenge was a profoundly rash decision.
It wasn't that he and the others in the Kingdom Alliance welcomed the Empire's atrocities. But hadn't the history of the continent and their own past experiences clearly shown the devastating reality one had to endure as the price for holding one's head high?
It wasn't that they chose not to fight back. It was that they couldn't.
The international conference of nations—excluding the empires—was a legacy of their ancestors, who had struggled desperately just to survive.
"...I'm sorry, but Odelia cannot end like this. Even if it's cowardly, survival comes first."
He closed his eyes tightly. Even if it was disgusting and pathetic, this was reality. As a king, he had a sacred duty to look after the safety of his nation.
As soon as the King of Odelia returned to the royal palace, he made a magical communication call.
[For what reason have you contacted me?]
Beyond the screen, at Baron Charlton's words, the King of Odelia spoke with a face cleared of all hesitation.
"...As of this moment, the Kingdom Alliance is finished. So, tell me how the Odelia Kingdom can survive."
At that very same time, betrayal was not an act unique to Odelia. The Umberto Kingdom had made a similar move. Of the three nations in the Kingdom Alliance, excluding Frank, the other two had succumbed to reality after much deliberation.
*
A few days later.
In Rascal, a famous outpost in the eastern part of Kronos, guards chatted idly while looking up at the dark sky.
"I'll bet one gold that Dmitry won't last even a month."
"A month? Aren't you overestimating Dmitry way too much? This is war. How on earth can a tiny speck like Dmitry last an entire month? I'll bet one gold on fifteen days. I guarantee you, the moment they clash in a proper total war at the border, Dmitry will lose their nerve and raise the white flag."
"But they still have Roman Dmitry."
"Even so, he's just one man. No matter how strong he is, how long can he hold out on his own?"
Dmitry's declaration of war. It was an utterly absurd event. Living as citizens of the Kronos Empire, they had never imagined they would experience a situation where someone declared war on the Empire first.
Perhaps that was why, whenever people met, it was the only thing they gossiped about. Rather than worrying about the Kronos Empire's defeat, there was a heated debate over how long a mere Duchy like Dmitry could hold out against them. Not a single person among them predicted they would last more than a month. Since the difference in military might between an empire and a kingdom was like the gap between heaven and earth, it didn't even require complex calculations.
Over the past few days, troops had been arriving in Rascal one after another. Within the next week, Dmitry would surely regret the words they had uttered in the face of the Empire's overwhelming military might.
It was then.
Just as a soldier opened his mouth to say something else, a brutal hand clamped down over his head.
Crack!
His neck snapped. It happened in an instant. The guards on watch collapsed to the ground, dead before they could utter a single scream.
And such things were happening not just here, but across the entire perimeter of Rascal.
"We have secured the target points."
It was Chris.
At his report, Roman Dmitry emerged from the heavy darkness and spoke.
"It will take about six hours for the main army of the Kronos Empire to arrive here in Rascal. Our goal is simple. Until then, kill as many enemies as possible."
Kronos... no, not a single person on the entire continent had dared to imagine a preemptive strike from Dmitry. Roman Dmitry had chosen the exact same method that had been used against his own lands.
"Set everything ablaze."
"Yes, sir."
In the dead of night, while everyone slept, Dmitry ignited the signal fire of war.