Chapter 110
Chapter 110
Iron Emperor — Chapter 110
"Heh heh heh. So? My perfect plan!"
Gerard's laughter burst out. Beside him, Fleet Commander Jang Bogo just kept licking his lips.
"But in the end it was settled by the Maritime Empire paying compensation, was it not? We gained nothing and only threw away one ship."
"......."
Bogo's words were correct.
"Moreover, according to rumors from the Holy Empire, direct intervention has now become possible. If that happens, I'm worried the homeland troops might be in danger."
Gerard scratched his head at Bogo's words.
"Damn it. Prepare to set sail."
"Excuse me?"
At Gerard's sudden order to sail, Bogo's eyes widened and he stared back as if seeking confirmation.
"What are you doing! Did you drive a stake into your ears? Prepare to sail immediately! We're going to smash the Maritime Empire in the back of the head on their way home!"
"Huh? What did you say!"
"Ah! And crew the ships entirely with natives!"
At Gerard's order to form the crews from Gauri-born men, Bogo shook his head from side to side. Gerard's defining trait was his habit of issuing impromptu operational orders.
Marquess Heize von Dog let out a long sigh and simply stared at the horizon. In the end the talks had been dragged along according to the Holy Empire's wishes, so there was nothing to be done.
"If South Roselin collapses, the Holy Empire will surely spread its dreams of conquest once again......."
If that happened, an attack on the Maritime Empire would be the top priority. The Holy Empire's adjacent territories that belonged to the Maritime Empire but were attached to the mainland rather than islands could only look like a choice morsel.
Probably, as always, they would come attacking with the claim that it had been their land five or six hundred years ago.
"The problem is...... hm?"
In an instant, Marquess Dog's muttering was cut off by a log hurtling through the air and filling his pupils.
Splash! Splash! BOOM!
"Gahk!"
"Enemy!"
"Marquess Dog!"
The Slegian Empire fleet began to panic at the sudden attack. The fact that the lookouts had given no warning whatsoever about enemy ships that had closed to attack range was enough to make Marquess Dog's head seethe with rage.
But because Marquess Dog regained his position unharmed, the chain of command returned to normal and the response began.
"All ships, starboard full turn!"
"Starboard full turn!"
"Load ballistae!"
"Lo-oad!"
With movements befitting the name Maritime Empire, the ten-odd ships were able to assume combat readiness in the blink of an eye.
But when no report on the range came from the lookout who should have given it, Marquess Dog sent up the auxiliary lookout.
"Gasp! An arrow pierced his skull! He's dead!"
"Does that make any sense! You're telling me they shot arrows out of a ballista!"
Marquess Dog's roar rang out. But no one could understand the situation. The auxiliary lookout took position, gauged the direction of the enemy ships hidden in the darkness, and cried out in a mortified voice.
"Enemy ships, out of range!"
"Damn it, what the hell!"
Curses flew from every direction. Marquess Dog grabbed the magic loudspeaker and shouted.
"Move two more ballistae forward and all ships to port!"
"To port!"
Though soaked to the bone and scratched all over by splinters, his condition a wreck, Marquess Dog, a hardened veteran of naval warfare, was skillfully leading the ten-plus warships.
"Signalman! Order the 3rd and 4th assault ships flank speed!"
Flap!
The blue flag designating assault ships was waved four times on the mast. The signal continued until it was acknowledged by the assault ships. For the Slegian Maritime Empire, which had relatively few wizards, this method was the fastest.
"Enemy count!"
"A mere three ships!"
Phillian Gerard had approached near the enemy ships with the help of the Sirens, including Chunsam's wife, safely completed the sniping of the lookouts, and was now shouting out to the rowers in a voice that sounded exhilarated.
"Full speed! Get us out of here!"
"Heave-ho!"
"Just a little farther!"
Unlike the soldiers rowing for their lives, Gerard was capering in high spirits like a man on some adventure.
"Does any of this actually gain us anything?"
"It does!"
Gerard answered Fleet Commander Jang Bogo sharply, then opened his mouth with a mischievous face.
"If we rough 'em up and run, won't those guys have something to argue about too?"
"Excuse me?"
At Gerard's earnest scheming, Bogo could only send back a look of incomprehension.
Fwwssh!
Splash! Splash!
"Don't be afraid! Run at flank speed!"
With Marquess Dog's encouragement, the ships kept closing the distance. But ballista shots were harder to land accurately while pursuing.
"We, we must stop the pursuit!"
"What?"
"Those mad bastards!"
Ignoring Marquess Dog's question, the captain let loose a stream of rough curses. Only then sensing something wrong, Marquess Dog halted all ships and looked ahead.
"Oh, damn it! All ships, reduce speed!"
"Reduce speed!"
"Reduce speed!"
In Marquess Dog's eyes, as he issued the speed-reduction order to the entire fleet, he saw the enemy crews flinging themselves into the sea, and his own men from the 3rd and 4th assault ships that had run out front doing the same.
"God damn it! Siren's song!"
Even as Marquess Dog's hoarse voice burst out, the sight of the Maritime Empire's soldiers throwing themselves off the lead assault ship filled his eyes.
"Break off and return."
The Calamity of the Sea was something beyond human power. Having failed to fight even a single proper battle, the Maritime Empire fleet had no choice but to withdraw.
Aaaaaah~.
"Did they go?"
While the Sirens' song resounded across the sea and Phillian Gerard treaded water, Jang Bogo answered with a soft laugh.
"They went."
"Now tell them to haul 'em out!"
"They're already moving without being told."
Gerard's men and the Gauri sailors who had jumped into the sea had already begun using nets from dinghies to pull out the enemy soldiers whose minds had been subdued by the Sirens' song and who had jumped from their ships, taking care not to be spotted by the enemy vessels.
On top of that they'd gained two assault ships as a bonus, so Gerard calculated it wasn't a total loss.
* * *
Emperor Shau Hwan Millior of the Holy Empire was quietly gazing at Baron Kushan Sail, who had just delivered the news. Baron Sail, having relayed the information, felt the beads of sweat running down his back as he bowed before Emperor Millior.
"This has gotten interesting."
Emperor Millior's slowly emerging voice was utterly frigid. His cold nature rode his vocal cords and rang out once more.
"In the end, is the Maritime Empire saying they will not accept the terms agreed upon here?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
An image raising issue with the attack that had occurred while the Maritime Empire was returning home was being transmitted by a wizard. Watching the scene unfolding before his eyes, Emperor Millior spoke to one of the court wizards.
"Is it real?"
"The image is not fabricated."
Though the identity of the attackers could not be determined, it was rather the Maritime Empire that had grounds to raise an issue. The form of a Holy Empire warship had unmistakably appeared among the attacking vessels.
However, the Maritime Empire also knew perfectly well that the Holy Empire had no reason to do such a thing, so they had instead emphasized a reinvestigation of the incident. After all, it was an event that had occurred in the Holy Empire's waters.
"The Federal Empire, then......."
"......."
The emperor's muttered words escaped, but no one could offer agreement or add an opinion.
Even supposing the Federal Empire was trying to drive a wedge, they were not so foolish as to pull such an obvious trick. The Federal Empire was not the kind to do something that could earn the shared wrath of two great empires and invite invasion, and even if they tried something they would not do it clumsily.
"Pirates?"
"Would it not bring more trouble than profit, for pirates?"
When Duke Kailen von Schung answered as if supplementing the response, Emperor Millior laughed lightly and looked at the nobles.
"Then the Haian Kingdom?"
"Pirates would suit the notion better."
"Keh keh keh keh keh!"
When Duke Schung chimed in again this time, Emperor Millior burst into laughter as if entertained. After laughing heartily for a long while, Emperor Millior abruptly stopped.
"Who was in charge of the sea-area investigation last time?"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
At Emperor Millior's words, Baron Bishan Pol, who had been at one end, stepped forward and bowed.
"Offer a prayer to the Lord God."
A chill bleakness soaked the emperor's voice. At that unknowable feeling, Baron Pol bowed low again and asked in return.
"Your Majesty, whatever do you mean......."
"Ask that this arrow miss, I mean."
What reached Baron Pol's ears in reply was the emperor's icy voice.
"Excuse me?"
Thwuck!
Crash-tumble!
With an arrow buried in his skull, Baron Pol was sent sprawling into a corner of the imperial hall. In his cooling eyes, the word Why? was reflected, along with the sight of Emperor Millior rising from his seat, holding a bow.
"Tsk tsk, lacking in faith."
Clicking his tongue, Emperor Millior handed the bow, shining with brilliant gold, to an attendant and began walking with his hands behind his back. And as if they were used to it, several soldiers hurried out with quick short steps and began dragging away Baron Pol's body.
"Duke Schung, select a capable man—not another target dummy like this one—and restart the investigation of this incident from the beginning."
"Yes, Your Majesty......."
Pausing briefly to toss out the remark in an offhand tone, Emperor Millior again clasped his hands behind his back and slowly exited. Duke Schung quietly bowed, watching his back.
* * *
As if boasting its mastery of the sea, the imperial palace of the Slegian Maritime Empire was held aloft by the form of a blue dragon that seemed to enfold the palace. Yet in contrast to that grandeur, the emperor's seat was occupied by a frail-bodied old man.
"Your Majesty, word has come that the Emperor of the Holy Empire wishes to speak directly via communication."
As an elderly wizard carefully bowed and walked in to announce this, the white eyebrows of Emperor Heise Kire Viahole of the Maritime Empire twitched slightly.
"Put it through."
And a somewhat parched voice rang out. Emperor Viahole's small, stooped appearance was that of an ordinary old man one might see in any countryside village.
A moment later, when the wizard projected an image into the air, a man with a cold expression appeared. It was Emperor Shau Hwan Millior of the Holy Empire.
[Emperor Viahole, have you been well?]
"Cough... oof, my joints ache."
At Emperor Millior's discourtesy in ignoring their age gap, Emperor Viahole simply answered like an old man shut away in a back room, coughing and complaining of his aches. Emperor Millior's lips curled into a faint sneer.
[Dear me, if your health is poor, would it not be time to retire and rest?]
At that, fire rose in the eyes of the Slegian Empire's nobles, but Emperor Viahole answered with a gentle smile.
"Ho ho ho, to think the young emperor cares for me so—I'm grateful. But what can I do? My successors still seem to know no manners, lacking the habit of speaking properly, so I'm in no position to do this or that. Should one who sits on the emperor's throne not at least possess some basic courtesy? Oof, my back."
At Emperor Viahole's deftly returned insult calling the Holy Empire's emperor a mannerless fellow, Emperor Millior's lifted lips descended and he spoke coldly again.
[Seeing your condition, you may depart this world before this conversation is over, so I shall get to the point.]
"What a short-tempered friend. If anyone dies, it'll be me who dies—will you be the one to die?"
[Watching an old man die before one's eyes is not a particularly pleasant sight.]
It was less a conversation between emperors and more a war waged on the tips of the tongues of skilled diplomats.
[Why do you change your word and demand a reinvestigation when you said you would pay compensation?]
"Do you ask because you truly do not know?"
[We have nothing to do with the attack on the envoy fleet.]
"Did we not show you the magic image?"
[The hull may match those of our imperial navy, but there is no proof that it truly was our imperial navy.]
At Emperor Millior's denial, Emperor Viahole nodded and opened his mumbling mouth.
"Now that you mention it, you're right. It is a bit laughable to insist on the shape alone."
As if he had discovered some great truth, Emperor Viahole slapped his knee repeatedly and uttered a voice of admiration at Emperor Millior's words. To Emperor Millior, who was watching this quietly, Emperor Viahole drew a warm smile and spoke.
"My apologies for having insisted. Then off you go now."
[What is your meaning.......]
"Do we not now have nothing left to discuss?"
A corner of Emperor Millior's cold face twitched as if a crack had formed.
"Those naval ships and corpses of ours that you said you recovered—they had gone missing even before that incident...... yet they turned up there. Going by your own words, could not our navy have simply been passing by, come under attack from both sides, and sunk?"
[Nonsense.]
"Ho ho ho."
A dry laughter rang out as if mocking Emperor Millior. In the end, everything had returned to square one.
"What matters is that if the Holy Empire denies it and we deny it, it is ultimately the work of some third party...... It would not be the Federal Empire; what do you think?"
At Emperor Viahole's remark, which subtly promoted the Federal Empire, Emperor Millior glared for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth.
[If we investigate further, it will come out. Let us stop here.]
Fwoof!
"Wh-what insolence!"
"Insufferably arrogant cur!"
"Ho ho ho ho."
At Emperor Millior's act of unilaterally cutting off the communication, the nobles of the Slegian Empire voiced their fury. Only Emperor Viahole's kind-looking smile and laughter slowly resonated through the hall.