Chapter 155
Chapter 155
The Iron Emperor — Chapter 155
Gerard's face began to flush red as he took the communication.
A moment later, when Phillian Gerard had finished, Jang Bogo approached him and spoke.
"What is it?"
"Now he's threatening to boil people alive and eat them. Hng."
Bogo tilted his head at Gerard's baffling remark.
"And now he's even making me transport refugees......."
At Gerard's muttered words, Bogo wondered if this was something troublesome and asked again.
"Transporting refugees?"
"Exactly what it sounds like."
Gerard answered curtly and continued.
"If it were just one or two thousand, I wouldn't even mention it."
"Then...... about five thousand?"
Gerard shook his head at Bogo's cautious question. Bogo swallowed hard and asked again.
"Then...... about ten thousand?"
"......Double that."
"Th-that many people?!"
Seeing Bogo's eyes fly wide open at his words, Gerard smiled bitterly and added one more remark.
"Go ahead and tack a zero onto it."
"......."
Only silence filled the air around them.
* * *
"Think he'll manage it?"
Eulji Buru asked in a worried voice. Go Jin-cheon answered brusquely.
"Two hundred eighty thousand are moving by land. He can handle the rest on his own."
"......."
Buru considered it a stroke of divine fortune that he himself had not gone out to sea.
"If you don't want to be boiled alive, you'd better handle it."
From that moment, Buru resolved that he must never, ever get on Jin-cheon's bad side again.
* * *
The Gauri Naval Base, which had long focused on self-sufficiency without putting out to sea, was now bustling. The objective this time was transport, not combat, so preparations were all the more complicated.
And the number of people to be transported was not ten or twenty thousand—it reached two hundred thousand.
A fleet of over a hundred ships was slowly leaving the island and heading toward the mainland.
In the Federal Empire port city of Krasen, immense crowds were gathering. Every last one of them was armed, and the sight pressed down on onlookers with an oppressive weight.
The catch was that they were not an army but mercenaries—and furthermore, these were all Northern Mercenaries.
"What the hell is that?"
"That's what I'd like to know."
The people of the Federal Empire all watched with uneasy eyes.
Even with two hundred thousand men flooding in, the soldiers made no move to stop them, simply standing there blankly, blocking access and doing nothing but looking on.
"You lot don't know? They're the troops being thrown into the war between South Roselin and North Roselin."
A man with a pack on his back—seemingly a merchant—cut in and answered the curious onlookers. Their eyes went round and they shot back.
"What, our Federal Empire is getting involved too?!"
The question was only natural.
Those in the know understood that this war had been instigated by the Holy Empire. In that situation, there was no reason for the Federal Empire to move in support of the Holy Empire.
Knowing this, the citizens simply watched with even greater curiosity.
"Nah, what d'you mean 'getting involved.' Say, have you heard of Gerard of Lightning?"
"The Free Knight!"
"One of the Ten of the Continent!"
There was not a soul who did not know the name Gerard of Lightning. At the name alone, even people who had been passing by crowded in and lent their ears to the merchant's words.
"That Gerard is joining this war."
"Hah! Wasn't he a free knight who never belonged to any nation?"
"He was. But seems the reason's a little different this time. For whatever reason, he's hauling a mountain of Northern Mercenaries and joining the fight, and it looks like there's been some back-and-forth between the Federal Empire and the Holy Empire."
At the merchant's words, the people began chattering among themselves, each making it their own topic of conversation. Then the merchant quietly lowered his voice and went on.
"Still don't get it? You think two hundred thousand is some small number? And look—there are women and children among them, too. I hear they'll even be handling the post-war reconstruction. Because if they bring in people from the Roselin region after the war ends and use them for reconstruction, it could create a small spark in an already unsettled populace. And what's more......."
The merchant craned his neck around, scanning the area, then cautiously continued as though confiding an enormous secret.
"This war is already tipping toward one side, and the Federal Empire has no cause to join it, now does it."
"True."
"So rather than just sitting around sucking their thumbs, the aim seems to be turning a profit through the war. Haven't the trading companies handling military supplies been busier than ever lately? On top of that, they've likely secured some substantial interests in the post-war reconstruction."
"Ah!"
People long accustomed to the Federal Empire's pragmatic way of running continental affairs finally nodded along, their faces saying they understood.
Pragmatic from their point of view, perhaps—but in truth, it was fattening themselves on the blood of others.
"And from what I hear, a friend of Gerard's died in the middle of that war, and he's declared he'll have his vengeance. He's hauling in the Northern Mercenaries—you think the Federal Empire's just going to sit still? Of course they've lent him support and put in an appearance. Who is the man? A Master who reached the rank at thirty, one of the Ten of the Continent!"
"Just as I thought! If they win him over after the war, it's enormous."
The people all nodded as though everything now made sense, and the rumor steadily grew, picking up embellishments as it spread.
Of course, the merchant's words were not lies. It was exactly the sort of thing that could easily unfold within international power dynamics.
The Holy Empire was in an awkward position to intervene conspicuously. North Roselin had seen its supreme commander fall and its main army annihilated, leaving it short on soldiers.
And the Federal Empire had a strong appetite for the profits that would pour in after the war—hence the outcome was entirely plausible.
"Well then, I'd best be boarding that ship. Take care, everyone."
"Wait—you're a mercenary too?"
As the man who seemed a merchant headed toward the ship, the people who had been listening to him asked with wide eyes.
At that, the man showed them the pack on his back and tossed out a word, as if giving them a tip.
"A merchant. If you jump in after a war's over, the profit shrinks that much. A little danger's worth it—a man only gets one big shot in life, don't you think?"
The man swept back his golden hair and left the people with a pleasant smile. Watching him go, the onlookers all had something to say.
"No wonder. That's how he knew so much."
"Still, for a merchant, he's pretty good-looking."
"You're right."
With the murmur of the crowd at his back, Jang Bogo approached Gerard, who was coming aboard with a load on his shoulder, and spoke.
"Commander-in-Chief, what is that load?"
"The 3-Type Feed Set that Giant Crabs supposedly love. They were selling it for three Gold and ninety-nine Silver."
"......."
Watching Gerard hum to himself as he headed for the ship, Jang Bogo shook his head with a deflated expression.
Gerard of Lightning.
Or the Free Knight, Phillian Gerard.
By exploiting his influence, the great fleet carrying two hundred thousand departed the port city of Krasen and vanished, spawning countless rumors. The ones who suffered the greatest harm from this were the Federal Empire and the Holy Empire.
Because Gerard was the sort of man who, wherever he went, could receive a rank of marquis or higher—the most famous man on the continent—the entire affair remained a mystery.
Until he reappeared in the world once more.......
Before this, even Gerard would never have dreamed of such a thing.
But his first meeting with Go Jin-cheon had made him rethink what it meant to be a knight, and having become a leader who commanded a host and governed men, and having grown furious at the empires who cast their own citizens as political sacrifices on the distant continent, he was able to carry out something like this.
And of course, his years living as a pirate had brought changes to his character that could not be ignored. Thus, the return after ten thousand years was safely achieved—at Gerard's own sacrifice(?).
Chapter 47 — Heaven and Earth, Only the Infant Reigns Supreme!
Beneath the warm sunlight, Go Jin-cheon was quietly enjoying a midday nap. Dae Mu-deok, who had shouldered all of his work, was suffering with a visibly gaunt and haggard face. In truth, the excessive workload heaped upon Mu-deok was unavoidable.
In the Grand Council convened after their return, Go Jin-cheon had received reports covering the two years he had been away on expedition.
Now was the time to devote energy to internal administration. However many subjects one had, the person who governed them was what mattered.
"Hm, the Daedaero shall handle that matter as he sees fit."
"......."
Jin-cheon's area of expertise was combat. Of course, as a scion of the Yeolje bloodline, he had received basic political instruction, but he had been far removed from the line of succession, and having spent his whole life roaming battlefields, it was perhaps better for Mu-deok to take charge.
Even so, before the treasured blade of full-delegation authority, Mu-deok's spirit was crumbling.
"I shall follow Your Majesty's will."
Mu-deok, who had maintained a moment's silence, let his head drop weakly.
'It's my own fault for hoping.......'
Having quietly sighed, Dae Mu-deok surveyed the hall.
In the broad main hall sat about forty military officers. Every one of them was a person armed with lofty resolve and spirit. Their broad shoulders and bodies forged like steel inspired an instinctive sense of reassurance in anyone who looked upon them.
The problem was.......
"......."
They were all military officers.
Not that they were illiterate or anything of the sort. The problem was that all they knew was how to kill well, defend well, and fight well.
There is a saying: the lower waters are clear only when the upper waters are clear.
Jin-cheon's disposition was to take no interest in politics and pour his entire being into whatever war he was given. Naturally, the commanders who gathered around him were men of the same stripe.
Knowing this all too well, Mu-deok was sinking into despair.
"We have adopted the laws of Gauri as they are, so we may simply apply them accordingly. First, we must establish the livelihoods and public order of the Gauri people, and place capable men in every crucial post to govern them."
"That's right."
At Mu-deok's words, Eulji Buru, off to one side, cautiously voiced his agreement.
"For the time being, so that we may attend to internal governance, the duty of defending the borders of Gauri......."
"Entrust it to this general!"
The instant Mu-deok's words ended, a military officer on one side shot to his feet and cried out. And that was the start.
"Your servant Gal Muhwan will give his very bones and flesh to that duty!"
"If you will but entrust it to this humble Geom Modal, I shall ensure that not even a single rat crosses into the territory of Great Gauri!"
"......If permitted, your servant shall bury his bones on the border battlefield."
What loyal subjects, what magnificent commanders they were!
The main hall overflowed with officers passionately declaring that they would throw their bodies into the defense of the border, each vying with the others. At this fervent display, Siaron Risel quietly bowed his head, and Revion Gowin, attending the Grand Council for the first time, was filled with admiration.
"Quiet, all of you! If every last one of you runs off to fight, who do you suppose is going to run the country?!"
The fiercely spirited hall turned as though cold water had been dashed over it at Buru's thunderous shout. Beside him, Eulji Uru nodded along and chimed in.
"That's right. If everyone goes out to guard the outside, there ain't no one left to guard the inside."
"Exactly! When everyone's this brimming with zeal to guard, wouldn't the natural order of things be to first select civil officials who can devote themselves to internal administration?"
When Buru picked up Uru's words and addressed Mu-deok, the hall grew even quieter.
"Huh?"
Sensing something strange, Buru took his eyes off Mu-deok and turned to look behind him. The officers who had seemed ready to charge out at any moment were all sitting back down in their seats, keeping perfect silence.
Beads of sweat ran down Buru's spine.
"Taedaesaja Buru, you give it a try."
At the weighty sound of Jin-cheon's voice, Buru shot him a panicked look.
"What?"
"Put some effort into internal administration. Lead by example."
Buru was digging his own grave.
In the end, Buru, chosen by Jin-cheon, and the rest of the military officers were dispatched across the territories of Gauri and threw themselves into internal administration—and the results showed themselves in a most conspicuous fashion.
Beginning with Buru's record-setting achievement of establishing a deficit in the shortest time possible, the operations here and there were so full of gaping holes that Gowin, who had experience running a domain, and Mu-deok were forced to recall the officers and put them through reeducation.
And Gowin finally understood the officers' fervent behavior that day. These were men who would single-handedly block an army of ten thousand if ordered—but when it came to politics or finance, they were the sort of people who would flee for their lives.......