A Politician's Counterattack
I draped blankets over the shoulders of the gathered rabbit beastmen women and distributed hot water I had boiled for them.
Throughout it all, I stayed by their side to help them calm down so they could speak.
"How many children were taken?" I asked.
"They raided the entertainment district without warning. Over a thousand have been captured and detained. My own child is among them."
"Is it possible to pinpoint where they are being held?"
"We only know that some were taken to the ducal manor, while the vast majority were dragged down into the dungeons."
"How many rabbit beastmen in the East can bear arms right now?"
"There are quite a few able-bodied men and women. But... they will refuse to move."
Having commanded many rabbit beastmen, including Annabel, the 3rd Battalion Commander, I understood exactly why she said that.
Despite their high sex drive, rabbit beastmen had a constitution that made conception extremely difficult.
While half-beastmen born between humans and beastmen were notoriously rare, rabbit beastmen were famous for having low birth rates even when mating within their own species.
Compared to other beastmen like wolves, foxes, bears, or rats, the pregnancy rate of the rabbit tribe was noticeably lower.
Because of this, they were practically guaranteed to never get pregnant, which made them highly sought after in the entertainment districts. But looking at it another way, the moment a pregnancy actually succeeded...
That child was treated as a treasure and the most precious asset of the entire rabbit tribe.
There was even a saying: The most fragile creature in the world is a rabbit beastman whose child is held hostage, and the most terrifying is a rabbit beastman whose child is murdered before their eyes.
"Then give me information. Is there anything we can use to blackmail or threaten the House of Orph?"
"There is nothing. Duke Orph is a meticulous man. He educates his heirs and close aides thoroughly. They would never run their mouths in front of women selling their bodies in the entertainment districts. And even if such information existed, we are in no position to speak of it."
"I understand."
The rabbit beastman woman clenched her fists so hard her knuckles turned white, nearly drawing blood.
"Duke Orph told me to deliver a message to you, Commander."
Hearing this, Annabel furrowed her brow deeply.
"You met with Duke Orph? Sister?"
"He had his knights kidnap my child right in front of me and ordered me to deliver the message. He said that if we want the children of the rabbit beastmen back, Commander Volka must come to his ducal manor alone within three days. If you do not show up within three days... he said he would slaughter all the young rabbit beastmen..."
Come to the ducal manor alone.
No matter how I look at it, the man is incredibly cunning.
"It is a trap, Commander. This is clearly a trap," Annabel said, shaking her head violently.
"He intends to lure you to his manor alone to force you into an unfavorable contract or blackmail you! You must not go!"
Her words made sense, but at her warning, the rabbit beastman women who had fled all the way from the East fell to their knees, prostrating themselves at my feet.
"Please! This is the only way to save our children! Commander! Please... please, just this once, could you not go alone?"
Infuriated by their plea, Annabel grabbed the kneeling woman by the collar, yanked her up, and slapped her across the face.
At the sharp crack, I quickly moved to stop her, but Annabel waved her hand in fury, warning me to stay back.
"And you call yourself the Rose of the East?! The Rose is a position meant to act for the safety and comfort of our entire race, even if it costs your own life! If the Commander goes alone and dies, what happens to the safety of our entire people?! It has been ten years! Are you going to cause the death of the man who single-handedly built up the standing of beastmen in this empire over the last ten years?!"
Despite Annabel's fury, the woman called the Rose of the East could say nothing. She only wept.
"Say something! Hybel! Before I become utterly ashamed of all the years I spent calling you my sister!"
The Rose of the East.
The pinnacle of the rabbit beastmen in the Eastern entertainment districts.
The woman named Hybel remained silent for a long time before finally squeezing out a single sentence, her voice sounding as if she were tearing out her own heart.
"My child is the one who was taken, Annabel."
"You really...!"
"I will do anything. They can cut off my limbs and gouge out my eyes while laughing for all I care. Just... please, just save my child, please..."
Annabel trembled with rage, shoved Hybel away, and turned her back.
I quickly stepped forward and caught Hybel just in time.
"Commander. You can call us shameless bitches for the rest of your life. Could you please help us just this once..."
I patted the shoulder of the 3rd Battalion Commander, who trailed off, clearly ashamed of her own words.
"I will go alone."
At those words, my adjutant, the other battalion commanders, and Mogant's Steel Teeth wolf beastmen all erupted in protest.
"This is madness, Commander! Who knows what Duke Orph will do to you!"
"We pity the rabbit beastmen, but this is too obvious a trap! You could die, Commander!"
The wolf beastmen glared fiercely at the rabbit beastmen, who shrank back in shame but still looked at me with desperate eyes.
I raised a hand to calm the heated atmosphere.
"Duke Orph is a meticulous businessman. He does not want the North to fall. He knows all too well that if the North collapses and the beasts of the Magic Realm pour down, it will only hurt his bottom line. Therefore, he will not kill me. Absolutely not."
"But...!"
"Yes, you are right, Adjutant. He will try to force me to sign some unfavorable contract or agreement. That is precisely why I must go. I need to see what kind of absurd, unreasonable conditions he plans to present."
"What on earth are you thinking...?"
"Think of it in reverse. Those very conditions and contracts will become the leverage we need to rip the East apart, Adjutant."
My adjutant, the other wolf beastmen, and the battalion commanders looked utterly bewildered.
Hybel and the other rabbit beastmen shared the same confused expression.
Only one person understood what I meant.
The fox beastman, the 4th Battalion Commander.
"Commander, when should we move the Behemoth toward the territory of Duke Orph?"
"Move it the exact moment I leave the ducal manor. The timing should line up perfectly."
"Understood."
At the 4th Battalion Commander's words, the adjutant and the other commanders turned to stare at him.
"What are you talking about? What is going on here?" the adjutant demanded.
The fox beastman chuckled, flashing his signature sly, irritating grin.
"Just wait a few days. It will be much more entertaining to see it for yourselves than to have me explain it. Honestly, you guys are so slow on the uptake."
Leaving the bewildered beastmen behind, I climbed into the driver's seat of the military truck we used for transporting supplies.
"Everyone, follow the 4th Battalion Commander's orders. Do not worry! We will bleed the East dry, rescue the rabbit beastmen's children, and migrate the rabbit tribe to the North! We will get everything we want!"
Worry.
Anticipation.
Doubt.
Curiosity.
And finally, the ever-irritating smirk of the fox beastman who was the only one to grasp my plan.
I waved to them.
"Trust me!"
Though their faces were still filled with questions, the beastmen relaxed at my words.
Yes.
Keep that relaxed look.
Just trust me.
I started up the old military truck.
The engine sputtered to life with its familiar, rattling rumble, and the truck began to roll forward.
It was around evening when I arrived at the territory of Duke Orph alone.
Duke Leonard of the West? A rat-faced, untrustworthy man.
Duke Luvheim of the South? A handsome, middle-aged man exuding a corrupt elegance.
While the rulers of the West and South still felt human in some way, Duke Orph of the East did not feel human at all.
A calculator.
A cold, emotionless businessman.
A machine.
That was the impression the man sitting before me gave off.
"I hear you forced a contract on the Leonal Trading Company," Duke Orph said. "Nine crowns per sack of wheat, to be supplied for the next year. I need you to cancel that contract."
"Is that why you summoned me here?"
"Yes. That is all."
"If I tear up the contract, will you release the rabbit beastmen children?"
"I will release them. When the time is right."
"And when exactly is that?"
"When the rabbit beastmen no longer pose a threat to the East. That is when I will release them."
He was saying he would keep them as hostages indefinitely.
I let out a hollow laugh.
"The North needs the Defense Contribution Fee."
"Do you think I am unaware of that? You managed to squeeze resources and money out of the South and West by playing them like a fiddle. The East has absolutely no intention of doing the same."
"If you leave us like this, the North will collapse."
"You have the support of the South and the West. His Majesty is backing you as well. Go squeeze them, not the East. The East does not sign contracts that result in a loss."
Duke Orph extended his hand toward me.
"The contract you made with the Leonal Trading Company. Tear it up and hand it over to me."
"I do not have the contract on me right now."
"Then I will have a contract withdrawal form prepared, and you will sign it. Ah, and one more thing. You will have to compensate the Leonal Trading Company for the damages you caused them."
When I remained silent, staring at him, Duke Orph withdrew his hand.
"You must be looking for something to blackmail me with, just like you did in the West and South. Unfortunately, your methods will not work in the East. I am not foolish enough to leave weaknesses lying around, and unlike the West, we do not have an industrial structure that would collapse if a war broke out."
Duke Orph lit a cigarette, his face expressionless.
He blew a puff of smoke directly into my face as if to mock me.
"The East runs on money, finance, and oil. Even if a few buildings blow up and riots break out, we will not be shaken like the factory-heavy West. Even if you roll in with your armored train, you stand no chance."
I burst into laughter at his words.
"You really are meticulous."
"That is how one survives as a merchant for a long time."
Another provocative puff of smoke drifted toward me.
"Furthermore, if cargo bound for the North uses the railway lines within Eastern territory, you will pay five percent of the cargo's total value as a transit fee."
And an even more bullshit condition was tacked on.
"Do you really want to squeeze money out of the struggling North? First the Leonal Trading Company, and now these demands. You are a real piece of work."
"Profanity. Personally, I despise those who behave with such a lack of dignity. But well, I can understand your frustration."
"But Duke, I do not think you are that great of a merchant either."
"I also despise cheap provocations."
"Because you only look at immediate profits and fail to see the long-term losses."
"Ah. If the North falls, the beasts of the Magic Realm will pour down, and the East will suffer. Is that the logic you intend to use? No. In my view, the North will hold out with just the support of the West and South. That is, if you limit yourselves to merely defending the border."
Once again, he blew smoke in my face to mock me.
"You go around shouting that the North will collapse without support, but in reality, you intend to rebuild it. If you only wanted to maintain the defense of the Magic Realm, what you have already squeezed out of the South and West would be more than enough. Did you think I could not read your greed?"
"Spot on."
"It might work on those fools in the South and West, but it will not work on me."
With a simple gesture, the Duke had an employee bring over the contract withdrawal form and the new contract, sliding them in front of me.
"Now, sign. One is the document terminating the contract with the Leonal Trading Company. The other is the agreement to pay the transit fees."
Threatening to start a fight with an armored train and two thousand beastmen would not work here.
He had no weaknesses like the Duke of the South.
On top of that, it was impossible to use the local beastmen to create openings, find weaknesses, or extract information.
Without a word, I quietly signed both documents.
Duke Orph picked up the two papers, looking satisfied.
"What are you waiting for, Commander Volka? You may leave. I have no further business with you. Ah, and let me give you a piece of advice, just in case you let your anger get the better of you and try to mobilize your troops to cause chaos in the East. If you actually do that, it will look as though the Imperial Army is attacking the East."
The Duke walked over and patted my shoulder.
"If that happens, what will become of His Majesty's authority? Do not trouble an already struggling man any further. Understood? Well... I suppose you already knew this, which is why you only put on a show in the South and West without firing a single bullet."
"..."
"I will trust that while you are desperate, you are not stupid."
Duke Orph walked out of the room.
After a brief pause, I left the room as well.
I started up the rattling military truck, and in that pathetic state, I headed back to the Behemoth...
Or rather, I did not.
Instead, I headed straight for the capital.
I drove toward the Imperial Palace.
Fortunately, the roads and railways in the West and Central regions were not severely damaged like those in the North. Thanks to the well-paved roads, I arrived at the Imperial Palace from the East in just half a day.
Parking the rattling military truck, I went straight to see His Majesty.
"Commander Volka! Haha! What brings you here? Did you secure the Defense Contribution Fee?"
"I have something to discuss regarding that matter, Your Majesty. The East has refused to pay the Defense Contribution Fee."
At my words, the Emperor's eyes widened slightly, and then he burst into a hearty laugh.
"If it is Duke Orph, that sounds like him. He has always been exceptionally greedy. The ten-year war cost him dearly, and he is currently desperate to recoup his losses. Perhaps that is why... quite unlike him, he failed to look at the bigger picture."
"Can you help me?"
"Of course, Volka."
Duke Orph's words were entirely correct.
I could not get help from the local beastmen, he had nothing to lose even if a battle broke out, and the moment a fight started, the Emperor's prestige would plummet, meaning I could not fire a single bullet.
Furthermore, since he had no weaknesses, blackmail was out of the question. He was an opponent against whom none of my previous methods would work.
So what was I to do?
Since I could not do it alone, I had to get help.
The Emperor picked up the phone.
To be more precise, he made calls to two people.
"Duke Luvheim. Haha! How have you been? I need you to come up to the Imperial Palace immediately. It is about the Northern Defense Contribution Fee... I hear Orph of the East is refusing to pay the money that you all paid?"
"Duke Leonard. Haha! Yes, my friend. Let us meet at the Imperial Palace for a moment. I hear Duke Orph is refusing to send money to the North. Yes! He claims he cannot pay the Defense Contribution Fee that you bore. Let us have a chat about this matter."
Duke Orph was not someone to be beaten with secrets or violence.
Only by beating him with politics could we force him to spit out the money.