232 – 99% truth, 1% lie (3)
Stockholm Palace, conference room
Christian von Vasa, King of Stockholm, became angry and raised his voice, slamming his fist on the table.
“How on earth can we get out of the current crisis! Ministers and generals, hurry up and express your correct opinions! “If we continue like this, our country will be ruined!”
Christian scolded the ministers who were about 20 or 30 years older than him, but it was as if the king had no alternative.
The ministers were also in a situation where the royal capital was under siege, an unprecedented crisis in the kingdom’s history, so no one came forward to come up with an appropriate solution to his words.
“Why on earth is there no talent in the Kingdom of Stockholm to catch this bastard who is not even 30 years old, as evil as a wet snake and as cunning as a fox? How have the Minister of Military Affairs and other generals managed the Stockholm Staff College and Academy so far? “Why don’t we have the talent to deal with that young bastard?”
At those words, all the ministers who had been competing with each other for greater influence in the central government, with good will or hostility, all thought the same thing.
‘There is no one in the empire as talented as that kid. It’s just that that bastard is insanely capable, it’s not that we are incompetent, so why are they planning the game wrong and trying to put all the blame on us?’
Meanwhile, the king feels thirsty as the sense of crisis that the capital is under siege is strangling his throat.
After gulping down water from the glass of water placed right in front of him, he glared at the Minister of Foreign Affairs and asked.
“Minister of Foreign Affairs, what measures does the Minister of Foreign Affairs have? “Even if it’s something very trivial, it’s okay to say it.”
“It is best to request additional reinforcements from the Grand Duchy of Warsaw.”
“Are you saying I have to bow down again to this baseless archduke?”
“I’m sorry to tell you, but right now you have to think only about survival. If the capital and the royal family are not safe, the pride of His Majesty the King and our nobles will end here.”
When the Minister of Foreign Affairs declared a break in the royal family or a similar crisis, the ministers were surprised, but no one could deny the news.
That sight made Christian more anxious, but he had the reason to recognize that no matter how hard he tried to escape from reality, it was useless.
‘If I overcome this crisis, I will not be able to escape the responsibility I must bear as king. ‘The Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Military Affairs, and Marshal Władysław will bear a very heavy responsibility.’
I made up my mind to use the strategy of ‘placing the responsibility of those at the top on those below’, a tradition that has been passed down among politicians from the past to the present.
“I feel like asking why a person who is the foreign minister of a country could not have predicted the betrayal of the Kingdom of Sweden, which was our ally. “We’re running out of time to go over all of this one by one, so let’s skip it and ask the capital defense commander.”
“I will answer with all my sincerity.”
“I understand that there are currently about 40,000 soldiers and 100,000 male citizens inside Oslo Castle, and the number of Reich Imperial troops outside is only 85,000. Then, if I, Christian von Vasa, personally lead them out of the castle and fight, wouldn’t there still be a chance of victory?”
The ministers were suspicious that the king was trying to pretend to do something in front of them, but when they saw the sincerity in his eyes, their doubts and anger were relieved.
Captain Lübeck, commander of the Capital Defense Command, shook his head and said.
“I express my deepest respect for Your Majesty’s noble intentions. However, if a properly trained soldier fights with an ordinary citizen, the ordinary citizen will inevitably lose. So, if we open the gate and go out because we have a lot of numbers, there is a very high chance that we will be defeated.”
“……”
“Then why not launch a surprise attack to surprise the enemy? “I am leading the knights to personally attack the enemy’s base and return.”
The ministers hoped that the king’s plan would be accepted and that they would be able to buy some time.
‘If only the guys fighting the Swedish bastards would come down and join us, we could take the bastard’s head.’
If Lieutenant General Yeager had heard that, he would have been booing for a while, saying that the circuit was going smoothly.
“The opponent is Lieutenant General Jaeger. It is highly likely that he has already prepared sufficiently. Furthermore, it is believed that he may have even prepared to capture His Majesty while he was out of the castle. “I am extremely sorry that I was unable to come up with a proper countermeasure due to my incompetence, but as a noble and general of the Kingdom of Stockholm, I have no choice but to oppose that operation.”
After hearing those words, Christian suppressed his anger and returned to his seat, and with the sound of the conference room door opening, someone came in.
“His Excellency the Minister of Military Affairs, Oxenburg, has returned from negotiations with Lieutenant General Jaeger.”
At those words, Christian and his ministers asked with a mixture of anticipation and concern.
“Minister of Military Affairs, how did the negotiations go? “Does Jaeger say he plans to step down?”
“The future of the kingdom depends on it. “Please tell me all the details.”
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“You must have brought good news, right? Please come and listen.”
However, instead of giving a proper answer to that question, Minister of Military Affairs Oxenburg just showed a serious and gloomy expression.
As the facial expression clearly said more than words, Christian and the ministers lost their senses for a moment in shock.
“I have returned from negotiations with Lieutenant General Peter Yeager, and I will report the progress to you and your ministers. Lieutenant General Jaeger has no intention of entering into peace negotiations with us. No, rather, we are eagerly waiting for the war to turn into a long-term war.”
“Are you going to continue the siege like this?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. He has no intention of quitting the war. “He seemed like he wanted to expand the scale of the war.”
At those words, shock, fear, and confusion passed through the ministers.
In particular, the Foreign Minister felt even greater confusion because he knew, based on information sent by diplomats, that the Reich Empire did not have the capacity to continue the war for a long time.
“It is said that General Gernhard von Keitel, commander of the Reich Empire’s expeditionary force, established a perfect supply system that was watertight. Because of this, it is said that the Reich Imperial Army is constantly receiving supplies through sea transport even though it is stationed near Oslo.”
“Are we just believing what the enemy says?”
“This is an accurate fact confirmed by sending a small number of scouts. Lieutenant General Yeager said it was one year, two years and he could continue the siege, but he seemed capable of carrying out that operation without any problems.”
“… That can’t be possible…”
“Furthermore, that warmongering bastard has perfectly developed a strategy to request additional reinforcements from the Reich Empire.”
At those words, a heavy silence fell between Christian and his ministers.
“No, Your Highness. He may not actually need reinforcements. Right now, people all over Sweden don’t know that we were defeated on the Osby Plain, so they’re just not mobilizing additional troops. It is unclear when additional troops will be mobilized. So, so… Worst case scenario…”
The Minister of Military Affairs was imagining something so absurd that he could not bear to say it, but the words that came out of his mouth were very obvious.
‘The Kingdom of Sweden and the Reich Empire join forces to capture Oslo Castle, and the king is taken prisoner.’
Christian threw the glass cup on the floor as he realized that this possibility was getting closer to reality.
The clanging sound seemed to indicate that the future of the Swedish kingdom was dark, so the king and ministers felt that even the sound was ominous.
“Damn it! Okay, Minister of Military Affairs. “Then are there any conditions for peace negotiations that Jaeger presented to us?”
At those words, Oxenburg shook his head and said.
“I was kicked out in the middle. Lieutenant General Jaeger, that war-mad berserker Swordmaster bastard wants to see our blood.”
At this point, Christian began to suspect that he had committed some serious sin against Deus that had brought matters to this point. He even thought that once the siege was lifted, he would attend mass every day and wash away his sins.
At that moment, the conference room door burst open, and a general quickly walked in, got down on one knee, and reported.
“Your Majesty, Tosby Castle has fallen to two divisions of the Swedish army!”
Everyone’s mouths opened at the same time due to the shock, and before they could close their mouths, this time a messenger hurried in and spoke.
“Your Majesty, Uppsala Castle is surrounded by the Swedish 1st Corps! We need reinforcements.”
…… When Lieutenant General Jaeger’s prophecy came true, Christian’s weak spirit could not withstand the cruel reality.
In the end, he lost consciousness for a moment and fell to the floor… But did not die.
However, he was now put in a position where he had to negotiate a deal as humiliating as death.