279 – There is no militarism in our empire (1)
When we entered the throne room and paid our respects, His Majesty was so happy to see him that he seemed to think that just sitting down and receiving greetings would not work, so he turned to me. He walked down with great strides.
When dealing with other subjects, there are times when he shows a somewhat pretentious smile or a solemn or cold demeanor, but now, His Majesty is smiling comfortably and happily, as if he is dealing with a close friend whom he has known for a long time.
When he came down to where I was, he stood me up and asked in a warm voice filled with joy.
“Count Jaeger, isn’t that our Marquis Jaeger? So, did you rest well yesterday? “Are Louise and Friedrich doing well?”
“Thanks to His Majesty’s consideration, I met my family early, shared joy, and rested well. Thank you very much. While we haven’t seen Louise, her belly has grown quite a bit and her unborn baby has been kicking her ass, showing everyone how healthy she is. “It is said that Friedrich got along well with his friends at school, and at home he followed Louise’s instructions in etiquette and studies.”
“Is that so? After Louise gives birth to her child, I will definitely bring her father to her mansion. “I also got to see Friedrich’s face for the first time in a while.”
“This is an honor beyond my grace, Your Majesty.”
Usually, when I say I’m overflowing with enthusiasm, it means I’m so honored and moved that I really want you to come, but…
Having His Majesty come to our house has the positive side of dramatically increasing my status, but we must make extensive preparations in advance to ensure that there are no disruptions in receiving hospitality.
When His Majesty comes to our house, it is natural that his close associates will accompany him, so the number of people entertained increases to at least dozens.
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For him to do so, he must first hire an additional gardener and prepare the garden on a large scale, prepare the best and most extravagant dishes, and be prepared to bring various gifts with him when he returns…
The family’s status rises, but at the cost of enormous expenses and hardships.
I am so busy with all the work I have to do as the commander of the imperial army, but if I also have to entertain the emperor, wouldn’t I collapse from exhaustion?
No, in fact, Louise, who is in charge of not only managing the estate but also running the household, will be the most difficult for her.
“And when your son turns eight. I would like to take on the role of servant to the crown prince. What do you think? Well, even if you call him a servant, he’s actually just a playmate. “I thought it would be good for your son Friedrich and my Edward to become close, just as my relationship with you is amicable.”
After hearing those words, I could understand why His Majesty Michael wanted to come to my house and see Frederick.
Your Majesty is planning to show how much he cares for me and my family by making Frederick the Crown Prince’s playmate in front of all the other nobles.
As subjects serving the empire, there is nothing more honorable and thankful, but I think Louise and Laura will go through a lot of hardships.
“It is an honor, Your Majesty. “Now then, I would like to talk about military affairs in earnest. Is that okay?”
“Let’s do that. First, I would like to discuss the management policy of the troops stationed in the coastal area of Warsaw and the Duchy of Königsburg obtained through this battle.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“The prevailing opinion at the Chief of Staff is to conscript 7 more divisions from the Warsaw coastal area and deploy them to the Warsaw coastal area. In addition, a report came up saying that it would be a good idea to station about four divisions in the Duchy of Königsburg. What is your opinion?”
Considering the population and area of the coastal areas of Warsaw and the Duchy of Königsburg, it would be difficult to prepare for an emergency by stationing only 11 divisions.
In the unlikely event of an invasion, as long as the soldiers and people enter the castles in each city in time, it will be enough to hold out until reinforcements are sent by sea from the mainland of the Reich Empire.
If you wait for reinforcements to arrive, you can somehow win, so there is no need to put a strain on yourself by conscripting more soldiers than necessary from the land you just occupied.
Instead, we must have a system that can send sufficient naval support assuming a situation where the enemy attacks.
“I would like to deploy about 14 divisions in two places combined, rather than 11 divisions. However, since the war has just ended, it would be a good idea to station only a minimal amount of troops in the newly acquired coastal cities and the Duchy of Königsburg. However, since other countries, including the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, will be looking for an opportunity to invade, I think it is necessary to repair the castle walls, provide various equipment needed for defense, and strengthen the navy as countermeasures.”
“Repairing the castle walls and preparing fortress warfare equipment would mean using a strategy of protecting the castle and waiting for reinforcements to arrive, rather than actively responding if the enemy invades. “Why do we want to expand the navy?”
“With the occupation of Warsaw and Königsburg, the Reich Empire had complete control over the southern Baltic Sea. Therefore, strengthening the navy is essential to transport reinforcements and manage expanded territorial waters. In addition, I persuaded the fishermen of Gryfino Castle and other castles to participate in the fireworks, and promised to appoint them as non-commissioned officers if they wanted.”
His Majesty showed agreement with my story from beginning to end and nodded his head in agreement.
“Okay, then the troops deployed to the newly acquired area will be the 11 army divisions and the additional deployment of the navy. “Once governance becomes more stable, we will station 14 divisions.”
Warsaw’s western coastal area and the Duchy of Königsburg are both places that can quickly regain their former prosperity after one to two years of rule under the Reich Empire.
If the village becomes wealthy, the people living there will also be satisfied with the new country and will follow the instructions of the officials.
After speaking like that, His Majesty began to quench his appetite.
I think he’s trying to make a suggestion to me related to ‘army expansion’ or ‘army priority’ that Captain Keitel warned about…
As the tension increased and I listened closely, His Majesty carefully opened his mouth towards me.
“Since I selected you, our Reich Imperial Army has not been defeated even once in about 10 years. No, to be more precise, the entire army in Switzerland was on the verge of being annihilated due to the Count of Bern’s evil plan, but thanks to the courage, dedication, loyalty, and sacrifice of you and the 7th Division under your command, we were ultimately able to achieve victory. As a result, some nobles within the Reich Empire are even saying that the empire has taken hegemony over Europa.”
This is my personal opinion, or rather the official opinion of the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
‘There is no hegemony on the continent of Europa. There is only the strongest nation on the continent, and that is our Reich Empire.’
Not only the imperial administration and officials, but also the Imperial Army Chief of Staff actively agree with these words.
Because in the past, the military power, economic power, and population of the two countries, the Francois Republic and the Reich Empire, were almost equal, so they had to fight for pride over the title of ‘strongest country’.
After I wrote the letter of excommunication in the Francois Republic and brought about internal strife, there was no single country that could dare to surpass the status of the empire.
However, hegemony, that is, the empire, cannot lead the continent as desired.
To put it bluntly, if two or three countries like Warsaw, Czechia, and Austria join hands to attack the empire, there is a high probability that we will be defeated.
So, when I was about to tell him the truth, His Majesty continued speaking.
“Oh, I’m not stupid enough to agree with that. The empire has not yet achieved hegemony. However, it is only the strongest country on the continent of Europa. It’s not that I don’t know that either. But, after listening to Lieutenant General Manstein and other young generals speaking at the fortress’s staff, I also had a dream.”
Michael von Reich, the person who raised me with spit after I achieved the goal of destroying a division with just one company on the Rhineland front.
Your Majesty is by no means a warmonger, but if you were to ask whether you are warlike or peace-loving, your personality would be evaluated as overwhelmingly warlike.
And although I am already in the ranks of the high-ranking men in the Reich Imperial Army, it is not for me to say this, but it is the lowly people who feel the tragedy of war, not the high-ranking nobles and generals.
Furthermore, His Majesty is only 40 years old, about 10 years older than me, and is too young to become a mature emperor.
He had a strong s*xual desire when he was young, so he officially had 10 concubines and how many more he had unofficially.
Brother Max and I often talk about how regretful I am not involved, and he is such a passionate person that he even secretly goes to bars where there are prostitutes.
What did His Majesty of such a personality think when he heard what Lieutenant General Manstein and other generals said?
The correct answer is….
“Now that Your Majesty has ascended the throne and the Reich Empire is now in a position to aim for hegemony, do you wish to secure its international status by increasing the size of its army and expanding its territory by occupying several countries?”
With those words, His Majesty spoke to me with a smile that reminded me of the scent of blood.
“That’s right, I think we can win against any country with you. What do you think, Captain Jaeger? Would you like to join me in raising the empire to the strongest position on Europa?”
It is true that I also want to see the Reich Empire as hegemony on the continent of Europa, but it is crazy for the current empire to wage more wars.
I have to hang my hair to dry it.