“I would like to hear more about that story.”
He told me the story about Princess Shalltear, the last survivor of the Nebra Kingdom, now in the Akasha estate. There is something else in mind, so there is no need to tell William about Ben Bezalel right now.
“What would you like?”
“That’s great. It’s good, but isn’t there something missing?”
Just the fact that Princess Shalltear was here wasn’t enough of a justification.
“Then what about this? Let’s go get married one more time.”
Upon hearing this, William frowned.
“The Count tells me to do three things that I never do.”
“That, hmm! Wouldn’t that be an important matter for the country?”
Actually, there is no excuse for this.
“Rather than that, would the empresses allow it?”
Compared to the power of their parents, the empresses now do not interfere in politics, and they are jealous of each other, so they do not engage in common court fights.
However, it is only possible because of the exquisite balance, and it does not mean that William does not pay attention to them.
“I will work on that.”
I have to solve this, is there anything else I can do? It was fortunate that he was friendly with all the empresses.
After requesting an interview with the empresses, they gathered together and explained the current situation. and negotiated
“Even if we get married, there will be no such thing as Princess Shalltear sleeping with Her Majesty. And as soon as we get married, we will go far away.”
The empresses are just not involved in politics, but both are clever women. I fully understood the current situation.
“But I need to meet Princess Shalltear first.”
It was Hilda’s request. As a royal wife, it was a sufficient demand. No matter how formal an arranged marriage is, isn’t it politics and the relationship between men and women that can be overturned at any time?
I accepted Hilda’s request. In fact, it was an impossible request to refuse. I immediately went back to the estate and met Princess Shalltear.
Princess Shalltear was still faithfully building her skills as Jake’s apprentice. The knights under his command were originally talented people, so they quickly completed the mercenary school and were gaining experience by receiving various requests that could be solved nearby.
“Is the training going well?”
“Thanks to your consideration, I am receiving a favor that I may be able to repay.”
“Let’s repay that favor now.”
“yes?”
The words are a bit strange. In fact, this was an opportunity that might come again to Princess Shalltear.
“Right now, the Aether Empire is about to strike some of the seven factions that have split from the Neos Kingdom. However, it is lacking in justification. So, I informed His Majesty the Emperor that Princess Shalltear is in my domain.”
Princess Shalltear seemed to be working hard as she listened to the explanation.
“May I listen to this with Sir Malus?”
From noble mtl dot com.
“of course.”
It is also a quality of a good ruler to listen to the opinions of competent subjects when he is not sure. Malus, who was called by Shalltear, came and the story resumed.
“therefore. Since the Aether Empire is trying to occupy a certain portion of the territory of the Neos Kingdom, is it a story that Princess Shalltear wants to marry His Majesty Emperor William and serve as a justification?”
“Yes”
Malus didn’t seem to like the current proposal very much.
“Actually, Your Majesty doesn’t really want the territory of the Neos Kingdom, and you don’t want a war itself, but it’s reached a level where you can’t completely ignore the opinion of the main battle group. You’re thinking of joining the war under the pretext of doing so.”
Of course, almost all of the basic plans were thought up by me. Malus was still frowning. Even if you don’t like it, you shouldn’t make an impression like that in front of your negotiating partner.
“Then what good is it to us?”
Although he is loyal, he does not seem to be a competent subject. Even if you say it like bean cake, shouldn’t it be understood like corn cake?
“plural”
It was just one word. But could there be a sweeter temptation than this? Princess Shalltear’s eyes burned.
“Are you thinking of destroying the Bariantus Kingdom that destroyed the Nebra Kingdom?”
“If Princess Shalltear accepts this offer, that will happen.”
This would be a hard offer to refuse. Even if Princess Shalltear’s qualities were outstanding, how long would it take to rise to the level of a master and grow her own strength to take revenge? 10 years 20 years? And there is no guarantee of success.
Even if you catch it fast, 20 years is a very long time for an average human being. And during that time, the object of revenge might disappear.
“And the kingdom of Nebra will be restored. Of course, it will be in the form of a principality. Princess Shalltear will become the monarch of the duchy.”
In fact, I had never thought that Princess Shalltear would refuse this offer from the beginning. That’s why there were cases where work was carried out in the imperial capital without the consent of the princess.
“I’ll do it.”
“It’s the princess’s ambassador. Ponder some more.”
Princess Shalltear made a decision. It seems that Malus is still unsure, but as long as the princess’s thoughts are firm, there will be no turning back.
After Princess Shalltear’s permission was granted, it was decided to go to the ecliptic. There was a lot more to prepare than I thought. It was because, starting with Princess Shalltear’s clothes, all the armor of the knights under her command had to be adjusted.
There were already many great craftsmen in the Akasha estate, so there was no problem with the clothes, and the armor was entrusted to the dwarves of the new continent.
It was to ensure that no one looked down on Princess Shalltear by calling her the princess of a ruined country. Externally, I was the guardian of Princess Shalltear, so I wouldn’t be able to see people easily, but even so, if I had a shabby appearance, I might think that way.
Princess Shalltear proudly stood before the empresses. However, being too confident was a bit of a problem. Even if it wasn’t so, when Princess Shalltear, who was taller and taller than most men, stood out confidently, the empresses rather lost their spirits.
While Princess Shalltear and the empress were talking for a long time, I was simply having a drink with the emperor.
“The princess’s appearance is amazing.”
“Yes, the quality is also good. I will probably become a master before I turn 30.”
“Heh heh, that’s a gift from heaven.”
There are already many real monsters sent from the sky, but if you become a master in your 20s with a female body, it will probably be the first. It was enough to listen to the voice of talent from heaven.
“I will send Argin Tempest together this time.”
William opened his eyes wide. The presence of a Grand Master is a strategic weapon that can change the direction of war. In fact, if Argin goes out, losing is unthinkable.
“Is that okay?”
It was to think of my position as a saint.
“Yes, well, I’m not going there myself, and I can’t keep Argin under me forever.”
Jake says he won’t go out even if he deliberately tells him to leave, but Argin is different. You can’t rot a still young and outstanding talent as a single-seung baron without a seal of Akasha estate.
“Lord Argin’s participation in the war is like a thousand troops, but that’s a problem on its own.”
William covered his head with his hands as if he was in trouble.
“Why is that?”
“It’s an established fact that Lord Argin is credited, and considering his skills, shouldn’t we give him the title of duke? I don’t know if there is any territory worthy of a gift.”
Ah, is Argin higher in rank than I am now? It doesn’t matter, but it’s a strange feeling.
“Your greed for the territory will not be great.”
I said this, but I still need to pay more attention so that I can receive the best land when selecting the territory to be bestowed later. Because good is good
The meeting between the empresses and Princess Shalltear took longer than expected. no it was too long It took two days, staying in the palaces of the empresses for one day at a time.
I didn’t intentionally send an alter ego, but when I peeked later, they were so friendly that they were scheming.
They were even making jokes close to treason, such as asking William to be beaten when they had a fight later.
William is also not weak, but he will die if he is hit by Princess Shalltear. That’s the assassination of the emperor, you women.
This time, the almost informal wedding ceremony of William and Princess Shalltear was held. William seems to have such a fate.
Princess Shalltear was immediately granted the title of duke of the Aether Empire without even having the first night after her wedding.
And as if we had waited, the departure schedule was set. The commander-in-chief formally became Empress Shalltear. And Argin and Malus were appointed as Empress Shalltear’s lieutenants.
Aside from the commander-in-chief, the deputies who were the actual commanders were somewhat unfamiliar, but no nobles or the military dared to raise an objection.
Many nobles couldn’t do that because they noticed me, and the high-ranking people who knew Argin’s skills naturally kept their mouths shut.
Three of the seven swords, like symbols of power representing the Aether Empire, which can be said to be the real power of the military, will follow this expedition. All of them are masters, but after sparring with Argin once, they became absolutely obedient.
Thus, a total of 10,000 troops began marching south, shouting the resurrection of the Nebra Kingdom.
From the point of view of the Empire, the 10,000 soldiers who are going out this time are, in a way, a very small number. However, if you look at the side of those who lead it, you will be able to say that there are many.
Those 10,000 soldiers were purely necessary for maintaining security in the occupied territory.
The 30 knights who had been officially appointed as Empress Shalltear’s bodyguards and had followed them from Nebra Kingdom were training fiercely even while marching.
Now the number of the SS was exactly 32. The exact identities of the two were unknown even to the same SS. He was just a talent chosen by Empress Shalltear himself, so he kept quiet.
However, their skills were beyond their imagination. So, in order to keep their place, they devoted themselves to training more desperately.
After a two-month march, the Aether Empire finally arrived near the border. Already, this move was widely known to the successors of the former Neos Kingdom and neighboring countries, and each country took emergency action.
In particular, the surrounding countries poured fierce criticism on the actions of the Aether Empire, but the Ether Empire made a justification by putting Empress Shalltear on the line.
Some countries put forward the descendants of the ruined nation from Neos, who found it belatedly. However, most of them were fake and only one was a true descendant of the ruined nation.
Of course, I was the one who uncovered the fake and let the world know. I said that I did not directly participate in the war, but I did not say that I did not do behind-the-scenes work.
And one big picture was adding up. I was meeting Nivea, the head of the Witches of the West, who had left for Neos.
As planned, Nivea led the western witches to Neos to find a country that would be important to them.
Most of them were barred from their doorstep, and some countries even attacked them. It was to be expected. No one with common sense treats witches favorably.
But among them, Cython Kingdom accepted them. The reason was simple. The Cython kingdom was on the defensive and needed any help.
The western witches who participated in the battlefield showed their powerful abilities without regret. The curse of Nivea, the great witch, was fear itself to the enemy.
“I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”
“thank you.”
To be honest, I knew the witches would be active, but the western witches’ performance far exceeded my expectations.
Power itself is not good. The solidarity that was more than a brotherhood was seamless in the linkage of skills, and everyone was dedicated. Witches were desperate.
All of them longed for a country where witches like themselves could live comfortably. Participating in the war with this spirit, it was natural to exert more power than originally.
“The reason I came is to make a proposal”
“Are you talking about the Aether Empire?”
The imperial army had arrived near the border, and there was no way they hadn’t heard the news.
“That’s right, the Aether Empire’s army doesn’t intend to occupy all of Neos’ territory, rather they want the war to end quickly.”
“You mean to make an alliance?”
“Yes, it may be an unofficial alliance, but I mean.”
“We have nothing to lose.”
“Of course, neither side has anything to lose.”
Diplomacy benefits everyone. Of course, I don’t know how it will change after the war, but it is right now.
Nivea and I exchanged strategies. Nivea deals only with the Kingdom of Baraha, which was originally the enemy of the Kingdom of Cython, while the Aether Empire, which is moving south, attacks Variantus.
It will be a form of fighting back to back. As we talked, I observed Nivea. It was because of a story I heard recently.
When Eltis received an assassination request and had to go through Cython Kingdom, he remembered what I said at that time and said that he had been looking for Nivea.
In conclusion, Eltis said that Nivea did not have any succubi blood mixed in it. They are not descendants of any other ancient species. But I don’t know why this keeps happening to me. Anyway, the contents of the secret pact with Nivea were all delivered to Argin.
A few days later, the advance trumpet was finally sounded by the Aether Empire.