241 – Before the Fall of the Elain Empire (12)
I was discussing how to attack the second wall with my father and the counts.
“So the great emperor of Elaine would certainly not accept citizens and serfs within two walls. Even a person with a sense of responsibility like Our Highness will contemplate whether or not to accept civilians if the resistance defense is overcrowded. Not to mention, a small man like Emperor Adolf would have decided to kick out the civilians without even thinking about it.”
“Earl Balt, after studying while suffering from his recent wife, I learned how to sit down and look inside the imperial castle. Then what do you think would be best?”
“Your Highness Paulo, in my opinion, now is the best time to attack. Now that the 1st wall has collapsed, I think it would be better to drive them out of the castle as soon as possible and attack the inner 2nd wall one after another, even if you are prepared for the sacrifice of civilians.”
They discussed it among themselves for 10 or 20 minutes, but I, who is in charge of the meeting, just watched without saying anything, like someone waiting for something important.
My father couldn’t stand it and tried to protest something.
But just as my father was about to begin speaking, a messenger rushed in and got down on one knee to report.
“I report to His Highness the King. The white flag has just been put on the Elaine Empire resistance, and smoke has risen as well! It seems that the emperor has expressed his intention to surrender. Congrats!!!”
The report was over, but there was a moment of silence as no one could speak.
After a while, a shout of “Hurray” Broke out from the only person who broke the silence, and all the counts in the barracks, including my father Paulo, spurned their seats and began to cheer.
“Finally damn Adolf raised the white flag! We too will become an empire!”
“Thanks to my son, I will listen to your majesty before I die! It’s good, when I go back, let’s enjoy the nightlife without Ciel, who doesn’t even play with me for the first time in a while! I’ll convince you well and rob Ciel’s wallet!”
“His Highness Paulo, no, Long live Your Majesty! Long live His Majesty the Emperor Ciel! Long live the Creutel Empire!!”
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Is it because I already knew that this was going to happen when I received a report from Major Short that Count Meter was showing a wavering attitude over the ‘slaying of the emperor’?
I was barely able to refrain from making a fuss out of excitement like they did.
Instead, is it because the joy was too much?
I handed the whole pouch of 20 gold coins lying next to me to the messenger.
Others may think this is excessive, but it’s customary to give money to a messenger, and today is the day he deserves to be lucky.
Because today is the day I passed the last hurdle to wear the emperor’s laurel crown.
“Messenger, you go quickly. Also, hide that money bag well until you get home.”
As soon as the messenger heard that, he bowed and immediately ran out.
After that, I took another deep breath to calm my overflowing joy, and tried to control my mind by exhaling.
The father and the counts rejoice over the collapse of the Eline Empire, their faces smiling brightly, even as tears keep flowing from their eyes and they keep wiping it away with the back of their hand.
I looked at them again with a serious face and spoke in a cold voice.
“It is a good thing that the Elain Empire collapsed, but it is not over until the imperial castle of the collapsed empire is handed over to the emperor. Immediately, return to the corps under your command to calm the soldiers’ excitement and prepare to take over Elysium immediately. You must be fully prepared and do not make even a speck of jade until the very end. Let there be no stain on the beginning of our kingdom, no, the glorious Kreutel Empire.”
Hearing that, they cried out with overwhelming joy, then came to their senses and scattered to their respective places in search of work to do, while I remained alone in the barracks muttering.
“Due to the personality of the damn emperor, he would have rather locked himself in the imperial palace and fought to the end rather than surrender to me. So, the emperor didn’t surrender, but was killed. If so, Count Meter must have really murdered the Emperor. Oh, well, if you stay still to make the world go well, they say that when the time comes, it will explode in one shot, and that word has become mine.”
**
The next morning, I entered Elysium, escorted by titled nobles, knights, and 10,000 soldiers.
Until I went in, I thought I would listen to the condemnation and booing of the citizens at least once.
Instead of swearing at me, they looked at us with fear and anticipation in their eyes at the same time and murmured.
“With the death of the Emperor, the new leader, King Creutel, does not know how to rule us…”
“No matter how evil it is rumored to be, wouldn’t it be better than the incompetent majesty who lived with a woman named Eva Green while the imperial castle was under siege?”
“There is a saying that the rumor that King Creutel is evil is a lie deliberately spread by the emperor. In fact, King Creutel says that the saying that anyone who becomes his people will eat well and live well is true. He saved his life, so from now on, is there anything left to do?”
It seems that the citizens’ hostility towards me is not as strong as I thought because their emperor was such a mess.
Apparently, even at the moment when citizens and soldiers were crushed by cannonballs and went between life and death, the emperor fell in love with Eva Green and her s*xual pleasure, and killed the rumored guys to silence her. Same.
Usually in a situation like this, I, the victor, would declare to them, ‘Now that the incompetent and tyrannical leader is gone, and I’ve come to rule this place, trust me and you guys can go about your livelihood with peace of mind…’
If it were, he would not declare the end of the war to the empress or other people and take his life. After that, he would go to the monastery and order them to live for Deusman. Would be more effective
Because the object of hatred in their heads was the emperor of Elaine, not the empress.
As I organized my thoughts and looked around, before I knew it, the soldiers and I arrived in front of the second wall of Elysium.
Then the huge gate in the middle of the second wall began to open quietly.
Inside the castle gate, the royal knights of the Elain Empire stood side by side on the way to the imperial palace where the emperor resided.
I tried to lead the soldiers along the way to enter the imperial palace surrounded by the third wall, but a knight stood in my way.
I was about to shoot him with the handgun I was wearing around my waist at that moment, but he wasn’t armed with anything, including a knife.
So I stopped the knights who were about to run at the rude guy with a gesture and asked.
“Who are you to block my path? Your emperor has already surrendered, and he refuses to obey his orders?”
“No. From now on, we will guide you. Please follow me. Your Highness, King Creutel, I will ask you one question without rudeness. Are you okay?”
“It’s rude. How dare you block His Highness and ask questions?”
I heard the sound of the knights escorting me drawing their swords, but this was also stopped with a gesture, and I expressed my intention to accept the question by nodding my head.
“Thank you. What do you plan to do with the empress and other members of the imperial family? Are you going to kill them all?”
As I said before, I have no intention of killing them.
Not simply because I have a desire to reveal myself as a very merciful monarch or because I am overflowing with human affection, but because there is no point in killing them.
Also, if the image of the emperor is good and there can be a movement to revive the imperial family in the future, it would be right to kill all the princesses and princes who could be the center of the rebellion.
None of them will be able to become a symbol of the restoration of the Imperial Family, as I have driven the Emperor’s image deep into the ground.
So, rather than having to suffer in agony to stabilize the people’s mind by giving the newly occupied Elline people the image of a ‘villain who murdered the royal family’, who occupies nearly half of my territory, I’d rather put them in a monastery somewhere and live a life of faith. I’d rather let him die alone.
Moreover, for the royal family, who only ate fancy clothes and delicious food in exchange for being born into the royal family, forcing them to live as monks would be a more painful life.
With such a thought in mind, I spoke to the last loyalist who gave his allegiance to the ruined imperial family in front of me.
“Is it necessary for me to kill the imperial family, even if it is not the emperor himself? I will send them all to a monastery so they can live the rest of their lives in peace, away from the world.”
Hearing that, the knight gazed at Elaine’s imperial palace and lowered his head as if he had finally completed his duties.
“Your Majesty, my job is done…”
I’ve heard many times that even the emperor of a ruined empire has servants who remain faithful until the end.
However, seeing him serve until the end for an emperor who is not worthy of respect at all is a new feeling.
If my kingdom perishes, how many servants and people will be loyal to me?
Following his guidance, I continued to go beyond the area within the second wall where the nobles lived, and I began to see the third wall where the emperor lived.
When I got there, the soldiers and nobles around me screamed in amazement.
“Your Highness, look over there! There, over there, it hangs.”
“Anyway, isn’t it too severe to suffocate the emperor’s head like that?”
“Why is that real? I can’t believe it. It seems there is no bottom in the falling empire’s prestige.”
Hearing that, I looked up at the top of the wall and saw that the Emperor’s neck was hanging with a rope, just as the soldiers said.
Perhaps he didn’t like the way he went to the end, the face with a distorted expression on his face, scattered hair, and only his head left hanging on a rope looked so shabby.
In some ways, no, it could be said that it was a fitting end for a despicable emperor, but…
Looking at it, it’s really disappointing.
“I wish it were me who sentenced him to death for the responsibility of ruining the country…”