229 – Battle of the Hanseatic County Occupation (2)
The 4th Prince of the Rhine-Palatinate Empire, Otto von Rhein-Palatinate, read the report in front of him and froze with his mouth wide open.
Of course, this is not an action that a prince, or even someone who is likely to become an emperor in the future, would take.
Therefore, the nobles should at least pretend to stop him, but no one here could point out Otto’s behavior like this.
“Amazing. “It’s really amazing.”
It was just a simple repetition of the word “Amazing” Twice, but it contained many emotions.
Gratitude for being given the hope of victory for the first time to his faction, which was already the smallest.
Admiration for completely defeating the count’s elite army of over 15,000 by mobilizing only 4,000 troops and 5,000 civilians.
A little wary of Martin von Cologne, the Baron of Cologne who led all of this.
Because these sentiments were so complexly intertwined, the crown prince stood still, unable to react.
And the eyes of the 4th Prince Otto were focused on Estelle, who sat at the highest table among the nobles.
“This is truly amazing.”
“This is possible because His Majesty the Prince trusted him.”
Estelle was humble, but not a single person here believed that literally.
In fact, I gave the title to the mercenary leader I recommended, and he was very active.
All he could hear was to praise him quickly, and the prince smiled and clapped his hands.
“Being too humble doesn’t look good. “Everyone here, including me, was against the idea that he, who was just a mercenary leader, should be recognized as my direct vassal baron, but didn’t the Lord just say that I had to use him on his own?”
Estelle made an awkward expression at those words.
However, he did not stop the crown prince.
This is because he knew that his position in the future would become even stronger if he appealed here that his foresight was so outstanding.
The crown prince also knew that praising Estelle would strengthen the unity of the faction, so he continued praising her even more.
“Margrave Estelle, the Lord said this. ‘If he turns against Martin Mayer, what does he plan to do next?’ Those words sounded unpleasant at the time, but after receiving this great gift, it all makes sense. “I will continue to fully believe in the Lord.”
Estelle smiled after getting the answer she wanted.
“It is an honor, Your Royal Highness.”
“Show me performance that exceeds my expectations. Until I take the throne of the empire.”
“I will make you emperor until my life ends.”
Estelle had to do whatever it took to stay alive until the prince in front of her became emperor.
That is unlikely to happen, but if the 4th prince dies right before becoming emperor…
Due to the nature of high-ranking people who never want to share power, they would try to minimize Estelle’s achievements as much as possible and cut in half the fair share that should go to their son.
Why? If the rewards given to Estelle are reduced, the 4th prince who becomes emperor will be able to eat more.
But neither these two nor anyone else here showed it outwardly.
“Now, let’s stop talking about public affairs. “Margrave Estelle, Baron Cologne, defeated an army of 15,000 and made a new request, right?”
“Yes, I said I would take over the County of Hansa together with Baron Maurer. He now brings with him about 7,000 troops.”
At those words, the other nobles present began to stir.
“Isn’t it a bit reckless to try to occupy the county with only 7,000 people?”
“But it’s not like there’s no chance of winning. “The County of Hansa is also empty.”
“Unless the enemies are stupid, if they have some defense…”
They said there were 7,000 people, but only about 2,000 of them could be called proper soldiers.
The rest was just giving spears and thin cloth armor to the serfs, so the actual strength was about 4,000…
No matter who looked at it, this attack could not help but seem extremely reckless.
“Baron Cologne is not stupid. “He said that the county is virtually empty now.”
Everyone knows this, but in order to take the lead, the crown prince said the obvious once more.
“And if this period is missed, our brother Richter, the second prince, will immediately bring other soldiers to strengthen the defense of the County of Hansa.”
If I lose a territory in a war, it doesn’t just mean that my power decreases that much.
Because the territory held by one’s own force would naturally be taken over by the enemy.
This is because it means that the power difference with the enemy will be as large as two territories.
“Besides, take a closer look at the current situation.”
Prince Otto deliberately pretended to be a confident boy to show his capabilities as their leader.
But in fact, his hands were shaking.
If something goes awry here, it could lead to the defeat of one’s own position, or even of the faction…
In return, not only himself but also his family would be beheaded.
‘We must win at all costs.’
“I am not ignoring the abilities of Baron Cologne, but there is only one reason why he had to give him a direct vassal position as he leads a mercenary army of 1,000 men. “This is because we are the weakest, and there are only a few mercenaries and nobles willing to take our side.”
Most people do not take gambles that have a low probability of winning, the so-called ‘event odds’, but can receive huge bets in return.
So, the nobles here are small and medium-sized nobles who do not have much influence, except for Margrave Estelle.
“But you will miss out on this precious first victory? “Then it’s obvious what will happen.”
This shows that the leader is already taking a risky gamble and is missing an opportunity that is clearly advantageous right before his eyes.
It was obvious that if he showed even the slightest hint of incompetence, not only internal solidarity would be lost, but even those who were thinking of secretly joining the Fourth Prince’s forces from outside would turn against him.
Just as a huge castle wall gradually collapses starting from a hole in a single stone, if this opportunity was missed, the Fourth Prince’s faction could have collapsed.
The people gathered here were not so stupid that they could not read such things.
“……”
“And looking at it objectively, it seems that Baron Cologne alone would be able to take over the County of Vienna. “What does everyone think?”
Viscount Ruben responded to those words.
“I agree with that. But aside from seizing the county, shouldn’t we send troops to defend it?”
There were two intentions here.
The purpose is for the survival and prosperity of the faction in order to prevent the Hanseatic County, which was obtained as much as possible, from being taken away by the second prince or other powers.
The other reason was to prevent that bastard, Baron Cologne, who had no idea about the world, from taking over the county on his own.
Of course, sending defense troops to prevent an invasion cannot be considered a great achievement, but…
‘In times like these, you should at least pick up public trash to preserve your presence.’
“That’s right. No matter how capable Baron Cologne is, his limitations are clear.”
Regardless of Martin’s ability, with only 7,000 men, if 40,000 to 50,000 enemy troops attack, they will have to retreat.
From Noble mtl dot com
Because, just as a sword master has no business in front of a pageant, the abilities of a capable individual will eventually be buried in front of a large army.
“Margrave Estelle, do you think that the Baron of Cologne will be able to safely occupy the County of Hanseatic?”
“If he is, it will be possible.”
The Second Prince was now weighing things in his mind.
In this system where the Margrave Estelle is the sole leader, will the Baron of Cologne be able to keep him in check at all?
‘If you keep them in check even just a little, you will be given a share of what you have to give to Estelle…’
So he was hoping that he would succeed.
At the same time, I was anxious that if I failed, I might go bankrupt…
‘If you just sit still, you will perish.’
“I will entrust full authority to Baron Cologne, and order him to take possession of the County of Hansa at any cost. In addition, the enemy will attack to take over the Hanseatic County, so be prepared to organize and send 20,000 reinforcements within three months.”
All the nobles bowed their heads to those words and obeyed the order.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
In the heart of the Fourth Prince, there was also a desire to lower Estelle’s status a little.
In addition, Margrave Estelle is the commander of the nobles belonging to the faction.
So, it was a waste of time to send him out just to eat a half-cooked treat from the Baron of Cologne.
“I will give command of 20,000 troops to Count Pogen. “Then today is a very good day, so let’s have a banquet.”