[V14C13] Twisted Loyalty, A King's Resolve

——Is a pacifist fit to rule over people?

When asked this question, General Strauss would immediately answer no.

At the very least, the previous emperor was a pacifist, as well as a complete fool.

He sold off the lands won by the countless sacrifices of his predecessors, never showed up at the military councils, and barely paid attention to domestic affairs. He spent all his days secluded in the palace, playing with his favored concubines.

The loyal retainers who tried to admonish this behavior were banished to the borderlands, rife with conflict against the barbarian tribes.

General Strauss was one of many who spoke out against the emperor’s neglect of the military, only to be regarded as a nuisance and sent away.

Although he questioned the current state of the empire, he could not abandon his patriotism. As a result, he spent his days immersed in battle.

It was then that he met Erika Konitz, the older sister of the previous Lord Konitz.

The previous Lord Konitz had always supported him during conflicts in the Old Solyarg region, so General Strauss owed much to House Konitz.

One day, Erika revealed a certain secret to General Strauss.

Though not publicly known, the Konitz family was descended from the royal bloodline of the former Kingdom of Solyarg.

“So we shall never submit to the Kreving clan!” Erika had said with a proud smile.

Kreving was the family name of the Emperor, making them the most powerful people in the Schwargard Empire. They had a history of assassinating the royal families and important figures in territories eventually annexed by the Empire. Naturally, they were arch-enemies to the royal bloodline of Old Solyarg.

The royalty of Solyarg may have lost their war with the Empire, but they would never lose their pride.

Erika repeated this like a mantra. Her way of life was so radiant that General Strauss found himself drawn to her.

Before long, his loyalty to the corrupt and degenerate Empire had turned into loyalty dedicated to a single woman.

At the time, neither Erika nor General Strauss harbored ambitions as grand as independence.

The previous emperor had placed them in a tough position, but they did their best to endure. They fought to protect the small happiness remaining to them.

——Until one day, the previous emperor dragged Erika into the palace.

When Erika was cast out of the palace a few months later, she had transformed into an entirely different woman.

She shut herself in her room during the day. At night, she would suddenly break down into tears.

General Strauss did his best to calm such outbursts, while cursing his own powerlessness.

(Why did I let her go to the palace?)

Six months later, Erika gave birth to a son, who she named Richard. She ranted about her grudge against the Krevings in front of the boy carrying half of their blood, before finally, she took her own life.

“We, the people of Solyarg, will eventually have our revenge on the detestable Krevings. Even in death, my spirit will curse them forever more.”

Erika laughed maniacally as she stabbed her own throat right in front of General Strauss.

The previous Lord Konitz was also descended from Old Solyarg royalty, so of course, he detested the emperor for the heinous acts against his sister.

Thus, the previous Lord Konitz adopted his sister’s son Richard and, together with General Strauss, formulated a certain plan.

The Empire was already rotten to the core. They would dismantle all of it and revive the Solyarg dynasty.

Several years passed. The emperor they hated was now dead, and Emperor Leonhart ascended to the throne in his place. But there was no change of plans.

Because the Black Lion Emperor also carried the blood of Kreving.

＊　＊　＊

“Lord Konitz is the late emperor’s… son…?” Henrik muttered, dumbfounded. “Um, s-so that means he’s related to His Majesty…?”

“Yes,” Bridget answered calmly. “He is a half-brother of the Black Lion Emperor.”

Everyone in the Empire knew about the two great vices of the previous emperor: money and women.

If he fancied a girl, he would order her to be dragged into the palace, then discard her like a piece of trash once he was bored. Even though he already had a wife and several concubines.

Konitz had remained silent through the entire exchange, still pale and trembling.

The slender and timid thirty-old man was the exact opposite of the Black Lion Emperor. Even if half-brothers, they could not be any more different.

Bridget faced General Strauss directly and asked him instead.

“This is just speculation, but perhaps Lord Konitz—or rather, Prince Richard—might carry the blood of Old Solyarg royalty, or at least a similarly noble lineage, yes?”

“…”

General Strauss did not answer, but Bridget put a finger to her lips with a faint smile.

“So you don’t deny it? You could easily deny my claims and say that Lord Konitz is no ally of yours… but you cannot lie about your lord. How loyal of you.”

Bridget continued in a low whisper, twisting her lips into a venomous smile.

“That loyalty seems to have become your undoing, General Strauss.”

“You would never understand,” Strauss retorted, seething with hatred. “None of you know how much his mother suffered.”

The fury of a man who had survived countless battlefields was sharp enough to cut anyone who dared to approach him.

Even so, Bridget countered with a composed demeanor.

“Exactly, we don’t know. How could we possibly know when you’ve kept it hidden all this time?”

Henrik let out a silent gasp as he looked at Bridget with awe.

Clearly, she was provoking General Strauss in an attempt to draw information out of him.

As everyone was engrossed in the exchange between Bridget and General Strauss, Henrik suddenly noticed something.

His grandfather was standing with a firm grip on his sword, but one of legs was shaking slightly. His eyes were starting to look a bit sleepy.

(Nooooo, it’s about time for Grandfather’s nap…!)

Currently, General Strauss and his men were at the back of the room, while Henrik and the forces of Valmbelk stood near the entrance.

His grandfather was standing in front of the prisoners, who were on Henrik’s right.

Konitz seemed to be the key to solving this situation, and he was among the prisoners. This made the position of his grandfather all the more critical.

(Frieda! Frieda! Help Grandfather stay awake… Ah! No, she’s too far away…!)

Frieda was on the left side of the room, the complete opposite as their grandfather.

And so, Henrik returned his focus back to the tense situation with a knot building in his stomach.

“Let’s return to the matter at hand,” Bridget continued. “Your rebellion includes Valmbelk and Lord Konitz’s domain of Hydelingen… but that is not all.”

Upon hearing that, Henrik felt a bad premonition and could not help but ask.

“Um… is this going to take a while?”

She stared back at him with a look of exasperation. Her amber eyes seemed to be saying: Don’t you get it yet?

“Hydelingen is not part of the Old Solyarg, but it does border the Old Solyarg territories. What do you think will happen if the lords of all Old Solyarg territories rebel at the same time?”

Henrik pictured a map of the Empire in his mind.

The shape of the Empire roughly resembled a stout four-legged animal facing to the left, often described as an earth dragon, cow, or boar.

Valmbelk, at the western edge, was at a position equivalent to the front thigh.

To the east of that was Konitz’s domain of Hydelingen.

And if you connect all of the Old Solyarg territories to that, it would form a line from the front leg to just before the hind legs. Roughly a 1/3 to a 1/4 of the Empire’s territory would be below this line.

“They often spoke the phrase ‘Kupela Rasgraw Riwewol’. That means ‘Let us build the wall of separation’ in the language of Old Solyarg.”

“The wall of separation…”

Only now did Henrik finally understand.

If what Bridget said was true, then the occupation of Valmbelk and the rebellion of Old Solyarg and Hydelingen would create a wall dividing the Empire in two.

The elderly prisoner Birendahl let out a strained groan.

“So the lords of Old Solyarg are supporting this rebellion…!?”

Bridget answered Birendahl in a quiet tone.

“I doubt they are openly working together. It’s more like they will join the rebellion if General Strauss succeeds in taking Valmbelk Castle… Otherwise, they would have needed to move their forces already.”

“Damn it all! You southern barbarians…!”

Birendahl’s anger clearly reflected the divide between different parts of the Empire. Though the Schwargard Empire consisted of many different nations, the friction between the north and south was especially deep.

Henrik did his best to keep track of the conversation.

Valmbelk, Hydelingen, and the Old Solyarg territories would form a wall dividing the Empire into north and south. The portion below this wall contained many lands that were not part of Old Solyarg.

(And the lords of those lands… would probably jump on the bandwagon and rebel too…)

The movement for independence would only grow stronger, as unrelated territories declared their independence, spreading the flames of conflict.

General Strauss, who had been silent until now, let out a small sigh.

“I knew we should have taken you out first, Greyham-dono. But I never expected you to figure out so much from so little information.”

“You put Lord Konitz among the prisoners as a failsafe, yes?” Bridget asked. “So if your rebellion failed, you would be the one to bear all the blame.”

“…Margrave Valmbelk is no easy target, after all.”

General Strauss glanced at Henrik with a wry smile.

Indeed, if Konitz had been leading the rebellion, Henrik might have decided to target him first. And he would have easily cut down Konitz without hesitation.

Now that he finally understood the full picture of General Strauss’s rebellion, Henrik gestured for one of his men to bring him a sword.

“I see. Now I understand what needs to be done.”

Henrik tossed the sheathed sword onto the ground in front of Konitz.

However, Konitz was unable to pick up the sword. He had been disguised as a prisoner, so his hands were still bound behind his back.

Henrik turned to General Strauss’s men and said, “One of you, please free Lord Konitz.”

“What are you doing?” Bridget asked. Her amber eyes glared ominously at Henrik.

In response, Henrik returned a sheepish smile.

“Thank you for revealing Lord Konitz’s identity and the true goal of our enemy. Now, I will not mistake the foe who needs to be struck down.”

After saying that, Henrik withdrew his cheerful demeanor and fixed a cold gaze on Konitz.

Konitz still looked unbearably pale. His lips quivered as he glanced back and forth between the sword and Henrik.

Henrik clenched his sword.

“Your goal is to seize Valmbelk Castle and become king, yes? Then drop the act already. Why are you still pretending to be a prisoner?”

“Eh…? I… I…”

“Pick up the sword and come at me.”

It was as though Henrik did not understand the reason for Konitz’s inaction.

However, Konitz only shook his head and muttered in a faint voice, as if begging for his life.

“N-No… I… I can’t possibly…”

“Weakling!” Henrik shouted, narrowing his wolf-gray eyes. “Don’t make me laugh! You aspire to become king with such a feeble resolve!?”

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