546 – Purple Coronet, Blue Blood – 5
Thanks to the surrender of the nobles located in the border area, the imperial army was able to enter the Kingdom of Leon without any damage. Since the Margrave, a marquis, and two counts have joined, can the border serve as a border? It went beyond the level of an automatic door and the door simply disappeared.
“Armain is also said to have broken through the border.”
“It’s about the same speed. There’s no need to rush.”
And while the imperial army was holding a meeting in the Margrave of Dalihaten, Armain also leisurely set foot in the Kingdom of Leon.
‘That’s amazing.’
I was amazed by the miraculous situation in which the concept of borders had no effect. They say that globalization is when the boundaries of all countries are weakened and they come together as one. Isn’t the Kingdom of Leon a symbol of globalization?
Of course, we have no intention of opening the borders. Will the country be ruined?
“Still, I can’t be slower than Armain, so I’ll move again in three hours.”
“Where would you like to choose your destination?”
“Rizzanstadt.”
The staff also nodded at the instructions of the 6th Corps commander.
Riesanstadt. It is a strategic location in western Leon, adjacent to the imperial border, and was once Leon’s only duchy.
However, now it is a bizarre place that has no rightful owner and has become a confederation of cities under the direct control of the royal family.
‘If you just take control of that area, half the job is done.’
To put it bluntly, even if the new Leon royal family is anti-empire and pro-Armain, if Rizzanstadt falls under the influence of the empire, the mainland of the empire will not be exposed to the threat of Leon. On the contrary, the Kingdom of Leon will be troubled by the departure of Yuil Duchy.
‘I need to find a good guy.’
The seal of the Duke of Riesanstadt in my chest felt particularly heavy. It was difficult to find a suitable nomad for the marquis, so how much would the duke have to rack his brain to find the right person? He doesn’t even want to imagine.
I would like to decide them in the order of surrender or give them to the person with the highest rank, but I am afraid of the repercussions of deciding the dukedom that way. I’m sure my first father-in-law would be furious right away, saying that I wasted the items he trusted and entrusted to me.
“Since you’ve worked with Leon yourself, don’t you know the nobles there well? If there’s a decent guy, please recommend it…”
“I’ve killed everyone I know, so there’s no one I can recommend. Is there any way to spare an enemy soldier who seems to be the enemy?”
“…”
“Why do you look at me like that?”
“No, nothing.”
Honestly, it feels a little unfair to think that it was my father-in-law who dried up Leon’s talent pool. I would have had an easier time working if you had been moderately tough.
Still, the injustice ended with injustice. Thanks to my father-in-law’s thorough trampling of Leon, the eastern border was peaceful for 30 years.
“Uh, Your Excellency.”
“Why are you doing that?”
Just as I was about to feel Zhuge Liang’s feelings as he watched Shu Han devastated by the Battle of Yiling, one of the staff members who was fiddling with the communication port quickly opened his mouth.
“The Margrave of Dalihaten has requested servitude.”
“General?”
The 6th Corps Commander’s brow furrowed slightly at the unexpected report.
“It’s not bad. Allow me.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
But the response was quick. Perhaps because he judged that it would be more beneficial for the Margrave to join the expeditionary force, the commander of the 6th Corps allowed the Margrave to join the army.
In fact, it is more appropriate for the justification of ‘establishing a new royal family’ that the expeditionary force includes the Leon Kingdom army rather than a 100% pure imperial army. Moreover, no matter how much we surrendered, the fact that the Margrave, who was in charge of the border, remained behind was an itch in the back. If the margrave goes crazy and closes the border, he will suddenly be surrounded.
So, the commander of the 6th Corps allowed the Margrave to enter the conference room, saying that he admired the Margrave’s noble choice.
“I am honored to be able to contribute even a little to this great journey.”
The Margrave still showed a humble attitude, alleviating the worries of the leadership.
However, if there is just one thing that concerns me,
‘My eyes are rolling.’
I felt the Margrave glaring at me from earlier. It can’t be an illusion because the gaze is too serious to simply pass it off as a result of one’s mood.
‘Are we measuring who is above us?’
After a short period of thought, I came up with a plausible hypothesis.
From the surrenderer’s perspective, it is important to determine the exact rank of the expeditionary force. I tried my best to ask the commander for a favor, but it turned out that if I was higher than the commander, the Margrave would have worked in vain.
“The Margrave joined the expeditionary force because he understood the will of His Majesty the Great Emperor, but it may also be because His Excellency the Commander is excellently carrying out His Majesty’s will. I think I understand why His Majesty entrusted him with this important role.”
That’s why I praised the 6th Corps commander to the point where I felt embarrassed when I opened my mouth. In the future, not only will there be more surrenderers, but there will also be more people joining the army like margraves. Wouldn’t it be a nuisance if we had to keep an eye on each other to figure out the ranking of the expeditionary force? In any case, it is true that the commander of the 6th Corps holds the command of the expeditionary force, so it is right to bow down for now.
“That’s a shameful thing to say. I just did what I was supposed to do as a subject of His Majesty.”
And the 6th Corps commander, who flinched at the sudden praise, quickly calmed his expression and burst into laughter.
As expected, even though he is a rough soldier, he has at least some tact as he rose to the rank of corps commander. The commander of the 6th Corps probably knows that the Margrave is paying attention, so he adapts to my actions.
‘Good.’
It was an embarrassing play, but this made the hierarchy clear.
***
I was convinced after hearing the conversation between the commander of the 6th Corps, the commander of the expeditionary force, and Count Tyglehen, the inspector.
‘The Count is above.’
The leader of this expeditionary force is the Earl. It was a long time ago, but now I can’t believe it even if the count denies it.
While other staff members and high-ranking commanders were reporting to the 6th Corps Commander in a standing position, only the Count was leaning back on his chair with his arms crossed. There is no way a bureaucrat from an empire famous for its strict hierarchy would show up like that.
Still, there is room for excuses up to that point. Since the count is the minister of the empire, isn’t he higher than the corps commander after the expedition is over? In the unique situation of an expeditionary force, it was unpleasant to be treated on the same level or below the commander of the corps, so there was a possibility that he would protest silently.
“The Margrave joined the expeditionary force because he understood the will of His Majesty the Great Emperor, but it may also be because His Excellency His Commander is excellently carrying out His Majesty’s will. I think I understand why His Majesty entrusted him with this important role.”
“It’s a shame. He was only doing what he was supposed to do as a subject of Your Majesty.”
Of course, thanks to the conversation just now, that faint possibility disappeared in an instant.
The count’s calm congratulations, who remained silent, and the corps commander’s polite reply. Anyone could see that it was the way a superior treated a subordinate. Even the other conference attendees did not find the count’s reign strange.
If that remark was made by a person of the same level or lower level, that would be surprising. Does this mean that the bureaucracy of the empire has gone out of style?
‘As long as you don’t disobey the earl’s wishes.’
There is no one whose position is as precarious as a surrenderer. No one would fully trust a former enemy who became an ally, and no one would be optimistic that someone who betrayed their country once would not do it again. Therefore, I will continue to be looked at with suspicion and checks.
In order to overcome that look in his eyes, he requested military service. I declared that I had no intention of playing tricks behind theary force’s back, and that I would brand myself as a stooge of the empire in front of the people of the Kingdom of Leon.
And if you pretend to be a stooge and at the same time do not escape the eyes of those in power, you can guarantee the safety of your territory and people. In the future, even if the imperial army withdraws and the Margrave of Dalihaten receives hatred and resentment from his country, he can carry it alone, saying it was my own decision.
‘…I hope this choice is not wrong.’
It’s crazy to think that each choice not only affects my life, but everyone’s life.
***
No one can choose their own nationality. If so, wouldn’t he really be a person with grand ambitions or a traitor with a petty conscience?
The same goes for me. I was just born in the Quironos Kingdom, and when I opened my eyes, I had parents from Quironos. This is a place that Enen happened to stumble upon while spreading new life across the continent. That’s exactly what I think of the Quironos Kingdom.
Still, there were no particular complaints. Since he was born as a nobleman, his nationality was not important, and the Quironos Kingdom was not a poor or weak country. It might not be a life with everything, but it wasn’t a life lacking either. That’s enough.
While living as the son of an ordinary nobleman, he happened to commit himself to the military, somehow found his aptitude for it, and somehow succeeded in becoming successful. He became the youngest corps commander in the Quironos Kingdom and was highly praised by his grandfather, who said he was the pride of his family. He did his best as a soldier.
So it seems like he was punished for the happiness he had enjoyed so far.
“This is blocking me.”
I can’t stop laughing. The self-proclaimed senior who confidently promised to make the weak Kingdom of Leon a part of the Great Queronos ended up proving that he was weak.
“Fuck.”
“Your Excellency, please maintain your dignity.”
“A b*stard with a head full of flour instead of brains.”
In response to the adjutant’s criticism, he uttered a specific and clear curse.
I can’t believe it. There is nothing more foolish than underestimating the enemy, but the fortress you see in front of you is nothing more than a small fortress scattered across the border. To be honest, it is embarrassing to even call it a fortress. It is a small defense facility that could collapse with the sound of military fire if an army were to advance.
However, not a single legion can occupy such a fortress. When he first heard it, he thought it was a terrible joke.
“Adjutant.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
“It would be better to fight and run away rather than rebel and run away, right?”
“At least if you die fighting, won’t you get some compensation for the bereaved family?”
I sighed at the very persuasive answer.
Yes, if a soldier criticizes you, you should criticize him. If you are destined to fall behind anyway, you must at least gain honor by being a warrior, not by being killed for resisting.
‘What kind of war should we wage with an army like this?’
However, he also swears at His Majesty the King behind his back. It would be okay to just curse at the military staff who gave the crazy orders.
‘Since when were we a strong army?’
I sighed again. Since when was our Quironos Kingdom army a strong army, and the Leon Kingdom army a weakling that would collapse at the slightest touch? If anything, it’s the opposite. That’s definitely not the case.
But sadly, today’s high-ranking officials in the military and administration are overestimating their country’s capabilities. Why are there people who clearly have a more detailed understanding of the kingdom’s capabilities than an army commander like me?
Of course, we can understand our involvement in the Kingdom of Leon. If the royal family of Leon is replaced, the occupied area, where the assimilation process has reached its final stages, may become a disputed area again, so intervention itself is a constant that is not worth discussing.
However, that intervention was also a matter of resolving the issue through diplomacy, which is our specialty. What the hell is it about rushing in with the military all at once.
“The old b*stards are driving the young people to their deaths.”
“Your Excellency.”
“Why? I didn’t say who it was.”
If someone makes an accusation, ‘Are you talking about Leon’s old b*stards?’ Just say that and that’s it. Are you going to fire the youngest corps commander just because of one word?
“It’s blocked at the border, so how are we going to deal with the Empire and Armain?”
The adjutant also remained silent at the sigh that came out without me knowing.
I don’t know. No matter how hard I try, I don’t know what the high-ranking b*stards are thinking.
“…I guess I should think through it first, right?”
“I will take the lead.”
“Well, that’s right.”
Just 30 minutes later, the fortress blocking a legion fell.
Fuck that b*stard for something this easy…