episode_0020

Imperial calendar year 178. Suddenly, news reached the islands.

[ … Burghai, Kaden, and Forland. The three kingdoms above swear before the Almighty God that they will overcome all difficulties together in the name of unity. ]

The three eastern kingdoms, who were busy bickering with each other, joined hands.

It was obvious even without looking what kind of place they meant by the ‘difficulty’.

Empire. okay. It is clear that the difficulty they are talking about is none other than the empire.

Even though some people said that, they expected that they would disperse on their own soon.

If it were possible for those three kingdoms to unite, they should have done so in the first place.

But even those who were making such a fuss soon realized that something was strange.

[The three-nation alliance will do anything for the union. If we shake our foundation, we will view everything except God as hostile. ]

Something is different from before. Things are getting increasingly unusual.

The word ‘hostility’, a word that is not normally used in diplomatic remarks, was included.

First, there was news that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was busy.

It wasn’t long before the atmosphere at the Ministry of War became a place of thin ice.

With each passing day, the three-nation coalition in the east continued to criticize the empire.

If this trend continues, everyone will naturally come to one conclusion.

‘The war begins.’

‘This is war.’

The east side, which had been quiet for nearly 10 years, is once again engulfed in phone calls.

Once this was confirmed, everyone’s interest turned to ‘Who will declare war first?’ focused on

Most thought the empire would declare war.

I wondered if this huge country would hand it over to them.

But the empire was silent. They only expressed regret over the remarks made by the tripartite coalition.

Those who did not know much about politics tilted their heads at the situation.

On the contrary, those who had a vague idea had some idea of why this was happening.

‘It means that you have no intention of wiping out the Juhwa faction within the empire.’

‘Whew. I lived and died. ‘I thought I was going to be called a traitor like this.’

‘The main radio waves shouldn’t run too wild, so they created the minimum equipment.’

Those who came up with a rough estimate quietly put aside the argument that war should be declared.

Instead, they fiercely criticized the tripartite alliance every day, shouting that they were destroying peace themselves.

In the end, it was not the Empire but the Alliance of Three Powers that could no longer tolerate it.

It was natural. Their current situation was not that good.

‘First of all, I did this to crush the pro-empire faction, but… .’

‘The empire needs to declare war quickly for our cause to stand. If the domestic atmosphere cools down like this, the pro-imperial faction will raise its head again!’

‘If we start a war, we can protect our position. However, if we bow down without even going to war, the alliance we formed will be completely ruined.’

What bothers me the most is, of course, the anti-imperial factions that exist within each kingdom.

If we are to somehow continue this atmosphere, war can be said to be an essential element.

The other side’s declaration of war is the best justification, but is there any way that the empire would obediently hand it over?

In the end, they ended up declaring war on the Empire first in the name of the Union.

[Our tripartite union expresses great regret over the current situation… . … For the sake of peace in the east, I have now made a decision with determination… . ]

Although I wrote it down in detail, in the end, it was like this.

“Empire, you fucking bastards. Let’s hit the jackpot! We are the losers of the East!”

It is not unfounded confidence. The empire is so vast that it borders all kinds of countries.

Therefore, it is close to impossible to concentrate power in one place.

On the other hand, the alliance of three countries is a good idea because it only has to deal with the limited imperial power.

After the declaration of war by the Triple Alliance, the Empire also expressed its official position through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The empire tried for peace, but so what? The three kingdoms are so-and-so.

As expected, if I were to explain this in an easy way, it would be something like this.

“Get ready to be kicked.”

Thus began a war between the empire and the three eastern kingdoms.

*

“Ha.”

Isabelle was lost in thought as she sat in her own corner of the imperial palace.

The stories I heard right next to me a while ago are floating around in my head.

“No, Her Highness the Crown Princess. In fact, in times like these, I think we should not push out the Chinese school of painting even more.”

“The coinage faction within the empire did not completely fail.”

“Must stay there for the next time”

The man Isabel knew named Kael was clearly a member of the main battle group.

Otherwise, there was no reason to be hostile to the Juhwa faction at the banquet.

Was that why? When I heard that the three eastern countries had formed an alliance.

When I heard the story that the three kingdoms chose war rather than dialogue against the empire.

I was very curious about how Kael would put pressure on the Juhwa faction.

But Kael says you shouldn’t do that. He expressed his opinion calmly and concisely.

The current situation is that the three eastern countries have formed an alliance and are hostile to the empire.

It is a sign that one can put pressure on the opponent in ways other than force.

Isabel herself had already seen through things she had never imagined.

In particular, Kael’s words struck her heart! and sat down.

“Those in power cannot tolerate losing the source of their power more than losing their country. Even though I can see the future right now, I have no choice but to be afraid of the immediate public sentiment.”

This refers to the anti-imperial faction of the Triple Alliance.

However, Isabelle felt like she was included in Kael’s words.

Since when? Without even knowing it, I unconsciously believed that only Jujeonpa was right.

When it came to the Juhwa faction, I thought of them as ‘enemies’ rather than just people with different opinions.

In fact, both factions are working hard for the empire in their own way.

We were anxious because we thought we would be pushed out if their argument was adopted.

―tuktuk

“Huh profit?!”

“… Be surprised.”

As Isabelle flutters in surprise, the person who comes next to her is also startled.

His identity was none other than the 1st Prince, Gnaeus.

“No, you were surprised! When did you come?!”

“A little while ago. No, rather, what are you thinking that is why you haven’t answered even though I called you three times? Now I thought you were trying not to talk to me.”

You called me three times? I didn’t hear anything?

Isabel opens her eyes and looks at Gnaeus.

It’s as if he really called me three times. It was as if he had called me.

But soon, ‘No.’ He shook his head and relaxed his expression.

In fact, Gnaeus’ reaction was such that he placed a hook mark on the top of his head.

“Unexpected.”

“What.”

“I thought you would tell me to disappear as soon as I saw you.”

“Why me?”

“For a long time, we were insisting on diplomacy and dialogue, but the three kingdoms in the east hit us hard.”

Ah, that. Isabelle just nodded her head.

The reaction seemed rather shocking to Gnaeus.

“Bell?”

“Yes.”

“… What is that reaction? It’s so calm that I’m embarrassed.”

“It’s calm. What do you mean?”

“Your opinion is wrong. The opinion of the Juhwa faction is wrong. I thought you would say that. And even if I heard those words, I thought I couldn’t really refute them.”

Isabel smiled at the prince’s words and answered:

He said that he came to a great enlightenment while hanging out with two people some time ago.

Those people already knew things that he had never thought of before.

“… Hmm.”

Gnaeus stood quietly after hearing his sister’s words.

Then he suddenly sat down next to Isabel and opened his mouth.

“If there are two people, one of them would be my sister. Looking at your reaction now, the other one seems to be Prince Kael.”

“… Oppa, are you going to do a background check on me?”

“A guy called the imperial prince wants to use the background information on the princess.”

Gnaeus burst out laughing and explained the reason to Isabel.

Isn’t it obvious? I know you went to see your sister some time ago. I also know that Prince Kael was present there.

Isn’t this the meeting of someone who cannot be trusted to be related by blood, born from the same parents, and someone who can hardly be considered a scion of an aristocratic family who has just begun his career?

You must have received a huge shock there. Because he would have done the same.

“… That’s right.”

Isabel obediently responded to her brother’s words.

“I feel like I’ve grown a step further. I think this is why there is a saying to surround yourself with people who are better than you. Because you can learn anything.”

“That’s good news.”

“So. Do you know that Prince Kael told your sister that the Juhwa Sect should be left as is?”

“That’s the first time I’ve heard of it.”

As if she was bragging, Isabel talked eagerly about Kael.

“Hmm.”

The more Gnaeus heard his brother’s story, the more he admired it.

What the hell, Kael, that prince. How far are you looking?

How can people of similar age act as if they are decades older than you?

“This time, my sister ordered Prince Kael to join the army.”

“You are saying that you are going to test him yourself.”

“He just laughed. It’s the first time I’ve seen you smile so brightly.”

“… Umm.”

bell. That’s not that good. At least for Kael and his friend.

Gnaeus couldn’t bear to say that much and just shrugged his shoulders.