Ch.133Expansion (5)

“Damn it…”

The sudden attack on Lutetia by Lotharing had given an enormous shock to the internal warring factions of Caroling.

Cannons? While certainly impressive enough to cause surprise, strictly speaking, they were merely means to an end.

What deserved the most attention at this point was that Lotharing had occupied Lutetia in an instant and stolen all the royal regalia, taking them back to Lotharing.

They had even gone so far as to kill every single member of the Carolingian royal family who had been in Lutetia.

What these actions clearly indicated was that the bastard of Lotharing was seriously claiming the throne of Caroling.

“That madman…”

Conquest isn’t something that can be achieved with strength alone.

Throughout history, many great conquerors possessed monstrous military might, leading some to believe that power alone can accomplish anything, but the reality is quite different.

Conquest doesn’t simply mean expanding territory; it means subjugating through military force. Without carefully persuading or intimidating the indigenous powers of occupied territories into submission, conquest cannot be established.

And naturally, many nobles who value legitimacy would never submit to such atrocious tyranny from Lotharing.

What? Bloodline from a great-grandmother? Even the bastard himself couldn’t seriously believe that provided legitimate grounds.

Ah, but those fools who had sided with Lotharing or the minor nobles who just wanted this civil war to end as soon as possible might see things differently.

“How many supplies do we have left?”

“Well…”

“No need to say it. I understand.”

All the supplies that had depended on Lotharing merchants were completely exhausted.

I should have noticed when they started gradually reducing supplies a month or two ago, claiming shortages… Tsk, the probability of successful resistance has greatly diminished.

“For now, let’s wait and see—”

“Your Majesty!!”

At that moment, a messenger burst into the office with an urgent expression.

The Duke of Provence, or rather, King Philip of Caroling, was about to reprimand the messenger for his rudeness but closed his mouth upon realizing the gravity of the messenger’s expression.

“The bastard of Lotharing demands Your Majesty’s submission. He also claims he will hold a proper coronation at Reims—”

“Reims? That should currently be occupied by the Neustrian rebels.”

“Yes, and because of this, Lotharing and Neustria have now entered into full-scale war with each other.”

Reims is a city in northeastern Caroling, currently occupied by the Duke of Neustria from the north, one of the three dukes claiming the Carolingian throne.

Traditionally, Carolingian kings have held their coronation ceremonies at the grand cathedral in Reims, making possession of that cathedral essential for legitimate ascension to the Carolingian throne. The King of Lotharing is now attempting to secure it.

This bastard…!

*Hissss*—!!

“Demand for submission? Disregard that. And immediately behead the envoy who delivered this worthless piece of paper.”

“The envoy, aware of the danger to his life, fled immediately after delivering the letter, Your Majesty.”

“Assemble the cavalry to pursue the envoy!! And redirect all our armies northward.”

“By northward, do you mean…”

“Lotharing. Didn’t you say they’ve entered full-scale war with Neustria? That’s perfect. Their back is completely exposed.”

If we remain idle, I can see nothing but a future where we’re swallowed by Lotharing.

Shouldn’t we at least try something before that happens?

……….

“The Duke of Anjou… Hmm.”

He’s pledging loyalty to me even before receiving my demand for submission. Excellent.

However, it’s a negative point that he’s asking for so many things in return—the right to mint his own coins, reduced taxes and conscription, authority to control merchants and interfere with their goods, and so on.

“Tell the Duke of Anjou that I will guarantee all his existing privileges if he pledges his loyalty.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Why must he be so verbose?

If he had simply said, “I pledge my loyalty!” I would have granted him appropriate privileges anyway.

I understand Anjou is the weakest of the three dukes and is in a desperate situation now that Lotharing’s support has drastically decreased, but must he maintain his pride to the very end?

“If Anjou is willing to pledge loyalty, the other Carolingian nobles are predictable.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The minor nobles who have not taken any position in the civil war will likely pledge loyalty to Your Majesty. If you hold a proper coronation at Reims, not only the minor nobles but no one else would be able to object.”

“…I’d like to confirm something—how many direct vassals were under the Carolingian royal family’s jurisdiction?”

“Excluding nobles without territories, there are 301 in total, Your Majesty.”

*Sigh*…

I’ve been doing my best to somehow swallow up Caroling, but now that the results of those efforts are right in front of me, I’m slightly daunted.

From what I’ve gathered, the Carolingian royal family directly controlled 301 vassal nobles—not vassals of vassals, but direct vassals—which is six times more than the vassals I currently oversee as the King of Lotharing.

I’m already splitting headaches managing my current vassals, and if six times more nobles are added… th-this…

‘I don’t want to do this…’

Surprisingly, when dealing with numerous vassals, their rank isn’t particularly important.

Regardless of a vassal’s title, the mental energy required to manage each one is roughly the same.

Even a lower noble doesn’t simplify their loyalty oath, right? Besides, even that lower noble is connected by blood to higher nobles, so one can’t treat them carelessly.

Whether they’re knights, barons, or dukes, they all present themselves to me, send letters, and so on in the same manner.

Above all, building good relationships with vassals isn’t like solving a math problem with a clear answer; it’s incredibly stressful. Since the vassals have pledged loyalty to me, I can’t delegate them to someone else like Leclerc and must deal with them personally… ugh, it’s terrifying just to imagine.

[Wow!! The number of vassals represents Your Majesty’s magnificence, so congratulations!!]

[Congratulations, brother.]

Recently, whether aware of my concerns or not, Ines and Chloe were simply excited about the increase in vassals under my jurisdiction. They probably still feel the same way.

Oh my… fuck…

“…?”

“Ah, ahem. Yes, since it would take a tremendous amount of time to receive loyalty oaths from all of them at once, I will create a five-year grace period after I ascend to the Carolingian throne.”

“Yes, I will arrange it.”

Let’s see… Anjou in the west is already submitting on its own, Neustria in the north is being properly dealt with, so all that remains is Provence in the southeast.

I recall that Provence didn’t participate in many previous wars because they needed to check the Kingdom of Andalusia to the south and the Holy Empire to the east. Their preserved military force was certainly threatening, but since the Duchy of Provence is located on the periphery of Caroling, they couldn’t fully utilize their power in the civil war.

Hmm…

‘A preserved military force.’

If they attempt to hole up in their territory with that preserved army, things could get a bit complicated.

It’s somewhat concerning… but still, with Lotharing’s current national power, we should be able to handle Provence’s army.

There are many pro-Lotharing nobles within the Carolingian Kingdom, so even if things go wrong, we can resolve it with their help. Of course, they would need to be compensated accordingly.

……….

“Thank you, Leclerc.”

“Your praise is too generous, Your Highness.”

“Excessive modesty is actually arrogance. Without your help, things couldn’t have proceeded this smoothly.”

Ines has been in an excellent mood lately.

The children are growing up healthy and energetic, and above all, she has presented her beloved husband with the greatest gift—a crown.

Of course, they still need to occupy Reims and hold a formal coronation ceremony at its grand cathedral, but once the Carolingian crown, scepter, and seal came into their possession, it was essentially over.

Ruler of two kingdoms—isn’t that like the great kings from fairy tales?

“Just a little more to go now.”

“A little more?”

“The three dukes, I mean.”

“Ah.”

Ines nods at Chloe’s response.

It’s unlikely that only the Dukes of Anjou, Neustria, and Provence had claims to the Carolingian throne. The Carolingian royal family had continuously intermarried with their vassals to strengthen bonds, resulting in the spread of Carolingian royal blood throughout both Caroling and Lotharing.

In any case, among those numerous descendants of the Carolingian royal family, only those three dukes rose up claiming the throne, despite the chaos in Caroling that would have allowed anyone to make such a claim.

This means those three are undeniably rebellious by nature.

Even if His Majesty, legitimately crowned as King of Caroling, forces their loyalty, there’s a very high probability they would rebel again.

“”…Hehe.””

As Chloe and Ines look into each other’s eyes, they seem to understand each other’s thoughts and share a faint smile. Leclerc, watching them, smiles bitterly before turning away as if he had seen nothing.