Ch.138After the War (1)

Horrifying.

Truly horrifying.

[“What are you all doing?! It’s been a month already, yet why doesn’t that fortress show even the slightest sign of collapsing?!”]

[“B-but, Your Majesty… no matter how many stones we hurl with our trebuchets, the mounds of earth behind those walls collapse and immediately fill any gaps we create…”]

[“Enough excuses!!”]

At first, things were going well.

Just entering Lotharing’s territory was cause for great joy.

But then my father was brutally murdered by Lotharing’s cowardly methods, and before we could properly mourn his death, the pro-Lotharing nobles attacked from behind, making it impossible to hold our position.

In the end, I had to send part of my army back to defend our homeland, and the results were devastating.

The siege, which had been progressing with an overwhelming force of 20,000 men, became severely constrained.

With reduced numbers, our encirclement and surveillance weakened, allowing Lotharing’s scouts and light cavalry to slip through the gaps and harass my army.

Of course, that wasn’t the only factor; the structure of Lotharing’s fortress also greatly influenced the outcome.

Piling earth behind the walls to withstand trebuchet impacts… had they not been my enemy, I would have admired such an ingenious idea.

[“Y-Your Majesty… Lotharing forces are slaughtering the nobles of Neustria…”]

[“So what? It’s not uncommon for nobles to die after losing on the battlefield.”]

[“That’s not it!! They’re literally killing ALL the nobles!! They’re even burning down entire castles!”]

[“…What?”]

The subsequent atrocities of Lotharing made me feel even more horrified.

The Lotharing army deliberately refused to accept the surrender of Neustrian nobles, forcing them to fight to the death. While accepting surrender is entirely at the discretion of the victor, this was far too extreme.

They were literally hunting down and killing every single noble without exception.

How could they slaughter those of noble blood as if they were common soldiers? I heard they executed Lotharing nobles who caused problems by putting them in pig slaughtering devices, but I never dreamed they would apply such madness to nobles of another country.

At first, I began fighting Lotharing out of anger toward a bastard trying to usurp the Carolingian throne, but as time passed, that anger gradually faded and was replaced by a sense of justice.

However, that sense of justice didn’t last long and disappeared just like the anger before it.

“Your Majesty… we need a decision…”

“…We retreat.”

And now, in place of that sense of justice, fear has taken root.

The King of Lotharing, who not only beheaded the Duke of Neustria but literally burned his entire palace to the ground as if offering it as a sacrifice to demons, has now turned his terrifying army southward—toward me.

The siege was already stalled, and if we now have to face Lotharing’s main army, I can see nothing but a dreadful future ahead.

The only path left for me is to quickly evacuate my army from Lotharing, preserve as much strength as possible while fighting, and then negotiate with Lotharing.

The very thought of negotiating with the demon who brutally killed my father is beyond humiliating—it makes me want to put a knife to my own throat… but what choice do I have? If I die too, the House of Provence will end here.

God, please take the life of that vicious demon.

……….

‘At least these people can be reasoned with.’

There will be less spoils of war, but what does it matter? It’s good to shed less blood, isn’t it?

Neustria, whose former duke we didn’t kill, resisted to the end as if bewitched and was completely destroyed, while Provence, whose former duke we did kill, comes to negotiate like this. Their actions are completely reversed from what one would expect.

“Preserve the territory of the Duchy of Provence and renounce the right of succession to the throne? Is that what you call a proposal?”

Of course, when I say they can be reasoned with, that’s only relatively speaking. In absolute terms, this is utterly absurd.

No reparations whatsoever, just renouncing succession rights and returning to how things were before the war—truly the ravings of a madman.

Moreover, he only asks to preserve his own territory, saying nothing about the nobles who sided with him, which shows how pathetic he is. Isn’t he implicitly suggesting that I tear them apart instead of him?

“Your Majesty, but you will gain control of an intact Carolingian Kingdom, will you not?”

“An intact Carolingian Kingdom? You know as well as I do that it’s far too late for that.”

“That is…”

“I’ll say no more. Complete preservation of the ducal title with appropriate territory, and your life—nothing else can be guaranteed. Return to your lord and convey this.”

“…As you command, Your Majesty.”

If this had been before—before we invaded Lotharing—I would have nodded and accepted their terms immediately.

But several fortresses have already fallen, and we’ve suffered numerous casualties in the process, so I can no longer negotiate on those terms.

Setting aside the damage to my prestige, the difference in military strength is so great that even if the war drags on, I have nothing to fear.

Of course, Provence has available forces of up to 20,000 men, so if they fight properly, we would also suffer great losses. But the enemy is now just Provence, and there are pro-Lotharing nobles among them, so I would eventually win.

And even if the losses increase somewhat, I can make up for them by imposing harsh terms on Provence in the final agreement.

However, the war did not continue.

The Duke of Provence accepted my proposal on the condition that negotiations be held in Provence territory for security reasons, and given what had happened, I had no choice but to agree to such conditions.

Although the treaty hasn’t been formally concluded yet, so the war isn’t completely over, the bloodshed that swept through Carolingia has finally ceased.

……….

Word quickly spread that three powers—the Duchy of Anjou, the Duchy of Provence, and the Kingdom of Lotharing—would meet in Clermont, a border town in northwestern Provence.

No matter how much they tried to maintain security and block information, given the nature of the matter, preventing leaks was extremely difficult.

After all, even the soldiers in charge of security were excitedly gossiping about it.

“What is this?!”

“Clermont is currently sealed off and not accepting outsiders, so please turn back.”

And the result was stringent security in Clermont.

Fearing that Lotharing might have infiltrated people into Clermont amid the commotion, the Duke of Provence chose to completely blockade the city with soldiers.

As a result, various merchants and lower nobles who had flocked there hoping to gain some benefit or catch the eye of high nobles were turned away at the gates without even crossing them, effectively blocking all outsiders.

“Well, well…”

“…What on earth are they doing?”

Of course, no matter how effective the blockade might be, it couldn’t help but look terribly unsightly.

The envoys from Anjou and Lotharing shook their heads in disbelief at the greatly changed appearance of Clermont compared to the past.

Of course, both delegations knew very well why Provence was so frantically blocking outside individuals, but they couldn’t openly insult the King of Lotharing, so they kept those thoughts to themselves.

……….

“Excellent. You’ve done very well.”

“You flatter me, Your Majesty.”

“Flattery? When you say that, it makes it sound like you doubt my judgment in praising you.”

“…! I apologize—”

“Hahaha, I’m just joking, just joking.”

Why such a fuss over a little jest? Goodness.

“Next time, just accept the praise as it is. You truly did well.”

“Thank… you.”

Anyway, the envoys I sent to Provence completed their mission admirably.

Recognition of the Carolingian throne, division of Provence’s territory and reparations, dissolution of factions, and transfer of vassals—they secured everything I had instructed them to obtain without missing a single point. Very satisfying indeed.

With this, there are no longer any nobles within Carolingian territory who don’t recognize me as king—at least on the surface. And Provence, which had suddenly emerged as a dangerous element, has been forced to give up various territories and vassals, dissolve its factions, and pay enormous reparations, ensuring it can never regain its former power.

In addition, by granting minor Carolingian nobles as vassals to those who supported me, or creating appropriate titles to distribute among them, the Carolingian civil war has finally ended.

Now only two tasks remain.

One is to improve my tarnished image by holding frequent banquets or engaging in charitable acts from now on, and the other is…

‘…Shit.’

Vassal management.

Managing vassals was already a mind-splitting task just with the existing territory of the Kingdom of Lotharing, but now with the map literally thrust before my eyes, it’s overwhelming.

Even at a glance, the territory has increased 4-5 times, and this visual effect makes painfully clear what I must do.

Moreover, it’s post-war, and I’m a foreign power from their perspective, so there are even more factors to consider. If I treat them the same way I treat Lotharing nobles, I’ll surely fail.

…This is why I didn’t want to take Carolingia.

Sigh, but what’s done is done.