Ch.255A Brief Rest

“Casting a shadow of murderous intent and intimidating tens of thousands of people… truly, the sight befitted her nickname of the Red Empress. That power—no one in the Empire could match it.”

Red Empress.

Right. Those who weren’t clergy didn’t call me the Knight of Radiance.

Because in their eyes, the path I had walked and the might I had displayed was closer to brutality than holiness.

That nickname was the alternative they came up with… though in my opinion, it seemed a bit too irreverent.

[Empress, is it? Quite a splendid title, don’t you think? I’m almost envious. You’ve earned the title of Kagan before Orhan.]

Of course it sounds impressive to you, woman.

But having such a nickname is absolutely not a good thing.

In a way, this war broke out because of the Imperial throne, and now I’m being called Empress in such a country.

Not only that, but my reputation and military prowess were comparable to a hero’s, my bloodline was that of foreign royalty and a direct descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights.

My status was also that of the heir to a margrave who could declare independence at any time.

At this point, to Leopold and his supporters, it might look like a declaration that I could break away and devour the Empire whenever I wanted.

He must know this. Or perhaps he secretly hopes for it to happen.

From Hersella’s perspective, she wouldn’t like being formally subordinate to someone else, even if just in name.

As for me, I never had much interest in power to begin with.

For me, status was merely a means to easily gain cooperation from others.

Anyway…

“…Is this acceptable? And not just any nickname, but Empress. His Highness the Prince must not be pleased with such a title.”

“Me? Haha, not at all. I was the one who gave you that nickname, so how could I mind?”

…What?

Is that even allowed?

What is this man thinking? A person aspiring to be Emperor giving someone else the nickname of Empress?

Is he saying he’ll kill me next?

“Isn’t that a bit reckless…?”

“It’s just a nickname, no need to take it so seriously.”

I tried to politely ask if he’d lost his mind, but Leopold just wistfully stroked his thinning hair and smiled.

“Surely you don’t think someone would approach you, encouraged by being called Empress, and urge you to rebel? Everyone already knows well that you have no desire for power. If such a fool exists… you would inform me, wouldn’t you?”

…So he’s saying that since my reputation is already soaring, he might as well push it to the limit and see if anyone harbors ulterior motives. Like a fisherman’s bait.

And if someone really does harbor such thoughts, I should report to him.

“Well… I would tell you. Though I don’t know when that might be.”

Though I’m the heir to the margrave, as long as Ludwig is alive and well, I’m just an individual without any troops.

Even if some fool did harbor such thoughts, they would stay quiet at least until Ludwig dies and I become margrave.

“True enough. That’s still far off. Ernst, Isabella… and we need to stabilize the north and east as well. Fortunately, we were able to preserve most of our forces this time, which is truly fortunate.”

Indeed, if we had fought Ernst’s army head-on, we would have suffered considerable losses even in victory.

With enemies of the Empire overflowing, if the great nobles’ armies were depleted too much, even if we defeated Isabella, the aftermath would be troublesome.

“…There are too many enemies.”

“Indeed. Truly, it seems like a miracle that the Empire has endured until now…”

Leopold sighed lightly and shook his head.

His golden thread-like hair fell like drizzle, but pretending not to notice was the humane thing to do.

[Seeing his hair falling out, I’d say his forehead will reach his crown in about five years. When he ascends to the throne, will he be called the Sun Emperor?]

Hersella chuckled.

Right.

This woman really doesn’t understand human feelings…!

—-

“…Anyway, I’m glad to see you have no major injuries. With the situation in Benes territory looking ominous, I’d prefer to avoid having a force as valuable as you incapacitated.”

“The situation in Benes territory… so the scouts returned safely. What did they report?”

During our stay at Zeren Plains, Leopold’s army wasn’t just sitting around resting.

The scene Isabella had shown us was so shocking and terrifying that we wanted to rush over and exterminate them immediately.

Countless insect monsters.

Their numbers would sicken even those who had fought against the undead monster army at Einfeld.

We couldn’t know how powerful they were until we fought them…

But it wouldn’t be easy for knights or soldiers to break through a tsunami of tens of thousands of insects smaller than a palm with just spears and swords.

That’s why Leopold was mobilizing every available resource.

He requisitioned all the oil from surrounding territories and gathered as many troops, knights, and mages as possible from those lords.

The local lords had originally supported Isabella but declared neutrality when the situation turned sour… but such words wouldn’t work anymore.

Hundreds of clerics with fanatical dedication and knights extremely angered by Isabella’s actions were ready to thoroughly slaughter anyone who refused to cooperate.

Either willingly offer supplies, or burn on a stake for supporting the witch.

No one defied Leopold’s threat.

After all, who would dare oppose an army that defeated 36,000 with just 15,000 troops while suffering only 800 casualties?

With the “voluntary” cooperation of each lord, Leopold’s army was able to secure sufficient supplies.

—-

They didn’t neglect reconnaissance either.

Despite the situation completely turning in our favor after the effortless dissolution of the 36,000-strong army, Isabella Benes remained holed up in her territory without taking any countermeasures.

As if daring us to come at her.

Such a blatant lack of response. The situation looked like a trap to anyone.

Or perhaps she was confident she could defeat Leopold’s army with just a handful of troops and monsters.

Wary of this, Leopold dispatched quite a number of scouts.

If captured by Isabella, they would meet a horrific and terrible end… but despite knowing this, surprisingly many volunteered, so there was no shortage of scouts.

According to Leopold, those scouts had just returned.

“…They say the Benes territory is already no different from a demon realm. Insect monsters are everywhere, and there’s not a trace of human presence.”

“What about the archers who retreated back then…? Did they all desert? Or…”

Did they all become bug food?

“Well… if all three thousand had deserted, we would have received reports about bandits. Since there are no such reports, most likely they became food, as you suspect. For now, we’re compiling and organizing information from each scout, so I’ll let you know the details once that’s complete.”

Leopold rose from his seat.

Leaving behind plenty of golden threads on the chair.

“Ah, and previously… you declared to me that you would never marry. Is that still your intention?”

“Of course…?”

What’s with this out of nowhere?

Why ask that now?

“Hmm… then it would be best if you stayed in your tent as much as possible. Usually, your warrior-like appearance prevents any issues, but… if you walk around looking as you do now, Duke Wien might start believing the rumors.”

Rumors…?

Ah, could it be? The rumors about me being Leopold’s mistress…!

“Right now, since I’m engaged to the Duke’s daughter, other vassals remain silent, but if Duke Wien’s misunderstanding causes my engagement with Lady Adelheid to fall apart… who do you think the vassals would recommend as my empress?”

That would be…

[You, of course.]

…Yes, it would be me.

The justification would be perfect.

A union between a descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights and the bloodline of Carlos the Great, completely incorporating the Empire’s strongest knight into the Imperial family.

Additionally, if I maintained my position as heir to the margrave, the Imperial influence over Landenburg territory would strengthen.

Even relations with the Church would become closer… if I were Leopold’s subordinate, I would have tried to make this marriage happen by any means.

Of course, that’s absurd.

[Let me warn you in advance. If you dare to roll around with some man using my body, I will certainly…]

‘I’d rather die than do such a thing!’

Of course Hersella would find it extremely unpleasant, but wouldn’t I as well?

I would never do such a thing, even if it killed me.

“I wish to respect your wishes as much as possible, but if all my vassals strongly insist, I might have no choice… So please be careful.”

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

Good. I won’t leave until my condition improves.