Ch.311311. Sirah Relocation War (5)

*Swish-*

Reports unfolded one after another. All the officers gasped as they looked at the documents Kelnur had prepared.

“Was Junon always this kind of person?” Though they had known something smelled fishy, they were now convinced there was definitely a hidden agenda. They began to freely criticize and slander their Commander-in-Chief, who wasn’t present at the meeting.

Watching the scene, Kelnur smiled with satisfaction.

‘That’s right, when you think about it, those officers, whether civil or military, were all nobles once.’

Though he had fallen from grace, he too had once been a noble. It wasn’t difficult to deal with them using the mannerisms ingrained in him.

“If the relocation to Sirah proceeds, it might be irreversible!”

“Irreversible? What do you mean?”

“Sigh, I wasn’t planning to mention this, but… it seems the time has come.”

And in between, he planted a small seed of discord.

“Haven’t you noticed that one particular person has been missing from Tembris?”

“Hmm?”

The officers carefully recalled who had been in and around the meeting hall. At first they were puzzled, but as Kelnur suggested, there really was someone who hadn’t been seen recently, not even a shadow.

What started as whispers eventually brought the person’s name to the forefront.

“Count Sherpen’s daughter. You mean Erika Sherpen is nowhere to be seen.”

“Indeed… I haven’t seen her. Not even outside the meeting room. Has anyone had contact with her separately?”

“No. I just assumed she was out saving lives somewhere…”

Their eyes circled back to Kelnur, who had initiated the question.

He must know something.

“Miss Erika… is currently missing because of Junon.”

“What…?”

“How is that the Commander’s fault?”

“She seemed broken after a conversation with that trash. The timing of her disappearance coincides with that moment, and even I, as her secretary, have no idea of her whereabouts. This has been going on for days.”

A Tembris member’s whereabouts unknown.

Each individual member was a significant military asset, and among them, the absence of the buffer and holy magic user who excelled in sustained combat was absolutely bad news for the entire Duchy’s forces.

And now to hear that Erika’s disappearance was because of Junon? They couldn’t help but be suspicious.

Kelnur began to stoke this spark of doubt with perfectly fitting kindling.

“Actually, this wasn’t the first time. There were many conflicts with Miss Erika.”

“Conflicts? With the Tembris members?”

“Yes. He tried to influence Tembris, and only Miss Erika opposed him. She was the only one who objected when there was talk of accepting Junon, who doesn’t fit in with Tembris at all, as a member.”

He fanned the flames perfectly with his final push.

The reactions that followed were predictable.

“Influencing Tembris? He must be obsessed with ruining the Duchy!”

“The Duchy desperately needs every single person’s strength right now…!”

“I understood he was suspicious from these reports, but I never knew he was this dark!”

And then.

Just as Kelnur had anticipated.

“What will happen after we relocate to Sirah?”

“We must stop this before it happens!”

“This meeting will be the final turning point. We must submit all these documents and impeach him!”

“Kelnur, you’ve worked hard. Leave the rest to us!”

They had become reliable allies in standing against Junon.

‘It’s not without risk for me too… but, well, it’s fine.’

Having committed to this course of action, he could no longer remain with Tembris. It was because of this risk that he had endured despite opposition, saving this as his last resort.

‘Ah, Miss Erika. It’s truly regrettable that I cannot move forward with you, but don’t we need to eliminate that man somehow?’

If even the Duchy’s army falls because of Junon, then you too will be in danger.

‘So I will personally take care of disposing of this trash.’

My goddess. My hero. And my love.

Please wait just a little longer.

It’s sad that he couldn’t walk the same path with the woman he cherished, but hoping for the day she would understand his feelings, Kelnur said:

“I beg you… please, restore the Tembris party that has been deceived by the sweet talk of an unqualified commander…!”

With an expression of utter injustice.

With an expression of profound grief.

While hiding a victor’s smile within, he shed false tears.

***

It was time to gauge the atmosphere.

The story of the Commander who had boldly drawn his sword against the officers spread instantly, and everyone was being cautious.

Even in this situation, spreading rumors could literally cost one’s head. So everyone watched carefully and kept their mouths shut.

Up to this point, Senia thought Junon’s image had fallen so much that it would be difficult to recover.

Just the statement that he had conflicts with officers during wartime was enough to plant negative perceptions, and the fact that he had drawn his sword suggested he had used force or power to suppress them, severely damaging the trust between the commander and his subordinates.

It was natural for rumors to spread when he had committed such controversial actions in front of everyone.

But Senia had heard clearly from Junon.

That this was something she couldn’t do.

That it was something he had to do.

If so, perhaps even these actions that would only increase negative perceptions were part of his calculated plan?

That’s why, even though she was present and could have intervened, she didn’t.

As a result of her patience and endurance.

Junon proved himself spectacularly.

“The magical communication device responded in Sirah?”

“That’s right! Lord Dusen personally confirmed it under the Commander’s orders!”

“The device that never responded in Levrant… amazing.”

“That’s not the important part, you idiot!”

“Ouch, why are you hitting me!”

“Geez, this is what happens when you live without thinking. If the device responded there, what should we do?”

“Oh? Come to think of it, if the communication device responded… doesn’t that mean we can request support from the Empire?”

The young soldiers, hearing the good news that connection with the Empire was possible, found a ray of hope in their exhaustion.

And, another connection.

This proved why they needed to head to Sirah, and public opinion began to shift, creating another rumor.

A subtle speculation arose like a floating rumor that perhaps Junon had insisted on heading to Sirah from the beginning because he knew about this situation.

One rumor is buried by another. Moving to Sirah according to the soldiers’ wishes became an operation that had to proceed even for the sake of morale, and it also gained support from other neutral officers, starting with Dusen.

‘To tilt the opinion toward relocation in such a tense standoff. I wonder how much of this was planned from the beginning.’

It was meticulously thorough to the point of being astonishing, but Senia was also relieved.

Since Junon had made such a move, there was definitely a need to eliminate variables, so she looked for a glimmer of hope and headed to a secluded place, passing through soldiers preparing for the operation.

And then, she fired a signal into the air that only one person would recognize.

*Swoosh-*

A signal flare that didn’t make much noise or light, but one person would definitely confirm this signal.

“I thought so… Senior Senia?”

Kain, who had spotted the signal nearby, hurriedly came looking for Senia.

This was the place the two had agreed to meet.

Of course, on the very last day.

“What brings you here? Has the schedule changed?”

Kain asked with concern.

Originally, they weren’t supposed to meet at this time. They had agreed to use this signal only if an accident occurred that needed urgent handling, or if the sequence of events was significantly distorted and the plan needed to be modified.

“That’s right. The schedule seems to be changing a bit.”

“…I see.”

If the schedule was changing, it probably wasn’t in a good direction. It was obvious that significant movements would be required to alter the future they already knew.

However, contrary to Kain’s anxious mood, Senia moved to the next location with light steps and called for Lumia.

After Lumia joined them, Senia glanced around once and brought quite positive news to the two.

“Junon was caught in bad rumors, but he’s shaken them off now. Lord Dusen has taken his side.”

“Lord Dusen? The former Captain of the Royal Guard?”

“That’s a huge advantage!”

When she explained what measures Junon had taken and what opportunities he had gained, Lumia and Kain cheered at the welcome news.

But happiness aside, Senia had called them here to assign them tasks. Secretly, without anyone noticing.

“Ahem. Kids?”

“Ah… sorry.”

“Oh, I’ll focus.”

Senia continued her speech.

“The rumors seem to have subsided a bit, but there are still many people who view the operation to relocate from Levrant to Sirah unfavorably. Those people are likely to openly rebel against Junon.”

“Rebel… even in this wartime situation?”

“When you think about it, it’s not strange, Kain. It’s actually more natural.”

Kain didn’t quite understand, but Lumia knew very well what kind of people nobles were.

“Even though the nobles have formed factions as the Duchy faction and the Noble faction, unless they were close to the Grand Duke from the beginning, most of them came over from the Empire with the same mindset.”

“I guess that’s true. If they crossed over because they had no way to thrive in the Empire, and wanted to exert even a little power…”

“Now that the Noble faction has collapsed, they’ll try to seize power somehow. Especially since the Grand Duke is absent and the Duchy is in crisis. Military officers will try to take command, and civil officials will try to establish policies that benefit them after the subjugation.”

Unless they were nobles who thoroughly followed Grand Duke Ardelion like the Baron Penarib, the essence of the others was the same.

Nobles are cunning individuals who would readily sabotage things if given the opportunity to reveal their true colors.

“So, I think they’ll try to interfere with Junon’s Sirah relocation operation somehow. That’s the second obstacle Junon will face.”

“Interfere…? In that atmosphere?”

It would be hard to imagine.

The scene where Junon, backed by the master Dusen, would face interference.

Nevertheless, Senia cut through this doubt decisively.

“The more carefully built a tower is, the easier it is to collapse. They’ll be looking for any excuse with fire in their eyes. Obviously, Junon won’t easily give them such information.”

Even Senia had to acknowledge Junon’s thorough preparation.

Then how?

Lumia and Kain held such questions as they waited for Senia’s answer.

“Junon still has one weakness that could become gossip. As long as that part isn’t resolved, the nobles will exploit that gap. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“”Yes.””

Now they knew.

Even without Senia’s explanation, they understood what she was worried about.

“There’s probably no one who knows as well as we do, but you’re concerned that Kelnur, who conducted the background investigation, might turn against us, right?”

Kain had hit the nail on the head.

“Evidence?”

“Kelnur clearly had an inferiority complex toward Senior Junon. While I can’t definitively prove it with evidence… considering his behavior so far and the fact that there’s really only one person who could spread such rumors…”

Lumia, who had been monitoring Kelnur, thought the same.

The answer was so clear that Senia didn’t need to add any explanation.

Their eyes said it all. Now the two were waiting for her instructions.

“That ball of inferiority will definitely try to ruin Junon’s plans. So—”

Staking everything. Bearing all burdens. When pushed to the edge of a cliff with no way to back out.

“We need to cut off even his foothold to ensure he can be eliminated completely.”

They needed to deny everything that made Kelnur who he was and cast him into the abyss.

***

Meanwhile, at the same time, Junon had fallen asleep after staying awake for an extended period.

“…”

Junon, who had inevitably stayed up all night, was causing Lenias no small amount of worry.

Despite all her concerns, there wasn’t much she could do.

She made sure he ate, but that was about it. Even when she tried to check if he was getting proper rest, her own body would fall into deep sleep first.

“This won’t do.”

Falling asleep while just closing his eyes, leaning on a chair. Sleeping in such an uncomfortable position would make him stiff.

At the very least, she wanted to help him sleep comfortably.

Though she knew he might wake up, Lenias couldn’t help but approach Junon.

She pushed several chairs together to create a place for him to lean on.

Then, sitting in the space she created, she carefully pulled his upper body toward her, trying not to wake him.

*Thud.*

His body tilted. Lenias ended up embracing Junon’s body to support him. Yet he didn’t wake up. Fortunately.

If she were to be even more greedy, she would move him to a bed… but that would surely wake him from his deep sleep.

“I hope you can sleep comfortably like this.”

Embracing him with her body might not be soft, but it would at least be warm. In her own way, she was satisfied.