Ch.407Chapter 407. The Laying Dragon (1)

Swen had been reborn as Swen for several days now.

Most of the generals had accepted their country’s and their own situation, casually referring to it as “Swen’s nation.”

After all, anyone who might have harbored resentment toward Swen’s existence in what was formerly Serpina’s nation was already dead.

As there was no confusion among the military units, the territory’s residents naturally continued their daily lives without falling into disorder.

In these chaotic times when one’s nationality could change so easily, why would anyone feel resistance? It wasn’t as if someone had staged a coup, killed the sovereign, and usurped the position—the consort had simply inherited the nation.

In this situation—

One person was concluding his long career in office.

“Are you saying you wish to resign?”

“Yes.”

The one expressing his intention to resign to Ian was Kransis—once his teacher and the commander of the occupation forces.

“The nation I served was the Einhart Empire, so I think it’s appropriate for me to stop here.”

“This relationship was formed through marriage. I don’t think there’s a lack of legitimacy…”

“Well… perhaps you’re right.”

Kransis looked up at the sky with a nostalgic expression.

“But I can’t face Julian, who passed away not long ago.”

“…”

Julian.

An outstanding general who had served the Einhart family since the previous emperor’s time.

His career as a general was shattered by the historic defeat at the Northern Fortress. Soon after, he fell ill, retired from active duty, and left to rest in his hometown village—a general with an unfortunate fate.

Even though the defeat was ultimately caused by a meteorite strike, so it might be too harsh to say his abilities as a general were lacking… but at his not-so-young age, surviving alone when over 90% of his soldiers had died couldn’t have sat well with his conscience.

Perhaps because of this, his mental anguish soon manifested as physical illness that wouldn’t easily heal—

Around this time last year, he finally ended his long years of glory and disgrace, returning to the land where he was born and raised.

The historic defeat at the Northern Fortress.

That defeat was, in essence, a defeat at the hands of Swen.

“And since it’s you, I’ll speak frankly. I cannot acknowledge Lord Swen.”

“…”

Despite Ian’s expression rapidly hardening, Kransis continued to speak his mind.

“To be more blunt, I can’t help but think that from the beginning, he approached Lady Serpina with the intention of seizing the throne and achieved what he wanted.”

“That’s an overinterpretation. From my lord’s perspective, marriage wasn’t the only way to receive the throne from Lady Serpina. If that had been his goal, I believe there would have been much easier paths.”

“You hold Swen in very high regard, don’t you?”

“I admit my judgment may be clouded because he saved my life… but believe it or not, even if he weren’t my benefactor, I wouldn’t have concluded that all this was my lord’s scheme.”

“I see.”

Kransis gave a bitter smile, then—

“If there were more people who shared my views.”

“…?”

“If there were many who would stand with me, I wouldn’t be stepping down like this.”

“!!!”

Ian’s eyes widened at those words.

Not stepping down?

That meant—

“However, there’s no one anywhere who shares my views. Rather, only those who welcome this change remain. Even if I were to rise up, I couldn’t change anything, nor would anyone open their eyes to my cause. Looking at it objectively, I am a man of the old era who should disappear… while you and Lord Swen are the new generation who will open up a new world.”

“…”

Ian closed his eyes and slowly bowed his head.

“I have never forgotten your teachings, Kransis. That’s why I must speak honestly. Your words just now, whether a slip of the tongue or not… I cannot simply let them pass.”

“I know. I said them with that in mind.”

“Kransis…”

“My life was saved by you in the first place. It wouldn’t be so bad if you were the one to take it back.”

“…The decision is not mine to make. Everything will be done according to my lord’s will.”

“…I see.”

Kransis slowly rose from his seat.

“I plan to stay in my hometown village. It’s a small settlement not far from Einhart Castle. If you ever need to find me, you can come there. Well then.”

After silently watching Kransis’s retreating back for a long while, Ian—

* * *

“Are you saying General Kransis was plotting treason?”

“Yes.”

In the royal castle of Kelstein.

Ian immediately sought an audience with Sovereign Swen and reported everything he had heard.

No matter that he was his teacher, having heard “if there were enough people, I would have turned my blade against the new sovereign Swen,” it wouldn’t be proper for a general to let it pass without action.

And wasn’t it General Kransis himself who had taught him this principle?

The newly enthroned Sovereign Swen stroked his chin after hearing Ian’s words.

“I had already heard of his intention to resign, but I didn’t know he harbored such thoughts…”

At this moment, Ian made a decision. If punishment were demanded, he would be the first to step forward.

Kransis also didn’t seem unaware that openly expressing such intentions could cause tremendous repercussions…

Therefore, if someone had to deliver the final blow, he thought it should be none other than himself, as that would be the respectful thing to do.

But.

“We should provide him with a pension so he can rest comfortably.”

“…Pardon?”

“He’s a general who has worked hard for the nation all this time. I think it’s only natural to offer him benefits…”

Surprised by Swen’s completely unexpected response, Ian bowed his head and questioned.

“But my lord, he said with his own mouth that ‘if there were people who shared his views, he would not acknowledge you.’ In other words, he implied the possibility of becoming a traitor…”

“I know that. But looking at it differently, one could say he fulfilled his loyalty to the very end.”

“What do you mean by fulfilling his loyalty…?”

“Lord Ian, think about it. The reason there’s no one who shares Kransis’s views is because those with enough influence turned their backs on their sovereign and tried to stage a rebellion to devour her. Yet until this very moment, he has steadfastly supported Lady Serpina as sovereign without joining that tide. If such a person first harbored thoughts of rebellion right after Lady Serpina stepped down from the throne… wouldn’t that fall within the realm of loyalty?”

“My lord…”

“So, it’s fine. Rather, it’s time for me to prove to him that my ascension to this position was also for Lady Serpina’s sake.”

Despite sitting on the sovereign’s throne, he consistently referred to her as “Lady Serpina.”

And he didn’t use formal speech even with Ian.

Swen was certainly a completely different type of ruler from those before him, but—

“Nevertheless, thank you for telling me everything, Lord Ian. I will never forget this loyalty.”

“…Yes!”

—He certainly possessed a magical ability to captivate people.

* * *

How many days had passed since becoming king?

Except for rumors that “Kransis had planned a rebellion,” days passed without any special incidents.

I had thought the Lunarian forces might take advantage of the inevitable complications during the succession process to invade, but surprisingly, Lady Luna had not yet moved her troops.

The main reason was probably insufficient forces to invade Kelstein. Perhaps hiding here really was the right answer.

Anyway—

There was no need to worry about Kransis.

After all, someone with an intelligence of 100 said there was no need to concern myself.

‘I never knew that being able to have a dialogue with myself could be this convenient…’

Being able to run through all possible scenarios by myself made finding the optimal answer incredibly easy.

I still encountered many “unknown” responses since I wasn’t completely familiar with it yet… but it didn’t matter. I could just keep asking questions through infinite tries.

I’ve recently come to strongly realize how inconvenient the system was until now, where I absolutely had to “hear” questions.

Anyway.

Even if the Lunarian forces weren’t moving, time continued to flow—

If we were to remain idle, there would have been no reason for me to ascend to this position.

Today was a perfect moment for a new beginning.

It was the day when everyone who would become my arms and legs would gather here at Kelstein Castle.

Through my experiences serving as a retainer across four different nations, I had often been surprised by the differences between countries—

‘Well then, let’s begin.’

I rose from my seat, approached the window, and looked at the sky.

A single cloud was slowly moving in a predetermined direction.

Like that cloud moving toward its destination despite its slow speed, today was the day to determine the direction our Swen nation should take—

—Today was the day of Swen nation’s first national council.