Ch.590Political Affairs Meeting

Though it was an urgent matter, I couldn’t simply mount a horse and ride east immediately. I needed to organize the forces that would accompany me and prepare for any issues that might arise during my absence.

I went to Leopold to discuss the matter. He too must have received Ludwig Wilhelm von Landenburg’s personal letter, as he sat at his desk in his private office with a letter before him, wearing a grim expression.

“…To think the Ka’har would achieve unification so quickly. Isabella, Rurik, Alvheim and Dane, monsters and dragons, Feilandria, and now the Ka’har… It feels as though the entire world is just waiting for the Empire to fall.”

Leopold muttered with a sigh. It was a lament filled with the pressure and desperation of an emperor watching over a declining empire.

…At least he wasn’t talking nonsense about quitting like before, which was somewhat fortunate.

“I understand your feelings… but it’s not like we can just say ‘Yes, we’ll collapse’ and actually do so, can we?”

I responded jokingly, shrugging one shoulder. I figured a serious tone would only add to his mental burden.

“Obviously not.”

My jest seemed to work as Leopold nodded with a wry laugh. Sipping the tea brought by the maids, I reported to him how I planned to proceed.

“We’ll follow the Margrave of Landenburg’s strategy. I’ll depart first.”

It was less of a report and more of a notification, really.

The public might view me as Leopold’s loyal dog, but the reality was somewhat different.

After I suppressed Isabella, my relationship with Leopold became less like lord and vassal and more like equal trading partners with personal friendship added to the mix.

Leopold needed my military power, and I needed the authority of the Imperial Emperor.

In truth, it was a slightly disadvantageous deal for me. Without me, Leopold would become a puppet of the nobles, but even without Leopold, I could secure sufficient authority through the connections and position I had built.

The Holy State, the Archdiocese, Faelrun, Landenburg—as long as I didn’t go astray, they would all stand with me.

Though it would result in the Empire being split between the noble faction following Lord Wien and my faction.

Anyway, this meant Leopold could try to persuade me but never force me. That would be like tightening a noose around his own neck.

In fact, historically speaking, it wasn’t an ideal relationship.

If I craved power like Lord Wien, I could reduce Leopold to a figurehead emperor. And historically, it wasn’t uncommon for vassals who grew too powerful to end their lives by assassination.

Of course, there was no possibility of that happening between us.

Far from assassination, if I ever coveted the imperial throne, Leopold would gladly hand it over with gratitude, then go find his siblings to celebrate with drinks and dancing.

While power-hungry Lord Wien might see the emperor’s throne as a celestial treasure, to Leopold and me, it was nothing more than a forced hair-loss chair that would turn even the most luxuriously-haired person bald.

Meaning it was a position neither of us would take even if offered.

—-

Before the nodding Leopold, I continued my notification.

“I plan to take Jahan, Nigel, and Leonore Wittelsbach with me. Demian, Millia, Frider van Faelrun, Ophelia van Sigmillus, and Perneisia will remain here. They can’t replace me, but they’ll be of some help.”

I wanted to take everyone, but since defending the imperial territory was second only to the Ka’har issue in importance, I couldn’t mobilize all our forces.

There was also the monster problem, and we didn’t know what Feilandria might have done with Nidhogg’s remains, so we needed to leave forces behind just in case.

“Be careful. We plan to dispatch two legions as the Margrave of Landenburg requested in his letter… but today’s imperial army doesn’t have the strength it once did. At best, we can only hold out by relying on the wall. I’m afraid we won’t be of much help.”

“That can’t be helped. Even with two legions, about half will be new recruits.”

If we dispatched the entire 3rd and 4th Legions, we might at least maintain the appearance of an imperial army, but then there would be no forces left to defend the imperial homeland. So the plan was to send the existing 3rd Legion plus the newly formed 2nd Legion to the east.

It was a force that could rightfully be called a ragtag bunch, but that was the limit of what the Empire could currently mobilize.

Well… Ludwig himself didn’t seem to expect more from the current imperial army.

According to Ludwig’s operation plan, only Landenburg’s elite forces, including myself, would advance into Ka’har territory. The imperial army’s role wasn’t to attack the enemy but to hold back the Ka’har who might target the wall after the operation succeeded.

—-

Though my discussion with Leopold was over, I couldn’t immediately return to my residence. A political meeting awaited us to discuss this matter.

Leopold summoned the nobles to the audience chamber and announced that the day to fight the Ka’har had come, as Ludwig had informed.

The nobles showed reluctance at mobilizing two imperial legions, but they trusted Ludwig’s judgment enough not to strongly oppose it.

If Ludwig was certain war would break out, then war would truly break out.

If Ludwig said two legions were needed, then two legions must be mobilized.

The nobles seemed to think the same, even Lord Wien. The weight of reputation carried by Ludwig, the Shield of the Empire, lent overwhelming persuasiveness to his message.

Therefore, the political meeting focused not on whether to dispatch the imperial army, but on how to fill the power vacuum created by the deployment.

Though half were new recruits, concentrating two legions’ worth of troops in the east would inevitably weaken defenses in other regions.

“I will do what I can.”

Surprisingly, Lord Wien personally stepped forward to allay the nobles’ concerns. He declared that he would mobilize all his private soldiers to fill the imperial army’s gap, and if that wasn’t enough, he would even spend his own fortune to hire mercenaries.

Leopold praised Lord Wien’s loyalty, if only with lip service. Whether Wien was trying to build reputation and justification to secure more power, or genuinely concerned about the Empire’s safety unlike his usual self, I wasn’t sure…

But his statement was clearly going to be of great help.

“If Your Grace speaks thus, we too shall…”

With Lord Wien, who was practically the leader of the nobles, taking such a stance, the other nobles had no choice but to follow suit.

Though they might have been reluctant, if Lord Wien was willing to accept losses for the Empire’s sake, showing an uncooperative attitude would clearly leave them like a kite with a broken string.

Thus, it was concluded that the nobles would scrape together all their private soldiers to somehow fill the imperial army’s vacancy.

—-

Though the discussion about dispatching the imperial army was settled, the political meeting wasn’t over yet.

After a brief rest, Leopold and the nobles began discussing diplomatic issues.

With a great war looming, they needed to keep a close eye on other countries’ movements to avoid being stabbed in the back.

“What is the situation in the west?”

“Until recently, there was a stalemate with the balance of power maintained… but currently Alvheim has regained the upper hand. Himmel’s forces are retreating on all fronts, and several of their new weapons have reportedly been destroyed.”

A noble not from Lord Wien’s faction answered Leopold’s question. He was in charge of intelligence from the western border.

“So the situation has changed from before… Have the elves grown stronger? Or have the dwarves weakened? Which is it?”

“Closer to the latter. Whether due to tectonic shifts and monster appearances causing chaos in the rear, supplies meant for the front lines don’t seem to be getting through properly.”

It seemed the dwarves had been properly affected by the recent cataclysm.

Well, as creatures living underground, they would inevitably be caught up in tectonic shifts, and with monsters rampaging everywhere, they probably lacked the capacity to supply troops and ammunition to the front while dealing with those threats.

That explained why they were being pushed back. While the dwarves’ firearms and machinery were certainly powerful, unlike the elves who only needed troops and food, they also required ammunition and repair materials.

“Hmm…”

After briefly stroking his chin in thought, Leopold gave new orders to the noble who had reported on the western situation.

“Send an envoy to the dwarves to convey my will. If the dwarves of Himmel choose to seek asylum in the Empire, we are willing to accept and protect them as imperial citizens.”

“I apologize, but… I doubt they will accept Your Majesty’s mercy.”

The instructed noble bowed deeply as he voiced his negative prediction. Indeed, even I thought it unlikely that the stubbornly proud dwarves would quietly seek asylum just because they were in a disadvantageous position.

“Either way, the Empire loses nothing. If they refuse, it means Himmel still has strength, so we can rest easy for the time being. And if by chance they accept, the Empire can absorb the dwarves as citizens and secure their technology.”

“…But wouldn’t the elves object if we accept Himmel’s refugees?”

Another noble who had been listening carefully raised a concern. He was pointing out that the moment we accepted dwarf refugees, Alvheim’s hostility might turn toward the Empire.

“Object? When have the elves ever been friends of the Empire?”

However, Leopold’s attitude suggested he didn’t care whether the elves objected or not.

Well, they were bound to become enemies anyway. Regardless of whether we accepted the dwarves, once Himmel fell, it was crystal clear that the elves would bare their teeth at the Empire.

Meaning there was no need to be considerate of them.