Ch.8787. Bait

I could probably kill fewer people and clean up the Allied Nations more easily.

It wasn’t like all citizens of the Allied Nations were united in wanting to become protected territories of the Demon Lord’s army, or had agreed to betray their precious Master.

In the end, it had to be seen as a decision made by the ruling class.

However, separating the ruling class from the commoners was impossible. Especially considering they had all lived together on relatively small islands.

I had no intention of leaving the Allied Nations alone for fear that innocent people might die.

If I set a precedent, others would ‘inevitably’ surrender to the Demon Lord’s army again.

But thanks to the magical tool John Burko showed me, I thought of an easier way.

“With some clever thinking, we can easily deal with the leadership of the Allied Nations. Then the rest is just an empty house.”

The Royal Guard Commander nodded at my assurance, as if he’d been waiting for it.

“Indeed, the ordinary citizens of the Allied Nations must feel disgusted with their nobles and knights.”

The ruling class who just watched cautiously while islands were conquered one by one, and even stood by as the dragon hunters were annihilated.

The latter especially must have been devastating.

Dragon hunters were said to be the most admired profession in the Allied Nations. While we call them lesser dragon hunters, they often refer to them simply as dragon hunters or dragon slayers. I heard they hold festivals every time a lesser dragon is killed.

It seemed a bit strange to hold a festival just for killing one lesser dragon, but thinking about it, it made sense. There was the symbolism of slaying a dragon, plus the substantial byproducts.

The situation where these dragon hunters were helplessly massacred must have shocked the citizens even more than those of the Papal State.

‘It’s surprising there hasn’t been a rebellion yet.’

The ruling class of the Allied Nations wasn’t trying to escape without reason.

I decided to use this situation and devised a strategy with the influential figures of the imperial capital.

Honestly, I had already completed the plan. I just gave them time to show off their abundant knowledge.

These gentlemen probably couldn’t even memorize the names of the Allied Nations’ member countries before, just like me, but they seemed to have studied hard since the Allied Nations began being toyed with by the Demon Lord’s army.

“The country with any meaningful military power in the Allied Nations is Turias, Lord Wellesley.”

“Ah, you mean the country that was exempted from the Demon Lord’s army’s invasion on the condition of possessing a certain number of Cordana.”

“The funny thing is that Turias has almost no gold or silver mines. However, it’s considered wealthy because of its vast territory and high proportion of arable land. It also has quite a large population.”

“I see. I didn’t know that.”

“And the country most hostile to the Empire is a place called Islas. Actually, their king has marital ties with our imperial family. The queen there is the niece of the previous Emperor. …They probably believed they could get help because of that.”

“Their anger grew because their expectations were shattered.”

“Exactly! Even recently, an adventurer from the Empire suffered hardship there.”

All quite useful information.

If I were going to directly attack the Allied Nations, this would be essential information to know.

However, it wasn’t crucial for the operation I was planning now.

I had no intention of going to the Allied Nations myself. Rather, I planned to invite them.

Still, I couldn’t ignore the sincerity of the high-ranking court nobles who were taking the time to educate me, so I listened attentively.

“Well, do you find this helpful, Lord Wellesley?”

It was a question from an elderly court minister.

Instead of responding immediately, I licked my lower lip with a serious expression.

It was wiser to at least pretend to consider others’ opinions rather than answering too promptly.

In a situation where most local lords disliked me (even those who had entered futures contracts with me), I needed to keep these people on my side.

After pretending to contemplate…

“Thanks to you, I’ve figured it out. Come to think of it, I didn’t need to be here.”

“Well, this has nothing to do with speculation. It’s about causing public dissent after all.”

The ministers and military leadership seemed to think I was planning to incite rebellion in the Allied Nations.

That wasn’t a bad method either. If the commoners of the Allied Nations took up arms on their own, we would just need to watch.

But that would take too much time. We couldn’t conduct public opinion campaigns on over 60 islands. And the lower-ranked Monga that might still be in the Allied Nations, or other Monga following its orders, might interfere.

‘But there’s no need to make this complicated.’

Neither Monga nor anything else could overcome humans’ instinct to escape crisis. There are limits to how much you can deceive and fool people.

The Allied Nations collapsed so easily precisely because of that instinct.

They kept compromising and making concessions, thinking they could avoid major damage by not fighting directly, believing things would quickly return to normal once the crisis passed.

Betraying their Master was probably just another survival tactic. Not that it excuses them.

I was simply planning to exploit that same psychology.

“Everyone. I have no intention of inciting rebellion in the Allied Nations.”

“Then…?”

“Rather, I plan to open a path for the royalty and nobility of the Allied Nations to come to the Empire.”

I intended to create an environment where those who were trying to smuggle themselves in with magical tools could come to the Empire openly.

Dealing cleanly with just those willing to abandon their countries for the Empire would make things twice as easy.

Fortunately, detailed explanations didn’t seem necessary.

“Come to think of it, just look at Cordana. My brother-in-law once said he’d take even a demon’s hand if he could escape for 100 million. …Well, he didn’t actually take it, he just went bankrupt.”

“If we dangle the bait gently, we might catch something.”

Everyone had witnessed rock bottom. I immediately had an audience with the Emperor and received his approval.

***

It should be time for them to bite soon?

Iclit, a succubus disguised as a human, muttered with a lewd smile.

Currently in the form of a grandmother over sixty, it only looked like a warm smile. Though no one would think it warm if they knew what she had done in the Allied Nations.

She had persuaded several powerful figures in the Allied Nations to order large quantities of magical tools… particularly perception-inhibiting ones. A human named John Burko, desperate to exploit the Allied Nations, had fulfilled all those orders.

Of course, she wasn’t helping them escape because she liked them.

– I’ll tell you and your family how to survive. I’ll help you live a relatively wealthy life in the safe Empire.

– Don’t want to live like a rat in hiding? I’ll show you how to live proudly with wealth. Of course, you’ll have to follow my instructions.

– You’ll die anyway if you do nothing, either from civil war or by the Empire’s hand.

Not many people refused Iclit’s sweet words.

All the noble figures in the Allied Nations were already terrified.

Just days ago, an island suffered tremendous damage because they couldn’t stop even a cute lesser dragon just 6 meters long (about the size of a saltwater crocodile). The nobles who ruled that island were in a precarious position due to the restless public sentiment.

With hell about to break loose, there were plenty who wanted to go to the safe Empire.

Even if the offer came from the mouth of the Monga who had brought down the Allied Nations.

If the ordered magical tools actually arrived? It would be an opportunity to send human spies into the Empire.

Spies firmly under Iclit’s thumb – their potential uses were endless. It was on a completely different level from bewitching a few commoners.

And even if it failed, it didn’t matter.

‘They’re just playing cards to me anyway.’

If humans suspected the purpose of the magical tools, it would only add justification for invasion.

The perception of the Allied Nations was already trash. If more justification piled up in the meantime, they couldn’t help but attack. The Empire would have to expend enormous energy conquering over 60 islands one by one.

Ambiguous peace, or war.

Either way, it didn’t matter. Iclit was prepared to respond however the situation unfolded.

‘Once I finish this, should I cross over to the Empire too?’

As she was thinking this with another warm smile, a fellow Monga approached with a displeased expression. This friend ran taverns and brothels, so was well-informed.

“Hey, sister. The customers… I mean, the humans are all buzzing about something.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Empire’s Emperor issued an imperial decree. That noble who betrayed the Master… Rodrigo, remember? Enrique, I think his name was. They’re demanding he be sent to the Empire.”

Just one person extradited? That won’t be enough.

Of course, ‘Enrique,’ who sold out the dragon hunter Rodrigo, was indeed considered a traitor in the Allied Nations. It was news that disappointed even those who were delusionally hoping “now that the Demon Lord’s army has left, the Empire will help with reconstruction.”

From the Allied Nations’ perspective, using him as a scapegoat to appease the continent’s, especially the Empire’s, anger would be the best scenario.

‘But there’s no way the punishment would end with just that… is there?’

There was actually more to it.

“They’re telling the higher-ups to present themselves at court too. Don’t try to make excuses through communication magic, but reveal the truth before the Emperor.”

“What if the Allied Nations refuse?”

“They say it means war.”

There was no way such a proposal would work.

Of course, the ruling class of the Allied Nations was in crisis, but some still had enough power to easily suppress rebellions. Those who had quickly surrendered to the Demon Lord’s army tended to be in better shape.

Such people wouldn’t willingly go to the Empire just to prevent war. If they were that type, they wouldn’t have surrendered in the first place.

‘Should I just see this as part of war preparations?’

War wasn’t bad either. All she needed to do was stimulate the Allied Nations citizens’ sense of victimization so they would resist the Empire as tenaciously as possible. With over a hundred collaborators already secured, it didn’t seem difficult.

…However, the situation didn’t unfold as Iclit expected.

“I will go. If I explain the truth in detail, the Empire will understand.”

“If war breaks out, our soldiers will hang me first anyway. I’d rather go to the Empire and negotiate with the Emperor…!”

“By what right does the Empire judge us? I’ll go and confront them.”

Surprisingly, volunteers emerged. Moreover, most of them were the very people who had been preparing to enter the Empire illegally under Iclit’s instigation.

Royalty, nobility, and what few knights remained. Those with money or military power were especially eager.

Why were these humans suddenly acting this way?

By the time Iclit suspected that other operations were happening beneath the surface, people volunteering to go to the Empire were already lining up.