Ch.92Chapter 92. Battle of Hisphil Castle (2)

“I see… So that’s what you meant.”

“Exactly. Rather than attacking troops inside a fortress through a siege, it’s much easier to lure them outside and then deal with them.”

Serpina didn’t scold Yoan, who seemed to have barely understood after several explanations.

Whatever life she had lived before—now, as a ruler, Serpina was an absolute being who walked the path of conquest, not tolerating anything existing beside her.

The number of people who considered her a tyrant and disliked her was by no means small, and countless people actually hated her, viewing her as a devil or witch.

But surprisingly, she wasn’t the type to enforce terror politics within her own nation.

With her negative external image, she was in a position where she had to ensure the loyalty of those who served her.

Although she was the sole monarch who inherited the bloodline of the fallen Einhart Empire—originally, the successor the royal servants had in mind wasn’t her but the firstborn son who no longer exists in this world, Algot von Einhart.

The imperial vassals couldn’t possibly like this sudden newcomer who was known for her extremely cruel actions.

Of course, using fear would make them obedient for the time being. Ruling subordinates with strict punishment and immediately purging anyone who showed signs of challenging her authority without question would keep the nation functioning somewhat normally. After all, Serpina’s army had swallowed the entire northern continent and the imperial capital’s infrastructure.

However.

That approach couldn’t build a unified empire.

If soldiers couldn’t deeply pledge loyalty to their monarch, they would inevitably collapse at critical moments.

This was the conclusion she reached after studying the famous treatise on rulership countless times.

She never looked down on those who followed her, no matter what.

That was the principle Serpina established to make people follow her.

Therefore, she—

Did not rule with fear those who belonged to Serpina’s army and served her as their only monarch.

She strictly adhered to the principle of rewarding good and punishing evil, explaining things repeatedly to those who didn’t understand her words properly, and being as lenient as possible with mistakes unless they were fatal or involved rebellion.

This aspect became even more prominent when compared to Lynn, the ruler of Brans Army, who had a governance system most similar to hers.

Lynn wasn’t exactly a stupid person. Although she had been making inexplicable mistakes lately, she had been a wise ruler deserving a fairly high passing grade. After all, no matter how solid the foundation of the Brans Army she inherited was, it wasn’t easy to expand territories and rise to a position close to the hegemon of the central region.

But she was emotional. She had some pettiness unbecoming of a ruler, and when punishing, she considered the person’s character more than the severity of the wrongdoing.

Moreover, she had the cruelty to immediately discard those who didn’t follow her orders. She ruled her subordinates through fear.

Until her miserable downfall, praise for her leadership could be heard here and there. At least, the territories in the central continent didn’t rebel after being subjugated, unlike what happened in the north.

For instance, if there was a person called “Irene Juliette” whom she personally disliked?

Lynn Brans would be someone who would take Irene’s life with her own hands, but Serpina von Einhart would utilize Irene if she proved her abilities.

While she wouldn’t form a personal relationship with someone she disliked, she would treat them according to their worth as long as they fulfilled their duties in the lord-vassal relationship.

Anyway, as a result of the clearly demonstrated fact that this supposedly tyrannical ruler actually took care of her people—

The loyalty of the generals working under her was extremely high.

The generals who rebelled were usually those who had held high positions in the former empire or had been aligned with other successors like Algot.

Terror politics is a governance system that operates very stably when the ruler’s authority is absolute.

But once that authority is damaged and begins to rust, it becomes extremely unstable.

Serpina instinctively knew this. That’s why she didn’t take the easy path but deliberately chose the difficult one.

Considering that the current Brans Army began to collapse because of Lynn’s temperament, it was indeed the right judgment.

Her goal was continental unification.

To keep her promise… The more time she spent thinking only about becoming an ideal ruler—

The more her aura as an absolute being intensified.

“However, my lord.”

Serpina glanced down at Yoan slightly.

Sensing that this meant “speak,” Yoan carefully asked.

“I think the strategy itself is excellent… but isn’t it only possible if the forces from Raclaine Castle launch an invasion against us?”

“That’s right.”

“If the enemy doesn’t attack… what happens then?”

“…”

Serpina remained silent for a moment, then slowly parted her glistening lips.

The sight of war talk flowing from those lips, beautiful like a sculpture, made her appear like a goddess of war.

“Yes. It would waste provisions, and since there’s no such thing as ‘absolute’ on the battlefield, other variables could occur—the Brans Army might move, or something else might happen—so waiting for them to take the bait might seem inefficient. However, I’m convinced that the Aeshus Army will eagerly take the bait.”

“May I ask why?”

Serpina spoke in a matter-of-fact, calm tone.

“It’s obvious. They hate me.”

“…”

Yoan remained silent, pondering Serpina’s words.

In truth… counting people who liked Serpina on this continent would be much quicker than counting those who disliked her.

Although Yoan deeply respected and followed the lord he served, he wasn’t foolish enough to ignore objective facts.

Yes.

The reason Serpina specifically devised this strategy was because she knew the Aeshus Army hated her.

‘I have no intention of living under the same sky as you…’

It was rare for a small nation to use such strong wording toward a great power in diplomatic relations.

Even other nations that had rejected surrender demands until now had never directly expressed hatred.

Baranga Yurie Aeshus.

What exactly is your grudge?

At what point did I paint your heart with hatred?

‘…’

Useless sentimentality.

This wasn’t a thought Serpina von Einhart should have as a ruler.

She quickly erased it from her mind.

If they hate me… I’ll thoroughly exploit that.

‘…’

Come to think of it, she suddenly remembered what Jenna had told her.

The news that a young man with white hair was currently in the Aeshus Army.

If this war continued, would she eventually see his face?

The possibility that this man was the same as the man in her dreams was extremely low.

But precisely because of that, she wanted to quickly meet him and confirm directly that he wasn’t the same person, to reorganize these wavering feelings.

Anyway, seeing his face would resolve the matter.

As she was thinking this—a young man’s voice reached her ears.

“My lord!”

When she turned her head, a very young and handsome general with black hair approached where Serpina was and knelt to pay his respects.

“Irian Al Caskie has come after hearing news of your arrival, my lord.”

Irian Al Caskie.

The son of the deceased great general Kremton Al Caskie, and the valedictorian of the Einhart Academy.

He was a promising young talent who had recently emerged in Serpina’s army, having achieved great merits in the conquest of Kelstein Castle and the subjugation of the central continent.

“Yes. I’ve heard. You’ve done quite well.”

“It’s all thanks to your trust in me, Lady Serpina. I’m merely grateful to be able to repay that trust.”

Serpina responded with a seductive smile as she looked down at the kneeling Irian without saying anything.

Seeing that smile, Irian once again felt that Serpina was the only dignified woman qualified to lead him, and bowed his head to plead with her.

“My lord. Please place me at the vanguard of this operation. I will certainly prove my worth.”

“Wouldn’t that be pushing yourself too hard?”

“No. I’m very grateful for your concern, but I, Irian, can still sufficiently—”

“That’s not what I mean.”

Serpina cut off Irian’s words sharply.

Her voice was so cold it felt like it could cut.

“If you fail because you pushed yourself recklessly when you’re not in perfect condition, the responsibility for that choice ultimately falls on me, not anyone else. So, tell me straight. Can you definitely achieve merit?”

“…Yes. Please entrust this to me. If I make a mistake, you may take my head.”

‘…’

Serpina silently looked down at him.

From what she’d heard, that man, Erinandorf Arisian, was at Raclaine Castle.

It was worth testing what kind of person Irian was.

“Very well. Then I shall use you once more. I hope you won’t bring shameful results to the Einhart emblem.”

“Yes! Leave it to me!”

After sending Irian away, Serpina fell into thought as she left the royal castle.

Even while dealing with the Aeshus Army, her eyes and ears always had to remain open.

‘I should also check how the Brans Army will move soon.’

It would be nice if they moved according to my will too…

With such thoughts, she continued to methodically conquer the central continent.

* * *

“Don’t panic and maintain formation!”

Anima was trying her best to control the soldiers at the rear, but—

Speaking from inside a palanquin rather than a saddle, there was no way she could control them properly.

The forces at the front seemed to have engaged in battle with Serpina’s army there, making the central formation even more chaotic.

That alone might have been fortunate.

For some reason… the enemy soldiers attacking from the rear felt unusually strong.

It seemed our army was definitely being pushed back.

This was because the enemy wasn’t a regular army but mercenaries from a mercenary group specialized in surprise attacks, but there was no way for Anima to know that at present.

‘I should have placed at least one reliable general at the rear…!’

There were two more generals besides Anima at the rear, but neither was particularly outstanding in terms of military prowess.

They had been selected with the expectation of commanding troops rather than achieving military feats.

Thinking about it now, that was too basic a mistake.

If she had thought more carefully about ‘the possibility of being attacked from behind,’ she would have certainly considered it even if the possibility was low…

It seemed her impatience about possibly missing this opportunity had driven her into a dangerous situation.

“Aaaagh!”

“Come at me, you bastard!”

In the midst of this pandemonium, she wanted to go check how things were going at the front—

But now she had to stay here and somehow maintain formation while controlling the troops to avoid being sandwiched.

‘Ern… I’ll leave the front to you, please stay safe…!’

*

And at the front—

As Anima thought, Erinandorf, who was at the vanguard, was facing Irian, the vanguard general of Serpina’s army.

“Are you Erinandorf Arisian?”

“…”

Erinandorf didn’t answer Irian’s question.

Though there was no answer, it wasn’t difficult to identify him as Erinandorf.

His enormous build, distinctive weapon, and taciturn personality—everything matched his known description.

“I am Irian Al Caskie of Serpina’s army! I’ll be the last person you meet before heading to the afterlife, so you’d better remember my name!”

Irian provoked him lightly, but Erinandorf just silently glared at this place—

Then, adjusting his weapon, he spoke in a low tone, almost spitting out the words.

“You talk too much. Come at me, kid.”

“…”

No point in talking further.

Irian extended his hand forward.

“Everyone, charge!”

Waaaaaah!

The soldiers of Serpina’s army and the Aeshus army began to clash with each other.