episode_0090

90. First Strategist

Jarmarck is an extremely small place.

Tiny, and without any notable specialty products to speak of.

All it has is vast grasslands and a diverse ecosystem.

A small land devoid of even the slightest blessing.

Sandwiched between two massive territories—Redmain and Ternova—and up north, the dreaded “White Horse General” Albarn has unified the region.

Jarmarck is the kind of place where, if any of its neighbors so much as flicks it, it’ll go “Ack!” and drop dead.

That is, if things had gone as they should have.

“Those damned wizard geezers. They should’ve just dropped dead.”

But Jarmarck is special.

It’s home to nobles, clergy, and mages—so prestigious that they’re called the Empire’s three great aristocracies.

Here, the mighty mages and their Magic Towers stand.

Which is why, if anyone dares recklessly covet this land, they’d be saying goodbye to magic forever.

Plenty of territories are itching to cozy up to the mages, after all.

Thanks to this, despite its small size, Jarmarck has managed to defend itself on its own until now.

Look at it this way:

Its ability to maintain self-defense has actually turned its position—wedged between larger regions—into an advantage.

It took on the role of a central trade route and skimmed a tidy profit from tolls, living quite comfortably.

Because of this, the mages started thinking they were true nobility, turning into stubborn, luxury-obsessed old fools…

But even with its crowd of geezers, Silver Town-like as it is, the land has become quite desirable.

Adela, having finished her general explanation, took a deep drag from her cigarette and exhaled a long stream of smoke.

“Alright. Basic briefing complete.”

“You probably already knew all that.”

“The blockhead next to you wouldn’t, though.”

“Uh… Thank you?”

I got the gist of what Jarmarck was about.

And Adela, who on the surface seemed like some laid-back, cigarette-smoking unnie from the engineering department…

Even gave me a basic rundown so I could follow along. She’s kinder than I expected.

Anyway, Erica already knew all this.

“But? Why did you come find me?”

“Tch… So impatient, just like a delinquent.”

Adela casually offered me her cigarette.

Like she was asking if I wanted to try a puff.

“This is called a cigarette…”

“I already know.”

“…You know?”

When questioned, I froze for a second.

Huh? Wait, why are there cigarettes in what looks like the 800s?

From what I recall, the history of smoking tobacco probably started with Native Americans, right?

The thought briefly crossed my mind, but I took the cigarette anyway and took a drag.

*Cough!*

“Heh heh…”

F*cking harsh.

Sure, part of it was because my lungs were pure and unused to smoking, but that wasn’t all.

This thing didn’t even have a filter.

No cotton, just dried tobacco leaves—basically no different from a cigar.

As I coughed violently, Erica frowned.

“Don’t smoke that. It’ll make you reek.”

Judging by her reaction, cigarettes weren’t common in the Empire yet.

I spat out the lingering smoke in my lungs as best I could.

“Just wanted to check… *Cough!*”

“Check what?”

“If this was what I thought it was.”

Adela looked intrigued by my answer.

She carelessly tossed the barely-smoked cigarette aside and started acting like she knew everything.

“This stuff is bad for your health.”

“…Did you think it’d be good?”

…Now that I think about it, yeah.

Of course inhaling smoke wouldn’t be healthy.

But explaining nicotine and all that would just make me sound like a know-it-all, so I couldn’t.

Besides, Erica didn’t seem like the type to smoke, so the whole point was moot now.

I awkwardly scratched my head and took a step back.

Adela watched me closely.

But Erica’s patience had already run out, so she clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

“So, Adela. Why bring up Jarmarck?”

From what I’d heard, this was before Erica met Alice.

Meaning Adela was her first strategist.

She was clearly smart, so she wouldn’t have come here for no reason…

And as if confirming Erica’s suspicions, Adela’s gaze sharpened.

She put out her cigarette and set the stage for Erica.

“Remember Marcus?”

“Of course. The friend you, Cecilia, and Edward used to run around with.”

Erica nodded, then glanced at me before adding, as if to avoid misunderstandings:

“Cecilia was a commoner’s illegitimate child.

Marcus was loyal but had no backing, and Edward was clever but petty.

They only stuck together because they had no one else—it wasn’t a romantic thing.”

?

Why bring this up all of a sudden…?

But Adela seemed to catch on and giggled.

“Well, well! Since your lord was a delinquent, she probably didn’t have friends either.”

“Quiet.”

The two women bantered like close friends rather than lord and strategist.

Anyway, Adela waved her hand and got to the point.

“The Empire currently has no kings. You know that, right?”

I’d heard bits and pieces.

The current emperor’s grandfather—two generations back—had relatives who inherited Pendleton Castle and staged a rebellion.

They failed, and everyone tied to Pendleton was executed.

Liliana… was probably too distantly related to the emperor to count as royalty, so she was spared.

But how do you rule an empire six times the size of China—comparable to Eurasia—without kings?

De facto rulers, the regional noble bosses, filled the gap.

“But Jarmarck has no regional nobles. The mages hold absolute power—it’s more like a federation.”

“Get to the point.”

“Our delinquent’s friend Marcus is a big shot there now.”

Erica’s eyes widened.

Like she’d glimpsed hope.

And Adela, her first strategist, didn’t miss a beat explaining why she’d come.

“And he’s being threatened by some thugs?”

Adela started giggling.

“What kind of friend would leave another to get beaten up?”

What Adela was offering was the perfect justification.

For Erica, already seething over Ternova’s provocations, this was the best casus belli she could ask for.

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Later, they returned to the mansion to talk privately.

Erica was pleased with the surprise and fully satisfied…

And Adela’s proposal was undeniably enticing.

In Erica’s office, the two women sat across from each other at a table.

“What does war require?”

“Oh? Is the delinquent testing me now?”

Adela hummed, studying Erica before answering like it was the easiest question in the world.

“Money, troops, justification, profit, and will.”

“Too simplistic.”

“Simple is best, no? Or should I wrap it in noble fluff?”

Erica smirked at that.

Then, as if testing Adela, she posed each question one by one.

“Money.”

“You’ve got plenty thanks to that guy. Enough to buy me drinks, too.”

Blunt, neither noble nor strategist-like—but undeniably correct.

Thanks to Cain’s inventions, architecture, and guano fertilizer, Freesia had drawn crowds.

The book-copying brought in writers hoping for readers.

More people meant a thriving market economy, and now money was overflowing.

“Troops.”

“Seriously? Or do you just want praise?”

Adela snorted dismissively.

Vivian, Luna, Adel, Jet—the so-called “Four Heavenly Kings” Erica jokingly called Cain’s group—were all here.

Not to mention solid second-stringers like Penrose and old Lukarion, plus a recent standout named Lien.

For strategists, there was Isobel, newly arrived, and the dual-wielding Alice… and now Adela right here.

Talent was overflowing.

“Justification.”

“A friend’s getting beaten up—who’d just sit back?

Or maybe the next answer covers this too.”

Adela giggled playfully.

Erica moved on without pause.

“Profit.”

Adela fell silent for a moment.

Then she leaned forward slightly, smiling with sudden gravity.

“We’ve talked a lot already…”

Marcus Keifon had firmly established himself in Jarmarck.

For the first time, the stubborn old geezers were starting to follow him—a young upstart.

Why?

The mages’ presence had kept invaders at bay.

But with the emperor gone and warlords running rampant, could they stay safe?

With Ternova eyeing Jarmarck like a juicy target… how must the old men feel?

Without soldiers, what difference was there between nobles and commoners?

Without a royal family to legitimize them, what made them special?

To put it bluntly… they’d realized even a mage’s belly wasn’t immune to a blade.

So Marcus, with ties to the powerful warlord Erica, gained influence.

Adela seized the moment to persuade them.

Erica had no choice but to act—and the reward…

Adela smiled as she named it.

“Jarmarck.”

The land itself and its mages—a feast fit for any ruler.

And if Jarmarck became Erica’s, what then?

Ternova, which had been poking at it like a snack, would’ve just provoked a military conflict.

Meaning Erica wouldn’t just be helping a friend—she’d have an ironclad justification.

She’d be the one struck first, so no one could criticize her retaliation.

Erica smiled.

Like a weight had lifted.

Finally, she could give that old bastard Baldouin a taste of his own medicine.

One question remained.

But it wasn’t Lord Erica who asked—it was Strategist Adela.

Lighting another cigarette, she grinned and said…

“Will.”

Erica met Adela’s gaze.

She just smiled back, eyes gleaming with ambition.

The decision had already been made.