episode_0124

I speak with a serious face in a situation that is planned in advance.

“We are concerned that the Kingdom of Sardinia may join forces with Nicaea to attack the empire. And with Nicaea hiring mercenaries from the Babylonian Empire, there is a lot of concern that the Babylonian Empire may be behind it.”

Edward nods at my words, acting as if he can do that.

“Of course, I have no choice but to be concerned. Isn’t the Babylonian Empire an evil empire? They are evil people who do not believe in El, the first of all gods, but only believe in their own power.”

I nod my head at those words.

“Yes, that’s right. That’s why I asked the Kingdom of Sardinia to lend me a magician unit… but they refused. So I am concerned whether what I suspect is true.”

Emmanuel, seeing Edward nod his head at my words, steps forward and speaks.

“Ambassador Edward, don’t you know this? Our kingdom does not have such dark thoughts.”

Edward nods to Emanuel’s words.

“The Grand Duke may be worried, but… the Kingdom of Sardinia will not stab the Empire in the back. So rest assured, ”

I shake my head at those words.

“No. I was betrayed by a comrade who had also sworn allegiance to His Majesty the Emperor. Who can I trust in a situation like this?”

Edward, smiling kindly at my words, opens his mouth.

“But can’t we force other countries to lend us their soldiers?”

I shake my head at those words..

“But if it is true that the Kingdom of Sardinia joined hands with Nicaea… can’t we just sit still?”

“Then what do you plan to do?”

At Edward’s words, I remain silent for a moment and then open my mouth.

“If you don’t lend me troops, I plan to go to war with the Kingdom of Sardinia.”

“No, does it make sense to start a war just because troops are not loaned?! This is a clear violation of sovereignty and interference in internal affairs!”

Edward opens his mouth as he sees Emmanuel yelling at my words.

“Hmm… I also have the same thoughts as Ambassador Emanuel. I am opposed to starting a war without evidence. But I’m personally curious. What will you do for the Kingdom of Sardinia?”

I smile as I see Edward objecting as I already said.

“First, we plan to lower tariffs for 10 years and provide more investment support not only to companies founded by Princess Ea but also to companies in the Kingdom of Sardinia.”

Emanuel asks me with a slightly thoughtful expression.

“I heard it was quite large. Are you saying that you are also investing in the companies of our kingdom, which are foreign countries rather than within the empire?”

I nod my head at those words.

“Isn’t it natural? Also, if we borrow troops and your country is attacked due to a security vacuum, our empire will be with the Kingdom of Sardinia, no matter who it is.”

Emmanuel, a little softened by those words, speaks.

“The Archduke’s offer is certainly an attractive one, but that does not mean His Majesty the King will accept it. I am truly sorry to say this, but the wizard troops are the pride of our kingdom. We never lend our pride to other countries.”

Edward steps forward and speaks.

“Kuhm… Your Majesty the Archduke. What you are saying is exaggerated. Currently, the United Kingdom doubts whether the Empire’s close relationship with the Kingdom of Sardinia may be part of its expansionary policy.”

Now it’s time to talk about the most important thing.

“Ambassador, I know your concerns better than anyone else.”

Edward’s eyes light up at my words.

“Hehe, is that so?”

There is a verbal promise I made to my uncle who previously took care of me.

We will not increase the navy further from now.

The empire’s army is powerful.

No matter how strong the United Kingdom is, it only works at sea.

The only country comparable to ours in terms of army is the Babylonian Empire.

The reason our country is the only empire on the continent is not only because of its long history and culture, but also because it has an overwhelming weight class that is different from other kingdoms.

That’s why the United Kingdom is very afraid of us turning our eyes to the New World.

That is why astronomical amounts of money were spent over a long period of time to raise the countries on the borders of the empire.

“Our empire will not expand its navy for 30 years.”

To be honest, even if I step down, there is no need for Theodora to stimulate the United Kingdom by expanding her navy.

Even though the late emperor Tiberius had overwhelming power, he did not necessarily turn his attention to the New World.

Perhaps they thought that way because no major catastrophe would occur.

The United Kingdom has bribed numerous nobles within the empire and has adopted a strategy of isolating the empire from the outside…

If you are unlucky, you may have to deal with a civil war and an enemy army at the same time.

To put it bluntly, this is the same reason why my maternal grandfather married my mother to Valorant.

So, even if I’m not around, it’s right to avoid friction with the United Kingdom.

Agrippa and I both think we will win without losing against Ioannes, but…

If the United Kingdom is the opponent, I honestly don’t see a way to win.

“Oh… Are you sure?”

Edward says with his eyes shining at my words.

“Yes, that’s right. However… if the Kingdom of Sardinia does not provide a magician unit… this promise will be treated as if it had never happened.”

It is a fact that my uncle and I have already made a promise to, but if this is ratified by the parliament that governs the empire and I sign it, the empire must be kept no matter who happens to be.

Otherwise, we will be branded as an unreliable country.

And at this level, my maternal uncle will also have the decency to intervene.

“Ho… Ambassador, please dispatch the magician unit.”

Edward, who had guessed the words in advance, stepped forward and spoke to Emmanuel.

Emmanuel says with an embarrassed face.

“That is not possible. No matter how much you call it home, this is interference in our internal affairs!”

“I am making you an offer you cannot refuse. Send a troop of wizards to the empire.”

Edward smiles coldly at Emanuel’s scream.

A bitterly cold smile…

“If we cut off funding to the Kingdom of Sardinia, will your country be able to survive?”

“That… is that?!”

The Kingdom of Sardinia has no income other than magic artifacts or scrolls.

With the rugged mountains and very little plains, there is not much food for them to eat.

“It would be quite painful if our United Kingdom and Empire were cut off from food. Of course, give up the idea of importing from the Kingdom of Soissons. Even in the Kingdom of Navarra, they won’t stay still. Well, in this situation, I think your king will have no choice but to accept it.”

Seeing Emmanuel on the defensive and Ea looking sad makes my heart a little sad.

In the original novel, Ea is in a crony position.

It is probably sad to see the situation of one’s country being swayed by a powerful country.

But how she feels right now is none of my business.

To me, saving at least one more citizen of the empire is more important.

What happened after that ended more smoothly than expected.

Emmanuel, who knew that the United Kingdom’s support could not be cut off, concluded today’s negotiations by saying that he should deliver the message to the home country and wait for a response.

The long, long day has finally come to an end.

***

After finishing his busy external schedule, he returns to the Grand Duke’s Office and assigns work to Müller.

“Müller, I will delegate the negotiations to the Kingdom of Sardinia regarding the dispatch of troops. The counter partner will probably be Emmanuel or Princess Ea.”

Müller frowns upon hearing what I say and openly shows his displeasure.

“Great… Your Majesty the Archduke. Such an important matter to me? Do you mean to order it? How about Minister Victor? I know that Minister Victor has a long history as a diplomat.”

I shake my head at those words.

“Victor has other important things to do.”

Currently, behind-the-scenes negotiations with the Imperial faction are needed to obtain approval from the Navy Pharmaceutical Council.

Neutrals may also be dissatisfied, so you should give them a heads up and give them what they want.

Well… First of all, we decided to borrow soldiers from Sardinia and receive official support from the United Kingdom.

The western border of the empire seems to have stabilized to some extent.

My complicated thoughts stop at Müller’s words.

“What should I do? If you want to criticize, you should criticize. Then I’ll just leave work.”

I nod my head at those words.

“Yes. See you tomorrow.”

Watching Müller retreat like that, I relive the previous anti-emperor faction civil war in my head.

Just like last time and this time…

You have to prepare thoroughly.

I didn’t think Ioanes would actively intervene in the last civil war.

The opponent was completely prepared by boldly spending a huge amount of money, so he was taken aback.

Don’t let that happen this time. We must do our best to prevent external countries from standing in the opposing camp.

Ioannes’ hiring mercenaries from the Babylonian Empire was a gamble.

Knowing how much the continent hated the Babylon Empire, the reason they hired them was probably a strategy to quickly take over the kingdoms of Erne and Boheme and take over most of the empire.

Even if Erne and Bohemi pass over, I have no intention of ending it.

“Whoa… Shall we go in first?”

So, thinking about tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, I head to my newlywed room.

As soon as I arrived at the imperial palace, I started to move out of breath.

Tomorrow… Arrest pro-Ioanez lawmakers.

17 members voted against my request to declare Ioannes an enemy of the state.

I think they are lawmakers who were bribed by Ioanez.

If they really sided with Ioannes, signing a treaty with the United Kingdom might be leaked.

Then, since it is a united kingdom with a strong navy, I am concerned that it may prepare for the Adriatic Sea.

The Kingdom of Nicaea also had a lot of maritime trade with Babylon in the east. It has a large fleet.

Compared to that, there are very few of us.

Therefore, we plan to take control of the Adriatic Sea with the help of the United Kingdom, imprison the enemies in the Duchy of Dupol, cut off their supply, and starve them into surrender.

Then, since this strategy must not be exposed, first, the lawmakers presumed to have been bribed must be arrested before a request can be made to the National Assembly to approve the treaty with the United Kingdom.

When I open the familiar newlywed door and enter, I see Theodora, wearing thin clothes, reading a book.

“Are you here?”

“Yeah… Sigh, I’m dying.”

He takes off the tie around his neck and sits down on the sofa.

“Has Ioannes been declared an enemy of the state? And Sardinia is lending a troop of wizards?”

“Yes, but there is a condition. You need to know this in advance, so sit here for a moment.”

-Tukduk

With a serious face, I slap the seat next to me with my hand and call out Theodora.

“What is it?”

“Giving up naval reinforcements for 20 years in order to receive support from the Kingdom of Sardinia and the United Kingdom. We will conclude a treaty with the outline.”

Theodora frowns slightly at my words.

“Is there really a need to bring in foreign forces like that? Is this happening within our country?”

“Of course, it may not change much even if the wizard troops participate in the civil war.”

Wizards can fight against large numbers of troops with overwhelming firepower in war.

And although our empire is the country with the most wizards on the continent.

Wizards cannot be deployed throughout the entire frontline.

Infantry that does not receive support from wizards is at a disadvantage against Orcs.

In fact, the dispatch of troops was requested to minimize damage to the people of the empire.

Of course, in return, you may have to deal with the Navy and exemption from tariffs for 10 years…

This is the result of careful consideration to somehow reduce the damage to the people of the empire.

“I… want to save as many people as possible from being brought to the battlefield under my orders and being killed.”

The reason men in their early to mid-20s were born on this earth is not to die on the battlefield.

They are also people who were born, take care of their lives, and work hard every day.

Although I send these hard-working people to the battlefield, I want to save them as much as possible.

This isn’t something the person who started the war would say…

Whether you force it or give in…

I want to save as many people as possible who were driven to the battlefield under my orders.

In my heart, I hope they don’t all die.

Because if there is someone who dies for someone, you have to live with their burden.

If they die because of me, I will have them as a burden on my shoulders for the rest of my life.

But no matter how hard I try, I cannot completely eliminate the fallen.

That is an area that is impossible without God.

That’s why we made unreasonable concessions today.

“You… you’re doing the right thing for this empire, right?”

Theodora quietly places her hand on my cheek.

She says with a pitiful expression.

“So. Don’t make that face.”

I turn my face to her expression.

Theodora. I don’t know if she really cares about me or not.

I have always been deceiving her with a shameless face for a long time.

To be honest, during that time, I felt no remorse.

All of this is for the greater good, all of this is for everyone.

But… at least now, at this moment, I feel sorry for her and leave in a hurry.

“I’ll take a shower and come back.”