Chapter 410
(Kyle Calendar Year 515: Age 22)
Southern Front ㉖ - After the Verbal
Battle...
Translator : PolterGlast
Knowing the secret plan that Sieghart had kept hidden
until the very end, I felt like I was able to find the answer to what had been
somewhat catching in my mind up until now. Well, as one of those who had been
deceived, I couldn't help but smile wryly, but...
「Brat! You'd best think that you can
only laugh while you still can. By now your country is probably being trampled
mercilessly by a surging massive army of over fifty thousand, and your wife and
children have been brutally murdered, with the town disappearing without a
trace. Serves you right, you should perish along with me!」
Ah, no... I wasn't laughing at you, though. It's a matter
where it can't be helped to get angry over every little thing here, but still,
being told about my wife and children... it's absolutely not a good feeling. Should
I get angry? Or... When I thought so, the Third Prince stood up and
dashed down from the platform in one breath, and at the same time, swung his
hand broadly at the face of the kneeling First Prince.
「Fugeh!」
With a tremendous sound, the First Prince, who was
slapped, tumbled and fell. No, that... a critical hit definitely landed, didn't
it? It felt more like he was blown away with all his might rather than just
falling...
「First of all, I deeply apologize for
the disrespect towards the Archduke, and I also apologize for showing
you something unsightly. I did wonder about doing this to someone who is
unresisting, but as a person of the Empire, it is my duty to correct one
who has taken a disrespectful attitude and speech towards someone who is a benefactor
and sworn ally of the Empire.」
Saying so, the Third Prince bowed to me and walked
towards the fallen First Prince. With a demonic expression... Then,
stopping beside him as he groveled, he drew his sword and pointed the tip at
his neck.
「Hii!」
「Aside from just now, I will never
forgive you. Your ambition, the result of you harboring an unruly plot—how many
do you think have died! Not only Imperial Soldiers, but all the soldiers
of the enemy nations could have lived out their lives if not for you. I will
have you carry the weight of tens of thousands of lives, the sorrow of hundreds
of thousands of families, all of it.」
「......」
Saying so, the Third Prince sheathed his sword,
returned to the platform once more, and stared at the lying First Prince
with a gaze filled with contempt.
「From earlier, you have not hesitated
to say that you yourself are a vessel fit to be Emperor. However, there are
four things fundamentally lacking in you. Do you still not realize it?」
「W-What are you saying is lacking!」
「First, you lack the caliber to be a
person who stands at the top. Sieghart, Astray, Durul, and
others who are supporting me now, to begin with, were they not your
subordinates?」
「Kuh, what of those unloyal traitors!」
「They did not betray you, they
abandoned you! Do you not even understand that? That is why you are told you
lack caliber! After the defeat that time (nine years ago), far from praising
and thanking them for their good fight, you pinned the crime of defeat on them
for self-protection. You also degraded the honor of Goth and Bradley, and crushed their houses. Who would
follow such a lord?」
「I-I merely held them responsible for
the defeat! Is it not a natural punishment!」
「That answer right now clearly represents
the second thing you lack. You lack the resolve to become a lord! The
responsibility for a defeat falls on the one who led that army. Not the
subordinates who put their lives on the line fighting on the front lines. The
one standing at the top is the one who bears the greatest responsibility. You
are called a fool because you don't understand that! You have neither the
resolve to protect your subordinates who died, nor the feeling to mourn them.
Then it's simply dying in vain, isn't it!」
「I am the Next Emperor.
Receiving loyalty is only natural, isn't it.」
「You really are a fool... You're
beyond saving. I will tell you, the third thing you lack is that you do not
have the pride to carry the Empire! That is why you always lose. Loyalty
is not something received through status. It is something received through what
one has accomplished and what one is trying to accomplish.」
「What are you saying! As the glorious
First Prince of the Empire, I hold more pride and dignity than
anyone else!」
「Then glorious Prince Glorious.
I dare to ask you... Is selling off pieces of national territory to enemy
nations to fulfill an ugly greed the pride of one who tries to stand at the
top? Is abandoning allied soldiers and quickly running away a proud action? Is
standing your ground until the very end and trying to let even one more soldier
escape not what pride truly is?」
「Kuh...」
「And above all, you lack the ability
to govern the Empire. This is the last thing you lack. If you take the
imperial throne, what will the people and nobles gain? It will merely satisfy
your own vanity. Such a you wouldn't be able to do anything even if you took
the imperial throne, would you? How will you open up the future of the Empire?
How will you enrich it? You probably cannot answer a single thing to this
question.」
「What are you saying! The Empire
will... expand its territory and become mightier...」
「How will you expand the territory!
There is no such means! Handing over the new territories to two countries in
the south, unable to advance a single step in the north—aren't the four
countries in the northeast, the countries of Istoria, Cain,
Vile, and Lute, and the two countries in the south, Sura
and Turncoat, the allied nations that supported your unfaithful plot
this time?」
「......」
「Or what? Once you ascend to the
imperial throne, are you saying you will attack without caring even if they are
countries that supported you? Earlier you spoke of loyalty, but don't you
yourself completely lack loyalty to begin with?」
「Hmph, you who say so also led an
army and attacked two years ago, despite having signed an armistice treaty with
the Kyle Kingdom!」
「To harp on that is too foolish to
even speak of. To begin with, that had a set period. Furthermore, I conveyed
the information about the start of the war to them beforehand through Sieghart.
That is exactly why the Kyle Kingdom and the Westlights Demon Territory
Dukedom still believe in my words even now. What about you? If you like,
shall I send you to the Principality of Sura as a special envoy for the
post-war negotiations this time?」
「......」
Hahaha, this is a biting proposal. The current First
Prince does not know of the annihilation of the Principality of Sura
Army. Therefore, in his mind, he is probably thinking of them as an enemy
nation possessing their former fighting strength, predicting his own body being
offered as a sacrifice.
「You probably won't be able to do
anything. Because your actions, and you yourself, possess absolutely no
loyalty. You must have thought that if you went now, you would be killed or
confined as a hostage.」
「C-Coward.」
「With this, you have proven with your
own mouth that you lack the qualification to be the imperial successor. I feel
nothing but pity for the soldiers who believed in you, threw away their lives,
and followed you to the very end! I must suppress my personal feelings and
punish even such soldiers. This pain, you will never understand.」
Saying so, the Third Prince let out a large sigh. As
if to say there was nothing left to talk about anymore...
「Take this filth away! After making
his charges clear in the Imperial Capital, he shall face public
execution. Do not neglect your guard so he doesn't die on his own before then.」
The First Prince, pulled up by the soldiers and
dragged away, shouted while twisting his body nonetheless.
「Your arbitrary behavior, Emperor-heika will never forgive it! Put me
through to Heika first!」
The Third Prince merely watched that sight silently
with eyes filled with contempt. When the figure of the First Prince
disappeared from the audience chamber, the Third Prince let out a large
sigh once more. He must be thoroughly fed up.
「By the way, Takuhir-dono,
I've heard that there was a major civil war in the Kyle Kingdom
previously as well; what was the disposition of those who participated in the
rebellion without knowing the truth at that time?」
Whoa, he's throwing a rather nasty topic my way. Is he
intending to have severe punishment spoken from my mouth, and then say 『As expected』 and punish them?
「I am a layman when it comes to the
laws of the Empire. It is probably best that I do not meddle too much.
However, while punishing the individuals who participated severely, the ones
applying the law are people; personally, I think it is fine if people's
feelings enter into matters regarding their relatives.」
To me who answered so, the Third Prince seemed to
ponder over something for a while, but then nodded once and let out a large
sigh.
「I see... I lost many friends in this
rebellion... irreplaceable soldiers. Therefore, there are parts of me that
cannot remain calm toward them. I also heard that the Archduke suffered
the most damage in the civil war. As one who knows the same pain, I asked for
your opinion.」
「......」
Ah, so that's it. Then it was a weird suspicion on my part.
Excuse me.
「Then remove the partition!」
「!!!」
In the back behind the partition removed at that signal,
other key figures who had been dragged in as prisoners were lined up. Those
trembling with pale faces, those simply shedding tears—their states differed
one by one, but having heard the exchange up until now, all of them hung their
heads deeply. I see... so the final exchange was deliberately meant for them to
hear? What is the intention behind that?
「Take everyone outside for now! After
this, I will hold audiences with them one by one as well!」
Along with those words, twelve people were led out; among
them, eight were captured midway through their escape
to Ende, and four were captured in the earlier offensive and defensive
battle at Big Bridge. It was explained that among these twelve, nine
were those holding titles as Imperial Nobles, and three were military
commanders in positions commanding troops; such was the composition. And once
more, the audiences with the prisoners began. First were the nobles, but to
begin with, those who had followed the First Prince were centered around
the heads of great noble houses within the Empire and their children,
people deeply steeped in vested interests. They had heard that even the First
Prince couldn't escape the death penalty, and they had also heard the final
exchange between me and the Third Prince. Perhaps because of that, the
nobles were blatantly humble, all of them pleading for a reduction or exemption
of their crimes.
「I was deceived, I didn't have the
slightest intention of raising the flag of rebellion against the Empire!
Please!」
「My life at least... please, have mercy...」
「From now on I pledge loyalty to Grat-Denka; as proof of that, I offer
everything! Please, somehow...」
「I merely followed my father's
orders! I had not heard of such talks!」
Saying so, all of them exposed disgraceful behavior, acting
uniformly unsightly. Except for one Count who was called out last...
「My crimes are clear. I would like to
be punished fully in accordance with the laws of the Empire. However...
if a request is permitted, there is no sin in the soldiers who followed the
orders of a foolish me. Please, a lenient disposition for them!」
Saying so, he lowered his head gracefully. Without
requesting a single thing for his own life to be spared...
「Count... you know, I was hoping that your words would come from Glorious. However... you heard
exactly as it was, Count. Speak honestly, what did you think?」
Being asked so, the Count smiled wryly and let out a
large sigh. Then, distorting his mouth, he began to speak.
「I thought it was extremetery
pathetic. I felt ashamed of myself for having followed such a person, and I
felt apologetic toward my wife and children who will suffer punishment together
with me. But the crime I committed is too great, so at least the soldiers alone...」
「You followed that guy to the very
end, right? I believe there were many who turned their coats midway or fled?」
「Hearing Denka's talk during the siege battle, I realized my mistake.
However, having moved this far, I cannot escape the crime. I intended to accept
the crime until the very end, but unfortunately, I have exposed myself to
living shame.」
The man called Count, upon saying so, smiled,
breaking into a subtle smile at the corners of his mouth as if to hide his
embarrassment. A huge difference from the other eight. Both his resolve and
caliber are different. Finally a decent man has appeared... Though it's only
one...
「I want to ask one more thing. I
heard that when Glorious abandoned the soldiers and fled, you, Count,
were not captured but took the initiative to surrender. Why is that?」
「Because the one who is
commander-in-chief behaved in such a way... I felt indignation at that. We
intended to accompany him to the very end, but...」
I see, so the First Prince abandoned even them?
Simply out of attachment to his own life. It must have been an unbearable
feeling.
「Because I thought that if I
surrendered and offered my head, I could stop the lives of the soldiers from
being lost any further in a useless battle. I could not bear to make the soldiers
accompany my foolishness...」
「I understand. I promise to spare the
lives of your relatives and soldiers. In exchange, you shall offer your life.」
「Thank you very much. I am grateful
for Grat-Denka's lenient
words, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your concern even for my
family.」
Saying so, the Count shed tears and prostrated
himself. I mean, is he going to punish him too? From my perspective, I think
it's a waste...
「Undo the Count's bonds.」
Ah, as I thought... I agree with that. At the Third
Prince's words, the Count himself seems to still be bewildered...
「From now on, you shall start over as
a Viscount and dedicate your life to the reconstruction of the Empire
and the governance of the new territory! That is your punishment. The reason
the army under your banner remained intact until the very end was because you
heard my words at that time and did not actively participate in the offensive,
wasn't it?」
「No... I merely...」
「You didn't find it honorable to
betray your former lord at that point, so you followed him to the very end,
didn't you? I found your gracefulness and thoughtfulness to be a shame to lose.」
That's certainly true. Had he participated in the final
full-scale attack commanded by the First Prince, he should have suffered
corresponding damage. The generals who turned their coats also all drew a line
and did not participate in that attack.
「...As someone with no talent, and as
one who betrayed Denka and the
Empire, from now on I will dedicate my life to making amends.」
The Count, while shedding tears, remained prostrated
on the floor with his head rubbed against it. Through the events up to now, I
felt like I somewhat understood why the Commander had sincerely
submitted to the Third Prince in the previous history. When the
audiences with the nobles ended with the Count as the last, the three
who were commanders of the Iron Cavalry were brought out simultaneously.
Covered in wounds, they too equally pleaded for the lives of their soldiers to
be spared in exchange for their own lives.
「I think your resolve to protect your
lord until the very end was magnificent. Therefore, I wish to give you all a
choice. The first is to serve me anew together with the soldiers, but... that
would likely be a difficult prospect.」
「Ha...」 「Please, let that matter...」 「I am deeply sorry.」
True, it would probably be difficult in various ways, both
emotionally and politically. Precisely because they are honorable men, I don't
think they would easily change the lord they look up to.
「I understand that it is difficult.
However, if you refuse that, I have no choice but to grant you death. Even if I
forgave you, there would be no place for you in the Empire.」
Saying so, the Third Prince turned to face me and
bowed his head deeply. Eh? What does that mean?
「This is a request I would like to
make as the Imperial Successor of the Empire to the Archduke of
the Demon Territory Dukedom. I consider it a waste to simply scatter
their loyalty. If possible, could you provide them with a new frontier where
they can live out their lives? Of course, I intend to offer the Archduke
enough land to provide for them.」
Eh? My place? That's a sudden unreasonable request. Well,
certainly... an increase in military force is welcome, and the new territory
they would protect is former Imperial Territory, with people who were Imperial
Citizens living there. Besides, Eisen and the others who were their
former colleagues would probably be happy, but... is it really okay?
「That is... of course, we also have
many people (former Imperial Soldiers) serving us in a similar position.
The problem depends on their feelings, wouldn't you say?」
Even if I approve here, if they say 『Then no thanks』 and refuse, I myself will become the clown. Therefore, I
limited myself to a vague answer that was neither an affirmation nor a denial.
「The Archduke has spoken thus.
Therefore, this is my second proposal. I wish to give you the choice to migrate
to the Demon Territory Dukedom with the soldiers and serve the Archduke
here. Under the Archduke, there are many of your former compatriots, so
it should be easy for you to serve as well.」
Hahaha, it ended up like that after all. But what are their
intentions?
「We are a defeated remnant, we are
grateful for your kind words.」
「Please, by all means! We look
forward to working with you.」
「I am grateful, and regarding the
soldiers, I would like to leave it to their own intentions.」
Oh? A more positive answer than I thought this time? Is this also because there are pioneers like Eisen and the others, and there's a track record of them being properly heavily favored? Or... there are various hindrances to serving the Third Prince, but serving me is like a separate framework? Regarding this proposal, it was ultimately decided that the three of them would come to my place, and the soldiers who wished to would come to my place as well. In any case, with this, all matters of concern should be settled. The Eral Knight Kingdom was an ally, and the military force of eight thousand men deployed in the suburbs of Ende would also return shortly. A report has also come in that the military force led by the Third Prince, including the wounded soldiers, will also arrive at Big Bridge Fort shortly. With this, the military force of the fort should also be fulfilled. If so... it's a little earlier than planned, but can I return to Kusanagi soon too?
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