Volume 7 Release
Commemorative Special Episode
The Former Prisoners'
Holiday
Five days after concluding the annual New Year's banquet, we set out on
a new journey right at the start of the new year. Of course, this time wasn't
an expedition; it was to attend the 『wedding
banquet』 we had promised to participate in during
the New Year's banquet. The soldiers we led were two thousand cavalry from the Demon
Territory Knights, accompanied by the Kyle Kingdom's special envoy
party of one thousand cavalry, and the Fearalt Principality's special
envoy party of one thousand cavalry—an incomparably small number compared to
when we departed for the Empire the previous year. But that was fine; it
was the result of our consideration not to burden our hosts.
「Even so, this is my first time traveling surrounded by a massive
army like this. To think we can even go to another country feels like a
dream!」
Yuka, who was accompanying me, said so with
her eyes sparkling, but... it's true that it's a massive army all the same.
After all, departing from the Demon Territory Dukedom territory and
heading towards the Royal Capital of the former Vile Kingdom, we had
become a massive army of fourteen thousand people in total.
「Hahaha, it's because the number of people accompanying us just sort of
grew along the way. Even I never expected... that everyone I invited would
actually participate.」
Yes, all ten thousand people aside from our party were former prisoners
of the three countries, now called fixed-term dispatched laborers. On the
occasion of King Crajyu and Alicia-denka's wedding ceremony, we had granted holidays and a lump sum
to the laborers (prisoners) dispatched to the Demon Territory Dukedom as
well. In addition to that, I conveyed, 『If there is
anyone who wishes to do so, we will permit them to accompany us as we head to
the ceremony,』 but astonishingly, all of them desired to
accompany us. However, while accompanying us was possible, as a major premise,
we informed them that they would be responsible for their own various expenses
such as lodging and food during the travel. After all, it wasn't work, and
having given them a holiday and a lump sum as part of the celebration, their
participation was a matter of free will. And another thing, since the major
premise was traveling on horseback, they would need 『legs』 to accompany us, and since it wasn't a
forced march assuming wartime, it would take a corresponding number of days for
the round trip. If that happened, just going and coming back would use up
almost all of their holidays. As dispatched laborers staying long-term in the Demon
Territory Dukedom for periods of half a year to over a year, most of them
had temporarily summoned their families to the Demon Territory Dukedom.
I thought there was no reason for them to go out of their way to push
themselves, leave their families behind, and head to their homeland, but... I
was naive.
「So in the end, you not only provided riding horses for everyone, but
also took care of all the food arrangements and lodging, which makes me feel Takuhir-sama's kindness all over again.」
Speaking of which, I absolutely wanted to bring Yuka along this
time. She acted as a substitute for Miseri when we went to the Imperial
Capital, and she had always been the one staying behind to look after
things until now. In addition, I wanted to show her the Viscount Gorman
territory (the land under Marquis Gorman's care) on the outbound
journey, so I had decided to bring only her this time.
「Well, even if they are laborers, all of them were originally soldiers,
you see. They can ride horses without any problems, and they are used to
traveling as an army. So this time, I had them properly don military uniforms,
and this is the compensation for having them do their jobs properly as
soldiers. Moreover, it's ultimately cheaper to arrange the expenses all
together.」
And what helped the most was that the chain of command was clearly
defined among them, and it was still functioning even now. Among the laborers
were low-ranking officers, mid-ranking commanders, and even high-ranking
commanders organizing units of a thousand people. Of course, among them were
those who had participated as the expeditionary force alongside us, and came to
Kusanagi to replace the prisoners who had remained behind anew after the
liberation of the three countries. They had seen with their own eyes that we
had extended a hand and fought for the liberation of their homeland. That is
precisely why they publicly declared, 『Working
sincerely here is part of the repayment we can offer,』 taking the initiative to work, and their performance as laborers was
remarkable. Just between us, after they decided to participate, there was also
a part of me that felt embarrassed to say anew, 『I did say you'd cover your own expenses, right?』
「Even so... the welcome in this country is amazing. Whenever we pass
through any town or village, the territory residents wave their hands and
welcome us with loud cheers, and it makes me happy feeling like we're being
greatly welcomed.」
「Yeah, Alicia-denka is
quick-witted in these areas too, and exceedingly excellent, isn't she.」
「???」
Perhaps unable to understand the meaning of my words, Yuka made
a slightly puzzled face. Of course, a big reason for the welcome is that we
helped their country, which had been invaded as an enemy nation, and liberated
their national territory. But, you know, even I had only listened
half-heartedly at the New Year's banquet, but I think those two probably spread
good rumors about us with all their might. Of course, there's the meaning of
gratitude, but half of it is probably a political strategy led by Alicia-denka.
『The Demon Territory Dukedom, which is supported by the territory
residents to that extent, serves as our backing.』 This is to show this fact to the hostile forces within the country and
suppress the momentum for rebellion.
The three countries that used to be the Lute-Vile-Cain Kingdom
have been integrated into one country, and the governance system is also
undergoing drastic reforms. That this was accomplished is entirely because:
·
The three countries were liberated
in the blink of an eye, leaving absolutely no room for other domestic forces to
intervene.
·
The existence of King Crajyu
(and General Golpa under his command), who boasted outstanding military
strength within the three countries.
·
The overwhelmingly high loyalty
and proficiency of the soldiers they commanded, and the track record of the two
serving as commanders.
·
Alicia-denka, who politically suppressed the Cain Kingdom, and the trust of
the people of the Cain Kingdom (especially the Royal Capital) toward Denka.
It's nothing other than these functioning effectively. From the
perspective of the opposing forces, things progressed while they were
dumbfounded, and by the time they realized it, everything had already been
settled. They must have fallen into a sensation as if they had been bewitched
by a fox. If the opposing forces are going to make a move, it's rather from
here on out. That's exactly why I think it's backing. And there, to celebrate
the wedding of the King and Queen, ten thousand former soldiers come rushing in
newly. The meaning of this is very significant. I felt as if I could see the
dumbfounded faces of the opposing forces before my eyes.
「This country... will surely become a good country.」
Yuka's words matched my thoughts. There was no
end to the territory residents preparing water for us or sending heartfelt refreshments.
And the ten thousand soldiers (dispatched laborers) responding to that welcome
with the utmost courtesy... The foundation of a country is the territory
residents and the soldiers who support it; recognizing that, the rulers protect
them at the risk of their lives.
「I wonder if they won't become a powerful country standing
shoulder-to-shoulder with us in less than ten years?」
「We can't afford to lose, either.」
As we progressed along the path to the Royal Capital, we couldn't help
but strongly harbor such thoughts. The march continued after that, and over
five days, we arrived at the Royal Capital of the newly reborn Lute-Vile-Cain
Kingdom. Enveloped in loud cheers, of course.
※
On this day, voices of surprise arose everywhere in the Royal Capital
of the former Vile Kingdom. This was because ten thousand dispatched
laborers—who were supposed to have been interned in the Westlights Demon
Territory Dukedom and engaged in forced labor as prisoners—had temporarily
returned as soldiers. In various places, figures of soldiers embracing each
other and rejoicing at their reunion, and soldiers rekindling old friendships,
were witnessed, but there were also those who watched this bitterly.
「Hey, this is different from what we discussed! I heard the soldiers the
Demon Territory Dukedom was leading numbered a mere one thousand! Why
are there two thousand, and moreover, even soldiers from two unrelated
countries have come? I didn't hear there would be four thousand in total!」
「More than that, where did those ten thousand soldiers come from? At
this rate, causing rebellions in various places while the ones who stole the
country are making merry over the wedding ceremony, and even if the rebellions
don't succeed, denouncing them as having 『no ability
to govern』...」
「That's out of the question! Just try causing a rebellion; we
will be the ones eradicated! Our opponents have the infamous 『Demon King』 as their backing!」
「Hey, this is a disaster! According to an express messenger from the
national border, it seems a special envoy from the Empire leading one
thousand cavalry is coming to pay a visit for 『questioning』! On top of that, the
dissatisfied nobles and high officials we had stirred up beforehand have turned
pale and shrunk back at the Demon Territory Dukedom's army, and it seems
they are sheathing their swords in various places!」
「Tch, cowards. I suppose they've turned pale thinking the trouble will
extend to them too. What are they thinking now...」
「Then it's simple; we just have to encourage them all the more to plot
their own self-preservation. We can single out the current King's faction as
scapegoats, and show off that 『the current King has no
ability to govern』 in front of the
special envoy visiting from the Empire, right?」
「Hahaha, I see. We guide the Empire to intervene in their
arbitrary and unconsulted actions, and have them fulfill the responsibility
towards the Empire; is that it?」
「Exactly. Furthermore, we will proceed with cornering the market on
goods in the Royal Capital, squeezing their stomachs. An unplanned fifteen
thousand soldiers are staying here; the Royal Capital's food will be emptied in
three days.」
「Will you drive them out with that?」
「Fufufu, we are merchants. We buy cheap, multiply it several times over,
and sell it high. That is all. By some chance, if the starving populace even
causes a riot, so be it, and even if they don't, how will it reflect in the
eyes of other countries? If they see those guys 『carefreely holding a marriage ceremony』 while laying down tyranny and letting the people starve...」
「Hahaha, at the very least, they won't think of supporting the current
King's faction. That's where we recommend a 『legitimate』 successor. A puppet
that's easy to handle, not just for us, but for the Empire too.」
「The initial plan has already suffered a setback, but we've laid
multiple layers of groundwork. It means we have plenty of cards to play. We'll
just have them damage the King's reputation, and at the same time, make a
killing for ourselves.」
「The Princess who sold the country to that cheeky Archduke, and
the Archduke who shamelessly rolled up our wealth—shall we lower our
resentment by looking at their crying faces?」
In truth, the spur-of-the-moment proposal Takuhir made, the 『Prisoners' Holiday』, proceeded in a direction even he himself hadn't anticipated, and furthermore, by utilizing it politically, it brought about the result of preventing the rebellion that had been carefully prepared within the three countries before it happened. The merchants, understanding that their initial plan had failed, began moving here to send a new 『celebratory gift (disaster)』. Through methods typical of them.
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