novelraw Chapter 167: Krafte War - Crossroad
Chapter 167: Krafte War - Crossroad
Alsace, Krafte Army encampment.
Bad news reached the Krafte Army high command, which was preparing for an offensive while receiving a large shipment of supplies from the homeland.
“They are fortifying the city of Barua?”
“Yes, Your Majesty the Great King. It seems they intend to evacuate the residents and fight a street battle.”
A rather long silence descended.
After a considerable time, the Great King spoke.
“Yes, good work. You may leave.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Even after the messenger hastily departed, the Krafte Army generals in the conference hall only exchanged glances.
In the end, it was again the Great King who broke the silence.“Information has been leaked.”
“My apologies, Your Majesty the Great King.”
They had mouths but nothing to say.
The Krafte Army generals could only bow their heads, and the Great King responded with a dry laugh.
“Raise your heads. This is not your fault.”
There were many Francians in their occupied territory.
It was not strange that there were spies among them, and there was nothing they could do about that.
Even so, the feeling that they had noticed it too quickly and keenly lingered, but that meant the enemy was just that formidable.
“In this case, it will be difficult to achieve the objective of catching them off guard.”
“How about bypassing Barua?”
“That city is a strategic point on the way to Lumiere. Besides, if we bypass it, what would we do with the supplies stockpiled in Alsace?”
“My apologies, Your Majesty the Great King.”
The supplies, which had been moved in advance in preparation for halted shipments from the homeland, also limited their advance route.
It would be too difficult to transport everything at once, and if Alsace were occupied while they rashly bypassed their defense line, it would lead to catastrophe.
“There is no choice but to break through head-on. We must prepare for urban warfare.”
“Yes, Your Majesty the Great K—”
“Please wait, Your Majesty.”
The gazes of both the generals and the Great King turned to Prince Heinrich.
“With all due respect, Your Majesty the Great King. Our plan to crush them in one fell swoop by catching them off guard has already failed. As long as they are determined to fortify the city, a frontal attack would require severe sacrifices and a prolonged battle.”
The Great King stared at Prince Heinrich and asked,
“So, do you have another idea, Heinrich?”
“We must save the homeland now, Your Majesty the Great King.”
The conference hall fell silent at the prince's firm response.
An uncomfortable silence settled as the generals exchanged glances, and the Great King slowly spoke.
“The Northern Allied Kingdom and the rebels have already invaded the homeland. Even if we turn the army back now, we could only rush to prevent the capital's fall. A blow to the homeland's ability to support the war would be unavoidable.”
The Great King looked at Prince Heinrich's stiff face and twisted his mouth.
“Now that the enemy is fortifying the city for a large-scale defensive battle, what strategic value would come from sending our precious troops to the homeland?”
“There is no strategic value in this war.”
“Y-Your Highness…”
Even as the generals cautiously tried to dissuade him, Prince Heinrich's expression remained unwavering.
To the amused-looking Great King, the prince spoke again.
“However, the Kingdom of Krafte does not end with this war, Your Majesty the Great King. We must not let the people feel that the royal family has abandoned them.”
The Great King stared at Heinrich and smirked.
“Heinrich, my nephew. This is the first time I have seen you go against me to this extent.”
Nephew.
In the end, he was neither a son nor anything else, occupying a position where the throne could be passed to any other royal family member at the Great King's whim.
Before the Great King, who made a point of reminding him of that, Heinrich spoke with conviction.
“The subjects of Krafte have joined this war in response to the great rule and prosperity that Your Majesty the Great King has bestowed upon them. If so, then Your Majesty the Great King must also repay their loyalty and devotion.”
Who had ever spoken to the Great King of Krafte, a living legend, in such a way?
After his great success, had anyone ever dared to speak so frankly?
At least, as far as Karl II could remember, there had not.
Because of his ambiguous position as a nephew and a tentative heir to the throne, Heinrich was usually careful with his words and actions.
That is why the Great King wondered.
“Heinrich, what have you seen to have changed so much?”
“I have seen a protector.”
“Hmm?”
Prince Heinrich seemed to recall the sight for a moment before speaking.
“When Marquis Lafayette led a small cavalry to fight against me, I thought he would aim for my neck. Because I thought that rather than expecting victory with an inferior force, it would be the most tactically sound method to strike at the command, even by sacrificing his subordinates.”
Prince Heinrich’s statement seemed to be talking about Marquis Lafayette’s fight, and at the same time, about the situation Krafte was now in.
“However, Marquis Lafayette did not make that choice. Instead of breaking through with sacrifices despite the overwhelming disadvantage, he chose to hold on and protect his subordinates.”
Before the Great King, who was about to choose to sacrifice his country for victory in the war.
“At a glance, it was a reckless choice, but because of it, they trusted and followed the Marquis and did not break until the end. He had shown them before their very eyes that their leader was a protector who would never abandon them.”
Heinrich continued in a calm and composed tone.
“Your Majesty the Great King. As long as the Revolutionary Army believes their queen and marquis will not abandon their followers for victory, they will not easily collapse, no matter how long the war continues. Even if we win this battle, the decisive collapse Your Majesty desires is unlikely to come.”
Prince Heinrich had just denied Krafte's entire victory scenario.
“Y-Your Highness, that is—”
Even as all the generals were astonished, the prince’s words did not stop.
“However, if Krafte is defeated in this battle while ignoring its homeland, it could lead to the collapse of the Kingdom of Krafte itself, which is worse than mere defeat in war. We have already seen in this land what choices people make when abandoned by their monarch, despite their devotion.”
Thump—
The Great King’s cane struck the floor of the conference hall.
Even as all the generals flinched, Prince Heinrich looked straight at the Great King with blazing eyes.
The Great King, who had been silent with his lips tightly shut, slowly opened his mouth.
“You have become arrogant, Heinrich. This is a war that I have decided. Do you deny that war?”
“Your Majesty's subjects are caught up in the war that Your Majesty has decided. If so, then there is also a responsibility to protect them. Your Majesty, victory in war will not compensate for all that your subjects have lost.”
“Hah.”
The Great King burst out laughing.
“Haha, hahaha…”
After a long pause, the Great King spoke.
“You asked for 20,000 of the standing army, did you not, Heinrich?”
The situation is different now than it was then.
The enemy has already entered the territory, and the defenseless territories of Krafte will be swept away without resistance.
As the generals exchanged glances, Prince Heinrich nodded.
“That is correct, Your Majesty.”
The Great King smirked and replied.
“Good, take them.”
“…Thank you for Your Majesty the Great King’s decision.”
While the generals, and even Prince Heinrich, let out a sigh of relief, the Great King casually remarked.
“From today, you are the crown prince.”
“…Pardon?”
“You will be busy, so you may leave. It is the kingdom you will inherit, so try and struggle to protect it.”
“I-I will uphold the will of His Majesty the Great King.”
While Prince Heinrich withdrew in bewilderment and the generals were dumbfounded, the Great King spoke with a calm expression.
“Congratulations, my generals. Even without me, this country will not become dull.”
“…”
As the generals looked uncertain of what expression to make, the Great King said with an amused laugh.
“Then, let us formulate a plan for the street battle.”
*
Prince Heinrich, who had left the conference hall, was walking quickly. As soon as he saw his adjutant, he opened his mouth.
“Your Highness, what happened—”
“Dispatch a messenger to the capital, and relay this. I am returning to defend the homeland with 20,000 of the standing army.”
The adjutant immediately took out a parchment and began writing down the contents as Prince Heinrich glanced to the west.
He had not been able to defeat Marquis Lafayette on the battlefield.
Perhaps, he would never be able to defeat him in the future.
The Great King, who was thinking of charging into that fortified city, would probably dislike it.
That is why neither he nor Wittenfeld had executed it, but preparations had been made.
And now that he was the crown prince, he had no hesitation.
The Saintess Queen, Marquis Lafayette, and Countess Aquitaine—with all of them gathered, Francia was too dangerous.
“And inform Chancellor Wittenfeld. That I will use everything he has secured.”
“Y-yes, sir!”
If he could not win by fair means, he had no choice but to shake up Lafayette and Aquitaine by any means necessary.
*
The capital of Francia, Lumiere.
The headquarters of the Liberty Party, in a conference room.
“It is not enough that he evacuated all the citizens of Barua after a one-sided notification, he is now going to fight a street battle. How will he compensate for all that damage? Marquis Lafayette’s high-handedness has gone too far!”
“Are you saying that Her Majesty the Queen also condoned such a thing?”
“Hmph, isn’t she, in effect, a queen established by Marquis Lafayette? No matter how good a person she is, she will naturally favor her own side.”
The Director-General of the Liberty Party, Nicolas Brisseau, looked at the arguing assemblymen with a tired face.
Although they were a relatively moderate faction, the Liberty Party was caught between the central party of nobles led by Marquis Lafayette and the Revolutionary Party, which had been the protagonist of the revolution. They were dissatisfied with their relatively weak party power.
Moreover, the majority of their support base was the wealthy urban citizens.
The actions of Marquis Lafayette, who treated Aquitaine and their key supporters so harshly, had bought even greater resentment. Aquitaine had half-monopolized Francia's commerce.
“Shouldn't we protest in some way? To be honest, what has Marquis Lafayette actually done in this war? He has been defeated twice, and his final victory relied entirely on Her Majesty the Queen's power and the performance of other generals.”
“Ahem, though it was Countess Aquitaine who procured the divine power amplification crystals for Her Majesty the Queen.”
“Wasn’t that accomplished by pouring in five years of the National Assembly's budget? Countess Aquitaine merely bought the bonds, so ultimately it's a debt all the people must repay. I wonder how long that will take…”
“Hmm, Director-General Brisseau? You don't look well.”
As one of the assemblymen spoke to him, Nicolas Brisseau let out a light sigh.
“I’m sorry. I haven’t been feeling well lately. I will excuse myself first.”
“…Please do.”
Although the assemblymen's gazes were not favorable, Brisseau felt relief only after standing up and quickly leaving the conference hall.
But that feeling was short-lived.
On the desk in the office he had entered was a single letter.
Brisseau looked at the plain envelope with no sender written on it, then opened it with a trembling hand.
[This is your last chance.]
Brisseau stared at it, then threw it into the fireplace.
Staring at the slowly burning letter, Brisseau sighed deeply. He opened a drawer, inserted a key, and turned it to retrieve a document from a secret compartment.
It was a document of transaction records that even Francia, the revolutionary party itself, did not know about.
He does not know who, or how, it was obtained and sent to him.
How could anyone have known about Countess Aquitaine and Marquis Lafayette purchasing vast amounts of raw materials and trading with demons? This occurred before the revolution broke out, even before King Louis sold out his people.
But whoever gave the information, that is not what is important.
Marquis Lafayette, who had not stood out during the civil war, began enjoying an unusual string of successes from a certain point. As if he had foreseen the entire revolution, he became the most powerful man in Francia.
That's why conspiracy theories had circulated within the Republic, but they were buried by the counter-argument of how such a thing could be possible.
But what if that was the result of a deal with the demons who had been involved in the revolution from the very beginning?
In Iberica, too, how on earth did the Marquis know the countermeasure to the ‘Drones’?
If we assume the Marquis, while acting as if he were competing with the demons, was actually a collaborator in contact with them, then everything is explained.
Even the absurd wealth and information power of Christine d’Aquitaine, who is called the Black Witch of Aquitaine, and her ability to weave conspiracies are more plausible if she had received the help of demons.
If he can link them to the demons, he can surely oust that marquis and Countess Aquitaine, who helped him and devoured the political and financial worlds.
If that happens, the Revolutionary Party will side with us, and the Liberty Party, a minor party, could instantly overthrow the central party and become the center of the National Assembly.
-This is your last chance.
As written in the letter, if not now, the opportunity to oust the mighty Marquis Lafayette and Countess Aquitaine will never come again.
Nicolas Brisseau, looking at the document with a face mixed with worry and concern, let out a deep sigh as if the ground would collapse.
-Does Director-General Brisseau have any questions or opinions?
Nicolas Brisseau recalled the face of Marquis Lafayette, who had asked him kindly, as if theirs was a relationship that had cooperated since the revolution began.
-No, no. What could a man who only writes contribute to military matters? I am relieved that the army and navy leaders are so reliable.
He squeezed his eyes shut.
-Thank you for saying so, Director-General. We will do our best to live up to your expectations.
He had deliberated for a long time.
But now, it is the moment to make a choice.