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Vol 03 Chapter 94: Intrigue II

King Domorgal’s Country.

An explosive situation was beginning to develop in the country.

It was the confrontation between the second prince, Pax Domorgal, and the third prince, Aldo Domorgal. The conflict began to intensify after the first prince and leading heir to the throne, Prince Carlo, fell from grace.

Due to King Domorgal being still young, the conflict hadn’t surfaced yet, but…

The biggest victims of the lost war against King Rosais’ Country were the patricians aligned with the faction of Prince Carlo. They had significantly lost their influence. The reason was the decline of the Blouse family, which boasted the greatest power and influence in King Domorgal’s Country, and the downfall of General Tonino, who was said to be a great commander.

The patricians of the other two princes’ factions seized the opportunity to attack Prince Carlo’s faction. They lost territories in skirmishes and were ousted from their positions in the palace… It was one misfortune after another.

They began to harbor great dissatisfaction with King Domorgal’s Country. Patricians belong to a country to protect their own territories and status.

In other words, if they are not protected, there is no meaning in giving their loyalty to the country. King Domorgal was indulging in women, and the other factions were engrossed in expanding their power and influence.

It was unrealistic for the patricians of Prince Carlo’s faction to seek their protection.

At that moment a man who intended to exploit these feelings appeared. He was Almus Aris Rosais.

◇

「Bartolo-dono, I am truly pleased with your proposal… but I must decline.」

Lettis Blouse, the current head of the Blouse family was meeting with Bartolo Pompeius, great patrician and general of King Rosais’ Country.

Almus was trying to undermine the former Carlo faction centered around the Blouse family through Bartolo, who had received territory along the border with King Domorgal’s Country.

It was clear that as soon as the ceasefire agreement expired, King Domorgal’s Country would invade King Rosais’ Country. Moreover, it was certain that King Evile’s Country and King Belvedire’s Country, whose relations had worsened due to the previous curse incident, would also attack.

Therefore, measures should be taken. That was the purpose of this operation.

The Carlo faction was quite large. Even now, more than a quarter of King Domorgal’s Country was pro-Carlo. If they rose in rebellion, King Domorgal’s Country would have no choice but to retreat.

However, the negotiation was at an impasse.

「We too are dissatisfied with King Domorgal. But… if we rise up, Prince Carlo will be executed.」

It was unexpected that Prince Carlo had only received the relatively light punishment of being stripped of his position as crown prince, and that he was surprisingly popular with the members of his faction.

If Prince Carlo had been executed or imprisoned, it might have been different. But Prince Carlo was alive and still held the right to the throne.

And King Domorgal still doted on Prince Carlo’s mother.

There was still a chance he could be reinstated. That’s why the Carlo faction was refusing to betray the country.

「Then, should our King Rosais’ Country offer our support? For Prince Carlo’s succession to the throne?」

Bartolo suggested, but Lettis shook his head.

「There’s no need for that. Our own strength is sufficient.」

He was not foolish enough to carelessly allow the army of another country to enter. That’s what he was saying. Bartolo sighed deeply in his heart.

「Is that so? Then please contact us if you change your mind.」

「Yes, Bartolo-dono. Thank you for your kind offer.」

The secret meeting for the day ended.

◇

「How did it go, Darling?」

「What can I say? It’s a no-go. Completely hopeless. Maybe it could have worked if Carlo was dead, but…」

While drinking the wine his wife poured, Bartolo grumbled to himself.

「Aah, why did the king order me to be the negotiator? It’s a clear mistake in personnel selection.」

「You were probably the only person he could trust to do this. Iarl-san is currently in King Zoldias’ Country.」

While the King Rosais’ Country had a wealth of quality personnel, it fell short in quantity. Moreover, Almus had only recently become king. He wasn’t very familiar with the personality and character of most patricians, so ultimately, Bartolo, who seemed the most trustworthy, was the only option.

「It just means you are trusted. That’s good, isn’t it?」

「Hah… well, it’s fine, I guess…」

Bartolo sighed.

Indeed, among the patricians, Bartolo was probably the one treated most favorably.

He had the largest domain among the patricians due to the increase he received after the war.

「Even so, the issue of who will succeed to the throne may be inherent to any country governed by a king, but… can’t something be done about it? Our country just got over it, but it will probably happen again in a few decades. What a pain.」

「Really? It’s too early to conclude it will develop into conflict. Julia-sama and Tetra-sama get along well. As for the children, doesn’t it depend on their education?」

「Hah… get along, right. For now. Mothers love their children the most. You never know how it will turn out. We’re lucky that our king isn’t whipped by his wives. It would be ridiculous if state affairs were swayed by a woman’s mood.」

Bartolo shrugged his shoulders. There’s nothing more trivial than a civil war caused by royal succession. If it could be resolved quickly and the opposing forces eliminated, like the last civil unrest, there would be no complaints.

「Will the enemy attack then?」

「Most likely. According to information extracted using hypnosis by a magician we’ve infiltrated in their country, the enemy plans to make their move in June. The commander-in-chief is said to be Pax. Probably a safe move to let the second son earn some merits for succession.」

Bartolo gulped down his drink. Regardless of who the enemy was, it was Bartolo’s job to defeat the enemies of the Rosais Family.

「I’d prefer to strike before we’re attacked, but the king seems to be passive this time.」

「Of course. We won last time, but there’s still a difference in national power between our country and King Domorgal’s Country.」

The population of the King Rosais’ Country was about 250,000. The current population of King Domorgal’s Country was unknown, but it was estimated to be around 300,000.

Moreover, King Evile’s Country and King Belvedire’s Country are joining the encirclement. It was unreasonable to be aggressive in this situation.

「Well, if I were in command, we’d definitely win.」

「You always say that…」

◇

「Welcome back, Annabella. How was the King Rosais’ Country?」

Mari greeted Annabella in a tone as if welcoming a family member back from a trip. Annabella pouted.

「It was the worst. A magician found my house, and I had to escape through a muddy escape tunnel. Then, I was chased by soldiers, hawks, and dogs, and ended up falling into a manure pit. A manure pit, can you believe it? A woman in her twenties, not yet married, in a manure pit! The worst.」

Actually, falling into the manure pit helped her escape the dogs’ pursuit, but Annabella was unaware of this.

「Well, at least you escaped, didn’t you?」

「I’m sorry… I couldn’t sway anyone to our side.」

Annabella apologized deeply to Mari, she seemed to be quite disheartened.

Mari spoke to her gently.

「Don’t worry about it. I’ve failed many times before to get where I am today. I was able to hypnotize Prince Redus easily, but that was because he was a weakling and I took advantage of him when his heart was broken. I couldn’t turn someone against their will if they didn’t already have complaints.」

Mari patted Annabella’s shoulder, showing her support. Annabella, still a bit smelly from her ordeal, cried and hugged Mari.

「Could you brief me on the plan?」

「Sure, I’ll tell you. Though it’s nothing too elaborate.」

Mari responded with a smile.

Firstly, King Domorgal’s Country will invade King Rosais’ Country. This was already confirmed through intelligence, so no extra effort was needed there.

Next, they’ll move Redus. They planned to have Redus break the alliance with King Rosais’ Country and, once things settled, invade.

This will undoubtedly prompt King Evile’s Country and King Belvedire’s Country to attack King Rosais’ Country as well, due to the distrust from the previous curse incident (which was a false accusation).

With this, the encirclement will be complete. Being surrounded by four countries is an inescapable situation.

The next step was to wait until King Rosais’ Country was weakened and then make an offer.

「We’ll help you if you give us part of your territory.」

「Are we really going to help them?」

「Yes, because if King Rosais’ Country falls, King Domorgal’s Country will grow stronger. We’ll attack King Domorgal’s Country from behind and destroy it, then take a large portion of King Rosais’ Country territory as a reward. That’s the plan.」

The idea was to gradually subdue the King Rosais’ Country over time. Mari had no intention of killing Almus; his knowledge, especially about bombs, was something Mari lacked and wanted to acquire.

「But with that plan, Merlin-sama is only in charge of making Prince Redus rebel and creating a sense of distrust towards King Rosais’ Country due to the curse, right?」

「Well, yes. What else can I do? We don’t share a border. If I had three more of me, maybe I could do something. But you can’t create a solid clone with magic.」

Mari shrugged as if to say there was no helping it.

「Really, you’re about the only one who could replace me. There are maybe three others at a stretch. It would be quite something if someone could catch up to five hundred years of my skill accumulation with talent alone.」

Mari laughed,

「Ha ha ha!」

At least in terms of talent, Annabella far surpassed Mari.

「For now, we’ve done what we needed to. All that’s left is to watch how things unfold. Oh, would you like some tea?」

「Yes, please.」

And so, an elegant tea party (with green tea) began.

◇

「My king, Prince Carlo’s position as crown prince has been revoked… what should we do about the succession issue?」

「…Is it impossible to appoint Carlo as the commander-in-chief for the next war?」

「That would be difficult, I’m afraid.」

King Domorgal sighed deeply. At forty-five, he was in his prime as a politician.

However, the country wouldn’t stabilize without a clear successor.

King Domorgal then spoke while rubbing his enlarged belly.

「If Carlo is out of the picture… maybe Pax? He is the second prince, and the woman who bore him isn’t of low status.」

「I would prefer Prince Aldo, Your Majesty. He is intelligent and has rich ideas… though he is a bit lacking in thoroughness. With a competent assistant, he could govern without issue.」

Currently, King Domorgal’s Country was in a precarious situation. To the south lay the ambitious young king of King Rosais’ Country. To the north, the great kingdom of Rozel.

Both neighbors were troublesome adversaries. What this country needed now was not a capable king, but a king who could firmly pass the baton to the next generation.

In that sense, Carlo was ideal… but he failed in his southern campaign. The fact that he was only stripped of his crown prince status and not his right to succession showed there was still hope for him.

「Should our country also take a son-in-law, like the King Rosais’ Country?」

「If only the Griffon had another son.」

The aide chuckled wryly. Such convenient figures did not come by often.

「My three sons are unimpressive… Gah!」

King Domorgal clutched his chest. He felt a pain gradually rising from his stomach.

Cold sweat broke out from King Domorgal’s body.

「Are you alright, my king?!」

「…I’m fine. It’s passed. It happens quite often lately.」

King Domorgal leaned back in his throne, gazing at the ceiling.

「I’ve become easily tired lately. Just walking up the stairs leaves me breathless. The stiffness in my shoulders is severe. Maybe it’s my age.」

「Could it be due to your stomach? Please reduce your food and alcohol intake. And how about some exercise?」

The aide pointed to King Domorgal’s prominently protruding belly. Once, long ago, he was a warrior who could ride a horse and kill a deer with a single spear thrust.

「If I exercise, my heart might burst. It’s just age. There’s nothing to be done.」

King Domorgal laughed as if amused.

… Several months later, the situation in King Domorgal’s Country changed dramatically. A turn of events that not King Domorgal, King Rosais, King Rozel, nor even Mari could have predicted unfolds.