Episode 283
“Failure!? Failure!? What is that!?”
A shout came out from the mouth of the second prince, who rarely panicked.
It was an intense look that made anyone under his command have no choice but to lower his head, but Leos, who was waiting in front of him, spoke with a stern expression and spoke of something more serious.
“Our empire was mentioned within the McLane royal family. The attention of the eastern part of the continent instantly focused on this, and His Majesty’s Majesty ordered that the ‘work’ for the succession battle be halted for the time being.”
“…Damn it. I can’t help it…”
“And as compensation for causing this situation, His Royal Highness’s Succession Battle points have been deducted 10 more points.”
“…what!?”
The eyes of the lamenting 2nd prince rolled over once again.
“If it’s the 10% promised in the first place, it should be around 5 points at best?!”
“It is said that one of the ghost leaders died in McLane.”
“what?”
“It is said that His Majesty the Emperor was enraged by the unexpected and worst outcome. It would be difficult for you to protest now, Your Majesty.”
“under…!”
The 2nd prince, whose face was turning red, sat down with a sigh.
Then, a thought occurred to me and I raised my head again.
“10 more points!? Then, in addition to the original promised score… Then, what is the difference in scores between you and your brother now?!”
“That…”
Seeing Leos’ expression become clouded, Baros’ face contorted like a demon as he sensed the worst outcome.
“The score was overturned by one point.”
“Holy shit!!!!”
Wow!
He believed that a monarch should not show anxiety, but now he could not hold back his anger.
The 2nd Prince, who overturned the prepared breakfast table, stood up and wandered around the room.
“I have to make up for it. Make up for it. What to do with that damned Logan McLane…”
Are you trying to do something again while you can’t even hide your anxiety?
Leos tried to hide his expression and looked at the master who was in charge of his fate.
* * * The whole world was surprised by the MacLane royal family’s announcement, but the empire remained inactive without any response.
Rumors of an imperial conspiracy soon died down, and soon stories of unknown origin spread.
“Why in the Empire?”
“Yes. Why in the empire are you targeting the king of a small country?”
“That king used to be famous as a tyrant. He overthrew the dynasty. How can there be one or two people who have a grudge against him?”
Even in the Kingdom of McLane, rumors began to circulate that the attack on the king was carried out by the ghosts of the past Kingdom of Grandia.
“…the rumors aren’t that good.”
“As expected, things don’t work out easily.”
Logan, who was rumored to be bedridden, was sitting in his office just fine, laughing as he listened to Damian’s report.
I expected this much anyway. Nevertheless, the reason such rumors were spread through the secret attack was to hide Eilen’s awakening and Logan’s own skills.
Furthermore, the biggest purpose was different.
“No matter what the public’s misconception is, if it can instill awareness in the monarchs of the Small Kingdom Alliance, that is enough.”
“Are you really thinking of joining forces with them?”
“Of course. If we fall, that alliance is a light in the wind anyway. If you are alert, you will have no choice but to respond.”
With only five legions and hundreds of thousands of vigilantes, it was still uneasy.
Therefore, Logan was trying to attract the alliance of small kingdoms to the east of the kingdom. Although the union of seven small kingdoms lacked individual power, their overall power was comparable to the past Kingdom of Grandia.
However, the reaction of Damien and his close associates was negative.
“That is only possible if we obtain evidence that the Empire is preparing for war. We believe in your majesty, but on that side…”
It was not impossible for Logan to understand Damian’s concerns.
“There is still time. I hope this event will be the cornerstone of that. We need to prepare the kingdom as we have been doing and take the time to persuade them.”
“If you say so…”
As Damian took a step back, a confused voice was heard from outside the office.
“Your Majesty. A communication has arrived from the Kingdom of Tria. The king himself…!”
[I heard a rumor, but are you feeling well?]
A good-looking person with a long brown beard.
That was Logan’s first impression of King Ramon I of the Kingdom of Tria.
As I faced that seemingly kind face, I felt a little sorry that I had to act from the first meeting.
“Cough. I’m feeling a little better. The wounds from the aurors are bound to last for a long time.”
I intentionally made the royal family’s communication port a little blurry, but I even powdered my face to make my complexion look pale in case anyone noticed.
Fortunately, the King of Tria seemed to have no interest in Logan’s health, and despite his clumsy acting, Logan immediately let out a surprising sound.
[I was surprised to hear the news. We are also in a situation where we are being devastated by the empire’s conspiracy, so we contacted you to see if we could help each other.] I can’t believe that
the unexpected words came straight out of the target’s mouth.
How could it be this elaborate?
“yes?”
[You may have heard that from our envoy, Lord Ragon, during the national wedding…]
“Ah… Haha, yes. Of course I heard…”
I don’t remember that person…
I felt a little cold sweat break out. .
Because I wasn’t in a leisurely situation at the time to remember all the envoys I met at the national wedding.
“But this is my first time hearing the term imperial conspiracy. What does it mean?”
However, there was truth in Logan’s rebuttal because there was no way he would not have remembered it if it had been said that it was an imperial conspiracy.
[ah. Haha, I guess I was in a hurry. When Lord Ragon went as an envoy, he had clearly not reached a conclusion.]
Well, I don’t know of such a person.
[But now I can be sure. The empire’s hand is extended to the Principality of Tahiti and the three surrounding kingdoms, and those touched by it are leading to the self-destruction of the kingdom union.]
What?
“…Could you tell me in more detail?”
Logan, who became serious, forgot that he had to act and asked back with a calm expression.
Fortunately, Ramon I was busy pouring out the words that were in his heart.
Last winter, the confederation of seven small kingdoms to the east of the Kingdom of McLane experienced great political upheaval.
Tria. Liberty. Terronan. Romain Callon. Romen. Tahiti.
The seven kingdoms founded by the descendants of the seven ancient heroes have been ranked in the order in which they were mentioned from generation to generation.
According to the ranking of ancient heroes and according to the size of land and population that the current country has.
The largest Kingdom of Tria was more than one-third the size of the current Kingdom of McLane, but the smallest, the Principality of Tahiti, was smaller than the Great Domain of McLane.
However, as befits the name of the union, voting rights were always the same. However, a chairman was elected to represent the opinions of the seven kingdoms to the outside world.
Of course, in most cases, that role belonged to the King of Tria, and even though it changed over time, no king under Liberty or Terronan ever took on the role of Chairman.
At least until last winter.
However, Prince Leon of Tahiti, who came to power last winter with the uprising in the Principality of Tahiti, suddenly demanded a re-discussion regarding the election of the chairman. The Roman Kingdom of Romain Kalon agreed with him as if they had made a promise, and the leadership of the alliance was quickly transferred to them.
And since then, the four kingdoms have continued to create union policies that run counter to the national interests of the three existing powerful kingdoms.
[Of course, if we are talking about national power, our three kingdoms are still bigger, but the circumstances of our union are a bit difficult to judge by superiority in power…]
King Tria trailed off, but Logan nodded.
In the first place, if you go further east, what reason would there be for small kingdoms with only the sea to unite?
Wasn’t it to keep the kingdom of Grandia in the west in check based on their standards?
Even in ancient times, when the Kingdom of Grandia was powerful, the heroes who were dissatisfied with its rule and became independent were their ancestors. If an attempt is made to break the union by force, the reaction will be directed to the kingdom that is trying to break the union first.
So, there was a bit of a strange contradiction in King Tria’s communication right now.
“Are you saying you don’t want to break the Union’s traditions and are asking for help from McLane?”
[haha. Isn’t the Kingdom of McLane the Kingdom of Grandia? The dynasty has clearly changed, so what is the problem?]
A statement that misleads the essence of the relationship between countries.
However, Ramon Sr., who seemed like a good person, did not seem to have a single trace of shame on his face.
‘This guy is also a smart snake.’
Logan smiled on the outside even though he was so wary on the inside.
“That is certainly true. But what basis do you have for saying that the change in your kingdom is a conspiracy by the empire?”
[ah. [That is…]
When the other person trailed off as if hesitating, Logan threw a bait that made him waver.
“If we knew that, we could easily come to a conclusion.”
[This is embarrassing. Even though I promised to tell you everything and contacted you, I felt embarrassed when I actually spoke. Please listen and do not misunderstand.]
“What is the point of misunderstanding? Please speak comfortably.”
[In fact, in our kingdom, we have been promoting marriage to each royal family in order to promote friendly relations between the union. Of course, not only we but other kingdoms are in a similar situation. So each royal family is actually intertwined with complex blood ties.] As
Ramon I showed signs of his words becoming longer, Logan’s expression unconsciously frowned. The other person seemed to have felt it as well, so the conversation quickly got to the point.
[Of course, thanks to the fact that I gave birth to many daughters, I was able to marry off two to each royal family. As a result, the daughters send greetings and news about each royal family.]
At those words, Logan had to suppress a laugh for a moment.
The fact that she had given birth to at least 12 daughters was not the problem.
The fact that he married off two of his daughters to the United Kingdom meant that that king was also trying to shake up the real power of the Union in the first place.
‘Then something goes wrong, so I ask for help.’
That person’s good impression was becoming increasingly unreliable.
Just as trust in him was gradually declining, Ramon I’s next words were quite surprising.
[Then I heard news that they had seen imperial nobles from the Principality of Tahiti, who led this work. And that too, close to the king.] How
did the princesses, who grew up beautifully in the palace and then married off to a neighboring country, recognize the nobles of the empire?
‘It means that not only were the daughters married off, but there were also a lot of spies.’
Logan tilted his head while recognizing the meaning behind those words.
‘But is that possible?’
If the Empire really wanted to work on the Small Kingdom Alliance, they would have at least used unknown people.
Like Cleo in the past royal family.
“Could the empire operate so sloppily? This is something I find hard to believe?”
When Logan interrogated him, recalling bad memories, Ramon Sr.’s face reddened again and he cautiously opened his mouth.
And Logan couldn’t hide his bewildered expression after hearing those words.
[Well… Well… Actually, one of the places I married my daughter to is an imperial noble family. One of them is a high-ranking noble of the empire…]
Wow.
What a great bastard.
