Episode 146 Krafte War – Overlapping Roads (2)
Lumière, the capital of Revolutionary Francia.
I was being treated to a dinner at a mansion where I had been invited.
After enjoying the snails served as an appetizer with a richly flavored sauce, enjoy the sensation of the fat of lightly cooked foie gras melting in your mouth.
In addition, you can enjoy the luxury of enjoying a steak made from the highest quality beef tenderloin with a glass of wine.
Different wines were served for each dish to balance the tastes, and even the bread that always accompanies meals boasts a softness and deep flavor that is different from what you normally eat.
The uncompromising chef carefully and meticulously prepares high-quality ingredients that he has carefully sourced, creating a feast of deep and diverse flavors that will delight your tongue.
…It’s a bit too much because it’s so much fun.
If I live like this every day, I don’t think I’ll be able to eat the food I eat on the battlefield.
I opened my mouth, looking at Maurice Talleyrand, who was waving a glass filled with wine and looking expectant.
“…That’s great. Honestly, I don’t think even nobles can match the governor’s insight when it comes to gastronomy.”
I knew it from the beginning, but even sugar was a luxury and it was very difficult to get used to it because he was so different from Maximilien Isidore, who only drank cheap tea without any taste.
Whatever my thoughts were, Talleyrand nodded as if he was very satisfied.
“I prepared with great care for our precious guest, but I am glad you said that. The chef will be very proud.”
“There is no guest who would not be satisfied with this kind of treatment. “I am deeply grateful to the governor for his efforts.”
After all, even Christine, who has no interest in eating, tends to prepare dinners for invited guests as extravagant as possible.
He is still the president of the Revolutionary Party.
He’s not corrupt enough to lose the support of the citizens, and he’s probably just a bit… enthusiastic when it comes to gourmet food.
I cleared my throat and opened my mouth again.
“By the way, you did a great job leading the story with the Eastern Empire. … Just like you said.”
Talleyrand also slightly twitched the corner of his mouth.
“The Marquis also ended the Iberica War victoriously. … Just like you said.”
We looked at each other for a moment and I asked,
“Is it a draw this time too?”
“I guess so.”
After we all laughed, Talleyrand took a napkin, leisurely wiped his mouth, and then opened his mouth again.
“The exchange and introduction of fire weapons technology from the Eastern Empire, as requested by the Marquis, is being considered over there. “If you listen to what their ambassador in Francia says, it seems like there’s a good chance.”
“…That’s kind of awesome.”
To be honest, asking me to get their fire weapons technology was a joke.
Talleyrand leaned back in his chair and opened his mouth.
“About half of the work was accomplished by the Marquis.”
“Do you mean me?”
Talleyrand raised his index finger and wiggled it.
“Didn’t you crush the devil’s plot in Iberica?”
“Oh, that’s it. … It’s only half a success.”
The war was won, but as Gremory predicted, the drones were ultimately dismissed as nonsense.
In the first place, they are terrible creatures that cannot be easily imagined just by hearing about them, and there is no evidence as all of the drones were scattered into powder without even leaving a body behind.
There are testimonies from the Revolutionary Army and the Iberica Brotherhood, but to us, them, and other human nations in the central continent, each is nothing more than a rebellious nation and a heretic.
Moreover, regardless of that, the reality of the drone in the Central Continent was so terrible that it seemed like they were trying to deny it, calling it an even more absurd story.
There are already many people on the continent who have fun and are connected to the Abyss Corporation, but if they make something like that public, their interests will be lost.
I don’t know what would happen if I, the commander-in-chief of the revolutionary army, decided to mobilize the lobby of the upper level of Aquitaine and make it public… Rather
than mobilizing Christine, who is otherwise busy, for something that may or may not work, I would rather use that time to prepare to confront Krafte and Gremory. It would be better to save the debt for later.
“I heard that there is a lot of negative public opinion in the Eastern Empire, right?”
“At least the Tsar accepted it as fairly reliable information. Thanks to that, support for us is being viewed positively.”
“That’s good news. But if the Tsar had accepted it positively, wouldn’t it have been possible to provide support more quickly?”
Talleyrand shrugged his shoulders.
“Elves are ultimately a political group. It seems that even if the Tsar accepts it positively, it does not immediately become national opinion. The longer they live, the more powerful their vested interests are. … Well, as an outsider, I can’t judge everything, but it seems like there are quite a few people who are more focused on enriching themselves than on the interests of the Eastern Empire.”
“Haha, that’s right…”
Well, stagnant water tends to rot, but elves have stagnant water for hundreds of years, right?
It seems like they have a lot of circumstances of their own.
“I’m a little embarrassed to say this, but please hurry up, Governor. Krafte is strong, and I want to mobilize everything I can in this war.”
Talleyrand answered as he emptied his wine glass.
“I know very well, Marquis. But I’m sure you understand that it’s not something that happens just because I urge you to do it.”
“That’s it…”
I sighed softly and brought up another topic.
“…But aren’t there some issues the president can help with right away?”
Then this time Talleyrand sighed and opened his mouth with a shocked expression.
“You mean that…”
I had a hunch when I saw Talleyrand’s expression.
It looks like we are in a position to say something about the Eastern Empire.
* * *
next day.
General headquarters of the French Revolutionary Army.
During my visit to Iberica, I was meeting face-to-face with Louis Desget, the Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Army, who, as Acting Commander-in-Chief, was in charge of the preparations for the war against Krafte.
Christine was also present, dressed in a naval admiral’s uniform, a rarity in the capital.
“Thank you for your hard work, Commander Dejet. “You never disappoint my expectations.”
Unlike Damien de Mirbeau, who is adamant about sincerity. Well, it seems like things have changed a bit this time.
“Haha, thank you. Your Excellency the Marquis. But one issue is not going well…”
Dejet seemed to notice Christine’s attention and bowed his head to us.
“I apologize, Your Excellency the Marquis and the Count of Aquitaine.”
“No, that’s not Commander Deze’s fault.”
Christine answered lightly, but I furrowed my brows.
The issues I requested from Desais were broadly grouped into two.
The first is a plan to strengthen the revolutionary army for the war against Krafte.
This part was handled flawlessly.
The revolutionary army significantly expanded its reserve forces and faithfully completed basic military training, allowing us to mobilize as many as 250,000 troops in addition to the existing standing army.
The problem of insufficient officer staff, which had no choice but to operate in a haphazard manner due to the impending revolution and war, was somehow made up for by providing intensive reinforcement training using the Grande École course and the armistice period.
As a result, compared to the period of war with the empire immediately after the revolution, when preparation period was insufficient, the strength of the revolutionary army was almost doubled.
The quality issue I am concerned about is that I have provided sufficient experience to the standing troops such as the artillery, cavalry, and Revolutionary Guards, which are the most important on the Iberica Peninsula, so it will be possible to make up for it to some extent by deploying them in the right place.
The problem was the second.
“As expected, there is a lot of antipathy within the military.”
“Yes, I guess so.”
“Huh…”
Deje said as I was sighing.
“The situation is a bit different from when we confronted Balian in the capital, Excellency Marquis. “At that time, we only dealt with the southern army, which was mainly composed of the nobles’ army that joined the republic under the Marquis, but now we are in charge of the entire revolutionary army.”
After saying that, Dejet secretly looked at Christine’s eyes, and Christine nodded calmly and said,
“I am in the same boat as the Marquis de Lafayette anyway, so it doesn’t matter if you speak frankly.”
Deje laughed awkwardly and then opened his mouth again.
“The Northern Army and the military in charge of the administration of the existing capital and other regions are quite averse to the idea of them cooperating with and being influenced by the Count of Aquitaine.”
“Bitter…”
Is that true as well?
“At the beginning of the Revolution, no one in the Southern Army knew that the Count of Aquitaine was the Marquis de Lafayette’s strongest supporter.”
So at that time, it was possible for Christine to move the southern army in the capital against Raphael Balian with the orders signed by me during my absence.
“But now, the size of the Southern Army has grown significantly, and the Northern Army, which had no involvement with the Count of Aquitaine, and the military in charge of administrative work in the rear are accepting the Count of Aquitaine’s involvement as a kind of… struggle for vested interests.”
“That’s why you’re not cooperating properly with Aquitaine.”
“That is correct, Your Excellency the Marquis. I am very sorry to say this, but your Excellency, the Count of Aquitaine, is antagonized by the military, a macho group, just because you are a young female nobleman and a merchant. But he even became an admiral. “There’s probably no Army anywhere that likes the Navy touching its territory.”
At this point, I slowly turned my gaze to see what Christine was thinking, but she added an additional explanation with an expression on her face that said nothing was wrong.
“Moreover, unlike the generals who are almost all of your line, among the newly filled officers while expanding the size of the army, there are many who are influenced by the Revolutionary Party or the Liberal Party and do not like nobles very much.”
I scratched the back of my head.
“Even so, I tried to ask for cooperation from President Talleyrand and President Brissot…”
Christine laughed softly and then opened her mouth.
“Probably none of those governors can control the party as well as you. This is not an issue that can be resolved by moving the individual governor. “In the end, this is a problem that inevitably follows the process of rapidly expanding an army created by people with completely different interests coming together.”
“Tsk.”
I clicked my tongue.
There is someone who openly predicted a spy war against Christine. Justin von Wittenfeld, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Krafte.
From what I found out through Christine’s report, he is leading an intelligence organization that appears to have been created from the beginning to assist in the war effort.
In order to prepare for them, we need to establish a counterintelligence system by closely cooperating with Aquitaine, led by Christine, and the military, but the military is reluctant to support Christine and is refusing to do so.
“Should we press ahead with the authority of the commander-in-chief?”
Deje smiled bitterly.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think this is a very wise method, Your Excellency the Marquis. “Isn’t it just nice to hear that the commander-in-chief of the revolutionary army is controlling the army by his skirt even before the war begins?”
“I don’t think it’s a very good idea. Krafte’s espionage campaign is not yet a visible threat, but even if it is not, there are many lawmakers who are wary of your power becoming too strong after Balian’s ouster. “There would be no good in dividing public opinion ahead of the most dangerous war.”
Christine also added a word and I smiled bitterly.
“It’s just something I tried.”
There may be a terrorist attack from an enemy country, so to prevent it, actively cooperate with a merchant nobleman and admiral who is not in the army and reveal all confidential information?
Honestly, I have nothing to say even if you refuse.
But Christine has no shame.
“…I’m sorry, Christine. Now that things have come to this, I would like to ask you to be thorough even in the supply areas managed by Aquitaine. “I will also try to strengthen security within the Army in my own way.”
The problem is that it doesn’t seem like it can stop all the moves of the author whom Christine highly values, but…
“Please leave that to me. And…”
Christine smiled slightly and said.
“I have no intention of just being bullied. “If you give one away, you have to take the other.”
“Haha, that’s reassuring.”
Certainly, if Christine’s plan succeeds, Krafte will receive a blow in the back that he could not have imagined.
“Then I collected all the cards I could…”
I looked down at the Alsace-Lorraine region, the border area between the Germania Empire and Franzia, where the Kingdom of Krafte belongs.
This area will once again be the battlefield of a skirmish.
The opponent is the Great King, who is said to have humanity’s strongest army and the greatest general in the Central Continent.
The residents there are also going through a difficult time.
“Is all that’s left to do is look at it?”
If you close your eyes slowly.
-I hope you make good use of the two-year grace period. I look forward to a war worthy of your resolve, so don’t disappoint me!
The subject, who is an old man of an age where it would not be strange to walk around without the strength to rely on a cane, comes to mind the face of the great king, who used the cane as a baton and was so driven to the point of madness.
I don’t know how many times in my life I will meet someone with such a strong impression.
When I opened my eyes, I looked at Deje and Christine one at a time and then spoke.
“I look forward to seeing what the great king’s face will look like and what he will say when he suffers defeat.”
