Chapter 91 – 9. The Story of the Passing Years (1)
Limousin, southwestern Gaul.
It was the season of the heat. In the land where the wilderness and the jungle divide on the left and right, the kingdom of Aragon declared the unification of the Apostolic Church and invaded the border. It was a large army of as many as 20,000 men. With 3,000 freshly gathered mercenaries and a standing army, even Mercury was in a difficult situation.
“Your Highness, it’s urgent.”
“What is it?”
“It’s an intelligence that an Aragonian madman is advancing with his entire army. Bishop Ravel of the West personally dispatched dragoons to spread the news.”
Inside the barracks, those who had a meeting using the stump of a felled tree as a table couldn’t help but feel puzzled. The Archduke, who had spread out an old map and predicted the enemy’s offensive route, was horrified at the situation that had reached him less than a day after the border was breached.
“Damn it, what would Bishop Ravel do?”
“They say support is going to be difficult. I heard that Yusuf of Nasr dispatched dozens of ships, including sea dragons, to the west coast. As you can guess, Albenis must be trying to conquer southwestern Gaul this time.”
Around that time, the situation on the continent was dizzy. In the far northeast, the demons of the Rus Empire were spreading, and in the southwest, King Albenis of Aragon, who was called a lunatic, waged religious wars.
“Yusuf of Nasr is an old sultan, so does Albenis have something to appeal to such a magnate?”
“Who would dare to fathom the intentions of a man stained with madness? However, Limousin is the most important strategic location in the southwestern part of the kingdom. If this place falls into the hands of Aragorn, not only the Archduke, but even the powerful people in the center will not be able to stretch their feet and live comfortably.”
The grand duke, wearing chain mail, touched his throbbing forehead his. Even at the meeting where all the nobles of the southern area were gathered, no clever idea came to mind. That’s because it was an overwhelming enemy number and an inferior ally.
“Yes, then shouldn’t we be able to help as soon as possible! I know they’re busy taking care of themselves! However, how can it not be frustrating since we are calculating profit and loss in a situation where a country’s rise and fall depends on it!”
“In a way, it would be an expression of confidence. Even if His Highness His loses control of the South, it’s enough to get it back. Certainly, since His Majesty His ascended to the present position, we have been blatantly checked.”
Everyone swallowed their saliva. The Grand Duke glanced at the baron who had delivered the urgent message and called him by name to ask for his opinion. Unlike the aristocrats who were incompetent and only knew how to falter in peacetime, the young rookie was someone who knew how to see reality.
“Baron Balzac, what is your insight?”
“There are three ways.”
“Tell me.”
Balzac, who lowered his head, looked around and opened his mouth. Of course, among those gathered in the barracks, there were some who would not be happy to see a young, low-level aristocrat talking directly to the Grand Duke, but even so, it was wartime.
They, who neglected defense on the subject of taking over the border, could not stop their remarks for the reason of rice bowls. At least in this crisis.
“One is to request reinforcements from the Duke of LeBlanc in the east. I heard that your daughter, Princess Melanie, had some acquaintances with Duchess Henrietta in the social world…”
“It’s questionable whether it’s a friendship deep enough to lend a hand in war.”
“I heard that Duke LeBlanc is in a very bad financial situation as he has not been able to export wheat from the eastern granary recently. If Bishop Ravel defeated Yusuf of Nasr, wouldn’t he be able to establish a maritime trade route through the western coast to Britannia or the New World?”
The Archduke twitched his eyebrows. Balzac’s words were that they should buy wheat, which is difficult to deal with in the East. Well, it wouldn’t be a bad suggestion if I could get reinforcements even doing that.
“It’s a proposal that will cost us a lot if the bishop doesn’t lose control of the West Coast and doesn’t cooperate with us in loading and selling our wheat.”
Aristocrats, like merchants, must be quick in their calculations. The Grand Duke, who had been tossing and turning, looked around at his attendants, probably because his shoulders were crushed by his heavy chain armor. He was so fat that his placenta couldn’t even fit the armor, so the vassals were rolling in pain with pale faces.
I can’t bear to oppose it, and I’m thinking of paying less in share somehow.
“It would be better than losing everything. Of course, as His Highness His said, you should lean on the bishop to some extent. Even if all of these conditions are met, you will have to overcome the royal family’s checks.”
“Your opinion is not bad. However, even if we overcome the crisis right away, if our family loses its influence in the south, it will eventually become the picture the royal family wants. I don’t want to gamble that I don’t want to lose the gold coins I’m holding in my hand, and I don’t want to risk losing my pocket.”
“Then, the second method. Send Princess Melanie to Her Majesty her. The grand duke’s daughter is a status worthy of becoming a member of the current royal family. If you make the decision to hand over your daughter to His Majesty Alphonse, who has no wife yet, you will be able to support an army that will not be defeated by the mad king.”
It was a hot day. Sweat dripped down the elderly grand duke’s face and dripped onto the floor.
“You mean to become a royalist?”
He let out a deep sigh and clenched his gloved fists. How many people would oppose the grand ducal family, a powerful family in the south, becoming a government official, but there is a price to pay for acquiring such a name.
You will probably have to give up a lot of rights in the name of a dowry. The relationship that the family had built for a long time would become a blank slate, and yesterday’s comrades would have to endure the sudden appearance of today’s enemies.
“Will the king accept my daughter as his wife?”
“What kind of man would he refuse the best beauty in the South? Above all, what they obtain is not Lady Melanie, but the Grand Duke’s family. If you allow it, I will try to hear your opinion through the voice communication channel.”
If you have to make a decision, now is the time. No matter how mad King Albenis is, he will not be able to destroy Limousin, the best fortress in the southwest, in a matter of days. Therefore, if a conclusion can be reached within today, the grand duke’s family can at least reduce their losses.
“What if he doesn’t like it either?”
“We have no choice but to request reinforcements from the Duke of Dior.”
“… Alexandre’s?”
“In fact, Charles Dior, his second son, sent one of his own to Limousin here.”
Their families, who made the most decisive contribution to the establishment of the central noble family, the current king, do not like the rise of local powerful families. However, since the death of the former duke, his eldest son and second son have been fighting over the position of the next head of the family.
“Who is it?”
“This is Romuald.”
Like the royal family of this country.
“As you know, Charles Dior is an ambitious man. He’s looking for a chance to lead his family, eager to take his older brother’s place his. The reason why I sent my brother who won the continental swordsmanship contest here is probably the same. If you want to support yourself rather than the whole royalist faction…”
“Will you save us for a cheaper price?”
“Yes, you’ll have to experience it yourself to know if the rope in question is rotten or not.”
“Can you bring him here now?”
“I’m still waiting outside.”
“Bring it to me right away.”
Balzac nodded. He walked out of the tent and returned not long after. I was accompanied by a man with a dark expression beside me. Wearing old plate armor and a sword with a corroded handle gave the impression of a typical wandering knight.
An illegitimate son of a duke and at the same time an invincible knight of Lumiere.
There was no way the group of grand dukes in the south, who were far from the center, would know the situation of the youngest child, a child of depravity, who was neglected even by the family. Furthermore, although Rom had a fairly stocky physique, he was not particularly large.
Along with the distrust of fame, it was not unreasonable that there were voices of doubt.
“Are you Dior’s Romuald?”
The Archduke, who briefly bit the vassals surrounding him with a beckoning gesture, looked at Balzac standing next to him and asked, Although the scar across his face was so brutal that he frowned, he quickly regained his generosity when he politely got down on one knee and answered.
“Meet Grand Duke Tarn.”
“Baron Balzac next to me said that. That your big brother could solve our troubles.”
“With all due respect, may I ask what kind of anxiety you are struggling with?”
“It’s embarrassing to say again what we both know. Aragon’s lunatic Albenis, who led 20,000 elite soldiers under my direct command and stormed into the front yard of Limousin, is the worry of this body. With only 3,000 of us, Mercury is too much for us.”
Rome just nodded calmly. It was embarrassing for the grand duke to ask for help because he was really speechless.
“Moreover, from the nearby western coast, Yusuf, who is famous as the sultan of Nasr, even brought a sea dragon. Limousin is a key point that must never be lost to the Tarn family or to that Bishop Ravel. Especially for the peace and revival of Gaul!”
“Is that so.”
Tarn exchanged glances with Baron Balzac. After receiving the reply that Romuald was originally this kind of person, he let out a small sigh. He continued to add and elaborate, saying that the one who regrets is the first to open his mouth.
“I ask straight-forward, can this old man’s anxiety be quelled?”
“If you give me a chance, I will.”
“Let’s listen to the wages. What is the price of receiving help from you and your older brother?”
“I’m sorry, but the Dior family doesn’t bargain.”
Tarn narrowed his brows and asked.
“You mean the scouting system?”
“Unfortunately, I am only a follower of orders. I think the only thing I can say is that the Grand Duke should discuss the details with his brother after the work is over.”
It was a very humble attitude. On the one hand, there was also a corner that could be trusted.
“Yeah, if I was going to put a dump on it, I would have increased the rhetoric.”
Even if you really end up getting ripped off, that’s a problem to worry about at that time. It was more realistic to hold the outstretched hand of the duke’s second son, even if somewhat dubious, than the road leading to ruin or decline.
“How many reinforcements can I bring?”
The grand duke, who went to the main point without hesitation, hesitated at the words he heard.
“There is not.”
“… What?”
“Brother Charles has no intention of investing anyone other than me in Limousin.”
Humongous, the people gathered in the barracks began to stir. Nonetheless, it was with the exception of Balzac, who was unconcerned. And Tarn, who found some trust in the baron’s composure his, reflected on what he had said instead of getting angry.
Even though he is old, he asked a question politely, as if he was a person with skills and character.
“Is that an insult to this Tarn?”
“I was just telling the truth.”
“If so, can you explain to me how you can alleviate the anxiety of this body?”
“The Grand Duke said that there were 3,000 troops.”
“I did, but I hope you don’t mean to take care of it, right?”
Rom shook his head firmly. Tarn waited patiently, fed up with the increasingly labyrinthine conversation. So, facing the figure of a knight who didn’t blink an eye even after spewing bluff-like remarks, he repeated himself.
“It means that I will add reinforcements to that army.”
This guy is either a true hero or a psychopath.
