My investigations indicate that Princess Roroa is one of the few in the
Amidonian royal house who has the support of the civil officials. Having given
preferential treatment to the military, Julius is not popular with the civil officials. He
must fear that they would support Madam Roroa against him."
"Even though, with Gaius gone, she's one of his few remaining relatives," I
whispered back.
"It is a common occurrence in royal families," he whispered.
"I understand that, but still... I don't want to understand it," I whispered back.
Succession wars had not been uncommon in Earth's history. Even in the Elfrieden
Kingdom, when Liscia's mother Elisha had ascended the throne, the conflict between
her relatives had nearly led to the extinguishing of the royal line.
If I recalled correctly, Machiavelli himself called for the purging of political
opponents. However... as one who had known the loneliness of losing all of his
family, I couldn't help but feel he should treasure his one little sister. It might have
been naïve of me, but it was something I couldn't give up on.
"Oh, that's right," I said. "I mentioned Margarita a moment ago. We would like for
her to remain in the kingdom. Given she cooperated with us to maintain order in
Van, I suspect you would be hard pressed to decide what should be done with her."
"General Margarita Wonder, is it?" Julius seemed to think for a moment. "If you
will release five of the nobles you hold prisoner in exchange, I can accept that." he
said.
He must have been calculating her value as a prisoner, and he'd judged that,
compared to a general he wouldn't know what to do with, a reduction in the ransom
for vassals who were actually loyal to him was more beneficial. Calling for five
people to be exchanged in return for one was a shrewd decision.
"Very well," I said. "I'll accept those conditions."
"...She was a good general, yes, but good enough for you to want her so badly?"
Julius asked dubiously.
I smiled wryly. Julius, only able to judge people's value by their potential as
assets in war, wouldn't understand Margarita's true value. As a singer, as a host,
Margarita had become indispensable when it came to producing programs for the
Jewel Voice Broadcast.
Well, I was under no obligation to explain that to him, so I kept quiet.
With things largely in order now, I declared an end to the talks.
Elfrieden would receive war reparations in exchange for withdrawing from Van.
Amidonia would regain control of Van in exchange for paying reparations. The
Empire had demonstrated its influence by acting as a mediator in this dispute.
...Those were results I could be satisfied with, for now.
It could be said that Amidonia had come out at a loss, the Empire had lost
nothing, and Elfrieden had come out with suitable gains.
With the talks concluded, Julius turned on his heel to walk away, as if saying he
had no more to say to the likes of me, but I called out to stop him.
"Sir Julius!"
"...What?" he snapped, not turning around.
"A political thinker from my own world, Machiavelli, said something like this," I
said. "Those who acquire a principality with difficulty will keep it with ease. Those
who acquire a principality without difficulty will find it difficult to keep."
"Huh? What does that mean?" Julius turned around, glaring at me.
I looked him straight in the eye and said, "I defeated you and your men to take
Van. I expelled the vast majority of the nobility and gentry, purging almost anyone
who could have become a political opponent. That's why, if I had continued to rule
Van, there would likely have been no major problems. However... can you say the
same? Even if you return to this city, can you rule it without issues?"
"What are you talking about?" Julius demanded. "This is my country."
"However, until just now, it was part of Elfrieden," I said. "You regained it using
the authority of the Empire, which is to say, the arms of others. This would be what
the political thinker Machiavelli meant by 'a principality acquired without
difficulty.'"
In history, there are those who became princes with the backing of relatives or
powerful countries. However, for those who fly to the top under the power of those
backers, to lose their support is to instantaneously lose their fortune.
An example of this would be how the man Machiavelli had held up as his ideal
prince, Cesare Borgia of Italy, had fallen upon the death of his backer, the man who
was both his father and the pope, Alexander VI.
Or like how, in the time of the Chu-Han Contention, when Xiang Yu had struggled
against Liu Bang, the farmer who had been held up to Xiang Yu's side as a hero, and
who had risen from humble beginnings to be named King of Chu, had eventually
been killed when he had been deemed to be of no further use.
Having borrowed the authority of the Empire to reclaim his own capital, Julius
would surely be looked down on by both his officers and the people of Amidonia.
And Gaius VIII, feared for his military might, was no more.
Would Julius, who was clever but lacked intensity, ultimately be able to keep his
officers under control? Would he be able to serve the people of Van better than I
had, and gain their trust?
"One who acquires a principality without difficulty must work hard to keep it," I
said. "Before you begin talking about grudges, I suggest you work hard on policies
that will benefit your people."
"That's none of your concern." Brushing aside my words of unfelt support, Julius
left.
Jeanne shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes.
I walked over to Jeanne and shook her hand. "These talks have been very fruitful.
Give my regards to your sister."
"Absolutely," Jeanne said. "You take care, too, Sir Hakuya. We should complain
about our respective masters over drinks sometime."
"That does sound good," said Hakuya. "I'll have a keg waiting for you."
What was that supposed to mean? They'd have enough to complain about that
they'd need a whole keg? When I looked in his direction, Hakuya blatantly averted
his eyes.
Seeing that, Jeanne gave a jovial laugh. "I hope we find ourselves on the same side
when next we meet. Please, speak directly with my sister, too, sometime."
"That's right," I said. "I will be looking forward to the day I can talk with Madam
Maria."
We exchanged a firm handshake.
◇ ◇ ◇
Once the withdrawal was decided upon, the rest came quickly.
Because it had been decided that we would return Van, staying any longer would
only waste our war funds. The Royal Army pulled our troops out of Van with as
much of a show as they had put on when we'd first entered through the gates. The
small number of Amidonian soldiers stationed near Van were overwhelmingly
outnumbered, and the Imperial Army was still in the vicinity, keeping a close watch
on both sides, so we didn't need to worry about being pursued.
I was in the middle of the procession, the same as when we'd arrived, riding atop
a horse that Aisha held the reins of, with Liscia on another horse beside me. When
we entered the castle, the people's eyes as they looked on the Royal Army were filled
with fear. However, things had changed a little now.
We hadn't issued an official announcement, but the people who lined the street
wore expressions filled with uncertainty. When she saw those looks, Liscia had a
dubious look on her face.
"Why does everyone look like that, do you think?" she asked. "I would
understand if they were relieved, because they were happy to be liberated, or glad to
see us finally gone..."
"It's probably... that they're worried," I said. "Worried about coming under
Amidonia's rule again."
"Worried? When things are just going back to how they were before?" Liscia
asked.
"That's exactly why," I said. "They're worried, Will our lives go back to how they
were before?" I faced straight forward as I spoke. "Van's residents were being
oppressed by the Princely House of Amidonia. It probably didn't bother them when
that was simply a matter of course, but being under our occupation, they learned
that it wasn't a given that things had to be that way. Unlike the Princely House, I
gave them the freedom to express their feelings and ideas. That's why, with us
leaving, they're worried that Julius and his followers' return means all of that will be
suppressed again."
Because, well... it probably would. Once Julius entered Van, he would naturally
set about clamping down on the relaxed atmosphere there.
Liscia looked pityingly to the people lining the streets. "Now that they've known
the taste of freedom, they can't go back to their old lives... It's like an addiction, isn't
it?"
"I think that's an apt way to put it, but... couldn't you find something a little
nicer?" I asked.
"It's a fact, though, isn't it?" she asked. "But it's their country, right? Can their
minds be changed that easily?"
I said, "In my old world there's a proverb: 'Oppressive government is fiercer than
a tiger.' In this case, I guess I would say, 'Tyranny is more loathsome than an
invader.' The people don't move according to moral codes or ethics. If their own
country is beneficial to them, they'll defend it from foreign threats, but if another
country is more advantageous to them, they'll actively work to open the castle gates
to them."
When I said that, Liscia sighed. "When I'm walking alongside you, I only see how
people act in hard times."
"Have you gotten sick of it?" I asked.
""Bring it on!"" Liscia and Aisha both cried,
For some reason, Aisha had joined in on that one, too.
"Why did you say it, too, Aisha?!" I burst out.
"If Your Majesty walks alongside me, then no road is hard!" Aisha declared
proudly.
Talk about being way too loyal. If she kept it up, she was going to earn herself a
nickname like "The King's Dog."
Looking at Aisha, Liscia giggled. "I feel the same. If I'm with you, I feel like I can
accept any reality."
"...I see," I said. "Well, let's head back."
Head back to our country, where everyone is waiting.