"To defeat an enemy, you must know them, not simply their battle tactics, but their history, philosophy, art."
Grand Admiral Thrawn from Star Wars Rebels season 3.
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"My lord, this cannot be!"
Nathos shouted when he heard what the young boy wanted to do.
"My lord, you are the last of House Aurellion. We can't let you risk yourself like this! Please reconsider!"
Myrdin said pleadingly, bowing before his liege as Aldorus and Oswan joined their comrade's plea.
"Please reconsider, my lord!"
Only Leon was quiet, the grand commander in deep thought as he was put into a predicament. As regent, he could overrule Railius and his plans, but in doing so, he would lower the young ruler's power because if he controlled things too much, then even when the young boy came of age, he would find it difficult to assert his authority if every decision he makes as a lord has to go through someone else.
But if Leon doesn't overrule him and it turns out poorly, then the young boy will lose the men's respect, though he would be seen as very young, so the blowback would not be as significant in the long term.
If Leon were a selfish regent who mainly thought of himself, then he would not be in this sort of predicament. Instead, the old soldier was loyal to House Aurellion and so had to be careful to show enough respect to his lord and his thoughts while also keeping him safe from dangerous and rash decisions.
"My lord, getting into contact with the Duke has very high risks. Currently, the Imperial loyalists have no idea where we are in the empire, meaning they have to be scattered around the empire so that they can respond and find us no matter where we go or which border we try to escape from the empire."
"Would it not be better to find a weakness and then break through it with all our strength?"
Leon suggested not directly refusing his lord's idea but presenting his own while asking him to explain his plan more in an effort to prevent them from making a mistake while also maintaining his lord's power and dignity.
"Do we even know where a weakness is?"
"The Duke of Plantaria has never rebelled against the throne like some other Nadron nobles and has done his due diligence in the defence of the empire from the Beastman United States if it were not for him refusing to serve in the imperial court or doing nothing more than he is obligated to like defending his lands and the empire from invasion then people would applaud him for being a loyal subject."
Railius said, trying in vain to keep the frustration out of his voice as the young player felt a childlike indignation rise in him as a result of him playing a character who had not fully matured despite how calm he usually tries to act these sorts of emotional outbursts were much more common when the young university student was a child before he took on a calm and self-controlled personality.
"My lord, please calm yourself down. We just want to know your reasons, not disrespect you."
Leon said, seeing the fluctuating emotional state of his lord, tried to calm him down, for no matter what, he was still a child. Even if he was rather intelligent, it did not stop him from making mistakes due to emotion.
Railius took a deep breath, his frustration from being subtly dismissed due to his young age melting away as the child regained his composure.
"How long has it been since any of you have fought around here?"
"Do you know which beast-man clans are more friendly towards the empire or the local politics of this area?"
"Tell me where a weakness is in the border defences, and I'll do your plan. Otherwise, we can only guess how they will deploy their troops, and I am not fond of plans based on luck. If we work with the duke, we can set up a place to attack that is not too hard to break through while giving the duke an explanation to give to the imperial court for our escape through his lands."
"If the duke is as loyal to Nadron as we suspect, then he will not give up an opportunity to help us, as later, we will likely cause problems for Chavaria, which can only aid in his cause."
"If I were the duke and wanted to resurrect a fallen kingdom, I would do something like this because the more problems Chavaria has, the more strength they will lose, allowing me to much more easily resurrect my old country when Chavaria is weakened."
Railius said calmly, giving his analysis of the situation, for he was not sure just how much information his subordinates had about their surroundings. If they did find a weakness already, then the young boy was more than happy to abandon his plans and instead go for a forceful breakthrough.
However, if it were so easy, the system would not have made this a crisis point, so he thought there was far more going on than meets the eye.
"We only got here a few days ago, so our information is limited, and we have no idea which beast-man clans are on good terms with the empire, so some may capture us to get some concessions or reward. It would not be good to lose too many of our men to break through the duke's men only to be captured by the Beastmen, so working with him would truly be the best option if it is possible to do so."
"We also have been careful with our scouts because we don't want to be found or recognised too quickly, or we will be sitting ducks surrounded by enemies. Our information about the border is minimal, and I imagine the duke has spies in his court, as I heard a few new Chavarian nobles have been appointed as his vassals by some of the people in nearby villages."
Oswan, the small halfling said, deep in thought. Due to being the man who was in charge of the scouts, he usually had the most information about their surroundings as reports usually came to him first.
"So we have to be very careful in how we communicate with the duke as we don't want the imperial loyalist forces to know where we are."
He continued before Nathos, a younger commander and more simple-minded than the others, decided to speak up. He was near the level of master fighter, which allowed him to kill the imperial guards more easily than his comrades, who were at their skill. But was still unable to interfere with high-level fights. It was his valour, martial skill and loyalty that were valued more than his brain to House Aurellion, as trust in this game can be a rare commodity.
"I agree with the Grand Commander! Can't we just scout the border of this duchy, find a weak spot, and then charge through!"
Nathos said, liking Leon's plan due to its simplicity.
"That may take too long. We have remained undetected by moving constantly, staying low profile and with some luck, but that will not last forever. If we take too long, we will be found, and once we are, any advantage we had would have been lost."
"Also, if we just chose somewhere randomly to break through, there is no guarantee that the border guards won't delay us until reinforcements can be sent. As I imagine, they also have a system set up to warn for future invasions that would be used to send for help from nearby bases and border forts quickly."
"In the end, it would be best to set up some kind of arrangement with the duke that would allow us to escape and give him enough political cover to answer to the emperor."
Myrdin said, the elf thinking more about Railius' plan and agreeing with bits of it.
"If military power could solve our problems, we would not be having this conversation in the first place. We would just break through the border!"
"But because we can't, we have no choice but to solve this with politics!"
"After all, politics was how our predicament was made in the first place, so it makes sense that politics would be the way to solve it!"
Railius said, his passionate, authoritative voice surprising those in the tent.
The other commanders looked on with shock at how bold their young lord was for a 10-year-old boy to want to negotiate with an old duke and veteran of politics, but when they remembered Lucius and his demeanour, even though he was a military man, his political instincts can only be said to be extraordinary.
Instead of agreeing, they looked towards the grand commander, who had his eyes closed, looking serene, but inside, his heart was pounding and unsteady, remembering what his old lord had said in their last private conversation before he died accompanying the first prince Victarion.
"Leon, my son, is very similar to me. While our noble house is skilled in war and has great military strength, the political abilities of our loyal subjects are lacking, as many are in our territory helping to manage the people."
"If we are ever in an emergency, you can trust him to make the right decision, so when the time comes, support him like you would me. You're the only one I can entrust his safety to!"
Lucius' older, gruff, and jovial voice said sincerely to his old friend before he left the marquis' chamber and left the mansion.
The uneasy silence was broken when the Grand Commander's eyes opened suddenly.
"We will go with the young lord's plan; however, there are a few conditions."
Leon said softly, then began to state his conditions.
"First, I will personally hand the letter to someone close to the duke or the duke himself."
"Second, I will accompany you whenever you leave the camp, especially when you meet him."
"Do you agree, my lord?"
Leon asked, his voice becoming louder and more commanding than usual.
Railius almost found himself agreeing immediately, making it evident that Leon had tried to use a skill but managed just to resist, though to do so mentally drained the young player who managed to suggest one stipulation in place to allow flexibility in their future plans.
"As long as it is strategically sound, yes."
Railius said, and feeling Leon's pressure, he became worried about the upcoming negotiation with the duke, who was a veteran at politics. While you can resist skills, especially mental ones, it will take a toll on your mental state, which will also be somewhat reflected in your mana as he suddenly got a system notification he hadn't had in a long time.
[Mana has been reduced by 3 points.]
Luckily for Railius, Leon was not a skilled politician or trying hard to convince him, so the damage was minimal. Of course, the main thing that persuades someone is your arguments, but skills can be used to help brute force your way past someone's mental defences and was another reason apart from the blood and gore for the 18+ only.
"If separating can help my chances of survival, then it must be done. Thanks to the three dead master-level fighters from a few weeks ago, it is well-known that you are the most powerful and loyal of my subordinates. Hence, you are likely to be our enemy's first target as they will think I am with you, and their job is only to kill me, not my soldiers."
Railius said having to give a reason to Leon or the loyal grandmaster who was deep in thought would not back down, especially when it came to his protection that he would want to take care of personally.
"Would that work, Uncle Leon?"
Railus said affectionately as his loyal regent because he was very fond of his reliable powerhouse and wanted to keep him around for as long as possible. Even for powerful noble families, grandmasters are not easy to come by, as to become one, you need the correct talent and environment.
A once-in-a-decade talent would need an excellent environment, or they could only become a master at best. Leon for example, could only become a grandmaster because he had spent half his life at war and specially trained even when looking after Railius for 10 years.
Occasionally, genius' like Amuilis Lunaris appear and become grandmasters in their twenties and thirties, but these people are scarce, and many are killed because there is such a thing as having too much talent and if the current emperor if Chavaria did not wholly trust the man or if the minister of war did not have his protection then many people would want such a person dead.
Even talented heirs to noble houses have been known to be assassinated by their rivals, which is why so few grandmasters are out in the public eye because becoming a grandmaster brought both honour, status, and a massive big red target to pasted all over your back for people to shoot at.
Leon looked at his young lord's determined gaze, and remembering his old lord and friend's previous words, he decided to trust the boy whose intelligence he had already respected and seen due to being his mentor for so long.
"Fine, but I'm coming with you to meet with the duke. This is non-negotiable."
Leon said, authoritatively laying down the law using his position of regent to change the plan more to his liking. At least if he was there, he could protect and escape with his young master if needed, and it's not like there was much of a better one that did not rely on luck.
Railius quickly agreed with his loyal regent's request and looked joyful as he left the tent to write a letter to the duke. Even though he was 10 years old in the game, he was an adult in real life, and compared to his Pelican Guards, who were very upfront, he knew better how to navigate the murky waters of politics after receiving a familiar notification.
[Dynasty History, Linked Side Quest, created 'Persuade the Duke of Plantaria']
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Dynasty History Linked Side Quest: Persuade the Duke of Plantaria
Difficulty level: Unknown
Description: After being falsely accused of treason by the emperor and escaping from the Chavarian imperial capital, you now need to escape from the empire itself. Your forces have decided to flee to The Kingdom of Nathia, which is hostile to the Chavarian Empire via the Beastman United States, and establish a safe place for your dynasty to reside.
To make this easier, you are attempting to persuade the Duke of Plantiara, who is one of the nobles who borders the United Beastmen states, to let you pass in some fashion while also learning more about the local political situation, which your military-inclined vassals do not have a great understanding of.
Quest Clear Conditions: Obtain the help of the Duke of Plantaria in escaping Chavaria.
Quest Clear Reward: High chance of succeeding in the Dynasty History Event and a potential long-term secret alliance with the Duke.
Quest Failure Penalty: High chance of failing the 2nd Dynasty History Event and having your dynasty eradicated.
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Railius smiled when he got the notification of a player-made quest, which had been generated as soon as he decided on his path to overcoming the dynasty history event. He then quickly went to his tent to write the letter to the Duke of Plantaria as time was not on his side, and the sooner he could talk to the Duke, the better.