Chapter 50: The Petty Prince
About ten kilometers west of the capital city of Eldorado in the Eldorado Kingdom, there lies a garrison of the Subarokia Empire. For each vassal state, there exists one or more garrisons like this. In the case of small countries like the Eldorado Kingdom, there is usually only one garrison.
In this garrison, a corps led by an S-rank mage-knight is stationed.
"General Pier. A letter from the capital city, Drain."
"Who is the sender?"
"It's His Highness the First Prince."
"Hmph. Just a petty person hiding behind a facade of intelligence."
At present, the garrison is occupied by a unit known as the Zetsuei Corps. Its leader, General Cruge Pier, an S-rank mage-knight adorned with a golden lion emblem, received the letter from his subordinate and snorted.
He cut open the envelope with a paper knife and read its contents.
"...What does it say, General?"
"They're requesting reinforcements. The so-called Revolutionary Army Rebellion has taken over half of the country's eastern territory. They've also provided information on the boss of the Revolutionary Army and the location of their base."
"I see. I wasn't immediately convinced, but it seems our gathered intelligence was correct."
"That seems to be the case. I'll make sure to reward the intelligence unit later."
Cruge put the letter back into the envelope and set it ablaze with magic.
Observing this, the subordinate asked, "Will reinforcements be dispatched?"
"There's no way we'd send them."
"Even though it's a request from a royal family member? Are you sure about that?"
"I don't care."
Having made his decision, Cruge stood up and pointed at a certain country marked with a bold red line on the map hanging on the wall.
"This is His Majesty the Emperor's country, the Subarokia Empire. And there are numerous vassal states surrounding it—sixteen to be precise."
"I'm aware."
"This Eldorado Kingdom is a neighboring weak nation, a puppet king rules it, and it's also a vassal of the enemy, the Holy Grinia. The king is old and practically spineless. It's no wonder that a country ruled by such a king would fall prey to its enemies. We should act sooner and put our hands into the Eldorado Kingdom on behalf of the Subarokia Empire."
"So, you plan to install a puppet king?"
"Exactly. Let's make full use of this stage called the Revolutionary Army Rebellion."
General Cruge, also known as "Zetsuei," was not only powerful as a mage-knight but also excelled in strategizing. In order to strengthen the troubled Eldorado Kingdom under the rule of the Emperor, he had already devised a strategy.
"Our Zetsuei Corps won't hesitate to provide assistance to the Eldorado Kingdom. But we won't do anything until they're in dire straits. We'll only help them at the last moment."
"Isn't that cruel, General?"
"It's all for His Majesty the Emperor. Not just the Eldorado Kingdom, but there are also other subjects in the surrounding areas showing signs of disloyalty towards the Empire. They won't give up until their spirits are broken. And instead of crushing them hastily, it's more effective to let them see a glimmer of hope in the revolution, only to crush it when they're at their most desperate. It will make them think that challenging the Great Empire was an impossible task."
It's quite a ruthless plan.
However, that's the fate of a vassal nation, as they say.
"Now, General, what reason will we give for the refusal? We have to respond to the messenger who brought the letter, right?"
"If it were an external enemy, it'd be different, but you can handle internal turmoil on your own. Just reply like that."
"Understood. I'll do just that."
The subordinate left the room.
***
"Reinforcements rejected? What does that mean?"
"I apologize, Your Highness. They insisted that we should handle our own internal turmoil."
"Nonsense! That's precisely the purpose of having a garrison. We have abandoned the control of our army and entrusted its defense to the Great Empire. For that, we pay considerable tribute. What good is it if they won't act when needed?"
"The Great Empire's army is meant to protect the country from external enemies. They won't budge on this point."
"Nonsense! ... No, there's no point in getting angry at you. I'm sorry."
In a room within the royal palace of Eldorado Kingdom, there was the study of the First Prince, Lotus. The current king is already old, and more than half of the royal duties are carried out by Lotus. This hints that Lotus is the future king.
There's also the Fourth Prince, Medline, as a candidate, but he is still studying governance and hasn't put it into practice.
"Do we have no choice but to use the guard to suppress the Revolutionary Army?"
"We can also ask the guild of mage-knights we've established for help."
"But the guild is a private organization. Depending on the payment, they might switch sides. The Revolutionary Army controls half of our country and has considerable resources. It seems they are also popular among the people. It's quite troublesome."
"Yes... If they were just regular bandits, we could have sought help from the Great Empire. After all, we can't call the rebels external enemies. However, it's painful that the leader of the Revolutionary Army, the former Third Prince Reinvard, has been publicly revealed."
"Indeed. My younger brother is causing us trouble again."
The revolutionary army "Rebellion" had publicly revealed the identity of its leader while dominating the eastern half of the Eldorado Kingdom. His name was Reinvald Cain Richthar, the third prince of the Eldorado Kingdom and a legitimate heir.
This revolution was considered a decisive blow against the tyrannical rule of the rightful heir, not a rebellion.
The Subarokia Grand Empire labeled the activities of the revolutionary army "Rebellion" as internal strife.
"...The headquarters of the revolutionary army 'Rebellion' is in the city of Iliesta, right?"
"As Your Highness says."
"Can we send spies to that city? Gather information and perhaps assassinate... no, I mean, take down the traitor Reinvald?"
"It would be impossible for ordinary assassins. It seems some nobles from our faction have already sent infiltrators, but they haven't achieved any results. In fact, I heard that some of them were assassinated instead."
"What? I haven't heard such a thing!"
"I just received this information. Apparently, a couple of nobles, Viscount Palm and Count Gerrick, were found dead this morning."
"Those two... well, I don't really care if they're dead. They were close to my heir, so there shouldn't be much damage."
"Yes, that's why I was planning to report it later."
Lotus sighed while assuring everything was fine.
"Well, whatever. If those stubborn old fools are gone, it's a huge benefit for me. If you can bring me the bothersome Duke Colons' head, that would be even better. Hahaha."
"No, Your Highness, that's going too far."
The subordinate who cowered in front of Lotus was his childhood friend, the Duke Colons, who was the younger brother of the current king and, from Lotus's perspective, an old fool who relentlessly sought power. Both of them laughed together at the dark joke, thinking no one was listening.
However, there was one person who heard it all.
"It's an interesting story."
Upon hearing the voice from the window, Lotus froze. His childhood friend quickly drew his sword and moved to protect Lotus.
A man was sitting at the window, his face hidden under a hood, and a leather bag slung over his shoulder. The aura he exuded was anything but ordinary.
"Who are you!"
Lotus stood up and drew his sword. Though his swordsmanship was mediocre, it was better than nothing. He was about to call for the guards, but the man sitting by the window acted faster.
"Sorry, but please don't make a fuss."
Lotus was surprised by the instantaneous deployment of a magic circle without chanting. But he had no time to be astonished and shouted again.
"Someone! We have an intruder!"
However, no one entered the room despite guards stationed at the entrance and a few more in the adjacent room. There was no way they couldn't hear him.
"It's futile. I'm using magic to block the sound."
"Your Highness, step back."
"...You're brave, your subordinate."
The man sitting at the window revealed the bag he carried on his shoulder, as if displaying it conspicuously. Then he spoke again.
"This is a gift."
With that said, he threw the bag, and upon landing on the carpet, it made a dull thud. It seemed to contain something quite heavy. From the way the bag rolled, it appeared to be a spherical object.
(What is this...?)
Lotus observed the fallen bag on the carpet. As he looked, the bag shook, and a cluster of white fur rolled out from it, emitting a foul smell.
On closer inspection, it turned out to be a human head.
"Th-This is Duke Colons' head!?"
"It looks like it, Your Highness... it looks like the real deal."
The subordinate who heard the shocking news turned to look out of the window instinctively. And indeed, he confirmed that it was the head of Duke Colons.
The Duke was a relative of the king and was heavily guarded. The fact that the assassin could easily dispose of him meant that the man sitting at the window was a formidable assassin. This realization frightened Lotus.
The "Death God," an infamous assassin renowned even in the Grand Empire. A top-ranking member of the dark organization known as the "Black Cat," he was said to bring death to all his targets without exception.
The Death God had supposedly killed the second prince, Linvald, the first princess, Lushana, and the second princess, Wirus, as well. Lotus suddenly felt a chill.
For the Death God, there was no such thing as a weakly guarded small country. He could strike at any moment.
"...I want to shut myself in."
"Your true nature is showing, Your Highness."
It might not be entirely wrong for someone to call Lotus a small-minded individual.