Slightly to the east of the royal palace—the central congress hall, set up as a temporary governing body, looked brand-new, standing out against the other buildings in Aureatia.
Aureatia was the biggest metropolis and bore the crown of minia-kind's last remaining monarchy, but the core of the city's politics, in essence, lay not with the monarchy but instead were handled by twenty-nine bureaucrats who had long defended the city from the threat of the True Demon King.
Holding one of these limited positions was the Twentieth Minister, Hidow the Clamp, who came off both in appearance and attitude as the insolent young son of the nobility. Nevertheless, he had quick wits worthy of his position, and the young man commanded a certain degree of popularity.
"—I've heard about Lithia," Hidow began, unreservedly grabbing smoked meat from atop the plate in front of him. He still kept his hat while seated at a one-on-one dinner within the central congress hall.
"Their general is Taren the Punished, after all. Whether through negotiation or full-on assault, this isn't something that'll be cleanly dealt with overnight. Can't we be a bit more patient with this attack?"
"The reason we're talking right now is because that option's no longer on the table."
"Really now."
Hidow looked up. The man sitting across from him was a civil servant with a razor-sharp and shrewd demeanor. The small pair of glasses he always wore and his forehead, always creased in displeasure, would likely remain unchanged until the day the kingdom finally fell.
The Third Minister of Aureatia was known as Jelki the Swift Ink. He was more than ten years older than Hidow, but the Twenty-Nine Officials, on paper at least, all shared the same position, in spite of whatever rank they held.
Jelki pushed up the bridge of his glasses.
"...The Imperial Competition to decide the Hero will likely be an
undertaking greater than any other we've had before. We can't alter these arrangements. Nevertheless, handling the New Principality of Lithia, who still openly defies Aureatia, is the matter of greatest concern when it comes to uniting the world under one banner. We can't waste time developing plots or levying economic sanctions to tear our enemy down… I believe the New Principality is aware of this themselves and is taking a hard-line attitude because of it."
"What's left, war? You can't be serious, Jelki."
"An absolute last resort, of course. We already depleted so many of our national resources on the True Demon King—we can't afford to expend any more. That's all the more when taking into account the forces expended in the Imperial Competition. However, the same is not true for the New Principality."
A wyvern army, the only one of its kind. Sellswords of unknown origin hired on as extra security, scouted from far and wide.
These developments made it clear that the New Principality of Lithia was making moves to prepare for an upcoming war. Aureatia's reluctance for renewed conflict made this, to the kingdom's enemies, the perfect time to attack. If the principality's current activities continued to be overlooked, even with superior national strength, Aureatia would be forced to endure tremendous sacrifices.
"Using raiders to attack their trade isn't gonna be enough to get it done in the end, is it? Is there a more fundamental solution?"
"…I think the New Principality has a number of structural weaknesses. One is the government being built around Taren the Punished as the sole power. Still a young nation, they haven't managed to properly train government officials and successors."
"Ha-ha, seems like we're on the same page here—a small number of assassins, sent after Taren."
"Avoiding war being paramount, we can't allow a large-scale commitment of troops. Furthermore, if we are going to plan this on our end, it will have to be done in secret. Do you think that's possible, Hidow?"
"I see what you're getting at. In my opinion, there's another exception to add in there."
Hidow skewered a selection of roasted vegetables on his fork.
"If they attack us first, then we're free to attack them head-on, right?"
"I actively want to avoid any methods that would harm the people.
Postwar cleanup costs money."
"I know. We need to think up a way to get through the New Principality's impregnable defenses, with as minimum a force on the front lines as possible, and take Taren's head directly. Is the Seventeenth Minister's…Elea's assassin squad already working on it?"
Hidow, in part because of his youth, was not in a position among the Twenty-Nine Officials to have control over a specific division of his own. However, among the twenty-nine, there were some who bore responsibility for divisions dedicated to assassination and espionage.
"Her spies have been undercover in the city for quite some time. As for the Seventeenth Minister herself…she's investigating another matter of equally grave importance. If we wait to start our operations until she returns, it will already be too late. As for subduing their wyverns, that duty falls under the Sixth General Harghent's forces' specialty, but—"
"No, you don't have to tell me; I know. Better to have Old Man Harghent stuck doing something else anyway."
"I feel the same way. He's currently forming a dragon subjugation force." "A dragon…? Obviously not possible. The fool."
Hidow spit out a laugh bordering on a deep sigh.
The Sixth General was clearly on the decline. His efforts weren't wanted for the operation to begin with.
"So now it's being passed to me, then?"
Additionally, the remaining two—both Hidow and Elea—were the youngest and the most prominent among the Twenty-Nine Officials. Youth also meant they had not accrued many public accomplishments to their names.
Bringing the New Principality of Lithia to its knees would surely give them sway during the upcoming Imperial Competition to decide the Hero. Additionally, the Third Minister Jelki was currently distancing himself from Seventeenth Minister Elea, and Hidow could see that Jelki didn't seem keen on giving her any credit.
Hidow the Clamp didn't crave these achievements or authoritative power. In fact, he thought that raising his status any higher than it was now would only bring him more trouble.
…That said, if I'm going to push my ideas forward, this is the time.
He glanced sidelong at Jelki's glasses, reflecting the evening sun.
"It's fine if whoever I use isn't officially involved with Aureatia, right?" "…I'll leave it to your discretion as much as I can. Who do you plan on
using?"
"You say assassin, but that doesn't mean it has to be a cloak-and-dagger affair. For example, having the target get caught in a big accident is a possibility, too. As long as it doesn't get traced back to us."
This was a complex and dangerous matter, where failure was absolutely not an option and where he, as the younger man, would need to take sole responsibility. From a certain perspective, that was all there was to it.
However, Hidow understood this was how political tides moved.
Before he had been called to meet that day, Hidow had already been searching nonstop for the most suitable asset to handle the current situation. The state of affairs meant a normally unthinkable and dangerous solution was the most optimal…
"Ready the Vortical Stampede."