Chapter 221

- The sacred Margrave of Bellua of the kingdom has stopped the Holy Empire Emperor’s invasion of the kingdom’s eastern region, a traditional powerhouse! -

- It was more than just stopping them. The Holy Empire Emperor’s army was effectively shattered. Count Steffen was captured, and the commander-in-chief was killed in action, they say.

The rumors spread with astonishing speed.

News of the Margrave of Bellua’s victory, a figure who had now become a frequent topic of gossip and idle chatter—no, a new sacred figure—once again delivered a tremendous shock to the political world.

The first time could have been dismissed as coincidence. But when coincidence repeated itself, it became skill. Unlike before, the Holy Empire Emperor had not personally taken the field this time, but the expeditionary force he sent was composed of highly influential lords from within the Holy Empire.

And yet, they had not even crossed half of eastern Elang before being defeated by the Margrave of Bellua.

He had now proven with his own hands that he was a force that could no longer be ignored.

But the shock did not end there.

There was also the salvation of the Duchy of Aquitaine.

- The Margrave of Bellua, who drove out the Holy Empire Emperor from the eastern region, has defeated Crown Prince Charles I in the Duchy of Aquitaine! -

- Crown Prince Charles I abandoned his troops and fled like a drenched dog! -

Overwhelmed by the momentum of the pursuing Margrave of Bellua, Crown Prince Charles I had panicked and been forced into a miserable retreat. It was nothing less than smearing filth over the honor he had built up over the years.

- S-should we try to align ourselves with the Margrave of Bellua, even now?

- What should we do? But we are provincial officials appointed by His Majesty the King….

- Has His Majesty not been dead for a long time already? We have to survive on our own, at least. We must choose a new master quickly….

As a result, the minds of the provincial officials dispatched to manage the former king’s directly-managed lands in the central and southern regions of the Elang Kingdom became deeply tangled.

Until now, they had followed Crown Prince Charles I, the legitimate heir, in name at least. But with the situation having turned out this way, there was neither reason nor value in continuing to do so.

To make matters worse, peasant rebel forces were still establishing power everywhere. On top of that, the surrounding lords were constantly eyeing the directly-managed lands.

Finding a new and powerful patron to protect their jurisdictions had become their highest priority.

And the confusion brought about by this shift in the balance of power was not limited to them alone.

“What? The Margrave of Bellua has won?”

“Yes. It is said that he blocked both the Holy Empire Emperor’s invasion in the east and Crown Prince Charles I’s incursion in the southern Aquitaine region, Your Grace.”

“Hoo….”

From the perspective of the Duke of Bourgogne, who was still waging war against the Western Nobles’ Alliance while straddling the kingdom’s capital, this was no different.

They had yet to bring their own situation under control, yet the Margrave of Bellua—who could, in a sense, be called a rival—had effectively resolved all the crises placed before him.

If this continued, they would be unable to restrain the Margrave of Bellua after he secured the entire southern region.

“We have to check him, even now! Father!”

As if he had read the Duke of Bourgogne’s thoughts, the eldest son, Charles, shouted confidently. Though his position as heir had become precarious due to numerous missteps, he had accumulated countless military merits during the war against the Western Nobles’ Alliance.

He wanted nothing more than to seize this opportunity to further win his father’s favor and solidify his position.

“They say the bear does the work while the merchant takes the money. We must lodge a strong protest at once and join hands with the nations behind us. If we leave the Margrave of Bellua alone like this, he will expand his power beyond control while we are tied down, Father.”

He was trying, in his own way, to spin his head and produce a stratagem, dressing it up with a fairly plausible justification.

Of course, it was not an answer that satisfied the Duke of Bourgogne.

“Hmmm….”

After listening to his eldest son’s words, the Duke of Bourgogne pondered for a moment before turning his head toward his second son, Lord Gertman.

“What do you think?”

“My thoughts, you ask?”

“Yes. Your brother Charles says we must become enemies with the Margrave of Bellua. Do you agree?”

At the Duke of Bourgogne’s probing question, Lord Gertman swallowed nervously and opened his mouth with care.

“I believe we must do so as well, Your Grace.”

“Hm. Do you?”

“Yes. We may be allies now, but is that not the nature of alliances, to turn their backs at any time?”

At those words, the eldest Charles’s expression turned smug. At last, even his younger brother had bowed his head and acknowledged him.

But the words that followed forced the eldest Charles to twist his face in frustration.

“However, I cannot agree with the method.”

“W-what? You little…!”

He had openly opposed the eldest Charles’s stratagem.

“Silence! Where did you learn to raise your voice before me?”

“I-I am sorry, Father… no, Your Grace.”

“Very well. Then speak. What method do you propose?”

Once again, Lord Gertman realized that he had been placed on the testing stand.

His continued closeness with the Margrave of Bellua.

It seemed that this did not suit his father’s tastes. To question him this persistently was, in effect, to demand a choice.

The family.

Or the desires of an individual.

If it were the eldest Charles, who was fuming beside him, he would have chosen one blindly. But the second son, Lord Gertman, was different.

“There is nothing to gain from provoking the Margrave of Bellua directly, Your Grace.”

“Oh? And why is that?”

“Because the Margrave of Bellua is already not someone we can restrain at will. Moreover, every power capable of checking him is friendly toward him.”

“Being friendly does not mean they cannot take our hand. They, too, would not wish to have a powerful neighbor.”

It was a reasonable argument, but Lord Gertman could not back down here. Shaking his head, he replied.

“But it is uncertain. And among them may be people aligned with the Margrave of Bellua. We do not know when or how our secret talks might leak to his side. When that happens, we will have crossed a river from which there is no return.”

“Then are you saying we should continue being friendly with the Margrave of Bellua? Do nothing at all? Then your claim that we must check him becomes a contradiction.”

“Surely you do not think that is what I mean.”

“T-that is right! This brat keeps spouting nonsense!”

Seizing the moment, the eldest Charles shouted. But the second son, Lord Gertman, merely shrugged, unfazed.

“There is no need to act only in ways that are visible. Is not an unseen blade more lethal and dangerous?”

“You speak well enough, but do you have a method? An unseen blade is not so easily forged.”

“Then we must make the Margrave of Bellua completely let down his guard.”

“Oh?”

At last, the Duke of Bourgogne’s eyes gleamed. It seemed that a stratagem fitting his tastes—and closely aligned with the duchy’s long-standing governance—was finally emerging. Encouraged by that reaction, Lord Gertman continued with renewed confidence.

“Send a congratulatory envoy to the Margrave of Bellua. Promise him vast funds and rights to the northeastern trade routes. At the same time, issue an edict, under your regency authority, recognizing the Margrave of Bellua’s rights over the southeastern region.”

“W-what nonsense is this! Father!”

“No. Even if we open the northeastern trade routes, the taxes will end up in our pockets anyway. The more they are activated, the greater our wealth becomes. As for recognizing his rights over the southeastern region, the Margrave already holds authority to defend that area by virtue of his title. It is nothing more than reaffirming rights that already exist.”

In effect, it would benefit the Duchy of Bourgogne while offering the Margrave of Bellua nothing more than empty praise.

“So… you are saying we should grant him what is already his, as if we are doing him a favor?”

The Duke of Bourgogne could not have failed to grasp that.

“That is correct, Your Grace. And once that happens, the Margrave of Bellua will let down his guard.”

“I can understand that much, but how do we check him then? It could end up merely solidifying his position over the southern region.”

“We still have one more card to play.”

“A card?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

At the Duke of Bourgogne’s questioning look, Lord Gertman nodded.

“Crown Prince Charles I, who still holds the central region. Though his power has weakened after his defeat, he is no easy opponent. If we support him, he will quickly recover his strength and continue to entangle the Margrave of Bellua for a long time.”

“Haha…. But Crown Prince Charles I must be grinding his teeth at us. Will he really join hands with us?”

“Did you not say earlier that there are no eternal alliances? Then there are no eternal enemies either. And….”

As he spoke, Lord Gertman swallowed.

Then he met his father’s gaze directly and continued.

“The current king has no son, does he? If we promise Crown Prince Charles I the position of Crown Prince as the king’s new adopted son, he will have no reason to refuse.”

“?!”

“!!!”

It was a truly shocking stratagem. To make Crown Prince again the very man they had driven out with their own hands.

It sounded utterly absurd.

And yet, that shocking stratagem fit the Duke of Bourgogne’s tastes perfectly.

“Ahahahaha. Yes. Yes. Excellent. Truly excellent.”

Divide and manage.

And if the opponent is strong, ally when necessary and bring him down.

It was a superb stratagem that revived the very traditions of the Duchy of Bourgogne.

---

While such conspiracies were taking root and flourishing.

“Hmmm. So you are saying… my kiss is necessary?”

I was suffering from a rather absurd predicament.

“Yes, that is right. Now that I look at it, it was poison mixed with mystery. I neutralized all the toxicity, but because of the curse’s mystery, she has not awakened. I heard that Your Excellency carries mystery through divine favor…. I thought that if you kissed her, that grace might be passed on. Hohoho.”

“…….”

What on earth was she talking about?

My head throbbed.

This was not Sleeping Beauty. Why did I have to wake her with a kiss?

I looked to Magician Agpiel, trying to grasp the truth.

But.

“She is not wrong. A kiss is akin to a powerful mystery of covenant. You possess a blessing granted by divine protection, so it should be possible to share it through a kiss. There is a reason people kiss at weddings. Heh heh.”

Rather than refuting her, Magician Agpiel only confirmed that Azuela was correct.

And that meant.

“Do I really have to do this?”

“Why, do you dislike the idea? We could request that the Holy See dispatch clergy to resolve the curse, but it would take quite some time. And in the meantime, the Duchy of Aquitaine would fall into considerable chaos.”

“For reference, the right of succession in the Duchy of Aquitaine belongs to Crown Prince Charles I, whom you drove out. If the rumors spread, Aquitaine will become a complete mess in an instant. The Kingdom of Catalia would start moving again as well.”

“Guh….”

It was no different from being told that I had no choice.

In the end, with a sigh, I had no option but to head to the room where Her Grace, Duchess of Aquitaine Maceania, was resting.