122 - The Resilience of Small Nations
The capital of the Kingdom of Aria. Upon arriving there, Sieg was left stunned by the latest information. Leading the soldiers of an occupied nation to invade another country without the permission of the state was an action that, by Sieg's common sense, was impossible. Yet, Fumiya had carried it out.
It was not simply a matter of ignoring the orders of Sieg, the commander-in-chief. No official decision had been made regarding the invasion of the Kingdom of Lydia. Even if an invasion were to happen eventually, Fumiya's actions at this moment ignored the intentions of the state. From Sieg's perspective, it was an unforgivable outrage.
"...Why did no one stop him?"
Once he had calmed his feelings slightly, Sieg questioned the remaining knights.
"Our sincerest apologies. However, we never imagined the Hero would take such an action."
Even if they had wanted to stop him, they had not known he would act in the first place. That was the knight's excuse. He was not lying. Fumiya had decided on his own, without consulting anyone, and had begun to move on his own.
"Even so, should you not have been paying attention to the Hero's movements? He is, by right, in a position where he should be under house arrest."
Sieg was not satisfied with the excuse of not knowing. The fact that they had failed to grasp Fumiya's movements was also a problem.
"We were told that until a formal judgment was handed down, we must fulfill our duties."
It was a plausible reason. However, what Fumiya had done was not a duty.
"...So he was a man capable of such cunning."
A fool with nothing but combat power. Sieg reflected that his evaluation of Fumiya had been wrong. It was too late for that now.
"...The invasion seems to be progressing smoothly."
"Do you believe that if the result is good, it will be forgiven?"
"N-no..."
The knight did not believe so. But Fumiya undoubtedly did. He would achieve military merits sufficient to silence those around him. Furthermore, he was attempting to obtain the power necessary to do exactly that.
"...Why did you move the army without permission?"
Blaming the knights further would solve nothing. Sieg turned his focus toward the King of Aria.
"Asking me is pointless. Military authority should reside with your country."
The Kingdom of Aria had been granted autonomy, but it had absolutely no authority regarding military affairs. To prevent rebellions, such power had been stripped away.
"...Are you saying the Kingdom of Aria's army ignored their own king and followed the Hero's orders?"
Sieg believed that could not be the case. He believed that no one, even knights of another nation, would perform such a complete about-face.
"Exactly. I received no report whatsoever."
"Can you prove that?"
"Proof of a non-existence? Do you not know how unreasonable a request that is? If you demand that, then first you should show evidence that I was involved."
He was not saying anything wrong. Still, to Sieg, it sounded like an excuse.
"...What if I asked you to recall the army?"
"I would answer that I have no such authority."
"I see..."
The King of Aria had no intention of stopping the invasion of the Kingdom of Lydia. That much was clear. The problem was the reason, and an answer regarding that would almost certainly not be obtained easily. If that were the case, there was something to be done before then.
"Inform the home country of this fact immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
First, he would convey this shocking fact to the home country. Sieg believed that the Hero could not be allowed to escape without punishment.
"Send a messenger to the Hero as well. Tell him to stop the army immediately and surrender himself."
"...Yes, sir."
The knight did not believe Fumiya would obediently listen even if told. If he had been honest in following orders, the invasion of the Kingdom of Lydia would not have happened.
"Just convey it regardless. The more he ignores it, the more the fact of his violation of military orders increases."
The heavier the crime would become. There was no need for the power of a Hero. Sieg had clearly made up his mind.
◇◇◇
Fumiya was not considering the fact that his actions were becoming a major problem in the rear. Even if he were, his actions would not change. Fumiya's way of thinking was to cancel out his crimes with achievements. If he knew it was becoming a problem, his movements would only become more aggressive.
The success Fumiya had found in the Kingdom of Aria and the smoothness of the invasion of the Kingdom of Lydia were further increasing his confidence.
"...Surrender?"
"Yes. Don't you think there's no need to needlessly increase the number of victims any further?"
In the Kingdom of Lydia, Fumiya was attempting to employ the same method as in the Kingdom of Aria. He intended to repeat a successful method. It was not strange.
"Is that not the same for your side as well?"
"That's true. But the number of victims that will increase is different. There is no benefit to the Kingdom of Lydia in continuing the fight like this."
The Kingdom of Aria's army led by Fumiya had demonstrated overwhelming power. While the number of casualties was not small, they were forcing many times more sacrifices upon the Kingdom of Lydia's army.
"You make it sound as if there is a benefit to surrendering."
While showing an attitude of not being keen on surrender, the Lydia side was attempting to probe the conditions of surrender. The invasion by the Laurel Kingdom had been anticipated as something that would happen eventually. As had the result of defeat.
Naturally, the option of surrender existed for the Kingdom of Lydia. The only problem was the conditions.
"There is a benefit. First, the victims will not increase any further. If you surrender early, autonomy will be recognized."
"Autonomy, you say?"
The retention of autonomy was a condition that piqued the interest of the Lydia side.
"Yes. Autonomy was recognized in the Kingdom of Aria. There's no reason it wouldn't be recognized in the Kingdom of Lydia, right?"
Because Fumiya had conducted negotiations on his own, it had been grudgingly accepted. However, such a fact was irrelevant to Fumiya. This was the same as with the Kingdom of Aria. He was attempting to create a fait accompli.
"Could you tell us what the surrender conditions for the Kingdom of Aria were?"
"Ah, sure. It's not something to hide."
It was something to hide. Because the same surrender conditions were not recognized for every occupied nation.
"The current regime was maintained, and autonomy was recognized. No military authority. The army becomes part of the Laurel Kingdom. Also, hostages are necessary. We will decide who the hostages will be."
"...To what extent is the regime maintained?"
"I can't say that clearly. I guess I can say the King remains as is? Of course, that comes with the condition that he is cooperative."
"That would be only natural."
There was no way they would give authority to a rebellious king. That was not a problem. No matter what they thought internally, they only had to behave in a way that seemed obedient.
"The point at which you accept surrender also affects the judgment of whether you are cooperative."
So surrender quickly. That is what Fumiya was saying.
"...After confirming all the conditions, we will seek His Majesty's judgment. You mentioned no military authority, but what happens to domestic security?"
Even if it were small-scale. Could they maintain a military organization that moved by their own nation's will? That was the meaning of the question.
"That's also the Laurel Kingdom's responsibility. I wonder if we'll create a police organization common to the Empire?"
Fumiya had no intention of allowing that. He had no authority to allow it. This statement was merely a whim.
"Empire... the Laurel Kingdom intends to call itself an Empire."
"The one who reigns above a king is an emperor. A country of an emperor is an empire, right?"
"...I suppose."
The Empire was also Fumiya's whim. However, even if it were a whim, it was not a problem for the negotiations. He thought it might provoke other great powers, but it had no direct relation to the surrender of the Kingdom of Lydia.
"The core of that organization might become the current Kingdom of Lydia's army."
"What does that mean?"
They could not simply rejoice at sweet words. Depending on these conditions, the future of the nation might be decided.
"I have led the Kingdom of Aria's army. If you surrender, I intend to incorporate the Kingdom of Lydia's army in the same way and carry out the battles ahead."
"As a domestic security force?"
"Not that, but if you become part of the Imperial Army early, you can achieve that many more military merits. If you achieve military merits, your status in the army rises. That's how it is."
The upper echelons of the military organization could be occupied by people from the Kingdom of Aria and the Kingdom of Lydia. That is what Fumiya was saying.
"...There must be a limit to that. There's no way the military officials of the Laurel Kingdom would allow it."
There was no way the Laurel Kingdom would allow such a thing. The upper echelons of the military organization should be occupied entirely by people from the Laurel Kingdom.
"After surrendering, the people of the Kingdom of Lydia are also subjects of the Empire. The treatment should be the same. No, I will make it so."
"...You will?"
"Yes. I have achieved great military merits in this war. I will achieve even greater merits from here on. My status in the army will undoubtedly rise."
"...That may be so."
The Hero had ambition. That might be in conflict with the interests of the current upper echelons of the Laurel Kingdom's army. That might be a gap the Kingdom of Lydia's army could exploit. That is what the Lydia side thought.
"I want the people of the Kingdom of Aria and the Kingdom of Lydia to be the core of the army I lead. Since I think so, that's how it will be."
"Is it your intention to give opportunities for promotion even to those of occupied nations? For the side being occupied, that is a good story."
They did not know how it would actually turn out, but they judged that it was better to keep Fumiya in a good mood for now.
"If we don't make it such a country, the territory will only expand while the contents remain fragmented. That won't do."
"I see, I see. You are exactly right."
Perhaps he was an easy person to handle. The Lydia side began to form such an evaluation of Fumiya.
"So? Will you surrender?"
"As I mentioned before, it will be His Majesty's judgment. Also... I am curious as to who you are considering as hostages."
"That... will be judged depending on the situation."
Fumiya did not know what kind of people were in the Kingdom of Lydia. Naturally, he did not know their appearances. He could not name anyone on the spot.
"By the way, who was the hostage in the Kingdom of Aria?"
"Princess Lianna."
"...The princess, not the Crown Prince?"
This was unexpected. They had thought that if hostages were to be taken, it would be the Crown Prince, the successor. The Kingdom of Lydia did not understand the purpose of the hostages Fumiya spoke of. There was no way they could.
"The value of a hostage differs depending on the king. In the Kingdom of Aria, it was judged that Princess Lianna was best."
Fumiya did not go out of his way to explain that.
"I see..."
The Kingdom of Lydia had no recognition that the King of Aria specially doted on Princess Lianna. At the very least, they did not think she surpassed the Crown Prince in value as a hostage.
"Besides, the Crown Prince is still young. It would be pitiful to tear a young child away from their mother."
Seeing that the opponent's reaction was poor, Fumiya gave a further reason. Naturally, it was a lie.
"...I see. So that was the case."
The Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Aria, as known to the Kingdom of Lydia, was not so young that he could not be separated from his parents. He was Princess Lianna's older brother.
They immediately understood who Fumiya was referring to as the Crown Prince. If it was a young child, it was the second son, who was a few years younger than the top two. Then what had happened to the original Crown Prince? The Kingdom of Lydia judged that they should investigate. Without Fumiya knowing.
"Is there anything else you want to ask?"
"...First, I will report the conditions I have just heard. If there are additional things I wish to ask, I will send a messenger each time."
"I don't have time to wait leisurely, though?"
This was a fact. Fumiya wanted to make the Kingdom of Lydia surrender promptly. In order to obtain power sufficient to let no one complain. For that, he could not allow the intervention of the Laurel Kingdom's army at this point.
"I understand. We have no intention of delaying the decision either. If the talk from before is true."
"Of course it's true."
"If so, it will be a good result for both of us. Ah, this is just a monologue."
The messenger of the Kingdom of Lydia hinted at the acceptance of the surrender recommendation. It was not an attempt to deceive Fumiya. The Kingdom of Lydia had thought from the beginning that even if they were to lose, they wanted to choose the best way to lose. The conditions Fumiya presented were considered to be that best way of losing.
Even if they lost here, it was not the end. There were multiple countries on the continent with the power to oppose the Laurel Kingdom. What would be the conclusion of the battle between those great powers? Until that could be seen, they would preserve their own nation's power as much as possible. This was a common thought among small nations.
So that they could rise when the great powers fought each other and were both greatly wounded. Small nations had not given up on surviving after this turmoil ended.
◇◇◇
The King of Laurel returned to the royal capital. He would soon receive information about a further major problem from Sieg, but since he did not know that now, what troubled the King's head the most was Crown Prince Neil.
To speak openly. He had decided that, but he did not know how to make Crown Prince Neil speak openly. He could not think of a way to probe for it.
The method the troubled King chose was to rely on the Queen. If he could not speak to him as the King, then to the Queen. The reason for choosing her was simple.
"...His Majesty seems to be troubled by something. Do you have any idea why?"
The Queen, who had been asked, was perplexed. There had been no detailed explanation of the circumstances from the King; he had simply told her that he seemed to have some dissatisfaction, so she should talk to him.
"...What happened to my older sister?"
"I heard she was doing well."
"...I see."
Even after confirming Princess Ekaterina's safety, there was no guarantee that his mother's words were the truth. Not that she was lying, but there was a high possibility that she did not know the facts.
"I wonder if her feelings have calmed down since she's been living in a quiet place?"
"Perhaps."
"I want to go see her too, but..."
"Are you not going?"
"I was told not to go immediately. If that's the case, it would have been nice if you had brought her along this time."
"I see..."
His father was trying to hide Princess Ekaterina's death. His mother's story was content that could be doubted if one wished to doubt it.
"Are you still angry?"
"Eh?"
"About Ekaterina. I think it was her fault for saying various things that were true and untrue, but isn't that a mutual thing?"
The Queen believed the current relationship between Crown Prince Neil and Princess Ekaterina was the result of a sibling quarrel. While the content was quite vicious, she believed that was essentially what it was.
"...I am not particularly angry."
"Then will Neil go see her too?"
"...If I can go."
He would not forgive not only the King, but also Princess Ekaterina. That is what Crown Prince Neil was thinking.
"You two used to get along so well. Things become difficult when you reach a certain age, don't they?"
"Mother, my older sister... no, it's nothing."
His mother had been told nothing. However, Crown Prince Neil accepted that this was unavoidable. If she knew, his mother would surely be hurt. He thought so. But that was because he did not understand the existence of a mother.
"...Do you perhaps know?"
"...Know what?"
"About the child."
"Ah..."
From this reaction, the Queen judged that Crown Prince Neil knew of the child's existence.
"So you intended to hide it from me? I am the mother, you know? Do you think I wouldn't notice a change in my daughter?"
"...If you knew, then why?"
Why had she done nothing? That was a mystery to Crown Prince Neil.
"That child decided for herself as a mother and took action on her own. I simply respected that."
It was not that she had done nothing. It was that there was nothing she needed to do.
"...Were you not opposed?"
"Even if I opposed it, the child would not disappear. Besides, Ekaterina chose to live as a woman, not as a princess. As a fellow mother, I can understand those feelings."
"As a woman...?"
"If you weren't royalty, I'm sure you two could have remained siblings who got along well. As a mother, I wanted to see you like that."
If one did not care about the appearances of royalty, one could rejoice that a child was born. Even if there were a problem with the partner, if the daughter was happy about it, a mother would want to support her. The Queen conveyed this to Crown Prince Neil in a different way.
"...I cannot live like my older sister."
Living as a woman was not permitted for Crown Prince Neil.
"That is the path you chose for yourself. You did not relinquish the position of Crown Prince. It was your decision, wasn't it?"
"...You say things similar to him."
"Him? Could it be, that him?"
The Queen immediately noticed that "him" referred to Ray.
"Probably, that him."
"I see... what did he say?"
"That the position of Crown Prince was something I desired myself. If so, I have no choice but to live as a king."
In reality, although the words were similar, the nuance was different. That is what Crown Prince Neil thought.
"...That's true. You will eventually become king. As a king, you must fulfill your responsibilities as a husband. You cannot say you dislike that now. I can do nothing about this."
"That's true..."
"Fortunately, you are fine with both men and women. Though I think you're a bit too energetic."
"...I'm sorry."
An unexpected point from his mother. Completely caught off guard, Crown Prince Neil could do nothing but apologize honestly.
"...Neil. This is not something to be said many times. I think it is something that should not be said."
"...Yes."
His mother's atmosphere suddenly changed to one of formality. Crown Prince Neil's heart, anxious about what she would say, stiffened with tension.
"These are the words of a wife. Since you were born into the royal family, unwanted marriages are a matter of course. Therefore, you must accept that. You must not make the person who becomes your wife feel lonely. Do you understand?"
"...Yes. I believe I understand."
As someone who would become king, he could not avoid taking a wife. Creating a successor was also a duty as a king. Crown Prince Neil understood at least that much.
"If you cannot love your wife as a man, love her as a human being."
"...Eh?"
The meaning of the words the Queen spoke. Thinking about it, Crown Prince Neil's heart trembled.
"Is this what you are troubled by?"
"...How?"
His mother knew. Crown Prince Neil understood that clearly.
"Even if I am not always by your side, a mother sees through everything when it comes to her children. Besides, you, and His Majesty as well, do not understand. The master of the inner castle is not His Majesty, but me. You cannot keep secrets from me in the inner palace."
"............"
"I do not understand your feelings. But I understand the feeling of being troubled. I can listen to you. So, please do not do any more strange things because of that. Also, absolutely do not tell His Majesty. Do you promise?"
"...Are you alright, Mother?"
"Alright... yes. When I first thought it might be the case, I was terribly shaken. But you know. You are my child. The feeling of loving my child does not change. Once I realized that, I was alright."
Words simply as a parent, regardless of titles. Without knowing what Ray had wanted to tell the King, the Queen was putting it into practice.
"............"
"One more thing. To a parent, a child is a child no matter how old they get. I won't laugh just because you cry, you know?"
"Mother..."
Crown Prince Neil buried his face in his mother's chest. How long had it been since he had acted spoiled toward his mother like this? When that thought came to mind, embarrassment also welled up, but that embarrassment had a different meaning when it was toward his mother.
The feelings that had been weighing on his chest for a long time. Crown Prince Neil was grateful that the person he could vent them to was his mother.