Chapter 136
Chapter 136 – Sidestory ~Another Battlefield~ part 1
Let’s shift the story to another place for a bit…
Inside the Grants government office, George was handling various documents at a horrifying speed .
Meanwhile, around him were many office workers collapsing on their tables due to exhaustion .
[Please…please reduce the workload…]
[Home…I wanna go home…]
Responding to such wailings, George said,
[What are you people talking about? Our Lord is currently fighting with his life on the line at the north . Shouldn’t you all feel ashamed for giving up that easily?]
Then he placed another stack of papers on their desks .
[Now, we’ll truly finish after these stacks, alright? There is no time for idling away . I could really use the extra help at the moment . ]
(Ah… . . I’m going to die, am I?)
The officials looked on with empty eyes .
It was when George returned to his desk that someone barged into the office .
[George-sama, reporting! Apparently, there are three messengers dispatched from the capital . Therefore, Cornelisama would like to ask for George-sama’s opinion on this . ]
[Ah…they came again, don’t they? I guess there is no other choice but to see them personally, huh…]
George muttered as he rose from his chair .
[Alright, everyone . I’ll be heading out to meet Cornelisama . Perhaps, I will not come back for the next few days… no, maybe a few months if things went awry…]
(Ah, finally we can rest… . )
A flicker of hope was ignited in the officials’ eyes .
[Until I return, I want all the documents to be sorted out, ones that are already in this office, the upcoming ones, and inside this room . Work hard . ]
When the officials slowly turned to the room that George mentioned at the end…and looking at the disaster inside…the little hope they had was immediately snuffed out .
There were even more documents piling up inside that room .
(Die…we are going to die after all!)
The despairing officials collapsed back onto their desks; each one of them thought of the same thing .
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[The messengers from the capital are coming . ]
Cornelia briefly informed George .
[They should reach Redgear in a few days . ]
When Ares is absent, Cornelia would take over the rein as the acting lord of the entire Schwarzer Frontier Territory .
Ares was bold in letting her do so, many certainly thought that way . Even so, the truth is Cornelia only has the final authority; the one in charge of most if not all political matters is still George . She only needs to give her sign of approval for an order to go through . Everything else is the duty of the chief officers of the Frontier Territory .
Despite the surprise, people still welcomed the decision . However…over time, George began to understand why Ares entrusted such an important position to Cornelia .
[Her coming from the Royal Imperial clan certainly helps to maintain face, but more than that…she’s genuinely a balanced and highly capable politician . ]
Was what Ares said .
Every time George went to consult her regarding political matters, the depth of her insight and the speed of which she made decisions often surprised George . Even though her duty was only to sign the document, Cornelia always took the time to read the document and confirmed the contents . She would also sometimes ask some questions regarding the matter or even pointed out mistakes within the document . She already became an indispensable part of the current political administration in the frontier territory .
[She can actually tackle the works faster than Milord does… At this rate, he’ll see it fit to run around freely…]
George mumbled to himself .
At the same time, he couldn’t help but feel amazed as he came to understand why Ares entrusted Cornelia to handle the political affairs in his stead .
Returning to the current time, George replied to Cornelia .
[Well, it’s easy to guess what they want from us . ]
He then lifted his two fingers .
[The first is most likely the order to dispatch troops to Thracia . Well, it’s only a matter of time after all . ]
From about a year ago, Arcadia and Thracia had been involved in several skirmishes on their border . It seemed that Emperor Sephiros had had enough, thus he decided to rally his vassals to war .
[Originally, Royal Father’s aim was the east… Take over Grant to remove the nearest possible adversary, then march to the east via Redgear… Perhaps he was angry that it was the Thracians who took a pot shot at the Empire from behind . ]
[Thracia certainly understood that the power balance will be disrupted should the empire manage to conquer the east . They’d try to stop the Empire at all cost . ]
George chuckled after saying so .
[But, it’s probably not so simple . It might also be a method to gauge which vassals who will attempt to take advantage of this upcoming battle . There is also information we received saying that His Majesty wasn’t actually keen on battling Thracia . Perhaps, someone managed to convince him, which is why he rallied the vassals to gather a large number of soldiers . ]
[……so that is how it is after all…]
Cornelia sighed .
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[And about the second matter…]
[Yes . As usual, to find out what actually transpires in here . ]
One little thing that had always been obvious to the aristocrats of the Arcadia Empire regarding Grants was that… they had no idea at all about its situation . Most of their messengers would be halted at Redgear . Some did manage to enter Grants… . but none managed to return .
And even if they went to inquire about the missing messenger, Grants was known to be inhabited by a lot of monsters… It’s easy to chalk it off as a result of bad security .
Any spies sent would end up dead as well .
But this time around, apparently they sent someone who was said to be pretty close to Cornelia before . There may be various reasons on why this person was selected .
[For the time being, I should head to Redgear and greet them . Could you also come along, George-dono?]
[As you wish . ]
George replied as he lowered his head .
[If only『that』had been completed, we will be able to travel to Redgear in no time at all…]
[『That』is still in an experimental phase . We will have to ride the dragon this time . ]
That said, Cornelia rose from her seat .
[I-I wish to fly in the sky . Might as well have some fun while we are at it . ]
Cornelia let out a naughty smile much like that of a child as she said that to George .
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[Cornelisama still hasn’t changed at all…]
The long dialogue continued on and on . Perhaps it’s how the Empire’s aristocrats discuss things… Theta who was standing next to Cornelia thought bitterly . Maria was standing on the other side, but she’s in no better condition herself if judging from her expression… Both women felt the same .
It was two days ago when Cornelisama suddenly called for the both of them .
[I need people that I can trust . Can you please come with me?]
Thus, Theta and Maria decided to follow Cornelia, acting as her attendants .
With Theta tagging along, the journey wouldn’t feel harsh, while Maria can act as an escort . Not to mention that both are also Ares’ wives . It would serve to let the world know that the wives were doing well . If there is a problem, it would be the aristocrats trying to find fault in everything .
Sharon also wanted to go along, but there were still mountains of work waiting . So unfortunately she’d have to pass on this trip .
[……and, of course we’d like to request some troops from Grants . This is also an order from His Majesty to the 『Lord of Frontier』]
When Theta was back to reality, the messenger had already gotten to the main topic . Looking carefully, she noticed that there was no longer a calm smile in Cornelia’s face, now replaced by a slightly grim expression .
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There were three messengers . In the middle was a man with respectful attitude, probably the leading person of these messengers . His lavish clothes, studded with many jewels, couldn’t really hide his fat body . His lack of hair as well as his big eyes and mouth…reminded Theta of frogs . On the right side was a nervous looking, lean bodied, brown haired man, whose eyes had been wandering all around uneasily . And then…
[You also came? Sven…]
[Yes . Cornelisama still looks the same…]
Cornelia didn’t respond to the googly eyed baron’s demand and instead spoke to the man on the left side, a man called Sven . When she started speaking, Theta noticed that Cornelia’s expression turned slightly softer .
Sven was a good looking young man . But he had this unhealthy, albeit flawless, looking pale skin, and thin body that would make anyone think that a slightly heavy wind would carry him away from the ground .
[… . . cough . Pardon me, Cornelisama, but this time it is me who acts as the lead messenger . Please refrain from making private remarks . ]
The huge man in the middle gave Sven an intimidating look . The latter trembled and quickly curled on his seat .
[Then, Cornelisama, please give us your reply . ]
Having rushed like that, Cornelia’s expression turned grim once more .
[We cannot dispatch troops . ]
[How could it be?! Don’t you see that this is an Imperial edict?]
[Edict? Then have you people confirmed this letter yourselves?]
Saying so, Cornelia handed back the letter to the googly eyed baron .
The Baron read the letter… and visibly trembled .
[……this is!? I have no knowledge about this…]
[Yes, this letter has neither the Imperial seal nor His Majesty’s signature . This is not even an Imperial letter, not to mention an Imperial Edict . ]
Without giving them any chance to reply, Cornelia continued on .
[This letter you brought was instead signed by… . both the Imperial Prime Minister and Archduke Rozenheim . In that case, this is no different than just a request for aid from the prime minister . In other words, as the 『Lord of Frontier』, we are allowed to decline the request since it’s not relevant to our duties . ]
[But…this was entrusted to me by the prime minister himself… Isn’t the order from the prime minister is equal to that of His Majesty’s order…]
Before the googly-eyed baroncould finish, Cornelia already cut him off with a sharp voice .
[This time, since His Excellency is perhaps entrusted to take overall command, his order should be deemed absolute . However, my husband, Ares Schwarzer is currently on an expedition to conquer the barbarian at the north . Many of our generals are currently with him . That is because it is the duty of the 『Lord of the Frontier』commanded by His Majesty himself . Therefore, even if it was an order from His Excellency, we cannot respond to it since we are in the middle of exacting the command assigned to us by His Majesty Emperor himself . ]
The baron finally shut up . But there was an obvious disappointment in his face .
[And it’s impossible to send out the remaining soldiers because we need them to maintain the security of Grants… After all, everyone knows that Grants is the『Barbarians’ Playground』, it will be difficult to maintain security without our remaining troops here…]
It was George who spoke up to explain the situation just now . But when he heard George speaking, the googly eyed baron suddenly rose from his seat .
[Shut up! You mere vassal . How dare you to speak up!]
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Maybe he just wanted to vent his frustration because he couldn’t refute George’s explanation . But that prompted Cornelia to respond with a chilly voice .
[Ara? George here has the full power over the political affairs in Grants . His words carry so much importance since it’s comparable to Ares’ own words . ]
The googly eyed baron’s mood darkened even more .
[B-but…]
[Enough . ]
Cornelia was quick to cut off the googly eyed baron again .
[Please tell His Excellency the prime minister this: “Pardon us, but at present we cannot send any soldiers from the frontier . Instead, please tell His Excellency that we will send supplies . ” Ah, Esteemed Father has also sent a messenger, and I will have to see him soon . ]
Cornelia smiled as she said that last part . But the googly eyed baron’s face turned blue upon hearing her mentioning the Emperor .
[Therefore, please excuse me since I have something else to do . ]
[Please wait a moment, I still have one last thing to ask… Regarding the situation in Grants…]
[Do we all not know it already? It is an underdeveloped land where it is difficult to maintain public safety . ]
Cornelia rose from her seat as she said so .
In a hurry, the googly eyed baron asked another question to stall for time .
[However, many messengers never returned so we never truly knew the actual situation! Firstly please allow one to…]
[Did we not always allow them to have a look?]
Having said that, Cornelia finally turned around .
[But that’s…!]
[In that case, would you like to go to Heinz personally?]
[………… . . ]
[I’m not against it though? However, we cannot guarantee your safety . Please bear that in mind . ]
The googly eyed baron’s face went pale again .
[Regarding the missing messengers… That is just how bad the security is . If you want to take a look this time around, then by all means…but should anything happen to you on your way back, it will be your own responsibility . Are you prepared for that?]
Cornelia finally left the room .
Taking that as a cue, it was George’s turn to speak with the messengers .
[Alright then…let’s talk about the supplies . ]
Now the pale-faced baron had to negotiate with, of all people, George…