Chapter 137
Translator: Raizu
Editor: Shirayuki
Side Story ~Another Battlefield~ part 2
[Damn it all! That little girl!]
That voice that reverberated throughout the room belonged to the googly-eyed baron, Baron Vin Bowman . Hearing the bark, the lean-bodied baron…Baron Botard quivered, and meanwhile Sven sighed . Baron Bowman looked to be in his 40 or 50s, but he’s actually still in his twenties . He could no longer suppress his frustration .
Baron Bowman belonged to the faction led by Scion .
Currently, many political factions are fighting for power . His faction happened to be the largest at the moment .
After the first prince Carlos was eliminated from the race to the throne, the capital was engulfed in a fierce factional competition . Currently, Scion’s faction holds the greatest influence . They even managed to reel the prime minister in, further expanding their power .
The 『Thunder Emperor』Sephiros Arcadia, after conquering Grants, had mysteriously remained silent as he watched his vassals’ movements .
Therefore, the vassals avoided giving unnecessary stimulus to the emperor, opting to fight between each other to defend their position and influence instead .
And Scion, whose momentum was the greatest at the moment, felt that Ares Schwarzer posed the biggest threat for him .
Ares was the only aristocrat who willingly left the capital without coveting influence on the central power . He married a princess of the royal imperial clan and is also well connected to various great aristocrats . Not only is he the heir to the Archduke, but he himself also possesses a vast territory which is the frontier area .
In terms of territory size, the Schwarzer clan clearly owned the largest territory amongst the empire’s aristocrats .
And it’s quite terrifying that there’s basically no information at all regarding the frontier area .
That’s why Scion attempted to make Ares send out troops, to shave off some of the latter’s power . And also… . to explore east of Redgear, towards the mysterious Grants . Those were the messengers’ most important task .
Scion heard that Ares Schwarzer was currently absent, having to deal with the northern barbarians . And the current acting lord is his wife, Cornelia . He believed that a woman like Cornelia would easily bend to his will . And even if Ares returned later, the clause would still be effective . One could even call it compulsory .
That way, Scion would be able to treat Ares like his chess piece . With the prime minister on his side, his faction could take the lead on this western campaign .
Even though the other side is the Lord of Frontier, they’ll have no choice but to obey . It’s a good chance to actually do something about this someone he considered as a threat .
However, Cornelia was not misled by Bowman that easily . On the contrary, their plot was turned against on them . Bowman played himself up by mentioning 『Edict』 . In fact, he didn’t even know about the fault within the letter until Cornelia pointed them out . Cornelia pointed out that the letter was not a royal edict since it has no royal seal nor signed by the Emperor; it was actually an order written by the prime minister . Therefore, she saw it fit to decline the order in favor of the prior emperor’s command for the Lord of Frontier .
[Baronet Sven Knorr!]
With his life in line, Bowman decided to call his fellow messenger .
[Yes!]
[You…I heard you were Her Highness Cornelia’s old friend?]
[Yes…we were childhood friends . ]
Sven met Cornelia before the Imperial clan found her .
He first met her when he went to the church . His friendship with Cornelia started that day .
[Then…good . You go convince Cornelisama . ]
[Ha?]
[And while you’re at it, go to Grants to find out what’s going on . Surely she won’t let her childhood friend die, would she?]
Baron Bowman let out a fishy laugh .
From that laugh, Sven realized what the baron intended .
The man intended to make him a scapegoat .
[……as you wish . ]
But Sven could only bow quietly as he had no way to refuse .
=====
◆
[It has been a while, Sven . ]
Cornelia looked happy to meet her childhood friend again . Theta and Maria stood on her left and right while George was also nearby .
[Cornelisama didn’t really change that much at all . ]
Sven bowed as he said so . In his heart, he knew…
It’s a lie . He thought .
Cornelia is so much more beautiful now than the past . Right, more than when they first met .
Cornelia was already beautiful even before it became known that she’s a princess . That’s why he often visited the church, sometimes just to be able to talk with her . Yes, for Sven, princess Cornelia was both someone he admired as well as his first ever love .
Perhaps both Theta and Maria may have noticed Sven’s true feelings after seeing his expression . They felt something peculiar in him . You know…woman’s intuition .
[Thank you, Sven . Well, I heard that you have something important to say to me, pray do tell?]
Sponsored Content
Cornelia still hadn’t changed her expression . Perhaps… she could already tell . She was a brilliant mind after all .
[About that…]
[As someone who was previously close to Cornelisama, you were told to convince her and to investigate Grants, is that it?]
Before Sven could say anything, George already beat him to it . And George didn’t stop there .
[And should you fail, they’ll make you take full responsibility for it…am I correct?]
Sven merely listened quietly . Yes, that’s right . The blonde man had guessed correctly .
He took a deep sigh, then smiled .
[You are correct . And…I know that no matter what I say, nothing will change . ]
[I see . Then what will you do?]
[Report back to Baron Bowman and return to the Royal Capital to take full responsibility . ]
At this rate, no matter what he did, he wouldn’t achieve anything . Therefore, rather than dawdle around, he’d rather get punished and be done with it already .
Although he also knew that he would be made an example . That it doesn’t matter to lose the lower-ranked aristocrats, as replacement can always be found elsewhere . He knew… but it couldn’t be helped .
[So they are making you responsible for it?]
[It can’t be helped . That’s the only reason why Baron Bowman brought me here today . ]
It’s the painful reality of the lower rank aristocrats like the baronets . The commands from those of higher rank are absolute .
[I came prepared… I’ve already said my goodbye to my wife and family . ]
Sven had a younger sister and an already aged mother, in addition to a wife he married only recently . His sister’s future husband would hopefully inherit the clan name after he’s gone . But what worried him the most are his wife and mother .
Thinking that, Sven couldn’t help but to clench his lips .
[…… . what do you think, George?]
[What a resolve . As Cornelisama said, I feel that he’s a trustworthy person . ]
After hearing George’s assessment, Cornelia nodded then turned to Sven .
Sponsored Content
[Sven…we have a suggestion . Would you be willing to hear us out?]
Cornelia’s suggestion…was shocking to say the least .
=====
◆
[Hmm…in the end, Baronet Knorr didn’t come back as well…huh]
[Yes…he took the responsibility to sneak into Grants…but apparently he ended up dead along the way . ]
Baron Bowman reported with a troubled face . Scion didn’t bother to hide his disgruntled face either .
Of the three messengers he sent, Baronet Knorr was the least known by the masses . He only included this man so that he could use the baronet as a scapegoat and erase all evidence should the negotiation go awry .
But even so…Scion thought to himself .
Once again, men sent by the aristocrats to visit Grants…went missing . Just like how it always does .
Because of the very poor security…anyone would believe such an excuse . After all, Grants was known as a place rife with barbarians and magic beasts .
However…why do many people migrate to this so-called dangerous land?
The aristocrats of course sought to investigate this anomaly, but be it messenger or spy, none returned alive . Sometimes they returned as corpses, but most of the time they went missing, never to be found .
Therefore, Scion still knew nothing of Ares’ land up until this day .
[What on earth is he hiding…?]
『That』 Ares would certainly do something to this so-called accursed land . But why is he trying to hide it so desperately?
In fact, despite being known as an unsafe place plagued by magic beasts…so far there’s no report of rebellion yet .
[As I thought, that man is a threat… If we don’t take action as soon as possible…]
After murmuring that, Scion once again sank into his thoughts .
=====
◆
[Looks like it worked . ]
[As always, the people at the capital only know that he’s missing . ]
Sponsored Content
George replied . And standing next to him was…
[Your family will be arriving here soon, yes? Sven?]
Sven, the latest person to disappear on the endeavour of the people at the capital to investigate Grants .
What Cornelia suggested was, to make it so that the capital thought he had gone missing as well when, in reality, he would stay in Grants .
What surprised Sven the most was the fact that many of those “missing” people are currently working for Grants .
Many of them were capable officials, albeit estranged from the aristocrats due to various reasons .
In particular, Sven was most surprised to find out that inspector Marius Bertram, famously known and feared as the 『Ice Dagger』back at the capital, was among these people .
Marius was one of the people sent to investigate Grants, and was reported to have lost his life along with his team when they were attacked by a horde of magic beasts .
Certainly many of the corrupt aristocrats at the capital were overjoyed by the news .
[Marius is now an indispensable personnel in this territory . It really helps when talented people like him come over here . The person himself said that it’s easier to work here than in the capital . ]
George explained .
Once he entered Grants… Sven was even more surprised . It was said that Grants was the land rife with barbarians and magic beasts .
But what he saw here was a 『country』more advanced than the capital . The security and culture were probably even better than in the capital .
But… at the same time, he knew .
This fact must not be known to the people at the capital .
Just from seeing how various races live together in harmony and how flourishing the country is, even worshiping their gods in a single church together .
If this fact became known to those greedy aristocrats, there’s no doubt that they’ll come in droves to seek benefits .
All of these need to be kept hidden at all cost .
[For the development of this place, I will be counting on you, Sven . ]
[Yes!]
Sven thought .
He knew that he wasn’t all that talented . However, he obtained this chance to work in such a wonderful place . Therefore…he just has to work hard, as a way to convey his feelings and gratitude to Cornelia…