CH 373

Chapter 373 – Encounter of Two Heroes (1)

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An envoy was urgently sent from the royal family of Sardinia.

They had most likely realized the severity of their situation now.

They were utterly defeated even though the Duke of Milano and the Grand Duke of Florence had joined forces. It was obvious that their rears were on fire, but the fire was on the level of hellfire.

This wasn’t hyperbole. 3,000 in the Battle of Ticinus, 5,000 in the Siege of Novara, and 20,000 in the Battle of the Trebia had either run away or were killed. That reached a total of about 30,000. Adding to this, they were all elite soldiers…….

We crossed the Alps on the 30th day of the 5th month and ended the Battle of Ticinus on the 28th day of the 6th month. It took exactly one month. A single month. The main forces of Sardinia’s north and central armies were wiped out in a month.

According to rumors, the King of Sardinia passed out when he received the battle report.

“30,000! Give me back my 30,000 men!”

Something along that line was apparently shouted.

This was probably like a nightmare for their king.

The king wasn’t the only one who was dumbfounded. The citizens residing in the royal capital of Tiber were also trembling in fear at the thought of the approaching imperial army. The Evil Spirit of Farnese, the witch who sold her soul to a Demon Lord for revenge……. Dozens of new nicknames were attached to Laura within a span of only a few days.

The nightmare didn’t end there.

Two regions immediately surrendered the day after the Battle of Ticinus. It was Piacenza and Parma. Strangely, the people of these regions actually cheered in joy when they heard that the imperial army had won. The reason was simple. These two regions used to be ruled by the Farnese family.

As one would expect from regions that had been marked as traitors, the people of Piacenza and Parma had been extremely discriminated against since the civil war. Their duchy had been split into two baronies and the people born here could never be appointed to the royal castle.

I found this to be idiotic.

If I were a Sardinian politician, then I wouldn’t have oppressed Piacenza and Parma like that. I would have lowered Piacenza to a county and Parma to a barony. After that, I would only apply oppressing policies to Parma.

By doing this, the people of Parma would foolishly direct their anger at the people of Piacenza. A divide would form due to this unfair treatment, creating an emotional rift between these territories.

Splitting a group into two is key when it comes to oppression. If you don’t do this, then you would simply be fanning the flames of latent rebels. Well, I doubt their king would listen to me at this point.

It can’t be helped. He just has to be careful next time.

Haha.

In any case, their royal family dispatched their ambassador plenipotentiary in this period of time when fear and signs of rebellion were at their peak. The envoy was Marquis Rody again.

“It has been a while, Count Palatine.”

“Have you been well, Marquis?”

This bald, middle-aged man with a bushy mustache could surprisingly tell from the beginning that they had no chance of winning the recent battles. In other words, he was one of the few nobles in the world whose head wasn’t just for show.

I like people who know their place like this marquis. Looking at him always gives me a refreshing feeling.

His bald head wasn’t the source of that refreshing feeling. I’m serious.

“His Majesty the King is prepared to give a sincere apology to His Excellency the Emperor and the esteemed daughter of the Farnese family.”

After a short back and forth, we got straight to the main topic at hand.

“If your nation accepts His Majesty’s apology, then we could end this war by tomorrow.”

“Marquis. I wish to voice how unfortunate it is that Duchess Farnese is still being referred to as just the esteemed daughter of Farnese.”

I spoke leisurely since I wasn’t on the side that was feeling pressured.

“Esteemed daughter? Laura de Farnese is the sole and rightful master of the duchy that rules over Parma and Piacenza. It appears that there is still a sizeable gap in recognition between us.”

My tone was meek, but the contents of my words were partially a threat.

“……Let us say we were to acknowledge the esteemed daughter of Farnese as Duchess Farnese.”

Marquis Rody spoke carefully.

“Farnese’s territory will be surrounded on all sides by our country. In the end, it will become an isolated island on land. Merchants will turn away and it will be cut off from resources. What sort of value could that kind of land possibly have?”

“Hm. That would definitely be a problem.”

I tapped on my glass cup with the tip of my finger. Did it look like I had fallen into deep thought? Marquis Rody’s complexion lit up slightly.

“I appreciate your understanding. Now we can try reaching a more realistic compromise…….”

“In that case, you can also hand the Milano Duchy over to us as well.”

The Marquis’ face stiffened.

“Milano……?”

“Think about it. If Milano is also added to Farnese’s territory, then it will be connected to the Helvetica Federation. Our empire can be accessed through the federation, so the territory of Farnese will no longer be an ‘island on land’.”

I let out a “Tadah” as if I had displayed an impressive magic trick and smiled brightly.

“What a perfect solution. Do you not think so as well?”

“Are you mocking me right now!?”

The Marquis slammed his hand down on the table.

“Milano is the second vastest duchy in our nation! It is not a piece of land that another nation can simply be given!”

“The Parma Duchy is just as large, and yet it was separated without any issue. It is not strange for something that happened once to happen again. Do you not agree?”

“What nonsense……!”

Marquis Rody’s face became red. The topic was brought up so that they wouldn’t have to hand over Parma, but he was probably perplexed since I was now asking for land that was twice, no, three times the size.

“Our request is simple and clear, so it is unyielding, Marquis.”

But did you know? We’re the ones currently winning the war. You guys aren’t in a position to make demands.

“We request that your noble king apologizes to His Excellency the Emperor and Duchess Farnese. Adding to this, as compensation for the previous civil war and the recent battle, we ask that you hand over the Milano Duchy and the land that was previously known as the Parma Duchy to the House of Farnese.”

“Would such an impertinent demand be—.”

“I am not done. You must also immediately stop offering your support to the Habsburg Republic.”

My tone was unwavering.

“A compromise will not be reached if the aforementioned conditions are not met.”

“…….”

Marquis Rody’s shoulders trembled.

“So……war has been your goal since the very beginning…….”

“Dear me. Such slander is troubling, Marquis.”

I laughed.

“I offered a peaceful resolution two months ago and another one month ago. Your king was the one who had blatantly kicked those aside. If I remember correctly, Laura de Farnese was referred to as a whore who sold herself to demons, and the Empire was accused of being a group of idiots being led around by a witch……. Those were quite splendid provocations.”

Marquis Rody’s neck became red, but he couldn’t refute my words.

This was why getting proper justification was important before starting a war. It wasn’t because of the attention of the public eye. It was because it allows us to have our way and make as many requests as we want once we had an advantageous position during the war like we have now. This was the power of justification.

“Why do you think the Earl of Pavia died? It was because that foolish man fanned the flames of war. He certainly had the audacity to label a distinguished general of the Empire as a whore.”

I rang a small bell.

An adjutant brought three boxes. The boxes were packaged in luxurious pieces of cloth.

“These are our gifts to your king. Would you like to see what’s inside?”

“…….”

He probably knew what was inside. The Marquis opened a box with trembling hands. Opening the lid revealed the head of the Earl of Pavia.

“……O’ Goddess Persephone.”

Marquis Rody shut his eyes tightly.

The Earl of Pavia’s face was contorted with rage, having been frozen at the exact moment of his death. This was because we had preserved it using magic. I smiled.

“I added a strawberry scent since I figured the appearance might be appalling. I contemplated about what scent your king would prefer between strawberries and grapes and ultimately decided on strawberries. If you open the mouth like this…….”

I put my hand in the box and opened the Earl’s mouth. A fresh strawberry was positioned on top of a bluish tongue. I picked the strawberry up.

“What do you think? Is this not fancy? I experimented to see how many strawberries could fit inside a person’s head. I swear to you, Marquis, that the answer is exactly forty-nine! Just one strawberry short from a round number.”

“…….”

“The other two boxes contain the heads of the Black Eagle Order’s captain and vice-captain. I hope these are satisfying gifts.”

I took a bite out of the strawberry.

Marquis Rody shut his eyes again once he witnessed that.

“This is an insult to the death…….”

“And the Earl insulted the living. Please deliver my exact words to your king.”

Could he tell that there was no room for compromise?

Marquis Rody left the room looking defeated. The Marquis himself probably wished to end the conflict even if it meant handing the Milano duchy over. However, his personal opinion didn’t matter since his king and the Duke of Milano would decline.

The war will not end.

I gave a gesture to an adjutant.

“Call the regiment commanders. Be gathered within thirty minutes.”

“Yes, Your Excellency.”

The regiment commanders gathered quickly as if they had been expecting a summon.

“Commanders, from this point on, the Kingdom of Sardinia will try to tempt you with bribes.”

“Bribes?”

“They want to avoid war, but they are not confident in their ability to defeat us. The only move cowardly swine like them can make is bribery.”

The regiment commanders chuckled.

“Do not worry, Your Excellency. We swear on the honor of Helvetica that we will not be swayed by bribes. You can trust us.”

“That is not why I brought this up.”

I smiled.

“Take as many bribes as you want.”

“Pardon me?”

“They will be offering you gifts. There is no reason to refuse something that is free.”

The commanders turned to give each other troubled looks.

They were probably worried that I was testing their loyalty. But there’s nothing to worry about. I won’t lie when it’s about money. There’s this absolutely terrifying lady at my side who scolds me if I lie about money.

“Even if they give you gifts, there is no reason for you to actually do what they ask of you. It is as simple as that.”

“……Your Excellency, are you implying that we should—”

“Indeed. Accept the gifts and look away.”

The commanders became dumbfounded by the bluntness of my response.

“I-Is that truly all right? We still have our sense of duty.”

“Why would you have a sense of duty toward the enemy while on a battlefield? Fill your wallets as much as you desire. Your wealth will also bestow your men with another plate of steak. You can also think of this as being for the sake of your subordinates.”

“…….”

This was probably also their first time being told by a superior to accept bribes. The regiment commanders didn’t know how to react.

“This is also an order from the Supreme Commander.”

“Her Highness had…….”

“The Duchess also added that the total amount of bribes you all accept individually will be used to calculate your total contributions.”

I slammed my hand down on the table, startling the regiment commanders.

“This is not a game! This is a part of war! The less money the Kingdom of Sardinia has, the fewer soldiers we will have to face in battle! Do not lower your guard and do your utmost to take as many bribes as possible. Do you understand?”

“A-As you command!”

The commanders saluted.

“If you understand, then why are you still standing here? If you are unable to receive even a penny as a bribe, then I will personally condemn you with my hands!”

“Y-Yes!”

The regiment commanders rushed out of the tent.

A pleased smile appeared on my lips.

I can’t help but feel bad for Marquis Rody. Since he failed to persuade me, he will most likely try to convince the regiment commanders below me. Although his efforts are commendable, there are things in the world that cannot be accomplished through effort alone.

Give up. It’ll be better for you if you give up now.