I can see the Emperor's stats-Chapter 71
challenge
Although the grand duke did not reveal it, he felt very uncomfortable whenever he attended meetings in the fortress. The reason, needless to say, was Julius, who was sitting on one side of the Great Hall.
“The plan to infiltrate spies failed?”
“The first prince took the examination himself, but he said that none of them passed.”
“Can it be? Wouldn’t it be that only ragtag people were sent?”
The Archduke's head hurt just thinking about Julius these days. Come to think of it, in recent years, the first prince had intervened in his plans and nothing had been properly accomplished.
'There is definitely something about the first prince.'
It was hard to believe that it was, of course, luck to evade his traps so exquisitely. The problem is that I have no idea what is causing the failure.
Even that alone is irritating, but the appearance at the Daejeon meeting was also overflowing with composure. The prince, who has reached adulthood, has the right to participate in state affairs to some extent. Opinions could be expressed at the Daejeon meeting, and that itself became public.
'It feels like the emperor is sitting with two people. How can a kid just over 20 be so used to meetings?'
Of course, Julius talks about his thoughts on state affairs in the seat of the emperor faction, and it's hard to ignore his words due to his recent achievements, and the emperor subtly supports what Julius supports, so the momentum of the grand duke faction continues to weaken.
In the previous composition of the emperor and grand duke, the emperor & Julius's tag and grand duke became the same, so of course the right to speak was inevitably pushed aside.
This was also one of the elements intended by the emperor and Julius. The prince's achievements were not limited to martial arts.
“You have already accumulated enough martial arts in the North. I think it would be better at this point to get involved in internal affairs.”
“I will follow Obama’s will.”
As he said, now was the time to solidify and build other achievements. That is, it was a strengthening of the political position.
He had served as an emperor while suffering from the annoyance of the anti-communist faction, even though state affairs had never worked properly in his previous life.
Unlike back then, the emperor was holding on strong, so what could be scary?
In this way, the Daejeon Conference went smoothly today with the superiority of the imperial faction.
"Then, today's topic, the lowering of the aristocratic tax, will be dismissed."
With the declaration announcing the end of the meeting, the countenance of the grand ducal aristocrats rotted away.
'Damn it!'
'What is His Highness the Grand Duke thinking?'
'To think that I have to read stupid people like that again today, that's really bad.'
The Archduke also felt sick to his stomach. He was the best warrior in the empire and had the largest single force, but of course he couldn't even think of overthrowing the empire with that alone.
[The secretly raised armed group 'Shadow']
[The forces of the southern nobles who support him]
[Connection with the Desert Kingdom through Wallace]
In fact, if any of these three went wrong, it would be nearly impossible to overthrow the empire as he had envisioned.
This is why he volunteered to represent Wallace and their interests, even though he complained that there was no talent among the southern aristocrats.
However, as Julius and the emperor continued to pressure them in the Great War Council, cracks were inevitable among the nobles who followed him.
“What the hell is Your Highness the Grand Duke doing?”
“This is how His Majesty is not much different from when he was young.”
A few years ago, it was quite a daunting situation to defeat the opinion of the aristocrats, but with the development of the north, the power of the subjects following the emperor increased, and the situation was gradually changing with Julius' major.
Recently, there are only a handful of cases in which the anti-communist faction's agenda has been approved at the meeting!
It was an environment in which complaints could not come out.
Thus, a loud voice suddenly resounded among the ministers, who broke up the Daejeon meeting and withdrew.
"your majesty! An urgent emissary has arrived from the Western Union.”
“Western Union?”
“Are you here to complain about the tribute this year?”
A murmur is heard between them.
The Western Union is a collection of seven kingdoms in the northwest of the Empire. Each country was a small country without great power, but it was hard to ignore its own voice as an empire because it was united. did.
However, it seems that the purpose of the messenger who came today is not like that. The envoy, said to have come from the Karvan Kingdom in the Western Union, immediately knelt down and began to complain.
“I dare to speak to His Majesty, the Emperor of the Great Empire. Save our kingdom!”
“Is there anything wrong with the Western Union?”
The emperor asked the envoy with a puzzled expression.
"that… … .”
The envoy from Karvan Kingdom explained the situation with a grim expression. Originally, even in the United Kingdom system, there was always a country that became the leader.
That was the Karvan Kingdom. It is the most influential of the seven countries that make up the Western Union. However, there were several kingdoms who were dissatisfied with it, and it seemed that the dissatisfied kingdoms among them started a civil war within the alliance.
"your majesty! We, the Karvan Kingdom, have maintained a close relationship for two hundred years since the establishment of the empire. Please be kind.”
The Sharnos Empire is the only empire on the continent. It was also the duty of the Empire to mediate disputes between kingdoms. In the meantime, the Karvan Kingdom, as the leader of the Western Union, did not hate the Empire.
With that as the pretext, they asked the Empire for help.
'Today's meeting will be rather long, right?'
Even though I thought the Daejeon meeting was over, the emperor was convening his servants and discussing this matter again for a while.
In fact, the conclusion was already out. There was a justification, so he sent salvation to the Karvan kingdom, and in return, the empire had to take advantage of the amount of blood shed.
“Then who do you think is appropriate to dispatch as commander?”
At the Emperor's question, the hall fell silent for a moment. And strangely, all of their eyes were on Julius.
He smiled inwardly.
'As expected'
From the moment the envoy arrived, Julius had the feeling that something had come.
[Western Cataclysm]
In fact, the quarrel between the kingdoms did not seem like a big deal to the empire, but this incident was quite big. This civil war unified the Western Union from seven states into a single state in less than five years.
The reason the ministers now focus their attention on him is roughly this.
'Couldn't it be that he's competing again?'
'In fact, it is a golden opportunity to establish a major no matter who goes as a commander.'
Recently, the continent has been quite peaceful under the leadership of the Empire. Opportunities for military commanders to build their majors were extremely limited.
It was only one great victory, but that was the reason why Julius' reputation in the north had risen so much. At first glance, leading the mighty army of the Empire to quell the rebellion of the small kingdoms did not seem that difficult.
The aristocrats on the anti-communist side are very nervous.
'It's really dangerous if we let the 1st Prince further develop his major here!'
Julius had already demonstrated his military prowess in the north. It wouldn't be strange if the emperor appointed him as the dispatch commander.
The Grand Duke had no choice but to think for a moment.
'Should I at least buy time for the 2nd Prince to come up to the capital?'
2nd Prince Leonhard was still dispatched to the southern front. In fact, Julius's achievements were so great that he was relatively buried, but he posted an impressive record.
The war was over in the North and skirmishes were still taking place in the South. However, this dispatch was an urgent matter, and there was no justification for wasting time just to replace the commander.
Of course, it could be sent later, but if Julius leaves as commander, there is no reason to send two princes to the same front line, so it is useless.
The Emperor, on the other hand, was looking at him with a rather amusing expression. It was because I was curious what this guy would choose this time.
“Do you think your servants want to hear your opinion? First Prince Julius, who do you think is the most suitable commander for this dispatch?”
Here, Julius put on an expression as if he was deliberately thinking about it.
Everyone in the hall watched with bated breath as he opened his mouth.
“In my heart, I want to participate.”
“… … !”
"but!"
He changed his words with a sad look on his face.
“I think it would be impossible for me to go because the training of the knights I accepted this time has not yet been completed.”
At this moment, the nobles of the Grand Duke let out a sigh of relief.
'Honestly, he's already had enough majors, so he seems to have decided that there's no need to go all the way to the far west.'
“But there is a commander I would like to recommend.”
At those words, the servants pricked their ears again. What else does this mean? The only commander the prince knows personally is Marquis Andersson, who guards the north.
Julius spoke with a serious expression.
“Last time, during the Northern War, the 3rd Imperial Corps was organized, but the war ended quickly, so I understand that it was a waste of time. I think it's fair to give them another chance.”
male voice
"If it's the 3rd Corps, you mean Count Peres?"
"It seems like he's quite taken with the First Prince upon returning to the capital?"
The emperor also stared at Julius for a moment with an expression of surprise, then nodded.
In fact, what he said had some truth, the other day, the 3rd Corps went all the way to the north and made almost no major contributions. Giving it another chance is a very good reason.
“This is what Julius thinks, is there any disagreement?”
Of course it couldn't have been. The figures in the central military department of the Empire were on the side of the emperor, if you must say, but isn't that why nobles don't need to mobilize private soldiers to help other kingdoms?
The nobles, including the Grand Duke, were satisfied with the fact that Julius did not participate in this war.
“Then, let’s appoint Count Peres of the 3rd Corps as commander again and send him to the West!”
The emperor's decision was also cool. It was because he didn't want to send Julius, who already had enough expertise, to the battlefield where danger lurked.
To that, Julius added a word with a non-trivial expression.
“Oh, come to think of it, I forgot about it for a while, but I have something to ask of you.”
* * *
After the urgently reopened Daejeon meeting, the Grand Duke was lost in thought in the carriage heading to his estate.
'1st Prince... What are you thinking?'
You can think of not going to war because you felt an assassination threat the other day. However, Julius' request this time was quite erratic.
The emperor slightly raised his eyes at Julius' sudden words and asked.
“Jucheong, what is it?”
"I said it was the state office, but it's not that big of a deal."
Julius smiled and replied.
"I'd like to send them to the Imperial Martial Arts Team Exhibition to be held this summer as a way to gain practical experience with the knights I raised."
The Emperor put on a slightly worried expression.
"It's been about three months since the Knights were founded, are you saying they're at a level that allows them to participate in team fights?"
“Of course, I am not yet skilled enough. It is intended to give you experience.”
The Imperial Martial Arts Festival was a martial arts festival held every three years in the empire. It was one of the festivals held in honor of the will of Sharnos the Great, who worshiped radishes.
Here, the group exhibition was a section where knights competed with each other. In some cases, knights from other countries who wanted to gain fame participated, and almost all knights of the empire participated, so it was a spectacle to see.
'Experience... The prince said so, but no matter how you look at it, it's suspicious'
The Emperor, of course, kindly gave permission, but the Grand Duke couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. This is because the group exhibition of the Imperial Family Martial Arts Association has long been one of the ways to spread his fame.
The Golden Lion Knights raised by Archduke Wilhelm himself!
Excluding the shadows, it was the best armed group among his personal forces and consisted of only actual elite knights.
'Could it be that the ragtag knights are going to compete with my Golden Lion Knights for the team championship?'
The Archduke had an expression of doubt, but he couldn't ignore it because he had been stabbed in the back of the head so far by Julius.
'In case you don't know, I'll have to prepare thoroughly.'
In fact, he knew that there were quite a few talented people in the first prince's knights. However, the overall quality was far superior to his Knights.
'I don't know what the first prince is aiming for, but I can't refuse to accept such a challenge!'
The Archduke smiled eerily. It was called the Imperial Fighting Championship, but the competition was quite fierce. In the meantime, where is the law to prevent an accident from occurring?
* * *
'By now, I'm sure he's thinking of doing something to shame my knights by defeating them overwhelmingly.'
At that time, too, Julius was thinking about various things on the carriage back to the palace.
If Western Cataclysm was his second arrangement, the third arrangement was the Imperial Martial Arts Meeting.
'Are there three months left?'
Actually, it was Julius who was grinding his teeth as well. This is because he had previously lost quite a few elite knights in the north to deal with the dogs of the Archduke.
'Let's see who will cause trouble to the Knights this time!'
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