Chapter 98 – Vilgard’s Infiltration and the Military Council Held in the Empire

From that day on, the number of meetings increased even further. The topic now was the proposal made by Kaldandes—cooperation with foreign powers.

It was something Arloston had already begun to consider as well. However, while Arloston had been thinking of forming an alliance with the Kingdom of Ferlog, Kaldandes had proposed another option… a potential alliance with the Kingdom of Brenark.

‘The Kingdom of Ferlog I can understand. After all, the Emperor Creyval’s younger sister was married into their royal family, and at present, our relations aren’t bad… Not exactly good, either, though.’

But of all the nations, it’s the one where a mutual compromise seems most possible. Depending on how negotiations go, they might be willing to spare some military support.

On the other hand, the Kingdom of Brenark was something he hadn’t even considered.

And that likely applied to everyone else, too. After all, the Kingdom of Brenark had taken advantage of the Empire’s internal conflict to launch an invasion. It was, in every sense, a hostile nation.

That said, there was one shared point between them and the Empire. Namely, both had suffered at the hands of the mercenary demon king—Seazack.

“The Brenark Knight Order was also decimated due to Seazack’s betrayal. If we frame it as a joint effort to eliminate Seazack, wouldn’t that open the door to cooperation?”

“But right now, we’re the ones in urgent need of military strength to face the Northern Empire. Brenark would surely know that. They’ll demand something in return.”

“I fought against Brenark in the past. I lost comrades—war brothers. There’s no way I could accept joining hands with that country.”

Many still harbored deep resentment toward the Kingdom of Brenark. Whether the potential benefits of forming an alliance would outweigh the risks remained highly uncertain.

There wasn’t enough evidence to call it a bad move, but negotiations hadn’t even begun yet in the first place.

‘Even so… Trying to bring up cooperation with Brenark under the pretext of a shared enemy like Seazack seems unlikely to succeed.’

Watching the nobles’ reactions, Arloston quietly reached that conclusion.

However, if they could liberate the western region of the Empire, currently under Seazack’s control, it would force the Northern Empire to respond.

‘It would give us more strategic flexibility. In this current three-way conflict, the Imperial Knight Order alone can’t hope to conquer the western territories. An alliance with Brenark wouldn’t be without its advantages… but it still won’t be easy.’

From Arloston’s perspective, he hoped to use Emperor Creyval’s connections to open talks with the Kingdom of Ferlog.

But even if those negotiations went well, that still wouldn’t lead to the liberation of the Empire’s western region.

Then, just as the daily meetings seemed to be heading toward the conclusion that negotiations with Brenark were not feasible—at that very moment, a shocking report arrived.

“A messenger from the Kingdom of Brenark… has come…!?”

Yes. The Empire hadn’t sent any envoys to Brenark—yet it was Brenark who had sent a messenger to them.

And that messenger carried the words of the King of Brenark:【Shall we not join forces… to slay Seazack?】

■

“…So, the Knight Commander can’t go home again, and is stuck in endless meetings, huh.”

“Yes. Most likely, he’s continuing negotiations with the envoy over the terms.”

“Hmph…Never thought your proposal would transform into something like this.”

Kaldandes was speaking with Barkdine at his home. The topic was the series of meetings that had been held in recent days.

Originally, Kaldandes had heard about the concept of allying with foreign powers from Barkdine.

He also knew that one of Barkdine’s several grandchildren—Luanfiene—had spoken of it as well.

However, when Kaldandes had listened to the idea, he came to believe that this might be the only viable way for the Empire to regain the initiative against the Northern Empire, given their current situation.

That’s why he had presented it at the meeting Arloston was attending, hoping it might at least be considered as one possible option.

“Many within the Knight Order reacted negatively to it… but among the civil officials, there were those who supported the idea.”

“And just when the talks were about to conclude with a decision not to negotiate, Brenark came forward with an offer instead.”

“Exactly. I think Brenark took one look at the Empire’s current situation and figured this was their chance to steer the negotiations in their favor.”

From another perspective, it also meant that—at least in the eyes of other nations—the Empire was now seen as being at a disadvantage.

Of course, it was also entirely possible that Brenark simply wanted to eliminate Seazack. And given that the Northern Empire doesn’t share a land border with them, negotiating with it would naturally be more difficult.

“Did Luanfiene say anything about it?”

“Ah. Even Fine didn’t expect Brenark to be the one to initiate talks. She was quite surprised.”

Luanfiene had the ability to piece together fragmented information and envision multiple possible futures.

However, without key information—like Brenark’s current situation or the personality of its king—she naturally couldn’t foresee outcomes that involved those unknowns.

“…Even though I brought it up during the meeting, I must admit…I’m personally reluctant to ally with Brenark.”

“Hmph… So am I.”

To break out of the current stalemate, a wide range of opinions was needed. That’s why Kaldandes had proposed cooperation with foreign powers.

But that didn’t mean he truly supported that direction from the bottom of his heart.

“If I were to compromise—even by a hundred steps—I would only be willing to allow Brenark’s military operations under conditions where we cover their maintenance costs, offer them financial compensation, and make certain trade concessions. But any proposal involving territorial cession…I could never accept that.”

“Any true knight would feel the same. Any knight, that is…”

“………………”

However, Arloston was not originally from a military faction of knights. Barkdine’s words carried that implication.

Knights, at their core, take pride in the belief that they have contributed the most to the Empire’s current expansionist policies.

The territories the Empire now holds were gained through the bloodshed of many comrades and predecessors. The idea of giving any of that away was utterly unacceptable.

Even if they were to ally with Brenark, the ceding of territory was something that could never be allowed.

This was where the financial officials needed to step in, make sacrifices and give up some of their administrative authority. In short, it meant buying foreign military power with money.

But what weighed heavily now was the issue of Arloston.

Before becoming Knight Commander, he had held a respectable position in the administrative side of the Empire, dealing with financial matters. Even now, his connections in that field remained extensive.

And it was he who was currently leading negotiations with Brenark’s envoy as the representative of the knight order. Although many other nobles were also involved in the talks, not a single one came from a traditional military background.

“Father…if Arloston-dono participates in these negotiations and ends up concluding that they should borrow Brenark’s military power in exchange for ceding territory…”

“…Then the knight order might split once again.”

The old Imperial Knight Order faction versus the new Imperial Knight Order faction that formed around Arloston’s base of support.

They had only just reunited under Barkdine’s return, and now there was the risk of it fracturing all over again.

“But surely even the Knight Commander wouldn’t do something that disregards the sentiments of his fellow knights… Ordinarily, that is.”

“………………”

Even Barkdine held Arloston’s abilities in high regard.

Arloston had spent a fair amount of time working alongside the knights. He should understand just how unforgivable the ceding of territory is to them.

However, Barkdine could not envision what kind of tug-of-war might be going on between Arloston and the finance officials.

‘Another troublesome possibility…would be if Arloston manages to persuade the financial officials, but then His Majesty the Emperor Creyval—interferes.’

Those familiar with Emperor Creyval knew well of the rivalry he harbored toward Arloston.

He was the kind of man who, simply because Arloston said something was white, would insist it must be black. His emotionally driven nature made him resistant to logical persuasion—a difficult quality to navigate.

“It’s been over ten years since the civil war began and split the Empire into three. One way or another, it’s clear that this long stalemate is finally starting to shift. We don’t yet know which direction things will go… but if you learn anything new, let me know.”

“…Knowing you, Father, I assume you’re planning to ask Luanfiene for her thoughts?”

“Hm? …Is that a problem?”

“Not at all. In fact, I’m curious too—about what kind of future she envisions.”