We Go For It First! (5)

It took thirty minutes for the Empress to return, and the Empress, who came to face me again, sighed as soon as she saw me and made an offer.

“If you hand over all four people, including Princess Riana… I will recognize your independence and, at the same time, give you ten million great gold coins in compensation. The war will be an indefinite ceasefire, and there will be no nonaggression pact.”

It seemed she had thought hard during the break. The proposal itself was not terribly bad.

Literally speaking, Princess Riana had been added to the items, and ten million great gold coins had been included as compensation. To be honest, I had been thinking that keeping the Princess in my arms would only give me a headache.

However, the part that bothered me was that an indefinite ceasefire rather than an end to the war, and the statement that there would be no nonaggression pact, were no different from saying she would start a war whenever she felt like it.

“So that is the choice you have made in the end?”

“My choice is that I cannot comfortably tolerate Imperial citizens going in and out of Ingrad.”

It meant she would draw a line and control it. There was a sea route, but that was also something she could interfere with if she wanted to.

‘In the case of merchants, most trade is through the sea route anyway. On top of that, if the Ishtain Region does not fall to the Empire, then a land blockade is effectively meaningless. To be honest, even if we do not trade with the Empire, if we establish connections with Atoon and the Mirkas Federation… that will be enough.’

I judged quickly, set aside the plan to soothe and coax her, and asked.

“Is Princess Riana’s ransom ten million great gold coins?”

“…If I were asked to name the most important person in the country, in my position, I have no choice but to choose that child. This is a decision I made after careful consideration. There is no room for reconsideration, so make your decision.”

All sorts of thoughts circled in my head. To put it bluntly, it was not a losing deal. She called it control, but it would probably be control that was effectively impossible. On top of that, because it was a ceasefire, we would have no choice but to station troops at the front line at all times, but I had intended to do that anyway.

Moreover, it did not mean that even ordinary people or merchants would become unable to approach by land, so I merely pretended to deliberate. There were too many eyes watching for me to accept the proposal readily.

It would work unfavorably for population inflow and the like, but it had the advantage of making it easier to defend against spies and other attempts to infiltrate the interior.

It meant that even just guarding the port would allow us to control things to some extent. Furthermore, if we used the Forest of the Demon Dragon toward the Ishtain Region, we could also move supplies.

That was because the enormous wall called the Ingrad Wall had not extended into the Forest of the Demon Dragon.

‘From our position, since we can make use of the Forest of the Demon Dragon, there is no loss.’

I could not know how the Empress would act from now on, but if we maintained and trained troops while assuming constant war, I thought we would be able to respond to most provocations, and if we could buy time, we might also be able to transform the Ingrad region itself into one enormous fortress.

However, that was possible only on the condition that my soul would be ground away, and it was the moment I thought that, for the sake of safety, that much effort would be worth trying.

So I glanced back at Linda and Matilda, then said to the Empress.

“Would you give us ten minutes?”

“Do so.”

I rose from my seat, took my vassals, and withdrew while distancing ourselves from the Empress. Then, after asking Ulde and the others to put up a barrier, I lightly opened the subject.

“What do you think we should do?”

At my question, Matilda spoke first.

“I do not think it would be bad to accept the proposal.”

“Why is that?”

“The first reason is that the Empire has suffered a major defeat at our hands once, so it will not be able to provoke us rashly without countermeasures. The second reason is that I expect the Empire’s Masters, who have faced the many powerful individuals supporting our territory, will oppose an intense battle with us.”

“You mean Agnes and the others will oppose war?”

Matilda nodded.

“When they were suppressed, even if we had the numerical advantage, considering their eyes and discernment, they must have realized the strength of our territory. So unless an equal number of Masters participate in the war together, I believe they will not easily agree to war.”

After saying I understood for now, I asked Linda this time.

“What do you think, Linda?”

“I think they will not start a war, if only because of the eyes of the world.”

“The eyes of the world… Are you talking about an information war?”

“That is part of it, but right now, the Central Continent is literally being pushed back by the Demonic Tribe. I do not think the neighboring countries will look favorably upon the Empire trying to forcibly drag out a civil war. Moreover, it is said that the Dradnos Empire has committed quite a lot of national strength and is taking the lead in the war against the Demonic Tribe.”

“Are you talking about the Mirkas Federation they are backing?”

“That too, but it is said that they have literally provided large-scale support with the Dradnos Empire’s army.”

Because we had been preparing to settle matters with the Terakan Empire, we had ignored the circumstances of other countries, but it seemed something like that had happened.

“There are rumors that the Dradnos Empire has committed four Masters and two million Imperial troops to the battlefield and is preparing to subjugate the Demon King.”

It seemed they were trying to attack the Demon King they had isolated, meaning to cut off his head.

“What are the Dradnos Empire’s chances of victory?”

“They seem to be requesting the Heroes’ participation. But since the Heroes entered the Terakan Imperial Army camp and withdrew together with them, the point that the Heroes ultimately will not participate in the war unless the Terakan Imperial Army advances has recently emerged as a concern.”

“The Demon King, huh… But wasn’t he not retreating?”

“…Yes. Because the Demon King’s movements are even considered abnormal behavior, both the Dradnos Empire and Terakan’s expeditionary army seem unable to grasp what to do. By now, the Demon King should have retreated toward Dradnos’s side and opened a path to survival, but he is not doing so…”

I could not understand what that damned Demon King was thinking.

“He must be ridiculously strong, right?”

“The Demon King?”

“Yes.”

“He must be strong. After the Demon Dragon, the Demon King is the next most powerful existence.”

From what I had heard, I knew there were quite a lot of dragons living in the Dragon Mountains. But I remembered hearing that there was no dragon with absurd strength like the Demon Dragon.

In other words, the Demon Dragon herself was an extremely powerful existence close to a mutation.

“Well, that is that… In the end, because the international situation is not good, the Empire will not provoke us… is that it?”

“Yes. Since we are supporting the battlefield, it can be judged that they will be even less able to treat us as enemies.”

After saying I understood, I was able to return before the Empress again, and after putting my thoughts together, I gave my answer.

“Let us conduct the detailed negotiations, Your Majesty.”

“…I feel as though a tiresome thing is repeating itself…”

The Empress grumbled.

Afterward, a long, long war of words continued. There were parts that neither side could yield, and we had to go through quite a bit of trouble to adjust them, but in the end, we were able to have our independence recognized by the Empire.

We were able to obtain an official document stamped with the seal of the Imperial Family of the Empire.

It was the moment we escaped from the shadow of the Terakan Empire.

On top of that, I was able to instruct the Chancellor and receive “mithril ingots” equivalent to ten million great gold coins, and this was also a part where we could gain quite a profit.

That was because, when paying the money at first, they had tried to give it to us as promissory notes, but we had stubbornly insisted and obtained this instead. To put it bluntly, it was an Imperial promissory note. If they forged it or refused to recognize it, it would be no different from a scrap of paper, so I wanted physical goods, and the one who negotiated this was Linda.

It was a splendid achievement obtained after a long negotiation with the Chancellor.

“All adjustments have ended. Now you need only release the four people according to your promise.”

“It was a somewhat disappointing time.”

“It may be only somewhat disappointing to you, but I am extremely irritated.”

I thought that was only natural. She had lost territory, lost pride, had her charisma cracked, and even suffered defeat in war. On top of that, because she could not allow national strength to decline, she had to yield many things in order to save those who formed the axis of military power.

“I think it would be beneficial to your mental health to consider it merely one day among the many days of life’s ups and downs.”

“…I am tired. I will leave. See to the rest of the adjustments yourselves…”

There still remained the parts about adjusting the method and time of handover, as well as the location that would become the border and other matters, but the Empress withdrew without observing them and left them to the Chancellor.

Even if women in this world did not age, that did not mean they did not weaken, so the Empress looked extremely debilitated.

It was a sight that showed how great the harmful effects of stress on a person were, and with the Empress having left the conference hall behind me, I was able to face Chancellor Hilman, who looked at my smiling expression with a face that seemed as strained as the Empress’s.

“Now then, shall we spend a tedious and beneficial time together?”

I wondered if I was the only one who would enjoy it.

The world began to grow noisily stirred up.

It was because the Terakan Empire’s position recognizing Ingrad’s independence became known. On top of that, the fact that several Masters of the Terakan Empire, who had been expected to have died, would return alive made it known once again that there was no major problem with the Empire’s national power, and it was said that many countries felt disappointed.

Meanwhile, the place that began to be called the “Minor Kingdom of Ingrad” and monopolized the attention of neighboring countries was now racking its brains over another problem.

“You are telling me to become king?”

“If you do not become king, my lord, who would become king?”

“…Well…”

When I looked around, everyone avoided my gaze. Then Wijel looked at me and spoke.

“Just acting as the king of the beastkin is already more than enough. On top of that, humans need a human king.”

And Ulde, who was beside him, also added a word.

“Once you try being king, you will know there is nothing much to it.”

It did not seem that way at all, and right when I sighed while looking at the two of them saying something far too absurd…

“If you do not do it, my lord, no one else will be able to become king.”

“…Can I not just remain something like the owner of the district?”

“It is being called a nation. You know very well that a king is needed, don’t you?”

Those were Linda and Matilda’s claims. Even so, I could not immediately say, “Fine, I’ll be king!” It felt unnecessarily burdensome.

I could accept being a lord. But a king…?

The burden was no joke. On top of that, if I called myself king, I thought that from then on, there would be an awful lot of restrictions.

Right when I slightly thought that I might not be able to enjoy the same freedom as now, Hare, whose eyes met mine at just the right moment, said to me.

“Even if you become a monarch, I think nothing will change from how it has been until now. Could you not simply think of it as only the title changing from ‘lord’ to ‘king’?”

“I do not think… it is something to think of that simply.”

“Then what is the problem?”

“It feels burdensome. The position of ‘king’ does.”

At my words, everyone had an expression of utter disbelief.

Their faces looked as though they were asking why I could not eat something even when it was handed to me, so I felt awkward and scratched my head, but then I had to receive news that an unexpected guest had visited.

“An envoy from the Ishtain Region is requesting a visit.”

We had gathered because we heard they were coming. But had they not arrived too early?
The moment that thought crossed my mind, I came to the decision that it would be better to handle this first rather than continue racking my brain over a matter that still was not settled.

And when I let the visitors into the audience chamber, several knights entered the room, knelt before me, and shouted heartily, forcing my expression to stiffen awkwardly.

“We greet the King of the Minor Kingdom of Ingrad!”

I felt dizzy.