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As the Imperial Legion moved south, the Academy ultimately entered a period of suspension.

Nobody knew how the situation would unfold. It was a precautionary measure, to put it mildly.

Despite her schedule being thrown into chaos, Charlua didn’t lose heart.

Instead, she seized this opportunity to gather information using her special skills.

She was determined not to forget her duties for Nobogord.

“I hear the Southern Legions are all heading south. That’s why the Academy has suspended classes,”

“What about the borders, you ask? Well, the Eastern Legion has arrived. They might not be familiar with the terrain here, but they can handle border defense well enough, which eases the burden on the Southern Legions.”

“Did you hear the news? Benito declared war! Ha! It’s utterly ridiculous. They seem to think they are some demon tribe from the North or something.”

After all, the dignitaries of other countries act as white spies, legally gathering information.

The Empire was tacitly allowing Charlua to collect information as long as she didn’t overstep her bounds.

As long as she didn’t cross that line, that is. They would tolerate a certain degree as long as she had value as a hostage.

“The situation in the South, you say? It seems you haven’t heard the news yet. Recently, the 4th Legion and the 15th Legion rescued the Holy Kingdom.”

“Your Highness the Second Princess persuaded the neighboring kingdoms. Isn’t that remarkable?”

“What about Benito, you ask? How could they dare to fight against our Empire? They fled in terror without even looking back.”

But why proclaim war in the first place? Charlua tilted her head in confusion.

Could it be that there was some trouble between Benito’s king and their military?

…No way. No fool would act without consulting the military.

Especially not when their own forces aren’t even stationed nearby and they’ve advanced quite far.

‘Yeah. There’s no way that could happen.’

A king isn’t a complete idiot. No way. It makes no sense.

Charlua shook her head and focused on the next piece of news from the south.

“Wahaha! A great victory! …What? What do you mean by that? Ahaha! Our proud Legion crushed Benito’s reported 50,000 troops! Hahaha!”

“Parts of the 6th Legion and 13th Legion hit Benito from both sides, obliterating them. It seems that fewer than ten thousand returned alive, which means Benito has been utterly destroyed.”

The news reaching the people in the South was simply that the Imperial Legion had crushed Benito’s forces.

But for some reason, Charlua felt a potent sense of Kael amidst it all.

As far as she knew, the Imperial Legion was composed of around 20,000 troops.

While the numbers could be less than the fixed composition, they wouldn’t exceed that amount.

Conversely, Benito had reportedly far more than 50,000—almost two to three times the Imperial Legion’s size.

Yet, the Imperial Legion had suffered only 4,000 casualties, while Benito’s losses exceeded 20,000.

With the corresponding prisoners captured, it was right to view it as practically total annihilation.

In the coming years, Benito would be in a critical state.

‘No matter how well the Imperial Legion fought, this outcome wasn’t simply due to the disparity in the two armies’ combat abilities. There has to be something else. Absolutely.’

And shortly after, she received news from a Foreign Ministry official who had come to meet her.

“Congratulations. You’ve achieved a decisive victory against Benito.”

“Ahaha! Thank you, Charlua. It seems Runen is also furious about the malevolent acts of that wicked Benito. A brave Imperial Legion, excellent commanders, and brilliant strategists—it’s a result achieved through their collaboration.”

“When you mention a brilliant strategist…”

“I’m referring to Prince Kael Clausewitz, who accompanied us as a staff officer this time. I’ve heard he lured Benito’s forces into a trap with astonishing strategy and delivered a decisive blow from behind.”

“…I see.”

That makes sense. I can already picture a rough outline in my mind.

Kael Clausewitz. A terrifying man who wielded the opponents’ desperation as a weapon.

Whether the enemy falls into his plans out of ignorance or knowing full well of their fate, they eventually wind up caught in a trap.

He leads them into that position. His temptations are so alluring.

From their standpoint, they can’t help but think, ‘Maybe I can pull it off?’

Nobogord was like that, and Burgai was too throughout the Eastern region.

Eliminating all options, he draws the enemy precisely to the time and place he desires.

There are no exceptions. Choosing that exception would clearly indicate what they stand to lose.

‘I want to ask more details, but… it seems that would be difficult.’

The person in front of her was from the Foreign Ministry, not the Ministry of War.

Therefore, they couldn’t provide a detailed account of how the war situation was progressing.

Even so, the fact that she could sketch a rough picture meant the situation was truly extraordinary.

‘Thinking about it, our moderate faction happened to seize power at just the right time.’

She thought, though she quickly masked her inner thoughts with a smile to avoid showing any signs on her face.

Charlua swiftly replied to the Foreign Ministry official.

“So, it remains only to attack Benito.”

The notable places in the South were the Holy Kingdom and Benito.

The Holy Kingdom had been completely destroyed by Benito, only to be saved by the Empire.

And now Benito had been crushed by that very Empire, being rendered essentially paralyzed.

This way, both the East and South would fall directly under the Empire’s control.

At that point, Charlua recalled the hardliners in Nobogord.

It was truly unfortunate for them, but the gap between them and the Empire was only going to widen.

If the East and South stabilize, any rash move against the vast Empire would certainly be suicidal.

It would likely be utterly impossible for them to reclaim power…

“Hmmm. I doubt that will be the case.”

The Foreign Ministry official, fiddling with their teacup, cautiously continued.

“Anyway, the news will circulate soon, so there shouldn’t be any issue if Charlua knows.”

“…Is something going on?”

Instead of answering immediately, they took a sip of tea.

Feeling something serious from that gesture, Charlua stiffened in response.

“Dedorant has intervened.”

“Dedorant? You mean the kingdom that’s been dominating the western regions lately?”

“Yes, exactly.”

“But how did Dedorant intervene?”

“Quite literally. They stationed troops near Benito.”

At that moment, Charlua’s mind began racing like crazy.

First of all, she was aware that Dedorant had annexed the upper country Atria recently.

They had previously initiated war against DeGale, first tearing away the Jugel region, then putting their hands on western territory.

They were indeed an undeniable powerhouse. They didn’t achieve this just based on land or population figures.

Their well-trained forces exceeded a hundred thousand after numerous real battles.

However, that assessment only held when one considered the context of the “West.”

Even if they had annexed Atria and occupied parts of DeGale,

Even if they held the highest combat forces in the West…

If the Empire started in earnest, they would have to bet everything they had.

And naturally, the odds favored the Empire overwhelmingly.

‘Even if Dedorant swallowed both Atria and DeGale, they wouldn’t stand a chance against the Empire. The gap in resource production arising from population and fertile land is just too great.’

Thus, whether Dedorant intervenes or not, the Empire could simply view them as ‘so what?’

Should they attempt to act tough, they could easily crush them.

‘But still, why is the Empire reacting this way to Dedorant’s intervention?’

She wanted to know more detailed reasons, but delving deeper turned precarious.

The first condition for not being cast out as a foreign dignitary was to not cross lines.

And to not cross those lines, one must be observant. Must be able to read the situation well.

The person currently presenting information was, after all, merely a messenger for some high-ranking officials.

Everyone would find out the details of this discussion, including her spoken words and questions.

“Must be a headache for you,”

“Don’t even get me started. It’s total chaos thanks to all this.”

As she gazed at the Foreign Ministry official finishing their tea, Charlua fell deep into thought.

There’s no way Dedorant would have the audacity to threaten the Empire or stand strong against it.

If they were that foolish, they couldn’t have risen to such prominence in such a short time.

They must have aimed to bind the Empire using clever tactics and bought themselves some breathing space.

‘Their path would likely involve groveling for the Empire’s consent.’

Charlua had learned a lot from the council and its members.

Though lacking the extraordinary might of other demon tribes, she possessed a different weapon.

She could predict and discuss the next steps in political affairs better than anyone.

‘The Empire must find themselves in a complicated situation as well.’

I wonder how things will unfold. Charlua began to ponder the future on her own.

*

“Kael!”

“Your Highness the Princess.”

As soon as she saw me, the Princess rushed over and clasped my hands tightly.

I was initially a bit startled, but I smiled back at her since I was also pleased to see her.

“You’ve worked hard. You were truly remarkable!”

“Thank you. Your Highness the Princess, you did exceptionally well too.”

“What do you mean? I just did as you instructed.”

With an embarrassed expression, the Princess said that. I shook my head right away.

Doing as others instruct is, in fact, one of the hardest things in the world.

To accomplish that flawlessly is certainly a tremendous achievement.

“More to the point… I can’t shake the feeling of disappointment.”

“Ah, regarding the Benito advance, I’m okay with it.”

“It’s fine, honestly. I’m feeling angry toward Dedorant too.”

It was indeed true that Dedorant has been acting a bit arrogant.

However, they had their justification. Dedorant and Benito were allies, after all.

While taking care of their own interests, they bowed to the Empire, avoiding conflict.

So from their perspective, they were saying they wouldn’t overstep any further than what was necessary.

‘Those kinds of people are the most terrifying, to be honest.’

From that angle, the Empire’s recent troop withdrawal in the south stems from that very situation.

It was not a concession, nor a display of mercy, nor a sign of yielding.

Dedorant’s presence had grown considerably while everyone had languidly adapted to the situation.

There were significant obstacles to a direct strike like in the East or South.

Thus, our Empire was simply taking a moment to catch its breath before delivering a blow.

 

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