“Considering how far we are from the border, the Empire won’t be able to dispatch a large strike force, right?”
“Probably not. If I were in their shoes, I’d plan a surprise attack on Lune.”
“Hm, yes, any large army would be easily detected. Maybe a small, elite team, then?”
“I can’t think of another strategy either...”
They’d both arrived at the same conclusion, however uncertain it might’ve been.
“Do they have anything like that? A squad capable of commandeering a lord’s estate or a knightly order’s barracks?”
“That would be the Twentieth Imperial Regiment, aka the Shadow Regiment, led by General Rancius.”
“I see,” Ryo replied with a nod.
As the second prince of Knightley, Abel had been learning about the military capabilities of the Kingdom’s neighbors since childhood.
Ultimately, political conflicts between nations are resolved in one of two ways: diplomacy or military force. These two are inseparably intertwined—one can’t exist without the other—but the relationship is not equal.
Military power forms the foundation. Diplomacy backed by armed strength is commonplace, but military power backed by diplomacy? Unheard of. A nation holds its ground in negotiations precisely because it has armed forces in reserve.
The Empire understood this shockingly well. Abel had learned all this during his time in the palace.
“We can’t rule out the possibility they have hidden military capabilities we aren’t aware of.”
“Do you think we’ll be able to defend Lune?” Ryo murmured, his expression worried.
“Our chances are better here than they’d be in the capital, especially with the Royal Knights completely wiped out. Plus, Sera trained the margrave’s knights.”
“That’s true... But Jurgen is an incredible swordsman! I doubt even they could beat him.”
“Of course he’s strong. He’s the Inferno Magician’s second-in-command.” Abel shrugged.
The knights finished carrying out the remaining prisoners.
“I wonder where they’re taking them?”
“Probably to the mind-break chairs.”
“But Hugh said His Lordship could only spare one of them...”
“Oh, yeah, he did. Then Rancius or Jurgen will be the first. The rest will likely end up in the dungeon.”
“The dungeon?! So it really exists!” Ryo’s voice rose to a fever pitch as his worried expression completely dissolved. He was learning about the existence of traitors, accomplices, and subterranean prisons—all things he never expected to see outside movies and books.
“What, you didn’t know? They’ll throw you down there eventually, so might as well take a look at your future home.”
“Well, when they do, I’ll drag you along with me, Abel!”
“I can never catch a break...”
“If I go down, I’m taking you with me.”
Mutually assured destruction was Ryo’s surefire way to deter Abel from getting the jump on him!
✦ ✦ ✦
Ryo and Abel were riding in one of the four carriages transporting the nineteen unconscious figures. Ryo had asked for a ride to the margrave’s estate. One of the knights, knowing Ryo from his daily spars with Sera at the barracks, had agreed.
“You should be grateful to me, Abel.”
“Oh, I am. Genuinely.”
Ryo beamed at him. Of course, they could have walked since it was nearby and both had plenty of stamina. Nevertheless, Ryo thought it was vital to make Abel indebted to him whenever possible. After all, he never knew when he’d have to call in the favor!
“What I want to know is why the Shadow Regiment even bothered summoning wyverns for their sabotage. It’s so needlessly complicated.”
“Your guess is as good as mine. I have a feeling they tried to go about it the usual way at first, but then things took a turn.”
“What’s the ‘usual way’ for sabotage?”
“Well, assassinating the local region’s lord is one.” Abel’s expression didn’t change.
“Is that common?” Ryo looked at him in surprise.
“Killing a single powerful person can inflict major damage. Effective, don’t you think?”
“So why didn’t they do that?”
“They probably couldn’t. You already know that Acray lies in Heinlein’s marquessate. The marquess is a former commander of the Royal Knights, and that alone makes him dangerous enough. But there’s more...” Abel trailed off.
Ryo leaned in, intrigued. “Do tell...”
“He is a master of counterintelligence.”
“Oh, right, I remember hearing that.”
“Supposedly, it takes his people less than twenty-four hours to apprehend foreign spies in Acray.”
“You’re kidding...”
The power of Heinlein’s counterintelligence apparatus stunned Ryo. A city where spies didn’t even last a day... That was hard to imagine, even back on Earth, where modern surveillance cameras are everywhere.
“What kind of methods do they use?”
“I don’t know the specifics, but Phelps mentioned something about alchemy.”
“Alchemy! Of course! Why didn’t I think of that? Trust the marquess to find the perfect deputy!” Ryo said proudly, for some reason.
“Great, we’re here.”
Their carriage arrived at the margrave’s mansion. They thanked the knights and stepped out.
“All right, time to meet the man who stands at the pinnacle of alchemy.”
Then off they went to find Baron Kenneth Hayward.