“Nice of both of you to come,” His Highness said. “You especially, Ark. Good work.”
We were brought to His Highness’s room as soon as we arrived. It had originally been a guest room made for high-ranking knights to stay when they came to observe the brigade, and it was near Count Farlon’s room so that he could come running in the event that anything happened. It was, of course, surrounded by tons of guard knights, and the windows were made of tougher stuff than usual.
Knowing all that, it was probably appropriate for use by His Highness Prince Alphonse, as the third prince of Brigandia. Unfortunately, the lord’s manor didn’t have a good enough guest room for him to use. I mean, in a pinch, he could’ve slept in my room, which would’ve been the safest option. But I really didn’t want that to happen, and I was sure His Highness felt the same.
I mean, we’d slept in a huddle together before back when we were in the capital after boozing it up, but things were much different back then, both in terms of the situation and our respective positions.
“Thank you very much. I am grateful for your praise,” I replied, straightening up and giving him a knight’s salute. Nia followed suit, bowing her head.
Normally, Nia would have had to thank him too since he was speaking to the both of us, but it being wartime as it were, it was better to keep things short. His Highness would understand plenty.
“And Count Farlon and his brigade did all of the difficult work. I only swooped in to take the best part,” I continued, turning towards Count Farlon—who was currently standing behind His Highness—and saluting him. The count looked shocked for just one moment, before saluting me back. Was it that surprising that I was showing him my gratitude?
“You are too kind,” the count eventually replied. “But we were only able to fight safely because of you and your wife’s strategy and preparation, Sir McGuine. It was thanks to that that we managed to keep our casualties to a minimum.”
“I see. I’m glad to hear that.”
I was truly relieved to hear his response. I knew it wasn’t a very good thing for a noble to be relieved about, but it’d probably be okay for me to say it here.
The whole thing had been a bit of a gamble, to be honest; we’d aimed to create the conditions for the shortest possible confrontation while considering the damage that would be done to the town and how it would affect our future plans against Sylvario. One could think that since the brigade had decided to go in on the gamble as well, any casualties they took would be their own fault, but I didn’t like that kind of thinking. Really, they’d put their lives on the line in agreement with our naive desire to keep the damage to the town to a minimum, so I could never thank them enough. So the fact that they’d kept their own losses to a minimum made me really happy, and Nia was happy as well.
“Don’t worry. We’ll be compensating the families of those who died in battle or were heavily wounded,” His Highness said.
“Thank you very much. While it is our duty to put our lives on the line for our country, I am sure that they would think it was all the more worth it.”
Count Farlon gave a low bow in return. We’d never know for sure whether they would actually be happy about their compensation without going to the next world to ask, but at the very least, it would comfort the people they left behind. It hurt that that was all we could do, but at the same time, I knew I had to accept it.
In battle, it was common knowledge that to save one life meant to risk even more lives. The higher one rose in rank, the more important it became to avoid that pitfall. Both His Highness and Count Farlon knew that fact well, and I needed to get used to it. I just wasn’t there yet.
And His Highness wasn’t even thinking about that.
“They won’t only be given financial compensation, but honors as well,” His Highness added. “As heroes who drove away an enemy force twice their number, they’ve more than earned it.”
“While it pains me that that is all we can do for them...that is an honor for us in the military.”
“As the one who led them to this victory, rest assured you’ll get your share of fame as well,” His Highness said with a light smile, getting a troubled smile in reply from the count.
Today’s battle would most likely be reported as something like “a brigade led by Count Farlon drove away a Sylvarian force twice its size and captured Sylvario’s second prince, all the while taking very few casualties themselves.”
I agreed with this and understood it. As I’ve mentioned a few times, it was Count Farlon’s brigade that actually put their safety on the line to pull this all off. It would also be reported that my force of around five hundred people raided Balthazar’s group, of course. But my part in this probably wasn’t going to be the main topic.
While I and my notorious name amassed fame during the war, that couldn’t be said for the Royal Order of Knights. They’d probably do everything they could to spread that this was all thanks to Count Farlon and his men. That’d mean that they’d be given honors according to their merits. And that was just what His Highness Prince Alphonse wanted.
“I assume this is what Your Highness was referring to when promising me fame,” concluded Count Farlon.
“Partially. I’d gain nothing from breaking a promise with you. Especially when you’re such a skilled man.”
“Your Highness, I must request that you not tease me.”
“I’m not teasing you. This was all good for me too.”
Count Farlon was incredibly grateful for His Highness’s honest praise. But there was no way that had been all the Smiling Iceberg was after.
“Now, we’ve shown our neighbors that not only does Brigandia’s military have the Black Wolf—the man who can take on a thousand men—but it is filled with strong warriors who can defeat forces even double their size. None of them will be suicidal enough to attack the kingdom for a good while.”
“Which would mean that even if we send most of our forces to annex Sylvario, we won’t have to worry about other nations targeting us while our forces are thinned out,” I said, picking up on His Highness’s logic. “Knowing you, Your Highness, you’ve already prepared to spread these rumors, haven’t you?”
“You know me well, Ark.”
When I exasperatedly quipped at him, His Highness gave me a pleased smile, as if he’d just pulled off a particularly clever prank. But this definitely was nowhere near the right level to be a prank. Count Farlon was completely dumbfounded. Nia was just smiling wryly. This payoff was why His Highness okayed our gamble.
People who listened to rumors wouldn’t care enough to ask about how the soldiers were spread out. The rumor that would spread, then, would most likely not be something like “a brigade of six thousand perfectly prepared Brigandian soldiers drove away a force of twelve thousand badly led mercenaries working for Sylvario.” It would be much more exciting to regale the tale of how six thousand Brigandian soldiers repelled a Sylvarian army twelve thousand strong with minimal casualties, especially after said twelve-thousand-strong army refused to learn their lesson and dared to attack us so soon after the war. People would probably be telling the story in bars all over the land, as if they’d seen it all with their own eyes. That was also just about all a drunkard could remember and, subsequently, all that a foreign spy nestled in Brigandia would hear.
“I see. So that is why you wanted to ensure Count Farlon received the credit for this,” Nia said. “Making that official would mean that any skilled spies who might have made their way into the palace would find that the rumors matched up with what would be discussed when meeting to decide what honors to confer.”
“That’s right. By publicizing that Count Farlon was the leading figure behind our sweeping victory, we’d gain the same effect as if we’d added tens of thousands of guard soldiers to our ranks.”
When Nia piped up, looking half understanding and half impressed, His Highness gave her a proud smile.
I have a bad feeling about this. Nia wasn’t studying and absorbing His Highness’s methods for herself, was she? I mean, she had the talent for it, sure, but the possibility was terrifying.
While I was thinking all of that, His Highness suddenly shot me a glare. “You’re not thinking something rude, are you, Ark?”
“Oh, not at all,” I said. “I was just thinking something completely normal.”
“Hmmm? So you think that sort of thought is normal for me, huh?” His Highness continued, lips raising into a smirk.
Shit, did he really know what I was thinking? No, he’s just trying to spook me. Don’t let it show.
Those thoughts didn’t take even a second to go through my mind, so I was able to keep a bright smile on my face.
“I see. You’ve grown, Ark.”
“I haven’t the foggiest idea what you’re talking about, Your Highness.” I was pretty sure he saw through my attempts to smooth things over, but I wouldn’t budge. Once I got through this, I’d be able to change the subject. “Anyway! If we want this plan to have any lasting effects, then we need good reason to invade Sylvario. I assume that’s why you called for Nia?”
When I said that, His Highness looked shocked for a moment. It was weird how just that made me feel like I’d accomplished something.
“That’s right. You really have grown, Ark. I guess starting a family changes a man.”
I wanted to quip that he should do it too then, but I stopped. If I happened to step on a land mine related to some sour past relationship, I’d feel bad for subjecting Nia and Count Farlon to what would happen.
“I do feel like, with Nia by my side, that I’m growing every day.”
“You can say it now, can’t you?”
“Thanks to you, Your Highness. So?”
His Highness nodded, gaze moving over towards Nia. “Viscountess McGuine. There is something I’d like to request from you.”
“Understood. Anything you wish.”
Nia must have predicted what he was going to ask, because she bowed to him without hesitation.