Chapter 36
Editor: Starbuck11
"A messenger huh ? If you're someone from the Ortomea Empire, then . . . I guess you're a new face ? I've never seen you before . . . Your name is Sudou, am I right ?"
Heavy silence dominated the office room .
Julianus the first sit deeply into his chair while turning his line of sight towards the man kneeling in front of him with pity and ridicule .
For someone who was in the position of disadvantage all this time, this scene was the best .
A reversed situation .
A sense of superiority dominated Julianus the first sensation .
"Yes, your majesty . Thank you for granting me this audience . . . "
"So, what do you want by coming to my place ? Is it to surrender ?"
A sarcastic tone leaked from Julianus the first’s mouth .
It was only a few days ago that a report that the Ortomea's rear supply base, the Notiz Fort, had been destroyed by Mikoshiba Ryouma .
As a result of that, the Ortomea’s imperial army, which was locked in a battlefield around Ushias basin ended up getting isolated inside the enemy's territory, with their supplies line cut off .
With that, the Ortomea Empire invading strength of nearly 60,000 men ended up becoming like rats inside a bag .
Even if they were a big army, the fact that they were separated from their home countries was devastating .
The commanding officers aside, the unscrupulously drafted citizens and mercenaries would definitely become upset with the situation .
Under such circumstances, the Ortomea Empire's army could not do anything else but send their messenger to Julianus the first to negotiate for surrender .
An unconditional surrender .
Although what Julianus said was indeed the truth, Sudou felt the words he had heard were very ironic .
But because Sudou understood Julianus’ feelings, e didn't feel angry from such ironic words .
Sudou raised his face slowly and opened his mouth towards the pathetic clown sitting in front of him .
"There is no such a thing . . . An unconditional surrender negotiation, I didn't come for that . . . "
Sudou shook his head .
"Then, why did you come here ? It can't be, but did you come here for a cup of a tea ? But then I guess you cannot afford such a thing now, huh ?"
Arrogance came out from both men’s mouth .
Toward Julianus words, Sudou smiled bitterly .
With just a single victory .
However, no one really understood the meaning of this victory .
Up until now, it was always the Ortomea Empire that took the initiative .
When and where to attack . They completely controlled the flow of the war .
In that sense, now with Notiz fort fallen, Ortomea and Zalda-led allied forces changed roles .
Towards the figure of Julianus who desperately held back his happy expression, Sudou desperately tried to suppress his laughter .
(Such a stupid man . . . As expected of a clown . Despite the victory he had, it was not something he obtained with his power . . . )
Certainly, one existence had lit the light of hope towards the Zalda Kingdom .
Considering the current state of the Zalda Kingdom who had been always on the defeated side, this rear-blocking strategy could be said as their hope of resuscitation .
But, that didn't mean it solved all the problems .
While there were some problems solved because of such event, it also created other issues that were harder to solve .
Furthermore, it had the potential to become fatal unless the Zalda Kingdom solved it by themselves .
(Now then, just how far does the Zalda Kingdom knows where they are standing . . . )
Indeed the situation was greatly reversed, and now the Ortomea Empire’s army was being cornered .
However, that was only a temporary situation .
"The reason why I've come here is to end this unfortunate war . . . "
Sudou slowly opened his mouth .
He had used a tone that was befitting of a young child pulling a prank .
"What did you say ?"
Being unable to understand Sudou's unexpected words, Julianus knitted his eyebrows .
"To put it simply, Ortomea Empire wishes for a harmonious relationship with the Zalda Kingdom . "
Thirst for blood surged from Grahart Henschel's body who stood by Julianus side after he heard Sudou's words .
Murderous intentions start to leak out like a snowstorm towards Sudou .
(I guess they are not stupid enough to show anger at this place, huh ? Splendid . . . )
Sudou had gathered information regarding Henschel and Julianus beforehand, but both of the men were calmer than he had thought .
But that was natural, after all, if one was trying to win in a diplomacy battle, one should hide one's feelings .
(Julianus aside, that Henschel man, he is far better than I had thought . . . Looking at this, there seems to be some room for negotiations . )
A reconciliation negotiation proposal comes from the Ortomea Empire side who was the one that started everything .
Thus it was natural for Henschel to feel anger since his nation had been overrun by them all this time .
But thanks to his strong discipline, he had managed to show a deadpan face despite Sudou's remarks .
It was evident that he understood that it won't mean anything if he gets emotional here .
But it also meant that there was a room for negotiations .
(Because there won't be any if the other side was already spewing anger before talks begins . . . )
As long he was being given a chance to talk, Sudou was convinced that he would be able to obtain victory .
"Pardon me, but I don't understand your words . What do you mean by that, I wonder ?"
"The meaning is the same as I had said, your majesty . The Ortomea empire wants a temporary harmony between our nations . "
Light shone in his eyes .
"You . . . are serious huh . . . "
Hearing Sudou's serious words, Julianus sighed deeply .
He felt amazed .
After invading another nation, they had shamelessly proposed a reconciliation, Julianus felt amazed .
"Do you realize that it was your nation that triggered this war?"
"Of course, your majesty . It was all started the moment my country attacked yours . "
Towards Julianus' question, Sudou answered back smoothly .
It was an anticipated question .
In diplomacy, it was important to have both confidence and some slight arrogance .
"If you understand that, then why do you think we would accept reconciliation proposed by your side?"
Hearing that, Sudou's eyes glinted .
The situation had thrown Julianus the first into confusion .
He also felt anxiety from Sudou's attitude .
"Pardon me for interjecting . . . "
Henschel's voice echoed .
"Do you really think that our country would listen to that?"
A few months ago, Julianus would've definitely jumped into the negotiation .
However, the scale of the war was leaning towards the Zalda side right now .
Thus Julianus didn't feel it necessary to take Sudou's proposal by this time .
However, Sudou who didn't feel shaken by Julianus words opened his mouth with a smile on his face .
"Indeed, if your Majesty understands the position your majesty’s country is in, I think your majesty will definitely accept our proposal . "
"What do you meant?"
"It is simple, really . I come here as a friend who wishes to help you out from the predicament you find yourself in . "
Towards Sudou's arrogant attitude, Julianus even forgot to shout .
There were indeed people who would show such arrogant attitude before the ruler and get punished . . .
Yet, Julianus could not shout such order against the smiling man in front of him .
If one were to ask why, it was because he felt a premonition, a gut-feeling, a survival instinct . . .
"In the first place, does your majesty realize ? That your majesty has been dominated all this time . . . "
Sudou lifted his lips into a smirk .
He was sneering .
He was sneering towards the fools who didn't realize the position they were in .
"When was it ? Ortomea Empire's army 60,000-strong men are trapped like rats inside a bag . Not only that, they should be in the position of lacking supplies due to the surprise attacks, and should soon runs out of reserve . "
Although he felt uneasy, Julianus kept his calm expression towards Sudou's bullish attitude .
"You will run out of supplies, and replacement for armor, then no matter how big an army, it will only turn into a paper tiger, no ?"
"Certainly, that is a fact . As your Majesty said, our army is being cornered . However, if your majesty thought that your majesty is in a superior position then that is nothing more than an illusion . "
(Here comes the critical moment . . . )
Just as Sudou thought of that . His body trembled with excitement .
"Well then, how about this . . . How does your majesty intend to end our army ? Does your majesty really think your majesty could destroy our Empire entirely ?"
"What did you say ?"
Julianus knitted his eyebrows unable to understand Sudou's words .
"Just like I said, your majesty . There were three ways to end the war . One of them is to destroy the enemy completely, lose against the enemy, or negotiate for a ceasefire and reconcile during the war . . . With that being the case, which kind of way does your majesty wish to end the war ?"
Win, lose or a draw .
Each of them had its own variation, but to put it briefly that were the three choices that existed .
"That is . . . "
Hearing Sudou's words, Julianus was at a loss for words .
He realized that Sudou had pointed out his lack of vision .
The other day, right after the Notiz Fort fell, Elena while leading the Zalda army inflicted significant damage to the retreating Ortomea Empire's army .
The trend of the war indeed began to tilt toward the Zalda's side .
However, that was only limited to this war .
In the Zalda Kingdom, it was the aristocrats who held the real power . The Royal Order and the Royal Guard had also suffered a lot of damage to their war potential in men right now, and the reinforcements from the other countries will not help in the invasion of the Ortomea Empire going forward .
Under such circumstance, it would be impossible to make a reverse invasion strategy against Ortomea Empire .
Unless Julianus managed to direct the entire alliance army to invade the Ortomea territory, he won't be able to do anything .
If that was the case, only two options were left .
Continue the unfortunate war until the day the Zalda Kingdom is getting destroyed, or negotiate a peace agreement .
In that view, it was a huge improvement that a peace request had come, compared to the previous messenger who advised surrender .
"Let me ask your majesty once again who seems to understand the current situation . Would you like to keep this unfortunate war going?"
He sounded like a devilish temptation .
Towards Sudou who said those words with a smile on his face, Julianus had no other options but to agree with Sudou's proposal .
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On that day, the capital city of the Zalda Kingdom Periveria was being covered with wild enthusiasm .
Or rather, it was not just Periveria . It was likely that the entire Zalda Kingdom felt the same atmosphere .
It was a proof that the dark cloud that had covered the Zalda Kingdom until the other day had been cleared up .
On both sides of the main street, a lot of people gathered .
It was full of young and old people, even an old man holding a cane continued to wave at the soldiers marching the road .
"Hurray ! Zalda Kingdom, Hurray !"
"God Bless the King ! Glory for our country !"
People line up on the sides of the main street and shouted words of victories .
Just the other day, the war against the Ortomea Empire which lasted more than a year had come to an end with a peace negotiation .
That mean, the various taxes that were being imposed due to the wartime emergency had been lifted, and the men who had wife and child finally can go back home .
The news had brought them the hope of returning back to their former calm life .
However, there were some people who didn't share the same sentiment .
One of the men was the king of the country who had made the decision to proceed with the peace talks .
He was sitting deeply in his chair inside his office while looking at the ceiling .
"I wonder if what I did was the right decision ?"
It was a deep voice filled with anxiety .
It was proof that he was not confident with the decision he made .
"I don't know . . . "
In Julianus response, Henschel slowly shook his head .
"At least, we managed to earn some time, that was a fact . . . "
"Time, huh . . . "
The Ortomea Imperial army had begun their full retreat .
Although temporary, depending on the future, it was possible for them to gain a few years of time .
Thus it was possible to gain the time to rebuild the war-torn Kingdom .
"I cannot waste the little time we have now . . . "
"By your will, sire . . . "
Grahart Henschel nodded his head deeply, confirming Julianus words .
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