Chapter 25
By rule, the Empire executed foreign Intelligence Units on sight.
There was no taking prisoners for negotiation, nor any pretense of being fooled.
Their number one principle was to kill them without question the moment they were discovered.
Recently, however, this stance had changed.
More precisely, the manpower available to track down foreign Intelligence Units had decreased.
“I heard the Empire recently started carving out its own flesh.”
“It’s only natural they’d be short on manpower in the process. Holes are bound to appear.”
“If we want to observe the Empire’s movements, now is our only chance.”
It was one of the few opportunities to dance on the shoulders of a Giant.
Everyone dispatched their Intelligence Units so as not to miss this chance.
And despite the incredibly short timeframe, they managed to extract high-quality information.
“The Grand Duke of the East and the Grand Duke of the North are dead?”
“There are also opinions that it will be difficult to maintain the Northern Front.”
“Then the Empire has definitely weakened.”
“They carved out too large a chunk of flesh. Even if it was necessary, it’s a massive wound.”
The Empire had weakened!
This concise yet shocking piece of information spread far and wide.
Experts estimated that the Empire would need about five years to recover.
And they concluded that this was the absolute minimum, only possible if several miracles overlapped.
“How long has it been since the Empire showed such weakness?”
“Does this mean we no longer have to walk on eggshells around the Empire?”
“But who orchestrated such a massive incident? The Crown Prince did it alone?”
“The information seems heavily contaminated on that front. There’s no way the Crown Prince could have pulled this off alone.”
“The rumor that that feeble man has changed… I simply can’t believe it.”
“The Intelligence Units are just scraping up whatever information they can get their hands on, so there’s bound to be some confusion.”
The Empire, which normally possessed absurd military might, was now suffering.
It was because of this information.
“Proselytizing… Faith always shines brightest during difficult times.”
This was why the Romper Holy Nation had brought up the idea of proselytizing while on their way to offer compensation for damages.
You could say they were still trembling at the Empire’s past glory, yet trying to decide what stance to take after seeing its current weakness.
But even so, the Empire was still the Empire.
Knowing its overwhelming power, they couldn’t do anything right now even with this knowledge.
“Just because the Empire has weakened doesn’t mean we have grown stronger.”
“Still, if we drastically build up our national power starting now, we might be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Empire.”
“Since the analysis concluded it would take them five years…”
“How about we secretly support the Barbarians in the North? Through that…”
But if recovery was going to take time, they could plot various schemes in the interim.
The kingdoms that knew of the Empire’s weakened state began devising various strategies.
Right at that time.
“W-Wait, how can you wear a sword…”
“Even if you have complaints, I suggest you hold them in.”
Envoys from the Empire arrived, wearing their swords.
This was to remind them that a beast remains a beast until its dying breath.
The armed imperial envoys had bypassed all formal procedures to make their appearance.
With a relaxed attitude, they delivered the Empire’s decree to each nation.
“Recently, the Empire has had several overlapping celebrations, so to commemorate this, a banquet…”
The kings of the various nations couldn’t help but be flustered upon receiving this message.
According to their Intelligence Units, there had clearly been a bloody purge.
Yet they were calling it an occasion for celebration and demanding everyone attend a banquet in its honor.
It was a conclusion that defied all common sense.
“…Hah.”
To go, or not to go.
If it were up to them, they wouldn’t want to go.
The Empire was weakened, so did they really have to go?
If they just said “Understood” and went whenever called, how were they any different from a Vassal State?
In the past, they would have prepared to leave immediately without a second thought.
Since a banquet was being held, they would have even packed a mountain of gifts to offer their congratulations.
But now?
“The Crown Prince’s sudden change in behavior bothers me.”
“Would the good-hearted Crown Prince really be displeased if we refused?”
“The Crown Prince is the one who orchestrated the purge. He led it himself. He has changed. We must acknowledge this.”
“It’s likely temporary. In fact, he might be throwing this banquet just to cover up the incident.”
It was a dilemma.
Their bodies were telling them to go, but their minds were screaming that it was finally time to defy the Empire’s will.
How long would the Empire remain the Empire? There was no such thing as an Eternal Empire.
If so, then perhaps.
“Is there a possibility that the Empire will collapse, starting with this incident?”
Couldn’t the Empire rapidly walk the Path to Ruin from this moment onward?
“There is a strong possibility. But… if it doesn’t collapse, who knows how high an Empire that has carved out its rotten flesh will soar…”
The opposite scenario weighed heavily on their minds.
As the debates over whether to attend the banquet raged on.
“No, why is it… why did it suddenly turn out like this?”
Mirne of the Maselin Kingdom was in a state of immense shock.
Nothing like this had ever happened in the story she had read.
Come to think of it, having Silphiner taken from her was strange to begin with.
Why had the Crown Prince suddenly become so proactive?
Had there been a mistake during the build-up process?
“It was shocking enough that the Grand Duke of the East came to our Kingdom with his Cultivation Method ruined.”
And barely any time had passed since then, yet now the Grand Duke of the North was dead.
“Where in the world does a Male Lead die so out of the blue? And the Grand Duke of the North, of all people.”
The Grand Duke of the North was the symbol of martial prowess. In a way, he was a contender for the strongest in this world.
It was shocking for someone like that to suddenly die when the story was barely at its midpoint.
And before the Academy had even been established, no less.
It was during the Academy arc that the college-life elements were supposed to unfold in earnest.
That was when the Reverse Harem with the various Male Leads would begin, and the real threats would start appearing.
That hadn’t even started yet, but the Characters were already being replaced?
This was far too strange.
“The Crown Prince has changed, and far too strangely at that.”
The Empire was no longer showering the Maselin Kingdom - no.
It was no longer showering her with gifts.
Rather, they were trying to extort her, and in the current situation, she had no choice but to be extorted.
Especially since the circumstances of the North’s treason had become clear.
And in the midst of that, the Northern personnel who had participated in the treason were dispatched to the Maselin Kingdom.
The Maselin Kingdom couldn’t Dispel the suspicion that it had also participated in the North’s treason.
To clear their name, they had no choice but to grovel.
In that sense, refusing the Empire’s banquet invitation was impossible.
No, she actually thought of it as a good opportunity.
“I need to Check on the changed Crown Prince.”
Did the Crown Prince even know how dangerous his current actions were?
If the story started getting tangled up like this, how was he going to handle the fallout later?
He shouldn’t be causing trouble, at least not until she forms a contract with the Spirit King.
“My head is spinning; it”s spinning too much…'
But seducing the Crown Prince was impossible, too.
[ The Crown Prince is not a Conquest Target. ]
“Tsk.”
Because the Crown Prince was never a Conquest Target to begin with.
“Of all the Conquest Targets, for the Northern Great Warrior to suddenly…”
Mirne found it incredibly regrettable that the Crown Prince wasn’t one of her Conquest Targets.
If only he had been designated as a Conquest Target, she would have been able to figure out his preferences, what kind of conversations he liked, and so on.
She would have had a rough idea and figured him out.
“I have no choice but to meet him in person.”
Besides, even if that weren’t the case.
She had to go to Dispel the suspicion that they had sympathized with the treason.
They were packing an exorbitant amount of gifts, at that.
And so, numerous kingdoms, including Mirne’s, finalized their stances regarding the Empire’s banquet.
“Full attendance. How wonderful.”
Hearing their responses, the Crown Prince smiled deeply.
++++++
It was common knowledge that the Empire was currently experiencing massive upheaval.
Just looking at the Empire Status Window, I saw that everything except administration and corruption was scraping the bottom of the barrel.
Even if people claimed the Empire had lost its former prestige, I couldn’t exactly refute it.
“But even so, it makes no sense to show them we”re hurting.'
Rather, we had to show them that we were even stronger than before.
At the same time, we needed some form of entertainment to soothe the anxiety of the Imperial Citizens.
“I should hold a Martial Arts Tournament. There are plenty of vacant spots for Sword Masters anyway… We can use it to select Troops to send to the North…”
It would provide a spectacle for the Imperial Citizens.
We could promise wealth and glory to the participants, and use them to fill the vacancies in the North.
“In the end, everything requires money.”
Throwing a grand banquet right now costs money, too.
If only the North and the East had spent a little less on buying those damn Fidget Spinners from the Maselin Kingdom.
“It would be great if we could produce something addictive of our own and spread it around.”
But those worries were brief.
“I heard a massive void has appeared on the Northern Front, the Northerners are trembling in fear, and the North’s morale has plummeted.”
“Yes, that is correct. However, this is also a temporary…”
“Times like these are exactly when the higher-ups need to step in.”
I decided to briefly lend my strength to the North while the banquet preparations were underway.
The superficial reason was that I wanted to witness the suffering of the Northerners firsthand.
My real intention, however.
“Now that Barbarians have been added to the Demonic Beasts, I need to see exactly what level of threat we”re dealing with.'
The objective was to accurately measure their combat power.