Our forces — the La Spezia–Habsburg allied fleet — advanced straight toward Genoa.
Nobody yet knew that La Spezia had betrayed them. When a fleet bearing the flags of the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Medici family appeared, Genoa had no time to react. We swiftly entered the port. Voices full of confusion kept coming through the crystal ball.
— What's happening? Why are you turning back already? Has something happened to our forces?
"Open the floodgates at once. These are His Grace the Duke's orders. Our forces were caught in the wrath of Poseidon en route. Deliver this message to the Mayor of Genoa. The assault on La Spezia — failed!"
— That can't be… understood. To open the floodgates, we need a direct request from His Grace the Duke. I'm sorry, but to the Grand Duke…
"Did you call for me?"
I stepped forward. I had already enlisted mages to cast an illusion spell over my appearance. Since I also needed to counterfeit the voice, I had dissected the Grand Duke's throat to study the structure of his vocal cords. It was fine. His throat was already cut open — a little more damage wouldn't make much difference.
"Everything my adjutant reported is true. Lockkeeper — open the gates for our exhausted forces immediately."
— Understood, Your Grace. Thank you for following proper procedure. Eternal glory to the Medici!
Eternal glory. That was the motto passed down through generations of the Medici family. I curled the corners of my lips upward.
"Yes. Eternal glory to the Medici."
The floodgates protecting the port of Genoa swung open.
In this era, ports were strictly controlled, and entire wharves were enclosed by wooden palisades. In Genoa's case, there were five entrances and five exits. Our forces easily formed five columns using their oars. A fleet of thirty ships passed through the floodgates smoothly without any obstruction.
— We warmly welcome Your Grace back to Genoa! The citizens of Genoa pledge to serve Your Grace at all times. The Mayor is on his way to receive you now.
"It would probably be more helpful to the Mayor if I took my time disembarking."
— We are deeply honored. The Mayor will never forget the kindness and consideration Your Grace the Grand Duke has shown.
The lockkeeper spoke with an earnest, moved expression. He was a well-trained dog, to be sure. That probably meant the Mayor of Genoa was a capable man as well. Compared to the half-witted nobles of the Habsburg Empire, the people of Sardinia were decidedly superior.
"The nobles of Sardinia are quite capable."
Laura whispered beside me. She was certainly right about that.
A nation where the nobles are competent, commoners are gradually entering the bureaucracy, and the overall sentiment favors republicanism... A smile naturally crept to my lips. If this wasn't the ideal country, what was?
Sardinia. If you had made one mistake, it was sacrificing a young girl. You offered up as a sacrifice the very kind of person you should never have sacrificed. You'll no doubt try to make excuses—claiming you didn't know, that it was nothing more than an accident.
Then accept the consequences of your mistake.
—Your Excellency, thank you for your patience. The Mayor is currently at the port.
"I can see him with my own eyes. But where is your post?"
—On the top floor of the tower visible to the right of Your Excellency's flagship.
He must have thought the Grand Duke was taking an interest in him. His voice overflowed with joy. I smiled kindly.
"You've done well. I was deeply impressed by your courtesy. As such, I shall bestow upon you a small gift."
—Oh! An eternal honor! I am utterly humbled!
"I do hope it pleases you."
I raised my right hand.
At that, my adjutant bellowed in a loud voice.
"Fire!"
Our mages unleashed their spells in unison. Some flew toward the waterfront where the Mayor of Genoa had emerged with his vassals, some toward the merchant ships moored side by side in the harbor, and some toward the tower where the lockkeeper was stationed.
They didn't even have time to scream. The Mayor and his entourage were engulfed in flames. As the inferno consumed the merchant ships, the port was transformed into a hellscape in an instant. When the tower collapsed, the last headquarters capable of controlling the situation evaporated.
An order fell from Laura's lips.
"Erase them."
The fate of the seventy thousand citizens of Genoa was decided with those two words.
Our mercenary company was already well-practiced in slaughter and plunder. They didn't recklessly attack the residential quarters first. Instead, they targeted Genoa's watchtowers and armories, capturing them first. The handful of defending soldiers were put to the sword.
Humans facing terror are left with two choices. One is to fall into despair and pray to the gods. The other is to burn with a desperate will to resist until the very end.
The following are the items that inspire astonishing willpower in humans: a well-organized garrison on standby, walls and towers where a resistance force can retreat and hold out for a time, and the weight of a weapon held firmly in one's own hands.
While the mercenaries were preoccupied with looting the wealthy houses, the resistance stoked its resolve for a final stand based on those three items — and this was anything but good news for the mercenaries. A truly well-trained mercenary knew how to postpone a "feast" just a little longer. The Helvetica mercenaries under Laura's command clearly fell into the latter category.
A mere forty minutes.
Every watchtower and armory in the city of Genoa had been seized. The fact that the mayor and his vassals had been killed at the outset was catastrophic. The watch captains, having lost their leaders, mostly surrendered without a fight.
"Bar the gates!"
This eliminated the citizens' means of escape.
Our forces numbered roughly 3,200. Taking on the entire citizenry of Genoa would not be easy. So Laura and I made a bold move — we ordered the mages to unleash indiscriminate bombardment.
To ordinary people, magic was nothing beyond awe and terror. It was irresistible violence. Homes were destroyed and set ablaze. The citizens screamed and fled to places the spells couldn't reach, where the flames couldn't touch.
It was like a driven hunt. Our forces herded the citizens steadily from west to east.
Many citizens were armed with self-defense swords and bucklers, but they stood no chance against our mercenaries wielding pikes. The mercenaries suffered virtually zero casualties — one soldier had burned his right arm when a spell went slightly astray, and that was the sole injury.
Finally, the citizens were driven toward Genoa's western gate.
"M-move! Out of the way!"
"Shit — open the gate! Why won't you open the damn gate!?"
A full seventy thousand people were packed into a single place. Those on the outside shoved the people in front to get even slightly closer to the gate, and citizens knocked down in the crush were trampled to death under the boots of hundreds — a living hell recreated upon the earth.
Perhaps they sensed something was wrong. The citizens changed direction, trying to flee another way. But behind them, pikes stood packed as densely as the quills of a hedgehog. The citizens found themselves trapped, unable to move in any direction.
"What shall we do, Your Grace? Shall we recommend surrender?"
"Just looking at them, there must be well over fifty thousand. Too many."
Laura shook her head.
"With our current forces, that's a number we can't handle."
"Hmm. If we slaughter unarmed citizens, it'll become a diplomatic nightmare. We'll be condemned for going too far, won't we? Pavia was an exception among exceptions."
We rode side by side as we talked. It was a truly leisurely conversation. If you looked at just the two of us, you'd never guess we were weighing the lives of seventy thousand people.
"How about this — we take as prisoners only those citizens who've sworn complete obedience to us."
"How can we trust that their obedience is more than lip service? They could be hiding daggers in their hearts."
"Even if their hearts are brimming with venom, as long as their bodies are bare, they can't do a thing."
A smile crept onto Laura's lips.
"All citizens are to remove every stitch of clothing except their undergarments."
The order was carried out as given.
"Those who wish to surrender: disrobe."
At first, the citizens protested the order violently. Of course, it was a futile struggle. A couple of fireballs gifted in their direction, and their mouths shut of their own accord. One person hesitated, then began to strip. After that, the number of people undressing grew exponentially.
"Don't strip the nobles."
"Is there any need for such consideration?"
"It's not consideration. When you've backed a group into a corner, you should split them in two whenever possible. Planting the seeds of resentment — 'Why are the nobles getting special treatment?' — is the wisest play."
And so, apart from a handful of nobles and priests, everyone stripped.
Tens of thousands of men and women in their undergarments, walking out in a single file — it was quite the spectacle. You'd need to be dead drunk to watch it without flinching. Laura and I passed a flask of wine back and forth as we observed this historic masterpiece.
"So what do you plan to do about Genoa, Court Count?"
"Well, I think the time has come."
"Oh? Isn't that a bit premature?"
I licked my wine-stained lips.
"The Habsburg Republic has entered the war. They were the ones who broke international courtesy first, so we owe them no obligation to hold back. I can't wait to see the look on Elisabeth's face. Just the thought of it is exhilarating."
"..."
Laura didn't answer. Puzzled, I turned to look at her, and for some reason she was staring at me with dazed eyes.
"Duke?"
"Hm? Oh. Right. I'm looking forward to it too."
Laura snapped back to her senses and gave a radiant smile.
"But, that... Court Count. Lately, haven't those... gotten less frequent...?"
I tilted my head. Laura glanced around nervously before I finally caught her meaning. She was saying we'd been having sex less often.
"We did it the day before yesterday, didn't we?"
"Mm. What I mean is... since we didn't do it yesterday..."
"..."
By now my expression must have resembled that of a girl looking at a pervert.
"You used to curse me out for going at it every day like a dog in heat, and now you're unhappy because we skipped a single day? Good lord. I'd heard that a woman's appetite grows with age, but I didn't know the Duke had already reached that stage."
"Nnnn, that's not— forget it! If you don't want to, then forget about it!"
Laura turned her head away with a pout.
I flashed a sly grin. Then, "accidentally" spilling my wine over Laura's military uniform.
"W-what are you doing!?"
"Oh my. My sincerest apologies, Your Grace the Duke. It seems I've had the misfortune of staining Your Grace's garments by mistake. I'm truly sorry."
I made sure to say it loud enough for all the mercenary captains nearby to hear.
"A Commander-in-Chief of the army simply cannot be seen in such a state. Here now, let's go get you changed. Since this is my fault, I shall personally escort you. No, no. Please don't refuse me. If you turn me down, I'll be so wracked with guilt that I won't be able to sleep a wink tonight. Baron de Blanc."
"Oh, y-yes! Your Excellency!"
Baron de Blanc, who had been watching our banter with his mind completely blank, snapped to attention and threw up a crisp salute. For reference, Baron de Blanc had by now become our most trusted subordinate.
"I shall escort the Commander-in-Chief for a moment. In the meantime, keep a close watch on the prisoners. Understood?"
"Your orders shall be obeyed, sir!"
"Good."
I nodded with satisfaction. Laura looked flustered, but I more or less dragged her along by force.
With every last citizen having cleared out, the city was as silent as a ghost town. I ordered the guardsmen to stand by for a moment, then walked to the square alone with Laura. The wide, open square was completely deserted. In the empty square, only a fountain burbled away, spouting water.
"My lord? Why are we in a place like this...?"
"You know, Laura, this is something I've wanted to do for a very long time."
I slowly led Laura toward the fountain.
"I've wanted to ravish Laura right in the middle of a city."
"Wh-wh-what are you talking about...?"
"As it happens, the perfect time and place have presented themselves."
Whether she had realized the gravity of the situation, Laura struggled. But I gripped her shoulders firmly and would not let go. I leaned in and whispered into her ear.
"Your Grace. If we don't finish quickly, the soldiers might catch us, you know?"
"My lord really is a pervert! How can you, on the very same day you slaughtered tens of thousands, right in the middle of conquered territory...!"
Too much back then meant she didn't want it, too little just now meant she didn't want it, and now that I was finally willing, she said she didn't want it again. Even a man as generous and kind-hearted as I was could get a little angry over this.
"...!"
Angered, I wasted no words and stole her lips.
What followed was simple.
The two of us had slaughtered 13,000 soldiers of the Kingdom of Sardinia, butchered the citizens, razed the city, and then sat in the deserted square and tangled ourselves together in an absolute mess.
Even I had to admit we were an absurdly well-matched couple. Wouldn't you say?