"I am Wolfram Hadelberg. It is an honor to meet Your Grace the Duke, representing the Republic as best I can. I humbly pledge to work toward a lasting peace between our nations."
It was mid-April, with cherry blossoms in full bloom. The Habsburg Republic had sent an envoy. I should congratulate myself that my predictions had proven correct.
They ostensibly came bearing reasons like trade and tariffs, but those were all mere pretexts. Their true goal was to meet the Emperor and verify the truth of the situation, by any means necessary. Before that, they would have to contend with me, the Minister of Justice.
I greeted him in my office with a soft smile plastered across my face.
"Hadelberg, a pleasure. I have heard much of your renown. They say you have mastered not only the languages of the continent, but even the tongue of the demons."
"Your Grace recognizes this humble one; I am overwhelmed."
The man beamed. He must have been approaching his late thirties.
He was in that transitional phase from beautiful young man to distinguished middle age. Perhaps he hadn't managed his stamina perfectly, as his cheeks had filled out a bit, but that lent him a kindly impression, which was rather fitting.
Wolfram Hadelberg. He was a prodigy who had distinguished himself early on in one of the Empire's traditional noble houses. In his twenties, he had thrown himself behind the Imperial Princess faction led by Elisabeth, contributing to the establishment of the Republic, and had since been active as the head of its Foreign Ministry.
In short, he had already become a founding statesman of a nation in his youth. And it wasn't just Wolfram Hadelberg; all the Republic's power players were young. Well, Consul Elisabeth herself was still only in her twenties. A young and capable government. That was the present-day Republic.
But capability alone did not guarantee national strength. That was the tragedy of an age of chaos.
Wolfram Hadelberg, you must feel this most acutely. Originally, the Republic had stood tall with staunch allies like pillars of light. The Kingdom of Bretagne, the Kingdom of Polithunia, the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Anatolia Empire...
Now, no country supported the Republic. Only the Anatolia Empire remained. That was because I had cleverly severed the Republic's limbs, one by one. For Foreign Minister Wolfram Hadelberg, I must be no less than a mortal enemy.
...Did I, of all people, just crush a prodigy from a prestigious family who became a founding statesman in his twenties?
"Your Grace?"
Wolfram Hadelberg was staring intently at my face. Ah, I had been lost in thought for a moment. Lately, I found myself drifting into other thoughts even while someone was right in front of me.
"My apologies. It's a bit embarrassing to receive praise from the brilliant Hadelberg."
I smiled, as if slightly bashful.
"I tend to evaluate myself quite humbly. I don't see myself as a prodigy at all, more like a dullard, in fact."
"Your Grace... are you perhaps calling yourself a dullard..."
Wolfram Hadelberg made an indescribable expression. I understood. When someone superior displayed humility, people felt confused and irritated. Because there was no way to strike back.
I spoke in a quiet, almost instructive tone.
"Please understand my position, Secretary. Your country has far too many geniuses, does it not? The Consul, naturally, but also Chief of Staff Wittemeyer, Intelligence Director Schleiermacher, and Your Excellency as well. One can never afford to let one's guard down. In order to contend with all of you, I had no choice but to deliberately underestimate myself."
"......"
Wolfram Hadelberg held his breath for just a moment.
I had just referred to Kurz Schleiermacher as the Intelligence Director. That was a top-secret matter that outsiders should never have known about. Schleiermacher's official title was Commander of the Imperial Guard, not Intelligence Director.
From the other party's perspective, it must have felt like being struck by lightning on a clear day. That his facial expression hadn't changed was impressive enough.
"You flatter us by saying you contend with us. How could our humble Republic, a minor nation at best, dare to contend with Your esteemed Grace, let alone the most powerful empire on this continent?"
"You need not bow your head."
I sipped my black tea. It was laced with sedatives. My left leg, now replaced with a prosthetic, occasionally itched maddeningly, and I'd asked Jeremy to prescribe sedatives to suppress it. The tea had quite a pleasant flavor, which I found personally satisfying.
"In my estimation, across the entire world, only your country is worthy of standing in the way of our empire's future. I hold this belief deep in my heart. Please, take pride in that."
"Your Grace."
Wolfram Hadelberg shot to his feet and dropped to his knees on the floor. His face was so wretched it was almost pitiable.
"We absolutely have no intention of opposing the empire. Please believe me. I am not asking you to trust my humble words. I am asking you to believe in the simple truth that a small nation cannot stand against a great power, and that it certainly cannot afford hostility when sharing a border."
"For the sake of national interest, you cast aside your pride in an instant. As long as loyal men like you serve the Consul, the Republic will continue to enjoy its prosperity."
"......"
Wolfram Hadelberg's expression darkened. Even though a nation's Foreign Secretary had suddenly dropped to his knees, I remained perfectly composed. No matter what was said, my attitude of remaining wary of the Republic was as unshakeable as a boulder.
"Why must you be so wary of us? We are surrounded by the empire on three sides. When you factor in the Helvetica Confederation, we are essentially encircled on all four. A minor nation that cannot survive without relying on the empire's goodwill—that is our Republic."
"And yet, to the south, you forged a blood alliance with the Kingdom of Sardinia. When Sardinia wavered, you immediately brought the Anatolia Empire into the fold as your next allied partner. Truly exquisite diplomacy."
"It is nothing more than a minor nation struggling desperately to survive!"
Wolfram Hadelberg clung on tenaciously.
A curious scene was playing out in the office. The Republic's Foreign Secretary was desperately denigrating his own country, while I—the Minister of Law from a hostile nation—was singing the Republic's praises.
"As proof, during the recent Chrysanthemum War, our Consul never once took up arms against the Imperial forces. If we had harbored treachery toward the Empire, would we have done so?"
"Sardinia's entire territory had already been ravaged regardless. It had become a rotten lifeline. Rather than clinging to Sardinia, you chose to bring the Anatolia Empire into the fold as your new ally… A strategically cool and precise judgment, wouldn't you say?"
I smiled.
"The Consul was busy commanding legions at the time. You, Secretary Hadelberg, must have been the one who negotiated with the Anatolia Empire on the Consul's behalf. Splendid. In the end, the Republic turned a far more powerful nation into its ally—one that dwarfed its former partner. And not a single thing was lost."
It truly was splendid. What the Republic had handed over to Anatolia was Venice. That prosperous city, however, was not the Republic's territory but Sardinia's. In other words, the Republic had brokered a diplomatic deal using land that was neither its own nor even belonging to another country under its control.
The sheer brazenness and skill were almost admirable. I never ceased to be amazed by Elisabeth's ability. I truly wanted to follow her example.
"Your… Your Highness. What must we do for you to believe in our sincerity?"
"Sincerity? I'm not sure I follow. I dare say there is no one on this continent who understands your country's sincerity as well as I do."
Is that so, I said, stroking my chin.
"Demolish every fortress you've constructed along the border regions. Disband the Anatolian mercenary garrison stationed in Venice. And maintain the Republic's standing army at all times at no more than five thousand. If you do that, I may be able to trust your country to some degree."
"That is… an unrealistic condition! Please, show us some mercy!"
Wolfram Hadelberg slammed his head against the floor. The sound echoed quite loudly. There was a carpet, so there would be no pain, but the sight of him bowing his head so desperately was a wretched one indeed.
I gazed down at Hadelberg for a long, silent moment.
"Your country has made a grave mistake."
"Your Highness…?"
"My adopted daughter, who sought asylum in your nation. Did you think I chose her as my successor—for no particular reason whatsoever?"
Wolfram Hadelberg did not move a muscle. He exuded the air of a man who had absolutely no idea what I was talking about. As expected, the man before me was another skilled performer. My wariness only deepened further.
"He speaks. But I find it difficult to gauge exactly what Your Highness means."
"Consider it merely me muttering to myself. The humans I fear most in this world are your nation's Consul and my adopted daughter. If your nation truly did not wish to fight us, you should have sent my adopted daughter back to the Empire the moment she requested asylum."
"Your Highness. I truly..."
I picked up my teacup and turned it upside down.
The reddish tea trickled onto the floor. My discourtesy left Wolfram Hadelberg speechless.
"You are mistaken, Secretary Hadelberg. By the mere act of visiting our Empire, you have already completed every task assigned to you."
For the first time, a look of genuine bewilderment surfaced on Wolfram Hadelberg's face.
"I beg your pardon?"
"The Consul was already well aware that I had located my adopted daughter. He must have intuited long ago that Rudolf von Habsburg was a corpse puppet as well. None of this would have been new information to the Consul."
The other man's eyes wavered. He clearly had not expected me to come at him like this.
"Yet the Consul still sent you here as an envoy. Do you understand what that means?"
"..."
"The Consul is asking me a question. Whether we go to war or not."
My smile deepened further.
Suppose I allowed Hadelberg to meet the Emperor. I would use Ivar's puppet to deceive them. The Republic would have nothing to latch onto and would withdraw meekly. A peaceful resolution.
However, in that case, Elizabeth would certainly kill both Barbatos and Daisy. Naturally. Since they could no longer be used to exploit any weakness on our end, Barbatos and Daisy would be nothing but unnecessarily dangerous liabilities.
I could hear Elizabeth's voice as though it were ringing vividly in my ear.
—Dantalion. As you know, you have Barbatos and your adopted daughter. Will you publicly declare that the Emperor is a corpse puppet? You need not declare it. But in that case, the two of them die.
In short, a threat.
Wolfram Hadelberg himself was a threat letter written in a language only the Consul and I could decipher.
Of course, Hadelberg himself knew nothing of the truth. That was why I told him. After all, isn't it rather pitiful to be used as a puppet by the Consul and me without even knowing it?
"You will have an audience with His Majesty the Emperor this evening. Don't worry. Feel free to use any artifact or whatever you need. And then convey the fact that the Emperor is a corpse puppet to the Consul."
"……."
War it is, then. That was the reply.
The Elector Demon Lords had already been persuaded by me. They had started mustering their mercenaries days ago. There was no harm in plunging into war once more. The justification was more than sufficient—if they simply claimed they were recruiting mercenaries to suppress a rebellion within the Empire, none of the surrounding nations would suspect a thing.
Elizabeth had two choices.
Hand Barbatos and Daisy back to us quietly, just like this.
Or publicly expose the Emperor as a corpse puppet and plunge into war.
In the case of the latter, our side would flatly deny all claims of the Republic. Instead, we would counter by exposing the Republic's kidnapping of Barbatos, launching into open confrontation. Neither side would recognize the other's claims, and both would plunge into a mudslinging war.
Complete submission, or total war.
I welcomed either outcome. I would simply respond however Elizabeth wished. If Barbatos and Daisy were sent back? We'd hold another public execution ceremony. It wouldn't even be much trouble.
If it turned into a war of exposure, a fire-with-fire confrontation—then I would crush them with overwhelming force.
Not just Helvetica mercenaries, but soldiers from across the entire continent. Let the Anatolia Empire or whoever else sponsor the Republic all they wanted. Neither the Habsburg Empire nor the Frank Empire had been able to block my path. What made Anatolia any different?
"Just so you know, depending on how your nation responds, the Empire will enter a full-scale war with you. It's simply a choice between two options."
"……."
"Please consult thoroughly with the Consul and send your reply."
Dark clouds settled over Wolfram Hadelberg's face.