Chapter 179 - Montpellier! Oh, Montpellier! (1)

The first to notice the signs was Cliang de Bourgogne Montpellier.

He was currently officially under house arrest.

In reality, there was no need to restrict his personal liberty, as he had already defected to the Leonberk Kingdom. However, his defection was still a secret, so he ended up playing the role of a 'prisoner'—a fate he was never meant for.

Of course, that was only how his situation appeared from the outside; in truth, he could leave his residence whenever he wanted.

That day, too, he was observing the atmosphere of The Capital with his cloak pulled down tight.

"If only it weren't for that damn Fire Dragon."

Feeling pathetic about his situation of having to travel on foot instead of riding a carriage, he continually poured out complaints until he saw a familiar face in the passing crowd and stopped in his tracks.

"Huh. Why is he in The Capital..."

The man was definitely an Imperial Knight. Montpellier remembered his face clearly, having received his cooperation a few times during past covert operations.

SWISH.

Just then, the Imperial Knight turned his head in his direction.

"Yikes."

Montpellier hastily pulled his cloak down further and lowered his head. Then, he hurried his steps.

Fortunately, seeing that he wasn't being followed, it didn't seem like the man had recognized his face. He was about to heave a belated sigh of relief when he spotted another familiar face a short distance ahead.

It wasn't just one.

At first glance, they were dressed like common citizens of The Capital, but they were all Imperial Knights.

And they weren't just any knights, but the swords of the Emperor belonging to the Department of External Operations directly under the Imperial House.

Montpellier headed back to his residence before they could possibly recognize him.

On his way back, he checked multiple times to see if he was being trailed, and not satisfied with just that, he took a roundabout route and even changed his clothes into tattered rags discarded on the street.

His heart pounded.

He wondered if they had recognized him, and if they had, whether they would find it suspicious that a man supposed to be under house arrest was openly wandering around The Capital in broad daylight. He wondered if they were assassins dispatched to execute him, having figured out his defection.

Countless terrible imaginations popped into his head.

He was so terrified that he stayed up all night with his eyes wide open.

No assassins came.

A sigh of relief slipped out naturally. And it was only after regaining his composure that Montpellier realized his thoughts had been an excessive delusion.

There was no way they could have noticed his defection. They were likely here to rescue the ambassador who had been detained as a prisoner right as the war broke out.

"Wait. Right now, that ruthless Prince bastard isn't even in The Capital."

Now was the perfect opportunity to escape that violently abusive Prince bastard. But unfortunately, he couldn't seize that chance.

Even if they had come to rescue him, that protection would only last until they reached the mainland. By the time the political enemies of the Montpellier family drew their swords, those rescuers would have already scattered like a wisp of smoke.

"How did my situation end up like this?"

Montpellier lamented.

He hated that Prince bastard, and he resented the kingdom. He even harbored hatred for the Fire Dragon. His situation was far too miserable.

After spewing curses to himself like that and then sobbing heavily for a long time...

He finally decided to accept reality.

Adapting to the kingdom was now his only way to survive. Returning to the Empire to be executed by his political enemies was something he had to avoid at all costs.

For that to happen, the kingdom had to withstand the war against the Empire.

The chances weren't very high.

But compared to dying meaninglessly on the guillotine his political enemies had prepared, remaining on the kingdom's side offered a slightly higher chance of survival.

And right now, he had no choice but to lean towards the side that offered even a ten percent higher chance of survival.

He could only hope that the kingdom would somehow hold out.

As he thought about the war, Montpellier suddenly remembered a fact he had forgotten.

"What an absent-minded fool! To think I forgot something so important!"

He fumbled around a secret section set up in his bedroom. Soon, with a CLICK sound, a hidden space was revealed.

Inside was a document sealed through magical processing.

One fact he had absolutely never disclosed, even while being mercilessly beaten by the Prince bastard.

The ambassadors of the Empire were instructed to act according to specific guidelines in the unlikely event that a war between the Empire and the kingdom broke out.

Those guidelines were contained exactly within the sealed document.

He had completely forgotten about its existence, believing there was absolutely no chance that a weak country located on the frontier would dare to rebel against the Empire.

Montpellier hesitated for a moment before tearing the seal off the document.

FLASH.

A light flashed. Then, a bizarre air spread out in all directions.

Montpellier stiffened and looked around for a moment. Fortunately, nothing happened.

He let out a sigh of relief, took out the document, and read it.

The document detailed the guidelines the imperial ambassador should follow and the future plans to be executed in the rare event of a war.

However, the contents were so shocking and terrifying that Montpellier couldn't help but let out a gasp.

"Th-The Emperor's thoroughness goes beyond my expectations."

He shivered. A chill ran down his spine at the thoroughness of the Emperor, who had steadily prepared for the kingdom's highly improbable independence.

Because of that, he even briefly considered pretending his defection had never happened and escaping The Capital.

Right at that moment, the Prince's face came to mind.

The moment he recalled the vicious Prince who would strike him whenever he got the chance, his trembling bizarrely subsided.

"If the Empire has a monster-like Emperor, the kingdom has that devilish Prince bastard."

He steadied his wavering heart.

Even so, he pondered for a long time.

"Is anyone out th—"

Having barely made up his mind, he called for a servant before shutting his mouth again.

The document in his hand was just a single piece of paper at best, but its weight was far too heavy. It was heavy enough to completely erase a mere figurehead of a Marquis without a trace if delivered to the wrong person.

He decided to take action personally.

There was no time to delay.

If he made a wrong move, the ship he had transferred to just to survive could sink in an instant.

Montpellier headed straight for the royal palace.

And he sought out the kingdom's new Grand Marshal.

"It seems you are no longer afraid of the Empire's gaze. Even after you claimed you would willingly play the role of a prisoner."

At Marquis Bielefeld's words, Montpellier cut to the chase and brought up the main point.

"Look at this."

"What is this..."

The Grand Marshal's face stiffened upon confirming the official seal of the Imperial House of Bourgogne.

The Grand Marshal hastily read the document. And when he finished reading it all, his face was as stiff as could be.

"Is this true?"

"I've already confirmed several Imperial Knights right in the middle of The Capital. I can say with certainty that the operation has already begun."

As soon as Montpellier finished speaking, the Grand Marshal called the knights outside the door.

"Is anyone out there!"

"Did you call for us?"

The knights of House Bielefeld assigned to the Marshal's Office rushed in hastily.

"You, immediately inform the Royal Knights to escort all members of the royal family to the inner depths without missing a single person! You, tell the palace guard captain to lock the palace gates right now, gather the guards, and prepare for battle! The Capital must also be locked down immediately. And you, together with the other knights, notify all commanders ranked Legion Commander and above in every department to come to the royal palace's conference room!"

The knights' eyes widened at the sudden orders.

"Every second counts! Hurry up!"

The Grand Marshal urged the knights on with an unprecedentedly anxious expression.

The knights dashed out with thudding footsteps.

The Grand Marshal also sprang up from his seat and got ready.

"Follow me."

Marquis Montpellier silently followed the Grand Marshal.

* * *

"What in the world is all this about?"

The person who greeted the Grand Marshal and Marquis Montpellier in the conference room was the Queen.

"Did you perhaps not receive the notice?"

"I did receive word... Everyone else is in the inner depths, so there's no need to make such a worried face. I am merely here as the representative of the royal family now that His Majesty is absent."

It was unexpected for the Queen, who should have been in the inner depths, to appear in the conference room, but the Grand Marshal did not bother trying to persuade her to head there now.

"First, let's hear what is going on."

"For a long time, the Empire has hidden a few blades under the kingdom's chin in preparation for a war with our country that might break out by some slim chance. The Imperial Knights who have infiltrated The Capital are the first blade, and the imperial soldiers who have positioned themselves near The Capital alongside them are the second. And the kingdom's nobles who defected to the Empire are the third blade."

The Grand Marshal gave Marquis Montpellier a look.

"I encountered familiar faces several times yesterday. That means they are already actively in motion."

"Did you not know of their existence earlier?"

"I had absolutely no idea until yesterday. In truth, I had worked with them a few times before, but until just yesterday, I thought they were merely dispatched here from the imperial mainland as needed and then returned. I didn't know they were stationed right here in The Capital like this."

"Hmm."

The Queen stared intently at Montpellier.

"Please believe me."

"Then again, all that awaits you if you return to your homeland is the guillotine. There is no reason for you to take the Empire's side again at this point."

Montpellier flinched and trembled. It was because the Queen's words hit the nail on the head far too perfectly.

Just as he was about to reiterate his sincerity toward the kingdom, the Queen spoke first.

"The threat posed by the defected nobles was already eliminated by that child, so that is a relief."

Although it was understandable to be surprised by the sudden situation, the Queen's voice remained calm the entire time.

"The Imperial Knights infiltrated into The Capital and the imperial soldiers who will soon swarm toward this place are the issue. Grand Marshal, do you happen to have a countermeasure prepared for this?"

"Their objective is surely to use the chaos caused by the pre-infiltrated knights to open The Capital's gates, and ultimately conquer the royal palace as well. My plan is to firmly lock every gate to fortify our defenses, and in the meantime, root out the infiltrated knights so that they cannot coordinate from both the inside and outside."

It was a standard response strategy.

However, the Queen pointed out a flaw in the Grand Marshal's response.

"Now that the gates to the royal palace and the royal castle have been locked, they too will realize that we have learned of their operation. Rooting them out while they are deeply hidden will be a highly exhausting task."

"The matter was so urgent that my thoughts did not reach that far. This foolish subject has ruined things, so please punish me."

"I am not trying to blame you. I know you took those measures because you prioritized the safety of us royals above all else. I only brought it up because I wished to offer a very small piece of advice."

Having said that, the Queen told a story from the North.

"Monsters never leave their wounded behind when a fight ends. They are the kind of creatures who will eat everyone—be they kin or foe—just to fill their stomachs. However, there are times when Rangers injured in battle against them manage to survive and make it all the way to the vicinity of Winter Castle."

One might have thought the Queen's suddenly brought-up story about her hometown was out of nowhere, but the Grand Marshal listened closely without showing any displeasure despite being busy.

"Merely watching a comrade groaning in pain from their injuries is a terribly agonizing thing."

"If it's the brave soldiers and knights of the North, wouldn't they be capable of rescuing them instead of just watching?"

"They can, but they also cannot."

The Grand Marshal even chimed in. His eyes sparkled, as if he had caught on to something.

"Because they are bait. They know that the moment they open the gates and rush out to save their allies, the hidden Orcs will swarm out in countless numbers."

The Queen's gaze, which had been directed at the Grand Marshal, stopped on Montpellier.

"Why don't we try becoming Orcs?"

Without even knowing the meaning behind that clear gaze, Montpellier trembled for no reason.