Chapter 25

Although it was shattered by Isak's rebellion and its members were reduced by about half, the Senate was still one of the core institutions of the Empire.

In fact, it could be said to hold authority second only to the Emperor and the Patriarch.

So I used the Senate to strike at Isak.

I had them declare Isak a public enemy of the Empire.

Becoming a public enemy of the Empire simply meant that one was no longer a citizen of the Empire protected by law, and could not complain of injustice even if plundered or murdered.

It was not a religious excommunication, but a much crueler punishment than general social ostracism.

“When on earth did you plot all that?”

“I reconvened the Senate on the day of the rebellion. You would remember, Your Excellency Zeta.”

“Of course. Though I didn't know you were doing such a thing.”

“The Senate didn't particularly oppose it either. In fact, they seemed to strongly approve.”

In truth, the people remaining in the Senate now were either from Zeta's faction or were victims of the rebellion, so they held ill feelings towards Isak.

It was also inevitable since the people who would have opposed for Isak's sake had all been taken away by him.

If he had a problem with that, he shouldn't have started a rebellion.

The Senate, incited by me, immediately loaded the news of Isak being declared a public enemy of the Empire onto a fast ship and sent it all over Siberia.

By now, the news has probably spread to most regions.

“Wait, that was already a few days ago? Then by now─.”

“That's right. By now, Duke Isak must be overwhelmed by attacks pouring in from all sides.”

It might be different if the Empire were completely fragmented, but at this point, the authority of the central government was still clearly intact.

The lords and ministers of the provinces would willingly set out to execute Isak.

To be more precise, they would move to legitimately plunder Isak's domain.

With both a just cause and profit, wouldn't one be a fool not to?

“As far as I know, Duke Isak has more enemies than he has peaceful relations with his neighbors. That's why I said we don't have to worry about him, as he won't be able to advance to the Imperial Capital for a while as he'll be busy defending his domain.”

“Haha. Duke Isak messed with the wrong person. Leon Akardi, you fearsome bastard. Very well done.”

Belius praised me, but Zeta was worried.

“However, one thing that concerns me is that the lords are not fools. They are busy grasping the situation now, but they will soon realize what it means for the throne to be vacant.”

“Hmm.”

“Especially after getting a taste of blood starting with Duke Isak, they will then begin to devour each other.”

Zeta was right.

Imperial Interregnum.

It didn't simply mean there was no emperor.

It meant that there was no longer anyone in the central government to control the provincial nobles, and that one era was ending and a new one was dawning.

The name of that new era was the rise of warlords.

While Zeta was one to despair, Belius was one to find hope.

“Is there no possibility of a peaceful resolution? What if we just elect a new emperor?”

“If that were truly possible, Duke Isak wouldn't have fought a street battle in the Imperial Capital. Besides, we can't just make anyone the emperor, can we? No matter who is elected, there will eventually be discontent, and everyone will choose force as the final solution over dialogue. Because it's easier and faster.”

“Damn it. Michael left me with too big a burden. If I had known this would happen, I would have retired long ago.”

Right.

This is really the dead emperor's fault.

He shouldn't have died so irresponsibly without even appointing a successor.

There's no need to apply game theory.

All the conditions for ambitious men to be fired up were in place.

At first, everyone will be cautious, but soon they will act, if only to avoid losses.

And the first target will, of course, be─.

“Considering the importance of the Imperial Capital, the ambitious will try to conquer it first. The Imperial Capital is a city that can be used as a stepping stone for the competition for the throne.”

The Imperial Capital, the capital of the Empire.

It's not for nothing that Zeta was interested in confiscating property.

Zeta might lack political sense, but she's not out of her mind.

She's just preparing for war.

Among the people gathered here, Zeta was the only one who had witnessed the changing of the Empire's royal family.

And multiple times at that.

There was a high probability that she had witnessed ambitious men attempting to rush the Imperial Capital in the past.

That's why she knows.

That it will by no means be easy to fend off the swarm of piranha-like ambitious men who will flock here.

Belius, who had been ruffling his hair for a while, spoke as if he had made up his mind.

“Alright. So it has to be resolved by force, is that it? Then how about we just make Leon Akardi here the emperor?”

“Prince Leon?”

“He may not have the right of succession, but he carries the imperial bloodline anyway. He also played a big role in stopping this rebellion, so his abilities aren't bad either. What do you think?”

Zeta raised an eyebrow.

Before any opinion of agreement or disagreement could come from her mouth, I quickly spoke.

“I can't.”

“What, why? I'm offering to make you emperor, why not?”

“You're asking because you don't know? If I did that, I could bet my entire fortune that I'd be assassinated by someone within a month.”

“The Emperor's Royal Guard will protect you, so what's the worry?”

“By that logic, doesn't Belius also have the qualifications to become emperor? As a great general who has been active in the Empire for a long time, it wouldn't be difficult to gain people's support. Now, ascend the throne. Become the unrivaled soldier-emperor. I will also actively support you.”

“……”

At my lengthy speech, Belius flinched and then shut his mouth completely.

He was really spouting words he didn't even believe himself.

Right?

Even you think becoming emperor is a crazy idea, don't you?

“It feels strange, with everyone refusing the emperor's throne that others covet so much.”

“It can't be helped.”

A few days ago, it might have been different, but now the emperor's throne was a poisoned chalice.

I don't know if they have the concept of a chalice here, though.

Anyway, with Isak openly rebelling, the illusion of a stable succession to the throne was shattered.

People awakened from the illusion could only realize that this place was actually a wilderness where a war of all against all was taking place.

The name of that wilderness was the competition for the throne.

“Look. We each have disqualifying reasons that are difficult to overcome. That's why it's impossible for us to become emperor. Or we could sit on the throne for a moment and then die.”

But the three people gathered here each had a screw loose in their own strange way.

First, to speak of myself, I am a person who lacks many things.

Popularity, authority, title, domain, subordinates, I have none of it.

There is no power base to support me at all.

It's hard to call Zeta or Belius subordinates.

If anything, they're closer to allies.

So the only person I can trust is Theo.

Meanwhile, Belius's weakness is his commoner birth.

He has built a reputation, but he doesn't receive the support he needs.

Just seeing how a significant number of his former subordinates ignored his advice and sided with Isak in this rebellion shows how important bloodline is.

So, it goes without saying for Zeta.

Although she served for a long time in the Imperial Guard, strictly speaking, Zeta is just a foreign mercenary captain.

It was precisely because she was not a threat to the throne that she was paradoxically able to exist at the core of Imperial politics.

The moment Zeta abandons that advantage and claims the throne will probably be the start of the Imperial Capital rush.

In any case, these flaws we have were not of a nature that could be easily forgiven or overcome.

They were bound to either provoke internal backlash or receive external attacks.

That's why I said I'd be assassinated within a month.

Belius grumbled.

“I was just trying to get some pension, and now I'm in way over my head.”

“I've been curious for a while, but what's this about a pension?”

“There's something. You don't need to know, so don't ask. It's a personal story.”

“……”

Seriously, then don't bring it up in the first place.

He keeps bringing it up to make me curious and then tells me not to ask.

I think I know why his subordinates ignored him.

They must have been annoyed by him grumbling like this all the time.

“Damn it. Why didn't Michael give you a title? Wouldn't things be better if he had?”

“I know, right. Why on earth did he do that.”

I agreed with that.

If I had sufficient power, I would have immediately jumped into the warlord free-for-all with the Imperial Capital as my base.

With two S-class characters by my side, conquest would have been quite easy.

But because of the fatal problem of having no power base, I had become like someone who tripped on a stone at the starting line of a race.

No.

What's the point of blaming someone else.

It's my fault for creating the character strangely in the first place.

If I had chosen a character like Isak, things would have been easier.

I sighed and my eyes met Zeta's.

“……”

“Is there something you wish to say?”

“I think Your Highness has a plan to overcome this situation. Am I wrong?”

Belius's eyes widened.

“What? You were hiding something like that? You insidious bastard. This is why people say not to trust anyone from the Akardi family.”

“I wasn't particularly hiding it. I just didn't say anything because it wasn't the right situation.”

“Then spit it out. I won't get mad. Quickly.”

Belius urged from the side, and although Zeta said nothing, she applied silent pressure with her gaze.

It seems that as we've all been through thick and thin together lately, everyone's understanding of me has grown.

Can't be helped.

In that case, I have no choice but to meet their expectations.

It was about time to say it, anyway.

I nervously scratched the back of my head and then brought out the words I had prepared.

“Well, there is one way. Would you like to hear it?”

***

A few days later.

A new edict proclaimed by the Senate spread rapidly throughout the Empire.

Its content was very simple.

「The Imperial Capital shall be managed by the Royal Guard solely as a place for the rightful person to be elected emperor.」

It was a declaration of a neutral zone.

It meant, 'this is not a PK zone, so go fight outside.'

Most people took it simply at face value, but those with sharp minds understood it differently.

It was an expression of their will not to get involved in the chaos that was to come, and at the same time, a warning that messing with the Imperial Capital meant making an enemy of the Royal Guard.

But people with better memories also recalled the fact that the famous general Belius was siding with Zeta.

And Belius, by his very existence, was an entity equivalent to the Empire's central army.

Even in a situation where the central army was split in two by this rebellion, Belius had proven that his skills were not dead.

As the difficulty of conquering the Imperial Capital gradually rose, and the ignited ambitions of the aspiring warlords were slightly curbed.

There was an incident where a fire broke out in a corner of the Imperial Palace's annex.

The flames did not spread far and were quickly suppressed, but there was one victim.

That unlucky victim was Leon, who had recently gained fame.

At first, Leon's death did not cause a great shock to the public.

It was considered just an unfortunate accident.

But after some time had passed, a rumor began to spread that Isak had assassinated Leon.

It was said that he was so resentful of the young royal who stood in his way that he finally took revenge.

That explanation was quite plausible, so it spread quickly.

It was an unfair situation only for Isak, who was sleeping at home without knowing anything and suddenly gained a bad reputation.

Isak pleaded that he was framed, but with him already branded as a public enemy of the Empire, no one took his side.

In this situation of chaos all around…….

Leon was secretly boarding a ship bound for the western peninsula.

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