I Told You, Didn't I? (4)
Due to Ghislain's threats, the Marquis' army was left paralyzed, unable to take any action.
This army had been assembled under the orders of Marquis Falkenheim. If they disregarded his safety, their very existence would lose its meaning.
However, surrender was not an option either. In the current situation, surrendering would undoubtedly result in a bloodbath.
The lords of the punitive army and the king would not want to leave any lingering threats behind.
Thus, Count Godiff could not make any immediate decisions.
As the Marquis' army remained still, loud voices echoed from the punitive army's side.
"Surrender! The Marquis has already been captured! What's the point of continuing the war?"
"There's no meaning in fighting any longer!"
"Surrender! Surrender!"
The punitive army was elated. Thanks to Ghislain, the situation had completely reversed.
The commanders of the Marquis' army suppressed their boiling anger.
"Those lowly bastards..."
"Even the traitorous scum are getting excited now."
"We should have crushed them earlier and negotiated instead."
They were confident they could win in battle. Their side had two superhumans—Count Godiff and Count Grozian.
Their mages, led by a 6th-Circle Master, were also far superior.
And that wasn't all. The quality of their soldiers and their training was leagues ahead of the punitive army.
Yet, with Marquis Falkenheim captured, all of that became meaningless. Even as the punitive army jeered and mocked them, they had no means to respond.
The commanders of the Marquis' army quickly gathered around Count Godiff.
"What should we do?"
"We need to negotiate. We can't fight like this."
"Do you really think those bastards will release the Marquis? Never. Not a chance."
"But if we surrender, we'll all be dead. That's not an option."
They were all in a dire predicament. They couldn't ignore the Marquis' captivity and fight, but they also couldn't throw away their lives by surrendering.
Count Godiff lowered his head and let out a rough breath.
"That madman actually went through with it..."
The punitive army had clearly been on the verge of collapse. Yet, that man had foreseen it all.
That must have been why he boldly threw the punitive army in as bait while making his own move separately. And here he was, foolishly celebrating victory, completely unaware.
He should have expected that lunatic—so full of creativity—would come up with something even more unpredictable.
It was humiliating and infuriating. But now, there was nothing he could do.
After barely calming himself and steadying his breath, he asked Ghislain,
"What do you want?"
"Surrender."
"…That is not an option."
Surrender meant certain death. He could not throw away their lives so meaninglessly. If it came to that, fighting would be the better choice.
But if they chose to fight, he couldn't be sure how much of the Marquis' army would follow his orders.
If only the Marquis were dead, they could have immediately cried out for vengeance and fought. But with him held as a hostage, that was impossible.
Ghislain, who had been watching the Marquis' army's reaction with amusement, suddenly raised his voice so that everyone could hear.
"If both sides fight now, the kingdom will fall into chaos! As commander-in-chief, I absolutely do not want that! The only thing I desire is the kingdom's peace!"
"..."
Both the punitive army and the Marquis' army were left speechless.
The very man who had caused all this turmoil was now saying such words. He was so confident that it made them wonder if they had somehow misunderstood something.
Regardless of what anyone thought, Ghislain continued speaking.
"The only one who needs to be punished by law is Marquis Falkenheim. Everyone else will be granted amnesty! You will all return to your respective territories! The punitive army will also be disbanded!"
The two armies erupted in murmurs.
While many still wished to settle things for good, the desire to stop was also strong. If they could retreat now, they had nothing to lose.
Ghislain turned to Count Godiff with a sly grin.
"So, what do you say? Shouldn't we end it here? With the Marquis captured, there's no need to fight to the bitter end, is there?"
"..."
"Of course, if you insist on continuing, I won't stop you. But we'll start by throwing the Marquis' head to your side first."
Count Godiff stared at Ghislain for a long time.
That statement was the same as asking him to betray the Marquis. But at the same time, it was also the only lifeline available.
Still, he couldn't just accept outright. If he personally decided to betray the Marquis, he would have to bear the responsibility for it.
The entire command of the Marquis' army turned to Count Godiff. If they couldn't rescue the Marquis, their best option was to retreat.
After all, the Marquis was still alive for now.
Grit.
Count Godiff clenched his teeth. He couldn't bring himself to say the words. If he declared their retreat here, his honor would be utterly trampled.
He wanted nothing more than to rush out and kill that arrogant mercenary.
At that moment, another superhuman of the Marquis' army, Count Grozian, spoke up.
"I will share the responsibility with you. Let's do it."
"..."
Count Godiff turned to look at Count Grozian. Grozian met his gaze with a languid expression, not avoiding it.
The two were not only vassals of the Marquis but also rivals. Their relationship had always been uneasy.
Count Grozian had never been pleased that Count Godiff was appointed as the commander-in-chief of this war.
It didn't take long for Count Godiff to realize Grozian's true intentions.
'So, he's using this opportunity to break free.'
Marquis Falkenheim had fallen disgracefully, and now, there was no one left to inherit his vast power.
Count Grozian, who had never been truly loyal to the Marquis, would undoubtedly try to gather as many vassals as possible and build his own faction.
He would aim to become the next Marquis Falkenheim.
'Could that mercenary bastard have predicted all of this as well?'
Unable to hold back his curiosity, Count Godiff suddenly questioned Ghislain.
"In that case, we could just eliminate the punitive army and think about what to do next."
"The others won't see it that way. They'll all be trying to preserve their forces. If they lose too many troops here, they'll just be swallowed up by the next rising power."
"..."
"No one here is truly loyal to the Marquis. You know that. So why pretend otherwise?"
"..."
"If anyone had been willing to risk their lives for him, this plan wouldn't have even started. They would have fought to the death to save him."
"..."
"And… are you really confident you can win if you fight? Things seem quite different from how they were before I arrived."
"..."
Count Godiff closed his eyes. There was nothing to refute.
With the Marquis captured, morale had plummeted, and the vassals were more focused on preserving their own troops. If they clashed with the punitive army under these circumstances, even if they won, the losses would be catastrophic.
His belief that Ghislain was ignorant of warfare had been a mistake. That man was a master of war.
After much deliberation, Count Godiff finally nodded.
"... We will accept your proposal."
With another superhuman sharing the responsibility, the burden became lighter.
Now, he too had to focus on his own survival and quickly form a new faction.
The same would be true for the other lords. The kingdom would soon become a battlefield of competing factions.
It was still hard to believe that all of this had been caused by a mere mercenary corps.
With a voice drained of strength, Count Godiff added,
"But if the punitive army isn't disbanded, we will regroup as well."
Ghislain grinned widely and nodded.
"Alright, as promised, the punitive army will also be disbanded, so don't worry. Oh, and the Marquisate will be transferred to the royal family as compensation for the punitive army, so don't meddle with that."
For Ghislain, this much was enough. After all, from now on, everyone would be too busy keeping each other in check to unite.
With a heavy expression, Count Godiff bowed his head to Marquis Falkenheim.
"I apologize. We had no other choice. Without you, my lord… this army, this battle against the punitive army, all of it would be meaningless."
"......"
Marquis Falkenheim showed no reaction, as if he had expected this outcome. He merely glared at Count Godiff with cold eyes.
Had he not been gagged, he would have ordered them to fight, even at the cost of his own life.
In truth, Count Godiff had anticipated as much. That was the kind of man the Marquis was.
But Count Godiff had used the excuse of keeping the Marquis alive to ensure his own safety. In the end, he, too, had concluded that forming his own faction would be more beneficial.
With the kingdom's absolute ruler gone… for the ambitious, it was an opportunity.
The Marquis' army slowly began to withdraw. Now, their minds were preoccupied with whom to ally with next.
As Ghislain had expected, none among them were willing to risk their lives for Marquis Falkenheim.
As the Marquis' army faded into the distance, a massive cheer erupted from the punitive army.
"Whoooa! We won!"
"Hahaha! To think we'd win like this!"
"Long live the Yulian Mercenaries!"
The punitive army couldn't hide their joy. Supplies had been running low, and many of the neutral lords had barely survived. Now, they all rushed to Ghislain's side.
Among them, none was more ecstatic than Count Hervis, who had temporarily led the punitive army.
"Amazing! Absolutely incredible! To think you actually pulled off this insane strategy!"
"Well, I've done it a few times before. Haha."
Ghislain grinned nonchalantly. Despite the magnitude of what he had accomplished, his demeanor remained unchanged, prompting Andrew to shake his head.
Count Hervis then turned to Count Balesant, equally astonished.
"I never expected you to be on our side. When did you form an alliance with the Yulian Mercenaries and plan all this?"
"Well… we've known each other for a while, I suppose?"
"Hah! I had no idea. To think you fooled everyone so completely."
"Well… for the sake of secrecy? Ahem."
"To think you endured such humiliation under a traitor just for the sake of the royal family! You are truly a loyal subject of unparalleled devotion!"
"Oh, come on… that's a bit much…"
Count Balesant blushed and awkwardly kicked at the ground. It was clear to anyone watching that he was embarrassed.
Yet, inside, he was overwhelmed with joy.
'This is crazy. Am I about to become a national hero? This is absolutely insane!'
The punitive army continued to revel in their victory, one they had achieved without even fighting. The command staff, too, laughed and chatted as if they had never been at war.
Once the excitement had settled somewhat, Ghislain mounted his horse and shouted to the troops.
"Let's head back! It's time to announce our victory to the world!"
"Whoooa!"
With that, the punitive army began their triumphant march home. Though their supply situation was still dire, they laughed it off.
Of course, they couldn't keep traveling while starving, so they sought assistance from the lands they passed through.
The ever-enthusiastic Count Balesant took charge of that task, his spirits soaring after recent events.
"Sigh, my men are good guys, but if they get too hungry, who knows what might happen?"
"Come on, come on. Just a little will do. We'll repay it later, I swear."
"Oh my, our lord's hands are so small. How do you expect us to make do with this?"
Thus, the punitive army managed to fill their bellies, not quite begging but close to it.
After securing food, the army slowly dispersed, with soldiers returning to their respective lands. There was no need for the conscripted troops to stay any longer.
The neutral lords, too, sent their forces home, keeping only a small guard as they made their way to the capital.
They hadn't done much in the battle, but they had still risked their lives by participating. It was only fair that they receive compensation.
The reward wouldn't be as great since the Marquis' army had been allowed to retreat, but they didn't mind.
What mattered most was that Marquis Falkenheim had fallen, and they could finally breathe easy.
And at last, when they arrived at the capital—
"Whoooa!"
"The punitive army has returned!"
"Marquis Falkenheim, the traitor, has been captured!"
"The Yulian Mercenaries have saved the kingdom!"
The streets erupted in celebration.
For too long, high-ranking nobles had remained in the capital, committing all manner of atrocities. Naturally, they had all been part of Marquis Falkenheim's faction.
Then, suddenly, Ghislain had stormed in and arrested them all. And as if that wasn't enough, he had even captured the Marquis himself.
It was only natural that the people of the capital were overjoyed.
As the punitive army returned, Alex came rushing to greet them, practically out of breath. Beside him, Rio looked relieved to be alive.
Seeing Alex, Ghislain smirked playfully and declared,
"Your Majesty! I, Astion, have vanquished the traitors and successfully captured their leader, Marquis Falkenheim!"
Following Ghislain's lead, the gathered lords all bowed before Alex.
It was the first time Alex had ever received such a display of reverence, and he was visibly moved.
"O-Oh… Ooooh… Th-Thank you, everyone! Truly, thank you!"
Tears welled up in Alex's eyes. At long last, he was free from the constant threat to his life.
He wasn't entirely sure if he had regained his royal authority.
The man before him, Ghislain, seemed even more monstrous than Marquis Falkenheim had been.
But for now, they were allies, so he had no choice but to trust him.
"Come, come! Let's go inside and discuss the rest!"
Ghislain grinned. It was time for the rewards to be handed out.
And as always, he intended to claim his share—down to the last coin.
[Notice: Thank you for supporting my translations! I've launched a new website to host all my novels in one place. I will continue posting chapters here until I can update the links on Novel Updates. In the meantime, visit my new website "https://revengernovel.com/" and enjoy 5 extra chapters for free! Buy and Read all available chapters of the novel: https://payhip.com/revengerscans ]