Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 456

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 456
Fire. War or Tolerance
“Representative Bania, you have the floor.”
The Prime Minister removed his glasses and granted her the right to speak.
The officials looked down upon the Burgos delegation with dignity. Their expressions suggested they already knew what Burgos would say.
First, they would claim it was excessive. They would counter that it was unreasonable given the scale of war damages, and oppose Cliffford’s transfer of reparation rights. Though they possessed different appearances, the blood of Bariel flowed through them all, so their thoughts seemed stained with the same atmosphere.
Bania simply looked up at them and spoke plainly.
“That is impossible.”
“Impossible? How presumptuous.”
“Indeed. Do they even understand their current position? Ha, ha.”
I had anticipated the content, but not the attitude. The officials suddenly hardened their expressions and threw words at her one after another.
Wasn’t the envoy representative’s demeanor quite disrespectful? When sweet words would barely suffice to sway the imperial court, yet she spoke like that!
“If you cannot accept this, what will you do?”
“Listen well to what I say now. It is easier to add words to a document than to erase them. The more you attempt corrections, the more complications follow. You must genuinely reflect and accept the proposals of the damaged nations without complaint!”
It was a warning that further sanctions would be imposed if they resisted the negotiation terms. Yet Bania showed little sign of backing down.
Seeing this, Ian grasped something and flicked the edge of the documents.
“Hey, Ian.”
At Romandro’s whisper, Ian turned his head. The mages still glared at the back of Ian’s head with expressions full of displeasure. Even Berik beside them seemed caught up in it.
Romandro surveyed the atmosphere of the conference hall and lowered his voice even further.
“Burgos’s reaction is more spirited than expected. Why didn’t you entangle them with Ruswena earlier? If they continue being uncooperative, we could pressure them by making an issue of it right now. Yes?”
That the King of Ruswena sought to kill me was known throughout the entire Magic Ministry, and it could be proven. The circumstances of attempting to frame Burgos were the same.
But Eriponi had died due to karma without question, and no one had yet taken responsibility for my collapse. If Burgos refused to yield and held firm, this could be used as leverage to push them further.
“I don’t think that’s a good move, frankly.”
“Why? How so?”
Romandro glanced back and forth between me and Bania. He wanted to shoot them the same sullen look as the mages, but this was an important official conference hall. Romandro was a Steward.
“These people are a delegation from Burgos, but they do not serve Burgos’s interests. Did they not reveal it themselves? That they serve Rutherford as their master.”
“That, Ian…”
“We’ll discuss that matter in detail later. In any case, it is a fact that these people prioritize someone over Burgos. Furthermore, Burgos is currently in chaos due to power struggles among numerous nobles. Rutherford seems to have seized the center of hegemony, but to quell the divided national sentiment, a powerful incident is necessary.”
I covered my mouth with my hand, signaling Romandro not to ask unnecessary questions. Unable to help himself, Romandro muttered without thinking.
“War?”
“When the inside is noisy, it’s natural to turn attention outward. Moreover, Burgos is a defeated nation. But their army wasn’t annihilated and forced to surrender. The king was captured, so they were semi-forcibly made to surrender. They know they must pay reparations to Bariel and Cliffford. Rather than that, they would choose to provoke war to unite the nation and evade the situation.”
“If, if Bariel and I go to war… could we win?”
“Bariel is eternally history’s victor.”
I added quietly. My tone carried not a shred of doubt. My conviction was as firm as someone who had directly witnessed a distant future.
“But there are those who do not think so.”
“Rutherford.”
“Nothing is known about him, but my suspicion is that he is not Burgosian. Therefore, he would have no qualms about exploiting the chaos within Burgos for his own gain.”
Though truthfully, not all Burgosians think of their homeland either.
Rutherford is the source of Idgal. He is the master of a merchant guild that deals with imperial great nobles and royalty, and he possesses something unknown to us. According to Damon, a being who coordinates the divine and the world.
“The guild would possess not only mages but also military force at the national level. Since they control Idgal, they would believe themselves capable of matching even Bariel’s mages.”
And above all, if he truly was Bandor, whose soul had persisted for a thousand years, his true intentions would be nearly impossible to discern.
An eternity of time. I had no way of knowing what he had prepared during all those ages, what emotions he harbored, what conversations he had shared with the bastard Ian, or how much the events revolving around Bariel had shifted.
“I, I see. However….”
Romandro trailed off as if he finally understood something.
Wasn’t there a problem? If Burgos desired war, and if that war favored Burgos regardless of its form, then Bariel had no recourse. If the envoys persisted in refusing negotiations and maintaining an insolent attitude, the only conclusion could be war. Even Prince Gin had already moved his armies near the border adjacent to Burgos at the beginning of negotiations.
“If they come at us like that, what can we do? We have no options, do we? We cannot ease the burden in negotiations, nor can we overlook their arrogance. It would be like tarnishing the Empire’s prestige—not just the royal family, but all the officials would not tolerate it.”
“….”
It was a strategy where we could only suffer passively. Those who desire destruction fear nothing, making them difficult to oppose.
Ian watched Jin for a moment, chin resting in his hand. The Prime Minister, too, seemed to have grasped Burgos’s strategy, covering his mouth with his hand as he conveyed something silently.
‘This way, it’s consistent. Denying everything that became problematic to buy time—it follows the same logic. If things drag on well, war won’t break out, which is good. If not, that’s also good. The problem is the safety of the envoys if negotiations fail. From what Bania is doing, it seems her life is mortgaged to Rutherford.’
Are the others equally willing to die? Does that mean they’re filled with such loyalty to Rutherford?
But Ian remembered the person who had exchanged glances with Timothy when he entered the conference hall at the beginning. Timothy seemed to have deep connections with that person, so there was no way such a person would abandon the dynasty and sacrifice their life to Rutherford, a mere merchant lord. There must be something that guarantees their lives.
Bania flipped through the documents quickly, then recited what she had prepared.
“First, regarding the cession of five Burgos cities bordering Bariel. The cities damaged by Cliffford are, aside from the capital Prodohna, merely small villages. While the damage is said to be severe, the scale is incomparable. And most importantly, during the war, not a single Burgos soldier crossed the capital’s walls. They did not set foot on the inner lands—”
“That’s absurd!”
Thud!
May, who had been listening, raised her voice and pushed the table roughly.
“Why does Cliffford come forward? Didn’t you cede the right of claim?”
“Our King is still reviewing the contract! And since Burgos’s claims are clearly problematic, we have no choice but to stand up!”
Ceding the right of claim meant that Cliffford had no decision-making authority in negotiations between Bariel and Burgos, but May raised the relevant report and shouted.
“Burgos soldiers crossed the border and released Baekgak wherever they passed through villages. They are demons that destroy farmland. Like insects, they breed prolifically, and the land around every path you traveled is dying. They have explosive habits, so ordinary people cannot easily exterminate them. Is that all? The ultimate damage from the war occurred in the capital—the fissure! Had you not come, we would have spent peaceful days harvesting ripe grapes. All damage caused by the fissure is Burgos’s responsibility! To be frank, five cities are far from sufficient!”
“That’s right! Our entire nation has been brought to ruin!”
“There’s almost no usable land left. How can this be measured in numbers? And what of the curse inflicted upon the royal family? It’s out of the question!”
Several Cliffford envoys strongly agreed with May’s argument and lent their support. The Prime Minister gestured with his hand for quiet, and May glared at Bania as if to kill her.
Meanwhile, Bania remained expressionless, merely doing her duty.
“Bariel agrees with Cliffford’s position, so calm yourselves, Burgos. As someone said before, I will reiterate. This carries the will of Prince as well, so do not dismiss it lightly.”
The Prime Minister, having grasped Burgos’s intentions, issued a low warning.
“Though we call it negotiations, this is given only to Bariel and Cliffford. The defeated nation has no authority. This is a value determined and presented by those representing Bariel, so negotiations cannot proceed below that amount.”
Thud!
The Prime Minister brought down his seal. It was a gesture swearing by his name, his position, and the sanctity of the conference hall that there would be no change whatsoever.
“Burgos delegation. If negotiations do not proceed, your very existence becomes meaningless. Bariel will not release anyone connected to Rutherford, who participated in the civil war.”
“….”
“Bariel’s soldiers will take up arms as the sun rises and return home before it sets.”
Do you want war? But Bariel will not give you enough time to exploit that chaos. Having understood your intentions, I will not allow you to have your way.
Bania set down the documents weakly, then sighed and swept her hair back.
“…If that is the case, why not simply notify us instead of calling us here?”
“Wasn’t it you who wanted to come? To see the King.”
“There was an invitation before that.”
“An invitation, you say, but the recipient was not clearly specified. Is there anyone in Burgos now who can receive the message sent in the name of Prince?”
The officials, too, began to sense Burgos’s strategy bit by bit, exchanging documents and whispering among themselves. But nothing would change. In any case, if the delegation shed blood here, it would become the prelude to war between Bariel and Burgos.
Jin, who had been watching quietly, rose to his feet and looked down at the scene below. Romandro sensed that a firm decision was about to emerge from Jin’s lips.
“Ian, aside from war or acquiescence, is there no other way?”
If anyone would know something, it would be Ian! Romandro, oblivious to the eyes of those around him, placed a hand on Ian’s shoulder.
Ian’s body trembled slightly. He fell silent in thought, then his eyebrows twitched.
“There is one possibility, though….”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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