Episode 22. If You Trust Me (1)
The reason why Lynn Brans is leading such a large force here.
If it’s because of me, then all the pieces of this speculation fit together.
What they want is me. So, naturally, once they secure their target ‘me,’ they will not bother with a monarch of a small country that flees and disappears somewhere on the continent.
Why am I the target?
Although it’s somewhat embarrassing to say this myself- when thought about objectively,
It seems that the meeting between her and me during the last negotiation left a significant impression on her.
Among the monarchs, Lynn Brans had a particularly strong desire for talented individuals. The assumption that she would want to take a promising strategist working under a weak country to her side added credibility to the speculation.
Another piece of evidence was the excessively large force for attacking this castle.
She must value me highly and wanted to prevent me from coming up with some ingenious strategy again to thwart her plans.
Unfortunately for her, all I could do was make 100% accurate predictions.
In summary,
What I need to do now is-
“Make everyone flee the castle, then I alone will stay behind and surrender.”
This would result in a temporary fall of Lunarien Kingdom-
But it’s not a complete destruction.
Raising an army could be done over and over again, as long as everyone is alive.
Although I wasn’t sure what process raising an army would entail in this world, as opposed to how easy it was in the game, this method was certainly better than dying without being able to do anything.
“Of course, there might be a better way.”
A more plausible strategy.
A method no one has thought of, striking at the unexpected.
If only such things would immediately come to mind with my intelligence of 100, but that wasn’t the case.
All I could do was come up with perfect answers to questions.
So, at least this was the best I could come up with under the circumstances.
“Alright.”
With that, a reasonably good puzzle seemed to be put together from the three predictions.
There was no guarantee this was the correct answer. But with the enemy approaching, there was no time to sit and ponder indefinitely.
“Everyone.”
I finally looked around and began to speak.
It felt like all the members of Lunarien Kingdom were waiting for my words alone.
I slowly started to unfold my plan.
“We will lose this battle. But that’s okay. Even if we lose the battle, we can achieve victory in another aspect. The broader concept of war, that is. For the future, it’s time to take a step back.”
“But don’t we lack another territory to flee to?”
“It doesn’t seem realistic to attack another small country either.”
Hearing the opinions of Gustav and Aaron, I nodded.
“Right. We have no escape route. Attacking another country, especially after signing non-aggression pacts, isn’t a good option. And if we go into battle with Brans army as is, we will be 100% destroyed. However… if we give up on the ‘concept of a nation,’ an escape route becomes available.”
“……What, what do you mean…!”
Luna, having grasped something from my words, opened her mouth with a trembling voice.
I had no choice but to inform her of the harsh reality.
“Our journey as a kingdom ends here. For now.”
“Ends here?”
“I will surrender to Brans army.”
“!!!”
Tifa’s eyes widened, and then she shouted at me with anger.
“Hey, that’s not right! Weren’t you supporting Luna’s cause when you joined our army?! There’s no way Lynn Brans will spare Luna if you just meekly surrender!”
“I agree with Tifa.”
“What…!”
“I said I would surrender, not that Lunarien Kingdom would become a mere footnote in history.”
I turned to look directly into Luna’s eyes and said.
“My lord. Take Tifa and Cain and flee.”
“……What, you say?”
“Head south. Seek refuge in the Karalia Kingdom in the southern part of the continent. The lord of Karalia, Makana Karalia, is revered for her virtue and will not turn away you and your companions, including treating you with importance. She will also not reprimand you for leaving the army with a different intention later on.”
Makana Karalia.
If there was a “lawful good” in this game, she would be a prime example.
A kind heart. Her wish for the world to be at peace was no less than Lunarien’s.
Actually, the fact that Lunarien Inieng harbored such thoughts was something I learned only after coming to this world, while Karalia had been in that position in the game.
Having spent 10,000 hours on this game, I could assure that going to Karalia was the safest place for Luna to lie low.
Karalia’s territory was located in the southern part of the southern continent.
The south was relatively balanced in terms of power among factions, and whether liked or not, there was a nation acting as a shield from Brans army, ensuring a safe haven.
“By hiding and biding our time, an opportunity will come. To preserve our lives for a greater future purpose, this is the only way.”
“But… Swen. That, but.”
As I was about to listen to Luna’s story further, an unexpected voice reached my ears.
“May I have a word?”
I turned towards the source of the voice.
It was Cain.
He was facing me with a more serious expression than ever before.
Why, I wondered?
At this moment, it felt as though I was truly facing the real face of Cain Nerquis, the royal who was struggling to survive under a pseudonym.
“Swen. When you asked me to lead 1,800 soldiers to the front lines, I could have protested, asking if simply trusting you made any sense. But I didn’t. I didn’t want to oppose our lord, and frankly, even if Lunarien Kingdom were to fall, I could somehow survive, whether under Brans army or another lord.”
I listened attentively to his words.
“Looking back, the past few months have been filled with miraculous events. Following your instructions led to financial gain, victories in seemingly impossible battles, and two mercenary groups joining us. I still can’t fathom how you managed to create all these situations with some mystical ability. However.”
To me, the impression of the man named Cain was more blurry than memorable.
But at this moment.
The deep-set black eyes of this old man were clearer than ever.
“Spending months here, seeing the happy faces of our territory’s people, who were perhaps the most unfortunate on the continent due to geographical factors, I started to think. More than just wanting to hide on the continent, I wanted to see my lord Lunarien Inieng conquer this Garland continent, the world, the universe. Now, that desire has grown even stronger.”
Cain then spoke with a wary look in his eyes.
“Frankly, I can only see it as you trying to find a convenient excuse to drive our lord away, then hand over the territory’s gold, troops, and even the castle itself to her as a tribute and switch sides to Brans army.”
“……”
“If someone with your capabilities were indeed planning such a thing, it would certainly be a more advantageous path for your personal life than sticking
around in a weak country like this. Am I wrong?”
“……Is that… really the case?”
Hearing Cain’s words, Tifa expressed shock.
Before I could speak, Luna defended me.
“That can’t be true. Swen is not that kind of person! Swen is……!”
I raised my hand slightly to calm Luna, who was using honorifics towards me in her panic.
“My lord. Please allow me to explain.”
“……Swen…”
After hearing my words, she fell silent.
It wasn’t difficult to interpret her silence as agreement.
Cain watched the situation for a moment, then looked straight at me and said.
“Rebuilding a nation that has fallen is an incredibly difficult task. It could take years, decades even. Moreover, there’s no territory on the continent suitable for establishing a new foundation right now. In such a situation, you’re asking to abandon the nation, surrender, and then flee?”
“That’s correct.”
“I’m sorry, but this issue is entirely different from when you asked me to repair the walls and tasked Tifa with commercial duties in the market. Those orders, I could trust without question, at least once. But not this issue. If you want to convince me, I’d appreciate solid evidence. If not, I’ll stay in the castle and fight to the end. I can’t accept surrendering for the future without even attempting to resist Brans army.”
Evidence.
Evidence, huh.
Frankly, if I knew what that evidence was, I wouldn’t be going through all this trouble.
The two absolute truths I had deduced from my predictions were “To avoid the destruction of Lunarien Kingdom, I must leave.”
And, “Lunarien Inieng will become the unifying monarch.”
My opinion was based solely on these two absolute facts.
But, it was clear that telling Cain “My intelligence is 100, so my predictions are always right” wouldn’t be persuasive.
So, how should I convince him?
I had to approach from a different angle.
If there was something Cain was probably sure of- it might be “I’m offering the castle to Brans army to quickly advance to a significant position.”
“That’s the part I need to address.”
I drew my verbal sword.
“So, to summarize, Sir Cain, you’re saying I’m making these statements to hand over all of Jelant’s gold, troops, and the territory itself to Brans army, to earn some credit and settle there?”
“That’s right.”
“Take everything with you.”
My firm statement focused everyone’s attention on me.
“……What?”
I looked around and said,
“Take all the gold in the castle with you. As for the troops, except for those needed for escape, divide the rest in half and add them to the Chilean and Raven mercenary groups.”
Gustav and Aaron, who had been quietly observing, were startled by the sudden turn of events and asked me.
“Excuse me?”
“You mean to say our forces will be yours?”
“That’s correct.”
Handing over all the soldiers to the mercenary groups.
That was my response.
In the game, when surrendering, the castle’s soldiers naturally went to the conquering nation.
As much as the game’s rules somewhat applied here, it was highly likely it would happen this time too.
However, forces like mercenary groups that were not directly under our command did not go to the conquering nation, Brans army, upon surrender.
Therefore, dividing our army among the mercenary groups and having them retreat from the castle was the best approach.
Mercenary groups never betray a nation they have sided with unless a specific event occurs.
In the game, mercenary groups never betray first, but players can betray them, exploiting this loophole for strategic play.
Given that my “intelligence 100” rule was strictly applied, it was reasonable to think that other minor rules would also apply.
If Lunarien’s unification is a predetermined future, then these mercenary groups will undoubtedly be a great asset at that time.
“Then, Jelant Castle will become a land with 0 troops and 0 gold, worthless even if obtained. Unless the castle itself, its location, had a high strategic value like Kelshtein Castle… Sir Cain, what do you think of this place?”
“Here……”
Cain couldn’t say anything.
After all, this was a place of little significance.
No talent emerged, the land wasn’t fertile, there were no special products, and the population wasn’t particularly large.
“If I truly wanted to impress Brans army, don’t you think I would have tried to use the gold and troops to do something, rather than just talking about it?”
“No… but before that.”
Cain changed his tone.
Strangely, his suspicion seemed to wane a bit.
“If you openly declare surrender in an empty castle… you might anger the conqueror and get killed. Isn’t that tantamount to mocking the occupying forces?”
“Huh?”
That much?
In the game, it was quite normal to take all the money and troops and flee when defeat seemed imminent.
Because it wasn’t possible to hand over money and troops.
But here, that action itself seemed to be perceived as a great insult.
Well, running away with everything would indeed feel aggravating from the conqueror’s perspective.
“Even if you were to flee, including yourself, it might be different, but staying in an empty castle to welcome the occupying forces? That’s practically suicide…”
Hearing that, I sensed an opportunity.
“This is my chance.”
To Cain, it must seem like I’m willing to gamble my life against Lynn Brans’s wrath.
I couldn’t possibly seem like someone who would betray.
“I’ll use that.”
I slowly began to speak.
