Tnslted by CamarLgnd

1/2 chaptrs

Chapter 258 - Change of Circumstances

"Carlos-sama, I came here because I heard you called me urgently. What is the matter?"

"I'm glad you're here, Ars. The situation has developed a bit too quickly. You will once again be put to work."

"Is there going to be another battle?"

"Yes. As you already know, the King is now staying in Fontana. Ostensibly, he is on an inspection tour of Fontana. In reality, he fled to our territory because he felt his life was in danger."

"I have already heard that from Leon. He was in danger due to an internal struggle among the Three Great Nobles Alliance that had overthrown the House of Rizzolte, the great noble family that had been in control of the kingdom."

"Correct. And he evacuated in the name of an inspection, but time is running out before a battle ensues. One of the Great Nobles has been insistent that we extradite the King."

"... Can we not just give him up? I do not believe there is much of a benefit for us in safe-guarding him."

"Unfortunately, that's not the case. Even though he is a King, he needs alliances. He wants to form an alliance with the other powerful nobles within the Royal Family who became powerful nobles properly in the lands ruled by the Royal Family. Because of this, he cannot suddenly form an alliance with one specific Great Noble when the Three Great Nobles have not yet been united once again."

"...... Then let's ask him to return to the royal lands. I think that would settle everything nicely and keep us out of harm's way."

"That's the problem. The king does indeed want to return. But how to return safely is the problem. He and his entourage are the few who have come to Fontana. If they try to return normally, they will be taken into captivity by others on the way."

"... I do not know much about politics, but I still think handing the King over would be the safest option."

"Once again, it does not work that way. It is all three of the Great Nobles who want to secure the King. If we were to side with any of them by handing the King over, Fontana would surely be the target of the other two nobles. We must avoid that at all costs."

"Then, in the end, the best thing to do is to allow the Three Great Nobles to just fight it out or discuss with each other about who should lead the alliance, right? If possible, I think it would be best to come to the table of discussion with them."

"Exactly. That's why I tried to contact the influential people involved right after accepting the King into Fontana. However, due to the actions of one of the noble families, it seems like that's going to fail."

"You said earlier that one of the three noble families wants custody of the king. Which one is it?"

"The House of Memento. They not only demanded the handover of the king but also started to move their army. We estimate that they may mobilize an army of 30,000 to 50,000 men."

"Fifty thousand?! That many?"

"If it is a noble family as big as the House of Memento, the maximum number of people able to be mobilized will be even higher. Well, there is no way they would turn their entire army against Fontana while the other two families are staring daggers at them."

"Still, 50,000 for partial mobilization of the army...? .... That is a hell of a lot, that's for sure. What are you going to do, Carlos-sama?"

"Of course, if the Mementos are going to send an army toward us, we will have to send ours, too. It is absolutely impossible for us to stay idle in this situation. If we show such weakness, even if the Memento family turns back without doing anything, the other nobles near us might target Fontana."

"... I take it that you want Barca to send troops to intercept the Memento army, Carlos-sama? Is that why you called for me?"

"No, the opposite. I would never ask Barca to deal with the House of Memento."

"I'm glad to hear that, but, in that case, why was I called here?"

"I can lead our army to battle. Yet, there will be a problem. Do you understand?"

"... As expected, even Carlos-sama would not stand a chance against such a large army, though that is not what you are trying to say, is it?"

"It's simple. Suppose Fontana raises our entire army to intercept the Memento family. What would happen then? How do you think the people around us will react?"

"The Uruks are gone now, but the western Arbalests will move. If Fontana makes a big advance, they will at least move to take back Paramea and other regions that we occupied last year. Perhaps they will go even further, this time targeting Fontana City."

"That's what I meant — if Fontana leads its army to war, the Arbalests will attack us. They still have troops even though they lost the war last year. I am giving you an order, Ars. You will lead the Barcan Army west and join Gana to keep the House of Arbalest in check. Do you understand?"

"I do. My troops and I will head for Paramea immediately. I'll send you a message after getting there through the flying Familiars... But does this order specify that I must stop at just suppressing Arbalest?"

"Hm? What are you trying to say, Ars?"

"It is okay if we accidentally defeat the House of Arbalest, isn't it?"

"...... Ah, yes, of course. You may do as you please on this mission, Ars von Barca."

"You can count on us, Carlos-sama."

　I was called out on short notice and had a discussion with Carlos at his castle.

　He told me about political issues that I did not understand and that Fontana was staring at a hopelessly overpowered opponent.

　The Great Noble Memento family is an aristocratic family that has risen from shedding the blood of several other aristocratic families.

　Therefore, not only is there a difference in the number of soldiers and troops of the military overall, but also a difference in the abilities of their family Head. Simply put, the Memento Head is surely stronger than Carlos.

　However, Carlos did not seem to be willing to hand the King over even with such a display of force.

　It seems that he intends to take a firm stand against the Memento family, even if it means facing an army of a completely different scale.

　Nevertheless, there are people who could threaten us if we turned our backs to face the Mementos.

　Those people are the Arbalests which we fought last year.

　I agreed to Carlos' idea of using Barca to suppress the House of Arbalest because I thought it would be somewhat more advantageous for my army to not have to face off against the Memento family's military head-on.

　And so, with the Barca forces once again in tow, I began to move west toward Paramea.