Chapter 217: The Power of the Empire (2)

Lucas Florian.

Although he had become a Master, he had yet to receive a title because he was the heir to the Florian Duchy. If he hadn’t been the heir, then he would have been able to receive a title as a self-made man, but he was someone who would take over the Duchy once his father retired. That was why he still didn’t have a title. 

Usually, if a son had reached the level of a Master, then the father would slowly pass on his title, but the case was different for Lucas Florian. His father, Duke Dominic Florian, was also a Master. On top of that, Dominic Florian was the second strongest man in the Empire after Christian Schweiker. Not only did he have the political capital, but the number of people under his command was greater than Duke Schweicker’s. The Florian Duchy was a family that provided more than 30 percent of the Empire’s troops. That was who Duke Florian was. 

So who would look down upon Lucas when he was the heir of Duke Florian and a Master in his own right? He was someone who was called the Young Tiger of the Empire and someone that all the women had picked to be the man they wanted as their husband. 

However, since he had been so cherished and treasured since young, it was unavoidable that he was arrogant. 

And he began speaking to Antras. 

“If you just want us to command a side army, then I can do it alone. Why are you tying down two Masters for this?”

Antras chuckled at that.

“Hm… Are you saying that Marquis Gotham wouldn’t be helpful?”

“That is definitely not what I’m saying.”

Lucas objected to Antras’ question, then he looked at Marquis Gotham.

“Please don’t misunderstand me, Marquis Gotham.”

“Don’t worry, Sir Lucas, I didn’t understand it that way.”

The person replying was a middle-aged man with his arms crossed.

Marquis Baker Gotham. He was someone who was called the Master of the Spiritual Eye. Shockingly, he had been born blind but had still managed to become a Master. Looking at how his actions were no different from everyone else, it might be difficult to believe that he was blind, but he was most definitely blind. Due to his humble and dignified personality, he was someone who was respected by both the military officials and the civil servants. Even the Empire’s Young Tiger, Lucas, respected his temperament and skills and couldn’t be rude to Marquis Gotham.

But while Lucas may respect Marquis Gotham, he hadn’t acknowledged Antras yet. That was why Lucas was looking at Antras and pressing him for an answer. 

“It is my judgment that putting you two together will only strengthen you.”

“I’m good enough on my own.”

“It’ll be easier if there’s two. There is a saying in the Southern continent: even if it’s just a sheet of paper, two people lifting it will be better.[1]

“Well… then wouldn’t it be better to have my father and me together?”

Lucas thought that if he teamed up with his father, Duke Dominic Florian, then he would have a better chance of making a bigger contribution. But if he was being truly honest, he didn’t want to team up with Marquis Gotham because he wouldn’t be able to operate the troops independently then.

However, Lucas’s thoughts were obvious to Antras.

‘It’s normal for a young general to be thirsty for merit.’

During his days in the Jae Nation, Antras had often seen those with both the skill and youth doing reckless things. In some cases, it led to great results, but it also led to significant damage if things went wrong. That was why Antras intended to have Marquis Gotham rein Lucas in. 

Antras also knew how to coax this youngster as well.

“Oh dear, oh dear…”

Antras pretended like he was in a dilemma and fanned himself a few times before continuing.

“I didn’t know. Sorry I wasn’t considerate. I didn’t know Heir Lucas still needed his father’s help.”

Before Antras even finished talking, Lucas jumped out of his seat, shouting.

“Are you insulting me right now?”

Lucas’s face turned red with anger. Even though he didn’t have a title, most people called him Sir Lucas[2]. But Antras had purposefully called him Heir Lucas and provoked him. Even though Heir Lucas wasn’t wrong, he felt that Antras was treating him like a child by calling him that.

Lucas’s father, Duke Florian, didn’t look happy either. His expression hardened as he crossed his arms and was showing signs of outright displeasure. How could he be happy when someone was treating his precious son, someone he wanted to brag about to the entire world, like a child?

But Antras’ complexion didn’t change even in the face of two Master’s hostility. Instead, he looked sternly at Lucas as he continued to rebuke him. 

“In that case, why are you insisting on being with your father on the battlefield? Any man with your level of skill will be able to make accomplishments with his own skills, on his own,         no matter what environment he is in. Isn’t that right?”

After bruising Lucas’s ego and causing him to erupt, Antras scolded him. But, if you listened closely to the scolding, Antras was actually complimenting Lucas - you can do it with your level of skill, can’t you?

Lucas was at a loss for words. It became a situation where his opponent was the one who was acknowledging him and he was the one who couldn’t trust in himself. It had become a situation in which he couldn’t continue to be angry. 

Antras now changed the mood and spoke gently.

“Sir Lucas, I have faith in you. You’re different from Marquis Burkel or Marquis Maroon who failed. Aren’t I right?”

“...Of course.”

Marquis Matthias Burkel and Marquis Hailey Maroon. Both of them were in Lucas’s generation and rivals who were highly regarded in the Empire. The two of them had died first in the previous war, which naturally left Lucas as the only one of his generation alive. However, just because they were dead didn’t mean his competitive spirit had also died.

Citing the two of them as examples, Antras continued to talk to Lucas.

“They were blinded by potential merit that they unreasonably pushed their men too far, which led to great damage to the Empire and to their deaths. But you’re different. You’re a man who won’t be swayed by the potential merit right before your eyes and fulfill your duties perfectly as a faithful sword of the Empire. Am I right?”

When Antras came out like this, Lucas couldn’t continue to be stubborn about it.

“All right. I’ll give it my all to fulfill my duties.”

In the end, Lucas could only say he would do as he was instructed.

Watching Lucas giving in, his father, Duke Florian, couldn’t help but be shocked.[3] 

‘My son is ridiculously stubborn… It’s been a long time since I’ve seen someone besides me being able to persuade him.’

According to Duke Florian’s memory, the last time Lucas had been convinced by someone other than himself was his nanny when he was a child.

[Heir, if you don’t wash your face clean, you’ll lose popularity with the young ladies.]

That had been the last time Lucas had been convinced by someone else.

“Then, I’ll begin explaining the operation to everyone. I hope you’ll all listen carefully and follow it to the letter.”

And so, Antras began to tell the four Masters detailed operational instructions.

***

“Impressive. Teach me how to do it as well.”

Once the meeting was over, Duke Sebastian spoke to Antras as if he was envious. 

“What do you mean?”

“Lucas’s stubbornness is well known throughout the Empire. He’s famous for not even following the emperor’s order, but you’ve managed to coax him like a child.”

“If you think about the age difference between him and us, he really is a child.”

Duke Sebastian sighed at those words.

“If I had been able to do in the previous war what you just did right now, I wouldn’t have lost three of our country’s strength…”

Duke Sebastian was still regretting his defeat during the Second Ideological Conflict. He was particularly regretting his decision to divide the army into three to settle the argument between Marquis Hailey Maroon and Marquis Matthais Burkel.

‘When I think about it now, there couldn’t have been a more stupid decision than that.’

He had made that kind of decision because he thought they could easily, no, that they would most definitely win the war, but that couldn’t be an excuse. In what world was there a commander-in-chief who fought a war thinking he could win?

‘Even I think it was only obvious that I would lose.’

Duke Sebastian had been drowning in his feelings of shame when he felt someone patting him on the back. 

“Don’t worry about it too much. It’s in the past, what’re you going to do about it?”

His friend Antras was comforting him.

“You’re right, nothing can be changed.”

Antras changed the subject when his friend still didn’t have any energy.

“But aren’t you leaving behind a great legacy?

“Legacy?”

“Wouldn’t a man be considered successful if he left behind a disciple who was able to surpass him?”

Duke Sebastian laughed when he heard Antras.

“That’s right. He’s my student, but he’s certainly like a monster.”

“I agree. He really is a monster.”

Duke Christian Schweiker. He hadn’t participated in the meeting that took place a while ago because he was supposed to remain in the capital headquarters. There were a total of five Masters who were mobilized for this war and the reason they were able to concentrate four of them on attacking was because of Duke Schweiker.

When Antras had evaluated Duke Schweiker’s skills, he had been surprised. Antras had seen numerous people in the course of calming the tumultuous Southern continent. From what he could see, Duke Schweiker’s power was different from the other Masters.

‘He’s transcended all other Masters. I never thought I’d see another stronger fighter like him again.’

Antra was well aware of Duke Schweiker’s position. Why? Because there was someone he had known for a long time that had reached the same position as Duke Schweiker.

‘Who knew I’d see someone like my father on this continent?’

Antra’s adopted father was General Lee Myung of the Jae Nation and Duke Schweiker’s strength was comparable to his. But because of that, Antras felt a bit uneasy.

‘How long can a man with that strength fight?’

Antras knew very well what kind of a weakness a man of that strength would have if he reached his peak.

‘Well, I’m not in a position to talk about others…’

Either way, he had still stepped on the board. He hadn’t thought this before, but now, he planned to lead the final war of his life to victory.

***

The effect of Antras joining the battlefield was very quickly seen.

“So they won’t take the bait.”

“The Imperial Army’s actions have become more passive than before, sir.”

“No, they’re not being passive. They don’t have any more gaps.”

Siegfried glared at the strategic map with a troubled look on his face. They had tried multiple times to bait the Imperial Army by purposefully having their troops’ formation be terrible, but the Imperial Army hadn’t taken the bait. Because of that, Siegfried’s elite corps weren’t able to take on the Imperial Army and advance forward. This had all begun once the subsequent Imperial troops had joined.

‘It’s clear now; there’s definitely someone impressive at the head of the Imperial Army.’

Although Siegfried wasn’t aware of Antras’ existence, he was convinced that there was someone monstrous as a part of the Imperial Army’s staff.

‘I don’t know who it is, but they’re using the advantages that the Empire has perfectly to attack the Republic.’

They were using the large number of troops they had to spread out the frontlines. The Republicans could only watch as it happened but weren't able to do anything in response. Even if the rate of consumption was the same, the Republic would reach its limit first.

Siegfried knew this very well, but he couldn’t do anything about it.

“There’s nothing we can do. To start, we’ll fix the strategy to prolong the fighting…”

But, the moment Siegfried began to say that...

“Fuhrer! There’s an urgent report, Your Excellency!”

A messenger rushed into the barracks.

“What’s wrong?”

“Georg Castle has collapsed, sir.”

“What?”

“And Taron Castle has also collapsed.”

Creeak...

Siegfried gritted his teeth. He had just been about to redo his strategies and turn it into a long fight, but two major locations had been taken?

“Who attacked those castles? How big were the armies?”

“Duke Sebastian and Duke Florian attacked Georg castle with 100,000 troops, sir.”

“Then what about Taron Castle?”

“Again, 100,000 troops attacked the castle led by Lucas Florian and Marquis Baker Gotham.”

“I guess the Empire is an Empire.”

Siegfried sighed.

The Empire had created two 100,000 armies to attack the Republic while maintaining an army that could pressure the entire Southern border of the Republic. On top of that, they had even deployed four Masters for the two armies. Besides the Empire, no one could even think of doing something like this.

‘If it continues like this, we won’t even be able to drag this out. We have to somehow deal with the enemy’s main… no, that’s what the enemy wants.’

Siegfried was in a dilemma. He had always been able to come up with the perfect answer for each situation that occurred on the battlefield, but not this time. The opponent’s attacks were too meticulous and there weren’t any gaps.  

‘What should I do? What…’

Siegfried was confident that he was better in strategic tactics than anyone else. He never thought he would be overwhelmed in an area he was so confident in. 

1. I didn’t replace it with the obvious ‘two heads are better than one,’ because that seemed too standard and not like “southern continent” a made-up continent.

2. The original had it as Sir Antras, but I believe this was a typo the author made

3. The original used 혀를 내둘이다 but I translated the meaning of the idiom instead of directly translating which would become rolled/stuck out his tongue.