Chapter 70: Ceremony of Triumphant Return (3)

“That’s a bold plan. No, it’s a dangerous and risky plan.”

“Yes, it’s both bold and risky. But Claudia also has a cautious personality. In addition to the plans that we’ve identified, she probably has a second and third plan prepared in case her first plan goes awry.”

By the time she and Milton had saved the Capital from the rebels, Princess Leila had already realized that Claudia was trying to find a way out for herself. At the time, Princess Leila had thought Claudia was just trying to escape and save her own life, but now that she was thinking about it, Claudia must have left the Capital and went directly to the Strabus Kingdom. 

“Once the reinforcements from Strabus Kingdom arrive to be her backing, Claudia probably plans to compete against me for the throne by using her identity as the First Prince’s widow. Maybe her cause will be to recapture the North that’s currently occupied by the Republican forces?”

“Terrifying women.”

In Milton’s eyes, both Claudia who thought up and utilized those plans, and Princess Leila who was able to sit and figure out those plans, were both unusual women.

“……”

Princess Leila was a bit offended at being grouped with another woman, but didn’t point it out. Instead, she got straight to the point.

“Count Forrest, make another contract with me.”

“Another contract?”

“Yes. Once Strabus Kingdom intervenes, our country will fall into chaos again. So even if you received the title of Margrave and quietly tried to live in the South, you won’t be able to escape from the oncoming storm, you’ll be troubled regardless.” 

Unfortunately, that was correct.

“So, let’s make another contract. The purpose of the contract this time is…”

Princess Leila made some changes in the details and purpose of the contract between her and Milton. And during this process, she made a surprising suggestion to Milton. Almost like she was making an apology? Or perhaps it was a need-driven suggestion? Either way, Milton was surprised.

“Are you being serious right now, Your Highness?”

“Do I look like an incompetent woman who would make a joke in a situation like this?”

“But…”

“Either agree or reject it. Those are the only two answers you can give me.”

Milton sighed at Princess Leila’s resolute gaze. Although he was still very confused, when confronted with an ‘either/or’ choice, then he could only pick one answer.

‘Well, I’m already riding on the tiger… no, I’m riding the back of a wily vixen.’

“I’ll ask once again. There’s no going back once it’s made official.”

“I know that very well, Your Highness.”

Seeing her pressing her lips firmly together, Milton sighed deeply.

‘How did things get this complicated? I mean, is there no other way to live but like this, in this era?’

It was a time where nationally or internationally, confrontation and confusion was rampant and nothing was stable. And in this era, Milton Forrest had become the hero of the country. Now, Milton’s original goal from the time he had awakened in this body was gone. He might have awakened in this world with a silver spoon in his mouth, but he couldn’t live that easy life of living and eating luxuriously anymore. In that case…

“Fine. Let’s take this to the very end.”

The two of them firmly shook hands. And so, Milton ended up staying a bit longer in the Capital with the Southern Army.

A few days later.

Duke Palan, another of Princess Leila’s support, arrived. He had been delayed because he was restraining the Republican forces that were occupying the North. But once he was able to stabilize the situation on the front line, Duke Palan returned with as many troops as he could bring. 

“Forgive me for my delay, My Liege.”

“No, thank you for working hard in stabilizing the North.”

As a knight serving his lord, Duke Palan treated her with respect and Princess Leila, in turn, warmly praised him. Thus, Princess Leila was able to concentrate her strength in the Capital. And the very next day, the nobles found out that the Strabus Kingdom’s troops were advancing towards the Capital. 

“This cannot happen, Your Highness. How could Strabus Kingdom enter our country?”

“I have an edict stamped with the seal of His Highness, the First Prince. Officially, they are the reinforcements to help the First Prince.”

“Your Highness, do you mean for us to acknowledge them? His Highness, the First Prince, was not able to rise to the throne, and now… has he not died?”

“You may be correct, but do you think they would go back simply because we told them to return?”

Anytime two or more nobles gathered, they argued over the intervention of Strabus Kingdom. Some saw this as a crisis, while others saw this as an opportunity.

In the midst of such confusion, Strabus Kingdom’s army arrived at the Capital. 

The army consisted of…

“50,000 men?”

“Yes, My Liege.”

Having received the report with Leila, Milton was surprised.

’50,000 men… Even if Strabus Kingdom is a military powerhouse, that’s not a number that’s easy to send. In that case, what do they want so badly that they’ll even send that many troops?’

Strabus Kingdom was undoubtedly a military powerhouse. Western. Northern. Eastern. Just to maintain the three front lines normally took over 300,000 troops. And if you add in the forces gathered in the Central Region and the troops in each region, then it was a military powerhouse with a total of 450,000 men. And if you take into consideration the military support it received from the other countries as a means of suppressing the Republic, then the burden on Strabus Kingdom to maintain their military is low.

But no matter how confident Strabus Kingdom was in their military strength, in recent years, that strength had weakened. Not only had they failed in their attempt to attack Hildes Republic on the Western Front, but their front line had collapsed under the combined attack of Hanovirtue Republic and Kobrook Republics. Although they might have gotten over the crisis by demonstrating their full power, they had still taken damages. So, even if it was the Strabus Kingdom, to send 50,000 men would have been burdensome for them right now. 

Milton’s head hurt just thinking about the intention and the calculations it would have taken to send that many troops. Princess Leila’s face showed that she was seriously thinking about something.

“Your Highness, what do you plan to do?”

With her eyes closed to slits, Princess Leila answered Duke Palan’s question.

“Our response depends on how they act. First of all, we can’t just send them back when they’ve come all the way here, so we should officially meet with them. Is my father still ill?”

“Yes, Your Highness, that’s what they’re telling me”

“If you think about it, faking an illness for this long is also a real illness in a sense.”

Princess Leila stood up from her seat. With King August’s absence, she was the only representative of the royal family. While there was the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince, they’re sense of presence was so low they couldn’t be considered.

And so…

“Let’s meet them.”

Princess Leila fearlessly walked forward with Duke Palan on her right and Milton on her left.

* * *

Strabus Kingdom’s troops were stationed outside the castle walls. Armed with their columns of swords, this was similar to Princess Leila’s armed demonstration with the Southern Army. However, Princess Leila dealt with this demonstration completely differently.

“Huh? Someone’s coming over?”

“Of course someone’s probably coming. Maybe it’s a messenger?”

The knights, who had been leading and managing the troops, all stared as the main gate of the castle opened and someone walked out. What they thought was a messenger from Lester Kingdom approached them in a gorgeous carriage with 50 knights escorting it. A few minutes later, the carriage stopped and a man opened the door.

Then…

“Huh?”

“Ah… uh….”

A goddess walked out of the carriage. At least, that’s what the knights of Strabus Kingdom thought.

Out of the carriage came a woman beautiful enough to erase the memories of all the other women they had seen in their entire lives. She graced them with a dazzling smile.

“I welcome you to Lester Kingdom. I am Leila von Lester. And although I am lacking, I came as a representative of this country.”

Princess Leila had personally come out and stood in front of Strabus Kingdom’s troops with just the bare minimum of escorts. It was as though she wasn’t afraid of anything. 

‘Damn, she’s gutsy….’

Milton couldn’t help but admire Princess Leila as she stood in front of the 50,000 armed troops without batting an eyelid. She was natural dignity personified.

“Ah… that’s um…”

“We came… we’re… that’s…”

Instead of Princess Leila, it was the knights who were flustered and overwhelmed by her appearance. Not only was it confusing that a princess of a country had appeared in front of them, but her MAX Seduction Trait was making it impossible for them to focus. Princess Leila maintained her smile as she looked at the confused knights.

“Who is the commander in charge of this army? I guess you haven’t had any reports.”

“Wait… wait just a moment please.”

Quick as lightning, one of the knights ran back. After a while, he returned back with a group of men. 

One of them stepped forward. 

“I didn’t think a princess of a country would suddenly come out to greet us.”

“Our country is very hospitable and don’t dare neglect our guests.

Even though he was confronted with Princess Leila’s dizzying smile, he stood steadfast. And the moment Milton saw him, he was convinced.

‘He’s strong. This feeling… Can’t be?’

Milton turned to study Duke Palan, who had been guarding Princess Leila at her side, and was sure once he saw Duke Palan’s serious expression.

“Let me formally introduce myself. I am Duke Derek Brans, Commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force of Strabus Kingdom. It is an honor to meet you.”

‘As I expected…’

Milton sighed.

Since he had a similar feeling to when he met Duke Palan for the first time, Milton had assumed, but it really was as expected. Duke Derek Brans. He was one of the three Masters of Strabus Kingdom. In other words, Strabus Kingdom had not only sent 50,000 troops, but they had also sent a Master.

Milton immediately pulled up Duke Brans’ status window. 

[Duke Derek Brans]

Knight LV. 8

Strength - 90                 Command - 85

Intelligence - 45                 Politics - 40

Loyalty - 00

Special Traits - Breakthrough, Commando, Fierce Combat

Breakthrough LV. 9 (MAX): Lead a troop of horsemen to penetrate straight through the enemy’s formation. It causes confusion in the enemy's camp with overwhelming destructive power.

Commando LV. 9 (MAX): Jump into the fray against many enemies. If not stopped within 30 minutes, it can instill fear in the enemy’s soldiers. 

Fierce Combat LV. 7: Activates when the Lord you serve is in a precarious situation. Bring forth an ability up to 70% higher than normal. 

‘What the hell? Is this a monster?’

Even if he was a Master, his Strength stats were completely different from Duke Palan. Duke Palan’s Special Traits were Guarding, Detection, and Caution. In other words, Duke Palan was a knight specializing in protecting and escorting someone. 

But Duke Brans was the complete opposite. Breakthrough. Commando. Fierce Combat. They were all traits focused on attack. A Breakthrough trait that was perfect for leading knights and penetrating enemy camps.A Commando specialty trait that was perfect for running rampant in the middle of enemy camps. And a Fierce Combat trait that helps you go beyond your abilities to fight like a madman.

‘Are you a Berserker?’

Different from Duke Palan, Duke Derek Brans was a Master who completely specialized in war. 

‘What… What exactly do you want that you’ll even send out a monster like him?’

Milton felt something wasn’t right. 

* * *

Princess Leila officially invited the Commander-in-chief of Strabus Kingdom’s army to enter the Capital. Whatever the reason, they hadn’t come as enemies. At least, officially they hadn’t. But because the Capital couldn’t hold 50,000 troops, most of them had to camp outside the capital walls. And so, Princess Leila instructed that plenty of food and alcohol be given to those soldiers.

Milton was pleased as he listened to Princess Leila giving out instructions.

‘Not bad. Out of 100 points, I give her 120.’

By bringing the commander-in-chief and the leaders of Strabus Kingdom’s delegation inside the Capital walls, they had been separated from their army. And with alcohol provided, the soldiers will naturally become distracted. In other words, the worry that Strabus Kingdom would immediately attack the Capital was now alleviated. 

‘In any case, it’ll be difficult to attack and take them as a hostage…’

With that delicious yet wishful thinking, Milton smacked his lips as he looked at Duke Brans’ back. 

‘I guess it’ll be difficult as long as he’s here?’

Duke Brans had most likely accepted Princess Leila’s invitation because he was confident in his own army.

* * *

Princess Leila treated the leaders of Strabus Kingdom’s delegation with great care. As distinguished guests, she assigned to them three separate wings in the royal palace as well as holding a large banquet to welcome them. But even with such lavish welcome, she still refrained as much as possible from meeting them officially.

Why did you come? What is your purpose? What do you want?

Instead of bluntly asking those questions to their faces, she planted people around them to obtain those answers. The meetings would eventually happen and even the slightest piece of information would help her gain advantage during those meetings. This was politics and it was purely Princess Leila’s domain, therefore, Milton had nothing to do with it. 

Instead, Princess Leila gave Milton a different mission; he was responsible for making sure the 50,000 troops stationed outside the Capital walls were comfortable. Milton immediately understood the hidden meaning of his order.

‘Since we’re uncertain, she doesn’t want me to let down my guard.’

While Princess Leila had separated the army from their leaders, one never knows what could happen. Since they couldn’t let down their guards, she handed the responsibility over to Milton who led the Southern Army. And while he was making sure the Strabus Kingdom’s army was comfortable, Milton unexpectedly saw a familiar face.

“Sir Forrest!”

“You, aren’t you… Sir Francis? I didn’t think I’d see you here.”

Kerber Francis. He was a comrade who had fought and guarded the Crow Fortress with Milton before. As soon as Kerber saw Milton, he approached with a very happy face.

“It’s been a long time.”

“That’s right. Who knew we’d meet each other here?”

“This is fate. But really, you were remarkable. Truly admirable.”

“Huh? What do you…?”

“Hahahahaha as we were coming, we heard all about Sir Forrest’s remarkable actions. As a comrade who fought alongside you, I was very proud.”