EP.101
And two months later, near the eastern border of the Reich Empire.
Here, the Crown Prince and his party, who had firmly secured their position as the next emperor by directly attracting Brigadier General Jaeger to their faction, were making their way in a hurry.
Crown Prince Michael von Reich grinned as he recalled what had happened while serving as an envoy in his carriage.
Normally, he didn’t show these emotions often because he might be watched by the maids in his room or other servants.
Was it because in the carriage was Carlos Martel, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and closest aide to him since he was a child?
“Commander Jaeger, Brigadier Jaeger, he is truly a gift of blessing from Deus to make me the greatest emperor of the Empire. Isn’t it? “Karl.”
At those words, Carol thought about the future prosperity of her glorious family, who would rise to the rank of prime minister when the crown prince she served became the greatest emperor in the empire.
My son is often called a genius, even though he is not a genius, having achieved achievements that place him in the top 2% among officers who graduated from the academy.
It seems almost certain that he will receive a star, but when I think about my son, who is an orphan from a commoner background, he is not even close to the feet of Brigadier General Jaeger.
I answered, thinking that I should educate or support my son more.
“Is it possible? Also, if His Majesty the Crown Prince had not selected Count Benner and Brigadier General Jaeger, the empire, which already had many enemies, would have fallen into even greater confusion due to a new enemy in the North. Perhaps that’s why His Highness the Archduke of Austria couldn’t hide his disappointment.”
Hearing those words, the crown prince laughed loudly and responded.
“What can I do? “If it’s unfair, we should give commoners and orphans a way to go to the academy and nurture talented people like our empire did.”
“I never thought that the instructions left by His Majesty the first emperor would be of such great help to the empire.”
“In particular, I heard from Viscount Toffler, who was appointed ambassador to Czechia, that the Emperor of Czechia often asked, ‘Why does he have no successor as outstanding as the Crown Prince of the Reich Empire, and all his generals are idiots who cannot even keep up with Brigadier General Jaeger’s resourcefulness? I was really shocked when I heard that he said, ‘!’ “I thought I was going to die laughing.”
So the two continued to talk about the interesting things that happened in the diplomatic arenas of the Grand Duchy of Austria and the Principality of Czechia.
Gradually the conversation turned to the Crown Prince’s resourcefulness and Brigadier General Jaeger, who became the center of his capabilities.
“Anyway, I was really surprised when a royal decree bearing the Emperor’s seal suddenly arrived on my way back from Czechvia. Besides, I never thought he would ask me to go to the Latin Papal States, see the Holy Father, and ask for the excommunication of the Francois Republic.”
The crown prince shook his head at those words.
Everything is going well now, but even experienced diplomats are reluctant to go to the Papal States.
In carrying out any project, it is basic to consider political and financial interests, as well as the ridiculous sense of privilege unique to popes that they are higher than the emperor because they are representatives of Deus.
Even if you pay attention to all these things and please others, the Pope is still just a representative chosen from among the cardinals.
Even after persuading the Pope, the hassle and effort of having to persuade all of the factions is really no joke.
“Still, I was very fortunate that the Pope and the cardinals, who were hesitant at first, followed the justification presented by Brigadier General Jaeger. No. At first, they said they would only process it if I gave them a personal donation (bribe) of 50,000 gold…”
“That’s right. Brigadier General Jaeger said that if you excommunicate the poor people and foolish nobles of the Francois Republic and make them realize their mistakes, the majesty of the Pope will be widely known throughout the continent, so didn’t you pay them 20,000 gold?”
“Now that the formal excommunication has arrived in all countries, including the Francois Republic, there will be no chance of being attacked by other empires or kingdoms while we discipline the Francois Republic under the authority of Deus.”
This is because a nation that punishes an excommunicated nation in the name of Deus is naturally seen as an army of God.
If you arbitrarily attack or declare war on a country that does such righteous things, the Pope, who feels that his authority has been ignored, will excommunicate that country as well.
In addition, in addition to the fear of falling into hell if one dies because one cannot receive the protection of Deus, excommunication also provides a justification for discarding all treaties made so far on the grounds that one is an excommunicated heretic.
“That’s right, thanks to that, we also don’t have to fulfill the contract we made two years ago to supply 20,000 sets of armor and 40,000 swords to the Francois Republic in exchange for an advance payment of 50,000 gold. Didn’t that allow us to use Francois’ money to expand our army to defeat Francois?”
“If you think about it, the amount of money saved by receiving a single excommunication letter is considerable. I was unable to attend Brigadier General Jaeger’s wedding due to my overseas tour schedule. “As my lord, I must give him a generous coma, even if it means a coma, as an apology and gratitude.”
After saying that, the crown prince stopped the carriage for a moment.
“Call Chamberlain Max von Wehner and tell him to get in the carriage. “I have something to discuss with him, so the Minister of Foreign Affairs, please return to the carriage you came from.”
With those words, the Minister of Foreign Affairs got out of the carriage, and Max, the successor to the Marquis of Benner, got on the carriage instead.
“I am very grateful, Your Majesty the Crown Prince.”
“no. Didn’t you and I often play together when we were kids? “Don’t be too stiff.”
“I used to be like that, but right now I’m not the crown prince’s attendant.”
The crown prince mentions their past relationship and asks to get along well in the future. His attendant knows how to decline appropriately.
Anyone can say that it is a very beautiful master-slave relationship.
“By the way, you said you’re going to enter the Staff College next year, right? I was promoted to major at age 27 and graduated from staff college at age 28. “The Marquis of Venner also brought in a pretty good adopted son.”
Considering that even children of noble families with titles usually have to be over 30 to be promoted to major, this is a very fast promotion.
This proves that his abilities are excellent, so Max may feel proud of himself.
‘My uncle, who is the head of the family, did not change the succession structure in order to avoid creating confusion, but he could always make Brigadier General Jaeger as his successor and pass on the Marquess of Benner…’
He faced the reality accurately and was nervous at every moment instead of feeling proud. I was in a situation where I had to do my best.
To be precise, he had to never give Marquis Venner any reason to criticize him and receive as much favor from the Crown Prince as possible.
“Isn’t it any different that Lieutenant Colonel Laura is married to Brigadier General Jaeger? “You are the only officer around me the brigadier’s age, so I want to know what you would like.”
“Male officers my age like to have fun. So, if you give them something like the finest wine or a ticket to a concert, opera, or play, they might like it. Especially since they are newlyweds, it would be nice to give them something they can enjoy together as a gift. “No matter how special Brigadier General Jaeger is, when he is enjoying newlywed life…”
The Crown Prince nodded and said, as if he was satisfied with Max’s words.
“As expected, it was a good idea to ask you. Thank you for your answer. By the way, there is a long way to go, so could you tell us about what happened while you were traveling around as a member of a diplomatic tour? Oh, the story about playing with a girl in a back alley is also good. Brigadier General Yeager is such a screw-up that it’s no fun. “He is only interested in politics and military matters.”
There were many reasons why the Crown Prince cared about Max and had this conversation.
First, because they often played together when they were young, the psychological distance between them was much closer than that of other subordinates.
Second, because his status is the crown prince, the number of people he can talk to informally like this is extremely limited, and he knows that if he treats him this intimately, one day he will return his loyalty to him without sparing his life.
Thirdly, forming a good relationship with the Marquis of Venner, heir, was because it was possible to further strengthen the link with the Marquis of Venner, the next marshal.
“I will follow your orders. Actually, me and my attendant Leon…”
**
Two weeks later.
The Crown Prince invited his swordsman, Peter Yeager, who was officially promoted to brigadier general, to his mansion.
Then, when the Crown Prince received a salute from Brigadier General Jaeger.
He stood up Brigadier General Jaeger and gave him a small hug.
“I knew early on that you would become big, but I can’t believe you acquired such a huge land like the Köppenhavn Peninsula just two years after taking up your post in the Northern Army. “Having a subject like you, I will become the happiest prince or emperor in the empire!”
It was the highest praise a subject could receive, but upon hearing this, Brigadier General Jaeger was so surprised that he even hiccuped for a moment.
See next episode
