I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 345 Looking for trouble

After a hurried inspection of Tavitsky's condition, Chris rushed back to his temporary residence.

In the former governor's mansion in Tavitsky, which is also the council chamber where Albert died, the once magnificent decorations have all disappeared due to the war and the looting by the castle servants before their escape. The hall is now very simple.

The air was filled with the smell of freshly painted walls, replacing the incense of the old aristocratic halls.

At one end of the huge oak table, Chris sat alone, not in the seat of honor, but casually choosing a side seat. However, this casual posture seemed even more oppressive to the servants beside him.

Chris had changed out of his mud-caked riding gear and was now dressed in a dark, unadorned everyday outfit, which made his face appear even more stern. His fingers unconsciously tapped lightly on the smooth tabletop, producing a rhythmic and soft tapping sound, like some kind of silent countdown.

The heavy oak door was silently pushed open by the guards.

Prince Edgar, the third prince, and Prince Lucas, the fifth prince, cautiously entered, "escorted" by two guards.

They were still wearing robes provided by the Miniserian court—slightly worn, decent enough, but inappropriate for a prince's status—and looked haggard, their eyes filled with barely concealed fear and unease.

The long years on the run left obvious marks on the two men; their steps were somewhat unsteady, as if they were walking on thin ice that could collapse at any moment, rather than on a solid floor.

The two brothers, who were complete strangers, spotted Chris at the other end of the long table as soon as they entered the room.

The younger brother, who was once insignificant in the palace and sent to a foreign country as a hostage, now sits there, upright, with eyes as sharp as a hawk, exuding an invisible, suffocating chill.

The two princes with chestnut hair exchanged a glance and swallowed hard... They had heard far too many rumors about their younger brother.

While in Bohemia, he trained loyal assassins who carried out a ruthless assassination of his elder brother who was going to Niyama.

After returning to Bagnia and successfully restoring the country, he launched a frenzied purge of the former nobles and powerful figures from the Republic era, killing countless people and even carrying out horrific massacres against villages and towns that showed any signs of resistance.

And Chris's recent, earth-shattering assassination attempt that shook all of Minicia, ending the reign of Albert III and nearly killing their father, King Auckland...

Each of these events was enough to wake them up in a cold sweat on countless nights.

At this moment, facing this de facto ruler who held immense military power and controlled their lives, fear, like a cold, venomous snake, instantly coiled around their hearts, almost suffocating the two men who were theoretically princes.

"Your Highness... Your Majesty."

Prince Edgar spoke first, his voice dry and hoarse, trembling noticeably. He tried to force a friendly smile, but only managed an unnatural twitch at the corner of his mouth.

Upon realizing his lapse in decorum, he immediately bowed deeply, almost at a ninety-degree angle.

The fifth prince, Lucas, standing beside him was even more terrified. He bowed deeply, his head almost touching his knees, his body stiff as a piece of wood, and he didn't even have the courage to look Chris in the eye.

Chris's gaze slowly swept over them, his eyes devoid of any warmth of family reunion, more like scrutinizing two returned items that might pose a threat.

He did not respond immediately to Edgar's greeting; the sound of his fingertips tapping on the table was exceptionally clear in the silent hall, each tap striking the nerves of the two princes.

"The new king of Minicia..."

Chris finally spoke, his voice calm and unwavering, revealing neither joy nor anger, yet like a cold block of iron slamming to the ground.

"He's quite the sentimental person. He went to the trouble of sending his two older brothers back because he felt it was too quiet here and wanted to bring me some 'family joy'?"

The sarcasm and undisguised suspicion in those words stung Edgar and Lucas like icicles, turning their faces deathly pale.

They certainly understood that Minicia's intention in letting them go back was far from innocent; the new king, Charles Stuart, the man who had risen to power through intrigue and betrayal, was more than happy to see turmoil erupt within Bagnia again.

They were the stones Charles Stuart threw back to muddy the waters of Chris's life.

Chris is a prince, and so are the two of them. If there are dissentful opposition figures within Bagnia towards the former...
"Your Majesty clearly shows you!"

Edgar hurriedly tried to explain, his voice rising with fear.

"We...we are just prisoners. We have no idea what the Minisians want to do, and we are powerless to resist. We are lucky to have come back alive. We would never dare to have any improper thoughts!"

He spoke with such sincerity that fine beads of sweat had already formed on his forehead.

The younger Lucas lowered his head even further, his body trembling like a leaf in the autumn wind, unable to utter a complete sentence, only nodding in agreement.

Chris looked at their trembling, groveling appearance and a faint, cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

Family affection?

Don't bring up things that don't exist. He only scrutinized these two so-called brothers because of their interests and was wary because of the current situation.

What to do with them?

Killing is the easiest thing to do, but it also has the biggest consequences, for reasons that need no further explanation.

But if left unchecked, something is bound to happen. If someone provides them with money and supplies, given their status as princes, they're sure to be able to do something to cause trouble for Chris.

Even if the two of them are unwilling, it's no use, because some things won't happen just because they're unwilling.

Inside the council chamber, Chris sat alone, his fingertips ceasing their tapping.

He looked out the window; dust swirled as players busily demolished old walls and built a new city. The "gift" Minicia had sent back was merely a reminder that the internal dangers had never been eliminated.

Whether it's the old forces that have survived multiple purges, or these "relatives" who are filled with fear and might be exploited, they all need to be firmly controlled.

Family affection is a luxury, while power requires absolute clarity and ruthlessness. He doesn't need the warm drama of brotherly love and respect; he only needs to ensure that these two "unexpectedly returned" pawns will not become variables that disrupt his plans on the chessboard.

Thinking of this, Chris clicked his tongue and made a noise, which made the two good brothers tremble like two drowned dogs in winter.

"Here's what I'll give you. The first is to go to the Bohemian Deputy Ambassador. The Ambassador is our elder brother, Flower, who is in charge of the Bagnia diplomatic mission. You can bring your families there... Hmm."

Chris turned his head, and the clerk, who had been virtually invisible in the hall, immediately came over and bowed to tell him the information he wanted to know.

"The third prince, Edgar, had one wife and two sons; the fifth prince, Lucas, had one wife and one daughter."

"You can bring your families along, or you can stay in Bagnia. I will provide them with accommodations in the palace and hire tutors for them."

The second option was to become a diplomatic ambassador to the Kingdom of Minicia.

So...what's your choice?

Edgar and Lucas exchanged a glance, then looked back at Chris and said without hesitation, "Your Majesty, we're going to Bohemia. We'll take our wives, and our son and daughter will stay behind!"

After saying those words, the two people who had been standing almost collapsed to the ground, but they also relaxed.

Since Chris gave them a choice and sent them to Bohemia, it meant he didn't intend to kill them yet.

The first option is survival, because the older brother is in Bohemia, and since he's still alive, it means Chris doesn't mind if they go there.

And the second option is to go to Minicia?
That would be suicide. Albert, that treacherous new king, just threw them back as troublemakers, and now he's going back to be an ambassador.
Putting aside whether the Minisians would trust them or use them for their own purposes, they would absolutely not be able to get past Chris alone.

This choice is tantamount to declaring to Chris that they harbor ulterior motives and may even be colluding with Minicia. What awaits them is probably not the diplomatic residence, but a cold blade.

As for leaving the children behind, that's a matter for both of them to consider... If Chris has murderous intent, whether the family should go with him or not is the same thing. If he doesn't want to kill his nephew and niece and goes to Bohemia with them, then if something unexpected happens there, the whole family will die together.

Conversely, if Chris has his own ideas, it doesn't matter whether he brings them along or not; the whole family will never be able to leave Bagnia.

"very good."

Chris's voice remained flat, revealing no emotion.

"Those who understand the times are wise." - Scribe.

The clerk stepped forward like a ghost and bowed slightly.

"Note that the third prince Edgar and the fifth prince Lucas have volunteered to go to the Bohemian Empire with their wives to serve as deputy envoys of the Bagnian Embassy in Bohemia, assisting Ambassador Prince Flower in handling diplomatic affairs."

His son and daughter will remain in the palace to be raised, with the court arranging their education and care.

"Yes."

The clerk responded hoarsely, the charcoal pencil gliding across the paper, making a faint but piercing scratching sound, as if writing a judgment.

"Go down."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"By the way, what's the situation with my sisters now?"

"Your Majesty, they have married...to the great nobles of Minicia."

“Stain…”

After dealing with the two princes, Chris continued to sit, pondering something: the Miniseyan king opposite him, Charles Stuart, certainly didn't do this out of boredom or kindness.

Chris thought for a moment and came up with a possibility... Charles was assembling troops, preparing to march into this war zone.

Therefore, these two people were props that Charles sent back to Chris to reassure him, and also an attempt to plant spies inside him.

If Chris mishandled his two brothers, or even killed them, then Charles would have successfully sown the seeds of division and infighting within Chris's regime.

The seed may be small or weak, but as long as there is an external force... that is, someone like Charles who perseveres in watering it, the seed will not die, and it will eventually take root and sprout, causing trouble for Chris.

Something that accomplishes multiple things with one stone.

So why did Charles send this signal to Chris?
He hoped that Chris wouldn't help the Retelians, at least not the Bagnian army, when the Minisian army appeared on the battlefield.

If that's the case, then it leads to the second question... Are the Minisians confident they can defeat the Retalians?

What gives them such confidence?
The player defeated the Retelians in winter, capturing one and a half enemy camps. However, this does not mean that Chris thinks the Retelians are weak. On the contrary, the Retelian army is very strong, and terrifyingly strong in open field battles!
To put it bluntly, without the advantage of terrain and a reliable position with barbed wire and chevaux-de-frise, Chris would absolutely not be willing to fight the Retalians in open battle. He would absolutely not want to face the charge of thousands of Retalian heavy cavalry on the open plains.

The steel torrent is no joke.

Here's a little-known fact: the disappearance of cavalry was definitely not due to the advent of the Maxim machine gun, but rather to the emergence of superior alternatives such as tanks and armored vehicles.

In this world where cold and hot weapons are constantly being replaced, and where magic and divine arts also exist, the advantages of cavalry remain extremely strong and irreplaceable.

If it weren't for the fact that the Leterians had a large cavalry force, the player would have already overthrown them and gathered their own troops to attack.

So, after much thought, Chris just couldn't understand why the Minisians, or rather Charles, thought he could defeat the Retalian invaders... this massive force that had been defeated twice by the player in winter, yet still numbered over 50,000.

However, since Charles has sent the two princes back and has taken the initiative to subtly show goodwill towards Chris, his confidence must be well-founded.

So, Chris can assume that the Minisian army can defeat the Reteria invaders. Under this premise, what should he do?

Doing nothing would be foolish. Even if Charles had brought back two seemingly valuable people, let alone brought back that old guy Oakland, Chris wouldn't have appreciated it at all, nor would he have felt indebted to him.

Assemble troops?

There's no need. The army has already been assembled, and players on the front lines are even engaging in small-scale battles with the Retalians, fighting from winter to spring in a fierce and passionate manner, with people dying every day.

So much so that some of the defense troops watching from the sidelines were eager to try their luck. Major General Marlowe even personally led the 10th Corps into battle and attempted to advance a short distance.

Then, after leaving the cover of barbed wire and chevaux-de-frise, they were quickly routed by the charging Leterian cavalry.

Although the 10th Legion didn't lose, it didn't win either, because of the players' assistance. Ten kilometers away from the No. 1 camp, it was overwhelmed by a charge from the Knights of Leteria, leaving behind more than two hundred corpses. Under the cover of night, it slunk back.

Because of this loss, the 10th Army Corps has been rotated back to China, and the 8th Army Corps has taken its place.

Of the 1,500 regular troops, 200 died, a casualty rate of 13%, which was neither high nor low. Just one engagement was enough to destroy the morale of the 10th Army Corps, forcing them to return home for rest and reorganization.

Because of this case, Chris wondered why the Minisians thought they were bound to win.

Chris thought and thought, but couldn't figure out what he should do or what trouble he should cause the Minesians in the upcoming war between Minicia and Retalia.

"Secretary."

"I'm here."

"Have someone inform Marquis Dirac, Commander-in-Chief Isaac, and Chief of Intelligence Connie that I need to hold a combat meeting with them. Arrange the time and place."

"clear."

(End of this chapter)