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Having captured Ioro Lange, a key city of the Northern Alliance, the Miraldia Liberation Army continued its advance. They had secured control of northwestern Miraldia and were expanding their influence toward the southeast.

Aylia came to my office to deliver a new report.

“It appears the ancient capital of Vest has defected to the Liberation Army.”
“And they’re fine doing that?”

Vest is located at the southern tip of the Northern Alliance and was the capital of Miraldia until the Miraldian Unification War began.

Although it lost its status as the capital because it was too close to the south, it remains an important city nonetheless.

Aylia gave a wry smile.

“After all, the Northern Alliance didn’t send reinforcements when Ioro Lange was besieged. The Northern Alliance won’t protect them. That’s probably what the Governor of Vest thought.”
“Well, I suppose so…”

The Northern Alliance still possesses its strongest military stronghold: the fortress city of Worngang. It is a strategic hub for suppressing rebellions in southern cities.
There should be ample troops stationed there, yet no reinforcements came to Ioro Lange.
It’s no wonder the Northern Alliance governors are disappointed.

Aylia suddenly fell deep in thought.

“Could it be that the Liberation Army deliberately besieged Ioro Lange just for this?”
“To publicize the Senate’s incompetence?”
“Yes. If Princess Eleora’s character is as Sir Veit describes, it’s entirely possible.”

Actually, that’s exactly what I’ve been thinking.

“I agree. She’s not your usual military man, but rather a ruler who uses war for diplomacy and domestic politics. She managed to pull off a dramatic opening move with a bloodless victory, and by now she’s probably using that to bolster her authority across the land.”

She’s moving her troops with the long-term future in mind.
Put another way, because her strategy is unwavering, it’s easy to predict what she’ll do next. It’s a stark contrast to the Senate, which keeps making outrageous blunders.

Still, I can’t help but envy how smoothly things seem to be going for the Rolmund side.
Normally, when you try to move an army, you have to worry about all sorts of issues—laying the groundwork with relevant parties, logistics, and so on.
But Princess Eleora likely has almost none of those concerns right now.
Since she has the governor, the people, and the religious authorities all on her side, she must be able to do whatever she pleases.
She’s far from the motherland, so she likely has no fear of interference from above.
It’s as if she’s playing a well-designed strategy game, moving her troops exactly as she pleases.

“Given how things have turned out, I’d really like to avoid a head-on military clash…”

I sip the tea Aylia poured for me and ponder.

“The main force of the Liberation Army is the Miraldian people. If the Southern Federation were to engage them, it would recreate a war between Miraldians.”
“No matter how we win, it will leave a lingering grudge.”
“That’s true…”

Princess Eleora probably wouldn’t care one bit if thousands of Miraldians died.
Of course, she wouldn’t risk suffering losses that would cost her the people’s support, but we can’t let our guard down.

“Lady Aylia, do you have any other intelligence?”
“Well… um…”

Aylia flipped through a stack of documents and suddenly paused.

“Lord Forne reports that another secret envoy has arrived from the agricultural city of Vilheim.”

Vilheim is located south of Klauchen, just north of the Southern Federation’s Viera and Zaria.
Since it’s in an unstable position sandwiched between the two powers, it seems they’ve been carefully considering their course of action since the start of the war. They have deep ties with Viera, and apparently, they’ve been holding secret talks since even before the Southern Federation was formed.

“Have they finally decided to come over to our side?”
“Yes. After all, the Northern Alliance has only Worngang and Vilheim left. They’d rather have the Southern Federation, where the councilors themselves will come out to defend them, than stay with the Northern Alliance, which won’t send reinforcements.”
“Hahaha.”

I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. It was a bitter laugh.
I got scolded pretty badly by the Werewolf Squad back then, but it seems that wasn’t a waste after all.

“Let’s leave this matter to Lord Forne. That drag queen will do everything in his power to negotiate if it means his city won’t end up on the front lines.”

If we can get Vilheim on our side, the city of Viera, which Forne governs, won’t have to border the Liberation Army’s territory.
I’m sure he’ll use every means at his disposal to drag Vilheim into our camp.

“So that leaves only Worngang. The elders who haven’t been captured yet are still there, right?”
“Yes, but that place can withstand a long siege…”

As I sipped my tea and talked with Aylia, Kait came over again.
He looked at Aylia and me and said, somewhat hesitantly,

“It’s a request for reinforcements from the Senate, but since it’s not urgent, shall we discuss it later?”

It’s odd to call a request for reinforcements “not urgent,” but Kait knows full well that we have no intention of sending any help.

Aylia smiled and invited Kait into the room.

“It’s fine. We’ve finished our report here. Well then, Sir Veit, we’ll speak later.”
“Ah, sorry about that. I’ll wrap this up before dinner.”

After seeing Aylia off, I turned back to Kait.
The situation has become quite precarious, and using him as a spy is reaching its limit.

“Kait, where do you usually go to report back?”
“Worngang, lately. Ever since the Liberation Army raised its banner, most of the Elders have moved there.”

The Elders are descendants of fugitives, and they’re well aware of it. They’re constantly on guard against pursuers, so their bases seem to be scattered across major cities.
But now that they’ve lost Ioro Lange and Vest, there’s nowhere else for them to turn but Worngang.

I stared intently at Kait’s face, pondering Princess Eleora’s next move.

“Kait.”
“Yes?”
“Don’t go back to the Northern Alliance. Defect and settle here in Lüenheit.”
“Ah, okay. Understood.”

Kait’s immediate and unhesitating response left me feeling bewildered. I had expected him to be a bit more shaken.

If Vilheim betrays them and Worngang falls, the Northern Alliance will cease to exist.
Princess Eleora must have factored in the possibility of Vilheim’s betrayal when she moved her army to capture Worngang.
There’s a chance Kait could get caught up in the fighting, and since he’s connected to the Senate, I have no idea how he’ll be treated.

“Your family home was in Vest, wasn’t it? Is your family safe?”
“Yes, probably. The Liberation Army guys haven’t done any looting or anything like that.”

If that’s the case, even with Kait’s betrayal, no one else will get caught in the crossfire.
We’ve already prepared lodging for Kait, so let’s not make him take any more risks.

Kait tossed aside his Senate uniform and turned to look at me with a carefree expression.

“So, what’s going to happen to me now?”

Heh heh heh, you want to know?
The fate of a traitor is a miserable one.
I grinned and told him.

“You’re going to be my adjutant.”
“Huh!?”
“I’ve been wanting a talented person skilled in investigation for a long time now. Don’t think you can run away, okay?”
“U-understood! Leave it to me, Mr. Veit!”

Starting today, you’re the aide to the Demon Lord’s aide.
I’m going to work you to the bones.