Chapter 91: Sleeping With the Enemy (4)

"Foolish! How can you be so foolish!"

The Duke of Tiata stood up as he yelled out his words. He had witnessed someone spurn the alliance with another nation in favor of an individual. However, when he turned to look, the king of Daitan had an extremely peaceful expression on his face.

"What is foolish about it? I'm trying to lead our side to victory in this drawn out war. I tried my best to exclude all subjectivity when making this decision."

"Do you really believe his words!?"

"Do I believe him? Even our alliance wasn't based on absolute trust either. Isn't that right? I think you are mistaken about something important, sir Eritard."

Strength entered into the clenched fists of the king of Daitan. He had remained calm as Artpe entered the barracks. He maintained his calm even as Artpe sent the general flying. However, there was a slight heat in his voice now.

"I only believe in one thing. I believe in absolute power. If I'm forced to choose a side, of course, I'll pick the magician. Isn't it an obvious choice even from your point of view?"

"He is Aedia's······!"

"Yes. Since you brought up the subject of whether I believe his words or not, you still haven't come up with an excuse yet. What do you want from the Forest of Eternity? We've already come this far, so I hope you won't give some dumb answer like you don't know anything about it."

The Duke of Tiata struck the table as he refuted the king's words.

"I told you I have no connections to the Forest of Eternity! I won't deny the fact that there are hostilities between the Elves and our people. However, that's a separate issue! We really are trying to fight for our own independence.....!"

"If that is true, why were you trying discard this magician? You bullishly accused him of being Aedia's magician, and you kept nitpicking him for no reason! If Aedia possessed a magician as strong as him, there is no way he would be unknown to us!"

Actually, there was a magician that fit that exact description outside the barracks. However, Artpe kept that to himself. It seemed the Duke of Tiata had the same thought as him, but if he spoke those words out loud, he would be admitting his allegiance to Aedia. He was caught between a rock and a hard place.

"That is······ That is......"

The Duke of Tiata was about to open his mouth, but he decided to keep it shut. It would be great if he could pass this off with a likely excuse, but too much had been revealed earlier. The gap in his story would only widen the more he spoke. He was being bit from both sides by wolves, yet the only thing he could do was to spit out blood.

This was why he went with his remaining option. He had to stress the fact that the king of Daitan needed him. His expression turned cold as he spoke.

"Please think about it······! It would hard to hold the borders of Daitan if the soldiers of Tiata doesn't give support! Who cares if one has the most powerful weapon if one doesn't have a shield?"

"Ha. A shield......"

It seemed the Duke of Tiata's words had triggered a mine. The king of Daitan had been trying to keep his cool until the end, but this enormous mine blew away all his remaining patience!

"We can't just maintain the status quo. We've already held out for far too long. In the past five month, our progress have stalled. We are just going back and forth in an endless loop of retreating and charging. Since the pathway to the ocean is blocked by the Lunatic Wave, the plan was to bottle up Aedia from our side, and the side of Tiata. We were supposed to weaken Aedia by raiding them through the fall and winter. We were supposed to make them use up all their resources, yet that hasn't happened. Aedia seems to have felt no ill effects. Instead, my country is suffering! I have no choice, but to use special countermeasures!"

The attack on the port city of Belata was part of his special countermeasures. Daitan had reached its limit. This was why they broke the international law by sending their elite troops against Belata. It was a last ditch attempt to tilt the balance of war in their favor.

Even if they were able to secure the upper hand in the war, it was as if all their problems would have been solved. Daitan was already seen as the invader, and now his country would have caused civilian deaths. Daitan's future was dark even if they had won the war.

Despite this fact, the king of Daitan had pursued this course of action. It was proof that Daitain was truly in a bad spot.

Artpe asked him a question.

"Who came up with this plan in the first place? Who came up with this plan of pressuring Aedia to make it a war of attrition?"

"Sir Eritard suggested the plan, and I went along with it. In the end, it turned out like this."

The king of Daitan shook as he freely expressed his anger and a sense of powerlessness. When he heard those words, Artpe couldn't help but smirk.

Was the king's intelligence lacking compared to the strong power he possessed? Or did he put trust in the honor between men to establish the alliance? It didn't matter what had occured. Either option had been endlessly foolish.

"Let's think this through. The ocean is not passable right now. The north and the western border was closed. No resources are able to enter into Aedia, so how are they able to hold out so well? Did they use their awesome power of magic to transport supplies?"

"You are talking about transporting supplies to feed an enormous army...... Is it possible?"

"If they have hundred magicians like me, it is possible. However, if they were capable of such a feat, they would have just wiped out the capital of Daitan. Basically, there is no way they could have received supplies from an outside source."

It was one of the skills he had needed as one of the Four Heavenly Kings. It was the skill to play one side against the other! Words flowed out of Artpe like water as he made a persuasive argument. The king of Daitan's eyes turned sharper as he looked towards the Duke of Tiata. Since there was no possible way Aedia could receive supply from an outside source, that only left the Dukedom of Tiata. The Duke was supposed to be his ally!

"Bullshit! You and I came up with that plan in collaboration!"

The king of Daitan's gaze was so intense that he felt a tingle all over his body. The Duke of Tiata straightened himself as he yelled out. The king of Daitan nodded his head.

"I did agree with your plan. However, five months have passed, and this is the result of that plan. In your opinion, how do you think our enemies replenished their supplies? Please persuade me once again like before."

"Sir Zard······!"

This was the end. There was suspicion but no evidence. However, the mood had decidedly shifted against him. He wouldn't be able to overturn this.

The words spoken by the king of Daitan was the decisive factor. Logic wasn't important right now. It was power. It didn't matter if the king believed the Dukedom of Tiata wasn't connected to Aedia. The king of Daitan had made a choice, and he wouldn't budge from it.

The Duke of Tiata grinded his teeth.

"Are you really going to look down on my Dukedom like this!? Are you confident that you won't regret this later on!"

"I'm already having regrets. I've risen to kingship through a rebellion. I was afraid of the public unrest, so I rushed into a war with another nation. Now my nation is at the brink of ruins, so I regret my decisions everyday."

The king of Daitan wielded his words like a sword. At this point, his expression turned cold like a snow storm, and the tone of his voice changed.

"I couldn't let go of the only rope available to me, so I held onto a rotten rope. I couldn't get off this sinking ship, so I played out this abominable play several times. I kept going through the three-act play to get to a resolution. I waited for it. However, the ship sunk, and I was on a ghost ship. I don't care if the rope is coated with shit. I'll hold onto it if it is new. I haven't lived this long by repeatedly making foolish decisions. I will do as I've always done!"

"All right. I'll show you that there is more to regret in this life! Even if you realize too late that you made the wrong decision, you won't be able to take it back!"

"You dare!"

The king of Daitan swung down a Mana infused towards the Duke of Tiata. It was merely a symbolic gesture that was meant to sever the relationship between the two nations!

"I'll definitely repay you for what you've done today.... Uht!?"

"Eh-eet."

Artpe was proud that his skill of playing one side against the other hadn't rusted away from his days as the Four Heavenly King. He extended his hand toward the Duke of Tiata, who was taking a line out of the 'Required Reading for Villains on How to Exit in Style.'

A teleportation Artifact was being activated around the Duke of Tiata after the Duke fulfilled a specific condition. Artpe extended several dozen Mana Strings from his fingertips, and he wound it around the Duke. He prevented the Artifact from being used, and he pulled with his hand.

"What!?"

"Huht!"

The Duke of Tiata became surprised, and the king of Daitan, who had swung his word, also became surprised. He had swung his word in anger, but he never expected a leader of a nation not to dodge the blow. Unexpectedly, the king's sword cut the Duke of Tiata in half!

"All right. That takes care of Tiata."

"······."

He had killed his former ally, so the king of Daitan had an unbelievably uncomfortable expression on his face. He put his sword away as he turned towards Artpe. Artpe was retrieving the Artifact from the corpse. He had a delighted look on his face.

"This is an Artifact used for an emergency exit. It can only be used once. It's my lucky day."

"You really are······ I am well aware of the fact that you possess overwhelming abilities as a magician.... Hoo. So that is why...."

The king of Daitan pressed for an answer from Artpe, who was his 'only' ally left.

"I want to hear about your overall plan. I'm not deny the fact that you possess enormous power, but how can you end a war just by yourself?"

"You really don't know much about what magicians are capable of. You were quite lucky in being able to cut down your former ally."

"Unfortunately, our country doesn't have any outstanding magicians. Also, I hadn't liked him in the first place."

Basically, he was saying a good excuse had shown up, so he had taken the initiative. Artpe was a bit dumbfounded by his answer. He replied back.

"Just keep in mind that I have a Great magic spell that can bring the capital of Aedia to its knees. There is no need to cause a bloodbath by attacking the periphery of Aedia. It'll be annoying. If we are to conquer Aedia, we'll have to worry about the civilian population. It isn't as if Daitan has an unlimited number of troops. I don't want a lot of blood to be shed."

It was words that shouldn't be coming out from the mouth of a former Four Heavenly King. However, he had completely left behind his former self in his present life!

This didn't mean he would go running around pursuing peace as a hero. However, the king of Daitan didn't focus on his words. He was still busy trying to gauge the power of Artpe's magical energy and spells.

"A Great magic spell that can guarantee the downfall of the capital..... I have no choice, but to trust in you. All right."

It seemed he had finished his calculations. He raised his head to lock eyes with Artpe. There was a twinkle in his eyes.

"Let us go to the capital at full speed. What about your party?"

"They are probably yowling by now. They'll come looking for me soon. Let us gather here once again after three hours. I want you to gather couple dozen of your core troops."

"Couple dozen sounds too little....."

"It'll be easy. I'll bring down Aedia with my power. However, it is up to you and your people to seize the capital. "

The king of Daitan wondered if he had been wise in hiring Artpe. However, the milk had already been spilled. He cleared the bitter taste in his mouth as he asked a question.

"I still haven't heard the most important component of this venture. What is your request?"

"Ah. That's right. I haven't told you that yet."

It had been so hectic that he had forgotten to relay that information. Artpe let out a bitter laugh as he spoke.

"It is about the Forest of Eternity. I want you to leave that place alone."

The king waited for a while, but Artpe no longer said anything. When he realized that was the entirety of Artpe's request, the king asked in a baffled manner.

"······is that really it?"

"It won't be an easy request. People won't stop just because you said so. That is why this is a only a rough overview of my request. When the war ends, I want you to safely absorb Aedia and Tiata into your kingdom. Then I want you to make a new law. I want you to make it so that people won't cause harm to the Forest of Eternity."

It was as Artpe had said. This wouldn't be an easy request. Money and Artifacts were a one time payments. On the other hand, this request had to be upheld as long as the kingdom of Daitan existed. Still, Artpe's help would allow Daitan to conquer both Aedia and Tiata. There was no way the king would balk at this price.

"······are you perhaps a descendant of the Elves?"

The king had been prepared to give away parts of Aedia or Tiata. He couldn't hide his dismay as he asked the question.

Artpe answered him.

"Nope. This is just a Quest for me."