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I was sold at the lowest price C134: To the Great War / Nagisa
While the concerns about both Temira and Zarfract remained unresolved, there was a major move in the Eastern Alliance.
“I have received a request from Zarfract to send an army to take down Temira. Ranelle, what do you think we should do?”
Majni asked for Ranelle’s advice. It’s a difficult decision to make in this situation when you don’t know which side is the enemy…….
“We can’t just ignore……Even if we reply to their request, I think we should be cautious about participating in an attack on Temira.”
“Is war inevitable?”
“Don’t give up yet, Dad. We’ll do everything we can.”
Ranelle then sent out a communication to the countries of the Eastern Alliance to gather information about Zarfract request and about Temira. It seemed that the other countries had already agreed to send troops, and it was going to be difficult to avoid a battle with Temira. Then, in a last hope, Majni-san opened a hotline to Lord Veda of Temira.
“I see that Amuria has also received a call for troops, so what are you going to do, Lord Majni, start a war with my Temira?”
“How did we get into this mess?……Sir Veda, I want to hear your side of the story.”
“It’s not like Temira can be blamed for any of this. Temira’s betrayal of the Eastern Alliance and collaboration with the Ruja Empire is outlandish.”
“Is the rumor about the secret trade with the Ruja Empire true?”
“It’s true, but even though it was a secret trade, what we were dealing with were raw materials for an epidemic medicine. The only thing that is forbidden with the Ruja Empire according to the rules of the Eastern Alliance is goods for military use. The reason I didn’t make it public was to avoid any strange misunderstandings, but it seems to have backfired.”
“I understand. Then I will try to persuade the other countries not to make the worst decision. Perhaps Lord Veda can explain the situation to the rest of the alliance as well.”
“No, Majni, it’s already too late…….Earlier, Zarfract and the five nations jointly notified us of Temira’s expulsion from the Eastern Alliance and a declaration of war.”
“Amuria has never heard of this!”
“It is true that Amuria’s name was not on the list of names, so Amuria must have been judged as a useless country. I heard that there was a request for an army, perhaps all or almost all of your forces were requested?”
“It’s true that Zarfract has requested about 80% of our forces, but……I don’t think that’s……possible.”
“If we send the army as requested, they will never come back. And after that, the kingdom of Amuria, with its weakened defenses, will disappear from the face of the earth.”
“I didn’t think that was possible…….”
When Majni finished communicating with Lord Veda, he consulted with Ranelle.
“If what Lord Veda says is true, we shouldn’t send any troops.”
“But if we don’t, Amuria will be expelled from the Eastern Alliance and war will be declared against us.”
“We should talk to King Emou. Right now, the most reliable person is our ally, Emou.”
“Talk to King Emou…….Ugh…….I’d prefer not to do that…….”
“It’s not the time to talk about it. I’ll ask him, and you can watch from the back.”
Apparently, Majni had not yet gotten rid of his coiled relationship with King Emou. Instead, Ranelle opened a communication with King Emou.
“King Emou, I’m sorry to disturb you.”
“I don’t mind, it would have been depressing if it was Majni, but I would certainly prefer to speak with Princess Ranelle.”
It seems that King Emou is still torn. I wonder what happened between them in the past…..
“I am ashamed to say that, as King Emou pointed out, the Eastern Alliance is in danger of splitting.”
“I knew it was just a matter of time, but I didn’t expect them to move so quickly……So, what’s the situation?”
Ranelle gave the details to King Emou. After hearing the story, King Emou said strongly.
“As Lord Veda of Temira says, you can’t send an army!”
“So it’s really Zarfract who’s betraying us.”
“Look, I think that the whole Eastern Alliance is trying to destroy Temira and Amuria. The reason for this is that the kings of both countries are bad listeners.”
“Is that why they’re destroying the country?”
“The biggest obstacle to the absorption of the Eastern Alliance into the Ruja Empire is probably Temira, the largest nation in the alliance and one with a strong free will, and Amuria, which will not be able to adapt to Ruja’s militarism. That’s probably why these two countries were left out of the plan to be absorbed into the Ruja Empire from the beginning.”
“Wait a minute! What do you mean by absorption into the Ruja Empire?”
“The plan is to absorb the Eastern Alliance into the Ruja Empire, and then go on to conquer and occupy the other countries in the East.”
“Why would the Ruja Empire have such a grand plan?”
“No, this is not a plan devised by the Ruja Empire, it is the Valkyria Empire that is behind all of this.”
“The Valkyria Empire?”
“The other countries of the Eastern Alliance probably agreed to be absorbed into Ruja when the name of the Valkyria Empire was mentioned. It might be very normal for a country to choose to survive as a part of an empire rather than to be destroyed.”
“Then the other countries are already on the side of the Ruja Empire…….”
“I suppose so. Only Temira and Amuria remain.”
“What should we do, King Emou?”
“There will be a major military action against Temira soon. If we can defend Temira, then there is a chance that the countries that are betraying us out of fear of the Great Powers will change.”
“So you’re saying we should show our strength.”
“We just need to convince them that we can fight against the big powers if we work together. The truth is, they probably don’t want to be absorbed by the Ruja Empire.”
“Excuse me, but isn’t it possible that this story is just speculation on King Emou’s part, and that there’s some way we can find out the facts for sure…..?”
“That’s easy. Just tell Zarfract that you can’t respond to his request to send an army, and he’ll tell you the truth.”
After this, half-heartedly, Ranelle refused the request for an army to Zarfract as King Emou had told her to do. Then King Arpa’s attitude suddenly changed.
“Damn it, you can’t respond to a request to send troops!　You small, trashy country! Well, the plan is already complete. Amuria is insignificant and will not matter to us. Listen, after we crush Temira, it’s your turn, and I will not allow you to surrender! We’re going to crush you once and for all!”
“What do you mean by that, King Arpa, that it was you who betrayed the Eastern Alliance?”
“Betrayal! You idiot! This is the majority opinion of the Eastern Alliance! You were simply deemed unnecessary!”
“I’m glad to hear the truth, because now I can side with Temira without hesitation.”
“Hmph, do you think that Amuria’s siding is enough to defeat the combined forces of the Eastern Alliance and the Ruja Empire?”
“And the Valkyria Empire, I assume.”
“Ugh, where did you get that information……?”
“No matter how great the power, Amuria has no intention of giving in! We will only do everything in our power to fight for our own justice!”
Ranelle said it in a cool way, but what the hell are we going to do about this unwinnable battle?