I Became the illegitimate son of a duke

65 – Preparation (5)

‘I’d like to say that’s not even a word…’

It is true that it is tempting.

As written here, the land that Burgon will buy is not very large, and most of the lands that have rebelled against me or have been occupied by a radical heresy are out of control. Even if you call it a place where all the lords are below the count, there is no problem with dukes and titles.

Besides, even if you restore those places, you will have to wait a very long time to get the money, but if you accept the offer from the Principality of Burgon, you can get the money right away. Even those who don’t listen are left behind.

‘Most of all, I really like mercenaries.’

Since most of the mercenaries participated in the civil war in the Empire, they had a headache because there were no more mercenaries to hire. If they could hire the notorious Burgon strongmen as mercenaries, it would be a great opportunity. That means you can have a huge advantage in a civil war.

The Burgon army, which has won several battles against the Carolingian Empire, despite having fought a series of fortress battles, can’t be weakened by just such a thing. Rather, it would be better to gain more tactical experience and become stronger.

‘Still, I can’t help but be a little nervous.’

I know in my head that it is a clear benefit, but I still feel a lot of rejection psychologically about selling the territory of the empire to a foreign country.

What was the cause of this civil war in the first place? Is it not to protect the vassals from foreign enemies? A vassal is a vassal, and a subject is a subject, even if they are not loyal.

Even though prestige has already descended as it should, if you sell your territory to a foreign country, your prestige will go down through the land.

‘But I can’t help it…’

All of those things were judged on the premise that I would survive.

I was excommunicated and the Holy Emperor denied me all worldly rights. If I lose this civil war, all I have left is death.

…I’m very afraid of how history will judge me.

“Hey, bring parchment and a pen. And the Golden Guide.”

But it’s not my taste to get caught up in the opponent’s pace like this.

I have to give Burgon’s illegitimate son both a present and a candy. Even if I die, I’ll be able to feed the traitors a big taffy.

………

“Seobang-nim… But will it be okay?”

“Huh? What?”

“I wonder if such rampant heretics will listen to the West.”

Whether the emperor accepted my proposal or not, he had to raise an army first, so he was working on something related to it.

“Those heretics confiscate all property and kill people for believing in Orthodoxy…”

Not really.

Even though the doctrines of the heretics divided into various denominations are different, they all have the same hostility to Orthodoxy, that is, Canaanism. If they hadn’t been hostile in the first place, they wouldn’t have become heretics.

“Still, didn’t most of the heretics living in the empire say they paid taxes to the emperor?”

“Most of them, not all of them. Even though the Empire is in turmoil, the power of heretics who are still hostile to both the emperor and the crusade is quite large.”

“Hmm…”

“There is a very high possibility that the heretics of the new empire to be incorporated into Burgon will perceive the West as a foreign pagan monarch. This… Seems difficult to suppress even with force…”

What Ines said is an absolute theory.

The region I have asked the emperor to purchase is a people who have been plagued by Carolingians for a long time, and it is unlikely that people living in that region will have old feelings for Burgon, which was once a Carolingian advance force, even though they are now independent. High.

It has even become heresy. I can’t imagine that he would listen to me so obediently.

“Rebellion? You can start it.”

“Yes…?”

“If you want to start a rebellion, that’s fine with me. I can wipe out the vested interests there and fill it with people loyal to Burgon, right?”

But it doesn’t matter if you listen to me or not. No, it’s better not to listen.

When you conquer a new territory, the first thing you have to do is to compromise with the vested interests living in that territory.

Of course, it will consume a lot of military power in the face of a huge backlash, but if you can fight the vested interests and win overwhelmingly, it is better to induce a rebellion.

It is not for nothing that numerous conquering kings in history have induced rebellion by paying huge taxes and taxes on conquered lands.

“…I see.”

At my answer, Ines opened his eyes wide in surprise, then narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth in admiration.

I don’t know exactly what Ines is thinking, but I can tell for sure that he agrees with me.

“But brother, if we buy the territory, we will have to send Burgon troops to the empire as mercenaries. Then, what will you do if heretics rebel?”

At that time, Chloe standing behind me said that while wrapping my neck with her arms and neck.

Your voice sounds like you’re very worried, but somehow your touch reveals desire rather than worry.

“That’s fine too. Since there is no area famous for its military power in the occupied area, it is possible to win enough by summoning the army of the vassals.

Above all, there is no leader to be the main axis. There is nothing to be afraid of when such people revolt without order.

“Hmm…But it’s very likely that he won’t rebel.”

“Why?”

“That… Feeling?”

Also, I don’t know why, but she has a vague belief that Jeanne, who has an infinite crush on me, will stop it.

If you’ve “Converted” So many people in such a short amount of time, you’ll be able to pacify even the most belligerent.

Of course, there’s no way I can tell this to Chloe and Ines.

She believes in a woman she sees for the first time, isn’t she just an idiot?

…I’m not an idiot, but anyway.

Smart –

“Okay, come in.”

“Excuse me, Your Highness. A letter from the Emperor—- Your Highness?”

“…?”

At that time, Leclerc entered the office with an urgent voice and suddenly looked at me frozen.

Obviously the letter from the emperor said something, so why are you staying silent?

“Why?”

“That… Your Highness, I’ve felt it before… The two of you—no, I misunderstood. Here’s a letter from the Emperor of the Holy Empire.”

“…Ah.”

It’s two people, so you’re referring to Chloe and Ines. I can see why Leclerc did that.

Even though we were the only ones in the room, the attitude… Was a bit like that.

In the eyes of Leclerc and others, it would be fair to say that he was shameless.

“Kuhmm, yes. Give it to me. You two are a bit far away from being in front of others.”

“Ugh… Yes.”

“Okay, sir.”

They’re mouths are spouting out their displeasure in a cute way, but their eyes aren’t like that at all. The narrow eyes quickly glanced at Leclerc.

…I’ll pretend I didn’t see it because it’s going to be annoying if it gets involved. Leclerc, I’m sorry.

Huh? What else is that

I’m looking at Leclerc with an apologetic expression, but I notice an attendant entering with a big box behind him.

“Leclerc, what is that box?”

“Yes, Your Highness. The servant of the Holy Empire who handed over the letter said that His Highness, the Duke of Burgon, should read the letter before handing it over.”

I want to just tear it off right here, but I can’t because Leclerc values etiquette no matter how bad it is.

Well, it won’t be too late to open it after reading it, so it’s okay, right? Shall we read the letter first?

“This one is also sealed with gold, not wax, right?”

It’s the same as when it was booming.

Even the ones that look dazzling on the outside but exude a strong sense of uneasiness.

What else… I hope it doesn’t say anything weird.

[I, Frederick III, Emperor of the Holy Empire, will accept the offer of the Duke of Burgon. The detailed parts such as the territory to be sold and the value will be handled by the working-level staff, so I hope you send a representative to the palace to negotiate.

‘What, I was nervous for no reason.’

I was a little afraid that I might have written something strange, but nothing like that, only that I would accept my suggestion and advise on details.

Sending a representative to the palace to negotiate must be because the civil war is in full swing and they can’t go outside. Well, this isn’t too bad…

[ㅡAnd the territories that the Principality of Burgon wants to buy are the territories that were ruled by the Rotaring Kingdom in the past—-]

I was reading the letter in relief when suddenly a strange word came out.

…Why is the ruined kingdom appearing all of a sudden?

The Rotaling Kingdom was a kingdom that existed between the Carolingian Kingdom and the Holy Empire a few hundred years ago, and was destroyed after being divided between the two countries.

And the whole of Dijon, Bar, Laurel, and parts of the coast, which now make up the Duchy of Burgon, were the territories of the Kingdom of Rotaring.

Probably about half of the territory of Rotaring Kingdom… Wait a minute. No, no.

Ah, there is no way in the world that any country in the world will not neglect or promote the strengthening of neighboring countries, right? Yeah, it’s useless

[ㅡTherefore, instead of the crown that has already been lost, for the eternal friendship between the two countries, we sent the ring of the royal seal of the kingdom of Rotaling, which was kept in the Empire’s Hwangeungo, along with a letter—-]

Kwajik!!

“Your Highness?!”

“Why do you do that!?”

Everyone in the room panics as Claude suddenly stops reading the letter and kicks off his chair and runs out to break the box.

However, Claude searches through the fragments of the broken box without even paying attention to them, and finally finds a ring in it that seems to have been beaten a lot by the winds of time, but still emits a brilliant light.

“Ha ha… Ha.”

“That’s…!”

Claude puts the ring on the palm of his hand and smiles dejectedly, and Leclerc, who sees it right next to him, immediately notices the identity of the ring and widens his eyes in surprise.

Chloe and Ines, who are far away, tilt their heads a little bewildered, as if they haven’t grasped the situation yet, then move their gaze to the letter from the emperor, which is placed haphazardly on the desk.

[ㅡFrom now on, you will be the king of Rotaring. As an ally on behalf of the Holy Empire, I ask you to take good care of me, King of Rotaling.]

Writing there were words that were so shocking that even a major accident could not fully express it.

The two of them, who finally grasped the situation, took a deep breath and showed the same reaction as Leclerc.