The Bloody Valkyrie

Because of this, being of the pro-monarchy faction and also a confidant of the King, Gazef was unwilling to casually interject. He knew that his clumsy manner of speech had no chance of arguing successfully against these nobles, therefore it was necessary to avoid slipping up and giving others the chance to use his own words against him.

...The Slane Theocracy’s covert operatives were able to grasp our movements and appear at a timely moment… this indicates a spy has probably infiltrated the inner workings of the Kingdom. If this is the case, perhaps it is someone among the six greater nobles...

Gazef’s eyesight drifted towards one particular person amongst the ranks of nobility, a noble with a particularly cold gaze.

This person had his blonde hair tied to the back and a pair of slender blue eyes.

His skin had the unhealthy white coloration that suggested it was rarely exposed to sunlight. His lanky figure gave the impression of a viper.

Although his age should not have reached forty, his appearance looked exceptionally older because of that unhealthy skin tone.

He was one of the six great nobles, called Lord Raven. He constantly switched between the two factions like a bat in order to further his own profits. He was also a noble who covertly approached the King’s second prince.

If there is a traitor to the Kingdom, it should be this fellow right?

Noticing Gazef’s gaze, Lord Raven curled his lips which were already very thin. Seeing that kind of provocative attitude, Gazef’s expression became even more rigid.

“With that, the Warrior Captain’s report ends here. There are other important matters which need to be decided upon.”

The king declared, feeling a little exhausted, telling the nobles to back off for the time being. Gazef walked to the King’s side and surveyed the nobles. As a personally trusted subject of the King, he was long accustomed to unpleasant stares.

“Well then, in accordance with usual yearly custom, we shall war with the Empire in a few months time. This is the next item on today’s agenda. Lord Raven, explain to everybody.”

“Yes, your Majesty.”

Like a ghost, the man silently walked up and began to explain in a soft voice.

Nobody made a noise. Not only did he have influence over both factions, he was also the one with the most power amongst the six nobles. Nobody dared making an enemy out of him.

No objections were made as Lord Raven went through the planned course of action and who would send out how many soldiers. After he finished explaining, he smiled frivolously at the King and bowed:

“——The report has been concluded.”

“Thank you, Lord Raven. Does anyone have anything they wish to say?”

Once again the room became noisy, with whispers being exchanged.

“This time it is our turn to repel the opponent. With that, let us then proceed to directly counter-attack the Empire.”

“Absolutely correct. I’ve pretty much become tired of only merely repelling the Empire.”

“That’s true. Let those imperial fools experience our worst.”

“Correct, Earl-sama, just as you say.”

The room resounded with the merry laughter of the men wearing fine clothing.

Stop dreaming. If it were possible to refute in such a way, who knew how much fun it would be.

The Kingdom and the forces of the neighbouring Empire would meet every year on the battleground at Kaze plains.

Until this date, neither side had suffered too serious injuries, but that was because the Empire never committed its full forces. If there was any real intent to topple the Kingdom, there would be no need at all to set camp at Kaze plains and wait for the Kingdom’s army to arrive.

Gazef and a few other nobles who still used their brains reckoned that the Empire used such a method in order to deplete the Kingdom of its national strength.

The Kingdom, composed of militia; And the Empire, composed of professional soldiers, and having a hierarchy of Knights.

Which side’s soldiers were superior was obvious with a single glance, hence the Kingdom needed to mobilise twice the numbers of the Empire’s forces from their population and because of the larger amount of troops, the army needed a greater amount of food supplies. Although there were magic items which could produce food, they were only intended to provide nourishment and the resulting food was so unpalatable that even starving people would hesitate to eat them, therefore those could never become the main source of provisions for meals.

Moreover, the Empire’s invasion was just in time for the wheat harvest, leading to a shortage of manpower in villages, who had to delay the wheat harvest as a result.