Chapter 94
The year has come to a close, and the cold weather is at its most severe.
Apparently, the Est Imperial forces that had surrounded Lurden were defeated.
It seems that all the spies who had infiltrated Lurden had already withdrawn, so we do not know the details, and our judgment is based on the information provided by the spies in the neighbouring territories.
And the decisive factor in this decision to withdraw was that even the church got entangled with Amy.
Many people are not very religious, but basically, all the people in the countries around here are members of the church. If she can gain the confidence of the church, there will be many who will believe that Amy is a saint, even if she is in fact a witch.
If our spies get entrapped via the church, the network would be severely damaged. That is why we decided to retreat before that happened.
In response to this situation, we contacted Duke Schleistein and decided on a plan to retake the royal capital and put it into action.
First, the Second Prince's faction, led by Duke Schleistein's army, advanced its forces to Lurden with the Second Prince as general-in-chief. In response, our Kingdom of Ramslett provided food aid and indirect support by holding large-scale military exercises on the southern and southwestern borders of Centraren to restrain the Crown Prince's army.
As a result, the forces of the Second Prince's faction easily succeeded in encircling Lurden.
The troops left in Lurden, exhausted in the battle with the Est Empire, may not be at least perfect. However, it is completely unknown how much resistance the soldiers of the royal capital, who have now turned into fanatics, will put up.
We finished our preparations and went to the place where the Second Prince and Duke Schleistein is, as arranged.
This time I landed in the middle of the camp where Duke Schleistein and the Second Prince were, not on the Buitor Rev., but on the back of Jerome-kun.
By the way, I did not ask Jerome-kun to come. I had been giving away meat with a reasonable frequency since then. So Melissa-chan ordered him to go with me.
Of course, I had given her 5 Orc meat as a gift in return, so Melissa-chan's food situation should not be a problem.
"U-Uwaaaaaaaa!"
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"You lots, don't break formation. This is as per the prior notice."
Duke Schleistein calms the soldiers of the Second Prince's faction who panicked when they saw Jerome-kun.
"It's been a long time. Your Excellency the Duke."
I got down from Jerome-kun with Anna in my arms, then put her down and greeted him.
Today Anna is dressed in white, an easy to move around, yet still somewhat sacred dress.
To use an analogy, it's like a saint became an adventurer with a sword in her hand.
This, of course, carries the message that there is justice on our side and the other side is a witch.
"It has been a while. Duke Schleistein, His Highness Prince Ludwig"
"No-No way? Sister-in-law?"
"Your Highness! You're being rude! I didn't expect Her Highness Princess Anastasia to come herself."
The Second Prince looks at Anastasia with a stunned expression in contrast to Duke Schleistein, who kneels down after saying this, but Anna makes her displeasure clear.
"Your Highness Ludwig, I am not your sister-in-law or anything like that, nor do I plan to become one. Shame on you for saying such a thing to a woman with a fiancé. Or are you insulting me?"
"Eh? But?"
"Your Highness! Apologize immediately! This is the First Princess of the Kingdom of Ramslett, who is engaged to the hero, Allen-dono. Do you intend to throw away the chance to regain the capital!"
The Second Prince is surprised by Anna's obviously uncomfortable tone, but he hurriedly apologizes after being told by Duke Schleistein in a stern tone.
"I am sorry, Your Highness Anastasia. I apologize for my old habits. And congratulations on your engagement to the hero, Allen-dono."
"No, that's fine, I accept that apology. But I'm Allen's fiancée. Don't forget that."
"Of course. My apologies."
Anna said the last line looking at Duke Schleistein, not the Second Prince. She is probably nailing him not to think about anything else, but the Second Prince, who is unable to notice this, apologizes in a straightforward manner.
Apparently, even if the successor turns out to be this Second Prince, the country has no choice but to walk on a difficult road.
"So, what is the method of releasing the brainwashing of Amy the witch?"
"We are already prepared to activate this magic over the entire Lurden. However, this magic can only affect opponents who are outdoors. It has no effect on opponents inside the building."
"So we have to draw as many men as we can, is it?"
"That's what I mean. If you raise the signal at the right time, we will activate the magic here. However, please note that this magic can only be used once. If you make a mistake in timing, it will be a wasted shot, and we will be left with little recourse. It is up to the judgment of the general, so please do your best."
I say so and look at the Second Prince.
"I-I get it, hero Allen-dono. Let's carefully assess the situation and send a signal at the right time."
"Best regards. Neither His Majesty nor Her Highness wishes to shed any blood, that's all we wish from you. I ask you to take good care of them."
"Uh, oh. Leave it to me."
Duke Schleistein replies on behalf of the Second Prince, who does not understand why he has to be so careful.
Of course, this is a declaration that we will intervene if things go wrong there.
In the first place, this magic is not something that can be used only once. Besides, we are prepared to storm the castle if necessary to stop Amy, and in the worst-case scenario, we will force our way in and take Amy's head off.
However, we are here to represent our country, so we need to sell the favours we can sell at the highest possible price.
"That's all. Then we will move on to the preparations."
After hearing his reply, we once again got on Jerome-kun's back and moved to the top of a small hill overlooking the battlefield.