Evade The Hero and Flee!

Chapter 263

Side Story – Memories of a Certain Princess (38) 

#50 Their Circumstances: Circumstances of a Certain Villain

“As expected, it’s you Ast. I believed in you.”

I could only nod awkwardly as the princess said everything went according to plan.  

“Thank you.”

“As expected, no one is better at exposing people’s clothes than you Ast.”

Not only Renia, but the generals around the princess also nodded their heads at those words.

I had to end with a question mark even as I uttered words of thanks.

Were the compliments I received pure compliments, or were they backhanded insults mocking me?

Under normal circumstances, they would definitely be insults, but with other people around, I wasn’t so sure.

Surely she wouldn’t mock me in front of so many people? 

Her personality isn’t that awful… is it? Or is it? It seems possible…

“The enemy took the bait. And they seem to be more angry than I expected.”

As the princess said, the letters I had diligently sent were finally taking effect.

The furious letter from the enemy commander and the busy movements of soldiers observed in the enemy camp made it clear that they were preparing to attack, unless one was a complete fool.

Speaking of which, the enemy commander really lacks patience.

I only sent a letter worrying about his mother’s well-being, yet he responds with such anger and preparations for attack.

Well, I would understand if I had lied, but the letter contained only information learned by spies.

It is true that his father had an affair with a young woman. 

To get so angry over a letter worrying about having to suddenly welcome a new mother at the age of 40…

At this point, I thought the enemy commander was going too far.

“Now we just have to meet the enemy.”

“Then my job here is done.”

All I did was extend some good will, yet the enemy got angry and charged at us.

Thanks to that, the mission to ‘Provoke the enemy!’ given to me by the princess was accomplished far too easily.

It is only natural that one who has finished a task deserves rest!

Even the evil organization Howling respects this rule, 

“No? There is still work to be done?”

But the Karan Empire, one of the greatest nations on the continent, does not.

As expected, those in power demand more!

“What work is that?”

Murmuring could be heard from those around.

From their voices, I heard that a commoner like me was being too insolent, and no matter how much I was favored by Her Highness, I was being rude.

I must have made quite the displeased expression.

“Very important work.”  

But the princess didn’t seem to care at all.

As always, she maintained her pace and gave me more work.

“What is it, this work?”

“We need to raise the soldiers’ morale.”

“For me to…”

I wanted to say why give that job to me? but I had to bite my tongue due to the glares from the middle-aged men around me.

These were no ordinary middle-aged men.  

They were muscular men who looked like they could take someone out with one punch – high ranking military officers or leaders of knightly orders.

There is a saying that the pen is mightier than the sword. Get stabbed by a pen, why don’t you?

As long as you don’t get poked in the eye or somewhere equally vulnerable, it’s just painful.  

But a sword hurts no matter where you get cut.

Up close, swords are much more powerful than pens.

And these middle-aged men were all men who had handled swords.

“Will it work if I do it?”

So I could give no other answer but an affirmative!  

“Yes. You can do it.”

She’s making fun of me. She’s definitely making fun of me.

That smile lingering on her lips clearly said she knew I would act this way and was moving accordingly.

“There are many here far more talented than I. Wouldn’t they be more suited for such a task?”

It was troublesome work.  

In the military, General Pelstein, known as a pillar of the empire, had died. And quite spectacularly at that.  

He could have escaped if he wanted, but he sacrificed his life to defend Phedra Castle.   

And in the process, he annihilated most of the enemy troops!

He had always been an exemplary commander for the soldiers, and the manner of his death deserved to be called an imperial hero.

Thanks to his death, not only was Phedra Castle safely held, but the empire regained control of the border regions that had been taken as well.

Having lost most of his troops, the enemy commander judged that he would not be able to restrain his soldiers, who had lost their commander and were furious. It seems he retreated back to his home base.  

On the surface, everything seemed to end well, but soon the fury of the imperial army turned to grief.  

The officers felt ashamed they had survived instead of dying alongside General Pelstein, and the soldiers were sad over the loss of their great superior.  

As a result, despite achieving what was essentially a victory, army morale kept falling lower and lower.

The soldiers had been in such poor condition when I first met them that I mistook them for deserters.  

And I was being told to raise the morale of such soldiers?!

It was nonsense. 

“If we leave it to them, they will be able to raise the morale of our troops.” 

“Then can’t we just leave it to them?” 

I am originally here as the princess’s personal butler, not as a soldier. 

Provoking the enemy commander was done because it could be done with a letter, but leading the soldiers directly was an unreasonable task. 

Yeah, it’s impossible. It’s absolutely impossible! 

“But if we leave it to them, it will take some time. If we pour out our anger on the enemy while mentioning General Pelstein, we can prevent this attack, but it will have bad results in the long run.” 

“Then it’s something that just needs to be done quickly, right?” 

“The opponent is the Merdeah Kingdom. The Merdeah Kingdom has one of the greatest military powers on the continent. No matter how much of an empire it is, it would be impossible to finish it in a short period of time.”

It was absurd. Even the seasoned military men nibbling on jerky around me nodded in agreement, so it must have been.  

Ah, our princess is truly an outstanding and wise leader.  

To possess such depth of thought at her young age!

If only she didn’t give me this task to do! Why must she give me this task!

“Do you… think I can fulfill that duty?”

I could barely open my trembling lips.  

“Yes.”  

And the answer came back surprisingly quickly, as if she hadn’t put any thought into it at all.

Wow… I struggled to speak and she answered so easily?

Isn’t everyone around her on her side right now?

Are you keeping everyone suppressed by class?

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. I believe in Ast.”

I didn’t ask what she meant by believing for the sake of mental health.

She is a Princess who has gotten to know me too well in just a few years.  

With so many people watching like this, I have to act like a decent minister.

Otherwise, I could at least get beaten for catching a tail.  

Moreover, now I’m in the position of a military superior and subordinate, so there must be aggravated punishment waiting.

It’s dirty. I’ve never had a situation like this, stuck in the middle and swaying back and forth, except when I was in the military in my previous life!

It was so vividly reminiscent of that time when the platoon leader told me the company commander was coming and I had to brief in the bathroom.

“Can you do it?”

Can’t you do it?

Although I would say that in normal times, this was the military.  

I could only nod my head at Princess, who made me realize that fact.

“Yes, Your Highness. Your Highness’s order… I will definitely succeed.”

Yes. If you have to peel, peel! That’s what military life is!

…But I don’t even know about the aftermath!

#51 Their Situation: Renia Lil Areis’ Situation

“Will it be okay, Your Highness?”

“It’ll work out somehow.”

Your Highness is too nonchalant.  

Although it would be nothing in normal times, it was the wrong behavior in a situation where war was imminent.

“Do you think Sir Ast can do well?”

I imagined Sir Ast, who was full of complaints.  

He was quietly watching the eyes of those around him, but if it had been an ordinary situation with just Your Highness and me, there would have been a very big fuss.

But what was more frightening,  

“In the end, Sir Ast sincerely accepted Your Highness’s words.”

In the end, Sir Ast sincerely said he would carry out Your Highness’s order.

“Yeah. That’s why I can trust Ast more. When Ast is like that, he takes care of things well, right?”  

What Your Highness said was true.

Although Sir Ast always grumbled about how troublesome it was, whenever he tried to finish the work sincerely, he always brought good results.

His rapid promotion in the imperial household was not for nothing.

However,  

“But I also remember that the aftermath was very large.”

Whenever Sir Ast brought good results, various incidents came along.

What is the reason for the current war with the Merdeah Kingdom?

Although the entire continent was at war, it was because the Merdeah Kingdom had assassinated many imperial diplomats, including my former fiancé.

And it was Sir Ast who revealed that the Merdeah Kingdom was the culprit of that incident.

We were destined to fight the Merdeah Kingdom anyway, but if Sir Ast had not found the culprit of the diplomatic assassination, we would have fought much later than now. 

“Sending Sir Ast out now may not be the right thing to do.”

If the war had been postponed, General Peltstein might not have died.

Of course, it’s just my imagination.  

If Sir Ast had not found that the Merdeah Kingdom was the culprit, there could have been an even bigger tragedy.

What I’m thinking is nonsense and tantamount to insulting Sir Ast.

But General Peltstein made me think like that because he was one of the symbols of the military.

Although the military and the knights did not have a very good relationship, General Peltstein was a figure respected even by the knights.  

I couldn’t even imagine the shock of the executives and soldiers who had served him directly.

“Sir Ast was too dangerous a choice.”

Sir Ast, who doesn’t know which way to bounce.  

Although it is unlikely, if Sir Ast makes the wrong remark about General Peltstein, morale could be even worse than now.

“Isn’t it better to change it now? There are many excellent commanders in Your Highness’s troops.”

There were no great generals like General Peltstein, but they were generals who commanded numerous troops. It would be better to use those safer people than the uncertain element that is Sir Ast.  

I said it with such confidence, but Her Highness just shook her head.

“I’ve already given it to Ast.”

“Your Highness…….”  

“Trust Ast. He does it when he has to, doesn’t he?”

I couldn’t say a word to Your Highness, who was smiling and talking.  

Your Highness really believes in Sir Ast.

I didn’t want to break it that Your Highness, who doesn’t easily trust people, trusts someone else…

But of all those many, many people, you believe Sir Ast!

That Sir Ast who confidently told me last year, ‘Your Highness, there is a way to get stabbed in the back by the axe you trust!’.

“Your Highness…….”  

Why do you believe someone like Sir Ast?  

I wanted to resentfully say, but I couldn’t get the words out.

“Since it’s Your Highness’s word… I will try to believe in Sir Ast.”  

That was all I could do.

“Thanks, Renia.” 

It was the first time in my life. That I lied to Her Highness of my own free will.

“No, Your Highness.”  

But if my lies can keep Her Highness smiling, I will lie to you anytime, and I will keep you smiling.  

That is my loyalty to Your Highness who has given up her life for the empire, and my oath as a knight.  

So Sir Ast, please repay Her Highness’s trust.  

And please make sure that I, who believes in you, am not disappointed.

And so the next day.  

The 13th Corps, which had lost its commander and transferred command to the Princess, and Her Highness’s supporting troops all gathered.

And at the end of their gaze was Sir Ast.  

With tens of thousands of troops in front of him, could Sir Ast properly speak out?  

If he does speak out, what words of consolation will he convey to the soldiers who have lost their commander and fallen into grief?

I stared at the back of Sir Ast’s head, full of anticipation and worry.  

Did he notice my feelings, hoping that he would not succeed but would not fail either?

Sir Ast’s voice came from the magical tool that could be heard by tens of thousands of troops.

“General Peltstein is dead! He’s gone!”

“Oh…….”  

I think it’s ruined, Your Highness.

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