Pioneer Lord: Starting From Daily Intelligence

Chapter 672: Chapter 53: The Peerless Grace of Prince Philis (Part 3)

”Look at the Iris emblem engraved on your breastplates — it is the glory our forebears reclaimed with blood from Chaos Demons and other monsters like Green Skins and Beastmen! Yet now, you aim your arrows at the true owner of this emblem.”

”At that moment, her blood-stained hem danced wildly in the gale, like an unfurling battle banner. Every soldier of the Sulande Province who heard her voice bowed their heads. The previous Female Prince valiantly sacrificed herself on the battlefield to protect her territory, and neither she nor her Iris lineage included a single coward. The soldiers held immense respect for the bloodline of the Female Prince.”

”Now, like overlooking her countless bowing subjects, Princess Philis proclaimed passionately, ’Every one of you once swore before the Divine Statue of Virena to harbor justice, remain loyal to principles, and forever fight for the Empire and the Sulande Province!’”

”Every arrow aimed at me is an act of regicide against the monarch bloodline you have guarded for generations, a betrayal of loyalty and honor.”

”So, I shall count to three — choose to be mere private soldiers for the nobility or adhere to your oath of loyalty, and as true Knights of the Sulande Province, make your decision now!”

”As her words fell, Prince Philis personally seized a Sulande Elector’s Iris Banner and, raising it high, walked toward the city gates. As her proclamation ended, a brief silence was followed by a deafening roar from the palace, as the guards abruptly turned their arrows, killing the obstinate officers. All the soldiers were captivated by the bloodline charisma of the Female Prince, and tens of thousands of Silver Armored Warriors cheered, welcoming their sovereign back to her loyal Avalon Palace. These troops were once the Directly Affiliated Attendants of the Female Prince; they were jubilant at witnessing Philis’s charisma, gladly accepting her as their new ruler. The cheers of the troops resounded throughout the land.”

”Thus, at the wide-open doors, Princess Philis led the charge, advancing with her troops straight into the core of Avalon Palace and ascended to the throne! It was as if she were under the protection of the Goddess of Justice; no matter how stubborn, the guards dared not raise their swords against her!”

Upon hearing this, Su Li, who had been anxiously holding his breath, finally took a deep breath.

There was no doubt that Philis, according to his suggestion, had initiated a coup akin to a Divine Military Coup with the Forbidden Army, charging into Avalon Palace with a small number of loyal troops, securing the ruling core, and then invoking the most legitimate inheritance to command the realm successfully, thus acquiring supreme authority over the Sulande Province.

In fact, this coup was slightly easier than Su Li had anticipated. Once he heard the soldiers dared not harm Philis, it became almost certain that Philis’ reign over the Sulande Province was inevitable.

This was not only due to her noble bloodline; indeed, countless Female Prince bloodlines had been slaughtered in the previous wave of white terror.

More crucial was the pressure exerted by the Empire and Dwarves on the nobility of the Sulande Province.

When Archibald arrived at the Hesse Territory to escort Philis to the Sulande Province, the white terror within the region had already been halted under the Empire’s tremendous pressure. The Empire’s high command couldn’t allow these Dukes to recklessly massacre the bloodline of an Elector.

Yet after this, Archibald fell afoul of Philis and was killed by the envoy of the Dwarf Supreme King, Gaucric, the most manly man among Dwarves and a Demigod.

Su Li understood that Gaucric would only strike once, but the noblemen of the Sulande Province did not. No one knew to what lengths Gaucric would go for Philis; he had already killed Archibald. Should anyone else harm Philis, who could guarantee Gaucric wouldn’t slay that Duke next?

All this led to Philis’s unimpeded approach before the palace, where the soldiers were strictly ordered by various Dukes not to harm Philis.

This granted Philis a composed opportunity to deliver her speech before the palace; her passionate words indeed stirred hearts, making tens of thousands of troops turn allegiance at the scene.

Of course, this didn’t exactly count as a mutiny. These palace-guarding troops were originally attendants of the Female Prince, only swayed by certain Dukes after the Female Prince’s demise.

As Philis demonstrated her qualification as a bloodline of the Female Prince, still possessing the grace of the Iris Prince, these tens of thousands of troops inevitably corrected their course and returned under the Libowitz family banner.

These armies would be her direct loyalists; she would inherit a portion of the Libowitz family’s territory and military, then navigate the vast noble interest network within the Sulande Province.

It was evident that the Sulande Province was now in a state of strong local rule and weak central governance; without external aid, Philis might find it tough to achieve a stronger central power.

At this point, Su Li felt an even greater urgency to become stronger, to provide her with mighty support. He wished to help her escape the surrounded by wolves situation, fully establish her dominion over the Sulande Province.

As Su Li was musing on this, Bertrand retrieved a meticulously wood-framed oil painting from his backpack and said to Su Li, ”Right after she took over Avalon Palace, Princess Philis successfully gave birth. Everyone says this child seems born to become the ruler of the Sulande Grand Prince’s Territory. This is a portrait the Princess asked me to bring you, painted by the court artist to the highest standard of artistic quality for your daughter, and I must say, it’s an almost exact likeness.”

”The Princess has been referring to her as Little Treasure, awaiting your name for the daughter. She asked if you still insisted on Luna, could she propose a name herself?”