The Martial Unity

Rui stared at the man with a calm and composed expression even as the man dropped a bombshell on him. It took all the self-control Rui  had on him not to react in a manner that conveyed his shock.

And shocked he was. He had heard nothing about the prime minister of the Britannian Empire himself coming to the Shionel Confederation in order to broker an alliance with the nation and with Guildmaster Bradt alone.

The fact that the leader of the enemy alliance had come in person was nothing short of stunning.

Rui didn’t know too much about the prime minister outside of the fact that he was extremely capable and competent as the strategic leader of the enemy alliance and had done a good job responding to his father’s grand plan with his own political and military strategy.

He knew that his father held the man in high regard and viewed him as one of the biggest stumbling blocks on his way to achieving his greatest ambition of turning the Kandrian Empire into the most powerful and prosperous nation to have ever existed.

If such a man had come himself personally, it meant that he regarded the Shionel Confederation just as importantly as a potential ally as the Kandrian Empire did.

‘This timing is suspicious.’ Rui fell into thought. ‘It is unlikely to be a coincidence. There’s no doubt he chose to come himself because I was coming to meet the guildmaster myself.”

He wouldn’t have come if he had had confidence that the Britannian Empire would be able to win over the Shionel Confederation without him. “Your Highness…?” the Secretary of State broke him out of his thoughtful state.

“Ah, pardon me,” Rui smiled. “I understand. I look forward to speaking with the guildmaster when he is able to.”

“We thank you for your understanding, Your Highness. In the meantime, our staff can guide you to the luxury suite that we have prepared just for you and your convoy. Please get some rest. I’m sure the journey here has been tiring.”

Rui fell back into thought as he was escorted to a large array of luxury suites that awaited him and his bodyguards and assistants.

“We hope that you find it to your liking.”

The first thing that Rui did when he had the chance was isolate the room with some esoteric anti-espionage artifacts and then contact his father with a special communication artifact.

“Rui,” his father’s expression was severe, “I heard.”

It appeared his father had just come to learn the truth of the fact that the prime minister had personally come to speak to the guildmaster of the Shionel Confederation.

“…I was taken aback by surprise when the secretary of state informed me of the truth.” Rui heaved a sigh. “I’m not sure how this affects my plan exactly, but there’s no doubt that it makes it harder. I have half a mind to kill him myself.”

“Do not.” Emperor Rael shook his head. “You are in no position to conduct an assassination, and even if you could get away with it, I require the Prime Minister to be alive for my plan to work. You absolutely cannot kill him.”

Rui frowned. He wasn’t entirely sure why his father needed the man alive, though he could make educated guesses. “Besides, you need to be careful about your life rather than worry about taking his,” his father reminded him. “I have been informed that he is accompanied by three Sage Knights. This means that he is extremely well-protected and has the power to threaten your life potentially. Make sure that you are never away from the Martial Sages.”

“Understood.” Rui nodded. “I have no doubt that he will increase the difficulty of convincing the guildmaster to ally with us. Any recommendations?”

His father fell into thought. “Considering that the biggest reason for anybody to join the East Panamic Treaty Alliance is the fact that while they will be attacked by the alliance if they don’t, he actually has a weaker card to play if you can convince the guildmaster that he has no reason to fear the attacks.”

Rui’s eyes lit up with understanding. “Ah, because while we have not been winning the war for allies, we have successfully protected our allies that are under attack, thanks to the Silas Clan.”

His father nodded. “Why do people fear being attacked? It is because of the consequences of being attacked. Loss, death, suffering. If you can convince him that the Kandrian Empire can prevent any of those from happening, then you can invalidate the Prime Minister’s trump card.”

Rui considered his words. “That’s a good idea. Do you really think that the Prime Minister is here to merely threaten him in person?”

“Yes,” his father confirmed. “There is no point in trying to lay out some carrots to try and serve as incentives. Those incentives will be utterly pathetic in front of the incentives that we are offering. Instead, doubling down on his threat and intimidating the guildmaster in person will be the most effective strategy. He is most likely ironing out the details of the consequences of siding with the Kandrian Empire to make the guildmaster even more reluctant to join us in fear of what is to come. But as I said…”

His father smiled. “They are merely empty words if no other ally of the Kandrian Empire has suffered what he is promising him. They lack credibility. Had he successfully razed even one of our allies, things would have been different. But since he hasn’t yet done that, it is a weakness that you can exploit.”

Rui nodded. “Additionally, I can also leverage plain human nature. Nobody wants to ally with a person who threatens to destroy them in person without relenting. All I need to do is give Bradt a rational basis to make the decision to side with us.”

“You have it figured out.” His father nodded. “Good luck. It won’t be easy, and you will be hit with curveballs when dealing with someone of Edward’s caliber, but I have confidence that you can come out victorious.”

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