And so, in the early morning of the following day— Inglis and her group were at the royal castle, accompanied by Principal Miliera. Before them stood Prince Wayne, along with Special Envoy Theodore, Raphael, and Ripple. “What…!? So you’re saying that in exchange for investigating the Dragon God within Rigriff’s domain, we should temporarily hand over command of the Holy Knights to the Prime Minister?” In response to Prince Wayne’s astonished question, Inglis answered with a smile. “Yes. The ones meant to provide the main force for the invasion army against Venefique are the eastern lords, but if the Holy Knight Order were to be added into their strength, Prime Minister Rigriff would surely feel reassured. He’d gain powerful forces without sacrificing his own men. If this is the price, I believe he’ll accept an investigation within his territory—even under the current circumstances.” The source of this content ɪs NoveI(F)ire.net “W-, wait, Glis…! That’s practically the same as telling Brother Rafa and Miss Ripple to go to war with Venefique!” “Exactly. Which is why Prime Minister Rigriff will be pleased, and Prince Wayne will be seen as supporting him. That’s the impression we want to give, right?” “That’s not okay! We’re trying to stop a war, not start one! Even if we couldn’t do anything and just had to watch…” Everyone except Inglis nodded in agreement with Rafinha’s protest. “Regrettably… you’re probably right,” Prince Wayne said heavily, nodding at Inglis’ analysis. The problem, once this situation is clear, is what move to make. They could attempt another covert operation like in Alucard—sneak in with a small team and aim to topple the regime—but Venefique is not only already hostile to Charalia, its power and talent pool far surpass Alucard’s. General Maxwell, who commands the Faceless Giant… Tiffany, a Hyrule Menace… and even Charlotte, a Hyrule Menace beyond ordinary Hyrule Menaces. And if Tiffany is siding with them, that could mean Abel and his new Mecha Dragon God body might appear too. Pushing back such forces and successfully overthrowing their regime would take a great deal of time. And suppose the cover operation showed signs of success, Prime Minister Rigriff’s forces will likely seize the opportunity to march into Venefique. A weakened Venefique would be the perfect target for carving out new territory. “I’m sorry… If only I had been stronger… none of this would have happened…” Meltina’s voice trembles as she lowers her head, clearly blaming herself for the soon-to-fail ceasefire negotiations with Venefique. And it’s Inglis who steps in to comfort her. “Ah, it’s okay. Don’t make that face. I’m grateful to you, Meltina—and it’s exactly because things are the way they are that I can recommend this plan, you know?” “Yeah. This is the perfect opportunity, actually. Offering the Holy Knights as a bargaining chip just to dig up the Dragon God wouldn’t have been approved in any other circumstances, after all.” Even Prince Wayne isn’t eager to advance the war. If possible, he probably wants to prevent it. He’s the one who proposed the idea of the Order of Arcane Wardens that transcends national borders. A full-scale war between Charalia and Venefique would go completely against that vision. Even if Rochefort’s life is at stake, he’s still just an instructor at the Knight Academy. He can’t afford to “sell off” the Holy Knights for that. Not unless there’s a significant return that justifies it— “So you’re saying there’s something unusual involved, then?” “Please, do tell us, Miss Inglis.” Prince Wayne and Special Envoy Theodore urged her. “Yes. What if the Dragon God we excavate causes a complete collapse of the mountain pass leading to Venefique? The one underground. Its restoration would take months—maybe even a full year.” Prince Wayne and Special Envoy Theodore gasp and exchange startled looks. “…What do you think, Theodore?” “It’s certainly not a praiseworthy method… but it’s a brilliant move. We are gradually adopting Flygears and Flygear Carriers, but Charalia’s main military force is still ground-based. Especially among the provincial lords… If the roads are destroyed, they can’t invade.” “Exactly. By delaying the eastern lords’ military campaign, we can buy ourselves a great deal more time for peace talks and negotiations.” In other words, this is a sabotage operation to expand the window for peace under the pretext of searching for the Dragon God. And the ones to carry it out would be the Holy Knight Order. There’s no need to actually have the Dragon God destroy the road—if the Holy Knights simply make it look like the dragon did it, that’s enough. Originally, the Holy Knights were tasked with responding to Prism Flow and Magic Stone Beasts, not political schemes within the kingdom. But that depends on how Prince Wayne, as the one holding command authority, sees it. “So basically, we’re going to use the existence of the Dragon God in Prime Minister Rigriff’s territory against him…!” “Delaying the war in the East through physical means… how do you even come up with something like that?” Liselotte claps her hands, and Leone lets out an impressed sigh. But without a return of this magnitude, neither Prince Wayne nor Special Envoy Theodore would move the Holy Knight Order. And without their support, there would be no proposal enticing enough for Prime Minister Rigriff—and thus, no Dragon God investigation. Which is why this exact situation is what makes the plan viable. Overjoyed, Rafinha slaps Inglis hard on the back. “Nice one! That’s Glis for you!” ‘It’s great that she’s happy, but… that kind of hurt.’ “That’s great news, Meltina! Looks like we might be able to save Instructor Rochefort and avoid a war with Venefique!” “Yes…! Thank you so much, Inglis!” “Truly… you’ve gone to such lengths to try and save Ross again and again…” Meltina’s face lit up, while Arles looked deeply moved. “Don’t mention it, you two. I’m doing all this for myself too… you know?” “Care to elaborate, Glis?” “I still want to train with Instructor Rochefort a lot more, and I want to fight the new Dragon God too, right? Plus, if the eastern lords stop moving, I’ll get to spar again with General Maxwell and Miss Tiffany and the others without worry… This is probably the best way to get the most sparring in.” Inglis held up her fingers one by one as she tallied up her prospective sparring partners. “Haha… that’s Glis for you.” “Yeah. In more ways than one…” “Well, it’s so typical of her that it’s actually reassuring.” As the others looked on half exasperated, Prince Wayne turned to Raphael and Ripple with a question. “Raphael, Ripple. It pains me to involve you in something so political and full of intrigue… but would you do it? It’s true that as things stand, we can’t stop the eastern lords from moving, and war is inevitable. But with this, we can at least delay the outbreak.” “I agree, Your Highness. This plan doesn’t harm anyone—in fact, it may save many lives. It’s certainly not an honorable tactic, but desperate times call for desperate measures. The Holy Knight Order will head to Prime Minister Rigriff’s domain.” “Yeah, if it means we can avoid a war, it’s a small price to pay. As a Hyrule Menace myself, I’d rather see humans join hands and protect themselves from the Prism Flow and Magic Stone Beasts than fight each other.” Raphael and Ripple both seemed to have no objections to Prince Wayne’s proposal. “Thank you—both of you. I’ll speak with Prime Minister Rigriff myself immediately. The rest of you, make ready to depart at once.” With that, Prince Wayne rose, clearly intent on acting without delay. “ “ “ “Yes, sir!” ” ” ” Inglis and the others stood and responded in unison, seeing him off.