WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Arsène
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◈ The Romance Fantasy’s Pushover Crown Prince Is No More ◈
Chapter 67: War of Conquest (1)
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The western War of Conquest.
This had never been part of Mirne’s original plan.
She wanted to follow the original story’s progression as closely as possible and guide events as smoothly as she could.
Creating a situation guaranteed to produce variables by deviating from the original story herself was not something she welcomed.
But...
‘Circumstances... circumstances forced me into this.’
She needed one decisive blow to put an end to the constant confession attacks.
At first, she considered gathering everyone in one place and speaking with them all at once.
But that would take too long and be inefficient, so she decided to wage war instead.
It was called a War of Conquest, but...
If she dealt with just one of them properly, the rest would not dare act rashly.
Mirne acted on that calculation, and the result was ideal.
The opposing kingdom had expected nothing more than a light exchange of magic on the plains.
They were completely unprepared for an attack by knights descending from the sky.
It would not have been an exaggeration to say the war had been won at that moment.
“Keep casualties to a minimum. Once we win this war, it will all become the Macelin Kingdom’s property anyway.”
“I can only marvel at the wisdom of Her Highness Crown Princess Mirne. We will do as you say!”
In Mirne’s opinion, speed was the most important thing in war.
The moment time was dragged out over indecision, the cost of war would pile up like a mountain.
Once the sword had been drawn, the mission had to be completed quickly.
“The Empire still hasn’t shown much of a reaction, right?”
“That is correct.”
“We need to finish before the Empire moves. Even if we only conquer one kingdom properly, this war will be worth it.”
Mirne kept an eye on the Empire while swiftly dealing with the opposing kingdom’s leadership.
There were many methods. She could persuade them or throw them in prison.
Killing them was the final option.
“We’ll subdue the leadership without killing them whenever possible. Once we determine the conquest is complete, we’ll proceed with negotiations again.”
“Your command will be obeyed.”
Everything had to be handled before the Empire moved.
‘There’s no way the Empire would sit back and watch another empire emerge.’
At least she had clear justification.
And the support she had received until now was proving incredibly effective.
They possessed overwhelming power that the western kingdoms could not match.
The knights’ strength, especially, was absurd.
From their armor and weapons to their cultivation methods.
None of it was on the level of the western kingdoms.
They had reached the point where they could be compared on a continental scale, not merely within the west.
They were still far behind the Empire, of course.
But compared to the kingdom they were fighting, they fully deserved to be called exceptional.
‘We’ll finish the War of Conquest quickly, meet the Elf, and claim the World Tree. Then, using that as a foundation... we’ll resolve the Executioners’ Covenants too.’
She wanted to immediately gather clues related to the Covenants and take the Executioners away.
Yet because of an inexplicable aversion, she was forced to wait five years.
In that case, she had concluded that she would monopolize all information about the Covenants instead.
She intended to quickly put this War of Conquest behind her.
Then she would secure information on the Executioners’ Covenants, as the Executioners would become the strongest blade in the Empire that would one day turn into the Demon Realm.
“Your Highness, Crown Princess Mirne! Urgent news! Knights believed to be Imperial troops have appeared in the Kanda Kingdom, the opposing kingdom...!”
“What?!”
The worst possible development had arrived before Mirne.
+++++
There would be no blind spots beneath the Empire’s Eye.
It was a saying passed down through the Empire’s Eye for generations.
They had originally been destined to slowly fade away without any support.
But as the Empire returned to normal, they naturally regained their former capabilities.
As a result...
“...You found out even this? Impressive.”
“It is an honor to hear Your Highness say so! Thank you!”
The Macelin Kingdom’s current military strength and strategy, the state of the war, and even the Kanda Kingdom’s circumstances were all neatly summarized.
It was hard to believe that three thin sheets of paper in my hand contained everything about the two kingdoms currently at war.
They were so capable that I wondered if it was all right for them to be this capable.
‘This is ridiculous.’
The moment I heard that the Macelin Kingdom was waging a War of Conquest, I mobilized the remaining High Elves and ordered them to swiftly relocate the World Tree to the Empire.
There was no resistance whatsoever, and the World Tree was quickly moved to the garden behind the Imperial Palace.
[ The World Tree has taken root in Imperial territory. ]
[ The World Tree will spread its roots throughout the Empire in the near future. ]
[ As the World Tree, which was originally meant to be in the Macelin Kingdom, has settled in the Empire, the worldline changes. ]
[ The World Tree possesses the power to never lose its memories. ]
[ This will be of great help in resolving Pavan’s Covenant. ]
As soon as the messages announcing its relocation appeared, a hint about Pavan’s Covenant appeared as well.
I had expected it, but the World Tree was indeed connected to Pavan.
Otherwise, there was no explanation for why Pavan had wanted to join me when I went to meet the World Tree.
‘First, I’ll stop the War of Conquest. Then I’ll use the World Tree to resolve Pavan’s Covenant.’
But if that was the case, was the title of Noble also connected to a Covenant in the end?
‘The Executioners are certainly strong, but it’s strange how closely they’re tied to the story.’
I had thought they were like tactical nukes the Macelin Kingdom had temporarily sent to study in the Empire.
There seemed to be a deeper connection than I had thought.
Of course, I could not uncover that right away.
“Daring to wage a War of Conquest without the Empire’s permission.”
So I decided to focus on the current situation.
“Go to the Kanda Kingdom. Which knight order will punish those who acted recklessly without the Empire’s permission?”
As soon as I finished speaking, voices erupted at once.
“Your Highness! Please leave this matter to the Blue Flame Knights! We will engrave the terror of blue flames into those ignorant fools!”
“Your Highness, Imperial Crown Prince! The Flamewing Knights have mercenary roots, so we have participated in more wars than anyone else! Entrust us with this task, and we will engrave the Empire’s majesty into those rude fools’ souls!”
“Your Highness, please grant the Scorching Knights this opportunity. We will carve eternal submission into the minds of those reckless fools.”
“O Little Sun of the Empire...”
The waiting knights all cried out, competing to send their own knight orders to war.
The knight commanders looked like they had found the perfect prey after being bored for too long.
They were the ones who had silently held their posts without harboring any wayward thoughts, even while the Empire crumbled.
If the pillars reliably supporting the Empire strongly wished to go to the battlefield...
“Theo.”
“Staff No. 1 Theo! I am ready to receive your command!”
“Go to the Kanda Kingdom with everyone.”
“Yes, sir!”
There was no choice but to grant their wish.
The moment I gave the order, Theo quickly prepared group teleportation magic.
“Your Highness! This lady can help too!”
“Arveda, I’m counting on you.”
“Hehehe...”
Arveda, who had been beside me, immediately joined in and completed the spell at once.
Once it was complete, what I had to do was simple.
“Show them all that they can do nothing without the Imperial Knights’ permission.”
“Yes, sir!!!”
I would stop the war.
Someone might ask what justification I had for doing that.
The answer was already decided.
Simply...
‘Because I don’t like it.’
How dare they offend the Empire.
What greater justification could there be?
+++++
Knights fell from the sky.
“Ah, aaaaah...”
That spelled despair for every soldier fighting in the Kanda Kingdom.
Fwoooosh.
Flames filled the sky.
Each flame was a different color, but they were all flames nonetheless.
The Imperial Knights spoke.
“The war is over. Drop your weapons and surrender.”
They told them to stop this meaningless nonsense.
At those words, everyone stopped what they were doing with empty expressions.
The knights of both kingdoms, who had fiercely clashed swords until moments ago, lowered their eyes like frightened puppies the instant the Imperial Knights appeared.
They realized that the moment the Imperial Knights arrived, this war had ceased to be a war.
There would be no more fighting to kill and be killed.
From the moment another sun rose beneath the sun, there was nothing they could do freely without their permission.
No one could even ask why this was happening.
The war was over. Once the Empire intervened, continuing was no longer possible.
That did not mean everyone obeyed.
There were always variables, and people with foolish courage existed everywhere.
“How long are we supposed to keep worrying about the Empire’s reaction? We’ve grown stronger too! Haven’t we?!”
A knight from the Macelin Kingdom raised their sword as they spoke to raise morale.
They looked ready to swing it at any moment.
Until then, the Imperial Knights’ expressions had not changed.
A tiger would not stir just because a puppy barked.
But then...
Shhhk.
“With this power...!”
The moment wave-like Aura gathered around the Macelin Kingdom knight’s blade.
Slice.
“Gaaaaah!”
At a speed too fast to perceive, both legs of the knight emitting wave-like Aura were severed.
“How can a knight of the Macelin Kingdom possess Aura similar in nature to that of the knights from the Empire’s eastern region?”
For the first time, anger appeared on the Imperial Knights’ faces.
When they first arrived in the Kanda Kingdom, they had expected to fight a war.
But once everyone surrendered so quickly, they were disappointed that they would not have a chance to distinguish themselves.
They wanted to earn merit and receive praise from the Imperial Crown Prince.
The moment they saw the wave-like Aura, those thoughts vanished completely.
“Did Kailen Marin truly hand the cultivation method over to Macelin?”
If this was not the result of private instruction, but the result of deliberate, organized training...
“Answer me.”
The Macelin Kingdom would learn what a true War of Conquest was.
Footnotes:
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