Chapter 25: Unexpected Negotiation
I arrived at the fort where my grandfather and my Royal Guard Captain—the one and only Sword Master of the nation—were stationed, together with all my forces.
It took a week to arrive. Despite the poor infrastructure, it was considered fast, since it normally took twenty days to travel from the Northern Region to the western border through the Central Region and the royal domain.
Before retaking the entire Western Region, I allowed the forces to rest for two days and prepare for battle.
There was a force of eight thousand stationed in the nearest enemy city. According to Aelrue and Vane's reports, there were no Imperial soldiers in sight—and no sign of the Imperial heavy cavalry commander, Der Gnadenlose, the Sword Master. Only the blue uniforms of the Avarus Grand Duchy.
I assumed he would wait in the capital of the Grand Duchy to face me with his full force.
Whatever the case, he would not win—even with his full strength.
The nearest city was called Slava City, with a population of only twenty thousand, ruled by a Viscount. It was now hosting the main battle forces of the Grand Duchy.
The commander of the army was Count Ares Avarus, one of the younger brothers of the late Grand Duke. He was Level 7 on the Sword Path and was known to be both a strategist and a skilled martial artist. He had been enjoying retirement in his county. His personality was righteous, but because he lost the succession war, he had been exiled to a county and granted the title of Count. However, one of the governors under the Duke truly governed the county; he only enjoyed the luxury of the title.
Still, he was well known for his battle strategies in his youth.
Because Duke Avarus had the secret backing of the Empire and the support of their late father, Ares had lost the political struggle.
Now the Duchy was in a dire state.
He had to defend—or rather, he was forced to defend—because his wife and two daughters were being held hostage in his own county.
After two days of rest, both armies took their positions.
One side defended from the city walls.
The other side prepared to invade.
Then, a white flag appeared from the enemy side.
A messenger came forward under a white flag, riding slowly across the empty ground between the two armies. His hands were raised high to show he carried no weapon.
He stopped fifty yards from our line and called out loudly:
"Count Ares Avarus requests a meeting in neutral territory. He seeks parley with Crown Prince Alexius Leo."
Fidus immediately stepped forward.
"It could be a trap."
"It isn't. If they intended to fight, they would already be firing arrows. A white flag at this moment means desperation, not deception."
After brief preparations, I rode out with Fidus and two guards. From the other side, Count Avarus approached with only one knight beside him.
We met halfway between the armies, on a stretch of frozen grass where neither side held an advantage.
Up close, Count Avarus looked older than I expected. His armor was plain and worn, and his face looked tired, not a single trace of nobility in his expression.
"So, the Crown Prince himself."
"And the famous strategist of Avarus," I replied.
He gave a bitter smile.
"Only famous, but without power. What good is fame?"
"I will not waste words," he continued. "These men behind me are not Imperial soldiers. They are not event the professional soldiers of the Duchy. They are my people. Farmers. Sons. Retainers. Forced into this war."
"And yet you stand against me," I said.
"My wife and my two daughters are hostages," he said bitterly. "Held in my own county. If I refuse to fight, they die."
So this is the main reason he wanted to see me.
"I lost the succession war because I had too little power to face them in the past," he continued. "But I will not lose my family. I will protect them with whatever little force I have."
"So I ask you this, Prince—not as an enemy commander, but as a loving father."
He knelt down and bowed to the ground.
"Please. Save them."
"I know you have power. Because of that power, you defeated the Duchess of the Empire. If you rescue my family—"
"I swear on my blade and my name—Avarus will not raise arms against you. My army will stand down. I will offer eternal loyalty."
I studied him carefully.
The status showed he was exhausted—but resolute.
We reached an agreement—on one condition:
I would save his wife and two daughters.
Until then, neither side would make a move.
(Continue…)