Ouroboros Record ~Circus of Oubeniel~
062 Before the storm.
Autumn when the harvest was discouraged to the present and the trees began to change colour to red and yellow. This room, where the lord conducts his affairs, was also beginning to change his outfit somewhat. The walls are hung with banners engraved with the family heirloom crest as a substitute for tapestries, and the finer tuning is also replaced by objects that are a little more valuable than the previous ones.
I was welcoming one of my visitors in the office where I felt more comfortable and extravagant.
"Sir Turius. This is the time to celebrate the presidency and the countenance."
"Thank you, Lord Dordolan Borderline. This is a long way to go to celebrate, and I'm afraid."
When I heard Turius Shrounan Ovenil's unwilling reply, my guest, the nobleman of Shaw, laughed visibly and bitterly. You must have looked somewhat unwilling.
I'm sorry for him for coming all the way to Marlan, but this birth is completely inconspicuous. Whatever it is, it is in a quote that my predecessor, my brother, became insane and unconscious. The public will be looking at you in a creepy way.
Personally, I'm not happy at all. It would be a good nuisance if we could focus on the study of alchemy and be the owners of the Earl's family who will keep a state in awe. Too much extra work. Fortunately, the harvest period is approaching, so we wait until the dawn of the year to serve Wang Du. We'll have to do what we have to do to stabilize the territory by New Year's Eve.
"Thank you for your tiredness, the new Count."
"Yeah, I'm really sorry."
As I say, I remember my day in service these days.
A welcome to the Angel to acknowledge the official title. mastery of documents involving statewide administration. Integration between the current ministerial corps and the immediate ministers of the Ovenil family. Etocetra Etocetra......
I have a headache, especially about the ministerial corps. The Rubel and Viktor that I originally had, and the Dooe led by the martial arts officer, and the old Ovenil family ministerial corps, are very poorly reconciled and not tight. There will also be insults from them, such as my minister, from the people who have been guarding my second son until now. There is also an aversion to being encroached upon our own territory and vested rights. I couldn't have done it so well.
Rubbing his temples into melancholy, he recommended the chair to Uncle Borderline, and I arrive at the concierge myself.
"With that said, I won't be transferred to Voldan?
"No way. This Marlan suits me better, and it'll be my first problem."
I am not obliged to move to the state capital, Voldan, just because I have become an Earl. I remain in Marlan. [M] It took time and effort at the corner to make it into a land suitable for research as an alchemist. Moving to Vordan, where wine is the only sight, will not be a good thing.
"Besides, it would be better to use this as the administrative center to restructure the ministerial corps."
"Sure. If you must obey instructions from this land, all the people of Voldan will submit to you."
That's the thing. If we don't get justice from me in Marlan, or from the heads of Home Affairs, no administration will go ahead. This is how I build a system to handle the administration. That way the rebellious new ministerial corps will also bow its head to Marlan, no matter what its heart is. What if we act without permission? Unforgivable arbitrariness that encroaches on the Lord's authority. It is a pretext for dressing up to be solemn. If you're incompetent, around Rubel is happy to hold the evidence, and you're fired. If it's competent or useful, I'll call Marlan in the name of reproach, and I'll do my best to follow the example honestly.
If my only reason for not moving the stronghold was that the Rubbers would have been louder too. In addition, Marlan is rapidly beginning to develop as a city for adventurers. The city is out of the reach of the unfamiliar interior officials to the extent of yesterday by replacing them. Rubel and Viktor will have to do it with their hands for a while, and I think there is a future commensurate with all that hard work to see the growth rate.
And that's all we talked about.
"Excuse me. I brought drinks to Uncle Borderline."
The uni came with wine and a glass on the trolley, and a little knob.
Uncle Borderline's eyes sparkle.
"Ooh, that wine belongs to Voldan. No, I wanted to taste it if I could."
"You like it, too. You don't know if you're bad with your liver again, do you?
"Don't you drink if you say so? For distilled liquor and the like, ravioli would also be like corners, wine and other water substitutes. No, you're being disrespectful with all this booze."
"I'm a little weak... uni, tea for me"
"Yes, now"
I couldn't stop my tone from seeping. [M] For once, I'm in the middle of a serious conversation. As a former Japanese, I can't admire the fact that wine has been around since the sun is still high. Well, it's the guy called Cultural Difference.
Dordolan Borderline Uncle had a taste of this state's specialties for a while, but first a toast tightened the rapport that had been loose,
"So, as far as the future is concerned, are you sure you want to think about keeping pace with the centralists?
I cut it out for peeling.
This is why this man came all the way from the West. As a collector of my faction, I have come to discuss the content that cannot be included in regular correspondence. It's a hassle, but we also need something called close communication to run a big organization. It was also for that reason that, after a huge operation, a reflection was held on the Opus series in general.
A lot of wasted meetings is a problem, but it would also be a problem to say that there is no discussion whatsoever. Though it mocks the cerebral miso, it is not mechanical to be human enough that it moves only through unilateral circulation. The sense of union fostered by the conversation will be important, as well as stressful if you continue to receive headless orders. Besides, there are fewer important instructions to convey, including chewing face-to-face.
It's a horn, too.
"I'm going to do that for once."
"You know what? It's a very cloudy answer for you."
"Thanks for the lack of progress in Wang Du."
I say as I flatter my shoulders.
That Lavalle was taken responsibility for the matter on his brother and lost his leg, and instead Uncle Langogne took the lead of the totalitarians. To fill the hole that drove Lavalle down, he is inducing us to think that he and his grandfather were rubbing me to be grateful and draw in on this subordinate matter against his brother.
That worked. Uncle Langogne is telling his people to work with us to crush the decentralists. But after that, I can't believe it.
"The young man under Uncle Langonne's umbrella, while confused, seems to be generally on board. But it looks like they're reluctant to do otherwise."
"Hmm..."
Borderline uncle shows a bare gesture of thinking a little while putting his hand on his chin. Then, lift up the glass and urge me to replace the wine - saying, hey old man.
He put a little mouth on the second cup that Uni poured before saying.
"I can't solve it. I know Jen is as tough as Uncle Meerban, but the movement of layers sensitive to interests such as Uncle Chamberlain is dull"
"Uncle Chamberlain, is it?
He said he was a bat that devoured small interests, and he wasn't as noble as I was, but he didn't have a good reputation. It could be a little surprising that this guy would pay attention to someone like that.
When he thinks so, Uncle Borderline laughs small.
"Do you think of him as a trinket?
"Is it not?
"... no different. Men like Chamberlain are the right things to do."
"Ha."
I can't read the story a bit. Then why pay attention to that trinket?
"I look like a chicken, to say the least. It will be blown by the wind but can only move as it is, but by that movement it will teach people the direction of the wind?
"Ah, Chengcheng"
I finally got the point when they told me. A small figure who is just flowing into momentum is somehow defying the flow. Is that why you found it unnatural?
"So you're saying the wind is blowing even from the opposite direction to Uncle Langonne?
"I guess so. No matter how notorious you are, if you make an alliance, the Totalitarians will prevail over the Decentralists. It would be quite a headwind, even though it might surprise you."
I thought about it a little. [M]
Uncle Langogne is overwhelmed here. Uncle Meerban would be disgusted, but he shouldn't be buying enough resentment to make politically sensible decisions. Uncle Chamberlain does not have enough power to create a stream against Uncle Langogne on his own. So, what makes this situation?
... I'm getting some bad feelings.
"Marquis Lavalle"
Spit out such an abominable name that your mouth becomes sinister. An old conspirator who was supposed to have been chased from the seat of the faction's allies by his brother.
Oh, yeah. If I were to do something, there would only be that insidious conspiracy grandfather.
"When the old man was pursued for one of your brothers, he went down so lightly that he clapped out."
"Yeah. Now I think it's too unnatural."
What did Rubel say when he came in here with the information that cut him off? I don't even think Lavalle knows about this. I mean, the plot ahead should have been a complete surprise attack. Then he conceded his loss without even wandering. If it were normal, I would resist stubbornly by saying it was a mistake of some sort.
Noble cleanliness? Such an idiot. Someone who has lived as a conspirator and acted as the leader of a faction for years beyond my previous life and life. If you're obsessed, you can take a pull from me.
How did it show the drag of not clouding after flying birds?...... it is decided. Because when you're cloudy, you're in trouble when you come back.
"Uni"
"Yes."
"Let Rubel verify the documents of the investigation into Lavalle again. Focus especially on the flow of gold and things"
"I'm in awe. immediately."
I don't think so. But at the same time, that grandfather could do it.
What if what Rubel was saying was wrong, and in fact Lavalle was grasping his brother's scandal? Suppose we sit back and let our conspiracy happen, but leave it to us? Suppose you were pursued in the matter and even expected and tolerated being driven down by Langogne?
What, therefore, is its purpose?
"It's dark and all I can do is hold back."
- To keep another conspiracy going under the water, and not to let them sense it. And buy time for it to activate. I mean, even my brother was just a throwaway pawn.
I don't know if it matches my tannic side, but the Dordolan border uncle looks at me.
"If it's Lavalle's plan, the situation is awkward right now. It still affects the faction, so if anything happens, I can see that there is a formula attached to retrieve the Alliance's seat from Langogne. And then you give up your temporary status, but you try to fulfill it. It's just a big trick to match."
Absolutely. It's a measure to sacrifice my position in addition to my brother, and to implement it without my authorization to increase my power. It was decided on a big plan of some scale, different from last year's disturbance, which was the result of a tiny political marriage.
Regardless, it has not yet been decided that Grandpa is trying to come up with something that is not good. There is also the possibility that it will be difficult for me and Uncle Borderline to get over it. For the sake of my peace and peace of mind, I sure hope so...
But such a thin and sweet hope was immediately shattered.
Knock is there, too, and the uni that I should have just sent out returns.
"My lord, Sir Rubert is here."
"That's a long time ago. I've done the job I asked for..."
"That's not the case!
Rubel, who has been brought here, is so anxious on his face that he has never seen it before. For once, he doesn't even seem to have noticed, even though he has as many prominent frontier uncles as he has on the cloud. So much haste.
The unpleasant feeling intensified further.
"We've been contacted by Wang Du's intelligence agents! Neighbor Zanktogaren declares war on our country! That same day, he said he was marching across the border!
"- What?
A declaration of war? Already crossed the border?
"Then it's like war."
"It's like nothing... it's war itself!
A screaming reply returns to a whine that leaked without a sense of reality. The Dordolan border uncle cut off a paralysis in the body of our chief, or he came between his mouths.
"Calm down, young man."
"Ha... This is His Excellency the Dordolan Borderline Uncle. Excuse me."
"Good. Apparently, not quite. Perhaps it was Armando on the North Side who said it had been broken?
The place name he put out in his mouth is the only frontier land that continues on the flat ground with Zanktogaren. In common sense, his country should start attacking from there. But isn't that where they attacked you?
Oh, come on, then. No way, just a little bit?
"- Yes. The enemy country dared to cross the mountain more than Elps-Roane. It is this state of Voldan that is under invasion."
To Rubel's answer, I looked up to heaven and covered my eyes.
Voldan. My territory I just got rid of my brother. Apart from armaments, defenceless land in the process of restructuring up to the bureaucracy that operates the knowledge. And a place where guardianship is mandatory, given in the name of keeping from the king as a lord.
You're telling me that the enemy attacked me without even touching me?
Silence was flowing indoors for a while, and the silent shock was beating us.
On the same day, the hour is traced back only slightly.
The province of Voldan, Kingdom of Arquel, and the province of Elpis-Rottlergen, Federal Kingdom of Zanktogaren - mountain ranges separating the old name Elps-Roane. There was a group crossing the road as a grand election.
It is an army.
The mountain climate is cold and harsh. The air is autumnal but reminiscent of the mid winter of the flat, and at the same time the breeze blowing is severe.
In the strong wind of the cold, the soldiers keep walking, shaking the roots of their teeth as they meet in front of their uncomfortable cold clothes. When one of them kicked lightly, the pebble at his feet made a crisp noise and fell to the bottom of the valley. You say the wind is blowing all deaf in your ears, but only that ominous sound sounds uncomfortably clear. Some clear their ears at it and show relief that it was not accompanied by a scream of tail pulling. More than fifty soldiers had already been drunk by reapers who opened their mouths pockingly in the air.
The march in the mountains is harsh. The climate, falling accidents, mobility and transport difficulties, in addition to the fact that mountains are demonic realms, must be fought before enemy forces. There were several elements that increased difficulty. Successful ambushes over the mountains have a glorious martial name in the history of war, but many of the backwards have also stepped on two legs to mimic it.
Many soldiers have a resentful gaze at those on horseback who are at the head of the army. To a general who will force them to march this reckless march. From a hateful glance, it was not strange that in the next moment the soldiers set up a weapon in their hands and betrayed them.
That won't happen because the general has a minute of reason... through his muscles. Accompanied by a self-planned operation, he is at the forefront, eating the same meal as the soldier, wrapped in a blanket of unchanging thinness and sleeping. I'm also riding because it's simply necessary to show the Commander's authority. In the evidence, he stands with his spine stretched out to the point where he seems to want to lower his head and lay down in a fierce wind with his core in it. That's why the soldiers also endured at the inches again. I kept the last line trying to build up resentment and dissatisfaction every time I stopped for a break.
Unexpectedly, the leading general stops the horse. Tired and thin hissing, the soldiers raised their faces as to what was going on. And as if waiting for enough attention, the general turns the sabel, the sword, forward.
That was the top of the canopy.
The descent began around where the horse stood...... it continued onto the plain. To the land of Vordan, where the gray clouds cut off and the autumn sun pouring from between illuminates.
"... soldiers, look! It's our promised land!
The mountain wind was also pressed and a resounding voice was raised.
"Can you see, the earth that is illuminated by the sun!? We have finally arrived, with a golden hobo in the sea and a river of wine flowing in Vordan! To the kingdom of Arquelle!
Understanding spreads to the faces of the soldiers, and then joy replaces it. From those close to the beginning, he went to see the sight we had been waiting for, and quickened his legs.
Finally, the time has come for hard work to pay off. Free yourself from the hardships of freezing in the cold, eating coarse food, and moving your feet like sticks.
"That is the kingdom of Arquelle..."
"Look, it's a red leaf! The woods aren't black!
"Good day, warm... just watching, warm...!
"It's a wheat field! It's still before the harvest!
One cheer after another, which eventually propagates to the back row, where you can't even see the end of the line. The eyes of the army glowed all at once. It was a light of hope and desire.
The General's fanning continues.
"We're here. For what? To hang that land on horseshoes, and to carve, take, and conquer the footprints of military boots!
"" Ooh, ooh...!
"It's all ours! The fruit of the fields, the meat of the ranch, the gold coins of the merchants, the liquor, the woman! Don't hesitate, take it away! Whoever gets in the way, kill him!
"" Whoa, whoa!
A wild rage rages at the foot of the autumn mountains and a surprising wild chamosica runs down the cliff to escape.
Now the soldiers had slammed the negative sentiment they had until earlier toward their own generals into enemies they had yet to see.
The general screams.
"... marching on. Yikes!!
Under Decree No. 1, the vanguard of the Zanktogaren army set in motion.
Avalanche toward the earth lying defenselessly beneath your eyes as you move your tired body with a disastrously burning soul.
At the same time, the text of the declaration of war had been read out in the Wang capital, Brosenne, as weighed.
It is a declaration of war simultaneous attack.
- And the scene is, back to Marlan.
"... this"
I accidentally distort my face in the battle that sprang up with my sense of reality. [M]
"Huh? What is it, Excellency? What's the matter, sir?
"The Kingsguard Second Knights are still stationed since the summer"
People led by insane female knights like that Elisha Rosmond Barbastle. Even after they had completed their patrols, they reasoned what it was that they were practicing, and they sat in the realm.
"Ah, yes. You're fortunate to be unhappy. If we work with them and deal with the enemy..."
"Lucky? What's so lucky about that?
Rubel cramps into a cold voice that I don't think belongs to me, and Uni looks up all the time.
"That means your husband"
"Oh. I mean this was one of the fabric stones...!
The Kingsguard Knights came to patrol in the name of disturbing neighboring movements. At the time, we thought it was an escort or something with this on our brother. No, I guess that was both. But the sincerity of the dispatched side was different. I really thought Zanktogaren was coming at me.
Uncle Borderline opens his mouth as he strokes his chin beard.
"Border Patrol by Kingsguard... What's your point -"
"It's Lavalle. Kingsguard was expanding with that grandfather's mouth as a force organization that was easy for totalitarians to put on their side. I can screw a Knights Patrol."
"- I guess so. You think he read about this unexpected war?
A feat of moving force in preparation for an ambush attack concurrent with a declaration of war and letting it hit this. Enough foothold to buy a revaluation from the lost centralists and return to the Alliance Lord's seat.
"It's not the time. Probably just reading it. Then I'm sorry."
If it's convenient for the other party, suspect the action first. After that thought, he realizes that I am the master of the Great Fire in Wangdu. After that, things moved too much for me. [M]
This time, on the contrary, it happened at a time when a hell of a thing was in Lavalle's favor. Until I see the idea.
"And say?
"I've decided to start a war aggressively."
When I said that with certainty, Uncle Dordolan looked away. [M]
What are you surprised by now? You can't imagine that old man waiting for his temperament until he gets the result he wanted. Ningro must have fomented Ningro to start a war to avoid wasting his investment, even though he paid a price that was never cheap and took risks that were not low.
Somehow he's a centralist connected to the court people. From before I lost my legs - no, I'm sure from the time of the Great Fire in the Wang Dynasty, I was instigating connexious bureaucrats and ministers to adopt policies that would stir up neighbors.
Because I realized I couldn't stop caging these nobles, including Uncle Dordolan. I guess that's why you've been thinking, considering, and transferring secrets that would end me in a single blow ever since. Yet we did not know that, and were overjoyed by the plot. For Grandpa Conspiracy, only to give him some irrevocable beatings later.
... Totally, they did.
I'm so abominable, I scratch my hair clutteringly .
"Oh shit......!
As much as I don't think it belongs to me, a rough sounding voice leaks.
War? I'm not kidding. There's a lot of human beings hanging out here to kill us. There's a lot of iron fires that are far from my taste. I don't care who dies, I don't want to be killed myself. How can I be so bothered from next to next when I only want to die?
I look out the window casually. [M] In the wilderness of Marlan, off the Voldan, we still do not see the enemy army. But across the horizon, I could see the enemy who drove me into this predicament - that old man with a wrinkly face, an evil grin, just standing there saying, "What do you think?"
"Well, it's a big deal, new Count."
It is the first time in years that I have left the King's capital to take my own territory. A museum in a land that has already faded even nostalgia in itself, familiar with the king's capital. In that one room, the old man sips tea by himself.
He was tattooed of everything. Losing a handkerchief named Linus, being chased from the seat of the faction's chief, the abominable [cannibal serpent] advancing his status to the Count, and this report of war.
Because I knew everything from the beginning. Why would I be surprised and heartbroken by that?
"Zanktogaren's strong, isn't he? Whatever, because it has been my enemy for fifty years..."
And what was the reason why Lavalle needed an organization called the Centralists?
Fifty years ago. It was because we lost to Zanktogaren in that war that we preached the need for centralisation as a means of the rich forces.
In other words, his neighbor is the biggest enemy of this old man. That's why we're trying to get rid of Turius, who shows suspicious movement in the region. For the aristocrats who fight that mighty enemy, but who seek their own interests and erode their country, or who cannot put their trust enough that their specialties cannot be known and their backs deposited, are in the way.
No, maybe Turius is now more fearful. A parasite that brainwashes nobility, rots and encroaches on the nation from the inside. Then a monster with intelligence who was good at rape and flirted with this one without once.
One outside, one inside, and two difficult enemies. What should we do about these?
The answer given by the old man is the Er-Hu competition - you can eat each other. If you fall for a consultation, that's fine. If one stays, discuss this for himself in favor of the power that has been kept warm. That was Lavalle's measure.
They deliberately tossed their permanent status, adding up to the precarious and dangerous means of war. And this is the first time this monstrous old monster has set up a big trick so far. It was truly a bloody beating.
I feel a dead tree-like limb filled with demonic energy. Blood tides swept through her old bones, or her body temperature was rising slightly.
"It's a big trick for this grandfather's generation. Okay, well, how do you scratch me on this stage?
Skip a peeping glance toward the face of the empty seat.
The old man's eyes seemed to see that unafraid lad floating on the tannic surface in the air.