I Became A Genius Of The French Royal Family [EN]: Chapter 351

The War Crime Trials

The Ancient Capital.

The old Imperial Japanese Capital.

Kyoto’s afternoon was quiet, like the calm before a storm.

“The King of France has met with His Majesty the Emperor.”

“What did His Majesty Christian say?”

“He dismissed everyone around him and had a private conversation. All we could find out was that the Emperor served him tea.”

Christian met with Emperor Ninko.

It was as expected, but Ienari felt his mouth drying up.

What if the Emperor doesn’t notice our movements?

Christian would have noticed with just a little conversation.

Does the fact that he didn’t say anything to me mean that the Emperor hasn’t noticed anything?

Or does it mean that France doesn’t care who survives?

“Did His Majesty Christian say anything else?”

“He said that any statement from him could shake the trial itself, so he would not make any official statements.”

“Right… that’s right. When are the judges and prosecutors of the court scheduled to arrive?”

“They will be entering the country within a week.”

In fact, the concept of war crime trials was unfamiliar in Japan.

No, in the first place, there was no recognition that starting a war would lead to a trial.

Of course, there were cases of violating regulations during the war or being punished after the war, but such a systematic trial had never been held before.

At least in the East, this was the first modern war crime trial.

That’s why it wasn’t easy to develop a defense strategy.

“Was the trial schedule for the Korean Empire first? I’d like to check out the atmosphere there.”

“It was scheduled to be held at the same time, but the weather there was bad, so the court was set up late and delayed by a day.”

“Tch. Those guys are no help at all until the end.”

“For now, the Prime Minister has been indicted, but he has also met with the King of France and is currently working hard on post-war reconstruction, so wouldn’t that be taken into consideration?”

I hope so, but I can’t rest assured yet.

Christian also hinted, but in the end, the trial must determine who is ultimately responsible for the war.

And the most likely candidate is inevitably Ienari, the wartime prime minister.

Of course, I had done some work in advance to put all the blame for the start of the war on the military, but I still can’t rest assured.

The title of wartime prime minister alone had tremendous repercussions.

And in fact, I was the one who started the war.

Napoleon even wrote a contract to save me, but the problem is that the King of France has come here.

No matter how great the Field Marshal is, in France, the King is the supreme and inviolable being.

He was a real king from the very beginning, unlike the puppet Emperor of Japan.

I wondered how a king could do that in a constitutional monarchy, but the important thing is that he actually has that kind of power.

Unless I know Christian’s position, mentioning a secret deal here could be harmful to me.

I have no choice but to hope that Napoleon will keep his promise.

“For now, let’s emphasize that we are innocent victims, since it was the military who started the war. I hope it ends with a suspended sentence.”

“If the Prime Minister is not here, it will be difficult for them to run this country after the war.”

“That’s right. If they have any sense…”

Just as those who each had something to feel guilty about were frantically licking their wounds.

“P, Prime Minister! Something terrible has happened!”

“What? Don’t tell me France has changed its attitude?”

“It’s not France. His Majesty… His Majesty! Look at this!”

Emperor Ninko, who had broken the long silence and came directly from the Imperial Palace, gave a long speech to the citizens of Kyoto.

The people of Kyoto were stunned by the Emperor’s statement, which they had never actually seen before.

[…As such, I strongly condemn those who covered my eyes and ears and forced the war. It cannot be denied that my carelessness has pushed my people into the abyss of suffering. I sincerely thank France for giving me the opportunity to correct this mistake, and I will never tolerate those who have caused suffering to my people to evade the sword of justice.

I have no doubt that the military, as well as government officials, who planned this great scam will accept the trial with a clear conscience if they have any conscience. If they continue to show an ugly 모습 [Korean: mosup, meaning ‘appearance’ or ‘figure’] until the end, I will take the stand myself.]

The Prime Minister’s face turned white as he read the full text of the speech delivered by the Emperor himself.

‘Has this puppet gone crazy?’

It was a speech pretending to be a benevolent monarch who cares about his people, but it was a proclamation with a clear aim.

He is not a war criminal, so he will take the stand to condemn the war criminals, and the targets are the military and government officials.

The fact that he specifically mentioned the government without limiting it to the military was probably intended to target Ienari, the head of the government.

‘There’s no way the Emperor would have issued such a statement on his own… No. If he sensed the risk of being called to the courtroom, he could have struck first like this.’

In any case, no one in the military or government can pressure the Emperor now.

If he starts appealing to emotions by drawing in public opinion, Ienari’s chances of winning against the Emperor will converge to 0.

“P, Prime Minister… what do we do about this?”

“What do you mean, what do we do?”

As it is, the existing plan to carefully stab in the back is completely scrapped.

“If His Majesty is going to turn us into enemies, we can’t just die quietly.”

If you’re going to start a mud fight, I’ll accept it.

Let’s see who falls into hell.

Ienari’s face twisted like a demon, and Kyoto, which had regained its calm for a while, began to shake violently once again.

※※※

Usually, the bad guys in the world never admit that they are bad guys just because they have been exposed.

They either say that the other person is lying, or they try to divert attention by saying that you are also a bad guy, or they engage in a mud fight, exchanging blows.

Humans repeat mistakes and history repeats itself, so the word ‘usually’ is called ‘usually’.

[Former Prime Minister Ienari’s Confession of Conscience – The Start of the War Was Also the Emperor’s Wish.]

[The Military’s Mad Suicide Attacks – Everything Was for His Majesty the Emperor.]

[There Are No Innocent Leaders in This War.]

The prosecutors who arrived in Kyoto didn’t even have to run around trying to find evidence of guilt.

Even if they just sat still and wielded their pens, the war criminals would come crawling in and telling on each other, saying that they were more at fault.

The melee that the Emperor and the Prime Minister started began to descend, and all the ugly truths that had been hidden until now were revealed.

[We Won’t Stop Until All the People Are Dead. The National Total Jade Rupture Operation Planned by the Military, Proposed by the Prime Minister, and Decided by the Emperor.]

[We Didn’t Want to Be Broken Like Beads. Why Did Our Children Have to Starve to Death?]

From the beginning, the strategy was designed on the premise that it didn’t matter how many people died.

It would have been better to go to war and die honorably, but the misery of starving to death in a city where food transportation was cut off was indescribably terrible.

The citizens who recalled that nightmare were just dumbfounded and dumbfounded.

The high-ranking officials can go into a well-defended place and hide, but the rank and file can’t.

The officials who were caught by the angry citizens demanding the truth blew the whole situation at the time in order to avoid their responsibilities.

“So… the idea was that if we endured without caring whether the people starved to death or not, France wouldn’t back down. France is the best civilized country in the world, so they wouldn’t just let the people die…”

“What the hell are you talking about! A country at war wouldn’t kill civilians, so let’s just hold out until the end? Are these people human beings!”

“My son said he would fight for the country and volunteered for the battlefields on the continent! Who did my son, who didn’t return, give his life to fight for!”

“I don’t care if it’s His Majesty or the Prime Minister, please answer! What was the truth of this war!”

“His Majesty the Emperor!”

The fight that was exchanged to avoid responsibility ended up being an ending where everyone was a bad guy.

Of course, since they were having fun rolling around in the mud, wouldn’t both sides be covered in mud?

It was a predetermined ending from the beginning.

Of course, the prosecutors of the court did not miss this public opinion.

-The members of this court declare that they will proceed in a fair and objective manner to uncover the truth of the horrific war crimes.

-France invites judges and prosecutors from third countries such as the United Kingdom, the Holy Roman Empire, and Spain to ensure the absolute neutrality of the trial.

Of course, it did not change the fact that all those who were called here were from France’s allied countries, but the picture itself, in which French prosecutors accounted for less than a third, was excellent.

When you think about it, it was an act that could be criticized as the victorious country judging the defeated country. By mobilizing lawyers from three countries that had nothing to do with the war, they diluted that feeling as much as possible.

The actions of the Japanese Empire and the Korean Empire during the war were so terrible that it was a big deal.

Even before the war with France, their tyranny was mainly concentrated in the areas they ruled in the old Qing Dynasty.

However, when the war with France broke out, they insisted on a desperate fight and made the citizens of their own country the biggest victims.

Because of this, an absurd situation was created in which the citizens of the defeated country were just waiting for the trial to be held quickly.

The prosecutors from the United Kingdom were the first to notice this atmosphere.

Originally, British lawyers were not in favor of trials that were close to such trials.

But when it became a stage where they could run wild, the United Kingdom also instinctively knew.

This was rather an opportunity to prove to many people in the world how righteous they were.

“Citizens of Japan who have suffered from long oppression! Rest assured! The British Commonwealth, which loves peace and respects human rights, will resolve your grievances! Criminals who have 유리한 후안무치한 [Korean: yurihan huanmuchihan, meaning ‘shamelessly advantageous’] the human rights of citizens will surely receive the stern judgment of the law in court!”

Um, that’s right, that’s right.

There’s no way the prosecutors of the peace-loving British Empire would miss such a good prey.

In the end, when the list of those who would be formally brought to trial was released, the whole of Japan, beyond Kyoto, was shaken.

A proud name that proudly went to the top of all the names on the list.

Prime Minister Tokugawa Ienari and Emperor Ninko.

These two, who were the symbols of Japan and the highest authorities, were all holding hands and standing in the dock.

“Your Majesty. Ienari and the Emperor are each requesting a private audience.”

“It’s very unfortunate, but since the trial is just around the corner, my meeting with them could be interpreted as an attempt to influence the trial. Tell them to see me after the trial.”

“It’s meaningless after the trial… The Emperor says he just wants to hear personal opinions.”

“Then just tell him that in my opinion, it’s all just a jumble of words, and there doesn’t seem to be any conclusive evidence that the Emperor is responsible for the war.”

In any case, even if it’s a good thing, it’ll just end with 퇴위 [Korean: toihwi, meaning ‘abdication’].

If the Emperor collects and expresses evidence that he was just a figurehead, it may not be a dream to keep his position.

Or not.