Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 91

A nation’s capital doesn’t change easily.

Even in countries ruled by multiple feudal lords, this is generally true.

The capital is usually conventionally tied to the throne.

In Wallachia, for example, the kingship is tied to the ownership of the city of Sodomora; acquiring the throne means acquiring the capital, Sodomora.

Some might disagree.

“Isn’t that wrong? Germania changes its capital all the time!”

…That’s true. It’s not an absolute rule.

There can be many exceptions depending on the circumstances.

But usually, countries with a long history rarely move their capital.

Rather than establishing a new capital and surrounding key areas whenever a dynasty changes, it’s less time-consuming, costly, and laborious to simply take over the already developed key areas along with the throne.

“Germania’s capital? It’s Olhus.”

“Olhus? It’s Kiruna!”

As mentioned earlier, Germania is a country that doesn’t follow this pattern.

When the dynasty changed, so did the capital.

The reason was simple.

“It’s not like they overthrew the previous dynasty to gain the throne. The throne is given based on which noble house favors whom, so there’s no such thing as an eternal capital.”

Thus, Germania’s capital changed frequently.

It was common for people to name their hometown when asked about the capital.

But officially, Germania’s capital was Olhus.

The largest city of the Rosenberg dynasty, Olhus.

That was the capital at the time.

“Failed?”

King Christian, sitting in the audience chamber of the royal palace—a building renovated from a former lord’s manor—asked.

He looked down at a prostrated nobleman, blinking repeatedly.

This man was a court noble who had inherited the title of Baron.

“Say it again.”

He tilted his head, wondering if he had misheard.

His expression unsure if what he had just asked was correct.

The Baron thumped his forehead against the floor and repeated.

“According to the report, the magic cast in the city of heresy, Kiruna, vanished without any significant result. Therefore, the plan to annihilate Kiruna appears to have failed.”

“Say it again. What about Kiruna?”

Even after hearing it twice, the King could only blink.

Not because he didn’t hear, but because he couldn’t comprehend the fact.

It was a reality he couldn’t dare to imagine, given his deep faith.

Today, with nobles from all over the country gathering in the capital ahead of the founding festival, this news completely extinguished the festive atmosphere.

Gulp.

Silence fell in the audience chamber.

Despite the presence of over twenty court nobles and twice as many guards, no sound was heard in the audience chamber except for breathing.

This was partly because the story was shocking, but even more so because the eyes of the King on the throne were gradually burning with anger.

“…The magic activated in Kiruna has failed, and it is presumed that the County of Surret has been taken over by the heretic Edar Lundringen.”

A gasp of disbelief.

A murmur of incredulity.

The silence of the audience chamber was instantly replaced by a buzz.

“Silence!”

The nobles shut their mouths at the magic-laden roar.

“What’s next? How is that heretic moving?”

“He has absorbed the army of the former Duke of Surret as is and is heading straight here. Combined with the forces mobilized from the Great Plains, they number nearly 60,000.”

“60,000!”

“Good heavens…”

The nobles murmured again.

“Silence! Have you not heard my words!”

Christian scanned the nobles with wide eyes.

They lowered their heads deeply at the King’s gaze.

Thump, thump, thump…

Vibrations echoed around Christian.

It was the uncontrolled release of magic due to his rage.

“If anyone disobeys my words again, they will not leave this palace unscathed!”

At his declaration, they lowered their heads even further.

“…”

He gritted his teeth, leaned forward, and asked.

“Why? Why did it fail?”

“According to the news…”

The Baron quickly shut his mouth.

A gaze was directed at him from right next to the throne.

He recognized the cold gaze that pierced his heart.

The owner of the gaze was Cardinal Roland.

“…”

The gaze was so sharp that even the other nobles swallowed their words, not just the Baron.

No one could fail to understand what the Cardinal’s attitude meant.

Asking and speaking about it was itself an impious act.

“Ahem…”

Christian frowned and sighed.

Suspicion still lingered in a corner of his mind, pricking him.

However, he was in no position to ask further.

Because the one who protected his throne was the Cardinal.

“…The conscription order? Are the troops gathering properly?”

“That is…”

“That is?”

“The gathering is expected to be completed before Surret’s, but deserters are occurring.”

“Deserters? What does that mean?”

He raised his voice at the unexpected news.

“News of Kiruna is spreading rapidly. Upon hearing the news, many are hesitating and delaying their assembly. Some are even offering financial support instead of soldiers…”

“These impious ones!”

Christian stood up abruptly, veins popping out on his neck.

“Send messengers to those impious people! Heresy means death! Tell them to reconsider which is more important: faith expressed in times of crisis or faith expressed after the crisis has passed!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“And? Is there anything else to add?”

The Baron closed his mouth.

Christian waved him away.

As the Baron left, the remaining court nobles also left their seats, watching carefully.

The only people remaining by the King’s side were the guards and the Cardinal.

“You were right, Roland.”

Christian leaned back on the throne and muttered.

His voice was low, and he lacked energy.

Cardinal Roland bowed slightly.

“I, too, did not expect it to come to this, Your Majesty.”

“When that son of a whore first appeared at the border, weren’t you the one who told me that what he was aiming for was not Surret but the throne? If I hadn’t listened to you, I would have had to hand over the throne as it was.”

Of course, it’s still precarious now.

He let the afterthought slip with a laugh.

“I thought what he was aiming for was Surret. I thought he had returned with an army to avenge the father who had chased him away. The Duke of Surret must have thought the same.”

Logically, who would dare to aim for the throne?

It was ridiculous from the start that he was aiming for Surret with fewer than ten thousand soldiers.

To think that he would aim for the throne that even the Duke of Surret had never been able to sit on in his entire life?

Even when the Cardinal warned him, he thought it was absurd.

“If you hadn’t firmly told me to issue a conscription order and hadn’t said that the Church would take responsibility, I shudder to think what would have happened to me.”

While he was off guard, the Cardinal, in the name of the Church, proposed to conscript troops, and even offered to take financial responsibility if nothing happened, which made him accept since he had nothing to lose.

“When I heard what that thing had done in the Marquisate of Rozenne, I was shocked. How dare he plunder and destroy temples? Surret deserved to be destroyed. The sin of giving birth to such a thing, the sin of trying to hand over the family to such a thing.”

News of the Marquisate of Rozenne had also reached Christian’s ears.

In addition to the fact that Edar had prevented Horvid’s punishment, the spy planted by Griffe had spread rumors that the Wolf Cult was spreading the Emperor’s curse.

“Even spreading dirty rumors to cover up such acts.”

But he didn’t believe it.

Not only him but also many nobles didn’t believe it.

That the object of their loyalty for generations would do such a thing to them?

Why? It’s not like they had committed any sins.

As the Church immediately designated Edar as a heretic, they accepted it simply and clearly.

He is a heretic.

The rumors are lies spread by the heretic.

“It is a pity that we failed to annihilate Kiruna. It would have been good to cut off the bud of heresy and set an example…”

“No, it is not over yet. It is just the beginning.”

“The beginning?”

“Yes. It is the beginning.”

They met each other’s gaze.

A cold gaze that froze the heart.

Christian felt goosebumps all over his body.

“Should we hand over Germania to the heretic so easily? We have already completed our preparations.”

“Completed preparations?”

“His Holiness has ordered all believers in this land to revolt. Those who hesitate to raise their swords against Horvid [likely a deity or religious figure] or hesitate to serve Horvid will all receive the wrath of faith.”

“Hoo.”

Relief flickered slightly on his face.

Because there is no one in this land who does not believe in Horvid.

If the revolt is led by priests, no one will be able to resist.

“We will have to turn back troops to prevent the revolt. Then the number of troops coming this way will be significantly reduced.”

Nevertheless, the anxiety was still great.

Hasn’t the opponent overcome Horvid’s punishment?

Would the chances of winning increase significantly by turning back some of the soldiers?

As if reading his thoughts, the Cardinal said.

“Also, the Church has dispatched knight orders. They will arrive in the capital on the day Your Majesty’s troops gather.”

“Knight orders? Not just knights, but knight orders?”

“The Golden Wolf Knights, the Iron Knights, and the Saint Hopen Knights. Three knight orders have set out to help Your Majesty.”

“Oh!”

A reaction clearly different from before.

Christian gripped the Cardinal’s hand tightly.

That’s because the Church’s knight orders were special.

Each and every one of them had directly received Horvid’s blessing.

Their numbers were very small, but each individual possessed martial prowess comparable to that of a different race; one knight order member was superior to dozens of ordinary knights.

“The Church never sends out three knight orders unless it is a holy war…”

The darkness that had been cast over Christian’s face disappeared.

The Cardinal smiled gently, holding his hand.

“According to our estimates, there will be at least three times the difference in troop strength. Wouldn’t that be enough?”

“Enough. How could it be insufficient?”

“This is a holy war. A holy war that goes beyond saving Germania and prevents humanity from falling into the hands of evil. We will help Germania to confront evil with all its might.”

“Thank you! Thank you so much!”

Christian was certain.

There could be no defeat in this battle.