Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 283

“Failure? What failure are you talking about?!” the Second Prince roared. His voice shook the room. He almost never panicked, but now, his face was red with fury.

The men under his command flinched back, afraid of his anger. Leos stood before him, his face like stone. He had even worse news to deliver.

“The Maclaine royal family has mentioned our empire,” Leos said, his voice calm despite the Prince’s rage. “This has caught the attention of the eastern continent. The Emperor himself has ordered a stop to the ‘work’ for the succession battle, for now.”

“……Bloody hell. Inevitable, I suppose…….”

“And as a price for causing this situation, Your Highness’s score in the succession battle has been reduced by another 10 points.”

“……What!?”

The Second Prince’s eyes nearly popped out of his head again.

“The originally agreed-upon 10% should only amount to around 5 points at most, shouldn’t it?!”

“One of the heads of the demons is said to have died in Maclaine.”

“What?”

“His Imperial Majesty is said to be furious at this worst-case scenario, which he did not foresee. It would be unwise to protest now, Your Highness.”

“Ha……!”

The Second Prince’s face turned from red to blue as he slumped back into his seat with a sigh.

Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, he abruptly raised his head again.

“10 points ‘more’!? So, in addition to the originally promised points… Then what’s the score difference between me and my brother now?!”

“That is…….”

Seeing Leos’s expression darken, Baros’s face twisted like a demon, sensing the worst possible outcome.

“The scores have been reversed by a single point.”

“You utter bastard!!!!”

Crash!

He believed a ruler should never show his insecurities, but now he simply couldn’t contain his rage.

The Second Prince was furious. He slammed his fist on the breakfast table, sending dishes flying. He stood up and started pacing the room.

“I have to make up for it. I have to. That blasted Logan Maclaine, I’ll deal with him…….”

He couldn’t hide his anxiety at all. Was he planning something again?

Leos struggled to conceal his expression as he gazed upon the master who held his fate in his hands.

The whole world was shocked by the Maclaine royal family’s announcement, but the Empire remained silent, maintaining a non-response.

The rumors of an imperial conspiracy soon died down, and in their place, stories of dubious origin began to spread.

“Eh. Why would the Empire do that?”

“Yeah. Why would the Empire target the king of a small nation?”

“That king was famous as a tyrant in the past. He even overthrew the dynasty. There must be plenty of people who hold a grudge against him, right?”

Even within the Maclaine kingdom, rumors began to circulate that the attack on the king was the work of vengeful spirits from the old Grandia kingdom.

“……The rumors aren’t very favorable.”

“As I thought, things aren’t going to be easy.”

Logan, rumored to be bedridden, was sitting perfectly healthy in his office, listening to Damian’s report with a faint smile.

He had expected this much anyway. Nevertheless, the reason for spreading such rumors in the wake of the assassination attempt was to conceal Aileen’s awakening and Logan’s own strength.

Furthermore, there was an even greater purpose.

“Whatever the public’s misunderstanding, it will be enough if we can make the rulers of the small kingdom alliance worried.”

“Are you really considering an alliance with them?”

“Of course. If we fall, that alliance will be like a lamp before the wind anyway. If they are worried, they will have no choice but to respond.”

Five legions and hundreds of thousands of militia were still not enough.

That was why Logan was trying to draw in the small kingdom alliance to the east of the kingdom. The alliance, made up of seven small kingdoms, might be lacking in individual strength, but their total power was comparable to that of the old Grandia kingdom.

However, the reaction of his close aides, including Damian, was negative.

“That will only be possible if we can obtain evidence that the Empire is preparing for war. We believe in Your Majesty, but they, on the other hand…….”

Logan understood Damian’s concerns all too well.

“There’s still time. I hope this incident will be the foundation for that. We’ll have to take our time to persuade them while continuing the kingdom’s preparations as we have been.”

“If that’s what you wish…….”

Just as Damian was backing down, a flustered voice came from outside the office.

“Your Majesty. A communication has arrived from the Tria Kingdom. Their king himself……!”

[I’ve heard the rumors, but are you feeling alright?]

A pleasant-looking man with a long, brown beard.

That was Logan’s first impression of Ramon I, the king of the Tria Kingdom.

As he faced that seemingly kind face, he felt a little guilty that he had to act from their very first meeting.

“Cough. I’m feeling a little better. It seems that wounds caused by aura take a while to heal.”

He had deliberately made the royal communication device a little blurry, and even powdered his face to look pale, just in case they noticed.

Fortunately, the King of Tria seemed to have little interest in Logan’s health, and without paying any attention to his clumsy acting, he immediately blurted out something that surprised Logan.

[I was shocked to hear the news. We, too, are withering away, having fallen victim to the Empire’s schemes, so I contacted you hoping we might be able to help each other.]

The words he had been hoping for came directly from the mouth of his target.

How could things be so coincidental?

“Pardon?”

[As you may have heard from our envoy, Lord Ragon, during the royal wedding…….]

“Ah……. Haha, yes. Of course, I heard about it…….”

I don’t remember such a person…….

A slight cold sweat seemed to break out.

It wasn’t as if he had been in a position to remember all the envoys he had met at the royal wedding.

“But this is the first I’ve heard of an imperial plot. What do you mean by that?”

But if the words ‘imperial plot’ had been mentioned, there was no way he wouldn’t remember, so Logan’s question contained sincerity.

[Ah. Haha, I was too hasty, I suppose. When Lord Ragon went as an envoy, we certainly hadn’t reached a conclusion.]

I tell you, I don’t know such a person.

[But now I can be sure. The Empire’s hand has extended to the Principality of Tahiti and the surrounding three kingdoms, and those touched by their hand are causing the alliance of kingdoms to destroy itself.]

What?

“……Could you elaborate?”

Logan, now serious, forgot that he had to act and asked back with a calm face.

Fortunately, Ramon I was too busy pouring out the words in his heart.

Last winter, the alliance of seven small kingdoms to the east of the Maclaine Kingdom underwent a massive political upheaval.

Tria. Liberty. Teronan. Romain, Kalon. Romen. Tahiti.

The seven kingdoms, founded by the descendants of the seven ancient heroes, had always ranked themselves in the order in which they were mentioned.

According to the rankings of the ancient heroes, and according to the size of the land and population of the current state.

The largest Tria Kingdom was more than 1/3 the size of the current Maclaine Kingdom, but the smallest Tahiti Principality was smaller than Maclaine’s large territory.

However, as befitting the name of an alliance, they always had the same voting rights. However, they elected one chairman to represent the opinions of the seven kingdoms to the outside world.

Of course, in most cases, that role belonged to the King of Tria, and even if it changed with the times, the kings below Liberty or Teronan had never held the role of chairman.

At least until last winter.

However, last winter, Leon Tahiti, who seized power with the coup in the Principality of Tahiti, suddenly demanded a re-discussion on the election of the chairman. As if by agreement, the Romain, Kalon, and Romen kingdoms simultaneously agreed, and the leadership of the alliance was instantly transferred to them.

And since then, those four kingdoms have been constantly creating alliance policies that run counter to the interests of the existing strong three kingdoms.

[Of course, when it comes to national power, our three kingdoms are still larger, but the circumstances of our alliance are a bit difficult to suppress with power…….]

The King of Tria trailed off, but Logan nodded.

In the first place, why would the small kingdoms, with only the sea to the east, form an alliance?

Wasn’t it to check the Grandia Kingdom to the west of them?

Even in ancient times when the Grandia Kingdom was strong, the heroes who were dissatisfied with its rule and gained independence were now their ancestors. If they tried to break the alliance by force, the backlash would first be directed at the kingdom that wanted to break the alliance.

So, the King of Tria’s communication now had a slightly strange contradiction.

“Are you saying that you don’t want to break the tradition of the alliance, but you’re asking Maclaine for help?”

[Haha. The Maclaine Kingdom is not the Grandia Kingdom. The dynasty has clearly changed, so what’s the problem?]

These words sounded good, but Logan knew they hid the real truth about how countries worked together.

But Ramon I’s seemingly kind face didn’t seem to have a hint of shame.

‘This guy’s a slippery eel, too.’

Logan smiled outwardly, even as he inwardly grew wary.

“That’s certainly true. But what is the basis for saying that the changes in the four kingdoms are an imperial plot?”

[Ah. That’s…….]

When the other party seemed hesitant and trailed off, Logan threw out bait that he couldn’t help but be shaken by.

“We need to know that to make a decision easily.”

[I’m ashamed of this. I contacted you after promising to tell you everything, but I’m embarrassed to say it. Please listen without misunderstanding.]

“What misunderstanding could there be? Please speak comfortably.”

[In fact, our kingdom has been promoting marriages in each royal family to promote friendly relations in the alliance. Of course, most of the other kingdoms are in a similar situation. So, each royal family is actually intertwined with complex blood ties.]

Logan’s expression unconsciously frowned as Ramon I’s words showed signs of lengthening. Perhaps sensing this, the story hurriedly moved on to the main point.

[Of course, thanks to the fact that I have a lot of daughters, I was able to send two daughters to each royal family. As a result, my daughters send news of each royal family as a greeting.]

At those words, Logan had to swallow a burst of laughter.

It wasn’t the problem that he had at least 12 daughters.

The fact that he had sent all those daughters to the allied kingdoms, two to each, meant that he, too, had been trying to shake the power of the alliance from the beginning.

‘And now that things have gone wrong, he’s asking for help.’

The impression of that nice person was becoming less and less trustworthy.

Just as his trust in him was gradually declining, Ramon I’s next words were quite surprising.

[As a result, I heard that they saw an imperial nobleman in the Principality of Tahiti, which led this, one after another. Even near the king.]

How could princesses who grew up in the palace and married into neighboring countries recognize imperial nobles?

‘He’s not only planted daughters, but also a lot of spies.’

Even while recognizing the meaning contained in those words, Logan tilted his head.

‘But how could that be?’

If the Empire really tried to work on the small kingdom alliance, they would have used at least unknown people.

Like the last royal family’s Cleo.

“Would the Empire move so sloppily? I find it hard to believe, but?”

When Logan recalled bad memories and pressed him, Ramon I blushed again and carefully opened his mouth.

And at the words that followed, Logan couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.

[That’s……, I…… Actually, among the places where I sent my daughters to marry, there is also an imperial noble family. One of them is a high-ranking imperial noble…….]

Wow.

This amazing bastard.