The Youngest Prince Of The English Royalty House [EN]: Chapter 120

120. The End of the Civil War (1)

—1191, Holy Roman Empire, Capital Aachen—

[Prince John has captured Paris.]

[And looted countless treasures from Paris.]

In this era, systematic newspapers didn’t exist, but news, or rather rumors, spread rapidly.

Even nobles with the resources to obtain reliable information heard relatively accurate accounts.

[As expected, the Angevin family is a disaster!]

Of course, the gossip about the Angevin family feud, passed from mouth to mouth, was as satisfying as roasted beans.

People always find other people’s fights interesting, and the fact that this family feud was weakening the Angevin family—which had suddenly risen to power and become another threat to Europe—gave other European powers hope.

In any case, Europe generally dislikes dominant countries, except for the Holy Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire, which, as ’empires,’ inherited the legitimacy of Rome.

Prince John’s victory over Prince Geoffrey and Henry II’s unconventional return to the battlefield brought the Angevin family feud to its climax.

[He got careless and was caught off guard.]

[John is the really cunning one. I said that during the Crusades!]

The petty middle and small nobles, as well as the prince-electors—essentially the most influential nobles—were watching the second half of the Angevin family’s civil war from the relatively peaceful Holy Roman Empire, which was usually full of conflict and strife itself.

Now, Paris, the capital of the Kingdom of France, was firmly occupied by John’s army, and a massive looting operation was underway.

Of course, for the people of the Holy Roman Empire, the looting taking place in the Kingdom of France was simply entertainment.

“Hahaha.”

The person cheering the loudest among the spectators was Duke Heinrich of Saxony, who had previously received various favors from John and had supported him with mercenaries at a discounted price this time.

“As expected, there is no one as formidable as my brother-in-law.”

When others were ignoring him, calling him ‘Singer Song John’ or ‘John who was rejected again today,’ the Duke of Saxony was one of the first powerful figures in Europe to recognize John’s true nature.

Initially, it was more of a request than an order from Henry II, but after interacting with John directly, he realized from the beginning that John was not a prince to be underestimated. So, Duke Heinrich of Saxony was in a very good mood.

So, he went to the palace to boast.

“Your Majesty, my youngest brother-in-law is quite the character. Perhaps it is because of John that Your Majesty returned my position to me?”

“Your brother-in-law, Prince John, has never once asked me to return your title.”

“Isn’t that even more impressive?”

With such a reliable brother-in-law, usurpation would be easier.

No matter what safety measures Frederick I prepared, the hearts of the prince-electors were gradually turning toward Heinrich.

Moreover, seeing Prince John thoroughly plundering the heart of the Kingdom of France in this civil war, he felt that with the support of his reliable brother-in-law John, he could effectively govern the Holy Roman Empire.

While the Duke of Saxony was pleased.

The emperor in the same room looked at his pathetic son.

“King of Germany.”

“Yes, Father.”

“Haa….”

The old emperor sighed deeply and said in a mournful voice.

“Son, I don’t like making comparisons. Just try to do the basics.”

‘If you were only half as good as Prince John, I wouldn’t have to worry.’

Frederick I didn’t bother to say the rest.

Just by having the Duke of Saxony, who shared the same name ‘Heinrich,’ present, he had already shamed his son enough.

There was no need to add unnecessary words and make an already incompetent son even more so.

“The King of Germany may leave now.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

So, Frederick I dismissed his son as if he were a ‘subject’ and said to the powerful vassal who was looking at him kindly.

“The conclusion has been reached. Henry II, that cunning fellow, has sided with the Black Lion. That lucky old man must be smiling even as his family is falling apart, because he has John, that friend.”

The emperor’s words were mindful of John.

The emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, who had long been close to Henry II, knew that the reason Henry II had returned to the front lines was because of his beloved son, John.

“Your Majesty, even if Henry II hadn’t been there, the Black Lion army would have won anyway. Prince Richard and Prince John are outstanding geniuses in their own different ways. With their strength alone, it is obvious that the White Lion army would be defeated. Moreover, even if Philip II had intervened in the Angevin family feud without the justification of the Low Countries [Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg], the Kingdom of France would have been finished with the strength of my territory alone.”

“Even with the Duke of Saxony’s skills, it would be difficult to fight and win against Philip’s army…?”

As the emperor asked his thoughts, the Duke of Saxony firmly stated his opinion.

“Not many people know, but Your Majesty knows well, doesn’t he? With just one request from Duchess Mary, Count of Sulzbach would risk his life to help Prince John.”

“Duke of Saxony, I can’t rest easy knowing I have cunning nobles like you.”

“How can you say I’m cunning? I’m just a very kind noble compared to my youngest brother-in-law, John.”

* * *

—England, throughout Aquitaine—

There was a meeting.

The meeting between Richard, the commander-in-chief of the Black Lion army, and Henry, the commander-in-chief of the White Lion army.

It was Prince Richard who requested this meeting, already considering himself the victor.

The Black Lion army interpreted this meeting as the last chance that their beloved Prince Richard was giving to his brother, and the White Lion army also thought of it as an agreement for surrender.

In any case, the two leaders looked at each other.

Born to the same parents, but both coveted the single crown of England, so now they were worse than strangers, waging a civil war with their respective forces.

Perhaps, according to the Angevin family tradition, they might even boldly ‘eliminate’ their brothers for power.

“Brother, isn’t it time for you to surrender now?”

Prince Richard was relaxed. He could ‘take care’ of his older brother, Prince Henry, right away if he wanted to, but even so, he was coaxing his older brother with a good-natured face.

“I cannot stop. You know, I cannot give up anymore.”

But Prince Henry could not give up. If he gave up here, his life would truly be over.

“I heard stories from the people of Aquitaine that your health was not good.”

“Could I not have used that spy to convey false information instead?”

“It breaks my heart. See you on the battlefield, Duke of Aquitaine.”

It was a lonely fight without the French army or the Breton army, but Prince Henry still did not give up.

Of course, Prince Richard didn’t dislike such a brother either. This is also the spirit of a lion.

A few days later.

The armies of the Black Lion and the White Lion clashed once again.

“Take the offensive!”

“Counterattack!”

—Clang, clang, clang

Naturally, the wounded lion was the White Lion. The difference in power was already too great.

Prince Richard and Prince John were both formidable, and Geoffrey, who relied on ‘politics’ and didn’t understand real war, was also a problem, but the root cause of all failures was the return of Henry II.

But this cunning old man was spending time in Brittany, taunting Geoffrey, except for supporting the Earl of Salisbury, who had landed in Normandy from Ireland to help John’s looting, with troops.

“Sir William, don’t you find my situation funny? That a naive prince who sensed his father’s death and quickly started things has been defeated like this.”

“That is not so. I am just following orders. Even if Henry II appears, for the sake of the contract, at this moment, I must honor my commitment.”

Not Eastern loyalty, but the Middle Ages, where rational contracts were central. William Marshal’s adherence to Prince Henry for the sake of the remaining contract, even with the return of Henry II, is exemplary.

“And it is not a complete defeat yet.”

“Break through the center!”

* * *

—Throughout the Kingdom of France—

Burp.

I was full after looting everything.

“Your Highness, the Count of Burgundy has asked me to deliver this letter.”

To put it figuratively, the French delegation, who had come to Paris completely stripped bare with a desolate look on their faces, brought a letter.

‘Let’s see this?’

[Prince John, you have deceived the world, so I will retaliate. —Duke Eugene of Burgundy—]

The content was absurd. Was he making me the axis of evil?

Duke Eugene of Burgundy, who is like the second-in-command of France, seems to see me as a treacherous hero of a chaotic era. Honestly, who is as kind as me? If there is a fault, isn’t it the Kingdom of France that broke ‘neutrality’ and invaded when brothers were about to have a go at each other?

Ah, now that I think about it, Richard, the ancestor of the Hyeongseong Kingdom, called in the Benelux forces [nobles of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg] in the Low Countries, so the Kingdom of France felt a sense of crisis.

As expected. Our England is amazing! Considering that cunning, even Satan would feel fear, really! But it was Richard who seduced the nobles of the Low Countries. I am only guilty of knowing the moral principles of the gangsang [Korean term for a merchant or someone who is commercially minded] towards Henry and Geoffrey, the unfilial sons of England.

Anyway, the fact that this person came means that the French friends are coming to reclaim the stolen field, Paris.

“Retreat to Mortain.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

In any case, preparations for retreat were made sequentially from the time of alternating looting. Efficient retreat is possible.

When we were approaching the border of the Normandy region, we heard desperate screams from the French Kingdom guys behind us.

“Capture Prince John alive!”

“No, it’s okay to kill him!”

A shout was heard.

But I said, looking at those French guys.

“Watch your backs.”

It’s not like I was carelessly in Paris without knowing the world.

I was contacting my father and waiting leisurely.

But it was too late.

Really coincidentally, there were troops supporting us.

“Your Highness, those are Henry II’s personal guards.”

The army of the Kingdom of France gritted their teeth and chased after us. Ta-da, our father sent reinforcements? Is it a coincidence? Of course not. Uncle said he was coming!

“Respond to the proud Royal Army in the rear and defeat the French guys.”

The army that was running away and the army that my father sent attacked in a sandwich formation. Philip II and the Imperial Guard could only retreat.

“Aren’t you going to pursue them?”

At Robin’s words, who wanted to shoot an arrow into the enemy’s back right away, I smiled.

“That’s enough, we’re going back to Mortain.”

There is no need to bury Philip. There is no need to really finish him off, and even if I could, the Kingdom of France must exist as East France, so I have no intention of using extreme measures.

Right now, the thing Philip has to do is to be madly busy with the damage recovery of Ile-de-France [region surrounding Paris], which can be said to be the Gyeonggi Province [core economic region] of the Kingdom of France, and preparing for ‘surrender’.

“Open the gates. The English warriors who showed Paris the bitter taste have returned!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

—Creak.

Our soldiers had already returned ‘home’ via Normandy.

Mortain and Ireland are our homes.

* * *

—Mortain—

“Your Highness, it was a very satisfying civil war.”

Charles was already smiling with a face that said he was going to die of happiness. This civil war was a satisfying plunder for him.

As expected, Charles. I can feel the vassal-like longing that has transformed into the Navy—Pirate—Safe Knights in three stages.

“Long live Prince John!”

“Long live England!”

The sky was clear.

I could feel very, very fresh air.

“Now that I’ve plundered the Kingdom of France like this, I can wear this ring.”

I took out the necklace that I had been hanging so that it wouldn’t look like a dog tag. I took out the ring that was in the center of the necklace and put it on my hand.

The preservation was good, but it was a ring that looked old to anyone. But it is still a valuable ring.

In Latin.

‘The ruler does not forget.’

It is a ring with that phrase written on it.

A very precious ring that Princess Marguerite gave me as a wedding gift.

“Your Highness, that ring is…?”

I said to Godfrey, who was looking at me with puzzled eyes because I suddenly wore a ring.

“It’s a very special ring.”

This ring is the ring of Queen Fredegund, who is famous as Brunhild’s rival.

A ring that only a ruler who has overcome all kinds of hardships and won can feel the meaning of.

The reason I wore this ring is.

It means that the victory of the civil war has become certain, and that I have become a true ruler of the ‘Middle Ages’.