“We have a problem with the way Viscount Zehrfeldt is behaving in Anheim. I urge you to investigate further.”
I understand.
The viscount, who holds the rank of department head in the legal department, insisted for a while, but both the king and the prime minister let the matter drop without giving him any direct comment.
After they left, the atmosphere in the conference room was indescribable. Ingo, the minister of liturgy and Werner’s father, bows his head.
I’m sorry for the trouble my son is causing you.
“It doesn’t matter. It’s just that the department head turned out to be the right vessel for the job.”
King Maximilian responded without showing any particular emotion, and the other participants nodded their heads. Falkenstein, the Prime Minister, responded calmly.
“There is a slight shortage of middle-ranking aristocrats.”
“I think I’ll increase my duties a little and see how things go. Is that all right, Your Majesty?
“Very well. So that many nobles can be assigned to the task.”
At the suggestion of the Dauphin Hubertus, the king nodded his head and gave the order. That was the end of the matter.
Unknown to him, Werner was treated as a kind of evaluation standard. The upper echelons of the Kingdom of Vine were grading the middle-ranking nobles in terms of how they intended to treat the still young Werner.
From the point of view of the present ministerial aristocracy, Werner’s treatment will be judged only in terms of how he “uses” it. If the objectives are the same, they can either treat him as a colleague or arrange for him to serve as a subordinate. If their goals are compatible, they will treat him as a colleague or arrange for him to exercise his talents as a subordinate.
If they cannot agree, then they should think about how to incorporate them or make them work for the good of the country as a whole in jobs in which they have different interests.
Worst of all, if they become adversaries within the court, they will engage with another political opponent and exhaust both sides.
From the point of view of a person who is a leading figure of a country, the more excellent a person is, the more he/she thinks about how to use him or her and how to connect him or her with the interests of the country in making personnel decisions. If they cannot think like that, they cannot serve as ministers of a great nation. An aristocrat who thinks of dragging his rivals down is, in terms of national office, at best a mid-level position.
In this sense, the behavior of the department heads mentioned above and the nobles who wished to be transferred to Anheim must be evaluated as a failure at this point in time. In the future, it is very possible that many of them will be transferred to the provinces themselves. On the other hand, it is the position of the ministers to consider the re-education of these nobles at the same time.
Human resources must be plentiful. They can be lost by accident or illness. If it is the right of a nobleman to maintain his house, it is the duty of a ministerial nobleman to bring up a large number of human resources to maintain the country, and there was no one here who would take this duty lightly.
The king’s eye in appointing such a person as a minister can also be described as excellent.
In fact, as Werner himself was aware, the Kingdom of Wein considered even the loss of Anheim as a possibility. Even if Anheim fell into the hands of the enemy, the Kingdom of Wein believed that it could recover in other ways.
The leaders of the nation, who understand the strength of the Demon Army, have made plans for the eventual loss of Anheim, and have determined that it would be possible for Anheim to recover if it took some time, but losing Werner would be undesirable for the future relationship with the heroes.
That is why he entrusted Werner with several pairs of skywalkers. If we dare to say so, we could even say that it is politics to decide what to protect and what to discard, since we cannot protect everything.
The only area where there is a discrepancy is that Werner knew about the later event of the attack on the capital of the Four Heavenly Kings, while the king and the ministers did not know about it.
Werner, who has considered the risk of a two-sided strategy against the generals in the attack on the Four Heavenly Kings, has no intention of escaping or losing, and is acting on the premise that he will surely kill the generals in Anheim. On the other hand, since he cannot tell anyone that the attack on the capital is certain to happen, he seems to be quietly taking measures against the generals. Perhaps it is ironic that this is seen as his loyalty to his country.
The Dauphin laughs lightly.
“But it’s an interesting move. Using that agent.”
“Even though they were the family members of the hero, they were the ones who attempted to kidnap him.
Since it is an attempt, it can be handled in any way one wants. In extreme cases, if Rafedo apologizes to Mazel’s family and they accept his apology, the state will not have to interfere any more. Of course, they can be severely punished for targeting the families of brave men.
“If you win a battle, even the enemy will think you’ve mastered your adversary. If you lose, you can’t worry about a single criminal. And yet this appointment is a check on the aristocracy. Viscounts are notoriously inedible.”
Your Majesty seems to be in a good mood.
“It’s good to be able to bargain.”
The king responded to the question of Count Audenried, the Minister of the Interior. It is true that there are people whose personalities do not allow them to play games. It is difficult to entrust the central office of a country to a person with such a character. This is a matter of aptitude rather than ability.
However, if he can play games when he wants to, his reputation will change. Since he can play games when the time comes, he can be placed in a key position. It is not unusual for a nobleman to play games with the state, and he will not be put in a bad mood by such a move.
I would not say that Werner’s reputation has improved, but on a pass/fail basis, I would say that Werner continues to receive a pass/fail rating.
The royal family also has other reasons to favor Werner. Werner is from a noble family, he is a talented person, and he is a close friend of a brave man, so his existence itself is of great value.
In this world, the king is neither a dictator nor an absolute authority. If the majority of the nobles were to say, “Brave men who can fight against the Demon King are dangerous and should be eliminated,” the royal family would have to take this into consideration, or at least show the appearance of taking it into consideration. the royal family would have to take it into consideration, or at least show the appearance of taking it into consideration. No matter how valuable a brave man is as a sign of the nation.
The existence of Werner disrupted the flow of such a powerful individual as a brave man, who also had the danger of causing the nobles to flow in one direction.
It is well known that the two are close friends. If Werner were to do anything to get rid of the brave men, he might defect to another country in the worst case, which would be a great loss of human resources for the country.
It would be a shame for the country to have the son of a minister and a count’s heir defect, and there is a danger that the country would become powerful if his talent was used by another country. Even if there was an excessive wariness of a brave man, it would have to be concealed.
On the other hand, if Werner is eliminated, there is a risk that the heroes will become hostile to the country and the nobles who led it, and this cannot be easily put into action. We already know that Werner has enough fighting power to kill two generals and one of the Four Heavenly Kings, and if a noble family were to go against him alone in battle, there is no doubt that he would lose his life.
The option to delete Werner is too horrible to take.
Because there is not only one brave man, but also two brave men, Mazel and Werner, there is no way for them to choose a simple method of punishment, such as eliminating them because they are dangerous or falsely accusing them, even if they are dissatisfied or jealous.
The royal family also takes advantage of this situation. The king has high hopes for the hero and is often protective of his position. The Dauphin, on the other hand, shows his appreciation for Werner and his promise for the future. The two men are separately devoted to one side or the other.
For this reason, even if he wondered what would happen if the two best friends joined forces and rebelled against each other, he could not say anything. As soon as they voice their opinions, it would be the same as saying, “The king and the crown prince, both of them have a blind eye. If we express that opinion, it would be the same as saying “The king and the crown prince both have a blind eye to people. If that were to happen, there would be no room for him in the palace. Considering his own position, he would naturally have no choice but to abandon this idea.
However, it is also true that as a result, another person has become an important person regardless of his/her intention.
“By the way, Count Zehrfeldt, what about your brave sister?”
Actually, I’d like to talk to His Majesty about that.
Ingo opens his mouth without changing his expression and explains recent problems. After listening to him, the king looks discouraged.
“Okay. I’ll nail him, too.
I’m sorry I can’t help you.
“It is not a problem that can be managed by one noble family, so you need not worry about it. Other than that, I’m not so sure.”
“At the moment, there is no need for us to act as a nation.”
The king nodded. The Dauphin took his place.
The demon army is on the move.
“There was a small group on the western border, but it appears to have been suppressed by local forces. No other unusual reports.”
“Remain vigilant. Those in charge of foreign affairs must keep abreast of developments in other countries and gather intelligence.”
“Ha.”
Yes, sir.
Next…
Demons do not appear only in Werner’s area. Therefore, if there is a problem in other areas, we must quickly investigate the situation in each area and mobilize our troops as necessary. We also have to deal with the refugees in the country and those who have been affected by the demon army.
And although the greatest enemy of mankind is the demon army, there is no guarantee that other nations will not touch us when we are exhausted from the war against the demon army. There are many things to consider.
The Imperial Conference was to continue for some time.
