第９７１堀：敵か味方か？ (Part1)
**Chapter 971: Friend or Foe?**
**Side: Eris**
"Good heavens! You mean to say you came here at the request of the Kingdom of Gusdo? And tell me, is the Kingdom of Gusdo safe?"
General Wave looked astonished at Yuki-san’s explanation.
He was a bitter, middle-aged man with a certain charm, but he still couldn't hold a candle to Yuki-san. In more ways than one.
It was clear that the Hein fleet had been completely unaware of the Kingdom of Gusdo’s downfall. Yuki-san hadn't explicitly said he came at the Kingdom's request; he had merely mentioned coming from Aurelia Port. By framing it as a request from the Kingdom, he led the Hein Empire to assume the Kingdom was still standing.
...The fact that they didn't know the Kingdom had fallen—and that quite some time had passed since Aurelia itself had fallen—spoke volumes about the Hein Empire's intelligence-gathering capabilities.
Yuki-san had already extracted a wealth of information from this exchange, but I wondered how he would steer the conversation from here. I knew the plan, but the execution was entirely up to him.
"That is correct. There is no mistake that I am acting at the request of those from the Kingdom of Gusdo," Yuki-san said with a pleasant smile.
Technically, he wasn't lying. We had been approached by the survivors of the former Kingdom of Gusdo, and that was indeed part of why we had made contact with this fleet.
"...I see. 'Those from the Kingdom of Gusdo,' you say?"
Oh? That phrasing. It seemed the General had caught the nuance in Yuki-san’s words. Perhaps he wasn't just some figurehead commanding a fleet after all.
"Unfortunately, by the time I arrived at Aurelia Port, the capital of the Kingdom of Gusdo had already fallen. I was told that most of the royal family had perished in the fighting."
"Good heavens... we were too late... Damn those fools..."
*Fools?* That was a curious choice of words.
"Do you have some history with the people of the Kingdom of Gusdo?"
"Ah, no. Pay it no mind. It is merely a family embarrassment. Now, you said you stopped at Aurelia Port and met with these people from the Kingdom, correct?"
He had forcefully steered the conversation back. It was a clear sign that he didn't want to discuss the matter further, so pressing him now would be difficult. Yuki-san seemed to agree, as he moved the conversation forward.
"Yes, that is correct. And, as it happens, a strange ship appeared at Aurelia Port the other day."
"A strange ship?"
"Indeed. It was a modified merchant vessel claiming to be an envoy from the Hein Empire. Are you familiar with it?"
Yuki-san had no intention of beating around the bush. He went straight to confirming the affiliation of those "fools." Now, how would General Wave respond?
"Familiar? It was the advance party sent to notify us of our arrival. Thank goodness, so they arrived safely."
"..."
The fact that General Wave looked relieved was actually quite bizarre. It seemed he had no idea what was actually happening on that ship. If he had known, he certainly wouldn't have reacted this way. Which meant...
"I see. So, General Wave, you were unaware of who exactly was serving as that advance party?"
"What do you mean? It is true that I was not informed of the specific personnel aboard the ship sent as the advance party, but..."
Just as I thought. Yuki-san gave a bitter smile at the revelation.
"What I am about to tell you may not be pleasant for you to hear, General Wave. Do you still wish to proceed?"
"...It sounds like an unpleasant tale indeed. However, I am a soldier. I cannot simply turn on my heel and leave just because the news is distasteful. Please, tell me."
"Understood."
Yuki-san proceeded to explain the conduct of those Hein "envoys" and the fact that they were currently being held by the Kingdom of Gusdo—all while carefully obscuring the fact that Aurelia Port was now under Weed’s jurisdiction.
He made sure to mention Princess Palfil’s name, of course. Watching the General’s face pale as he realized the truth—especially after verifying the royal crest to confirm her identity—was quite entertaining. The way the rest of the Hein officers turned ghostly white as they listened was equally amusing.
It was only natural, of course. They were being told that a group of idiots had unilaterally declared war on their behalf. If I were in their shoes, I’d be just as pale. I’ll have to remind Tefa to ensure her subordinates are properly trained later.
As I was busy thinking about how to keep our own house in order, Yuki-san finished his explanation and continued, his tone formal.
"And so, General Wave, are you now aware of the actions taken by the Hein Empire's 'envoys' against myself and Princess Palfil, the last surviving member of the Gusdo royal family?"
"..."
The Hein delegation looked as if they had just been handed a death sentence. It seemed they possessed a genuine sense of conscience and common sense. If that man who claimed to be the envoy were here, he would surely have tried to argue, but I—or Milly—would never have allowed him to speak.
"It seems you understand the situation. Then, let me ask you again: are the three demands—the unconditional handover of Aurelia Port, the marriage between Princess Palfil and the envoy, and the requisitioning of Weed-registered merchant ships—the official will of the Hein Empire?"
"No! We have absolutely no such intentions!" General Wave replied immediately.
It seemed the entire upper echelon of the Hein Empire wasn't composed of fools after all.
"I see. That is a relief... However, given the circumstances, we engaged your advance party in battle, resulting in the sinking of two ships and the capture of three. We also have the man claiming to be the envoy in our custody. I must ask you to take responsibility for them."
Calling it a "battle" was a bit of a stretch, though. Technically, it was a combat result, but the actual engagement lasted less than ten minutes. Ratz and Milly seemed to agree, as they were all suppressing smiles.
More importantly, how would they react to the sinking of their ships and the capture of their men?
"...Understood. I fully grasp the situation. I shall report to my home country that Weed acted with complete justification and was in no way at fault."
"That is good to hear. We were prepared to fight the Hein Empire if necessary."
"Haha, I certainly have no desire to fight a nation that possesses such magnificent ships as Weed does."
General Wave laughed, but it was a strained, nervous sound. He clearly understood the extent of our military power. It seemed unlikely he would file a false report to paint us as the villains.