Chapter 84

"Frankly speaking, your imagination is mostly correct. The point where you might be mistaken is that 'Sancho's death in battle' was truly unexpected for me as well."

With an unwavering expression and a calm tone, the queen began her explanation.

Though her manner of speaking was close to a private tone, the aura she exuded was the same as when she acted as the queen in the palace.

Pressed by the queen's imposing presence, Zenshiro straightened his posture and listened to Aura's words with a solemn expression.

"If Sancho had insisted on avenging his brother, he would have succeeded in destroying the enemy country, but at the same time, the power of the Kaerpa Kingdom would have declined. If things went badly, the Kaerpa Kingdom could have been destroyed by other countries. Sancho's obsession with revenge was a great harm to the country."

"Yeah, I understand that."

Zenshiro nodded slightly in response to Aura's explanation.

"However, there was a country that suffered even more from Sancho's obsession than our own. Do you know which one?"

"The target of the revenge. The enemy country, right?"

Zenshiro answered immediately to Aura's question, which was more of a rhetorical one.

It was a conclusion that didn't need to be asked. Sancho I's obsession would weaken the Kaerpa Kingdom and could even lead to its destruction, but before that, the enemy country would be destroyed. Even if the Kaerpa Kingdom were to fall afterward, it would be little consolation to the enemy country.

In that sense, perhaps the one who made the biggest mistake was the enemy country's king, who had deceived and killed Sancho's revered brother, King Enrique IV.

The queen nodded solemnly.

"Yes. Therefore, at that time, there were also peace advocates in the enemy country, just like us. In this case, even though they were the enemy, the peace advocates had the same goal. There was room for cooperation. Or, to be precise, they were indispensable allies for the sake of the goal."

Peace is not something that can be achieved by one side alone. Both sides in the conflict must come together and announce it; otherwise, it is impossible to achieve.

Therefore, it was almost inevitable that the peace advocates of both countries would secretly cooperate. However, they were enemies on the surface, and it was not something that could be openly discussed.

"Omitting the details, we secretly negotiated with the peace advocates of the enemy country. Both we and the enemy country's peace advocates, who shared the common goal of achieving peace as soon as possible, cooperated in secret and decided to eliminate the 'thorough war advocates' of both countries, who were obstacles to peace."

"..."

Zenshiro swallowed hard at the queen's confession.

No matter how it was phrased, it was nothing other than "collaborating with the enemy country to murder allies."

The queen of the victorious country, who had survived the war, could not have kept her hands clean. He knew this in his head, but hearing it from her own mouth still made him tense. It was even more so when the target of the plot was not the enemy country but his own people.

The queen continued without changing her expression, even as her husband tensed.

"The main points were easily decided. First, we would spread false information that 'the enemy army had been detected moving at night' and provoke a night raid. The enemy army would be lying in wait. When our night raiding forces were thoroughly beaten, my reinforcements would arrive and counterattack the enemy's ambush forces. That was the plan."

Needless to say, the 'night raiding forces' of the Kaerpa Kingdom and the 'ambush forces' of the enemy country were the 'thorough war advocates' of both countries who were to be eliminated.

Of course, as long as it took the form of a battle, not only the high-ranking 'thorough war advocates' but also many ordinary soldiers would die.

However, Aura judged that the damage had to be tolerated to achieve an early ceasefire. Otherwise, the damage to the soldiers would be much worse.

"Then, the problem was how to deal with the kings of both countries. Fortunately, or unfortunately, there was not much of an issue with the enemy king. The then king, who was the vanguard of the thorough war advocates, and the peace advocate, the current king, were originally at odds. For them, the king's head was a 'cheap thing' if it meant achieving peace.

The problem was our king's head."

For the Kaerpa Kingdom, Sancho I, who was obsessed with avenging his brother, was certainly a troublesome ruler.

However, it was not a situation where he could be easily eliminated. At that time, Sancho I was the only male royal who could bear children.

At this explanation, Zenshiro tilted his head in confusion.

"Huh? Then, what about Carlos II, who succeeded him?"

"Uncle Carlos was unable to have children due to a serious illness in his childhood. To add, he frequently had fevers and could die at any time. Therefore, his right to succession was relatively low despite his birth."

In response to Zenshiro's question, the queen shrugged slightly and answered in a detached tone.

"For that reason, it was extremely dangerous for our country to keep Sancho on the throne, but from the perspective of passing on the 'bloodline magic' to the next generation, losing Sancho was also dangerous. The best option was to keep Sancho alive while making him abandon the idea of revenge."

Sancho I's will was harmful to the country, but his physical presence—more directly, his 'reproductive ability'—was something the country wanted to keep for its future.

From this somewhat selfish consideration, the means Aura chose was to "eliminate the 'thorough war advocates' within the country, except for Sancho."

The Kaerpa Kingdom was, in form, a feudal country. The royal family's authority was incomparably stronger than in the feudal countries of medieval Europe, but the king was not an absolute ruler.

After eliminating the 'thorough war advocates' who supported the king, if the peace advocates, centered around Aura, strongly advocated for the necessity of peace, it would be possible to correct the kingdom's politics. However, this would create a precedent where the country's politics were advanced against the king's will, which was a negative aspect. Considering this, Aura judged that the survival of the valuable bloodline magic should take precedence.

"Sancho's ability to command the front lines was not high. Therefore, he would not take command of the overall battle, nor would he lead the troops and engage in combat on the front lines. Until the night of the raid, he had never done so."

The queen, who looked as if she had bitten into something bitter, was asked by Zenshiro for confirmation.

"Did he lead the raiding forces himself only on that night?"

In response to Zenshiro's confirmation, the queen nodded slightly.

"Yes. That's why I was careless. Originally, the plot was to have Sancho's trusted confidants—thorough war advocates—move without my knowledge. While I was keeping my distance, Sancho himself went out with the thorough war advocates to launch a raid."

By the time Aura obtained this information, Sancho I had already set out.

"I borrowed troops from Duke Lala, with whom I had already discussed the plan, and pursued at full speed, but the reinforcements barely arrived in time according to the original plan. However, I had already anticipated the possibility of Sancho's death when I heard that he had taken the lead. I was mentally prepared. Therefore, even when I arrived at the battlefield and heard of Sancho's death, I managed to suppress the army's confusion and proceed with the plan as scheduled. The enemy's base and the detailed appearance of the enemy king were known from the peace advocates of the enemy country, so I directly assaulted the base and successfully killed the enemy king. Admittedly, the battle became more intense than expected due to the impact of Sancho's death, and I was sweating bullets."

The queen smiled self-deprecatingly. No matter how meticulously a plot is planned, a single or two unforeseen elements can lead to results completely opposite to the intended ones. Considering this, the plot that eliminated the 'thorough war advocates' of both countries and led to an immediate ceasefire might have been one of the more successful ones.

"Because it was a chaotic night battle, it was never clear who killed the enemy king. A few people came forward, saying, 'It might have been me,' but their weapons did not match the wounds on the enemy king. In the end, it was left as a mystery, and it was reported that I had killed him."

It is not uncommon for the identity of the one who killed the enemy general to be unknown. Especially in a chaotic night battle, it is even more so.

The enemy king had a horizontal cut across his throat and died.

"The subsequent events are as you heard from Fabio. The enemy country's prince and the Kaerpa Kingdom's Uncle Carlos, both peace advocates, ascended to the throne and immediately achieved a ceasefire. The enemy king's body was purified, his wounds stitched, and his armor from the night battle was returned to the enemy country. In exchange, the border line that Sancho had slightly pushed into was left as the new border, and regarding the Potosi silver mine, which was a source of conflict, a formal declaration was made that 'the Potosi silver mine belongs to the Kaerpa Kingdom, and our country will never claim its rights.'"

Losing two kings, Enrique IV and Sancho I, was not a good deal, but the immediate ceasefire was a prerequisite, so there was no choice but to compromise.

On our side, two kings died. On the enemy side, one king died, some territory was lost, and the ownership of the silver mine was formally abandoned. For the Kaerpa Kingdom, it could be said that the result was at least minimally acceptable.

"..."

"..."

A moment of silence passed.

The queen had finished her explanation. All that was left was to wait silently for her husband's reaction.

For Zenshiro, it was not an easy atmosphere to open his mouth, but as the shock subsided, he had many questions.

Breaking the silence, he cleared his throat and asked his wife in as calm a voice as possible.

"Ultimately, the reason why Sancho I went to that battlefield remains unknown?"

In response to Zenshiro's question, the queen nodded.

"Yes, the truth remains a mystery. At the time, dealing with the national crisis took precedence over uncovering the truth, and now, even if we knew, it wouldn't change anything."

The tone of Aura's voice somehow sounded to Zenshiro as if she was trying to convince herself.

(On that night alone, Sancho I participated in the raid. The possible reasons are: 'just a coincidence,' 'a plot by the enemy country,' or 'a plot by someone other than Aura in the Kaerpa Kingdom.')

Zenshiro speculated in his mind. In reality, since the southern continent was in the midst of war at the time, there was also the possibility of a 'plot by a third country,' but considering this, Zenshiro's mind could not narrow it down at all.

In any case, Aura said she did not know the truth and had no intention of finding out.

Aura's refusal to investigate the truth itself was a significant indicator.

"Hey, Aura. I feel really hesitant to say this to your brother, but, in a way, wasn't Sancho I's death on that battlefield a good thing for the entire country?"

In response to Zenshiro's pointed question, the queen's expression stiffened.

"…Yes. If Sancho had lived, even if we had eliminated all the 'thorough war advocates,' it might have taken more time to