Chapter 70

Today is a double update.

The condition for my victory is to become the king and obtain Yuria.

This is not particularly difficult.

Even without any achievements, I could forcefully marry Yuria and become the king.

The problem is what happens after that.

How many of the noble families will follow a new king whose abilities are unknown?

And will Rigar Diber allow this to happen quietly?

No.

A civil war will break out.

To achieve peace after victory, I must win this civil war.

The condition for winning the civil war is to make all the noble families submit to me.

There is no need to destroy Rigar; it would be enough if he submits to me. Although, that is unlikely.

Now, about the civil war...

Winning it is not difficult.

The direct territories and military forces of the Rosais king and the royal family, plus the military forces of the As family.

Combined with the forces of the As faction, it is possible to defeat the Diber faction.

But the question is how long it will take to win.

The enemy has not openly declared themselves as such.

There might be those within the As faction who are unhappy with me on the throne and might defect.

There are also neutral factions who are hesitant to declare their allegiance.

It is unclear which side they will choose and when they might betray us.

The time limit before other countries intervene is about a week.

Will it all be over in a week?

If other countries intervene, it will become a quagmire.

The countries of King Berberdil, King Domorgal, King Evil, and the Equus tribe...

They will not hold back. Under the pretext of conscription, they will plunder the food supplies of the Rosais kingdom and kidnap and sell the residents as slaves.

They will be more enthusiastic about this than the war itself.

After all, the battlefield of a civil war is, of course, one's own country.

Burning the farmland of one's own country and making one's own soldiers kill each other.

That is what a civil war is.

What will be left in my hands after it is over?

What I need is not victory. Victory is a prerequisite.

The key is to win with as little damage as possible, ideally without even starting a war or causing any deaths.

For that, I need the achievements to become king, a preemptive strike against the Diber faction, a just cause for the preemptive strike, and to prepare the military forces without giving the Diber faction any chance to prepare.

This makes it much more difficult.

In the battle against King Domorgal, what I wanted was the achievement to become king.

But... it's like a cake falling from the sky. No, I forced it to happen.

I didn't expect to succeed in gathering everything.

Day 5

The Rosais army left the Blaus territory early, leaving a thousand soldiers behind.

They soon arrived at the As territory.

The Rosais army was welcomed with applause and cheers from the As territory's residents.

"Then, Ron. I'll give you five hundred. Please wait in the As territory."

"Understood."

I gave five hundred to Ron and separated them from the Rosais army.

Then I said to Mutio,

"Hey, are you guys going back now?"

"Huh? The contract is over, so is it better not to go back?"

"No, you can go back, but... if you stay, you'll see something more interesting."

I smiled slyly.

Mutio nodded, looking curious.

"Alright. I'll stay for a while. Besides, there's the reward for merit. I can't go back without seeing my best friend's moment of glory."

Day 6

Finally, the Rosais army reached the palace of the Rosais king.

The residents cheered and welcomed the Rosais army.

"Truly, Lord Almus."

"Wow, amazing!!"

Those who approached Almus were the former Diber faction nobles who did not participate in the battle.

They had switched sides upon hearing of the Rosais army's victory.

While politely dealing with them, Almus went to meet the Rosais king.

Around him were the nobles and their families who participated in the war, the former Diber faction nobles, the Diber faction nobles who came to observe, and the residents who lived around the palace.

"Well, Almus As. You have done well in this war. What reward do you want?"

"Then..."

In front of all the nobles, Almus firmly said,

"Princess Yuria, the throne, and this country."

The nobles fell silent.

The Rosais king handed his crown, scepter, and mantle to Yuria, who was standing nearby.

Then he pushed Yuria forward and said,

"Go ahead, take as much as you like."

Almus immediately ran to Yuria and kissed her lips in front of everyone.

"Now you are mine. I will never let you go."

"...Yes, I understand."

Yuria smiled happily.

She took the crown and scepter.

She put the mantle on Almus.

Then he stood before the nobles.

When Almus raised the scepter, cheers erupted.

"Long live the new king!! Long live the new king!!"

The nobles who knew about Almus's succession to the throne cheered loudly.

The As faction and the soldiers, who did not know about the succession, also joined in the cheers.

The neutral faction looked confused, and the former Diber faction felt relieved that their choice was correct.

The Diber faction nobles, however, looked furious.

Almus struck the ground forcefully with the scepter.

Suddenly, it became quiet.

"Gentlemen, the war is not over yet. We have not completely expelled the Domorgal army from the country. Lord Carlo!"

"Sure, sure, King Rosais."

Carlo stepped forward reluctantly and began to call out names.

These were the names of the Diber faction nobles, led by Rigar Diber.

The names of those who switched sides after the Domorgal battle were not called.

Most of them were not present, but a few of those whose names were called looked anxious about what was about to happen.

Tetra stepped forward, expressionless.

"These people conspired with King Domorgal and tried to sell out this country. They are traitors. What should we do with them, King Rosais?"

Almus smiled and replied,

"Traitors should be executed. It is only natural."

A few of those who had just switched to the former Diber faction rushed to Almus, realizing they were about to be executed.

"We, we were misunderstood. We support the new king. Long live the new king!! Long live the new—"

Their heads were severed by Baltor.

"Unfortunately, there is no place for you on this ship."

The heads of the nobles rolled.

Seeing this, the Diber faction—traitors—ran away.

But they were blocked by the royal guards disguised as residents.

They executed the traitors one by one.

Almus looked around at the terrified nobles.

"Is there anyone here who is dissatisfied with my succession to the throne?"

No one answered.

"Is there any traitor here?"

No one answered.

"Is there anyone who thinks we should help the traitors?"

No one answered.

"Is there anyone who opposes the execution of the traitors?"

No one answered.

Almus nodded in satisfaction.

"Baltor! Raymond!"

He called the two.

The two subjects knelt before Almus.

"What is it, our king?"

Almus looked down at them and said,

"There are about six thousand soldiers here. Baltor, Raymond, I will give you a thousand each. Go and kill the traitors. I will take the remaining four thousand to kill Rigar Diber."

"Yes!!"

They bowed deeply.

Then Baltor asked Almus,

"By the way, our king. Should we execute the traitors' families up to the ninth generation?"

"That's fine."

"Even the children and women?"

"If they are part of the ninth generation."

Baltor nodded in satisfaction.

Then Almus ran to Mutio.

Mutio looked surprised and stunned.

"My friend. The alliance is supposed to continue into the next king's reign, right? Can you be hired by our country again?"

Mutio smiled and replied,

"Of course! My friend. Let's defeat our enemies together!!"

Thus, the seven-day war.

The final sixth and seventh days began.

The second chapter will end in the next two updates.