I Became a Genius Commander at the Academy

Chapter 208: War Is Diplomacy (3)

I was currently the plenipotentiary ambassador sent to Swedia on behalf of the Emperor of the Reich Empire.

The person in front of me was also acting on behalf of the King of Swedia as the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In this case, since the Minister of Foreign Affairs was of a higher rank and decades older than me, it would not be diplomatically inappropriate to speak in a slightly more relaxed manner.

Thus, in such situations, I ended up using phrases like “please do” in a way that was polite yet neutral.

He looked to be 30 to 40 years older than me at a glance, and as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, his rank would be equivalent to that of a general or higher in the military.

It was honestly uncomfortable how he spoke to me with honorifics, as if he were my subordinate.

More than feeling uncomfortable, I strongly got the impression that, despite considering me a mere youngster, he was declaring his intent to give his all.

“It is an honor to meet you, the esteemed diplomat of Swedia, Lord Brahe. I am General Peter Yaeger, here on behalf of His Imperial Majesty of the Reich Empire.”

“I have often heard rumors that you are not yet 30, but based on your appearance alone, I would believe it if you said you were graduating from the academy next year. You are handsome, a swordmaster, thus likely in good physical condition, and young to boot. I truly envy you.”

Thus, Brahe, Minister of Foreign Affairs, tried his best to put me at ease with all sorts of flattering remarks, and I responded with a mix of half sincerity and half politeness.

“Haha, my apologies. It just so happens that I have a grandson about your age… We’ve spent too much time on small talk. Let’s move on to the main discussion.”

Hearing that, I presented the negotiation draft I had prepared in advance in front of him and said,

“I would like you to agree to this pledge, which involves breaking the alliance with the Kingdom of Stockholm and ceasing the plans to occupy the northern territories of the empire. In return, we will pay 200,000 gold. What do you think?”

Although I initially offered 200,000 gold, His Majesty had authorized me to offer up to 1.2 million gold, which corresponded to 30% of the imperial budget, at my discretion.

However, I specifically mentioned 200,000 gold because, should the alliance be successfully formed at a low cost, it would be beneficial to achieve the maximum effect at the minimum expense.

So, with a mindset of just giving it a try without much expectation…

“200,000 gold is certainly not a small amount. However, we cannot break our promise to the Kingdom of Stockholm for just that amount. Even if you offered 1 million gold, we could not accept your proposal. Do you intend to insult the honor of our King?”

“I have no such intention, Your Excellency the Minister of Foreign Affairs. However, I would like to offer a brief explanation of my proposal. Would you be willing to listen to the end before making your judgment?”

“Please speak, but I must remind you that our kingdom will honor our alliance with the Kingdom of Stockholm to the end.”

According to what I heard from Deputy Minister Wolfgang on my way here, diplomats who speak with certainty were either lying or spouting nonsense.

So, if I stayed calm and explained carefully, I should be able to persuade him.

“As you know, Your Excellency, this alliance is of no benefit to the Kingdom of Swedia.”

“The Kingdom of Stockholm has promised us half of the Reich Empire’s northern region. Furthermore, forming an alliance with the Kingdom of Stockholm would eliminate the possibility of war with neighboring countries, allowing us to invest time in rebuilding internally. Would this not be a sufficiently beneficial alliance for us?”

“If Stockholm were to keep its promise, that would be the case. But you know well that such a thing will not happen, Your Excellency. It would be quicker to expect a heathen sultan to convert to the religion of Deus than to expect them to keep their promise.”

Between individuals and companies, there was a nation that imposed sanctions in the name of the law for not keeping promises, so they tended to keep their promises even at a loss to themselves.

However, on the Europa Continent, there was no institution to mediate disputes and adjudicate between nations, so it became common sense to betray and backstab over alliances and promises if it was deemed more beneficial not to keep them.

As evidence, when the Francois Republic was excommunicated, we burned all the debt certificates worth 50,000 gold in weapons and other debts owed to the trade guilds based in Francois.

We thought it would be more beneficial to break our promises and not repay our debts to those guilds once the legal basis for claims was gone.

Brahe, still calm, spoke with a hint of anger in his voice after hearing my words.

“Are you saying that our King of Swedia is a puppet, fooled and used by the evil men of Stockholm? To make such an insult, even as a representative of His Imperial Majesty of the Reich Empire, it would be difficult to leave alive.”

As he said that, Brahe signaled, and two knights guarding the door quickly approached me, drawing their swords to my neck, whether to threaten me or to actually kill me.

Although I held the title of swordmaster, being unarmed and facing two well-trained knights aiming their swords at my neck was honestly terrifying.

However, showing fear here would be unbecoming of an officer, so I spoke with as much composure as I could muster.

“Are you trying to show me the high level of your knights’ skills, Your Excellency? Please lower your swords.”

“If you apologize for that nonsense, I will have them lowered.”

“May I speak further? I have come to share a story that would benefit both Swedia and the Reich Empire.”

Brahe seemed to think my words were worth hearing a bit more, as he signaled with his hand for the knights to sheathe their swords.

“First, let me ask you something. If you had formed an alliance with the Kingdom of Stockholm to strike the north, you would have shared detailed information about the situation in the north. Have you heard about a man named Istvan, who was in communication with Stockholm, taking 40 tribes that followed him and defecting to Stockholm about 2 months ago?”

At those words, Brahe’s expression was neither angry nor affirming, but rather one of surprise, indicating that he was completely unaware and had not heard anything about it.

A diplomat of his caliber could easily feign such expressions even without washing his face upon waking, but from what I saw, there was a slight disturbance in his eyes.

It seemed he truly did not know.

“It might be an obvious story not worth mentioning, but the reason Istvan defected to Stockholm with 40 tribes without any major battle occurring between the Reich Empire and the Kingdom of Stockholm is because I had perfectly resolved the chaotic situation in the north.”

Had another minister or general of the Reich Empire said this, the elderly Minister of Foreign Affairs before me would undoubtedly have doubted the veracity of my statement until his subordinates could confirm it.

Logically, if 40 out of the 170 or so tribes in the north were to suddenly leave, it would mean the loss of about a quarter of the entire northern population and livestock, creating all sorts of gaps.

This would inevitably lead to constant fighting among those left behind.

However, in the north, I was the Khan Slayer, second only to His Imperial Majesty.

So, using the reputation of the Khan Slayer, I personally warned that those who fought over the lands left by those who departed would be killed, and now everyone was living peacefully.

The occasional issue would arise when a chieftain offered his beautiful daughter to become my concubine, lining up for the opportunity.

“It’s surprising that such important information was not shared with Swedia, an ally. Then, you might not know this either. After I, the one who killed the Khan, took command as the Northern Army’s commander, the people of the north began to serve in the imperial army normally. In other words, those living in the north now are completely different from the opportunists you knew, Your Excellency. Had you entered the north without this information, you might have been gravely injured.”

After hearing my story, Minister Brahe nodded and responded.

“All the circumstantial evidence is perfect. Now, I will listen more actively to what you have to say.”

“Let me be frank. There is little to gain for Swedia from consuming our northern territories right now. The reason is that the evil men of Stockholm will attempt to take half of the northern territories acquired in alliance with the Kingdom of Swedia, as per the alliance treaty. Eventually, this would lead to war between the two countries for dominance in the north, and the Kingdom of Swedia, with its smaller population and therefore fewer soldiers, would be at a disadvantage. Therefore, we must punish Stockholm for concocting such schemes now.”

“Punish? And how do you propose we do that?”

At that, I smiled broadly and said,

“There’s a saying I learned back when I was a commoner. Anyone who intends to stab someone in the back must be prepared to have their own head cut off by the other’s sword. Since the King of Stockholm has insulted His Majesty the King of Swedia, isn’t it the duty of his servants to make him pay a hundredfold, a thousandfold for that insult?”