#402 Pitiful Feudal Lord

I am Osennim, Lord of Grandburg, and I will be the new king of the Human Kingdom!

My late mother was the beloved daughter of a king.

Although she lost her royalty status by marrying into my father’s family, she still had noble blood in her veins.

And that bloodline has been passed down to me.

In other words, I am also qualified to ascend the throne!

Of course, in times of peace, it would be sinful to even hope for such a thing.

I should serve as a retainer, a servant of the royal family.

But! That revered royalty is no more!

Every last one of them has been executed at the hands of the evil Demon King’s Army! ...Probably!

If so, I have no choice but to stand up for myself, no matter how weak my bloodline is.

...Alas, I have been unable to put these thoughts into action for about two years.

I mean, I’m not sure I can win even if I start a revolt.

The demons are powerful. As big as our territory may be, they aren’t an opponent a feudal lord can fight with his army.

Moreover, at the moment, their occupation and rule are very generous.

Cheap taxes, hospitable care. The human race, lulled by such kindness, is saying, “It’s better to be ruled by the demons!” or “I don’t want to go back to the days when the royalty and the Order domineered!”

If I can’t match them with a decent army and can’t expect support from the people, I can’t win.

After two years of calmly analyzing the situation, I perceived now was not the time and ostensibly remained submissive.

Just when my ambition was about to die and accept things as they were, a messenger from the Order came.

The Order is a powerful organization that once ruled the Human Kingdom together with the royal family.

They were destroyed by the demon’s invasion long ago... Or rather, they fled before they could get attacked.

That’s why there are survivors.

They survived by staying underground.

“...Lord Osennim of Grandburg, you are a man of patriotism. A vessel of our era’s leader.”

The messenger who had secretly crept into my mansion saw through my true nature.

You think so, too? I mean, right? Don’t I deserve to be the future king?!

“Now is the time to stand up. The people worship the demons on the outside, but their true intentions are the opposite. They dream of returning to the proud era of the human race.”

I wonder about that...

The populace is accepting the demon’s rule because they’re fine with it. They seem genuinely happy to see the return of natural mana and cleaner governance.

“You’re so ambitious, yet you analyze the situation so dispassionately.”

Huh? Did you say something?

“No, it’s okay. We, the Monastic Rebellion, will support you behind the scenes.”

What kind of nonsensical name is that?

“It is a resistance formed by the brave warriors of the Order who escaped from the clutches of the army. Blessed by the god Zeus, with us on their side, victory is as good as yours...”

Huh? But didn’t the Order flee during the demon’s invasion?

It’s good to have many allies, but not with those who might run away at the critical moment.

“Damn it... You’re indeed an old raccoon who has survived these turbulent times.”

Is it just me, or has his tongue been pretty harsh?

Hmm, on second thought, it’s too risky to join forces with you guys, so I think I’ll pass for now.

There will come a time when I will be king!

“Oh, shut it! If this happens, I’ll use my thaumaturgy to control your mind!”

What?!

“It’s useless on someone with no evil intentions at all, but it’s enough for you who have hidden ambitions! No need to think about all the fussy details! Just go ahead with your foolish wishes.”

***

All right, let’s get this revolt started, shall we?

Wait, why did I start this again?

“To put the hammer down on the wicked demon army and the foolish people who follow him.”

Oh, right!

You’re my trusted confidant and a messenger from the Monastic Rebellion!

That’s a cool name!

“Indeed, it is. Now, sire, let us light the beacon of restoration from your territory. If an influential figure like you can make a move, I’m sure other feudal lords and bureaucrats will respond. Or even some of the more powerful members of the Adventurers’ Guild.”

Hahaha, cut the sweet talk.

But more allies are always better. We shall issue a written appeal to all the feudal lords in the Human Kingdom.

“A wise decision. With this, the nation’s revival will be realized.”

And so, I wrote a lot of letters and sent them.

I got varied replies back.

[Oh, Lord of Grandburg. I didn’t anticipateyou to be so foolish.]

The first one felt like a huge punch in the face.

[The conqueror’s ironclad rule is to exterminate all royal blood relatives. But the generous Demon King’s Army didn’t condemn anyone unless they were pure royalty and even allowed you to hold an important position. Your act is a betrayal of the army’s benevolence.]

You don’t have to say it loud and clear.

[I’m also a maternal relative of the royals, but I was permitted to be a feudal lord. In order to save the lives of other lords, I will be sure to have your head on my hands, so be prepared.]

This is, to put it mildly, a declaration of war.

Why are they picking a fight in response to a letter asking for cooperation?

Other replies were full of harsh words such as ‘rebel,’ ‘traitor,’ ‘not worthy of living,’ and ‘we’ll kill you ourselves.’

It breaks my heart.

To top it all off, even my son, whom I have given up to the occupation office...

[If you revolt while I’m taken hostage, you’ve basically abandoned me. Just you wait; I’ll be back to give you hell.] he wrote. [P.S. I handed your letter to the governor-general. Suck on that.]

The Demon King’s Army will find out about my plan!

What has this stupid son of mine done?!

[That’s my line, stupid father.]

Don’t respond in a letter as if you’ve predicted my reaction!

“We cannot let this happen. Let’s mobilize our troops and prepare for battle. We are racing against time now.”

Y-Yeah.

“The city of Mercade is one of the largest walled fortress cities in the world. If we were to assume a siege, they won’t be able to defeat us for years. In the meantime, the main roads in the nation would be cut off, paralyzing transportation.”

Right.

The damage to the demon army would be immeasurable...!

“I have already deployed our men in various parts of the city and taken the commanders’ families hostage. They will not disobey our orders by any chance. Your orders, please. Declare the holy war to take back the sacred Human Kingdom from the demons!”

Wh-What terrific execution...

All right, time to declare war!!!

***

The day after the declaration, the city of Mercade was completely surrounded.

The battle formation was a mixed force consisting of vigilante corps led by the neighboring feudal lords and demon troops.

“...They sure were quick to intercept.”

“Isn’t it because you carelessly sent out all those letters?”

Oh, drats...

But you suggested we need more allies.

Surprisingly, though, no one came on board.

“We have no choice but to struggle on our own. Even without reinforcements, you have this impregnable fortress city! Let’s fight here for years until we run out of steam!”

We can’t really do that, can we?

I won’t be king anymore.

No, wait, why did I want to be king again?

Just as I was about to remember something important, something happened.

“Sire! Enemy reinforcements!”

“Don’t worry about it. Reinforcements will keep coming. Overreacting at everything won’t get you far in life.”

“I understand, sire, but the reinforcements that showed up this time are different...!”

Strange?

What’s that supposed to mean?

“An entire castle has come to attack us!”

What?!