The first thing the Emperor saw when he arrived near the door of the conference hall was the nobles rushing out, grumbling but seeming to understand.
Anyone could see that it looks like the meeting has been abandoned.
'... What.'
Even though he'd gotten through it well so far, he thought it wouldn't be easy this time.
They hadn't seen him yet. The Emperor secretly hid behind a nearby pillar to assess the situation. He leaned back against the wall, folded his arms, and listened to their words.
As he concentrated a little, he began to hear the content vividly.
"Since His Excellency said so, I will believe it and wait for now."
"Thank you for saying that."
There was nothing more to hear. As soon as the Emperor heard that conversation, he was convinced.
'The Duke did something.'
He must have persuaded the nobles.
The Emperor frowned.
'... I don't understand.'
The reason the Duke helped him was for the sake of the Empire.
Because the Imperial throne can only be taken if the Empire survives.
However, in anyone's eyes, the killing of the troops was an action that put the Empire in jeopardy. The Duke he knew would have been right to push himself to the forefront instead of stopping them.
While he was lost in thought, all the nobles had left and the Duke, who was left alone in the hallway, was striding towards him. He didn't know when he discovered him, but when he finally stood in front of the Emperor, he placed his hand on his chest and bowed slightly.
"Glory to the Empire. Duke Stave Illuster meets the present-day Empire."
"... Yes."
The suppressed voice returned, as if to hide his complicated feelings. The Duke straightened his back and faced the Emperor.
"I heard that the Margrave Amiable evacuated the people of the Empire on all routes to the Capitol while he held out at Miller. Not only that, they even took the nobles and troops."
"He did."
"... There are rumors going around that the Emperor has finally gone crazy."
The voice was very low, but it was enough to reach the Emperor's ears.
"There's a lot of talk about the karma we've accumulated so far."
The Emperor chuckled at the unfiltered remarks. Every moment, whenever the sun rose, a gentle atmosphere descended.
He was sure that's a joke. The Duke's eyes narrowed.
"Maybe so."
A drowsy voice came out.
He was definitely not sure he was sane anymore.
As he held on to reason that was fading at every moment, he now questioned whether what he was holding onto was really reason, and as he saw what others could not see, he now began to wonder if they are blind.
Clearly the Emperor was going crazy.
"So, I need to finish the matter quickly."
"... If Your Majesty is truly crazy and makes the wrong decision, please remember that there are many people around you who will bring you down."
"Don't worry. I have no intention of showing my ugly face."
If he truly believes that he could not maintain reason, he will end this life himself before he is dragged down by someone else's hands.
'Ah. This.'
He thought he knew what the Emperor was thinking. The Duke, facing the Emperor's proud smile, fell silent for a moment.
His expression hardened for a moment before he bowed down with a steady smile on his face as if he had never done that before.
"Then I will trust you and wait."
Even though 10 years have passed.
The Duke still respected the Emperor's free will.
***
That's what h said, but that doesn't mean he had any intention of just giving up and waiting. Until now, there has never been a time when he completely let go.
'I have to try everything I can.'
Since he didn't have many cards to begin with, what he could do was limited. At best, was it possible to suppress opposition from the nobles or use the Salvation Church?
Therefore, the Duke worked hard to gather information in order to create at least one more attack. He put so much effort into collecting information that the previous information collection felt like a joke, and like a tree growing branches, the information he collected became more and more extensive and eventually reached the mysterious kingdom of Esperanes, which was the only one that did not participate in the alliance.
And as if his efforts had paid off, he was able to notice one important fact.
'Esperanes is a mercenary nation.'
Esperanes was the oldest kingdom that has stood firm while numerous kingdoms have emerged and fallen.
Since it was a closed kingdom and there was no kingdom older than Esperanes, there was very little information about it, but after searching through old books, more useful information than expected came out.
'The Esperanes are a fighting people.'
They were characterized by silver-colored hair and eyes, and even children are said to have strong warlike tendencies.
And like a closed kingdom, instead of bringing in outsiders to receive mercenary requests, they dispatch intermediaries to each region of each kingdom to communicate with each other, build an information network that is superior to any other information guild, and receive requests. .
'In fact, it can be said that running the largest information guild on the continent is their main job.'
In history, there were only a handful of times when Esperanes received an official request for mercenaries from other countries, so he had to search through old books for a long time.
Of course, there are few precedents for sending mercenaries, and it seems that running an information guild has become their main business, but Esperanes is clearly a mercenary country, and the reason it sends people out in the first place is to receive mercenary requests.
'It was said that a child born between a foreigner and an Esperanian would not have 'silver' features. In other words, the real 'Esperanese', the silver-colored people found outside Esperanes, regardless of appearance, gender, age, or occupation, are all brokers who come out to receive requests.'
The Duke stuck his head out the window and urged the coachman.
Because he heard the news that the Margrave Amiable had fallen and the Demon King's Army was advancing at an alarming speed, he could not relax at all. At this rate, they would reach the Capitol in no time.
That's why he needed to request troops to stop them. It may be expensive, but it doesn't matter because it's so reliable.
The Duke found confidence in the emperor's attitude.
"We're here."
"..."
As he opened the door and stepped down the carriage steps, an eerily quiet mansion came into view. The Duke was momentarily puzzled by the gate without a gatekeeper. Marquis Hardt's residence. No, he couldn't call it the 'Marquis's residence' any more. Deon Hardt was no longer an Honorary Marquis.
As he was wondering for a moment how to post a message since there was no one there, someone walked out from far away inside the mansion.
"It's been a long time since we've had a guest. I would like to take you to the drawing room, but unfortunately the current owner of the mansion is out of town. Please plan your next visit."
A calm voice and attitude.
An old man with graying silver-blue hair bowed his silver-blue eyes and greeted him politely. The Duke calmly looked into the old man's silver eyes.
"I came to see you, not the owner of the mansion. Remember."
"... Is that so."
Esperanes' broker Remember smiled kindly.
"I think it's going to be quite a long story. I am not the owner of the mansion, but I will have to take care of it within a moment. You could say it's the Deacon's authority."
"..."
"Follow me."
A huge iron door opened by the old man's hand.
As the Duke entered, he remembered Remember's attitude, showing no signs of surprise or hesitation at the sudden visit and remarks, and then looked around, secretly admiring the neat and tidy mansion, even though the only person there seemed to be a butler.
Then, suddenly, his eyes caught the back of the talented butler.
"If you want to kill me, I won't stop you. I have an escort."
"... I know. It says in the book that Esperanes' intermediaries take an escort with them when they leave the kingdom."
"Yes, if your guard dies, you can request a new guard from your home office or branch."
"I didn't even mean to look at it that way in the first place."
He just had the foolish thought of making him the Duke's butler if he could.
"I know."
"...?"
"It was a joke, but it doesn't seem like it was fun."
"..."
The joke that made the listener's heart sink was not very good, but it didn't offend him because the quick notice of his gaze convinced him that he was a fighting person.
If the old broker is like that, then what is the level of the escort and how many mercenaries are dispatched?
He didn't care that Remember had once been Deon Hardt's butler. Esperanes' complete bystander attitude was clearly realized while researching the information. It was probably just one of many undercover jobs, and it was unfortunate that Deon Hardt became a traitor to humanity.
'In the first place, it's not my place to discuss that right now.'
Before he knew it, they had arrived at the reception room.
The Duke, who was sitting at the table and following the old man's actions with his eyes, could not wait any longer and opened his mouth.
"I would like to request mercenaries."
"You're in a hurry. I'm making tea, so please relax a little."
Despite his blunt remarks, the old man leisurely put the kettle on the fire without showing any emotion.
The Duke, who was silent for a moment as if he was somehow avoiding an answer, slowly opened his mouth.
"... I know that if the Empire that attempted to occupy Esperanes, it would be scandalized. Even if we ask for support and talk about the survival of the human world, it won't work."
Throughout history, this could not be the first time a crisis has struck the human world. Even then, Esperanes stood on the sidelines, and will continue to do so in the future.
Therefore, it was impossible to persuade them with logic.
The Duke slowly stood up. He said this to Remember, who was concentrating on the kettle without turning around, even though he must have sensed all the pressure.
"I will give you money comfortably, so please help me."
"..."
"... I have someone to protect."
This was a strategy after all.
He's just doing this because it's easy for him to get mercenaries, and there's no sincerity in his remarks. There was no way he would bow his head for someone. This was just for his future, for the Empire.
... Okay, that's it.
Remember stopped and slowly looked back. Silver-blue eyes checked the other person and grew unusually large.
A man who had never bowed his head to anyone other than the Emperor was bowing his head.
... For the survival of Esperanes, it would be right not to interfere, but...
'I'm old, too.'
Remember smiled as if in self-deprecation and set down the teacup on the Duke's side of the table.
"Please sit down first."
"..."
"The tea will get cold. Don't let this old man's hard work go to waste. Please sit down quickly."
Only then did the Duke sit down. Remember sat across from him and waited for the other person to calm down. Basically, dispatched brokers have a fairly free radius of action. If you can only access a certain number of people, the job you choose for camouflage will not be severely restricted, and you can freely help someone or interfere somewhere, and you can also choose to accept or refuse a request.
If only one premise is kept.
'Do not harm the existence of the Kingdom of Esperanes.'
It was very obvious, but at the same time, it was difficult to keep.
This was also the reason why mercenaries were rarely dispatched from Esperanes in history.
Usually, requests for mercenaries were made by kingdoms that were close to defeat. However, if they supported with mercenaries, the opposing nation that had pushed the kingdom to the edge would point their sword at them as well, so Esperanes rarely moved unless they calculated that they could win by sending mercenaries.
'Currently, the Demon World does not care about Esperanes.'
It is just a very small kingdom surrounded by rugged mountains that did not participate in the war or participate in the alliance.
Even if the human world were to be swallowed up by any chance, it would not have a significant impact on Esperanes.
The loss was too great compared to the gain of a small kingdom while cutting through difficult terrain. So, if they just stayed still as if nothing happened, Esperanes would survive... but the client in front of him was lucky.
'You came looking for me.'