Chapter 239 - Chapter 232: The Invasion ②
Everyone is surprised by Maximilian's sudden action, and the room falls silent.
"...You and you, tell the soldiers immediately that I, the Lord himself, will stand on the battlefield. Rottenmeier, have my armor and sword prepared! The horse as well!"
Once given instructions by Maximilian, the messenger soldiers and the head maid, perhaps not wanting to remain in the unpleasant atmosphere of the room, left the room as if this were a welcome relief.
"...Julian!"
"Y-yes!?"
Next, Maximilian grabs the shoulder of his failure of a son. Julian answers in a pathetic voice.
"You know the painting of the 'Descent of the Holy Mother' in my office, right? The large painting in the gold frame. There is a hidden safe behind it. The key is a magic tool. If you are of my bloodline, you can open it by cutting your fingertip and applying a bit of blood to the keyhole. There are 20 million Rebro inside... Take that, and flee with your wife and son!"
"B-but, what are we supposed to do on our own... Father, Mother, let's flee together!"
"Tch! ...No!"
While momentarily drawn to Julian's words of "let's flee together," Maximilian glances sideways at Ernst, is glared at by him, and answers.
"You alone shall flee! Now, hurry and get the money from the hidden safe!"
Allowing no rebuttal, he sends Julian out toward the living room. Perhaps anxious about being separated from her husband, the wife follows Julian while holding the baby.
"...Ernst."
"Yes."
Next, Maximilian turns toward Knight Bachelor Ernst Alessandri.
"Escort my son and his family. Outside the territory... no, that is still dangerous. Let them escape to the Royal Capital. As a skilled warrior who also holds the status of a noble, I can entrust the lives of my son's couple and grandson to you with peace of mind."
"...However, I am a soldier serving the House of Count Kivileft, and currently the Vice-Captain of the territorial army. I have a duty to fight to protect this land."
"I beg of you. If I call for others, it will be too late. Right now, in this place, you are the only one I can rely on. If you swear to protect my son... as you say, I shall remain in the territorial capital, Laden."
"...As you wish. Even at the cost of my own life, I shall protect your son, his wife, and your grandson."
"Use any horses or carriages you like. No matter what, my son... go."
After letting Ernst leave and confirming that he has moved away, Maximilian finally turns toward his wife.
"Dietlinde... listen, I told Ernst that, but perhaps we should also fle—"
"No!"
Dietlinde shouts, cutting off her husband's pathetic words.
"Listen! Julian and the others can be smuggled away if you hide them in a cargo wagon or something! But you cannot flee! If the Lord disappears at a time like this, the territorial army soldiers will absolutely notice! If they learn that the Lord abandoned the territory so early, the Kivileft territorial army, which already has low morale, will collapse instantly!"
As she speaks, Dietlinde closes in on Maximilian.
"If that happens, the Betumia forces will trample the entire Count Kivileft territory today or tomorrow. If the enemy's invasion is accelerated because you fled, and Julian and the others are too slow to escape and get captured on the way, what then! You don't want your son and grandson to die, do you! If so, buy time here, even for an hour, even for a single minute longer!"
Told this by Dietlinde, Maximilian thinks.
Even Maximilian finds his own child precious. No matter how much of a failure he is, Julian is his only precious heir. Moreover, he now has a grandson. To be honest, the grandson is more precious than the son. He cannot let the son's couple and the grandson die.
"Besides, you have always abnormally hated being mocked in noble society. To a degree that is appalling to watch from the side... If someone like you abandons the territory and flees early out of a desire for life, and survives, what do you intend to do after that! Do you wish to live miserably while being cursed as a coward, or do you wish to maintain your pride until the end and leave your name as a splendid noble!?"
"...I, ...uuu, I..."
Asked this, Maximilian trembles and agonizes.
Affection for his son and grandson. Pride as a noble. And the fear of death. Various emotions swirl in his head.
"If you flee here, that hateful bastard child will mock you more than ever. Such days will continue for the rest of your life. Do you want to spend your remaining years like that and then die!? Do you want to cling to such a life!?"
At Dietlinde's words, Maximilian snaps his head up.
To end his life while being mocked to the extreme by that Noein. That is unacceptable. He absolutely cannot accept such a life.
"...I am your wife. The Countess of Kivileft. If you fall here for the lives of your son and grandson, and for your own pride, then naturally I shall accompany you."
Dietlinde, who had been pressing Maximilian, smiled gently for the first time.
"...I understand. I will not flee. I will fight without fleeing. I will fight and save the lives of my son and grandson... and I shall carve a noble end that no one will mock for generations to come!"
"Well said! That is the husband I know!"
Just as Maximilian spoke his resolve, his armaments were brought into the room.
.....
"F-Father... Mother..."
"Stop that whimpering already. After Dietlinde and I are gone, you will become the head of the House of Kivileft."
"You are a sweet, honest boy, Julian. But from now on, you must also be strong. With that purity and strength, protect your family and the Kivileft bloodline."
Maximilian and Dietlinde speak to Julian, who continues to cry on the verge of tears at this place of final parting.
Julian is wearing clothes that are well-made but plain, so as not to be recognized as a member of a great noble house. The wife standing beside him is the same.
"Bridget, my son is a pathetic fool as you can see, but please stay by his side."
"Support each other and live on, you two."
"Father-in-law, Mother-in-law... I-I understand."
The wife spoken to by the two—Bridget Kivileft—is crying just as much as Julian. Her features are on the beautiful side, but that is ruined by being covered in tears and nasal mucus.
"...Ernst. I leave the rest to you. When you leave, use the hidden gate at the back of the mansion that leads directly outside of Laden. The gates within the territorial capital will likely be crowded with fleeing citizens."
"Yes."
When Maximilian asks, Knight Bachelor Ernst Alessandri, clad in equipment that is of high quality but looks tattered, nods. Behind him, two young territorial army soldiers disguised as commoners were preparing a large two-horse cargo wagon.
Next, Maximilian looks back at the head maid who has served the House of Count Kivileft for many years. She, too, will flee along with Julian and Ernst.
"...Rottenmeier. You have served me well until now. From now on, please assist my son."
"It will be a burden for you again, but I leave Julian to you."
"Master, Madam... as you wish. I shall serve Master Julian with all my heart and soul. Thank you for everything over these many years."
The head maid bowed, her expression remaining largely unchanged as usual.
Two soldiers dressed as commoners and the head maid. And Ernst, who intentionally wore shabby equipment. With this lineup, they would look like a merchant family fleeing Laden with their luggage and the mercenaries hired as their guards. If Julian and the others are hidden in the wagon's cargo bed, no one would think that the Lord's heir couple and the legitimate grandson are escaping.
"Now, go... Live, Julian."
"I will love you forever, Julian."
Finally, hugging their son and kissing the grandson's forehead, Maximilian and Dietlinde sent Julian and the others away.
After watching the wagon carrying Julian and the others disappear behind the mansion, they turn around.
"...When I woke up this morning, I never thought today would be the last day of my life."
The grumbling Maximilian is already wearing his armor. The silver-white armor, so expensive that this single piece could buy a small manor, cannot avoid the feeling that the armor is wearing the man, as the wearer is Maximilian, who has not even done combat training for years.
Due to navigation and shipbuilding technology, trade between the two countries took the form of the Betumia side visiting unilaterally, and the Kingdom of Roadberg only occasionally sent envoys by hitching a ride on Betumia's ships. This year, after summer began, the Royal Family sent an ambassador to express gratitude for food exports, but due to the distance to the Betumia capital, they have not yet returned. In this situation, it is doubtful if they are even alive.
There had been no conflict with Betumia for over 100 years, and the last time an envoy brought back information from their mainland was in the late autumn of last year. That even the Royal Family would not have predicted that Betumia would prepare and launch a surprise attack in less than a year.
"True. But compared to that damn concubine who croaked from a plague while screaming 'I don't want to die yet,' this is a hundred times better way to die."
Dietlinde, who answers, is also wearing a silver-white breastplate over her shirt, a slash-resistant cloak over her shoulders, and even a helmet. Maximilian did not know when she had made armor and a helmet for herself.
Both the breastplate and helmet are adorned with needlessly exquisite decorations, and they do not look like practical items at all. Her nouveau riche taste is in full display. However, Dietlinde, who is far more dignified than her husband, had a flashy and reliable presence while wearing them.
"...Shall we go?"
"Yes. Let us go."
Two warhorses, fitted with tack by territorial army soldiers, are brought over. Maximilian and Dietlinde each mounted those warhorses.