Chapter 96: Dragged Along With A Star (2)
Reich Empire Palace, Grand Council Room.
Here, the Emperor along with the military leaders and heads of various administrative departments, were seated, preparing for a meeting.
Today’s difference from the usual merit discussion meetings was that each desk had a glass of top-quality wine on it.
“Finally, that Ludwig is dead. Preparing for war almost broke our finance department, but now we don’t have to worry about spending money on them anymore.”
“Count Benner has made significant contributions. We expected a victory, but never imagined that with only about 5,000 casualties, he’d kill 35,000 barbarians and capture 10,000 warriors.”
“Moreover, there are over 400,000 prisoners, and countless livestock! It’s a victory that will go down in history!”
No one here was drunk yet, the issues at hand were significant, and the main meeting hadn’t even started, yet the atmosphere was already lively.
“The only sun of the Reich Empire and the proxy of Deus, His Majesty Fernando von Reich, enters!”
At that announcement, everyone at the meeting stood up at once to pay respects, and the Emperor, maintaining his dignity, spoke with a voice full of joy.
“Everyone, please take your seats.”
After everyone was seated, the Empire’s Chancellor started the merit distribution meeting by striking a wooden gavel three times at the Emperor’s signal.
“In this war, by His Majesty’s special command, the top three merits will be discussed regardless of rank. Let’s start with the first merit holder, Heintz von Benner, Your Majesty.”
“Proceed.”
“Firstly, Commander Benner of the Northern Army not only maintained continuous supply for an expeditionary force of 70,000 but also achieved victory in the major war of subjugating Ludwig, securing hundreds of thousands of prisoners and the entire Copenhagen Peninsula. The rest is so evident that it need not be discussed.”
After that, everyone, including the Emperor, submitted their thoughts on appropriate rewards, and after about 30 minutes of discussion,
“Count Heintz von Benner is awarded the entire territory of the Countship of Alsace, 50,000 gold as a reward, the right to include the golden lion symbolizing the royal family in his house’s coat of arms, the Diamond Sword Cross decoration, and the Northern Conquest Medal. Considering his and his family’s contributions to the nation, he is elevated to a duke.”
The Diamond Sword Cross decoration was an award chosen as the final step towards becoming a Marshal, the highest rank in the imperial army, and the Countship of Alsace was among the top ten wealthiest territories in the Empire.
Furthermore, the title of duke was the highest attainable title for an imperial noble, so among the hundreds of titled families, there were only seven ducal families.
Thus, despite the factional struggles, a situation arose that could express concerns to the Emperor.
This was because he was able to prevent the danger to the empire’s already diplomatically and militarily unfavorable position, surrounded by several countries, by successfully subjugating Ludwig in the north.
Everyone merely cleared their throats, unable to openly express opposition.
“Now, it’s the turn of the second merit holder, Colonel Peter Yaeger, commander of the 24th Regiment.”
At this, an invisible political battle began among those supporting other princes.
Those belonging to the faction supporting the Crown Prince thought,
‘That guy is a troublemaker, but if he makes my son look bad by comparison, it’s my son who’s the fool. So, it’s better to promote him quickly to strengthen His Highness’s position. That way, my son can also benefit from him.’
On the other hand, those backing the second and third princes thought,
‘The Emperor’s health is already poor. So, we must delay Yaeger’s promotion as much as possible without harming national interests. If he becomes a brigadier general and leads a division, who knows what kind of unbelievable achievements he might make?’
“While Ludwig and the imperial army were locked in fierce combat, he deployed his soldiers as a division, deceiving the enemy, and attacked the enemy’s central infantry, turning the tide of the battle. When Ludwig’s archer cavalry charged in a wedge formation towards the 7th Regiment of the 12th Division, facing annihilation, he rallied 200 retreating knights, combining them with his own knight battalion to muster 300 knights, breaking the momentum of Ludwig’s archer cavalry.”
Hearing this, every minister internally wondered, ‘Why can’t my son in the army do the same?’
Now the well-known content has been announced.
“According to the General Staff’s analysis of the battle report, the colonel’s decision caused the enemy to completely miss the opportunity to turn the tide, reducing our casualties by at least 4,000, up to more than 10,000. And as the commander of the 24th Regiment, he took up his sword and personally subdued Khan.”
Upon hearing this report, Fernando, as the Emperor of the Reich, paid tribute to him for killing Khan, who, if left unchecked, would have troubled the Reich Empire for decades.
The rest of the ministers and military leadership also responded with applause; indeed, they had no choice but to do so.
Frankly, the General Staff deploying as many as 70,000 troops was a concern for all diplomats and generals, thinking, What if Ludwig had established a nation in the north…?
Surrounded by Fran?ois in the west, Chekovia and the Kingdom of Warshaw in the east, and the Napolya Federation and the Grand Duchy of Ostrika in the south…
It would mean the emergence of another formidable enemy.
On the other hand, the Emperor appreciated the fact that, due to the efforts of Commander Benner and Colonel Yaeger, a potential enemy nation in the north was not established.
Further, the Emperor expressed satisfaction, thinking that the Crown Prince’s era could realize the overwhelming imperial authority many emperors had dreamt of, thanks to the efforts of two individuals considered the swords of the Crown Prince.
“Discuss the rewards for Colonel Yaeger.”
As the Minister of Military Affairs was about to respond, a chancellor belonging to the faction of the second prince raised his hand and thought,
‘Given the situation, the only limit we can impose is to slightly slow down his promotion, using precedence as an excuse. He has already decapitated Khan… Besides, he is bound to gain vast lands, wealth, and power.’
“In the approximately 200 years since the empire’s foundation, there has been no case of a man under 30 being promoted to general, except for those from ducal families succeeding their houses.”
Of course, those dukes, a rare exception, were great people who, irrespective of their status, were posthumously regarded as renowned commanders and heroes of the empire.
“Even compared to such individuals, Baron Yaeger’s achievements are in no way lacking. Moreover, he has already made significant contributions by preventing potential defeats or averting massive losses several times. Therefore, it seems acceptable to break the existing convention in his case.”
At this point, everyone’s attention was focused, and the chancellor continued,
“Thus, promoting him to major general is in the interest of the Reich Empire. However, I think it is not good for a very young man to rapidly rise in rank due to a single battle. Please keep this in mind.”
It was an irrefutable truth, and everyone, including the Emperor, had no choice but to agree.
Because, aside from those who were exceptions for succeeding the heads of ducal families, breaking a convention that had been insurmountable was in itself a reason for Peter Yaeger to be highly esteemed.
“The Chancellor’s words are correct. Therefore, we will promote Colonel Yaeger to Major General. In recognition of his achievement in killing Khan, we elevate his title to viscount. He will be granted the territories of T?ner, Grasten, and the entirety of the Rosenheim barony, along with a reward of 30,000 gold. Additionally, for decapitating Khan, we will specially bestow upon him the Golden Knight Sword decoration.”
The Emperor granted a promotion, vast lands, title, and reward, yet no one could oppose it.
Because any further argument would be futile, as it would only belittle the commander who personally killed Khan and led the victory in the war.
“I am Otto Moritz, Minister of Military Affairs. I have a request for Your Majesty.”
At this, the Emperor looked at his favored Minister of Military Affairs, who had been called the protector of the empire during his active military service.
“Speak.”
“Since last April, upon learning that the Reich Empire was troubled by Ludwig, the Fran?ois Republic has consistently provoked us, resulting in the loss of many villages, fields, and peasants on the eastern border, haven’t we?”
Indeed, while attention was focused on the north, substantial losses were incurred due to the relatively less threatening Fran?ois during that period.
Although, thanks to the thin pretext of shared Deus faith, there weren’t many cases of peasants being killed.
The number of displaced people who lost all their assets was nearly in the hundreds of thousands, and had the northern conquest failed, the inability to settle these displaced people could have led many to become vagrants.
Of course, they responded to the provocations, but proper revenge had not yet been achieved…
“It seems the time has come to contest even those nobles who can only debate among themselves.”
“We must confront the Fran?ois Republic. Recently, Major General Yaeger’s lecture at the Staff College, ‘What is War?’, greatly resonated with me. Therefore, please assign Major General Yaeger to the General Staff to assist in planning the invasion of Fran?ois.”
Upon hearing this, the Emperor said,
“A good idea. Proceed as such. Now, let’s start the next merit distribution. Let’s see… To the Northern Army’s Deputy Commander, Major General Nordenburk, we grant the baronies of Cheils and Tolen, and a reward of 15,000 gold…”
Thus, on that day, Count Benner became a candidate for the next Marshal, and Major General Yaeger exhibited the miracle of breaking the empire’s convention.
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