?"What are they needed for?" Charlotte inquire.
He shrugged, "Well, let's just say to make the conflict more interesting. Since I had a deal with Naharog, I definitely want them to win but an easy win won't entertain me. Moving on, how many spies do we have in Napuna?"
"There are ten of them. Are you going to make a big move? If so, I'll send more there though I doubt all of them will manage to sneak in. Recently, the security there is tight."
Riz waved his hand, "Nothing big at all. I just want to have them deliver a letter to a friend for me and do some menial tasks."
"Letter? Friend?" Charlotte frowns. Her memory found no information about that topic, "As far as I know, you don't have one."
"..." After a moment of silence, he finally starts to talk again. "I do have a friend...I think. Nevertheless, this matter is not your concern. Here, take this paper and write the menial tasks I'm about to say. Then, pass it to your agent at Napuna."
....
"One part is done. Another one left." He sighed tiredly.
Riz leans back in his chair and stares blankly at the ceiling as he is waiting for William to arrive. In response to the agreement made with Naharog, Riz needs to hold a deal on his side.
While at it, he recalled Charlotte's words. "Friends, huh? How could I forget?"
It is a lie to say he doesn't get affected by her words. He's aware that she didn't mean to insult him. He never thought of making friends in this world.
Ever since he came to this world, his day has never gone away with peace and he is always busy.
After he establishes ministries to assist him in governance, his workload decreases but it never means that he is free of worries. The amount of worries keeps increasing every day.
To say he is a person that doesn't appreciate friendship is a lie.
In fact, Riz is someone who treasures every friendship he has formed. He remembers all their names and the memories they have been through together.
Unfortunately, he's the only one who thought so.
To his friends, he is just a passerby in their life. Not even worth remembering. He realizes his definition of a friend is all wrong and unfit with time.
Therefore, he sought to change it.
Now, a friend to him is someone you can exploit to achieve a higher level. Like bricks that he lays down and arranges before stepping on them.
He knows this kind of thinking is skewed but he doesn't care.
No more making friends out of sincerity.
Only benefits matter to him.
*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*
His eyes flickered toward the door. An expected knocking sound indicates the arrival of his war and defence minister.
"Come in, William."
William opened the door but he was taken aback for a moment. The eyes of the king in front of him are a bit colder than it usually is.
He asked, "What's wrong? Why are you standing still over there?"
"Ah! N-Nothing, Your Majesty. My apologies." He quickly takes a seat. "What do you need me for, Your Majesty?"
Right off the bat, Riz went to the point as usual, "How confident do you think our military is to capture Manfura?"
William instinctively stood up, "Your Majesty! Are you thinking of conquering Manfura Viscounty?"
"Calm down. Nothing is set in stone yet. We're talking about probability here." Riz reassured his minister.
William sits back caress about his subtle beard. "Hmm...Considering our firepower and the size of the city, deploying one regiment is sufficient to take them down. May I ask you for this sudden idea?"
His king is adamant on the idea of going to war with Inver. Needless to say, William himself is extremely busy overseeing the supply of weapons to the western military base. In which has become the basis of Riz advocating a peaceful approach.
Then, the king suddenly talked about capturing Manfura. If war occurs, he needs to redirect the supply for the western base to prioritize the east side.
"You see...I made a deal with Naharog. When they're going to attack Napuna, we'll keep Viscount Michael busy. After all, he is a loyal dog of Nicholas. When the news of the attack on Napuna reaches him, I can guarantee he'll rush to help in a heartbeat. In return for our help, they're willing to cede Manfura to us."
After hearing Riz's explanation, William raised his concern. "That's the case if Naharog succeeds. Won't we get dragged into the conflict if the opposite outcome happens?"
"Do you think I'll let it happen when the stake on our side is high? I've arranged everything in order to achieve my desired result. And you're part of it." Riz confidently said.
William's eyes widened in realization. He completely forgets Riz is the type of person that will use any deceitfulness and trickery possible.
It's petty and dishonourable.
However, William had long gotten used to it.
"What do you want me to do, Your Majesty?"
"Deploy a regiment to Manfura and cut off all of their routes. Ask them for peaceful surrender first before resorting to a violent option. Avoid uselessly wasting ammunition."
"How long will this operation take?"
"It depends on Naharog's success in capturing Napuna. I estimated it to be five to seven days."
"If we chose the violence way, it might finish in a day without breaking a sweat," suggested William.
"I bet you're right. But then, it'll leave a bad impression on Michael which will cause a hassle to convince him to work for me."
"Do you want him to work for you?" William asked. The king he knows never gives mercy to his enemy.
Although Michael never participated in direct confrontation with Ryntum. They all know who instigated the barons to betray Richard during the conflict with the Noble Coalition.
Seeing the surprised face, Riz sighs. "I know what you're thinking, William. We are lacking talented personnel that are well-versed in administration and have leadership skills. Don't you agree?"
"Absolutely, we're the first to implement your system after all. It requires competent workers but it's understandable. I personally have no problem with him. Viscount Michael has no bad history and his conduct is good for someone with noble status. It'll waste to let him keep living in the dark. The only problem is he is too loyal to Nicholas."
Riz snorted, "His loyalty will soon perish along with Nicholas I. His son is getting impatient to sit on the throne."
"Is this your doing as well?"
Riz shakes his head, "Sorry to disappoint you, this time I have no involvement. It's a natural course of human behaviour. Enough chatting, who is going to lead the regiment? It can't be you, right? The Ministry of War and Defense need you to be in office."
"Of course, not. I have a lot to do. The one that I have is Levi Owen." William gives a name.
Riz wrinkles his face, trying to remember the figure of the said person, "Levi...Levi...Oh! It's him, huh? The previous commander of Mabadszent. I can't believe he joined the military. How is his performance?"
"Satisfactory. His previous experience helped him a lot in mock battles and training. I've had my eye on him for a while now."
"If you say so..."
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l