The Plot of the General

Five minutes later, Aunt Dayana and I arrived at the general's tent.

When we entered the tent, we found the general seated at a table while looking at a map.

"You are here." General Liko looked at us and nodded. "Sit down, please."

After we sat down across the general, Aunt Dayana looked at him with a serious expression.

"General, I wonder what you want to talk with us."

"Obviously it's about the recurrent conflicts between the soldiers and your men." The general said coldly. "This situation can't continue like this."

I chuckled softly shook my head. "If I'm not wrong, general. It has been your men who have been seeking trouble with my men since a while ago. From what I can see, everything will be alright if you take better control of your men."

The general glared at me in displeasure, but he did not turn angry.

"Certainly, I can see that. However, I think the root cause behind the conflict is with you."

"Oh? Care you to explain it to me?" I asked.

"It's due to the treatment of your men. Different from the soldiers, the men in your caravan receive much better treatment, with hot food served in each meal instead of military rations and better sleeping arrangements. It's normal if the soldiers feel unjustly treated after seeing that."

I looked at the general and nodded.

In truth, the general is right.

Aunt Dayana, Aunt Sera, Katherine, Lina, Andrea, Ysnay, and the men of Eternity's Fangs are my people. Thus, their accommodations for this trip are paid by me, and I do not mind wasting a lot of money just to make them feel comfortable.

The soldiers, on the other hand, were drafted by the empire, and there are a total of ten thousand of them. There is no way the empire will waste money to give them delicious meals every day. The cost would be astronomical

However–

"Are you telling me it's our fault then?" I asked without hiding the disdain in my accusatory gaze.

Do you think I'm an idiot?

It had been just three days since we left the capital. Even if some of the soldiers are dissatisfied, it's not enough for them to go to blows with my men.

In other words, there is another reason.

Someone was egging them to seek trouble with us.

After all, this regiment is under the control of a general from an enemy faction. If he wants to make a few soldiers seek trouble with my men, it's too easy.

The general frowned, but he did not care about my accusatory gaze and continued shamelessly.

"I fo think it's your fault, your highness. Thus, I hope you take care of this problem. Thinking about it, they are traveling with the regiment, so they should follow the orders of this regiment, right?"

Oh? So that was your goal since the start, huh.

"In your dreams." Aunt Dayana was the one that replied. With a sneer, she stopped the general from speaking anymore. "Do you think we are idiots, General Liko? These men are His Highness Claus's personal men, in charge of his protection. Do you think we will give them to you just like that?"

The general shrugged, obviously already expecting this answer.

Although the purpose of this caravan is to complete the exchange with the Carmell family, in the paper, they were men that came to support me.

Even Rose, Katherine, and Ysnay. They are here as my followers.

And there is nothing the general can do about that.

I'm a prince at the end of the day. He does not have the freedom to order my men even if he is a general.

"I understand your point." The general nodded and said. "But the situation can't continue like this. I hope his highness Claus can find a way to resolve the tension with the soldiers, otherwise, we should follow my suggestion."

I stared at the general for a few seconds before chuckling.

"Why should I?"

"Mm?"

"The soldiers are your men, general, not mine. I don't need to care about what they think. Moreover–" I then grinned and my eyes flashed with an ice-cold light. "If I find another incident like this, I will kill the soldiers causing trouble."

"Prince Claus!"

"What? You don't like that? However, I think they deserve to die if they dare to go against one of the empire's princes."

The general's expression darkened.

"Your highness, I hope you remember I'm the general in charge of this regiment."

"You are. And I'll follow your orders when it comes to the war." I nodded without hesitation, but my voice was still cold. "However, you should remember I'm a prince. And there are some things you can't force me to do."

The general fell silent. He then took a deep breath and nodded.

"I'll remember your words, your highness. You can leave."

I nodded with a smile, stood up, and left the tents. Aunt Dayana followed behind me coldly, not bothering to show any respect at the general at all.

When we left the tent, Aunt Dayana looked at me worriedly.

"… Claus, is it alright?"

I shrugged indifferently. "Don't worry, aunt. He will not dare to do anything overboard yet. More importantly, when are we going to meet with the men of the Carmell family?"

"According to the plan, the regiment will camp near a small town tonight. The men of the Carmell family will wait for us in the outskirts of the town and give us the military supplies in exchange for the money. However–"

"What?"

"I fear they will try to play some tricks on us. Thus, we should go prepared for the worst. You should bring that teacher of yours with us, Claus."

"Do you mean Ysnay?" I asked startled.

"Yes, she. I know she is very powerful so she will be of great help. Speaking about that, I have not seen that woman lately. Where is she?"

I shrugged indifferently. "She must be plotting something strange out there."

Dayana nodded and looked at me weirdly.

"… Claus, why do I have the feeling your relationship with her is strange?"

"Mm?"

"Well… She seems to like you, but you always keep a certain distance from her. That is not like you. You always seduce every pretty woman you meet after all."

… Aunt, what kind of pervert do you think I am?

That is true, though.

What can I do? It's not my fault I'm so charming.

...

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