---
Meanwhile, at one of the port cities, on the Western coast of the Eldorion Empire, a young man with glasses and black hair can be seen on the beach.
Seeing the setting sun, which illuminated the entire beach, a young man can be seen reading a mystery book, underneath the coconut tree.
*snap
Without any unnecessary moment, he closed the book and stood up.
*swoosh
A figure clad in black appeared. Seeing him, the man with the book said, "It's been a while, kid, hope you're doing well. "
The figure, about 15 years old, replied instantly, " Was doing well before the territorial war started."
Saying that the man revealed his face and bowed his head.
"Father requested your help. "He said, with a sincere tone.
" Help? From me? I am just a failure, someone who has lost his Sun." The Young man said, while looking at the setting sun. His face was calm, but his eyes were anything but calm.
Drowning in self-hate, the young man was suppressing his grief, trying to leave behind the life he once dreamed of.
" You are the only one who can help Father in dealing with the current problem. The Internal skirmishes may soon develop into a full-scale war between both sides. Other countries will take advantage of this and, once again, plunge the Empire into war. "The boy said, letting his words sink in.
" Now the center is weaker than ever. If other countries invade, then we cannot hope to get help from the Capital. The factions won't help us, I suspect, one of them is behind this mess as well. "Boy said. Continuing,
" All of the things that the late Crown Prince and his followers achieved would be for naught."
Hearing that, the man closed his eyes and clenched his fists. With a breath, he said,
" Dynir, I have left behind that life. I am now married and expecting a kid." The man said to the boy, who is now revealed to be Dynir
"Congratulations, but Father had known you would be stubborn, so he told me to pass on this message. " Dynir said as he handed the man a letter.
"For the old sake, I hope you will return to help your friend," Dynir said, before continuing,
"After all, you were once called the greatest intellectual genius of the Empire, and the chief of staff of His Highness Crown Prince, Vinfred Triston. " Dynir revealed the identity.
Reading the letter, Vinfred fell into a deep thought. Giving him his space, Dynir patiently waited for him to finish.
"Fine. I'll go. " Vinfred said.
"Let me tell my wife about it. "
"Alright, will be waiting for you. "
---
(Vinfred Triston Pov)
Looking at the letter, the memories I had forgotten-no-no-, buried deep down, had emerged.
I was born as the eldest son of a small aristocrat of the Eldorion Empire. The rank was a baronet.
The Tristan clan was formerly just a member of the imperial knights but was able to rise to the rank of baronet thanks to their valor.
Initially, my father had high hopes for me as his eldest son.
To raise the clan's rank, the quickest way would be by doing meritorious deeds in combat. To rise higher than a baronet, my father tried to dump swordsmanship teachings onto me, but unfortunately, I'm not all that talented in that regard.
Disappointed by my failure in swordsmanship, my father turned his attention to my brother Luke. Meanwhile, I was kicked out of the family mansion.
Even though I was born into a family of warriors, I don't have any talent to become one….. I couldn't blame my father and mother for acting like that. Many people were eyeing our clan's position after all.
For that reason, I had to leave the family mansion. Away from my father and mother, as well as the right to use the family's servants.
Starting with Luke, my other siblings also felt bad for me. In exchange, I also feel sorry for making them worry about me.
I knew full well that I could not succeed my clan. And I… to be really honest, didn't care about losing the position.
More than being unable to hold my position in the clan, there was something more important to me. A really important matter, which is...
Books.
I have liked reading books since I was young. I would read a book if I had nothing to do or before bedtime.
The books are nice. It's the condensed form of other people's knowledge. Everything that I want to know is written inside the books.
My clan's territory was a countryside of the Eldorion Empire, and its size is small as well. That's why the books I read weren't that great. I had to travel to the adjacent territory that belongs to the Imperial Family to get good books. Even then, it's rare to find a really good book there. So I decided to find a place where I can read as many books as I want to.
But my life changed when I met a young man at the bar in the Imperial territory. The blonde man was impressed by my knowledge and wisdom, and invited me to join him in his quest, 'To change the World. '
What a fool.
Unfortunately, I thought, without me, that fool would fall into a ditch, so I decided to follow him.
Later on, he revealed himself as the only prince of the Eldorion Empire. Honestly, I was fascinated by him and decided to stick around.
And after a couple of ups and downs, I accepted him as my Lord.
For 2 years, I followed him as one of his closest retainers and friends before meeting my teacher, the Wandering Strategist.
He invited me to be his disciple, and after persuasion from the Prince, I decided to accept him as my teacher.
Now that I look back on it, I wish I hadn't...
~~~
Back to reality!
Convincing my wife was easier said than done. But as a great strategist, of course, I have many ways to make her accept it. But no...
Love doesn't need a strategy; it needs trust.
Anyway, after some back and forth, she relented, only on the condition of my safety.
I really am a terrible person..
Leaving my pregnant wife.
Thinking back, I, too, left behind my Lord and followed my great teacher.
The teacher was a great man who helped me gain a lot more wisdom than I ever could.
Alongside the teacher, we rode along the continent, intervening in the conflict between aristocrats, joining the battle with a small country in the east, and even taking part in the Frankish civil war in the South.
Once the teacher picks a side, he'll devote himself to it and lead his allies to victory.
He would be awarded a prize, and most likely be offered to become an official. However, he declined all of it.
I once asked my teacher why he always did so.
And to that question, the teacher replied:
[I just haven't met a master that I should serve.]
And laughed.
His relationship with a country would change once they knew that they couldn't control him. He'll be a troublesome enemy if he goes to the opposing faction. Some countries would try to persuade him, while others would send assassins.
Whatever the case, the teacher would handle the matter with a laugh and then leave the country. There was nothing else to say about his attitude other than 'Superb'.
Every day was really exciting. Moreover, I got to meet the leaders of various nations thanks to my position as a teacher's disciple, and I got to read various books as well.
Occasionally, I would join the military council as well, showing off my strategy to others, while the teacher gave a satisfied nod.
Every day was never the same.
I was able to experience many things.
But it all changes.
All of it.
On that damn bloody day...
"Let's go, Garfield is waiting for me. " I said to Dynir, as we embarked on the journey.
(Pov ends)
---
As the day went on, Arthur decided to collect 'information'. Obviously, as a 4-year-old child, his methods were full of openings and clumsy, but the maids and butlers, from whom he was getting the 'information', thought it was a child's play game.
And they played along...
[A/N:- Why did they play along? You'll know in future chapters! ]
Thanks to that, Arthur gathered some information on the situation.
Well, from what he heard, the struggle for the River Driesen, which separates Elmsworth Margrave from the Nordhiem Region that contains one Marquisate and 4 counties.
Understanding the situation from whatever he had gathered, Arthur came to a painful conclusion that,
To protect Ginny, he needs help... From his puppeteers.
After a few moments of contemplating, he decided to throw aside his pride and ask (force) the dukes to do his bidding. And how is he going to do that? Well, lucky him! His predecessor's lessons helped him solve that problem.
He knew that one day the Prime Minister would arrive to suggest replacing Ginny. Why does he know that? Because he would have done the same.
Just a few days back, Earl Volfor's lessons had already reached the Third Emperor, Ragnar Von Ignviar. The third Emperor was a political genius and a cunning tactician. Under his reign, the Empire never suffered a single defeat. Many of his strategies have been used till now. One of them is, 'Throw carrots to let pigs fight over them'.
Arthur will now do just that!
~~~
Days passed by, and as he suspected, Duke Raul arrived. This time, Arthur was determined to take the initiative and take the wits towards Raul.
---