We hurried along Prince Thomas’s route.
Since it was on the far side of the Imperial Territory, the journey would be a long one. Besides, I had a promise to keep: retaking everyone’s home planets came first. If I cleared the path thoroughly as we went, Thomas wouldn’t have to worry about being attacked from the rear.
In a situation like this, rushing the shortest path wasn't the answer. Taking the long way around was actually the more certain route. We didn't have the luxury of performing a blitzkrieg, anyway.
Thomas’s own marching speed was sluggish. I wondered how long his strategy of brute-forcing his way through with numbers would actually hold up...
I was worried about a scenario where he suddenly started winning, grew overconfident, overextended his lines, and ended up surrounded. Even Thomas should realize the danger in that, but whether he could keep the other commanders in check was another story entirely.
If it were my wife—who had been raised in the military—she would have reined them in even if it meant putting them under arrest. But for Thomas, a product of aristocratic society, that was likely impossible. It wasn’t necessarily a flaw in Thomas’s personal abilities, but rather the simple fact that such a feat was impossible without a military affairs specialist serving as his brain.
For instance, if my wife’s opinion clashed with Major Piggett’s, she would detain him without a second thought. The Imperial Guard veterans had raised her to be capable of making coldhearted decisions whenever the situation demanded them.
Even I would be cut loose if I made a foolish call. And even if I wasn't being foolish—if I were acting as the rearguard and couldn't be saved—she would leave me behind. It couldn't be helped. She had to make decisions for the good of the whole. That was what responsibility looked like.
But for Thomas, that kind of ruthlessness was difficult, despite having been educated in Imperial-style sovereignty studies. He had eventually cut off Maro, but unlike my wife, he’d had chances to do so much earlier. He simply hadn't acted on them.
That was why it was impossible for him. He didn't have the power to stop the trap. He was a genuinely good person... which probably just meant that Cyrus had more natural aptitude for leadership in a crisis.
I tried conveying these thoughts frankly to her.
"You might actually have a talent for being a strategist, Lord Groom..."
No, I definitely don't. It would be impossible for me. I could never look at my wife and tell her to "go die" for the mission.
It was impossible for someone like me—someone who had ousted his own father but couldn't bring himself to kill him. I couldn't even execute Kevin. There was no way I could be a strategist. I was far too soft on my own people. I had zero aptitude for the job.
I honestly didn't think I was even cut out to be a senior officer. Just thinking about the day I’d have to make those kinds of choices made my stomach churn. That was why I’d planned to quit the army the moment I graduated from the university division, served my one mandatory term, and cleared my tuition debt...
And yet, here I was—a Captain! Ugh, why?!
"Rest easy. I am not asking you to make such coldhearted decisions."
"Really?" I asked, trying to look as endearing as possible.
"You are far too soft on others. If I left the decisions to you, the casualties would be endless!"
She magnificently ignored my attempt at being cute.
"Setting aside your sentimentality for a moment, your prediction will likely come true."
"I thought so. If I were the Zork, that's exactly how I’d play it."
"No, it is not a matter of the prediction being right or wrong. It is the fact that you arrived at that conclusion at all. It is undoubtedly your Jester’s future-predicting ability manifesting."
Isn't her faith in my ESP a bit much? Is this really okay? I don't trust this crap ability at all, you know.
"I shall inform my brother as well... though even if he is aware, avoiding it will likely be difficult. Those around him simply won’t permit a retreat."
"What about Lieutenant General Takakura?"
The man who strongly supported my wife was now at the very top of the military's hierarchy. Couldn't he stop it?
"It would be impossible. Thomas’s expedition is not a military matter; it is political. Not even the nobles themselves can stop it now. Takakura has been excluded from the decision-making process. That is precisely why he was not brought along."
The old saying "too many boatmen lead the ship up a mountain" came to mind. There were too many commanders; no one could control the whole. Thomas probably resigned himself to dying and taking all of them with him, but...
"Lord Groom, do you realize? You are wiser than any of the nobles on that expedition. You see reality for what it truly is."
That was probably only because I viewed the war through the eyes of a single soldier. If I’d only ever known the perspective of a lord, I’d probably be one of those boatmen myself.
I was definitely being over-evaluated. Anyway, time to change the subject.
"So, what’s the next planet on the itinerary?"
"Let’s see. I intend to stop here on the way to Thomas’s location."
She sent over a file.
...You’ve got to be kidding me.
"This is space pirate territory."
It was the territory of the so-called Pirate Guild—a star system ruled entirely by outlaws. The Empire usually left it alone, figuring it wasn’t worth the cost of administration. They only moved to annihilate them if the damages to trade became too significant. But the pirates here were savvy; they knew better than to venture out of the sectors the Empire didn't care about.
"Precisely. And it is also the sector where the home planets of several of your crew members are located."
"Are there Zork even out there?"
"They are currently in the thick of combat."
"Why there, of all places?"
It was a genuine mystery.
"Look closely. There is a dense asteroid belt, making it easily defensible. Furthermore, the pirates there use old ballistic weaponry. We shall seize those arms and distribute them to the local citizens so they can defend themselves."
"Citizens? You mean the pirates?"
"It makes no difference to me. If they can govern, I will even grant them titles of nobility. And more importantly..."
"What is it? Just say it."
"We shall use those incompetent nobles as a shield to facilitate Thomas’s escape to this sector. If Prince Walter seizes control of the Imperial Capital, we shall establish our government-in-exile right here."
"Seize the capital? Is he actually capable of that?"
No matter how I looked at it, a coup seemed impossible with only civil officials on his side.
"I do not know. But he must be plotting something."
"Yeah, I get it. I’ll tell the crew we’re 'establishing a relay point for family rescue missions.'"
It wasn't technically a lie. Asteroid belts were tactical goldmines. The Empire probably hadn't intervened before simply because they hated the logistics of navigating them. It was a simple matter of cost-efficiency.
But now, we were in the middle of a full-scale war. With the constitution suspended, cost-efficiency could be ignored entirely!
"Time for some pirate hunting, then?"
"Indeed. I am counting on you."
"Alright. I’m going to go get some training in."
I stepped out into the corridor and found Melissa waiting with a beaming smile.
"Captain, something interesting is going down, isn't it?"
"...How could you tell?"
"You were smirking, Captain."
Had I been smiling? It wasn't that I enjoyed the prospect of combat. Ugh, my emotional state is getting into dangerous territory.
"You’ve gotta fill me in later, okay?"
Melissa was smirking now, too. Great, another battle junkie.
Still, there was no way I could leave Melissa out of this operation.