I Am Being Mistaken for a Genius Strategist

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In less than two years, all sorts of incidents had taken place on the continent.

But this latest statement surpassed them all by several magnitudes.

“Everything Atria claims is a lie! They are masters at scheming from behind the scenes! There are even rumors that they plan to ask us, Nobogord, to shake the northern border of the Empire!”

The moment those words were uttered, every nation across the continent perked up.

Even Nobogord, where the statement originated, looked visibly startled.

Atria had asked Nobogord to shake the northern border of the Empire.

This meant they intended to keep the Empire’s attention fixed to the north while plotting something in secret.

And Atria hadn’t even changed their name at all.

Everyone knew which kingdom was pulling the strings behind Atria.

‘Dedorant. On the surface, Atria looks like they’re reaching out to Nobogord, but in reality, it’s Dedorant that’s asking for this to happen.’

‘These people who’ve been acting like they would give everything to the Empire suddenly, now?’

‘The Empire didn’t seem particularly hostile to Dedorant until now. What’s going to happen?’

Of course, there was also the possibility of wrong information. It could simply be the plot of those who love to weave tales.

Atria could be in a panic saying such a thing never happened.
Dedorant could claim to have nothing to do with the events.
And Nobogord’s Demon Council had been silent without giving an official stance.
There were many issues that made it hard to accept this as a hundred percent fact.

However, in the midst of all this, a decisive incident occurred.

[ Nobogord Navy, Atria Navy. Armed conflict near the North Sea.]

Regardless of how the public sentiment was in both nations, the leaders tried to maintain silence.
But with the situation unfolding like this, it became impossible to suppress public sentiment any longer.

In the end, nations tend to be driven more by emotions than rationality.
The reason is simple. The essence of a nation is comprised of numerous people.
And the more people there are, the easier it is for them to be swept away by emotion.

First, Atria turned their previous claims upside down.
Officially, they stated there had been a misunderstanding. Just an accident.
But as the situation progressed, they declared, ‘This is definitely a play by Nobogord!’
They shouted that it was clearly an attempt to sow discord between the Empire and Atria.

Now that it had come to this, Nobogord decided they would no longer hold back.

“Here. Atria has sent us their true intentions.”

The chair of the Demon Council, Kaden Estania, stepped forward.
In his hand was a small letter, but its content was far from trivial.

“Atria sent us this secret letter. They promised that if we shake the northern border of the Empire, they would ensure that Nobogord receives its share of future profits. Additionally, they also offered to concede regarding the ongoing maritime issues near the North Sea.”

“We Nobogord clearly understand what this means. Yes, I will be frank. We’ve had our own frictions and conflicts with the Empire, so we have been contemplating what is more right for our national interests day and night. And today, we reached a conclusion.”

“Rather than collaborating with a cowardly neighbor who only thinks about stabbing us in the back while asking for help, we would rather side with a neighbor who may have had conflicts with us but keeps their promises.”

*

Today, the taste of coffee was strangely delightful.
I usually drank it, but if its flavor was different, then surely something pleasant must have happened.

“Finally, it begins.”

I marveled at the latest news relayed from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
They finally dropped the bomb. They detonated it spectacularly.
Thanks to Nobogord putting on a good show, and certainly the impact of their ploy, it happened.
But originally, applause requires two hands to clap.
When viewed from that angle, Atria was truly the hidden primary contributor.

Most likely, Dedorant was cursing internally.
They probably pressured the Atria nobles to manage things internally.
But in the end, they couldn’t contain their previous grievances against Nobogord.
Instead, they too got swept up in public sentiment and tossed all decorum aside.

Was this a sign that their team luck was as bad as destiny could get?
The ally they painstakingly formed, Benito, would sink their own goal.
Atria, now merged, didn’t plan to act as they intended.

“Atria has asked us to join forces to attack the Empire!”

Atria provoked Nobogord, saying, ‘Are you feeling guilty for your own ploy?’
The panicking demons of Nobogord started to curse Atria even more than the Empire.

In truth, it was indeed a ploy. That was precisely what I intended when I gave my advice.
And Charlua and Kaden expanded on it, which resulted in a splendid chaos and a very pretty picture.

Atria tried to entice Nobogord to attack the Empire.
What does this mean? It means that Dedorant is behind Atria, which is to say, it’s Dedorant’s doing.
But wait, weren’t these guys bowing and scraping to the Empire just a short while ago?
What does this mean? They were playing word games while secretly laughing at everyone’s expense.

Now, the continent was in total disarray.
Nobogord was the first to throw out a blame, yelling, ‘Atria is at fault! Punish them!’
Meanwhile, Atria was whining, ‘But Nobogord is the one who started this!’
Now, the three eastern kingdoms siding with the Empire were busy smartly maneuvering.
And the southern kingdoms, not getting along with Benito, along with the Holy Kingdom, slammed down their criticisms.

‘This is why the Empire had clenched its teeth and managed public sentiment with such care.’

Let’s not forget. The northern Nobogord, the eastern Burgai, Kaden, and Polrand.
And last but not least, the southern Holy Kingdom, along with other southern kingdoms.
All have experienced at least one punch thrown at the Empire, either taking a hefty hit back or narrowly escaping one.

There is absolutely no reason for them to raise their voices for the Empire or insult others on its behalf.
Unless the Empire had graciously accepted everything without holding a grudge.
Clenching their teeth, biting down on their lips, and smirking while saying, ‘Let’s survive together!’ has finally borne fruit.

“Now, what are you going to do? Your true faces have been laid bare for all to see.”

By the way, the Empire still hadn’t made an official statement.
After all, their friends, whom they painstakingly gathered around, were shouting loud enough.
It might be better for them to just sit back and watch than to awkwardly clear their throats.
Watching the strongest show off their superiority while keeping tabs on those who kept quiet was a lot easier.

With various insults being hurled at them across the continent, Dedorant finally started to move.
Did they, as before, attempt to deny and explain misunderstandings?
Did they bow their heads again to the Empire, begging for some favor?

‘Surely they wouldn’t do that? They’re not that rational.’

Above all, the Empire had chosen silence. Everyone knew what this meant.
Now, they were feeling very uncomfortable and contemplating how many should perish.
Of course, they didn’t really plan on letting anyone live just because they pleaded for mercy. They would make them pay a corresponding price.
— This conclusion was grasped by the foreign ministries of each nation.

Seeing this situation intensify, Dedorant chose a very straightforward method.
After pausing for a moment to take a breath and figure out the Empire’s mood, they resumed their war with DeGale.
They intended to seize the royal capital and push forward relentlessly.

“Fools. They’re really no help at all.”

I thought the strong nation beyond the western border would at least put up some resistance.
But unlike the heavily naval-focused Ross Tanika, DeGale had quite the strong military presence on land.
So I expected that even if they kept losing, there would be at least one fierce battle.
But that was wishful thinking. They were utterly crushed, losing one embarrassing battle after another while losing their very souls to Dedorant.

[ DeGale Royal Family. Fleeing towards Ross Tanika. Only a handful of nobles accompany them. ]

Ultimately, the DeGale royal family abandoned their kingdom and fled to another place.
This world isn’t like some past life memory where there are presidents or whatever.
The value of a king is beyond imagination. It’s not the same as a president fleeing.
For a king of a nation to abandon resistance and flee while leaving his kingdom people behind.

If it has come to this, DeGale cannot remain DeGale any longer.
Even if Dedorant falls and they manage to return, it would no longer be possible.
The outraged kingdom people are likely to rise up and chase them away.

‘What crime does Ross Tanika bear? We trusted DeGale and formed an alliance, but those who boasted of their military prowess are completely destroyed, and the king has fled with his family.’

By now, the leadership of Ross Tanika must be crying out in despair.
With the DeGale royal family fleeing to their homeland, Dedorant wouldn’t just stand by and do nothing.
This would become a good justification for them. It was clear that Ross Tanika would now become their target.

Now, what remains is our Empire’s reaction. They can’t remain silent forever.
How will they express their discomfort regarding the current situation?
What kind of clues will they give regarding their future actions in this pandemonium?

The answer to that question was revealed two weeks after this commotion.

[ Western Legion strengthened. Two legions withdrawn from the Eastern, Northern, and Southern regions respectively and deployed to the West.]
[ The Western Legion, which will total 11 in the future, is named the Empire’s First Army.]

[ A new General Staff is established. It is organized to assist the Ministry of War while maintaining autonomy.]

And I officially received my appointment to the General Staff with an imperial decree.