I Became King by Following My Little Sister's Advice. Now the Princess I Forced to Marry Is Giving Me Death Stares, What Should I Do? - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: We’ve Been Challenged, Little Sister!

“W-What should we do, Moa? The neighboring country is attacking!”

“Ah!”

When Moa took off her mask and returned to the office, her brother, as usual, was there, distressed and crying.

As always, Moa let him hold her, feeling a sense of bliss, and then asked a question to understand the situation.

“Calm down, Brother. First, tell me how the neighboring country declared war.”

“Y-Yes… um, they sent this letter…”

Van showed Moa the letter sent from the Kingdom of Zelos.

――――――――――

Dear King Van Arlengs,

To the new king who has overthrown the kingdom of greed and lust, Aidron,

First, we deeply apologize for the rudeness of not being able to attend the coronation ceremony despite the invitation.

The Zelos Kingdom wishes to congratulate the birth of your new nation and king. However, it is reported that your country, which was formerly the Aidron Kingdom—a place of filth and corruption—still has remnants of that decay.

Our country once suffered greatly from an unprovoked attack by the Aidron Kingdom, resulting in the loss of many soldiers. 

Ideally, we would like to erase this grudge, but as long as the seeds of Aidron remain within your borders, that is not possible.

Therefore, we have a proposal… We would like you to hand over Medina Aidron, the survivor of the Aidron Kingdom. 

If this wish is granted, we will forget the numerous damages we suffered from Aidron and establish friendly relations with your country.

If this is not possible, we intend to punish your country as an evil nation inheriting Aidron’s blood and will.

We have heard that King Van Arlengs is a person of great virtue. We sincerely believe you will make the wise choice.

With affection from the Zelos Kingdom.

Crown Prince Lott Zelos, Zelos Kingdom

――――――――――

“This is…”

“Little sister, does this mean…”

“They’re picking a fight with us.”

“They’re picking a fight with us!”

That was the situation. The Zelos Kingdom was making demands that they couldn’t accept. 

They were asking for the handover of Medina Aidron, the first queen. There was no way they could agree to this.

It wasn’t about emotions. 

If they agreed and handed over Medina, Van would be branded as the worst man who sold his wife. 

This wasn’t the same as handing over a criminal. 

Van would be condemned by many people and lose their trust.

“But… there will be people who think we should comply. It’s an impressively clever demand.”

That’s right. 

People who value righteousness would insist on rejecting this demand. 

However, those who prioritize benefit might think that if a war can be avoided by handing over one queen, it should be done.

Moreover, the person they want handed over is Medina, a survivor of the Aidron royal family. 

There were quite a few who hated the former royal family that produced a tyrant. 

To them, starting a war for Medina would be unacceptable. 

If Van decided to accept the war for Medina’s sake, they would use that as a reason to criticize him.

“In other words… whether we accept or reject this demand, it is meant to disgrace you, Brother. This shows how nasty their character is…”

“Um… I know the sender of this letter. It’s the person we fought at the Roicardan Plains, right? We almost caught him, but he escaped…”

“…Ah, I see.”

Moa frowned slightly and nodded.

So, this demand is essentially harassment towards the Arlengs Kingdom.

Crown Prince Lott, filled with personal grudges, has forced them into an impossible choice.

“Probably… among the opportunistic nobles, there will be those who think we should follow the Kingdom of Zelos. Brother, what do you think…”

“No way.”

For once, Van cut off Moa’s words and declared firmly.

“The princess… Medina is my wife now, so handing her over is absolutely out of the question! I won’t give her to anyone!”

“…I see.”

Moa felt satisfied with her brother’s words.

It was the answer she expected, but it still moved her as expected. 

Thrilled that her ‘beloved’ behaved just as she hoped, Moa began to ponder their next steps.

“Now… the problem is how to deal with them. We will refuse to hand over Lady Medina, but how do we handle the nobles who will criticize us for it…”

Most of the nobles in the country didn’t swear loyalty to Van out of trust but because they valued their own status and wealth.

They didn’t believe in Van.

If the fight with the neighboring country went badly, some would likely betray him without hesitation.

“No… there are probably already informers. Nobles who resent you might use this chance to rise up…”

Those who lost their positions due to Van’s rise likely harbored blatant resentment. 

They might have already made secret agreements with the Zelos Kingdom and could try to seize the capital when Van deployed his forces.

“…Even if the capital doesn’t fall easily, if we are attacked shortly after a civil war, the people will become anxious. Either way, the stability of the government will be shaken.”

This really was a troublesome plot they had devised. 

If Van led the forces, defeating the invading Zelos Kingdom wouldn’t be difficult. 

However, the unrest among the nobles and the people’s anxiety couldn’t be easily quelled.

“There must be… yes, some way to control the domestic nobles…”

“Hey, Moa, Moa.”

“What is it, Brother?”

Moa turned to face her brother, who was tugging at her sleeve. Van, with a troubled expression, asked his wise sister,

“I don’t really understand, but… basically, the Zelos Kingdom is attacking, and we can’t move the capital’s troops, right?”

“Yes, that’s more or less correct.”

“Then, I’ll go and take care of the Zelos army myself.”

“…What?”

Moa was stunned by how casually Van said it, as if it were nothing. But Van, not bothered at all, confidently stated,

“I’ll capture the crown prince of the Zelos Kingdom, Lott Zelos. So, little sister, don’t worry about anything.”