The Wanderer's Archive

"What do you mean by that?" Roland put down the chicken leg he was about to eat. He sensed a hidden meaning in Siegfried's words.

"No reinforcements, no supplies, and yet you escaped for half a year under the combined pursuit of two major forces."

This world was still in the Middle Ages; waging war required a large logistical support force. Short-term, long-distance raids were one thing, but for nearly a thousand people to escape for half a year without logistical support was simply impossible.

"How did you manage to survive until now?" This was something Siegfried couldn't understand.

Influenced by Siegfried's serious tone, Katarina also became serious:

"In the period after escaping the royal city, we sent small teams to disguise themselves and purchase food in the cities along the way. Because the transactions were all conducted in the black market, they weren't detected. Later, as the number of people in our group decreased, the logistical pressure also lessened. Anything else…"

Katarina stopped mid-sentence, realizing something was wrong. She abruptly turned to look at Bobo, the Putian.

Siegfried chewed on his fork, his brow furrowed:

"Right, there were spies in your ranks. This means the enemy knew where you were staying in every city. Why did they let you enter the city to buy supplies?"

The situation in the Moon Kingdom wasn't complicated. Of the four regions—north, south, east, and west—the Duke of Alvis in the north stood with the Second Prince Roderick, while the Duke of Baylan in the south was an ally of the First Prince Frederick.

The Duke of Garowe in the east was not only a duke but also the owner of the Garowe Trading Company, the largest trading company in the kingdom. This merchant duke, as always, played both sides, seizing benefits for his territory during the civil war.

As for the west… the Duchy of Simon, or perhaps it should be called the Simon Duchy. Several years ago, they seceded from the Moon Kingdom for various reasons. In this civil war, the Simon family had remained completely neutral, not even sending anyone to understand the situation, as if the kingdom's affairs had nothing to do with them.

Half a year ago, the Second Prince had gained the upper hand in the royal city incident and now completely controlled the royal city of Ondesores and its surrounding areas. The First Prince retreated to the old capital, Saint Moon City, entrenched north of the Rhine River.

The Golden Imperial Capital and the Cretaceous Old Capital, the kingdom's two largest cities, faced each other across the Rhine, the mother river of Moon.

Strangely, both sides had tacitly refrained from launching large-scale wars for the past six months.

What were they doing?

Siegfried gnawed on his wooden fork, racking his brain.

The attacks were brutal but not fatal. They clearly had the ability to capture them but let their prey escape for half a year.

Why?

Often, you can't understand someone's thoughts not because you're stupid, but because you and the other person are simply not the same kind of people. Only those of the same kind understand each other; only another schemer can understand a schemer's plans.

Suddenly, Siegfried had a flash of insight, almost subconsciously muttering: "Oh… they're weakening and gradually consuming the Princess's forces."

They're eliminating the grass and its roots.

The voice was soft, yet it reached everyone's ears.

Roland subconsciously moved closer to Krinhild. Katarina shivered, recalling yesterday's encounter with Siegfried.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Mr. Meran, your expression is rather frightening."

Expression?

Siegfried touched his face and realized he was smiling.

"What? Don't laugh. Should I cry instead?"

"What did you mean by what you just said?"

Roland's expression was unpleasant. Both the current situation and the feeling this Meran gave him made his mood extremely gloomy.

"The enemy is using this method to drive you out of the power center while keeping track of your whereabouts. Krinhild is, after all, the first heir to the throne, and the nobles supporting the Princess are undoubtedly a considerable force.

If they directly capture her, it would undoubtedly cause Krinhild's supporters to fight back desperately.

So, they used this relentless but non-lethal pursuit to drive you for half a year, using this time to gradually convert the nobles supporting the Princess into their own forces."

"After completely dismantling my forces, they will launch a real siege, and by then, I will be completely isolated and helpless, and will have to 'voluntarily' give up the throne."

Krinhild continued Siegfried's words, her tone even.

Siegfried raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying.

It wasn't surprising that Krinhild had guessed; a princess and heir to the throne couldn't possibly be a naive innocent.

"That's right. That way, they don't have to bear the reputation of usurpation. I now suspect that there are traitors in your ranks. Since Bobo is the Second Prince's informant, there must also be someone from the First Prince's side."

Katarina was dazed; she had never been good at such intrigue.

Roland grabbed Bobo, his movements rough, causing Bobo to wince in pain.

"Speak! Who else! You traitors, Her Highness placed her trust in you without reservation, and this is how you repay her?"

"Sir, I don't know. I only passed information to Prince Roderick; I really don't know anything else."

"You dare to quibble!" Roland was furious. This model knight couldn't forgive such betrayal, raising his fist to strike.

"Don't,"

"But he!"

"Forget it." Siegfried also persuaded, "He's just a pawn. If you're the chess player, would you explain your plan to a pawn?"

"But Bobo, let me remind you, it's too late for you to return to Roderick. The pursuit force two days from now will be completely annihilated because of the wrong information you left behind. You can guess how Roderick will deal with you, how he will deal with a pawn who betrayed him."

"But all this is your…"

"So~ who cares?"

Cold sweat dripped down Bobo's ashen face. He had once met the Second Prince. As Krinhild's brother, Roderick was a handsome blond man, sharing six out of ten similar facial features with Krinhild.

But only their facial features were similar; their personalities were completely different. If Krinhild was the warm sun of spring, then Roderick was the scorching sun of summer, mercilessly burning anyone who dared to oppose him.

If Bobo went back, he would undoubtedly die a horrible death. The Second Prince never listened to any explanations; he only looked at the results.

With that in mind, he finally stammered:

"I don't know much. I only know that the pursuit force has always been jointly dispatched by the two princes. There may indeed be spies from the First Prince in the ranks…"

"Damn it, are those two brothers?"

As a good brother who cared for his sister, Siegfried couldn't understand how those two brothers could be so cruel.

But as a modern person who did fairly well in high school history, he also knew that the struggle for the throne had always been bloody throughout history, and fratricide was commonplace. Even someone as powerful as Emperor Taizong of Tang couldn't escape this fate.

"Meran, no, Mr. Meran, I know this is cheeky, but could you please help…"

"I refuse." Siegfried answered directly before Roland finished speaking.

Roland's expression froze. He didn't expect Siegfried to cut him off so abruptly.

Siegfried spread his hands, his fingertips resting on his chin: "Meran family tradition: never interfere in any political struggle, and I've already helped enough."

The family tradition was a fabrication; he certainly wasn't truly refusing. He was using this method to increase his worth, to directly enter the power center of the Princess's faction as a core figure. Only by holding the greatest power would it be possible to complete the difficult task of unifying the kingdom within three years.

This was also why he didn't choose the Second Prince's faction; they were too strong; they could win without him. It was uncertain whether he could gain their trust by joining that faction.

Katarina panicked when Siegfried refused so decisively, but she didn't dare to beg. He didn't have this obligation, and Siegfried had indeed helped them out of the predicament, just as he had promised yesterday. She looked at the Princess, then at Siegfried, feeling at a loss.

Krinhild had been silent since then, as if making a decision.

Finally, the Princess stood up. She took off her soldier's helmet, and her golden hair, like silk, cascaded down. She softly opened her lips, her voice not loud, but filled with determination:

"Actually, I've never had any thoughts about the throne. I'm the youngest; I shouldn't be the first heir. But everyone chose me, and I don't want to disappoint them. If my brothers can lead this country better, I don't mind giving up the throne.

Since I was young, I lived in the palace, listening to ministers talk about how prosperous the kingdom was, how well-off the people were, and I believed it and was proud of it. But in this half-year journey, every city I saw was completely different from what the ministers said.

The people are starving and cold, barely able to eat. The court ministers can bathe in expensive red wine, but they can't even get a piece of black bread.

I thought it was due to the civil war, but later, I saw the same situation in cities untouched by the war."

Krinhild's emerald eyes fixed on Siegfried. The princess of the kingdom bowed deeply.

"Mr. Siegfried, I'm not asking you to help me fight for the throne. I can give up the throne, I can give up being a princess, I can give up anything. If these things can bring prosperity and well-being to the people, what does it matter if I give them up? But I… I don't have the power."

Tears rolled down her cheeks; this powerlessness had tormented her for half a year.

"I only ask you to save this country, to save those poor people. You are a descendant of the hero family; if it's you, you can definitely do it. If you can grant this request, I am willing to offer you everything."

Siegfried looked at the stunningly beautiful girl. He wasn't sure how much of what she said was sincere; many years ago, he had stopped being swayed by such sweet talk.

His first reaction to her words was surprise that she would use the moral high ground of the hero family to pressure him.

However, looking at the girl's slightly trembling shoulders and the tears constantly rolling down her cheeks, Siegfried somehow saw a shadow in this sixteen-year-old princess—the shadow of a sixteen-year-old boy.

The same sense of powerlessness; he had experienced it many years ago. At that time, it was Uncle Xie's warm hand that pulled him out of the swamp of powerlessness. He was Siegfried's father's best friend, the person Siegfried respected most in the world.

To repay that warmth, Siegfried had long since decided to lend a hand to anyone in dire straits who asked for help.

(Whatever, the Second Prince might not take me in anyway.)

He sighed softly in his heart and said:

"The South."

"Huh?"

Siegfried stepped forward, helped Krinhild up, and chuckled:

"What do I want with everything you have? Not every Meran is a lecher. I'll help you ascend to the throne. Once it's done, I'll become the Duke of the South. You, use your own way to save your people, as Queen."

Appropriate conditions can actually increase trust. Anyway, he would leave after completing the task; this condition was essentially non-existent.

"Thank you, thank you. I thank you on behalf of the people of Moon."

Krinhild couldn't help but sob. She had been really afraid that Siegfried would refuse, even staking her entire future on it.

"Your Highness…" Katarina's eyes also turned red, and she stepped forward to support Krinhild.

At that moment, Shannon's voice rang out in Siegfried's mind.

[You have successfully joined Princess Krinhild's faction. Stage mission one completed.]