The Strongest Dull Prince’s Secret Battle for the Throne

Chapter 681: The Rebel Franz

Wilhelm has full occupation of the Imperial Capital.

I frowned when I received the news.

"So, have they been forced to use their last resort?"

"I really wish that were the case."

Having mostly dealt with all the monsters in the western region, Jack and I were staying at an inn in a town near the Imperial Capital. Depending on Wilhelm's next move, we might have to deal with the monsters in the eastern region as well, but the situation has changed.

"Don't you have some family and acquaintances in the capital? Aren't you worried about them?"

"There's no point in going now as it would be too late. The Chancellor wouldn’t have let the capital be fully occupied without a fight and he would have evacuated the necessary people."

"You seem quite confident. Do you trust the Chancellor that much?"

"Of course. There aren't many people as capable as him and besides, I've already reached out to a few people for emergencies so they will help. But... I hope the Chancellor managed to escape..."

"Who knows? The announcement we are hearing now doesn’t make it sound like he did."

Jack muttered while looking at the papers that had been distributed. It read:

'The wicked Chancellor Franz deceived Her Majesty the Empress into writing an edict to overthrow Prince Wilhelm. Prince Wilhelm sensed this and reclaimed the Imperial Capital from the Chancellor. Our people of conscience must not fall for the Chancellor's schemes.'

No matter how many times I read it, it was laughable. It was far-fetched, to say the least.

"The Chancellor, who has supported the Empire for so long, is a very poor choice to frame as a traitor."

"That means they couldn't secure their legitimacy without doing this, right? They're really at the end of their rope."

"This was inevitable."

With the Emperor and the Crown Prince candidate absent, alongside the disappearance of the allied forces and a massive monster outbreak, fear had spread amongst the Empire’s people. This had led to Wilhelm appearing to seize the moment and win the people's support—that was their plan. However, the Emperor and allied forces are now known to be safe and we had dealt with the monsters, causing the people's anxiety to be eased and also breaking the enemy’s foundation of their plan.

But...

"Erik wouldn't come up with a plan that would collapse with such little interference, and I don't think he would launch such a simple plan while using the main force of the demons as a diversion."

"That's true. Using them as a decoy for such a simple plan doesn't add up."

If it were just this, him participating in the battle against the demons would have made more sense. At least, if they couldn't completely take over the Empire, it wouldn't be worth it since the common people don't understand politics and they don't get accurate information. However, few would take what's written on that paper at face value and now people must be feeling that something is off.

There are no bad rumors about the Chancellor and the Empress as they have been loyal to the Empire. Moreover, the Empress is Wilhelm's biological mother. The fact that she sided with the Chancellor suggests that there’s a problem with Wilhelm and this would naturally lead to the suspicion that the Wilhelm who has appeared now might be an imposter. TL: I wanna say it….

"If they thought that bringing out Wilhelm would make the Empress support them... they truly underestimated her. While she's emotional when it comes to her son, it wouldn’t be to the point where she would make wrong decisions."

Their expectations were way off and that's not all. Not only did the Empress not support them as much as they hoped but they thought they had sealed off the allied forces with two SS-rank adventurers having escaped before that. The icing on the cake was the Chancellor being more resilient than expected.

People don't always act as one expects. Therefore, outcomes that differ from one's assumptions are inevitable.

But...

"Wilhelm and Erik Lakes Adler are the kind of people who would always have backup plans. They will always create situations where they can recover and secure their advantage. It’s not just for show that they are the Emperor's proud sons."

Wilhelm might be an imposter, but that would mean Erik is the one pulling the strings. Would he truly come up with such a sloppy plan? Such actions could even alienate his own supporters so would Erik make such a blunder?

"However, the current situation we are in now is the answer, right? I don't know all the details, but it seems that they have occupied the capital with force. The Chancellor was entrusted with the Empire in the Emperor's absence so using force against him means that this is a rebellion."

"Indeed. This is rebellion."

"Then we have a reason to strike back with full force. They'll show themselves to the people, right? What if I shoot an arrow at them? If they don't die from a fatal wound, that would only cause the peoples’ suspicion to increase. And if they die to my arrows, then they die as rebels. It won't be a big problem."

"It's not that simple. Of course it would be great if it succeeds, but they chose to occupy the capital through force knowing that we might intervene. This means that they must have anticipated us coming out. Now is not the time to talk about the Empire’s internal issues."

In a typical succession dispute, SS-rank adventurers wouldn't be able to intervene as the adventurers' guild and other countries wouldn't allow it, nor would the Empire. But now, everyone is in tatters because of the demons. Therefore, if there’s a demonic presence involved, then no one would object to us taking action. And they know that full well.

"Does that mean that they have a countermeasure against us?"

I pondered for a while. The reason assassination attempts couldn't be used initially was because of the conflict between the Chancellor and Wilhelm. If it was carried out then, it could be claimed as an attack by the Chancellor. But now it’s different as they have been branded as rebels. No matter how many supporters they have, it’s a fact, making assassination an option.

However...

"Am I overthinking this?"

Wilhelm and Erik have always anticipated everything, leading things to their desired outcomes. That's why this sloppy plan feels off. In this case, two scenarios are possible. One, too many unforeseen events happened, making the plan sloppy. Two, they believe they can manage it no matter what happens. In the latter case, the quality of the plan doesn't matter. They just need to pull off a decisive move. But is there something in their possession that makes it that convenient?

As I pondered this...

"Hmm? An earthquake?"

"No... this is...!?"

The ground was shaking. However, it was due to a massive release of magic power. The source was from the Imperial Capital and soon the tremors gradually subsided.

What was that?

Just as I was wondering, a shockwave hit the town. It was like a strong gust of wind but it covered a wide area.

"What's going on?"

"Is the town okay?"

Jack and I peeked out the inn's window.

While we saw that there was no significant damage, with even the townspeople going about their usual lives.

But...

"Did you hear? The Chancellor tried to kill Prince Wilhelm!"

"Outrageous! The Chancellor must have gone senile."

"Power changes people. But if Prince Wilhelm takes the throne, we'll be safe!"

"Long live Prince Wilhelm!"

"Long live Prince Wilhelm!"

"Long live the Empire!"

It was a bizarre sight. Suddenly, the people accepted the contents of the papers, which hadn't been a topic of conversation before.

Jack and I exchanged quick glances.

"Is this bad?"

"Very much so."

TL's Notes:

They got brainwashed!!! Who needs political maneuvers when you got a power like that?

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