"Because if they don''t insult us, they might catcall us all the time."


    "Which forces do you mean by ''catcalls'' ......?"


    Noen did not seem to be sure if he thought there were no other hostile forces around him.


    "It will become clear in time. If we have to show that the other side is a defender of the city''s interests, now is the time to do it.


    Oddly enough, it could have gone either way. If nothing happens here, we will be stable and expand our power, and if we are attacked, it won''t be fatal.


    And then Hayama came to my camp.


    "I tell you!　The Cathedral of Orcent has raised an army to defeat the Regent!"


    "Yes, you''re here!"


    I clapped my hands and shouted with joy.


    Raviara said, "Why are you so happy?　You could be in danger of a pincer attack!" He complained. I guess I must look crazy if I''m so excited about the news of the rebellion.


    "Raviara, you once said that the high priest was creepy. As it turns out, that was not the case at all.


    "What do you mean?　I won''t understand unless you tell me exactly what you mean. I think it''s not only Raviara, but the other vassals as well!"


    Indeed, I saw some faces of the vassals who were taken aback. Of course, I will talk to them.


    The high priest kept his intentions hidden by his words. But the man did make a rational move after all. Then we know what he''s going to do. Weirdly enough, it''s much easier to handle him than someone who doesn''t know what he''s going to do."


    I put a stick on the map of the camp.


    "Hey, why do you think the Cathedral of Orcent is so powerful?　You don''t think it''s because of the power of piety, do you?"


    I turn to Laviala. It might not be a good idea to test my wife so much.


    "Well, isn''t it because of the ...... money?"


    "That''s what I mean. So, why does the Cathedral of Orsent have the economic power to--"


    I point with my stick where it says the name of the city.


    "There''s a lot of faith in that place, both from the city''s merchants and from the city itself. Of course, a good amount of money goes into Orcent. There are several reasons for that."


    This time he points with a stick at the place where the lord''s name is written.


    "There are almost no powerful lords in the vicinity of the capital. The lands near King''s Landing have always been a mess of rights and small lords. If they lose their political power, their lands are easily taken away from them.


    "So you are saying that cities are of no use to their lords if they ask for protection?"


    "Yes, Raviara is right."


    Laviala seemed a little happy about that. I''d better fix this too much on my face. .......


    "So it is the Cathedral of Orcent that has the power in the vicinity of King''s Landing. As for the sovereignty, only Josai Prefecture has it, but the surrounding prefectures are also under its influence. Many of the cities where I have received the right to collect taxes before are also under their control."


    "Does that mean you were provoking the cathedral to the hilt!"


    Laviala''s ears seemed more pricked than usual.


    "Well, they will be. I thought I''d flush them out first rather than have them betray us at the last minute. It''s hard to do that when you''re wielding such great power so close to King''s Landing."


    If we do not have the Cathedral of Orcent under our control at the very least, we will not even have the area around King''s Landing under our control. A regent who does not have power over the area around King''s Landing is not much of a regent.


    "On the surface, however, the Cathedral of Orcent did not immediately react. But on the surface, the Cathedral of Orsent did not immediately react. Or perhaps he thought it was impossible to fight now."


    At this point, the high priest''s moves are still unpredictable.


    So I set the stage for him to attack me.


    I went to the trouble of setting up a position where I could be pinched if the Cathedral of Orszent sent out troops.


    If I can crush the former king''s ruling party on the periphery of the capital, my power will be stabilized. The Cathedral of Orcent will be less likely to rebel.


    If I stay too still, I will lose the trust of the other cities, and more cities and merchants will be attracted to me as regent.


    At the most appropriate time, the Cathedral of Orcent sent me an army.


    The High Priest has a decent head for military strategy.


    But that''s all that matters.


    --You''re taking a big gamble. If the monks get you for this, your power could be destroyed!


    Oda Nobunaga seems to be in a state of shock. You''re the one who warned him not to let the priests get to him.


    --I didn''t think you''d go so far as to pick a fight. It wasn''t too late to absorb a little more authority in King''s Landing. You could''ve done it with a disdainful attitude.


    I''m a warrior at heart.


    To tell you the truth, I grew tired of fighting battles in which we just crushed them with our strength.


    It''s fun to win battles that seem to be evenly matched at first glance. If you surround a fortress with ten times as many men, the fortress will fall. But the quality of the general has nothing to do with it.


    --I totally disagree with you on that point. The High King fought with his life at Okehazama and Kanegasaki, well ...... it''s still possible, but not many.


    That''s all right. I am Arsrod, not Oda Nobunaga.


    --Hmm... You don''t listen to me when I say things like this anyway. Don''t die in battle! The High King doesn''t intend to end here.


    I don''t either. I didn''t come here with the regent as my ultimate goal.


    --Keep your Lord by the western lords'' side here and run back to King''s Landing as fast as you can. I don''t think the boys are ready to burn down King''s Landing...


    "All right, Noen, I''ll give you 5,000 soldiers to go into the towns in the enemy territory and help our side militarily. If not, kill them and burn them."


    --Hey!　Why don''t you back off!


    The ostensible purpose of this cleanup operation is to clean up the west side of King''s Landing. After destroying the enemy, we will make a "triumphal return" to King''s Landing.


    Noen said, "Ha!　I''ll give it my all!" His face lit up. This man had been looking lonely lately because he hadn''t had much to show. There are many in my ranks who would rather fight than have authority.


    "I will attack from a different road. I will show them that they will be destroyed regardless of whether the people of the cathedral are on their side or not. And I''ll smash some of the cities to hell to make an example. This time we will make it clear which side is our enemy and which side is our friend.