The Witcher: Make Witcher Great Again

Chapter 428 The Assassination of King Vizmir, and the Changing Landscape of Redania
A group of officials, speaking with a strong northern accent, arrived in Ad Kale and began to take over the work of the local officials.

Most of those grassroots officials are just people trying to make a living; they don't have many other ambitions.

Only those mid- to high-ranking officials who cling to power and refuse to relinquish it, relying on their perceived irreplaceable role, will engage in factionalism and cronyism.

Now, these officials from Isparden are telling them that if they don't want to do it, then get out.

If you don't do it, plenty of others will.

Cordwin has everything but people.

The Ispardens quickly took over all of Ad Kalai's key departments.

Anyone who had previously expressed resistance or opposition should be kicked out.

If they don't want to be dignified, then help them be dignified.

The same applies to the nobles.

They are all made of flesh, and their bodies are filled with red blood.

If you are killed, you will die.

After the arrival of the Ispardens, Ade Kale experienced a brief period of confusion, but quickly recovered.

The people of Cordwin discovered that after the Dragon-Slaying Maiden took control of their territory, their tax revenue decreased by 10%.

Don't underestimate the mere ten percent. In this era of competing to be the worst, paying less than ten percent means you can keep more for yourself.

Reducing taxes by 10% from the common people did not decrease the national treasury; instead, it increased it.

This was because the homes of nobles and officials were confiscated, and their wealth was used to fill the empty national treasury, which quickly replenished it.

Next, the Dragon-Slaying Saintess took another step by announcing the abolition of discrimination against non-human races.

But as the saying goes, prejudice is like a mountain, and the prejudice of the Cordwinians against non-human races is probably even higher than the Blue Mountains.

What should I do?
The only solution is to kill.

Any attack against a non-human race shall be treated as an attack against a human.

Those who should be imprisoned and compensated should be imprisoned and compensated; those who should be hanged should be hanged.

At the same time, a large number of spies were planted in taverns and other places where all sorts of people gathered.

Anyone who tries to steer the conversation toward non-human races and shift all the blame onto them will be severely tortured until they reveal the mastermind behind it, and then that mastermind will be sent to the gallows.

This is not about granting privileges to non-human races.

Because crimes committed by non-human races will be punished in the same way.

To put it bluntly, the Dragon-Slaying Saintess is not trying to favor either humans or non-human races, but rather to eliminate the shameless scoundrels hiding among them.

These scoundrels, under the banner of human supremacy, persecute non-human races. Will they stop once they've finished persecuting all the non-human races?
No, they will only turn to oppressing the vulnerable groups among humans.

The harsh but fair justice system implemented in Ad Kalla, while resulting in numerous deaths, also eliminated extremists who could cause social instability.

Then, Saqia organized an army and marched towards other places outside the capital.

To ensure loyalty, this army is mainly composed of non-human races. Among these non-human races, some were once the Sons of Freedom, while many more were secretly supported by Lynn and were those non-human races that were secretly transferred out using the Kowell caravan.

Those who wished to live peacefully would be given a piece of land and made farmers.

As for those who were willing to take up arms and fight for Lynn, Lynn trained them into soldiers and then sent them to Sakia at this time.

In the past, these teams composed of non-human races were forced to rise up under the oppression of human nobles, but they used the wrong methods.

Their goal should be the same as that of ordinary people, and their target should be the wealthy nobles who do not engage in production.

However, the former Sons of Liberty targeted all of humanity, and even launched attacks on villages and civilians under the deliberate guidance of Nilfgaardian spies with ulterior motives.

They forcefully pushed those who could have been won over and united to the opposing side.

This led to a situation where even the oppressed common people regarded the nobles who oppressed them as their protectors and saviors.

Now, under the guidance of the officers that Saqia and Lynn had assigned to Saqia, such mistakes would naturally not be repeated.

Now, under Sakia's leadership, this inhuman army will no longer act so extremely.

Furthermore, whenever they arrived in a territory, after eliminating the local nobles, they would distribute a portion of the nobles' property to the local people in exchange for their support.

And so, a year later, the banner of the Dragon Slayer was planted all over Cordwin and Aeden. Cordwin’s stubborn and conservative nobles were almost completely slaughtered, and Prince Stannis of Aeden also fled Aeden in panic after his great defeat, and fled to Redania.

The Dragon-Slaying Saintess announced that Cordwin and Aden would merge into one nation, named the United Kingdom of Cordwin and Aden.

The day after the founding of the United Kingdom, Humphries sent a congratulatory telegram, and Grand Duke Augustus, the sovereign of Humphries, Isparden, and Nasser, recognized the United Kingdom.

Although Archduke Augustus was not yet a king, his territory was undoubtedly the largest among the northern kingdoms, and no one would regard him as merely a duke.

Archduke Augustus's statement made the other kings worry about Cowell's attitude.

After all, the Thyssen family of Cowell was a lord of Archduke Augustus.

Since Grand Duke Augustus has made a public statement, can this also be seen as Koviel's attitude?

However, news from Kowell soon dispelled the doubts and worries of the northern kings.

The Thyssen family neither supports nor opposes the United Kingdom; Grand Duke Augustus's attitude is not the same as Cowell's.

However, Cowell expressed respect for the choice made by Archduke Augustus.

Koviel's attitude reassured the northern kings, but it also raised a new question.

That is, is the relationship between Cowell and Grand Duke Augustus now like that of the various eastern states that gained independence after the "Bovis Division" incident, existing in name only?

Regardless, the fact that Kowell remains neutral is still good news.

Next, Queen Meve of Lyria and Rivia met with the Dragon-Slaying Saintess in Wengeburg, the former capital of Aden.

Queen Meve subsequently returned to Lyria and also announced her recognition of the United Kingdom.

Queen Meve, like Calanthe, was one of the few female rulers among the northern kings.

But Queen Meve was different; she didn't have the same ambition as Calanther.

The Dragon-Slaying Saintess simultaneously unified the two nations of Cordwin and Aden, making their national strength and territory far surpass those of Lyria and Livia.

The Dragon-Slaying Saintess told Queen Mivi that she had no ambition for the territories of Lyria and Livia, and that if Queen Mivi wished, the two countries could watch over each other and help each other in a friendly manner.

Queen Miwei has always been very accurate in judging people.

She could tell that, although the Dragon-Slaying Saintess tried her best to conceal it, the fact that she could integrate Cordwin and Aden in one fell swoop without causing any trouble was definitely not something this young girl could do alone.

She certainly didn't think Sakia was just a pretty face. Even just based on her intuition, Queen Mivi could sense that Sakia could easily take on at least ten heavily armored knights by herself.

But to govern a country well, one needs more than just military force; other skills are also required...

And a large group of people willing to follow you.

The nobles and officials of Kodwin and Aden were either dismissed or killed. Logically, these two countries should have experienced even greater turmoil than the murder of the king.

The chaos lasted only a short time before quickly stabilizing.

This suggests that there is someone else behind the dragon-slaying saintess.

Queen Miwei could roughly guess who that person was.

If it really is that person, then Queen Mivi believes that they have no designs on Lyria.

Having understood this, Queen Meve declared her recognition of the United Kingdom of Cordwin and Aden upon returning to her own country.

Queen Meve even signed a non-aggression pact and a military alliance with the United Kingdom.

The agreement stipulates that if one party is attacked, the other party must provide full support.

Unfortunately, not every king is as sensible as Queen Mivi.

King Vizmir of the Kingdom of Redania, after accepting Prince Stannis, believed that his opportunity to intervene in Cordwin and Aden had arrived.

King Vizmir sent messengers to Temuria to contact King Foltest, agreeing that the two countries would launch simultaneous attacks from the north and south.

Then the former territory of Aden came into the possession of Temeria, while the former territory of Cordwin was occupied by Redania.

Of course, Cordwin's territory is larger than Aden's, so it seems like Temeria is at a disadvantage.

but it is not the truth.

At the intersection of four countries, there is a valley called the Pontal Valley.

Although the Pontal Valley is located at the intersection of four kingdoms, the area of ​​influence leans more towards Aden, while the area of ​​influence leans relatively less towards Cordwin.

In other words, once the Temurian army occupies Aden, most of the land in the Pontal Valley will fall into the hands of King Foltest.

This important strategic location was almost entirely under the control of Temuria.

King Vizmir made such a huge concession in order to bind Temuria to his own chariot.

Although Redania was the leading power among the northern kingdoms, King Vizmir was not so arrogant as to believe that Redania could make enemies everywhere and be isolated and helpless.

That's why they had to cede half of their land to Temuria.

……

In the royal palace of Tritog, the capital of Redania.

The night is already deep.

The palace was completely silent.

Apart from the sounds of burning torches clanging against the armor of patrolling soldiers and the occasional yawns of the sentries, there was no other noise.

In the conference room.

The lights were as bright as day. King Vizmir and his most trusted nobles sat around a round table, on which lay a military map of Redania and Cordwin.

The marching route and the fortresses and strongholds that needed to be captured were marked on it with various markers.

King Vizmir and the nobles were having their final discussions before the official march.

Suddenly, the conference room door was opened.

Several elves dressed in coarse linen clothes appeared at the door, carrying weapons in their hands.

"guard!"

The nobles were initially startled, then instinctively grabbed the tables and chairs in the conference room that could be used as weapons.

Their weapons had been left with the guards before they entered the conference room, so they had to use the tables and chairs as makeshift weapons.

Strangely, the guards stationed near the conference room should have come when they heard them shouting.

But there was no movement.

The elves swarmed forward and clashed with the nobles.

But tables and chairs are nowhere near as convenient as weapons.

As a result, the nobles were quickly stabbed and fell one after another into pools of blood.

King Vizmir tried to escape while the nobles were distracting him, but before he could even reach the door of the meeting room, a dagger stabbed him in the back.

At this critical moment, King Vizmir felt little pain. Instead, he somehow found the strength to turn around and strike the elf in the face with his elbow.

As the sound of a cheekbone shattering rang out, blood spurted from the elf's nose and mouth, forming misty droplets in the air.

But this short delay allowed the other elves to catch up.

Then he stabbed her repeatedly with a series of knives.

King Vizmir's eyes widened in fury, and he instinctively grabbed the two hands holding the daggers, but the other daggers continued to pierce like venomous snakes.

Soon, King Vizmir also fell into a pool of blood, dying with his eyes wide open.

Just then, a series of chaotic footsteps approached.

A group of armored guards appeared at the entrance to the conference room.

They immediately noticed the scene inside the conference room.

"Kill these elf bastards!"

"Avenge the king!"

After another round of chopping sounds, the elves were also hacked into mincemeat by the guards.

……

The news of King Vizmir's death spread like wildfire throughout the country.

The army that was gathering and preparing to march towards Cordwin naturally came to a halt.

Queen Hedwig attempted to take control of the situation.

However, the results were minimal.

The nobles of Redania began to form factions, attempting to divide the kingdom among themselves.

But an order from Tritog shattered their hopes of playing a risky game:

The Regency Council, composed of Queen Hedwig, the sorceress Philippa, and the chief intelligence officer Dijestra, issued orders to the nobles in the name of Radovid, the youngest son of King Vizmir, demanding their loyalty to Radovid and the Regency Council.

Otherwise, you'll die.

Most of the nobles chose to bow their heads.

However, a few nobles may have wanted to offer a better price and wait for a higher bid, or they may have had other plans.

In short, they did not kneel down immediately.

This brought them utter ruin.

The army, which was originally preparing to advance on Cordwin, immediately turned its attention to the territories of nobles with separatist tendencies and burned their castles to ashes.

……

Somewhere in the palace of Tritog.

"My lord, an urgent confidential letter."

Dijkstra took the scroll from his men, but did not open it immediately. Instead, he checked that the seal on the scroll was intact before tearing it open and pouring out a roll of parchment.

The unfolded parchment was only about the size of a palm, and a normal person could read it in just a few seconds.

After reading it, Dijkstra's expression changed drastically.

"What? This is impossible!" He quickly crumpled the parchment in his hand into a ball, instinctively wanting to throw it away, but he forced himself to stop.

"Prepare my horse."

The subordinate was taken aback: "Sir?"

"What are you staring at? Are you deaf? No, never mind, you can go now."

After dismissing his men, Dijestra returned to his room in the palace.

He first closed the door and locked it.

Then he crawled under the bed, removed a wooden board located underneath, and took out a backpack about the size of a hiking backpack from a hidden compartment beneath it.

He had prepared this backpack long ago; it contained dry rations, kronor that circulated throughout the north, and gems that were smaller in quantity but more valuable.

Dijkstra struggled a little to pull the backpack out, opened it to check and make sure the contents were still there, then put the backpack on, opened the door and left.

Who knew that as soon as he stepped out the door, before he had gone far, he saw two men dressed as servants walking towards him in the corridor.

"Lord Dijkstra, where are you going?"

Although the two addressed Dijestra as "sir," their eyes and facial expressions did not show him much respect.

Dejestra headquarters didn't want to deal with these two.

But they were stopped by the two men.

He frowned and said, "What's it to you two? What do you do? I've never seen you before."

“We are…” one of them seemed to be about to explain, but the other immediately spoke up.

"The Regency Council sent us, Lord Dijestra. Wherever you are going, please put it down and come with us."

"Did Philippa send you?"

"No."

Despite their denials, Dijestra, who had served as the chief intelligence officer for many years, could tell at a glance that the two were lying.

"That's the Queen. Well, I hope she won't take up too much of my time."

The two men breathed a sigh of relief.

But at this moment...

But Dijkstra suddenly launched an attack.

With a cold glint in his right hand, he pierced the neck of one of the servants.

Then, before the other person could cry out in alarm, it slashed across the latter's throat.

Two thuds.

The two servants collapsed to the ground with expressions of disbelief.

Dijkstra put away the dagger, dragged the two corpses back to his room, and locked the door.

As for the bloodstains on the ground, there was simply no time to clean them up.

By the time Philippa learned that the men she had sent had been eliminated, Dijestra had already mounted a fast horse and left Tritog.

Yes.

Those two ill-intentioned servants were sent by Philippa.

The subordinate who delivered the secret message to Dijestra had already been bribed by Philippa.

The subordinate didn't have the guts to break the seal and peek at the secret messages inside.

But the naturally suspicious Philippa couldn't help but wonder if Dijestra's sudden change in expression was because the intelligence chief had discovered something he shouldn't have known.

such as……

Those elves who killed King Vizmir were sent by himself.

The guards who were supposed to be protecting the conference room that night were sent away by him and then poisoned.

Philippa knew that Dijkstra was very close to her, but she was unsure whether Dijkstra would still trust her as before if he knew what she had done.

Therefore, Philippa sent two people to try to bring Dijestra over.

As for whether he would kill the other party directly, try his best to persuade him, or imprison him if the other party actually came...

Philippa didn't know.

And with Dijestra's escape, she may never know.

(End of this chapter)