I Became A Black Merchant In Another World-Chapter 206: Agitation and Profit (1)

It’s been almost a year since the Kingdom of Lyon and the Holy Empire went to war.

Unlike modern wars, where battles last for years and all a nation’s resources are thrown into the conflict, wars on the medieval continent of Albania usually end within 2–3 months, or at most six months.

The battles generally involve a large-scale clash that decides the outcome with a single victory or defeat.

‘This time, both sides mobilized over 100,000 troops each.’

“This war has lasted quite a while. So who won?”

“The Kingdom of Lyon won, it seems.”

From the start, this war heavily favored the Kingdom of Lyon.

Though I don’t know much about the terrain, supply lines, troops, tactics, or the generals’ levels, Napoleon once said that an army with two equally skilled commanders is weaker than one led by a Daimyo like Japan’s Wanko.

But the Holy Empire was a coalition force, and there were likely constant disagreements between the commander of the papal army and the high-ranking officials of the Holy Empire.

The Kingdom of Lyon, with the advantage of defense and unified command, was bound to have the upper hand in the battle.

“If you have any information about the progress of the war, read it in detail.”

“Initially, the Holy Empire’s army and the mercenaries hired by the Papacy pushed the Kingdom of Lyon’s forces back little by little. The coalition forces, emboldened by their progress, rushed to secure a decisive victory.”

There’s a saying that applies to both life and war:

‘If things seem to be going too well, there’s probably a fall waiting for you.’

In life, you might find yourself in a difficult situation because of an unexpected problem, and in war, it could be a trap set by the enemy.

That’s why it’s important to never let your guard down.

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If you let your guard slip, it can lead to irreversible consequences.

“The atmosphere seemed to lean towards a victory for the Holy Empire and the Papal forces, and that’s when the pillaging started.”

In the battle I participated in against the Duchy of Milania, we didn’t use mercenaries, but once mercenaries get involved in a war, it turns into hell.

Governments and nobles, already burdened with debts to merchants, may pay mercenaries their upfront fees to join the war, but after a few months, they can’t keep up with their monthly wages and other expenses.

‘That’s when they turn to local plundering to make up the difference.’

They plunder livestock, precious metals, food, and people, selling them to line their own pockets.

Some mercenaries, who don’t even need the upfront fee, will just ask for unlimited plundering rights, as it’s a huge money-making opportunity for them.

I don’t need to see it to know what happened next—it’s as clear as day.

“Before the victory was even secured, prohibiting soldiers from plundering is to prevent them from scattering and getting picked off individually.”

Before the Geneva Conventions were established and the concept of human rights for enemy civilians took hold, most monarchs and commanders prohibited plundering for one simple reason:

‘It interferes with the war.’

If you kill too many people and plunder too aggressively, it could spark rebellion from the locals, and if mercenaries and soldiers get too carried away with looting and can’t be controlled...

As I’ve said, the enemy could show up with a cavalry or infantry unit and wipe out your forces.

“Well, the Holy Empire might have controlled them, but the Papal mercenaries are the ones who live by plundering. There’s no way they could resist it. They probably plundered first.”

In the Thirty Years' War, Hungary’s brave Hussars plundered their own supply depots because they thought the Holy Roman Empire was about to lose.

After they won the battle, they even took plundered supplies from the enemy, happily returned them to their own side, and then went back to the enemy camp to plunder even more.

This is what you can expect from mercenaries who only work for pay (and get paid late).

‘Even if they didn’t get paid, this is a bit much...’

“When the entire army got caught up in plundering and the unit scattered, the Kingdom of Lyon probably wiped them out in one sweep.”

Sebastian nodded in agreement.

“Yes, that’s what the records say. But even though the Kingdom of Lyon won, they suffered a lot of losses from the plundering by the enemy.”

The Kingdom of Lyon technically won the war, but they lost their eastern borders to plundering. The Holy Empire and the Papacy lost significant numbers of soldiers and supplies, so it was a victory with many wounds.

“So, I have two options.”

I held up two fingers.

“One is to provide some weapons to the Kingdom of Lyon and urge them to go for revenge.”

Providing a little support and selling matchlock guns and other weapons could bring in some decent profit.

But with the factories I have right now, it’s not going to make me a fortune.

“It’s likely that someone will leak this secret. The nobles of the Kingdom of Lyon don’t owe me anything, so there’s no guarantee the secrecy will hold.”

When you silence someone, there are prerequisites.

You must be a figure that inspires fear in them.

If you try to silence someone without meeting this condition...

‘It’s never going to work.’

“The other option is to sow seeds of discord within the Holy Empire.”

Sebastian tilted his head.

“How will sowing discord within the Holy Empire help you, Baron?”

Come to think of it, Sebastian didn’t know that I was preparing for a religious war.

Well, I don’t plan on revealing this secret to my wives until the right moment...

Should I change the subject for now?

“The Holy Empire is in an ideal state for a war. The Emperor is already in his late 60s, so it wouldn’t be strange if he died soon.”

Unlike the Tuscan Empire, they elect their emperors through votes by the Elector princes.

To simplify, think of it as a system where 8 or so political parties in the Imperial Assembly each cast one vote for the Emperor.

If a candidate gets a majority, they become Emperor, but...

‘Well, in reality, most of the time, the Holy Empire’s royal family picks who gets to be Emperor, and the election is just a formality.’

“If we provoke the current Emperor and push him to make the Papacy pay for their defeat in this war, what do you think will happen?”

“It would cause friction between the Elector princes who support the Papacy and those who don’t.”

If I manage to divide the supporters of the Deus Church and the opponents of the Deus Church...

Then, when our dear priest finally posts the 95 Theses and starts spreading a new version of the Deus faith...

The Holy Empire will split neatly along the lines of these factions.

And then, a civil war will break out.

Because they will fight to defend their religion and their vested interests.

“If friction arises, of course, everyone will start buying weapons. At that point, if I smuggle weapons at a low price, I could make a decent profit.”

“How do you plan on blaming the Papacy for this defeat?”

A great webtoon author once said:

‘Don’t cowardly bring up the facts, win with propaganda and fabrication!’

Yes, in political battles, it’s bad to use facts—what you need is propaganda and fabrication, as the Empire does.

So, I plan to stick to that approach.

“Anyway, most of the Emperor and the Electors will want to blame the Church. It’s their responsibility for the defeat, but they won’t want to face the consequences.”

Politicians are all the same.

When they’re wrong, it’s someone else’s fault, and when someone else is wrong, it’s obviously their responsibility.

That’s how they work.

Because if they admit their mistakes, there are crazies around who will cut off their nose while they’re awake, and chop off their limbs too.

‘And everyone hopes they’re not the unlucky victim.’

“We just need to slap the cheek of the crying child. A few poorly fabricated documents showing that the Kingdom of Lyon and the Papacy were secretly in cahoots will do the trick.”

Whether those documents are true or false isn’t really a big issue for the Holy Empire.

So my plan will definitely work.

“And I’ll take this opportunity to visit the Holy Empire. I need to see the Emperor’s face and look for anything else I can do.”

I’ll have to see if there’s anything more I can do while I’m there.

Who knows, maybe I’ll find something?