I'm Trapped Inside a Prince as the Most Powerful Entity-Chapter 78: Roland’s Sneaky Plan

When King James silently signaled, Gautam, the Roland Kingdom’s main strategist, stepped forward a bit. He looked confident, and his sharp eyes scanned the nobles before looking back at his king. He started to explain his plan, his voice smooth and clear, easily heard in the tense throne room.

"My Lord," Gautam began, "in this tricky situation, we have two clear advantages. If we use them right, we can turn this seeming disaster into a smart win, at least lessen the damage a lot." He paused, making sure everyone was listening.

"First," he continued, "is how the Empire itself reacts. When the Emperor found out about this – an attack by one kingdom’s prince inside another’s borders, causing many deaths and destroying a... big business – he would have, as he usually does, acted fast."

"He would have dispatched one of his elite warriors, a messenger of his power, to the kingdom that caused the trouble, in this case, Estoria. An order, a summons, will surely have been sent for King Noor IV and his third son, Prince Eric, to go to the Imperial throne to answer for what they did"

"Importantly, My Lord, we have also received an order to go to that same meeting, not as the accused, but as the aggrieved party, the victims of this bad act."

King James nodded his head slowly. This part of Gautam’s thinking was correct. A little while ago, an Imperial messenger, dressed in the clear dark grey and silver of the Emperor’s personal messengers, had arrived at the Roland palace.

The messenger had personally given a sealed scroll to the King. It was a formal invitation – or rather, a command – to attend the Imperial meeting.

The message also had a carefully worded promise that justice would be done, and that they, the Roland Kingdom, should trust the Empire’s fairness and the Emperor’s wisdom. It was a standard Imperial nice-sounding phrase, but it gave them a bit of official standing.

Gautam went on, his voice becoming more like he was sharing a secret.

"If King Noor of Estoria, as we expect, shows any kind of evidence trying to directly link us to the... activities of the Spider Syndicate accuses us of doing wrong, our main tactic must be simple and firm: we deny it. We say it’s not true. We deny that this supposed ’evidence’ was there when Prince Eric attacked without reason. We paint it as a desperate lie, a smokescreen made up by Estoria to shift blame from their own prince’s reckless attack."

After hearing this, King James stroked his beard thoughtfully for a few seconds, thinking about what it meant. He then looked directly at Gautam, a doubtful frown on his face.

"Gautam," he said, his voice sounding a bit unsure, "even if we completely deny whatever evidence they bring, even if we strongly say that we don’t accept it’s real, that doesn’t automatically mean the Emperor will side with us on this. The Emperor is not easily fooled by just denials, especially if Estoria can bring... convincing witnesses."

Gautam shook his head, a small, knowing smile on his lips. "My Lord King," he replied, his confidence strong, "as far as our spies have been able to find out, the only ’convincing witnesses’ King Noor can bring before the Emperor are those few dozen rescued prisoners from the Syndicate base. Their testimony, while potentially sympathetic, will be easily discredited as coerced, unreliable, or simply the words of desperate people clutching at straws, especially when weighed against the word of a sovereign kingdom like Roland.."

The King nodded slowly; this was also a worry that had been bothering him. The words of peasants against the statements of royalty and high nobles often didn’t mean much in the formal, structured meetings of an Imperial council.

Gautam then continued, revealing the more active, and more sinister, part of his plan.

"My Lord, with whatever control and influence we still have left over of the Spider Syndicate, especially those groups operating outside of Roland and who don’t know the full story of the recent... changes... we must immediately, and secretly, have them declare, through various hidden ways that will eventually reach the Empire’s ears, that their true main base of operations is, and always has been, located in another country."

"Somewhere far from Roland, a lawless border area, or a rival kingdom. We must create a false trail, a believable different story that separates Roland completely from the Syndicate’s main leadership in the eyes of the Empire and the other kingdoms."

Hearing this bold idea, King James fell into deep thought. His fingers drummed a silent beat on the armrest of his throne. The plan was risky. It needed fast, decisive, and totally ruthless action to control the Syndicate’s broken leadership structure.

But the possible reward – completely cutting Roland off from the Spider Syndicate in the official story – was huge.

Prime Minister Lebens, who had been listening closely, then stood up from his spot beside the throne. He looked at the King, his face showing cool calculation.

"Doing so is indeed possible, My Lord," Lebens confirmed, his voice supporting Gautam’s suggestion. "Our network still has influence over several key people within the wider Syndicate organization. With the right... rewards and orders, such a story can be spread effectively and quickly."

The King looked from Gautam to his Prime Minister, a spark of new determination in his eyes. "Alright then," he declared, his voice firm.

"Do as Gautam has suggested. Put this plan into action immediately. Make sure this... re-telling of the Syndicate’s origins is started as quickly and as convincingly as possible. Spare no expense, use any means necessary."

Prime Minister Lebens bowed his head, showing he understood. "It will be done, Your Majesty."

But then Gautam spoke again, his voice dropping slightly, sounding even more dangerous.

"My Lord, that is not all. Simply deflecting blame is a defensive posture. We must also seize this opportunity to strike a decisive blow against Estoria."

"We must ensure, through whatever political maneuvering, backroom deals, whispered accusations we can leverage within the Imperial Court, that the Emperor sentences the Third Prince of Estoria, Eric, to death as punishment for his alleged transgressions against Roland and his defiance of Imperial law." A chilling smile touched Gautam’s lips.

"This result, My Lord, would be a very big victory for us. A win far greater than losing the Syndicate base. Because if this Third Prince, this supposed weakling, truly had the power to single-handedly destroy our entire main Syndicate headquarters and take out our forces stationed there, then he is a new, unpredictable, and possibly huge threat to us in the future. His potential cannot be ignored. And if this dangerous Third Prince is killed, not by our hand directly, but by the Emperor’s own order... nothing could be better for the long-term safety and goals of Roland."

King James nodded his head slowly, a grim satisfaction on his face. The ruthlessness of Gautam’s idea appealed to his own practical, and often brutal, way of thinking.

"Yes," the King said, his voice cold and determined. "We will try our absolute best. We will use every resource, every contact, every bit of influence we have within the Empire to make sure that King Noor and his troublesome son, Eric, receive the most severe punishment possible. Death for the Prince... and perhaps even Estoria losing territory or facing crippling penalties."

Then, the King, having taken in this part of the plan, thought of something else. He looked back at his strategist. "Gautam," he said, "you mentioned there were two clear advantages to our situation. You’ve explained the first – twisting the story, shifting blame, and aiming for Eric’s execution. Now, tell me. What is the second advantage?"

Gautam allowed a small, almost unnoticeable smile to appear on his lips. The first part of his plan was about damage control and taking opportunities. The second, he knew, was where Roland could truly turn things around and get a strategic win from this whole mess.