Bringing Them into the Fold

The Marquis of Luckner froze at those words. They had only just used their "refusal to suppress the unrest" to threaten the Royal House.

Joseph, however, abruptly changed tack:

"I hear you were planning to put together an 'Alliance Front'?"

Cold sweat immediately poured off the Marquis of Luckner. Realizing that the Marquis of Saint-Viran must have confessed everything, he hurriedly waved his hands:

"No, no, that was only..."

Joseph raised a hand to cut him off:

"His Majesty is deeply dissatisfied with your dereliction of duty in allowing the unrest in Auvergne to run unchecked. Furthermore, secretly coordinating with other officers in an attempt to sway the Royal House's decisions was an extremely serious error."

Though startled, the Marquis of Luckner swiftly picked up on the distinction in the Crown Prince's words-His Majesty had defined his conduct only as "dereliction of duty" and a "serious error." In other words, there was still room for negotiation!

He secretly gritted his teeth and adopted an utterly sincere manner:

"I am willing to accept any punishment for the errors I have committed."

Joseph nodded. "First, you must go to Versailles Palace in person and admit your wrongdoing to His Majesty the King."

Seeing the Marquis of Luckner turn pale, he added, "Rest assured, you will not be removed from your post."

The latter was instantly overjoyed. This already met his bottom line, and he hurriedly nodded again and again:

"I shall follow Your Highness's instructions, seek an audience with His Majesty as soon as possible, and sincerely repent before him!"

Joseph continued, "Second, the Auvergne Legion must adopt the new officer selection and promotion system. Oh, to put it simply, commoners must be given the opportunity to become officers. At the same time, promotion will no longer require payment."

The Marquis of