Became a Strategist with a 100 Intelligence and 100\% Accuracy-Chapter 298: A Relationship That ‘Blends’ Fate

A few days ago, during a private strategy meeting in the conference room with Serpina—

[That is incorrect.]

‘...?’

That was the response that appeared, again and again, no matter how many times I ran the simulation in my head, when asked the question: “Is invading the Aishus Army right now the most efficient option?”

What exactly could our army accomplish at this moment?

If you asked anyone with even a basic understanding of strategy—or hell, even someone with just common sense—they’d all give the same answer:

Launch a counterattack against the Aishus Army, the very faction that had declared war on us.

Recently, the news broke that Carlints' forces had been absorbed into Brans Army. Which meant that the peace treaty between Serpina and Lyn Brans was now fully in effect. If our army were to attack Brans now, it would be considered a breach of that agreement, drawing international backlash. There was no reason to risk that.

Serpina already had a shattered reputation on the global stage. There was no point in further sullying her name by violating a treaty. No need to heap more infamy on her than necessary.

Aishus, however, was different. Yuri had attacked without solid justification—and failed. Now, all the justification for invasion rested with us.

Sure, not every war in this era required a clear cause, but having some justification helped pacify the people in newly conquered territories. We needed that buy-in.

So why...?

Why was attacking the Aishus Army not the most efficient move?

Is there going to be another rebellion...?

I turned to Serpina and laid out the general results of the analysis.

“You’re saying an invasion would be a poor decision?”

“Yes. Do you have any idea why that might be?”

“Any idea, hmm...”

Serpina rested her chin in her hand, deep in thought.

“...Not at the moment.”

“You don’t?”

“Judging by your tone, it seems you’re hoping to hear a specific answer from me. Go on, say it. If you really want me to, I’ll play along.”

She let out a soft chuckle, and I awkwardly turned my head to the side.

“It’s not that I want to hear anything in particular... It’s just, in the past, I think you would’ve immediately said something like, ‘Another rebellion, perhaps.’”

At that, Serpina finally seemed to understand where I was coming from and gave a small nod.

“I see. But things are different now. I received a letter from Jenna recently.”

“A letter?”

Jenna, the former national strategist, had handed the position over to me and was currently serving as the acting lord of the capital, Eingart Castle, in Serpina’s place while she led the occupying forces.

“She knows better than anyone how frequent rebellions are. She’s been conducting constant patrols while I’m away. I’ve been receiving regular updates from her.”

As expected of Serpina—she didn’t need instructions to know what needed to be done.

“So far, there’s been no sign of unrest or rebellion. And even if there were, aside from the capital’s garrison, all the elite troops have already been brought out to join the occupation force. Even if someone tried to rally forces from the remaining territories, the capital’s guard alone is enough to suppress them.”

“You’ve taken thorough precautions this time, then.”

“A ruler doesn’t curse fate for being cruel. They focus on how to deal with it.”

Hearing her speak of fate again left a bitter taste in my mouth, but I didn’t let it show.

She was doing everything she could—doing more than anyone could ask. I didn’t want to belittle that with ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ careless words.

Serpina, who had spoken with such composure, slowly turned to me with a gentle smile.

“But still, if your clairvoyance is pointing directly to ‘rebellion,’ then perhaps there’s something to it.”

“Something like what?”

“If the lord of the capital, who commands the entire capital defense force, were to rebel... our army would take catastrophic damage.”

What?

Wait—did she mean...?

“Wait a moment. Are you saying Lady Jenna is going to rebel?”

“If that’s what your clairvoyance is showing, then it’s not an impossibility, is it?” ƒreewebɳovel.com

“But... Jenna starting a rebellion seems... extremely unlikely—”

I couldn’t finish the sentence.

Because Serpina, for the briefest of moments, had a look on her face like she was about to break.

I couldn’t bring myself to speak any further.

“It doesn’t matter how likely it seems to me.”

“Everyone else was the same. All the people I thought would never betray me... were the first to draw their blades against me.”

“I trust Jenna. I entrusted all authority in Eingart Castle to her without hesitation because I believe in her. But... that doesn’t mean I believe fate will spare her, just because I trust her.”

“My lady...”

Even after so many betrayals, she still hadn’t stopped believing in people.

But what struck me most wasn’t that she chose to keep believing—it was that she never once ignored the possibility that her trust might be betrayed again.

She said it so casually, but I could feel the weight of the loneliness she carried. And once again... I found myself drawn to her.

“...Swen. If you command it, I’ll immediately withdraw our forces and return to the capital. Focusing on domestic affairs for a while wouldn’t be a bad thing. We’ve just gained control of Chel’s former territory, after all. It needs managing. So—what path does your ‘clairvoyance’ show now?”

“...”

Right.

We’re back to the question.

We’d already proven that invading Aishus now wasn’t the most efficient move.

There was no point in doubting the outcome of this result—it was solid.

So if invading wasn’t the right move, then the army needed to do something else that would be more advantageous.

Then what... exactly... should we do?

“...My lady. I’d like to run an analysis on withdrawing our troops and returning them to the capital.”

“You’re saying we should move all our forces back to Eingart?”

I entered her follow-up question into the simulation.

[That is incorrect.]

“...It seems redirecting our troops to the capital isn’t the best course of action.”

“Then that would mean... it’s not a rebellion?”

“I can’t say for certain. But... the odds are leaning that way.”

If, as Serpina had said, the only scenario in which our forces could suffer a devastating blow was a rebellion in the capital—then yes, assuming her caution and preparations had been thorough, it was reasonable to believe her.

“I see...”

She let out a quiet sigh of relief.

For her sake, I really wanted to draw a more decisive conclusion here—something solid she could rely on.

“My lady, please frame your next question as a matter of national policy.”

“What course should our army take going forward?”

Direct questions like this usually didn’t yield answers.

But there was one exception: if it related to governance, warfare, or military affairs, my 100 Intelligence would sometimes respond with a clear, strategic directive.

And just as I’d hoped—

[Prepare for war with the Aishus Army.]

‘...???’

Right.

I did guess we might get an answer.

I just didn’t expect one that made no sense.

Prepare for war? But attacking now isn’t efficient??

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

It felt like I’d already drawn out as much as I could from the current line of questioning. What I needed now was to figure out why that result had come up.

And I didn’t exactly have a lot of information to work with.

If I thought about it simply, the most likely scenario was that something would go wrong during the invasion—some kind of internal issue, a rebellion in effect even if not in name.

But is it really... really another rebellion?

If that were true, then why wasn’t pulling the troops back to the capital considered the best response?

...No. If we assume the rebellion starts right now, it would make sense that the troops wouldn’t arrive in time. So perhaps the system calculated a different course of action that would have a better outcome.

That would explain the odd answer.

Still—

It just doesn’t feel right.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Maybe it was just intuition. Or maybe it was because I couldn’t bring myself to believe fate would be so cruel to Serpina again. Either way, I couldn’t shake the feeling that a rebellion wasn’t the answer.

“My lady. I believe we don’t have enough information yet. However... I’m inclined to think that no rebellion will occur.”

“Did your clairvoyance confirm that?”

“...No. In fact, based on clairvoyance alone, the most rational assumption would be that a rebellion is imminent somewhere.”

“Then how can you be sure? I hesitate to say it, but... given my track record, wouldn’t it be more logical to assume betrayal is inevitable?”

“Please, trust me on this one. Even if fate has been especially cruel to you, once you throw me into the equation, you never know what changes might occur.”

“......!!!”

“...?”

What the—

Did I say something weird?

Serpina’s expression changed drastically in that moment. Like she’d just been hit by something.

“‘Throw you in’... you say...”

“...Yes?”

“To throw you in with me... is that it...”

She kept repeating the phrase under her breath, over and over again.

And then—

“...Very well. I’ll follow your guidance.”

Her cheeks were flushed bright red, and it definitely felt like something was off, but... if she was agreeing, I had no reason to poke at it.

“Thank you. On that note, there’s something I’d like to request.”

“Say the word. I’ll be your hands and feet.”

“...I’m not sure it’s fitting for a sovereign to say something like that...”

She chuckled softly.

And what I requested next was—

“Please assemble a reconnaissance unit capable of infiltrating Aishus territory.”

“Is that all you need?”

No—it wasn’t just that.

I hesitated a moment, then revealed my true intention.

—Please include me in that unit.