1885, I came to save Greece

Chapter 44 Chief Attendant-in-Arms! The Crown Prince's Closest Blade

Metaxas stood outside the heavy oak door of the royal study, his heart pounding painfully in his chest.

He subconsciously rubbed his faded officer's uniform, his palms damp with cold sweat. He was so nervous that he wanted to wipe his hands on his trousers, but he held back.

An hour earlier, he had been enduring the battalion commander's sarcastic remarks while directing soldiers to clean an old cannon that didn't belong to their company at all, but had been forced upon them for maintenance.

Just then, the Crown Prince's chief aide-de-camp, Alexandros, appeared in person on the dusty parade ground of the artillery battalion, amidst the astonished gazes of the officers.

"By order of His Highness the Crown Prince, I hereby summon Lieutenant Annis Metaxas to proceed to the Royal Palace immediately."

The sound wasn't loud, but all the noise on the playground instantly disappeared.

You could hear a pin drop.

The expressions on the faces of his colleagues, who usually mocked him and treated him like he was invisible, were priceless at that moment. Shock, jealousy, and confusion all culminated in deep fear.

Especially the company commander who always called him a "crown prince's lackey" behind his back, his face instantly drained of all color, looking even worse than a rag used to wipe a cannon barrel, his mouth opened but he couldn't utter a single word.

At that moment, the ice that had been building up in Metaxus's heart for weeks finally cracked open.

Light shone in from there.

The door opened.

Alexandros nodded slightly to him and stepped aside to make way.

Metaxas took a deep breath and stepped inside.

The study was quiet and softly lit. Constantine wasn't sitting behind the enormous desk that symbolized power; instead, dressed in simple training clothes, he stood with his back to the door in front of a huge map of Greece that almost took up an entire wall.

He held a small flag representing the legion in his hand, seemingly deep in thought. His tall, upright figure, though emanating no imposing aura, made Metaxus feel a sudden tightness in his chest, as if a thousand-pound weight were pressing down on his shoulders.

"Your Highness!"

He stopped in the center of the room and gave an impeccable military salute.

Constantine slowly turned around and casually planted the small flag in an inconspicuous spot on the map. He didn't speak immediately, but calmly scrutinized the young lieutenant before him.

The gaze swept over his tense shoulders, over his hands roughened by years of maintaining artillery, and finally settled on his stubborn and bright eyes.

Metaxas felt as if he had been seen through from the inside out, and all his pretenses had been exposed.

"Metaxus," Constantine finally spoke, his voice flat and devoid of emotion, "what do you think is the biggest problem for the Greek army?"

The problem came so suddenly and so acutely.

This isn't a test; it's a heart-wrenching examination!

Metaxas's mind raced, countless smooth and unoffensive responses flashing through his head.

Outdated equipment? Insufficient military funding? Lax training?

These are all answers, but they are all meaningless platitudes, clichés meant to fool the men of Congress.

He looked up and met Constantine's calm eyes, which held a certain expectation. Those eyes seemed to say: This isn't what I want to hear.

Metaxas mustered all the courage he had ever had.

He recalled the old generals who clung to Napoleon's tactics manual, the scene on the training field where he was publicly reprimanded as a "coward" for suggesting the evacuation of artillery positions, and the repeated humiliations the country suffered due to its military incompetence.

An uncontrollable surge of anger rushed to the top of his head!

"Your Highness!" He straightened his back abruptly, his voice trembling with excitement, "It's thought!"

"Our army's biggest problem is that the thinking of our generals is still stuck in the last half-century!"

"Our generals still cling to the belief that densely packed formations in charging can demonstrate a soldier's courage! They don't realize that courage is worthless against a Maxim machine gun! A well-trained machine gun squad can slaughter an entire infantry regiment they're so proud of!"

"They complained to the king about not having enough money to buy new Krupp cannons, yet they spent huge sums of military funds maintaining the horses and gleaming cuirasses of the cavalrymen on the parade ground! Good heavens, cuirasses! Did they intend to use those things to stop cannonballs? This wasn't preparation for war; it was a costly armed parade!"

These words exploded like a series of cannonballs in the quiet study.

This is outrageous! This is blatantly calling the entire Greek army's top brass idiots!

After saying that, Metaxus broke out in a cold sweat. He realized what he had said and his face turned pale.

He awaited the Crown Prince's wrath and was even prepared to be court-martialed.

However, a smile slowly bloomed on Constantine's face—a genuine smile, one filled with appreciation.

"Well said."

He turned around, picked up a pre-prepared document from his desk, and walked step by step to Metaxas.

The steady footsteps, each one like stepping on Metaxa's heartbeat.

"Therefore, I need someone who understands modern warfare to stay by my side. Someone... like you, someone who dares to speak the truth."

Constantine handed the document to Metaxas.

Metaxas lowered his head stiffly.

When his gaze fell upon the few lines of strong, powerful text written in Parker gold pen on the document, his pupils suddenly contracted and then dilated!

Breathing, completely stopped.

That was an appointment letter.

It is clearly written above:

"I hereby appoint Army Artillery Lieutenant Joannis Metaxas as the Crown Prince's Chief Attendant-in-Arms."

Chief...attendant-in-arms!

This position has a low rank and is not even a formal military post.

But Metaxas knew better than anyone what this meant!

This means that he will completely bypass the Army Department's seniority-based and suffocating promotion system!

This means that he will become the Crown Prince's closest military advisor, participating in all the most crucial decisions!

This means that all his ideas about modern warfare and all his tactical thoughts that were not understood will, for the first time, have the opportunity to be heard, examined, and even... put into practice before the highest levels of the country!

A surge of heat exploded in his chest, mixed with the excitement of being recognized, instantly shattering all his psychological defenses.

He felt his body trembling violently; the appointment certificate in his hand, a light piece of paper, felt heavier than a heavy artillery piece.

"thump!"

Metaxa's knees buckled, and without any hesitation, she knelt heavily on one knee on the cold floor.

He held the letter of appointment high, as if holding up the faith of his entire life.

He looked up, his vision blurred by tears, and could only make out Constantine's tall silhouette.

He opened his mouth, but the sound coming from his throat was so hoarse it was almost incoherent.

"Your Highness!"

"My life, my knowledge, everything I have..."

With all his might, he roared out the vow that had been suppressed and longed for for so long.

"From this moment on, I belong entirely to you!"

Constantine reached out and helped him up from the ground, patting non-existent dust off his shoulder.

"very good."

He pointed to the mountain of documents piled on his desk, a hint of mockery in his eyes.

"Well then, Chief Attendant-General, your first job has arrived."

"Tear up that riddled-with-problems, toilet paper-like annual budget report from the Army Department. I need a new one by noon tomorrow."

Constantine's eyes sharpened.

"A budget that...can win the war."