571 - 577

Invitation and Murder

Lorist gazed at the crowd-filled streets.

"Didn't you say the king was going to charge the guilds a three-tenths profit tax for owning shops in the capital? Why are there so many shops here when the guilds have left?" asked he.

"You got the wrong idea. The taxes aren't on owning shops, but on having offices. His tax is three-tenths of the profit of any guild headquartered in the capital.

"As for the shops, they're mostly backed by nobles and only have to pay a one-tenth goods tax, nothing else. The king can't pocket the money belonging to nobles, right? Paying one-tenth tribute is already showing enough respect to him.

"Also, the king wanted guilds to pay an annual tribute as continual proof of their loyalty. This street would be completely deserted if not for how lucrative business is here. Even so, most are only just making it by. They consider it tossing a few bones to stray dogs. It's fine as long as they're still making some profit."

Lorist shook his head. Auguslo was too biased against merchants. He was your stereotypical noble; he thought all merchants were rich men, and they were doing nothing but siphoning his wealth away by doing business in his lands.

The merchants certainly didn't have a good picture of him. He was a parasite as far as they were concerned. He didn't have the skills and wit to make money himself, so he just leached off them instead. Lorist didn't know how the imperial bloodline had produced such an incompetent fool. Just one of his taxes was enough to chase all the merchants away. What good did a tax do him if there was no one who could be taxed?

At best, the king could possibly think on the most rudimentary level of taxation, taking a cut of exchanged goods. He was truly a fool. So that was why he was always running out of money when he needed it the most.

The carriage stopped at a four-story building. It had a grand gold-laden plaque. Kenmays had decorated the place according to his tastes, so their lavishness competed with the palace. Five buildings had been connected to great a single megastore. Most of its products came from the Northlands, mainly salt, glassware, and white paper. Kenmays did contribute a good item to the lineup, however: his maid uniforms.

Lorist, Kenmays, and Loze disembarked and walked inside. Kenmays chatted busily with the manager, letting Lorist stroll through the shop. He had to admit, Kenmays was decently talented at running businesses. Despite how messy and cluttered the shop was, it raked in a million gold in an average year.

Kenmays finished his business quickly and dragged his two companion to the back of the shop. A large yard filled the space between the five buildings. Most of the goods were held in crates under shed roofs there. Most of the shop's guards also stood watch there. The shop had 18 silver ranks in their employ for the night shift alone.

"During the night?"

"Yes," Kenmays nodded, "Three shops in the street were robbed during the night. It's the most dangerous time of day.

"The thieves didn't kill anyone though. They knocked the guards out and vanished with everything in the shops and their stores. It was an immense embarrassment for the king to be unable to solve the cases that he was forced to fire two consecutive chiefs of security.

"I sent a bunch of silvers over when I heard about it and we haven't had any issues since."

"How stupid... the thieves obviously left the moment they finished stealing. What is the man doing still looking for them in the city?" Loze snorted.

Kenmays nodded in agreement.

"I agree, but who am I to question how the king squanders his reputation? It's also partially the shops' fault for being so complacent and lax with their security."

"What was their business?" asked Lorist.

"Lamando sells jade-studded products, Pistachio deals in gold and silverware, and Whiterose sells luxury crystal decorations… Wait a minute… They were here for riches! Those shops had the most expensive stuff and the things easiest to steal!"

Kenmays took them further into the maze to a large courtyard with a small door. The inside was as grand as a mansion, however.

"I usually stay here when visiting. The main door exits onto the main street, but I usually don't use it. I brought you here so you can get a feel for the path," Kenmays said to Loze, "Why don't we hold a ball here tonight to celebrate you becoming a blademaster? I'll organize a few good dancers and you can even stay overnight if you

"Alright, I'll the details to you then," Loze smiled.

Lorist was quite dissatisfied. He was a swordsaint, so he had to maintain a certain level of decorum. He couldn't attend Kenmays' balls. And it was even worse since his women were in the city.

"You could've brought Loze here yourself. Why bring me along?" complained Lorist.

"You own a tenth of the committee, it won't do for you to be completely ignorant of our business in the capital."

Ugh, why did he always have to have an answer for everything?

Kenmays vanished into what was probably his office for a while to organize things for the ball. He didn't forget to tell Loze about every pretty women that might possibly attend. Lorist had little interest in such frivolous business so he strolled around the shop instead.

It was decently busy. There was always at least a couple of people in the middle of picking out something to buy. That said, few bought more than one or two things so the sum of money exchanged was never extravagant. He kept an eye on the counter for a while before losing interest and walking out onto the street.

He shouldn't have come along. This was nothing but a waist. Lorist called out to a taxi. Just as one started slowing down, however, he noticed a commotion nearby. What was going on? It might be interesting, so he went over to take a look.

"Beautiful ladies, this one's master graciously extends an invitation to the ball my master will be hosting tonight. Please accept this invitation and these gifts. My Lordship, a count, will gladly welcome you, ladies..."

So some noble was courting people again… Lorist might have thought it was one of Kenmays's lackeys if the man hadn't said his master was a count. His gaze sharpened on the man and he suddenly stomped forward, shoving the people in his way aside. Everyone quickly made way for him like a parting ocean once his temper flared.

The idiot's poor victims were none other than Lorist's women. Sylvia and the four concubines were trying to get rid of the bastard. Normally that would have been the job of their guards, but these were buried under shopping bags.

The bastard was trying to force his master's invitations on them. The five women were acting as if he didn't exist and trying to leave, but he had jumped in front of them and was bowing shamelessly as if his life would be over if they didn't accept.

Lorist burst out of the crowd and grabbed the invitation. He flicked it once and tore it into shreds, letting them float to the ground in front of the man. He turned around to see his guard awkwardly trying to lower their heads for a bow.

"Forget it. You'll drop something."

"Why are you here?" asked Sylvia.

Despite her words, Lorist got the impression she was actually saying 'look at what I've bought!'. Gah... women…

"Where are the children?"

"They're playing in a pond nearby. Godmother and Patt are watching them, don't worry. Oh, Locke, I bought you a new deerskin coat. It's really soft and stylish. Come, let's go try it on, that shop has a fitting room--"

"--You... how dare you tear up my master's invitation? Are you insulting him?" said the man with a raspy voice.

His face looked like a tomato, glaring furiously at Lorist.

"Buzz off," Lorist spat softly, "Get out of my sight before I run out of patience. If you piss me off I'll wipe out your so-called master and his family."

"How dare you!"

What gave this little man the guts to be so bold?

"How dare you say something so unreasonable and rude! Are you trying to commit treason?! Do you know who my lord is? I doubt you have the balls to do something like exterminate his whole family! Everyone has heard you! Don't be surprised if you lose your land and title!"

Ugh, so he was of the sharp-tongued variety. How irritating.

"Hehe, I don't know or care who your master is. How is killing a little count treason?"

"Because my master is Lord Wecksas, son of the king! Threatening to kill his family is threatening to kill the king!" said the butler proudly and gleefully.

"Oh? Just him? I thought he would at least have some clout, but it turns out your master is just a bastard. You should actually be caned for suggesting he has anything to do with the royal family. Know your place! I'll forgive you this time, but there won't be a next time, now scram!-- Lorist turned to the guards. "--How did you end up getting entangled with that fool?"

"We don't know, Your Grace. The ladies were just shopping when he came out of nowhere and tried to invite the ladies to a ball. He wouldn't stop pestering them and refused to let them go without accepting the invitation and promising to attend," one of the guards answered from behind the gift packages.

"You... Slander! How dare you slander the royal family! Know your crimes for what they are!" the butler butted in again.

"What's going on, Your Grace?" asked Patt as he pushed out of the crowd accompanied by a dozen guards.

"Just a pest. Kill quickly and we can be on our way." Lorist said, pointing at the middle-aged man.

Lorist would have cut him down himself, but he felt it beneath him as a swordsaint to raise even just the finger needed to kill the man against him directly. In fact, it would be a great honor for the man's family to have him killed by a swordsaint, and they didn't deserve it.

"Yes."

Patt immediately drew his sword without question and walked towards the butler, a sinister smile plastered on his face.

"You... you dare harm someone in broad daylight?!"

It finally dawned on the butler that he might be pissing against the wrong tree. He tried to make a run for it, but he was completely surrounded by an impenetrable crowd of his own making.

Patt finally made it to him and lifted him by the scruff of his neck before slamming him into the ground unceremoniously.

The butler shivered as all the color bled out of him.

"M-mercy..." he whispered through chattering teeth.

"Stop! Who dares kill in the capital?" cried a loud voice from outside the circle of the crowd.

So the watch had finally showed up.

Patt didn't listen to them, however. He took orders from one man and one man only. Without his word, this man would be dead in a few moments. And indeed it was so. The man's head soon rolled away from his body, his severed neck painting the cobblestones of the road.

The crowd withdrew several withering steps like leaves recoiling from the heat of a fire. No on None thought someone would actually kill in the capital in broad daylight, right in front of the watch as well. The police finally forced their way through a few moments later.

The leader, a burly and bearded man, glanced at the corpse and immediately took action.

"Capture all of them! Kill anyone who resists!"

His men blew their whistles before charging at the group, weapons drawn.

Kill Them All

"Teach them a lesson, but don't kill anyone," ordered Lorist.

"Understood, Your Grace."

Patt and his accompaniment rubbed their fists together. Soon sounds of thumping and cries echoed up and down the street. The watchmen tried to stop them but were beat up as well.

Patt lifted the sword with one hand and the bearded watchman with his other.

He dropped him in front of Lorist before announcing, "Done."

"Kneel" shouted he as he stomped on the man's thigh. Two guards came over and lifted the sack of flesh up.

He put up a token struggle but could do nothing.

"You... who are you... Who dares disobey... His Majesty's ban on k-killing and r-resists arrest... T... turn yourselves in... Just wait... When His Majesty finds out..."

Pat slapped him a few times.

"Are you blind? Can you not see our insignia? Aren't you brave? You actually dare disrespect His Grace? Are you sick of living?"

"Raging bear... You are Nortons?! D-duke... Duke Norton, the sw-swordsaint… S-sorry... Duke Norton... Y-your Grace, it's our fault. W-we shouldn't have b-been so restless... W-we deserve this... Please forgive u-us..."

The bearded man planted his head in the ground and begged for forgiveness.

"Alright, kneel properly. I only want to ask why you didn't stop the idiot when he was harassing my women?" replied Lorist indifferently.

"I-it's not our fault, Lord. His Majesty told us only to maintain order and stop fights. Ball invitations don't disturb the peace and aren't fights. We cannot interfere unless a fight breaks out. A-a-and... This is butler is Count Wecksas's servant. W-we can't afford to offend him... A-a few days ago, Duke Handra's daughter was pestered and had no choice but to take the invitation before being allowed to leave."

"Oh? Taking the invitation is all it takes? What if she didn't attend the ball?" asked Lorist.

"... I'm not too sure. It seems Duke Handra's daughter didn't attend and Count Wecksas visited her residence the next day. Duke Handra had to send the count away personally before he would leave. I heard the two got along very well though."

"Hehehe..." Lorist chuckled.

So that was why the bastard was being so shameless? Low-ranking nobles would have no choice but to have their daughters attend, and he'd personally visit nobles that had the power to ignore him and did so and use the chance to get on their good sides. Lorist, however, neither had to let his women attend the ball, nor had to give him face in any other way.

"Give them their weapons. We're leaving. You know how to deal with this, yes?"

Lorist was upset by this whole business. He might have killed the bastard that had pestered his women, but he'd lost a lot of face in doing so. He'd had someone killed for having a foul mouth, which everyone would consider very tyrannical.

"I do," the watchman answered, "Thank you for your mercy, Lord. I will deal with this properly."

Lorist nodded and left. A commotion marched down the street, however. The guards chased off earlier were returning with a hundred more. They pointed at the departing Lorist as they shouted.

"It's him! He ordered them to kill Butler Hamm!"

A man in his fifties stepped out of the crowd and pointed at Lorist with his sword.

"Kill them all. They're traitors. Leave the women, the lord will decided what to do with the."

The watchman lost his cool immediately.

"Stop! Are you crazy?! He's Duke No--"

But nobody listened to him. The new arrivals charged at Lorist and were met with his own men. His had no reservation about killing since they'd done so already just a few minutes earlier. They were outnumbered, however, and could only hold up so many. Twenty enemies met no resistance and charged at Lorist.

His expression darkened and he turned to Patt.

"Kill them all."

"No!" cried the watchmen.

"With pleasure!"

Patt charged into the fight with the two that had been holding the watchmen. The four gift-holders put their loads down and joined soon after.

It wasn't a slaughter as Lorist had expected, however. The enemy were far more capable than he'd expected. Their leader was a gold rank and could match Patt with the help of three of his subordinates. Patt was soon beginning to lose. If he hadn't been a shield-user adept at defense, he would've been injured already.

The two guards accompanying Patt fared no better. One was cut by a blade, though he avoided a serious injury. The other four barely held their ground. The bodies soon started piling up. Lorist's side wasn't spared injury, though none had died so far.

The crowd cleared enough space for the combatants but didn't disperse. New quickly spread of the fight and many more came to watch. Count Wecksas had finally run in with another noble. Everyone was curious to see who had the guts to go against the king's offspring, bastard as he may be. Not to mention that it was just days before the king's ascension. He would most certainly not take kindly to someone pooping on his parade like this.

Lorist was not amused. If only his men had been wearing legion armor, this wouldn't have happened. Everyone knew his armor. But he'd decided to travel light, they would never get into a fight in the capital after all, and if they did, it would not merit using their armour. So he had his men just wear some thick cloth and put on a couple small embroidered badges.

Nobody associate this with House Norton, however, and the badges were hidden behind the packages, so everyone thought they were just some inconsequential noble family. Even Kenmays had had to be told they were Norton uniforms. It worked well when nobody was making trouble, since you could move around incognito, but when it was good to have a big presence, it didn't help.

That butler no doubt thought exactly the same and tried to force the invitations on the women. Nobody would have expected them to actually be associated with a duke, much less Lorist, and that Wecksas, a mere count, would thus have no grounds for his invite and that they would thus naturally ignore him. Hamm naturally resorted to pestering when they did and this all came about...

Lorist could imagine the consequences, but he was suspicious of Wecksas' current wealth and position. He was a nobody before his father acknowledged him, and completely unknown before the incident with the late queen. Where had he gotten the money and influence to hire a gold rank as a guard and so many other powerful people?

And where did he get the savvy necessary to run a guild? The men weren't normal silver ranks either. Lorist's men were veterans and trained in some of the best techniques the continent knew, no ordinary silver rank could match them.

Even outnumbered as they were, ordinary silvers would not be able to give them this much trouble, but these managed to hold the fight at a stalemate. As Lorist watched, he noticed that the enemy was fighting using military tactics, not something civilians guards ought to know, and they appeared quite well-trained in them. Where did that little pest get them?

The only explanation Lorist could come up with was that it was actually Auguslo. The king must be backing his bastard from the shadows and using him to go against Lorist and the salt merchant

His thoughts having gone to this point, he decided to act personally. He took a step forward, but was stopped by a familiar voice.

"I'm here!"

It was Loze. The man didn't stop to salute Lorist, he just charged right into the fight.

He took one enemy with a swing of his sword. Blood spurted everywhere behind his blade as he slaughtered his way up the street.

Fiercetiger Loze was too dominating. It only took a few minutes for the tide of the battle to turn as the numbers quickly evened. The enemy gold rank backed away as Loze closed in.

"Treasonous scum, en grade!"

Their swords met and the man screamed.

"Blademaster?!"

"Well done!" Loze smiled, "First time anyone's called House Norton traitors. You have a lot of balls, but not a lot of brains, huh? You gave me an excuse to fight a good fight right after I broke through. I owe you one. Now let's enjoy ourselves!"

The gold rank's expression changed immediately.

"H-house Norton?!?! Stop! This is all a misunderstanding!"

"Aaaah!"

Another cry. The men fighting Patt were no match without the gold rank's support and were cut up.

"His Grace told us to kill them all," Patt shouted at Loze before rushing off to another grou nearby.

"Hehe..." Loze licked his lips, "I love his orders the most. Now give me a good fight before dying for daring to go against my lord!"

"Nonono! This is a misunderstanding! We didn't know who you were!"

"I don't care. You raised your swords against us, so you will die!"

"Nooooo!"

The fight lasted all but ten seconds. The man screamed the whole way… until Loze's sword cut off his jaw and stoppered his throat.

The last enemy fell less than a minute later. No one had escaped. Patt had the men cut off their heads and stack them in a mini pyramid in the middle of the street, the third Lorist had built so far, if much less impressive.

The sun backed the street, but everyone watching the scene was shivering.

"What's going on, Locke?" Kenmays asked as he wobbled over.

Lorist had charged out as he'd been busy going over the arrangements for the night's ball with Loze. A few minutes later the shop manager ran into the office and gasped something about a fight outside and Loze charged out as well.

Kenmays had to wobble over awkwardly with his guards and try to push his way through the crowd.

The man stared at the headless corpses. For a few moments before he recognised the blood-stained uniforms.

"Why'd you kill Andalou's guards? What happened?"

"Andalou... Oh, it's Count Wecksas's business, right? Where's his shop?" Lorist asked, ignoring Kenmay's question.

"Over there. He has the best spot and the largest building," Kenmays answered, in a daze.

"Loze, Patt, tear it down! Kill everyone inside!"

"Yes, Your Grace!"

Kenmays watched on speechlessly.

Flipping Out and Falling Out

"Duke Nor...ton! What... What were you thinking?!" yelled Auguslo uncontrollably as he slapped the desk, causing it to shatter and crumble.

He was absolutely furious, so furious he even forgot to call Lorist 'Brother Locke'.

"Tell me, Duke Norton, what do you want?" Auguslo stared at Lorist, eyes literally bloodshot.

No sound could be heard in the hall. The dukes and counts were dead silent. Had Lorist not been a swordsaint and had House Norton not been the most powerful faction in the kingdom, Auguslo would've had Lorist torn apart alive and ate his flesh.

Auguslo was to become emperor in two days. And now House Norton had massacred his bastard's people in the most crowded street in the capital. Killing was one thing, but they even cut off the victim's heads and stacked them in the middle of the street!

The king had been modeling for a couple of famous artists when he learnt of the affront. He wanted to have his heroic form captured in a portrait to be hung alongside the seven other Krissen emperors.

He had kept one pose for two hours already and had just a few minutes left to go… There wouldn't be any time for this later, so he'd sent his guards out to deal with things and bring Lorist to him once he was done.

But his guards didn't come back. Instead, his bastard son ran to him like a fox being chased by hounds, snot and tears dripping on the floor to beg for help.

Wecksas told him he'd done nothing but admire the duke's women and invited them to a ball when the duke flipped out. He tore up the invitation and declared he was just a bastard and had no right to interact with him. The butler he had sent to deliver the invite spoke up on his behalf and was cut down.

The duke even had his men beat up the watchmen that tried to intervene and said that he would put anyone to death that stood up to him. A few bystanders criticized him from the crowd and he had them beheaded as well.

Auguslo couldn't believe his ears. He charged out of the palace with a troop of guards. He found the unit he sent out earlier standing by as Lorist's men tore up his son's guild's shop.

He almost cut the commander down right there, but the man told him he could not intervene since the duke was keeping an eye on the shop personally.

Kenmays had left with Lorist's women and sent someone to fetch Xanthi and the children. He was just returning with Loze.

Lorist had wanted to catch Wecksas, but the bastard had already run to the emperor.

Auguslo saw Lorist nearby, watching his men tear down the shop. It took all his energy not to scream.

"Come with me. We need to talk."

Lorist at least listened to him this much. He had his men stop and go to his women before leaving with the king.

Dukes Handra and Fisablen were present when the three arrived, Shazin and Felim were present as well. The other nobles arrived at almost the same time too.

Auguslo exploded the moment his ass touched the throne. He didn't care that the man at whom he was shouting was a swordsaint and a duke. He'd done something unforgivable and his dignity as a king demanded he respond accordingly.

"Well? Are you deaf? Duke Norton, why did you go on a killing spree in my city? You don't take me seriously, do you? Do you think my orders are jokes? Answer me! I'll hear what you have to say before deciding how to deal with you. You have to answer for this!"

Auguslo calmed down slightly as he vented and started thinking of a way to wrap this up. He couldn't really deal with Lorist, but he had to do something to put him in his place. He couldn't have his authority as emperor undermined before his reign even began. He also decided he would have to take away the noble's power once he ascended, starting with House Norton, so he'd best put those policies first on his agenda.

You better back down and lower your head. I'll have you hang the men involved in this, then pay a large some in reparation. How much should I deman? Ten million? Maybe eight... It can't be less than five!

Duke Kenmays rushed in.

"Your Majesty--"

"--Shut up! Duke Norton isn't a mute, he can explain himself!"

Lorist stood in the middle of the hall in front of the throne as if this had nothing to do with him. He let the king finish flailing before he finally spoke. When his voice left his mouth, the entire room froze, even Auguslo felt a chill run down his spine.

"I came to your ascension at your request, and brought my wife, mistresses and children to give you face. I didn't come here to have my women stopped in the streets like prostitutes and harrassed. I'd thought you were a king with some brains, that you could see right from wrong, who was the victim and who the perpetrator, but it seems you're blind. So you call me a crook? Fine then, I'm a crook. I'm sure you don't want a crook at your ascension ceremony, so I'll go home now. And don't worry, Your Majesty, you won't see me in the capital again, neither any of my people. We'll have nothing to do with this ceremony, this city, or this fucking king."

His piece said, Lorist turned and left. He didn't even bother opening the chamber's door, he simply slammed it off its hinges as he left. It flew several dozen meters, landing in a garden on the side of the main pathway, crushing an old fountain with a statue of Auguslo as its centerpiece.

The room died a little behind him. What was going on? Did Duke Norton just declare he would have nothing to do with the king again? This was just one step short of declaring rebellion!

"Stop him!" cried Auguslo.

"Take one step and you die!" roared Lorist, turning around and staring the king down.

The latter was suddenly plunged into a world of frozen blood. His hand hung in the air and drool ran down his chin. His knees threatened to give way and his bladder to spill under the swordsaint's killing intent. It was even worse than when he faced the old Union's swordsaint.

Despite the worst of the killing intent being directed at the king, the other nobles also had to clench their thighs to keep their clothes dry.

What was going on? Why would the duke be so furious? Was he not the one in the wrong?

Lorist pressed everyone down for a eternal seconds before turning and leaving. Nobody dared to stop him this time.

The hall was dead. Kenmays snapped out of his stupor first. He bowed to the king curtly and charged after Lorist. Shazin and Felim recovered as well when they saw Kenmays leave and followed. They didn't even bow to the king on their way out.

Auguslo collapsed into his throne. His fury was gone, replaced instead with an all-consuming dead. He replayed the last couple of minutes in his head and felt his blood boil furiously again. When his replay came to the duke's gaze, however, the fire was snuffed out immediately.

Had he just killed his empire before it had even been formed?

When he returned his attention to the hall, only his father-in-law was left.

"Fa... Father-in-law..."

Auguslo smiled difficultly. He was technically Lorist's uncle now, and he'd even been planning to have the duke and his wife call him as such.

"Can… can you face the alliance if we don't include Lorist?"

"What nonsense is this?!" the duke shouted, finally losing his cool.

Only a fool would force a conflict with that house. He doubted they'd win even if the whole continent fought against them as well! Even without Lorist they had enough power to flatten the entire continent if they wanted to.

Lorist was actually not the thorniest aspect of that faction. A single swordsaint could be handled. There were ways of dealing with swordsaints, but their military was unconquerable.

"But he-he's really gone too far... Didn't you see? He killed so many people… what was I supposed to do? He didn't even admit his mistakes and threatened me! It doesn't matter that he's a swordsaint, he's a noble first, my vassal at that. He can't behave that way. We should march our forces on his lands. Losing a battle against them would still be better than not answering this provocation. My honor demands I answer this."

"At least find out what really happened first. I've tested Lorist's limits before, he won't flip out like this for no reason. You must be missing something. I also know him a little, he won't kill innocent people easily, granted, did wipe out a million people in Hanayabarta..."

Ugh, the old man was right. Lorist wasn't a rash person, he always had good reason when he acted violently like that. Auguslo was very weary of House Norton's might, but he had to admit he admired their duke. He knew his saving grace was that the duke had no ambition for the throne, otherwise he'd have killed Auguslo many years ago. That said, he wasn't in absolute control of his faction. He might be pressured into taking action by those around him with more ambition. That was why he couldn't stand for him to have that much might.

He couldn't do away with that faction's power, however, so his only option was to give them as little reason to act against him as possible while slowly eroding away their influence. He reluctantly gave in and called up some witnesses to the day's events. Everything was quickly laid bare.

Auguslo was in a fury again when the last witness left. How dare his bastard of a son cause this much trouble! That useless shit just couldn't help himself, could he? He couldn't diligently build his own influence, nooo, he had to use his father's name at every corner!

Did the bastard not know he'd be dead already if Lorist was not so timid?! Stopping noble women and forcing them to attend his balls… was there a greater insult to a noble than to have their women toyed with? No wonder Lorist lost his cool! He was the greatest man in the kingdom besides Auguslo himself… how could his honor stand something like this? And from a bastard, no less!

Only, why would he direct that anger at him? If he knew Lorist well, which he liked to think he did, he would have just explained what had really happened with a smug smile on his face. Hold on… did he think he was behind everything? Indeed, it made sense, why would his spineless son dare do something this audacious if he didn't have the king's backing?

"Dukes Norton, Felim, Shazin, and Kenmays have left the city. They're heading for Jillin Harbor with their families and forces," a guard reported as he rushed in.

"What?!" Auguslo yelled, "Why didn't anyone stop them?"

The guard didn't answer. Auguslo finally realized no one dared stop a duke, especially not when four were travelling together, and when one was a swordsaint. That could only be done if the army was mobilized with an imperial decree, but was there a good reason? The dukes had not committed treason, and mobilizing the army would be an open declaration of war. Not to mention, the dukes came with their families, so if even one of them was hurt by the soldiers, then not a single noble would continue to support him and acknowledge him as king.

Auguslo was in full panic. Duke Fisablen yelled, "Go chase them, quick! Hold them back for now. I'll look for the other nobles to join us to convince them to stay. The grand ceremony is taking place two days later, and the four dukes must be there, especially a swordsaint like Duke Norton! The consequences are unimaginable if he isn't there!"

Auguslo snapped out of it. "I'll chase them down on horseback. I'll be counting on you for the rest, Father-in-law."

Turning Back Suspicion-filled

"Locke, do you think the king is behind this? You think Count Wecksas is only being used as a puppet?" asked Kenmays.

Lorist, Kenmays, Felim, and Shazin were heading to Jillin Harbor, the capital shrinking on the horizon behind them. They were accompanied by their family and forces. Their destination was Silowas, where they'd regroup and discuss what to do next.

The others were surprised that Lorist would turn his back on the king so resolutely. If Auguslo declared him a traitor, Andinaq would once again taste civil war. As his allies, they, too, would be dragged in against the rest of the kingdom.

"Actually, you can stand with the king and turn on Lorist if you want," Kenmays told Shazin and Felim.

"We're not idiots," the two immediately answered.

It wasn't that they hadn't considered it, but, given the king's personality, they would be used as cannon fodder. The king would never trust them. Siding with Lorist was the better choice. Even if they were wiped out, they wouldn't have to worry about Lorist swallowing them. He would instead help them rebuild.

"Yes," Lorist replied glumly, "You told me Andalou got into a trade war with you for the salt market last year, right? They suffered at least 100 thousand gold Fordes in losses. Think about it. That isn't a small sum. Andalou should've been in bad shape. Tell, me, do they look hampered?

"Andalou isn't like the Trade Union's guilds. It's a new establishment with shallow roots and even shallower pockets, or at least they should be, so how did they get out of this without collapsing? Someone is obviously footing the bill on their behalf, and who has that kind of money in this desolate kingdom besides the king? Then not long after you're suddenly targeted by a blademaster? Tell me, what upstart guild can afford to order a blademaster around, much less after just suffering a crushing defeat?

"We can easily conclude who the mastermind behind Andalou is. Do you think a mere bastard child can plot against a duke like you? Can he take such a loss, not to mention sending a blademaster after you? Somebody is backing him. Do we even need to guess who?"

Kenmays paled. Lorist made him incredibly nervous.

"But why would the king want to lay his hands on salt merchant committee. I'm just a merchant. I didn't touch any of his industries. I'm not a threat either."

"You underestimate your importance," Lorist smiled, "The war is over. Everyone knows we'll have several decades of peace. Now that there are no more external threats, the king has to start considering internal ones. What, other than our alliance, could spark his worry? Nothing. If he wants to implement some kind of nationwide policy, he'll have to go through us. He is desperate to break us up.

"I suspect he set his sights on salt merchant committee because you're the sole common interest binding the four houses together. Shazin and Felim in particular are recovering quickly thanks to the kickbacks from the committee. They are rebuilding their militaries quickly as well. He first tried destroying the committee, now, failing that, he's targeting you.

"It was only a wild guess at first, but when I learnt that the bastard child was harassing the nobles and saw how his guild could bring out a gold rank guard, my suspicions deepened. How could Andalou have such a strong force without the king? Even the committee only uses silver ranks.

"D'you remember the king's fury when I had their guards killed? It was like a child's toy had been broken. He was also way too keen to get an answer out of me. I knew it was him when I saw that. What else can I say at this point? Why should I care about his reputation? I'll just leave."

Felim, who had been listening from the side, nodded.

"Locke is right. What do you think the king will do next? Declare us traitors?"

"I don't really care whether we're traitors or not," Shazin added, "We can win any war he starts. Other than House Fisablen, no one is willing to fight to the death for that man's sake. Most will probably only voice their support while finding excuses to sit on the sidelines. I'm most worried that the king will try to catch us before we reach Jillin."

Everyone fell silent. They didn't have the forces to far the entire imperial guard right now. It would be very bad if he sent his army after them before they got to Jillin. Lorist could cause him some damage, but even he could not win against an entire legion on his own. Not to mention their family were still here and could easily be turned into hostages against

"If he really does something like that, we'll turn against him for good. I don't think he'll be quite that reckless. He'd be betting his entire bloodline and legacy on very unfavorable odds, and he knows it.

"We should stay on guard just in case, though. We still have two days of travel ahead before we reach Jillin. I've left a few men at the gates to keep an eye on the enemy army. They'll let us know as soon as the enemy begin mobilizing. If it comes to it, we'll send our families ahead and hold the enemy at bay until they've reached safety.

"We can't win a determined fight, but we can keep them busy long enough. We don't have worry about Jillin's garrison. They're practically my men."

Kenmays sighed.

"I knew you won't allow the king to interfere with Jillin. Everything will be fine as long as the garrison stays with us. I doubt the legion is enough to hold us. Everything will be fine once we reach Jillin. We'll secede from the Andinaq and make Lorist king. We can settle our debt once we've stabilized the situation thereafter."

It would most likely take the rest of the year to set everything up, but they could attack after winter and have half the kingdom in their hands in two years. Given their vast influence, they could easily turn the rest of the kingdom's nobles to their side and wipe out the empire within five years.

Lorist shook his head

"It's not time for something like that yet. People will think we were planning this from the beginning and believe the king's claims that we are traitors, rather than the victims. We should do nothing but take up our defenses. We should definitely not act before he does. Our secession should be a reaction to him."

Felim sighed.

"Locke, it's not that I want to criticize you, but you're too soft. Don't worry so much about your reputation as a loyal vassal, it'll do you no good once you're a sovereign. If we declare independence after he makes his claim, people will believe we're doing damage control. We'll be the rebels that wanted to take over the kingdom but got caught out. No one will accept our declaration if we do it after the fact, and we won't be able to kill the king without being labeled kingslayers. If you declare independence beforehand, however, this will be a fair war between two kingdoms and we can kill that bastard without having to worry about being called kingslayers.

The guards Lorist had left at the city gates slowly caught up with them.

"The king is on his way, Your Grace," announced the guard.

"Has the royal army been deployed?" asked Lorist.

"No. The king rides with only a small escort."

"Maybe he wants to hold us down while the army deploys and catches up?" guessed Kenmays.

"Send our family ahead. We'll following behind them a little slower and see what the king is up to."

The group proceeded thusly for several more hours. The king only caught up with them at sunset, covered in sweet and breathing haggardly.

"Why did you leave without a word? I investigated the matter more thoroughly and know you are not to blame for what happened. That brat of mine stepped out of line. You were right to kill his henchmen. I shouldn't have thought you were insulting me when you killed them. Please, there are only two days left until the ceremony and it wouldn't do for you to not attend. I was too stressed about the arrangements and let it get the better of me."

Auguslo dismounted and took hold of Lorist's reins as he spoke. He begged Lorist to return. The group refused but the king wouldn't let go of the reins. The two groups were left string at each others for half an hour until Duke Fisablen arrived with the rest of the attending nobles to persuade Lorist to stay.

Lorist stood firm, however, and the two groups were once again left staring at one another. The standoff continued until midnight, when the last of Lorist's men returned from the capital to report the army had still shown no signs of mobilizing. Lorist only gave in once he heard the final report. He spoke with his three companions and agreed to return to the capital, but refused to send for their families.

Auguslo wasn't very happy that the four dukes weren't doing exactly as he asked, but he had to let it be, otherwise he'd get nothing. He was even more frustrated when each of the four only brought a hundred guards back with them.

Everyone could see the immense distrust in Lorist's eyes and knew an irreparable rift had formed between the four and the king. It was unlikely that the king's reign would be smooth going forward. A few even wondered if the emperor would live long enough to see his heir take the throne after him, if at all.

Marquis Krilos's Frustration

Bam! Krilos hurled away a purplish gold vase and it smashed against the ground and shattered into smithereens.

The precious item worth nearly a thousand gold Fordes disappeared just like that. Even when Krilos left the Trade Union during that chaotic night, he didn't forget to bring that vase with him. He treasured it so much that he would toy around with it from time to time. It could be seen how angry he must've been to smash it into the ground.

It was the 10th day of the 8th month of Year 1783, the day Andinaq would be restored to the Krissen Empire. Auguslo I, the king of Andinaq, would also ascend to the post of emperor. From that day onward, Auguslo I would be known as Krissen IX, or Emperor Auguslo. His unfortunate father, Andinaq I would be named posthumously as Krissen VIII.

The imperial capital was filled with a festive mood. Loud sounds of gongs and cheers could be heard in the streets. The parades were colorful and plentiful and the citizens dutifully celebrated to congratulate their great king's ascension. Now emperor, Auguslo announced that his citizens would be given free wine and meat to make the best of the day. They could eat all they want without spending a single cent.

Cheers of 'long live the emperor' and 'long live the Krissen Empire' reverberated throughout the city. What was an occasion of great joy to the people was instead a source of grief to Krilos. Ever since he left the Trade Union, he had been living in the imperial capital and managed to get to know Count Wecksas as he had planned. He used his startling intelligence to gain the count's favor and offered himself up as his most trusted advisor.

Back then, Wecksas was but a knight. As he had offended House Norton, his position as commander of the royal guard had been stripped of him. After Auguslo returned, he decided to entitle Wecksas to be a count in the faraway province of Majik and ordered him to leave for his dominion right away.

During that crucial time, it was Krilos that stopped Wecksas from leaving. He advised Wecksas to beg pitifully to be allowed to stay in the palace and use his relation as family to win Auguslo over. In the end, the king rescinded his order and allowed Wecksas to remain within the imperial capital. Since Wecksas had grown up on the streets of the capital and had never gone anywhere else before, sending him to Majik so abruptly was indeed a little too heartless.

Back then, Krilos told Wecksas that the moment he left the imperial capital, he would no longer have a chance of inheriting the throne. But if he stayed, he might still stand a chance. Even though Auguslo had a proper heir now, it would take more than a decade for the child to mature and anything could happen during that time.

Wecksas listened well and went to the palace to beg in the name of his dead mother and got what he wanted. After that, he started Andalou with the help of Krilos and used the excuse of earning money for the imperial family to gain Auguslo's trust and support, obtaining the rights to sell ores within the kingdom.

Yet another wave of pain assailed him. Krilos's body stiffened and the two scars that stretched from his pale forehead to his chin contorted into a deformed shape. At that moment, his expression was ever so demonic and sinister. He looked like the devil himself.

But he was alone in that room. For his revenge, Krilos made the two scars that were on his face and ruined his handsome face. Only by doing so could he move about in the imperial capital as he pleased without fear of being recognized as Marquis Krilos of the Trade Union.

Perhaps I shouldn't have placed my hopes in Wecksas, thought Krilos as he took out a bottle containing a blue concoction, loosened its cork, and poured the solution into his mouth. His expression finally returned to normal following the consumption of the medicine. He sat back down slowly and reached out for the purple-gold vase he usually toyed around with out of habit only to grab nothing but air. It was then when he recalled smashing his precious treasure in a fit of rage.

Giving a pained look at the pieces on the ground, Krilos began to coldly contemplate what happened. Why did Duke Norton, someone who fell out with the king, show up during the ceremony with the three other dukes as if nothing happened? They even seemed to get along well...

I heard Duke Norton flipped out against Auguslo in the palace before all the nobles present and kicked the great hall's doors flying before leaving with the other dukes and their families and servants to return to their dominion.

When Krilos first heard about that news, he was overjoyed. The alliance of four houses was the most powerful faction in Andinaq and House Norton had the strongest military in all of Grindia. The Trade Union could be said to have lost solely because of them. Lorist was not only Duke of The Northlands, but also the kingdom's swordsaint. A battle between him and Auguslo was the best thing Krilos could hope for.

Even though the gold rank Marcus that followed him and the 40 plus loyal silver ranks were killed on the streets by Duke Norton and his guards, Krilos believed that if he could incite conflict between Lorist and Auguslo, it would've been worth the sacrifice of his loyal men because his revenge would finally have a chance of coming true.

In fact, Lorist suspected Auguslo for being the mastermind behind Andalou and the one who tried to assassinate Kenmays. Both the blademaster that was involved in the assassination attempt and the gold rank that died by Loze's hands as well as the Andalou silver rank guards that were killed were all Krilos's men. Even the 100 thousand gold Fordes lost by Andalou during the trade war was paid out with Krilos's personal funds.

However, Lorist thought that it was Auguslo who was footing the bill for his illegitimate son. Yet, he didn't know of the loss Krilos had to bear nor about his close relationship with Wecksas. If he didn't show up to clean up after Wecksas's mess, the count would quickly be sent to Majik by Auguslo. If that happened, Krilos would have no chance of succeeding in his revenge plot.

The family members of the four dukes and their forces didn't return to the imperial capital two days ago. The man I sent to the city gates saw it himself. I only heard that Auguslo brought some men with him to chase them down and the other nobles of the kingdom also joined to persuade them, but the whole group didn't turn back, right? Auguslo wore a dark expression when he got back to the city and I even heard word of the group of people leaving Jillin Harbor on ships...

So what is with the four dukes' presence during the ceremony today? There are also near a thousand men flying the banner of the raging bear up high in the military parade and cheering 'long live the empire' and 'long live the emperor'! Where did those Norton soldiers come from? Even the forces of the three allies are the same. There were three thousand men following behind the Nortons and cheering all the same on the streets of the imperial capital!

Krilos was expecting to watch the consequences of the ruined parade without the four houses, yet he didn't expect that his plans were ruined. It was as if the murder two days ago didn't happen at all. That surprising outcome almost made Krilos freak out. The more he hoped, the more disappointed he became. When he returned to his residence, he began smashing things up.

The door was pushed open and a figure slipped into the room before closing the door. He then laid against the door with ragged breath and said, "That was terrifying... I almost bumped into Duke Norton. Thankfully, I managed to slip away. Otherwise, you won't be able to see me anymore, Selik."

Selik was the name Krilos used. He told Wecksas that he used to be an heir of a large merchant guild in the southern Romon Empire and escaped to the imperial capital because of offending a duke of the empire. As he wanted to found his own merchant guild, he teamed up with Wecksas and provided the funds.

I really got myself rubbish partners... thought Krilos as he touched his forehead. The person who slipped into his room without greeting was none other that Wecksas. Krilos thought that Wecksas inherited none of Auguslo's traits apart from his handsome appearance. He was nothing but a thug given his upbringing in the streets of the imperial capital.

Maybe he doesn't even qualify as a thug... If it weren't for his adoptive father that laid good foundations for him as a knight and awakened his battleforce during sixteen, he would've long starved to death during the war... He only managed to survive because of his battleforce until he was found by Auguslo's men...

Krilos thought that Wecksas didn't have any good qualities at all, not to mention his lack of noble etiquette, his greed and lust as well as recklessness. However, Wecksas was quite the loyal fellow. However, his loyalty to his friends only showed when he wanted to drag them down the pit along with him to suffer alongside him. Krilos had already suffered losses twice within the span of a year because of Wecksas's antics.

The first time was the trade war with salt merchant committee. Everyone knew that nobles preferred rock salt to sea salt because of the latter's bitterness. Usually, only commoners used sea salt. Even though the salt merchant committee's salt was white as snow, they were produced from seawater and were only used by nobles if they really didn't have rock salt.

Krilos managed to get the rights to sell the yield from three salt mines from Auguslo through Wecksas. In some sense, he would've monopolized the rock salt industry in the kingdom. He was going to market the rock salt to the nobles as a luxury seasoning. However, rock salt had to be processed quite extensively before they could be turned into fine salt. As Krilos wasn't in good physical condition, he left Wecksas in charge of those matters.

Krilos believed that as long as Wecksas used Auguslo's name to pay visits to those nobles and market his salt, the plan would soon come to fruition. What he didn't expect was that when Wecksas found that each bottle of salt made less than a small silver of profit, he felt that it was too much trouble. So, thanks to the advice from some friend of his, he bought lots of sea salt to be mixed together with rock salt before selling them out. He could increase the profit margin a few times more that way.

Wecksas gleefully thought that he had come up with a good plan, but he forgot that the nobles weren't idiots. Sea salt was white and rock salt was slightly greenish. It didn't take long before Wecksas's white-green salt became a huge joke. In the end, Krilos had lost nearly 100 thousand gold Fordes taken from his personal funds to fund the production of the rock salt. Incidentally, the friend that suggested the idea got a thousand gold Fordes as a reward.

The second loss he suffered was when he suggested Wecksas to hold more balls and invite nobles to join them to expand his network. Andalou would pay for the costs of those balls. Wecksas naturally found that idea to his liking as partying about was what he liked to do best. He even went so far as to stop nobles in public to force his invitations on them. They had no choice but to endure it and accept the invitation in consideration of Auguslo's power.

But the whole plan was ruined when they tried to invite the Norton ladies to the ball. That blunder caused Krilos to sacrifice Marcus, the gold rank, and more than 40 silver ranks. More than half of Andalou's shop was also torn down. When Krilos came to the imperial capital, he had less than a hundred men with him. Now, half of them were gone.

"Whoa, why did you smash this precious thing? It's such a shame. Miss Belise said that if I gave it to her, she would spend three romantic nights with me. I knew I should've given to her if it was going to be smashed anyway..." said Wecksas when he discovered the pieces o the ground.

"You..." Krilos felt a rush of anger, but he still had to give some explanation about it. "I accidentally knocked it down. Oh, do you know why Duke Norton showed up in the ceremony? I thought he flipped out against the king and left the imperial capital with his family."

"Oh, well, didn't my father chase after him? In the end, he managed to convince him to return. However, he only came back with the three dukes and ten or so guards. He's been staying within the palace for the past two days without leaving at all and the soldiers of those houses are all impostors. They're actually members of the royal army," replied Wecksas nonchalantly.

"Then why didn't you tell me about it earlier?" Krilos was really mad that he was happy for nothing.

"What's the use of telling you about it? Didn't you see that I was busy hiding? I almost bumped into Duke Norton just now too."

Krilos really didn't have anything to say about that. Sometimes, even he felt admiration for Wecksas's luck. Even though he was the main cause of the trouble with House Norton and twisted the truth when he reported to Auguslo about that incident and caused the argument between him and Lorist, Auguslo didn't seek Wecksas out to dish out the consequences after he chased Lorist down.

Auguslo had been quite annoyed that Lorist didn't allow his family members and forces to return to the imperial capital and was too busy arranging the faking of the forces of the four houses. Lorist and the other dukes also kept a low profile and didn't leave their residences and forgot about Wecksas completely, allowing him to travel about the imperial capital freely and even mingle among the other nobles during the ceremony.

"Lord count, as your friend, I have to advise you that if you still intend to sit in the throne one day, you should really change your bad habits and become a proper noble. Only then can you gain the heartfelt support of the other nobles in the kingdom and become a magnificent ruler in the future," said Krilos.

"Enough, Selik. I know that. Don't need to nag me about it. I'll definitely become the successor of the imperial family," Wecksas replied in annoyance, "Also, do you have any more of those purple-gold vases? I'll safekeep it for you lest you accidentally smash them again."

Krilos was at a loss for words.

Suggestion to Demilitarize

It was a sunny day at the beach.

Lorist lied down lazily under a shade made of fine, gray linen cloth.

He watched as his wife and children played by the seaside. This is the life... Lorist breathed a long sigh and tried to forget everything unhappy and troubling that occurred in the imperial capital.

Kenmays came over with a small wooden bucket. Within it was ice made from saltpeter and two bottles of chilled fruit wine. After taking a seat beside Lorist, he took out two glasses from the bucket and opened one bottle. The amber-colored wine looked ever so mesmerizing through the transparent glass.

He gave one glass to Lorist before taking a swig from his own. "I really don't know how you always come up with these little ideas. You were actually able to make ice during a hot summer like this. Being able to enjoy chilled fruit wine during such weather is truly a luxury..."

Lorist didn't speak and finished the wine in his glass before filling it halfway and popping two ice chunks into his glass.

It was currently the beginning of the 9th month. After participating in the ceremony held in the imperial capital, they parted with Auguslo during the night banquet on unfriendly terms because of another argument. Lorist, Kenmays, Shazin and Felim left the imperial capital with their guards early the next morning without bidding their farewell to go to Silowas and reunite with their families.

They were at a beach near Seaview Manor. Compared to House Kenmays's Platinum Beach, this one was far smaller, but it was more than enough for the dukes and their families to have fun. Looking at the people playing about, Kenmays breathed a deep sigh. He had spent lots of money to invest in Platinum Beach to make it the best vacation spot in the kingdom and was going to go there every summer with lots of other nobles. But Auguslo came over and brought the nobles to war. After the three bloody years, all the nobles suffered heavy losses and were no longer in the mood to spend their vacation at Platinum Beach. They were busy licking each other's wounds at home.

"Don't worry. Just invite the nobles to go to Platinum Beach next year. It's been five years already and I bet they must've forgotten about it by now. The empire has already been restored and there shouldn't be any wars in the foreseeable future, so I believe that they'll regain the mood to have fun once their wallets fatten up again." Lorist knew what Kenmays was mulling over when he saw him gaze blankly at the beach.

"Ah, it's not that..." Kenmays snapped out of his stupor and said, "I'm not worried about that. I was wondering what His Majesty meant when he suggested us to demilitarize during the banquet that night."

After the grand ceremony, Auguslo held a large banquet and invited all the nobles of the empire and their family members there. Even though some rather sour things happened before the ceremony, thanks to Auguslo's efforts, the ceremony was wrapped up properly in the end. Satisfied with how everything went down, Auguslo announced the policies he would be implementing across the next three years. Not only would he turn his focus on the life of the people and increase the income of the empire to fill its treasury, he also encouraged the development of trade and mineable resources as well as a decrease in scale of the military.

Focus was placed on the last part. Auguslo believed that since the empire had been restored, he would bring back the three-army policy used back in imperial days. The royal army would defend the imperial capital, Whitelion legion would deal with external threats, and Fiercegale legion would deal with bandits and other threats within the empire. Additionally, territories under imperial family rule would form their own garrison forces. Auguslo was also planning to rebuild the order of imperial knights and recruit talented descendants of nobles to serve the empire.

Those were mostly policies that existed since the old days of the empire and nobody minded them. The royal army, Whitelion legion and Fiercegale legion were the three main legions of the former empire that were under direct imperial control. As long as Auguslo was capable of rebuilding them, nobody would have anything to say about it. As for the order of imperial knights, it offered a career path for the noble descendants who wouldn't be inheriting the household and helped prevent strife during a time of peace. Those descendants wouldn't be allowed to join their household forces to prevent them posing a threat to the legitimate heirs. For instance, Lorist's second uncle who died on the battlefield served as the sergeant colonel in the Krissen imperial knight order.

What the nobles didn't expect was that after announcing the military policies of the empire, Auguslo suggested the nobles to scale down on their own forces. He reasoned that since peace was upon them, the nobles of the empire shouldn't continue to expand their household forces and instead invest their funds in development. So, he suggested for each noble house to demilitarized to a limited degree and adhere to the limits and standards he would set.

Auguslo believed that an imperial baron could have around two or three hundred-man squads in the household forces, a viscount could have around 500 men, a count could have around a thousand, and a marquis three thousand at most. As for dukes, they could form a division of troops or a small legion. For instance, a large legion of 45 thousand men should be shrinked into having only four six-thousand-strong divisions and another logistics unit of a thousand men, making the total number of men in a legion around 25 thousand people.

Auguslo emphasized that he made the suggestions for the sakes of the nobles' own wealth. Maintaining a large force during peacetime wasn't only a waste, it was a huge burden. He believed that they should decrease military spending so that the nobles can continue to enjoy lives of luxury and develop their dominions properly. As for bandits and the like, the empire's Fiercegale legion would take care of it after it was formed and the nobles didn't have to worry about it.

Auguslo expressed with great grief that the nobles of the empire had suffered enough losses during the bloody three years on Falik Plains, so his plan to help the nobles decrease their military spending was a boon from the empire to the nobles. In the future, all military deployments would be taken care of by the three imperial legions and all the nobles had to do was defend their dominions well. Unless the empire was in danger of being wiped out completely, Auguslo wouldn't call for the nobles to take up arms and send them to the battlefield.

As for conflicts between nobles themselves, Auguslo expressed that he didn't wish to see wars break out between noble houses and encouraged the settlement of issues in a noble court. Inter-domain wars were not beneficial for anybody involved after all. Regardless of who the victor was, the three imperial legions could step in between those wars and eliminate conflict so that the noble court could give its verdict on the conflict.

Everyone participating in the banquet turned their eyes to Lorist, Fisablen, Kenmays, Felim and Shazin. They knew that House Norton's forces had already exceeded the forces commanded by Auguslo in terms of might. Even if he managed to form the three imperial legions, he would find it hard pressed to fight House Norton. If the other dukes of the allied houses joined forces together, they could easily sweep through the empire. Even if Fisablen joined forces with Auguslo and all the other nobles in the empire, they wouldn't be able to stop the joint forces of the four allied houses.

It was quite apparent that Auguslo was intentionally bringing the demilitarization plan out to deal with the four allied houses. To the other landed nobles, the plan didn't affect them much. Even Handra, Forund, and Shabaj were in agreement with that plan. As Auguslo had said, the decrease in the scale of household forces would decrease the burden they had to bear to maintain them. Even if they received a call to arms from Auguslo, they wouldn't have to send as many men to help out.

Perhaps because they had rehearsed it beforehand, Duke Fisablen stood up and said, "Your Majesty, House Fisablen is extremely supportive of this policy. I am willing to give command of my Frontier legion back to the empire to Your Majesty's control."

Cunning old man! cried the nobles in their minds. Everyone with half a brain understood that Duke Fisablen obviously got something out of it from being so obedient. Even though the Frontier legion wasn't traditionally one of the three imperial legions, it had a stellar reputation. It was originally formed to curb raids from the grassland barbarians in the great northeastern plains at the borders of the empire. It was considered more to be a local force than a nationwide one.

However, when they were wiping out the barbarians, Frontier legion fell into the hands of House Fisablen and came under the household name. Currently, there were two legions in Frontier, numbering up to 80 thousand men. It was the main force of House Fisablen and Lorist formed Jaeger and stationed it in Wild Husbandry precisely to defend against them.

Duke Fisablen's ceding of control of the legion back to the empire meant that only 45 thousand men, one full legion, of them would be given back to the empire. Since it used to be considered a local force, it would still roam in the northeastern provinces and wouldn't be House Fisablen's troops in name only. Even though it sounded pleasant to say that the legion would return to Auguslo's control, it was still practically under Duke Fisablen's command.

The old guy truly was sly... He gave away one legion and kept the other as his own household force. In other words, it was just a subtle name change. Both legions were still controlled by House Fisablen. Not only that, the house only had to pay for the maintenance of one legion and the one that was given away would be funded by the empire, greatly decreasing the burden on the house. They could use the extra resource of their main household legion and the reserve legion, which used the mercenary model and was comprised of mostly grassland barbarians.

Auguslo nodded with a smile. "Duke Fisablen, you are truly loyal to the empire and your actions are deserving of respect and praise. I recall that Frontier legion's funding and equipment were provided by Wild Husbandry, Winston and Southern. We'll follow old conventions then. Duke Fisablen, you shall make a yearly budget for the legion to claim the subsidies from these three provinces."

That was nothing short of a slight to the alliance of four houses! Winston, Wild Husbandry and Southern used to be heavily raided by the grassland barbarians and it was only because of their common enemy back then that the three provinces united to fund the Frontier legion to curb the grassland barbarians. But ever since Frontier legion became House Fisablen's to control, that agreement was annulled. The expansion into Eastwild also removed the threat from Winston and Southern. Frontier legion was funded and commanded completely by House Fisablen after that.

Currently, Southern was House Felim's dominion and Winston and Wild Husbandry had become territories under Norton control. Auguslo's suggestion for the three provinces to fund Frontier legion was a malicious move against the alliance of four houses to make them fund a rival's force. It really took some talent and thick skin for one to say what Auguslo casually did.

Duke Felim slammed the golden goblet in his hand onto the table and stood up angrily. "Impossible! Back then, Frontier legion was formed to deal with the grassland barbarian threat! But are they still a danger to us? Frontier legion is now under House Fisablen's control, so why should we pay for it?"

Lorist sighed and stood up to calm felim down. "Back then, Southern wasn't Duke Felim's household dominion, so it was reasonable for it to bear part of the cost. But now, Southern belongs to House Felim. It wouldn't be appropriate to ask Southern to bear the cost of funding Frontier legion. How about this, House Norton shall bear the cost of Frontier legion and promises to make sure it is adequately funded."

Overjoyed, Auguslo said, "Brother Locke is understanding as always and ever willing to help the nation out."

Duke Fisablen also happily said, "Do you mean it, Duke Norton? You can't go back on your words before so many nobles here."

"Of course," Lorist said with a nod, "Apart from the cost of supplies, House Norton is also willing to provide complete equipment for Frontier legion. However, the condition for that is for the legion to be reorganized by our house and be trained according to the equipment we provide. It is no surprise to anyone that the forces of our house are inferior to none. We will be willing to provide training and impart our experiences learned through battle to Frontier legion without any holds barred. We only need half a year's time to ensure that Frontier returns to His Majesty as an elite force."

Duke Fisablen paled immediately. If Frontier legion gets brought into the Norton dominion to be trained by them, would they still listen to my orders? They'll become the Nortons' men for life! Since they count on the Nortons for everything from food to equipment, it goes without saying whose orders they will take! Only a fool will send Frontier legion to be train in the Norton dominion...

Auguslo also understood that point. Lorist found a way out of trouble with but a few simple statements. "We'll discuss this another day since there's no rush. Also, Brother Locke, what are your thoughts about the demilitarization plan I proposed? The empire is at peace now and House Norton no longer needs to sustain such a large force. I think your house can decrease from four to two legions. Maybe even one legion is enough."

He went straight to the point. Lorist shook his head. "Your Majesty, regrettably, I cannot agree to this proposal because that will affect the house's plans for more military excursions."

"Military excursions?" Auguslo said, startled, "Where does House Norton intend to conquer next?"

"It's no conquest, Your Majesty, don't worry. My house plans to expand into Magical Dragon Mountains and the wildlands further north in our next phase. We want to pave a new province in the north and expand the empire's territory. We will be needing all four of our legions for that, one to be stationed at Wild Husbandry to defend against the grassland barbarians, and one back in The Northlands to defend our home. Actually, our forces are being drawn rather thin and we might even need the help of the other dukes' household forces."

Lorist was referring to Kenmays, Shazin and Felim. That was in direct opposition to Auguslo's plan to have their forces decrease in scale.

Auguslo's expression darkened. He thought that Lorist was just finding a random excuse to refuse his proposal. But he took a few deep breaths and forced himself to calm down. "Locke, since you're unwilling to shrink your forces, I won't force the matter. But don't you think you should change the name of your sentry legion? It means the same thing as our royal guard and it can be confusing."

Lorist smiled and said, "Alright, Your Majesty. I shall do as you wish. From this day henceforth, the sentry legion shall be named Ironguard."

Lorist didn't really care about what his legions were called. Since Auguslo had a problem with sentry legion, he'd just change it to Ironguard, one he thought was easy to remember. What he didn't expect was that Auguslo would erupt in anger right after that. He kicked the table in front of him and turned to leave the hall. The banquet was over just like that.

Even after he left the palace, Lorist was still oblivious to what happened and felt a little mad. Is Auguslo throwing a tantrum at me? How ridiculous!

Kenmays laughed heartily and said, "Locke, you're really something, you know that? Calling your legion Ironguard is worse than not changing the name. You're insulting His Majesty straight to his face."

"Wait, I still don't know why it can't be called Ironguard."

"Hahaha, did you forget? Back then, the force Duke Madras formed was called Ironguard legion. The eight thousand men of the legion defended Kobo. His Majesty's father, the late King Andinaq, brought the 60 thousand men of the royal guard to besiege Kobo for six whole months and returned in failure with only 20 thousand men remaining. That was what caused the great destabilization in the empire and subsequently, its collapse. Yet, you started calling your legion Ironguard just like that... Aren't you trying to piss him off intentionally? You're pitting it against his royal guard..."

Lorist only just realized it. He had offhandedly named it Ironguard, but Auguslo took it as an affront. The rift between them only grew deeper. However, Lorist didn't bother to explain his actions either and left the imperial capital the next day.

As he lay comfortably on the beach, he said, "His Majesty's proposal really put us in a pickle. He didn't really care about whether we would decrease our forces at all. He only wanted a clear record of their sizes. If we expand in the future, he can accuse us for having ulterior motives for doing so. We'll have no choice but to request help from his forces if we need more men and that will result in the three legions being involved in our internal affairs. At least that's what I think he's planning."

Kenmays finished the wine in his glass. "His Majesty truly has lots on his mind."

"Of course." Lorist nodded. "Now that we no longer have external threats, the next biggest thing to worry about is our alliance. Maybe His Majesty sees us as even more threatening than the Trade Union. That's why we can't afford to demilitarize. We'll have to keep up the military drills to keep our forces trained to ensure the safety and longevity of our dominions and houses."

Entanglement

There was bound to be difference in opinion anyway so Lorist didn't really care what Auguslo thought. Even though the man was the emperor, Lorist would still do whatever he wanted.

Continuing to develop the house step by step according to his plan was the best thing to do and there was no need for him to change according to Auguslo's whims.

In some sense, Lorist was entangled with Auguslo somehow. Back then when Lorist was bringing the northbound convoy back to The Northlands, Charade who was in charge of it back then was used by Auguslo to further his own purposes when they passed through Andinaq. They had helped Auguslo turn from a relegated prince to the de-facto ruler of Andinaq.

Auguslo used the northbound convoy to exterminate any rebellious nobles within the kingdom and robbed power from his elder brother, the first highness. In the end, he also forced the refugees of the kingdom to tag along with the northbound convoy to force it to its doom so that he could enjoy its benefits. That was the reason Charade and Potterfang didn't have the slightest goodwill towards Auguslo.

With the northbound convoy facing oblivion, Lorist had to seek them out and leave The Northlands and come to an agreement with Auguslo. He swore allegiance to the true heirs of Krissen's legacy, the Andinaq royal family, in exchange for Silowas to be given to the house as their hereditary dominion.

In the end, Lorist led the convoy to cross Lake Egret at night and attack the duchy of Madras to open up a path for the convoy to travel north. Auguslo also used that chance to take Yungechandler from Madras and claim it as Andinaq's territory.

When they were working together to fight against Madras, Auguslo wanted to use the northbound convoy to deal with Second Prince Iblia's army as well and sent for people to destroy Kobo's walls, intentionally plotting against him. Yet, as fate wanted it, Lorist managed to arrive at The Northlands with the convoy intact.

During the next following years, Lorist and Auguslo had their own things to be busy with. After Auguslo defeated First Prince Redlis's invading army and signed a peace treaty with Duke Madras, Andinaq's territory doubled. He won the reputation as one of the new genius military minds of the new generation. He continued to build his army for his dream of reuniting the empire.

Lorist on the other hand defeated Duke Loggins when he returned to The Northlands and wiped out the magic beast wave that came to terrorize them on a yearly basis. He also defeated the second prince, who was pining for House Norton's wealth, causing the second prince to send a blademaster to assassinate Lorist. He then ended up among the mountain barbarians. By the time he returned home, Lorist led an attack on Iblia's capital,, Windbury, and captured the second prince and formed the alliance of four houses. He stabilized The Northlands and went to his dominion, Silowas, for the first time while he transported the second prince for Auguslo to deal with.

What he didn't expect to find was that the island had been messed up badly by Auguslo's tax collection officer and Seaview Manor had been occupied by some unruly descendants of other nobles. The subordinates Auguslo left behind also occupied the fertile land themselves and caused lots of trouble. Lorist decided to make a strong stand and captured the tax collection official and the colonel that was sent there, imprisoned the young nobles and attacked Farama Village before heading to the imperial capital to see Auguslo.

Auguslo on the other hand was busy building up his army of 300 thousand by emptying the kingdom's wealth in it. He was going to reunite the empire with only 300 thousand men and was feeling very good about himself. When he met Lorist, he even tried to convince House Norton to join the attempt. However, Lorist brought the tax collection official, colonel, and noble descendants there to him at that moment, which ended up being quite humiliating for him.

When Auguslo was about to defend the tax collection official, Lorist killed him on the spot. That was the first huge conflict between Lorist and Auguslo. Auguslo ordered his blademaster to give Lorist a lesson, but was surprised to find that the result was the opposite he had hoped for. Later, Lorist brought out King Iblia, the second prince, that had been taken captive. He was one of the main perpetrators of the civil war in the empire. Auguslo was overjoyed and Lorist used that opportunity to leave the imperial capital.

However, the tax collection official's elder brother and Auguslo's favored subordinate, General Count Aslan, brought five thousand men to stop Lorist. Auguslo pretended not to notice. Surprisingly, Lorist used 500 guards to ruin all five of the camps of Count Arslan and defeated them horribly. Even Count Arslan died from the battle. Just as Auguslo was still recovering from the shocking battle, the war with Redlis wa just about to begin, so he had no choice but to give up on pursuing the matter with Lorist.

When Lorist left the imperial capital, he went to Morante to obtain the glassmaking methods and got to know about the upcoming implementation of the nobility system by the Trade Union. He heard that the big seven guilds were trying to conquer Silowas, so to prevent the island from falling into Chikdor's hands, Lorist intentionally used the glassmaking method to incite war between the Trade Union and Teribo to force the Trade Union's focus to turn to the southern part of the continent, kicking them off on the route of expansion.

Lorist didn't expect that even though he had prevented Chikdor's plans from coming to fruition, Silowas would be attacked by the slaver kingdom of Hanayabarta. To have his revenge, he led his troops to the distant Hanayabarta archipelago and exterminated the whole kingdom before taking the archipelago under house rule.

As Lorist was preparing for that excursion, Auguslo paid a huge price to forcefully cross Cloudsnap Mountains during a harsh snowstorm and miraculously took Redlis's capital, Frederika. King Redlis, the first prince of the former empire, disappeared ever since and the kingdom of Redlis was no more.

That battle shocked the whole Grindia continent. Auguslo was named the new northern wargod, but he let the victory get to his head and made one mistake after another after he got the upper hand. He wanted to use force to deal with the nobles that aligned themselves with Redlis and made unreasonable demands to the four central dukes. In the end, the two factions united against Auguslo and defeated his army time and again.

At that moment, one of the big seven guilds, Wessia, started to pine after Frederika and Bodolger's rich resources and interfered with the war. Auguslo on the other hand fell sick badly after overexerting himself and crossing the mountains during winter, allowing Princess Carey, the daughter of the late first highness, to stage a revellion and cut off the supplies for Auguslo's army. The forces at the frontlines crumbled and Auguslo was trapped in Frederika.

Faced with such a desperate situation, Auguslo barely managed to survive his sickness and left most of his forces to defend Frederika before he left with an elite force of a few thousand through a secret path. He would cross Cloudsnap Mountains again to retake Andinaq and deal with the traitors. But due to his bad luck, he wandered into the place the first prince was hiding at and fought to a pyrrhic victory with the first prince's personal forces. Even though he managed to kill the first prince, who was another main cause of the empire's civil war, Auguslo's forces were greatly wounded and he could no longer take back his kingdom.

During the time when he was at his lowest, Lorist was busy developing his dominion after returning from a distant excursion. He reorganized his army and was going to tackle the backer of the Redlis regime, House Fisablen. He wanted to take the provinces in the northeastern area. It came as a surprise to him that Auguslo would show up within his dominion and request Lorist's help to restore him to his throne.

That was the third time Lorist met Auguslo in person. After much negotiation, Lorist got the right to rule Delamock and Winston from Auguslo. Those two provinces would become administrative areas of House Norton. He also managed to win the dominions of his allies, namely, Kenmays, Felim and Shazin, before agreeing to deploy his forces to retake the kingdom for Auguslo.

Lorist's forces attacked Sidgler from sea during winter and exterminated the duchy of Madras before Tigersoar was sent to Andinaq to take the imperial capital. The rebellious nobles were all exterminated and Auguslo was restored to his throne. At the same time, House Norton's amazing military prowess began to make Auguslo wary.

After helping Auguslo, Lorist turned his gaze to the decaying kingdom of Iblia. He led his forces to take Windbury by surprise and chased Duke Fisablen, who was prepared to reshape the kingdom to suit his needs, away, thereby exterminating Iblia for good. After that, the Nortons greatly wounded House Fisablen's forces and the 80 plus thousand of the four central duchies and cut off all relation between House Fisablen and the four central duchies.

However, the duke's reputation of wargod of the plains wasn't just for show. Even though he suffered a loss in Southern, he managed to deal Lorist a huge blow at Wild Husbandry. Duke Fisablen gathered 100 thousand grassland barbarians to lay in ambush in Wild Husbandry and almost defated the newly formed Jaeger legion in its entirety. That was the biggest loss Lorist sustained since he took over the house.

Just when Lorist thought that he could use the four allied houses to force Duke Fisablen to surrender and get the wealth of House Fisablen for his allies and him, Auguslo interfered and barged into House Fisablen's territory and made a deal with Duke Fisablen. House Fisablen was declared once more a part of Andinaq and Auguslo took the duke's granddaughter, Cacanne, as his wife, thwarting Lorist's plans and allowing House Fisablen to live.

Right after that, Auguslo planned to attack the four central duchies and managed to convince Lorist and Duke Fisablen to offer aid. During that battle, Lorist made up with Fisablen and no longer considered each other enemies, restoring a friendly trade relation. The duke also said that he wasn't interested in fighting Lorist for supremacy over the northeastern area and would be willing to settle into the new order set by the Nortons.

After attacking the four central duchies, Auguslo turned his sights to the remaining provinces by the empire currently occupied by the Trade Union. Once more, he got Lorist's help to conquer Anderwoff, Majik, Bodolger and Kanbona while exterminating one of the big seven guilds, Wessia. Auguslo also conquered the northwestern area. His own forces with the allied noble army and House Norton's forces allied together to form the million-man army that was stationed at the borders of the Trade Union.

Auguslo thought that he wouldn't have to actually fight a battle and could force the Trade Union to surrender with pressure alone. They would return the two provinces that were still occupied and sign a peace agreement with him. But the Trade Union chose instead to send the windstorm swordsaint to the negotiation to bring Auguslo and all the other nobles to Morante to confess their sins while the Trade Union launched their own attack to catch the million-man army off-guard.

Lorist stepped forward at the crucial moment and fought to a bloody draw with the windstorm swordsaint. House Norton's Firmrock legion managed to hold the Union forces back and won enough time for Auguslo to gather his forces and mount a counterattack. After that, House Norton's three legions joined Auguslo in wiping out the main force of the Trade Union.

That was the time Lorist and Auguslo's relationship was at their closest. Auguslo was filled with respect for Lorist, a swordsaint. That was why after he suffered such huge losses from the three years of war on Falik Plains and requested Lorist for aid, Lorist agreed.

After that, House Norton's Northsea Fleet exterminated Invincible Fleet and took Morante from Hidegold Bay, turning the tables on the battle at Falik Plains immediately and forcing the Union forces out. Lorist saved the nobles of Andinaq from losing all their forces and emerged victorious in the great Battle of Bluwek. In another three years' time, he would tear the Trade Union into multiple pieces and force it to surrender in the end.

But now that Auguslo no longer had the external threat that was the Trade Union and gotten his dream of becoming the emperor that restored the Krissen Empire, he became even more wary of House Norton's might. Even though Lorist had taken up the mantle of the kingdom's swordsaint, Auguslo was still filled with suspicion towards House Norton's power. His suggestion of downsizing their forces was merely a test he had for Lorist. Lorist was certain that the new emperor would definitely think up lots of other methods to test the patience of Lorist and the alliance of four houses.