Meiling, Empress of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 273 - Meiling, Empress of the Song Dynasty

Agnes Asalon:

Outside the castle, winged horses soared through the air, training in synchronized attacks alongside soldiers on the ground. The day should have been peaceful, but my entire week was being ruined by a single cursed name.

"Nikolaus Wolves!" I screamed, knocking everything off the table onto the floor.

My brother, Ryan, looked at me in shock. Something serious had happened—something causing me a massive headache to contain and suppress. It was a scandal shaking the kingdom's image in front of the dukes, the other realms… everyone. I was furious.

An attack had occurred on a ship traveling through the Underground Transport route—the first in centuries. No one had ever dared to cause an incident there. That tunnel, which led directly to the capital, represented my family's supremacy and sovereignty. It was a symbol of the security we provided to our people, our greatest source of power. And now, someone had spit on it.

"Son of a bitch!" I cursed, feeling my fist ignite with violet flames as I slammed it against the wooden table, setting it ablaze.

"They attacked a high noble within my domain!" I continued, consumed by rage. "How do you think I feel, Ryan? How do you think this will look if word gets out? It will seem like no one respects the authority of the Asalon family!"

I tried to calm myself, took a deep breath, but it was no use. Image was power. Image was sovereignty. It was because they trusted our protection that the ancient kingdoms submitted to us, becoming mere duchies. If, at any point, they started believing that protection was worthless, my entire kingdom could collapse. Even if that seemed unlikely now, all it would take was that idea taking root in the mind of one heir after another, and in a few centuries, there would be war—or a rebellious alliance refusing to obey us. Being at the top meant always thinking ahead.

"S-sister…" Ryan attempted to keep a conciliatory smile. "It's not that serious… okay? It was a grave crime, the most serious in recent years."

"Grave is an understatement, Ryan!" I snapped, even angrier.

"B-but that family agreed to keep everything under wraps, without making anything public. It will just be an incident on a ship… an explosion. And at the port, no one knows who the two mages fighting were. It's easier for the official story to be that the kingdom faced a powerful criminal, justifying the attack, rather than spreading the truth—that an assassin targeted a high noble," he explained.

"If I act too leniently, the Evenhart family will think we're afraid of them leaking the story, and we'll be at their mercy. If I come down too hard, we'll create even greater hostility. It's not simple at all!"

I paced back and forth, my mind burning with possibilities.

"Authorize them to handle the situation however they see fit regarding Nikolaus Wolves' men and commoners. I don't care if they choose to slaughter every last one of them, enslave them, or flog them in public. Let that family exercise their right to retaliation as the law permits," I declared.

I kept pacing. "Send a letter to all the dukes. I need to warn them first. The letter must contain the official story you and Duchess Margaery signed off on. Issue an order for them to inform their political nobility to avoid scandals and gossip regarding the Wolves family. Anyone caught spreading rumors will be severely punished. Also, issue the document stripping the Wolves family of their noble status in our kingdom. They are filth now, condemned. Their status is that of commoners, and they can be killed freely—we no longer care about them," I ordered, my irritation still palpable.

"The nobles who confessed to the crimes are setting aside part of their fortunes to send to the Evenhart family," Ryan reported, "But the Evenhart family requested that all of it be used within their own duchy. They also demanded the heads of those nobles."

I sighed, displeased. "I can't simply eliminate those who confessed and provided evidence. If I do that, we'll lose all our eyes and ears in that duchy. That would be foolish. Keep visiting the duchess's family and try to renegotiate terms with her. We'll need to promote one of these nobles to the rank of marquis, but with half of their territory reduced. Maybe that will please her…"

"Which noble do you want to promote?" Ryan asked. Each duchy had three marquises, but according to the ancient treaty that founded our kingdom, we had the right to choose and control one of them. This was our way of ensuring the duchy wouldn't turn against us. At least 30% of the local nobility was appointed by us, with the marquis serving as the leader of this faction. Of course, we never disclosed this to the dukes—for them, it was simply "administrative assistance." They might have had their suspicions, but the system had worked for centuries.

The chaos caused by Nikolaus Wolves threatened our image before the other dukes. I needed to act quickly, but without appearing desperate, and show that our authority remained intact.

"Hmm… this one," I said, pointing to a document on Ryan's desk. "Count Laurence. His family is trustworthy."

"Excellent choice," Ryan agreed. "I'll send our cousin to speak with him while I continue negotiations with the Evenharts."

I sat back on the couch, watching the servants extinguish the flames on the table. Everything had to be perfect. How could I propose an arranged marriage to the elven kingdom amid this scandal?

"If I could, I would have killed Nikolaus Wolves with my own hands…" I muttered.

From my storage bracelet, I pulled out a letter bearing the elves' crest. King Haiten had requested a personal meeting—something unprecedented in centuries.

What could they want to discuss in person that couldn't be handled through intermediaries?

At least this was good news. A closer relationship that could favor a marriage between Duncan and Syvis—the perfect union of our kingdoms.

"Nothing can go wrong, and nothing can reach the public," I warned Ryan. "Make sure all the nobles involved understand they face the death penalty if they speak of this to anyone. Everything must be flawless."

As I reread the letter, a flicker of hope sparked within me. A meeting in Apsalon with the king of the elves… this was more than I could have wished for.

Fate is on the side of the Asalons…

Yu Xin (Song Dynasty):

In the corner of the training hall, I sat in silence, watching the young Empress as she threw herself into combat.

"Ah!" she shouted, delivering a swift strike, only for Sidao to block it effortlessly.

"Weak! Pathetic," he barked, dodging her punches with ease.

The young Empress, now sixteen, had been trained in battle since she was three years old by the greatest aura masters. She had also studied the art of strategy under the brightest minds of the Dynasty. Sidao was reshaping the Song Dynasty with an iron grip, focusing solely on efficiency. The elders of the vassal families dared not question him, especially after being confronted with an army at their doorstep.

"I can't do it, Master," she admitted, frustration evident in her voice. "I don't have enough strength..."

My eyes drifted toward the massive stones she had been striking, shattering them as if they were ripe fruits.

To me, you already have more than enough strength...

"You possess Aura. You have the potential to become the greatest in the world," Sidao stated firmly. "I am nothing but a shadow before your talent. How do you think the Song Dynasty was built? Your ancestors were legendary emperors... But in your father's generation, that potential was neglected."

Meiling listened carefully, determination flickering in her gaze.

They trained every day since she had awakened her Aura. Sidao had one goal: to forge the greatest Aura warrior to ever exist. And Meiling possessed that potential. His methods were brutal, and the witch-women of the geisha organization operated under a veil of secrecy. Those who asked too many questions vanished without a trace.

The road was harsh, but the results were beginning to show.

Even so, it terrified me. Once, I saw one of them without her makeup... What lay beneath disturbed me to my core. That hollow, grotesque face seemed to belong to something that shouldn't exist. These women were witches. Malignant witches who performed strange rituals under the cover of night. I suspected they were worshipers of the yaoguai.

The Theocracy had stopped attacking us some time ago. Ever since anomalies began appearing more frequently and with greater ferocity, they had spent the past decade dealing with those events within their own territory. However, what once seemed distant was now growing closer. The anomalies had started appearing in our lands.

Our great wall, which had protected us for centuries from creatures emerging from the sea or from the Theocracy itself, now felt useless against what we faced. If anomalies were manifesting within the Dynasty itself... then no fortress, no wall, could protect us.

That was when an envoy from the Theocracy arrived, bringing what they called a "solution." When I finally understood what that solution entailed, a chill ran down my spine. I began to seriously question the true reason behind their obsession with absolute control over the humans of that continent. Perhaps, just perhaps, if they were all exterminated, the problems would disappear.

Even if that wasn't a definitive solution, controlling those people would grant us access to the "grace" of the mysterious gods that the Theocracy worshiped so fervently. But deep inside, I wondered—were we really any different from them? Or were we simply trying to survive in a world that, little by little, was pushing us toward extinction?

"I will keep training," Meiling said, returning to her combat stance.

"That's the spirit. You are not just anyone... You are Empress Meiling Song!" Sidao's voice boomed with intensity. "Don't you want revenge for what was done to your father? To achieve that, you must become the Empress of Aura!"

Meiling took her stance, muscles tensed, her gaze filled with unwavering determination. Slowly, an oppressive pressure began emanating from her, surrounding her in a golden glow. Her Aura surged, vibrant and blazing like flames around her body. Her fists, in particular, shone with even greater intensity.

"Asalon, Olarion, Saul, Valemont, Valerion, Dirtstone, and Evenhart..." she murmured, each name increasing the pressure in the room, intensifying her power.

"Fire!" Sidao commanded.

The soldiers around them lit the fuses of the cannons. The tension was palpable. The crackling fire consuming the fuses sent shivers down my spine.

"Three... two... one..."

The roar was deafening.

The cannonballs shot forward at high speed, aimed directly at Meiling. But before they could reach her, she charged toward them. With precise and relentless strikes, her Aura-clad fists shattered each projectile on impact. The air trembled with every explosion. More shots were fired—dozens of cannonballs thundered across the training field. And one by one, each was obliterated by Meiling's punches, reduced to mere shards under the overwhelming force of her Aura.

Amidst the cloud of dust, a hand emerged. Meiling was gripping one of the cannonballs tightly, her body radiating absolute power. The Aura surrounding her wrapped around the ball like a golden shield, preventing it from shattering while keeping it completely under her control.

Sidao watched her with sharp eyes.

"Who are these names you keep repeating every day?" he asked, his voice cold and calculating.

Meiling met his gaze. Her eyes burned with an unquenchable hatred, a fire that could never be extinguished.

"They are the murderers of my father. Because of them, my mother took her own life," she declared without hesitation. "I will go to each of their families... and I will kill every last one of them."

Her fingers clenched around the cannonball, and with a dry snap, it turned to dust.

She was being trained in the four advanced uses of Aura—knowledge that had been deliberately divided among masters and clans due to the danger of a single person mastering them all.

The first was the basic use of Aura: Enhancement, which physically strengthened the user.

The second was Specialization, allowing the Aura to be focused externally on a specific part of the body to amplify its power to the extreme.

The third was Fortification, an expansion of the Specialization principle but applied to the entire body, forming a defensive armor of energy.

The fourth… was the most dangerous. A technique that many believed to be a myth—the ability to project Aura outside the body in a devastating attack.

Sidao… had managed to teach the Empress all four.

Sindra:

My soul had been summoned, linking me to the Black Castle. My physical body remained behind while my essence emerged in that dark domain. I appeared in an ethereal form, shrouded in thick shadows, with only my eyes glowing intensely.

Around me, a long banquet table stretched into the darkness. Everyone present was equally cloaked in gloom, their eyes burning like living embers. Some had red eyes, while others, like me, had pink ones.

"Why have you called us here, Morvat?" asked one of the figures, their voice echoing with authority. Their red eyes flared even brighter as they spoke.

"The Great Lord has contacted me..." Morvat replied, his voice deep and weighted.

"What did the Great Lord say to you?" asked another red-eyed presence in the darkness.

We, the ones with pink eyes, were of lower status in this circle. We were not allowed to interact directly with the superiors, but listening was enough.

I glanced at the chair beside me. It was there, during a past meeting, that the shadowed form of the Jormungandr's bearer had appeared. Since then, I had developed a deep curiosity to uncover his identity. I was the only one who had sensed his presence—perhaps due to my affinity with serpents. I had recognized the essence of that ancient and powerful creature immediately.

That shadowed form he took was unique, just like his soul. Observing his essence was like trying to decipher an impossible riddle. There was something about him... it was as if two beings coexisted within him, a man and a woman entwined in an impossible manner.

Morvat, seated at the head of the table, interrupted my thoughts. He leaned forward slightly, as if carefully weighing his words before speaking.

"The Great Lord said..." He paused, letting the weight of his words hang over us like a blade about to drop.

"It has begun."

Those words fell like a death sentence. The darkness around us seemed to tremble.

"Begun what?" another voice questioned.

Morvat raised his hand, and a sinister energy pulsed around him, almost tangible. Then, with solemnity, he declared:

"Our great war against Asgard and the two continents of Midgard has finally begun."