Thorkell Empire

Back in the new southern city, Jason and Selena have been working on building the Magic Tower.

"I can't wait for the magic tower to be completed, I'm actually quite jealous you can take charge of something so amazing!" Selena said lightly.

"This magic tower is for you, actually. Haven't you always wanted to popularize your mother's research? Now this is the perfect chance to realize that dream" Jason said with a charming smile.

Selena almost broke down in tears, after getting involved with all these politics and political intrigue, she sometimes missed the time she could go back and simply research. She had never forgotten her dream of popularizing her mother's magic and even though the magic tower was a great way, she was unsure what Jason wanted to use it for.

To think it would be for her, she can hardly hold back the emotion she feels for him.

She hugs Jason one more time and they both drown in the loving atmosphere.

The days go by and the new southern territory continues to build the magic tower. After realizing that their lord had become the archduke, the city became far more lively. 

They believe they are in great hands and the good rumors about the current arch-duke attracted many people amongst the commoners. 

Selena asked about Ivory and Fiona and Jason told her that Fiona was dispatched to the Thorkell Empire border and Ivory became an envoy going to the Voraine Empire.

"Wow, they are doing such amazing things. Handling such big matters is great" Selena said in a bit of awe.

"You're going to be in charge of advancing the magic of our empire. All three of you guys are doing amazing work. Don't put yourself down" Jason said calmly.

Selena smiled, "Yes, that's right. I just need to follow my path. Soon, I will show the empire that there is a different path that can also change our empire apart from offensive magic and war" Selena said while pumping her fist.

"What would you do now?" Selena asked 

"I will have to head to the Voraine empire soon to implement my plan, a big reason why non-offensive magic is unpopular is due to the constant demand of war. Using our magicians to learn things outside of fighting is technically wasting our resources. But now that the southern territory has been conquered, the burden of mages is far lower. I could at least produce a ceasefire that will leave us with a lot of extra time on our hands" Jason explained.

"Oh yeah, you mentioned this before. What exactly will you do?" Selena asked.

"Voraine empire is rich in resources so even after all this time, their lands are still fertile. If we focus on efficiency alone, the harvest in our new southern city is actually more than the Voraine empire due to the new spells we developed" Jason said.

Selena thought about it carefully, "So you plan to use that as a negotiation?" She asked.

"Exactly, The Voraine Empire actually prioritizes their harvest over war but war is something they can't get rid of. If they can stop war and make money too., they don't have a reason to say no. The question now becomes how much and how long, instead of yes or no" Jason explains.

"The Thorkell empire is a bit of a problem but I think there is a way, I will just have to see how that dear brother of mine and Ms. Flamor do on the border front," Jason says while looking at the distance.

Selena stares at him and then goes and brings him some tea.

Jason always has a lot on his mind and is always thinking about ways to help save this empire. It's quite funny how he holds no love for this empire either but works the hardest.

Jason takes the tea with a smile and drinks while falling into a state of relaxation.

"There might be some drastic changes happening in our empire soon, I'm not interested in protecting everyone but I, at least, want our home to be safe. I have already begun to set up a teleportation method for my mother to use and now that we have the magic tower, I can finally implement it" Jason says seriously.

"Are things gonna be that dangerous?" Selena asked worriedly.

"This is the same empire that can assassinate their own prince every day and now an illegitimate child without any maternal backing will become the emperor, there will naturally be some people unconvinced about his legitimacy and would do drastic things to gain power" Jason explained.

"But it's not like they would want you on the throne either, they have been harrasing you for so many years" Selena said in anger.

"It's all for their self-interest. I lack the eyes which gives them an excuse to not approve me and Lance wasn't born from the empress which also gives them an excuse to not approve of him. Usually, they would just side with whoever gives them the most but some might use this to get rid of both of us and take the throne themselves".

Selena turned pale, "But they won't have the eyes either! How would that work!"

"They don't need the eyes, if a prince has the eyes and is backed by both the emperor and empress, trying to replace him on the throne is almost impossible. But if there are huge gaps in the support of both princes, a strong enough man can take advantage" Jason says.

"It seems like you know who it might be?" Selena asked curiously.

Jason didn't answer but he stared at the window in silence. His eyes became more serious.

"I have to get my mother out of that palace soon. Lance also might come to kill her at any time. As long as we can get her into this territory, there is nothing they can do to her. As the mother of this empire's arch-duke, She will have amazing status!" Jason said.

Selena smiles, "Don't forget that I am here with you. I will watch over the teleportation method and assist with strengthening our defense just in case something goes wrong" she says in a comforting tone.

"Thank you, my princess," Jason says as he smiles at her words and closes his eyes as fatigue takes over his body.

Selena watches his sleeping figure and thinks to herself slowly,

"I really have to protect this man, While he is away in the Voraine empire, I will make sure this tower becomes the greatest reliance he currently has," Selena thinks while motivation is flowing through her.

Thorkell Empire Border Front

The warriors clashed with each other over and over again. Commander Maria, the genius of her class, was leading a famous army in a battle against the warriors of the Thorkell empire.

The Thorkell warriors had armor and weapons that mixed durable metal riddled with Kortz. 

The Thorkell scientist already realized the weakness of solely relying on Kortz and effectively arranged the weapons and armor to have a pattern that utilizes both.

Doing this may not weaken magic as much as using purely Kortz but it definitely increases overall safety so that neither Kortz nor Bladed weapons can easily kill off the army.

Commander Maria shot a few air slashes but the opposing army, who is already familiar with her techniques, were in formation to block it without much of a problem.

"When are they coming?" Maria said impatiently.

"We have been in a stalemate for too many years, Those added troops were helpful but it isn't enough. We need a bigger name".

Just as she was complaining, a powerful figure approached the battle, led by tens of thousands of troops. 

That figure was no other than Fiona.

Clad in sharp armor and a piercing gaze, she was now in charge of the soldiers who fought previously in the southern territory. Using her father's influence, she was able to get such a high position very quickly.

Fiona pointed her sword towards the army facing off with Maria's army and yelled "Charge".

The additional troops charged to provide assistance and a fierce battle started.

"You're quite late," Maria said half-heartedly.

"Seeing that Ms. Third Place is just fine, I'll say I came just in time" Fiona retorted.

"Don't focus too much on the guys down here, our real problem lies up there" Maria said as her gaze turned upwards.

Fiona followed her gaze and saw two women exuding a powerful presence.

Princess Kunai stared at the battlefield with a scowl on her face. There was a big stalemate on the border for many years but a few months ago, a lot more elite mages and soldiers were dispatched for assistance. And now, even such a big figure came to join the battle, just what is going on?

It doesn't make sense, if they had these kinds of soldiers ready to go, why would they wait until now? Did something significant happen while I wasn't paying attention? 

Commander Blade, a genius warrior of the Thorkell empire, looked at her princess with an exasperated expression.

"Princess, our intelligence claimed that those Kadence people conquered the southern territory. These new soldiers must be the ones who came from there" Commander Blade explained.

Princess Kunai kept looking into the distance, "This won't be a problem in the short-term but in the long-term, this will cause an issue. Is my father aware?", she asked.

"Yes, Your Highness, the emperor is meeting an esteemed guest soon who will solve our problems," Commander Blade said.

"Good, if father is handling it then there is no need for us to worry. It might be time for us to make a move. I wasn't too worried about that little commander of theirs but this new woman might be trouble. I'll handle her while you go to their main commander" Princess Kunai explained.

"But princess-" Commander Blade tried to argue but the princess shot her a cold gaze. 

"You can defy your own princess now? A Mere commander?" Princess Kunai said with a sharp coldness in her voice.

"Forgive me, my princess, I will go now", Commander Blade said as she hopped down from the wall and headed towards Commander Maria.

The princess then stared at Fiona and caught her gaze.

Both of them stared at each other as a powerful spark ignited in their gaze.

Princess Kunai jumped down as well and approached Fiona slowly.

"Who may you be?" She asked.

"Fiona, this will be the last name you hear," Fiona said as she got her weapon ready.

Princess Kunai's face shifted many times as she heard the name.

"Fiona? The Kadence empire genius?" Princess Kunai said as a smile crept on her lip.

"Once you fall under my blade, It will surely cripple your lousy magic empire. Die!" Princess Kunai said as she lunged forward.

Fiona lunged forward too and the two of them clashed back and forth, showing off a powerful exchange between two great combatants.

Thorkell Empire Throne Room

"Father, Mother, The man is here," A young man said.

"Alright Slaid, let him in" the imperial couple responded softly.

A middle-aged man comes into the room, dressed in very expensive garments and covered with jewelry.

"It seems your wealth was not just rumors," The Thorkell emperor said.

"It's not much, I must present myself well in front of the emperor," The man said.

"Let's not waste any time, did you bring it" The empress said impatiently.

"Do not worry, Empress, I am a man of my word. The boxes of gold will be left in the reception room. I just hope you can provide the manpower I need" The man said.

"The word of an emperor is greater than gold, naturally, I will provide what I promise. There is no more need to engage in conversation. You will receive what you wish in due time" The emperor responded.

The man bowed and then left with a sly smile on his face.

"Father, can we really trust that man? If he could backstab his country, can't he backstab us too?" Prince Slaid asked.

"Greedy men like him will naturally prioritize benefits over anything else. He's actually the one we can trust the most right now since there is no way he will let this opportunity go. You already know how dangerous those Kadence magicians are. Without Kortz, we will be at their mercy. We need this deal desperately" The emperor said while shaking his head.

"But father, we are giving him so many soldiers. Wouldn't that be a loss?" Prince Slaid asked.

"Those soldiers aren't good enough to compete with the top-class army of the Kadence Commanders and we don't have enough Kortz to provide them with. We are stuck in a weird balance so we might as well let them borrow those soldiers while getting more Kortz. All of this is for the glory of our Thorkell empire", the emperor says.

Prince Slaid nodded his head, his father is right. Fighting those mages without Kortz is much more difficult. We don't lack Kortz but we lack the money to increase production. We already use so many resources for our war effort. Unless one of us falls, we will be stuck in this stalemate forever.

 Slaid looks out the window, "I wonder how my sister is doing, it'll be best if she can fall alongside those Kadence commanders so no one else can threaten my throne" Said says with a cold glint in his eyes.

He then walks away, leaving the imperial couple in the throne room contemplating their next move.