Book 4: Chapter 1

Book 4: Chapter 1

Future generations would be taught this incident had come upon them like an early summer.

They wouldnt be far off the mark: The Kingdom of Natra had been seared by fanned flames long before the first signs of summer appeared.

The source was a major incident involving the Kingdoms of Natra and Cavarin.

It all began when Crown Prince Wein Salema Arbalest was invited to attend the Festival of the Spirit in Cavarin to celebrate the religion of Levetia, the church with the largest following in the west side of the continent. That happened to coincide with the Gathering of the Chosen, a ceremonial meeting held by the most influential figures of the faith.

It was the biggest event of the year, drawing eyes across the continent to the kingdom. But in the middle of it all, Ordalasse, the king of Cavarin and one of the Holy Elite, had been murdered in cold blood.

It was totally unprecedented for a ruler hosting an international conference to be assassinated in his own country. And as if that wasnt a bolt from the blue, General Levert had the gall to accuse Wein of the crime after being granted temporary authority over the grieving nation.

The people of Natra were thunderstruckand then burst into fits of rage! After all, Wein was beloved in their kingdom, known for standing out from all the rulers of the states long history for governing with benevolence and integrity. The accusation did not sit well with them.

Once Wein managed to escape the capital of Cavarin, he firmly stood his ground and insisted that the charge was false. By joining forces with the Remnant Army of Marden, former foe of Natra and most recently an enemy of Cavarin, they managed to push back General Leverts forces.

And once Cavarin had been freed from Leverts rule, all parties had finally reconciled. With its territory returned to the people, Marden had declared vassalage to Natra.

Nothing could curb the tide of fervor in Natra after news of this historic victory spread like wildfire.

His Highness is neck and neck withNo, he surpasses King Salema himself!

Indeed. With him as our ruler, weve basically been promised a golden era for the next hundred years!

Thats absolutely correct! A million soldiers would pale in comparison to His Highness.

To His Highness!

To the next hundred years!

Cheers!

The two-hundred-year old Kingdom of Natra had finally expanded their territory, leaving its people with dancing feet and pounding hearts.

Hence

Hooow in the world did this happen?!

In his private office, the crown prince, praised by the masses as someone with more potential than their great founder, shrieked until his voice was rawWein Salema Arbalest.

Impressive, really. Everyone is singing your praises, pointed out his aide, Ninym Ralei, with her striking white hair and red eyes. She sounded positively exhausted. The founder reborn, she parodied. The top strategist on the continent. The wisest ruler in the world. You know, some people have really gotten ahead of themselves, calling you a god-king.

Ninym shrugged. And you havent even ascended to the throne, her shoulders seemed to say.

Your popularity really spiked after the war last year with Marden, but that was nothing compared to this, she added. In all honesty, theres no way to stop it from blowing up out of proportion.

The people were so fired up, any attempt to douse their fervor would simply turn to steam.

Under normal circumstances, most heirs to the throne would be pleased to have a high reputation.

No! This wasnt in the plan! Why did Marden swear allegiance to us?!

Unfortunately for him, Wein had a situation on his hands that was anything but normal.

After all, even though hed managed to hoist the blame of the assassination on General Levert for political reasons, Wein was the one who had murdered King Ordalasse. There had to be few among the Holy Elite who instinctively knew he was the true killer, though none could produce any solid proof.

Now that Wein had assassinated a member of the Holy Elite and made a mess of the Gathering of the Chosen, there was a high chance the organization would make trouble for himand by extension, his homeland of Natra. But he had included the possibility in his calculations, and he had fully intended to revive Marden as an independent nation after driving out Cavarin forces with the Remnant Army. That way, Marden would serve as a buffer between his people and the rest of the West, protecting Natra from the mess they had instigated. In other words, the strategy was verywellyou know.

However, while Wein was busy pursuing his own agenda, Marden had moved forward on its own.

At the way things were going, it was obvious that Natra was going to take advantage of Marden. But without help from Natra, they wouldnt be able to rebuild their reclaimed land. Caught in this political quandary, Princess Zenovia decided as the representative of Marden that they would swear allegiance to Natra.

As Wein turned his attention to recovering from the war, Zenovia laid down the groundwork to gain the acceptance of Natras finest and then brought this to Wein with aplomb.

She got us. She really did.

Youre telling me!

It was a surprise attack. The vassals of the kingdom were tickled pink about expanding their nations territory in one fell swoop. There was no way Wein could voice his opposition.

Damn you, Zeno. When we first met, she was all timid, but now shes showing how shrewd she can be!

I wonder where she got that from.

I cant possibly imagine. There must have been a real crook hanging around her.New novel chapters are published on

Take a look in the mirror.

Whoa, get a load of that sexy hunk!

Weird. Must have been a fun house mirror.

Not even that can rob him of his hotness!

You never know when to give it up. Ninym flashed him a wry smile. Joking aside, whats the plan?

All we can do is ride this damn thing out, Wein answered with a sigh. As soon as Marden swore fealty, their people became ours. As a nation of immigrants, well undermine our foundational values if we ignore their plight. Based on geography alone, Marden is going to take the brunt of the oncoming attacks. Weve got no choice but to aid them.

Add that to our expenses.

Well also have to adjust the domestic balance of power. Ugh What am I gonna do with Marden?

The Kingdom of Natra was a feudal state, a hodgepodge of lords. If their collective power as a nation could be quantified as one hundred points, the royal family of Arbalest held half of them. The remaining points belonged to the subordinate feudal lords within the nation. Though the royal family could order them to act in certain ways, the Arbalests did not wield that power themselves. To utilize the kingdoms full power, they needed to be on good terms with the other lords.

If any single lord was in control of ten points, that would amount to a full tenth of the nations collective power and be equivalent to a fifth of the Arbalests. That would be enough to secure their place as high nobility, meaning even the royal family couldnt afford to slight them.

Naturally, the royals would want to carefully orchestrate marriages between the noble families. The unthinkable would happen if a chance union gave birth to a lord who could rival the king. From the perspective of the royal family, the nobility were most convenient when they remained as harmless as bleating sheep.

Wein felt no differently. In order to keep the nobility in their place, he had vigilantly maintained an equilibrium between him and his nobles.

But of course. For the Empire and its citizens, I intend to try my hardest, Lowellmina mustered a harmless reply with a smile.

If she made a careless remark here, it might come back to bite her later.

At that moment, someone knocked on the door. It was a womanFyshe Blundell, Lowellminas aide.

Pardon me. Princess Lowellmina, a delegation has just arrived from Natra.

I heard they might be late, but theyre right on time. Where are they now?

At the manor that has been prepared for them. They said they will come here to greet you after they have changed into more formal wear.

There were other guests invited to the summit besides the Imperial princes. The Natra delegation was one of them.

Hmm. The rumored prince has made an appearance, too, huh. This piqued Cosimos attention.

After trouncing Marden the previous year, Natra had followed that up with a victory in the recent war against Cavarin, steadily advancing their interests on multiple fronts. As a merchant who was always on the lookout for an opportunity, Cosimo wanted to know more about this key figure who hailed from the country making such historic progress.

I think I remember you were discussing a potential marriage with the crown prince.

Yes. But that has been shelved with this internal mess.

In that case, this meeting might just end with a celebration for deciding on the next emperor and your engagement.

That would please me.

Lowellmina and Cosimo exchanged small smiles before the mayor stood up.

Well then, I hope you will pardon me for the day. I wish to greet the prince if the opportunity arises. Please introduce me when the time comes.

Yes, of course.

Cosimo bowed and left the room.

Lowellmina waited until he was far away before draining the rest of her cup.

Hffff She let out an exhausted sigh.

Excellent work, Princess Lowellmina.

Im beat. I really need to keep my guard up around that mayor. Lowellmina collapsed on the desk.

Fyshe continued speaking beside her. Lord Cosimo has been the mayor for many years. And as a merchant, he will naturally be enthusiastic about any potential leads for business.

Which is exactly why hes been very helpful. Hes done us a big favor, getting this meeting together, Lowellmina admitted. Doesnt make him any less of a pain, she grumbled under her breath when she heard something outside.

It seems that our guests from Natra have arrived, Fyshe observed, looking out the window.

Lowellmina jumped to her feet. I should go out to meet them.

Are you sure that is the right move? If you personally greet them, there may be accusations that you show too much favoritism toward their small country.

But we were the ones who extended the invitation, and theyre important visitors from an ally nation. If we do not welcome them, we will signal that we fail to observe proper manners in the Empire. And if I personally greet them, I can cement our close relationship. Am I wrong?

My apologies. It took me too long to fully understand your foresight. Fyshe nodded formally.

Lowellmina smiled. Well, I admit the primary reason is to gaze upon Weins unhappy face.

Hee-hee. Oh, I cant wait. Everyone will think I have ties with Natra as long as he comes to me. But as an invitee, theres no way for him to not greet me. I can practically see Weins face screw up in pain.

If you can already envision it in your head, perhaps there is no reason to go out of your way to meet him.

Im starting to forget all the details of his face, and I could use a refresher.

I see.

Fyshe had recently begun to understand her mistresss true nature. She offered no more. If Fyshe averted her eyes from all the smaller details, Lowellmina was a wonderful master.

Shall we?

Lowellmina and Fyshe left the room and headed for the foyer. They arrived just as the delegation of Natra was filing in.

Thank you for making the long journey to Mealtars, Lowellmina greeted as she approached. From all of the Earthworld Empire, I wish to welcome

That was when Lowellminas eyes registered a certain figure at the center of the group.

Each? One? Of? You? Lowellmina managed to finish.

After all, Wein was not the one standing before her. It was a young girl about two heads shorter.

I would like to extend my gratitude to you for the invitation.

Lowellmina blinked back in shock as the young girl bowed her head.

My name is Falanya Elk Arbalest. I have come to greet Your Highness in the stead of my older brother, Wein.

Future historians would readily admit the wit of Prince Wein Salema Arbalest, even if they were his toughest critics in the world.

But at this moment in time, his reputation was still up in the air. The West would claim the Holy Elite possessed the greatest minds on the continent, the East would turn toward the Imperial children, and the South would raise its notable candidates.

But in the North, there was another slumbering beast whose name would be known by all future historians.

Falanya Elk Arbalest.

Until this moment, she had been known only as Weins younger sister. But that would all change as she stepped to the forefront of history.

This was the event that would start it all: the Summit of the Imperial Children.