《Imperial Recon Guards Lost in Space》


 Chapter 1 - Their Last Meeting

    Galactic Imperium, also known as the Galactic Empire, is a human space empire created after the fall of the Galactic Nations. Since its creation, the Empire continued to expand and look for intelligent life in space. On the top, stood the Emperor of Mankind who ruled the Empire from the Capital Planet, Earth.


    300 years ago, Galactic Imperium found a planet with a sign of alien space civilization. The explorer who found it deduced that the settlement on the planet was a frontier outpost. It was long abandoned, however, the outpost is still functioning correctly. After extensive research into their language and communication, the scientists were able to know the name of the empire, the Roktarian Empire.


    Multiple messages and data were able to be extracted from the outpost database. The last message was dated 50 years before the discovery. When the scientists were able to decipher it, they were frightened.


    "To all who are able to listen to this. Our experiment has caused the destruction of our empire, we are not able to defeat them, they keep coming. No matter how much we kill, many will come. None can stop their rampage. We have created devils."


    The voice of the person was full of despair and regret. After hearing the message, many question the existence of the so-called "devil". Investigation for this creature was launched. The scientists found out that the "devil" was an artificial life form made by Roktarian for combat. It has basic intelligence, a strong physique, enhanced senses and ability and they don''t age. It was used in a war against a hostile empire. However, something went wrong and the "devil" turned against its creator. A decade later, the Roktarian Ascendency perished.


    This shocking news was kept secret from the public by the government. 5 years after the outpost discovery, a message came from the outpost crew.


    "Se-... -lp ... unde-... ..-ck. They are he-..."


    After the message, many attempts to contact the outpost were met with silence. The Empire then sent a recon ship. When the ship arrived around the planet, a huge fleet was surrounding the system of the planet. Before the ship was able to hail the fleet, they were shot. Following this act of aggression, a fleet from the Imperial Navy was sent, however, when they arrived they saw hell itself. Thousands of enemy ships were waiting for them and within hours the fleet was destroyed.


    An immediate defensive measure was enacted on the nearest systems and planets from the outpost. The empire decided to name the creatures after their creator, Roktarian. A year after, Roktarian launched an attack on the nearest system, and a heroic defence was mounted by the Empire''s navy. Duke Lorien was one of the heroes of the battle, he commanded his fleet from the enemy''s vanguard and enemy''s main forces and held out until reinforcement came. It was a pyrrhic victory for the Empire and that day marked the beginning of centuries-long hostility between the Galactic Empire and Roktarian.


    The Galactic Empire lost multiple systems and planets until 100 years ago they could finally hold the Roktarian advance. A weapon specialised in destroying the enemy ships'' advanced protective shield was discovered with this weapon the Empire''s fleet was able to destroy the enemy faster and easier.


    Lucas Lorien, a commodore from the Imperial Recon Guard, a division of the Imperial Guard, was on a mission to escort Princess Sophie from the Lorien system to the Imperial Capital system. Lucas sat on the chair in his room on the ship, they almost arrived at the Imperial Capital System. He felt a presence in front of his room''s door, he pulled up the security camera and saw Princess Sophie in front of his door, hesitating whether to get inside or not. Lucas stood up and walked to the door and opened it.


    "Your Highness, may I help you?" asked Lucas. Princess Sophie was startled when Lucas opened the door.


    "Uummmm, would you like to have tea?" answered Princess Sophie.


    "Sure, come inside Your Highness." Lucas moved away from the door to let Princess Sophie inside the room. Her maid served tea and snacks, they are onboard a ship used by the Imperial Family for interstellar transportation.


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    "Did you have any inconvenience or problem when you were in Lorien, Your Highness?" asked Lucas.


    "No, everything was fine."


    "I''m glad you enjoyed your stay. We will arrive on Earth soon, just hang on for a while."


    "Okay, if I may ask, Lucas?" asked Princess Sophie shyly.


    "What is it, Your Highness?"


    "What is your relationship with Lieutenant Ariana?"


    "She is my attendant and secretary, pretty much an aide."


    "Oh, really. Well that''s fine then," said Princess Sophie. She felt relieved.


    "Did she do something to offend you, Your Highness?"


    "No, not all. Well, I''m just asking. So, what are you doing after this?"


    "After escorting you? Well, I was told to report to the Headquarters."


    "Immediately?"


    "Yes, immediately," said Lucas in a serious voice.


    "Are you that busy? Shouldn''t you take care of your health," said Princess Sophie while pouting.


    "I am coming back from vacation, so I can''t dally around any longer," answered Lucas with a smile. Princess Sophie felt a glare from Lucas. She was the one who asked Lucas to take her to Lorien, he had to take a change of mission from his usual recon mission to escorting her. He and his crews were also given permission to take a leave on Lorien.


    "What vacation? Weren''t you tasked to guard me while in Lorien?"


    "The Headquarters sadly didn''t have the same opinion as you, Your Highness." Princess Sophie groaned after hearing Lucas''s answer.


    "Ah, Lucas, why did you call me Your Highness?" said Princess Sophie. She stared at him with a deadly glare.


    "Because you are a Princess?" answered Lucas nonchalantly.


    "That is true that I am a Princess. But more than that, I am your fiance! Fi-an-ce! Call me by my name!" said Princess Sophie. She pointed her finger to make a point. Suddenly, Lucas stood up.


    "Yes. Ma''am. I will follow your order!" shouted Lucas while he did a military salute to her.


    "What are you doing? Sit down!" said Princess Sophie. She was flustered. Lucas then sat down and laughed. He was messing with her and it was worth it when she looked flustered.


    "Hahaha, Sophie you are easy to tease." Lucas kept laughing. Sophie could not hold back her frustration any longer, walked to Lukas then tripped and accidentally pushed down Lucas on the sofa. They were alone in the room, her maid had left the room after she served the tea and snacks. She was now on top of Lucas and was facing his way, she blushed. She tried to.get up but Lucas held her and moved her face closer to him, and then they kissed.


    Lucas and Princess Sophie had known each other since they were in childhood. They became close friends after they met each other when the Imperial family went on vacation in Lorien and over time they became lovers. a year ago, Princess Sophie asked his father to betroth her to Lucas. Duke Lucius Lorien welcomed the proposal with an open arms and both families agreed to the betrothal.


    "It''s unfair," said Princess Sophie. Her face was still red and she was still on top of him, she could not move because Lucas was holding her. She pinched his cheek. "you are a meanie."


    "You are cute when teased, it is hard to not tease you," said Lucas. He caressed her cheek.


    "Hnggghhh, so why is Ariana your aide?" asked Princess Sophie


    "Why not?" Lucas looked puzzled.


    "Didn''t you have an aide already? That old man."


    "Oh, him. He was moved to another post and the headquarters sent her to replace him. She just graduated from the military academy and she did her job well so far," said Lucas


    "Hngghh." Princess Sophie frowned.


    "Ah, are you perhaps jealous?" asked Lucas. He smirked at her and Princess Sophie looked surprised when she heard that. "well, she is a beauty and has a great body. Her beautiful blond hair i-"


    "Meanie!" said Princess Sophie. She placed her hand on Lucas''s mouth to silence him.


    She moved her hand away from his mouth after a while. then he said, "You don''t need to worry, Sophie. She is just an aide to me, not like you, the love of my life." said Lucas. He moved his face closer to her and when they were about to kiss, a knock was heard from the door.


    Surprised, Princess Sophie jolted up and moved away from him then sat back on her chair, Lucas then sat on his chair after Princess Sophie moved from on top of him.


    "Come in!" said Lucas to the person knocking on the door.


    "Excuse me, Commodore," said the person opening the door. It was Lieutenant Ariana. "ah, apologies. It seems you have a guest, I will come back later."


    "It''s fine. We just finished talking," Said Princess Sophie. She stood up. "Thank you for your time, Commodore."


    "Likewise, Your Highness." Lucas stood up and bowed to her. Princess Sophie then left the room. Lieutenant Ariana saluted her while she was walking past her and Princess Sophie acknowledged her salute with a smile.


    They had entered the Solar System and would soon arrive on the Imperial Capital Planet, Earth. Unbeknownst to them, a sinister plot awaited Lucas and his crew on Earth.

 Chapter 2 - The Coward Descendant

    The ship arrived at the Imperial Capital Planet and after escorting Princess Sophie to the Imperial Palace and doing his best to refuse her request to stay for tea, Lucas went into Imperial Guard Headquarters. He went there to receive a new order from Vice-Admiral Jormon, Commander of the Imperial Recon Guard. He knocked at the commander¡¯s door and a voice told him to go inside.


    ¡°How was your vacation, Commodore?¡± asked Vice-Admiral Jormon.


    ¡°It was fine. Was it really okay to let me go on vacation like that? We are busy, right?¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine. Her Highness begged me to let you go on vacation with her and you delegated your duty to your other subordinate as well,¡± answered Vice-Admiral Jormon


    ¡°Huh, she begged you? Goodness me, I apologise for her childishness.¡±


    ¡°Hahaha. That¡¯s fine Commodore. You ought to enjoy your youth, you have a beautiful girl as your bride, cherish her as much as you can. You can¡¯t go back in time, enjoy your moment with her. ¡± said Vice Admiral Jormon with a laugh.


    ¡°Thank you, Vice Admiral. So what¡¯s my mission?¡± Asked Lucas.


    ¡°Ah, here you go.¡± Vice Admiral Jormon gave Lucas documents. ¡°there is a report of piracy in the Kombi system, I want you to investigate it, report back and if possible destroy them with your squadron. But. if you can''t request a backup.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I think we will call for backup. All ships in my squadron except mine are unavailable.¡±


    ¡°Oh, be careful then. I don¡¯t want to get nagged by the Princess if you were hurt,¡± said Vice-Admiral Jormon jokingly.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, I can take care of myself. I will take my leave then.¡± Lucas saluted the Vice-Admiral and left the room.


    When he left the room, Lieutenant Ariana was waiting for him in the hallway.


    ¡°What is our mission, Commodore?¡± asked Ariana.


    ¡°Investigation of piracy in the Kombi system. We will go there by ourselves since the other ships in our squadron are busy. Call a backup then we will support the subjugation fleet.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Commodore. When will we depart?¡±


    ¡°In 24 hours, tell the crews to be ready on the ship at that time.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Commodore.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm, let¡¯s go somewhere we can eat.¡±


    ¡°Ah, okay, Commodore,¡± said Lieutenant Ariana, surprised.


    They went inside a high-end restaurant, the restaurant had Victorian-Era decorations. It was called, Victoria¡¯s Memory. When they went inside, Lieutenant Ariana was shocked at how luxurious the place was. She wondered whether she had enough money to buy something in the restaurant. Then as if he can read her mind, Lucas told her he would pay for both of them, after all a leader should treat their subordinate once in a while.


    They sat at one of the tables near the window and ordered their meals. Even though she never went to a high-end restaurant, she knew the table manners on such occasions. Because the Imperial Guard Academy gave lessons on table manners and related subjects alongside its military subjects.


    ¡°How did it feel working with my squadron?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°It feels great. I¡¯m still getting to know the crews and the officers, I haven''t met with anyone from the 4th squad.¡±


    ¡°Ah, they have been on a mission near the border of Roktarian since last year. They will be back within 3 months if everything goes well.¡±


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    ¡°No wonder we haven¡¯t met each other, they were gone before I joined.¡±


    ¡°You can always contact them, you are my aide and second-in-command,¡± said Lucas. Lieutenant Ariana looked dejected, she wasn¡¯t sure if she was capable of handling the responsibilities of being second-in-command and leading the squadron.


    ¡°I¡¯ll try my best to meet your expectations,¡± said Lieutenant Ariana confidently.


    ¡°You should, I expect so much from you Lieutenant. You were able to reach this high, you should go even higher.¡± encouraged Lucas. Looking at Ariana''s background, she was raised in a middle-class family. However, her family was brandished as ¡°traitors¡± because her grandfather once led a squadron of ships and was tasked to hold an advance of a pirate''s fleet from attacking civilian ships until reinforcement came.


    Her grandfather disobeyed the order and decided to retreat after he saw a bigger enemy¡¯s fleet. This caused the pirates to ransack the civilian ships that were trying to flee from them. He was dishonourably discharged from the Navy.


    Since then, the name of Parmis was shunned, especially among the military. When she attended the Imperial Guard Academy many of her peers shunned her for being the descendant of a traitor. However, she proved that even if she is the descendant of a traitor she can outperform her peers.


    Lucas thought that it was funny that the headquarters would pair the descendants of a hero and the descendants of a traitor together. Truly a poetic situation. But, Lucas felt relieved when he discovered that she had an excellent record at the academy.


    "It must be hard, right? Having a name like yours," Lucas told Ariana.


    Ariana looked embarrassed. "I-I promise I won''t be like him," stated Ariana with confidence.


    "There is no need. Every decision made by an officer has meaning and purpose. If I had to choose whether I should sacrifice myself or not, I''m taught to consider the bigger picture. The loss of few civilian lives is not comparable to the loss of a squadron of ships."


    "What? aren''t we supposed to protect them?"


    "Ariana, have you ever considered that it was strange, a civilian cargo convoy would pass a known pirate territory?"


    "I... No,"


    Lucas leaned forward, "Exactly. I''m not going to spew conspiracy theories, but it was strange."


    "Could it be that someone was after my grandfather?"


    "Rear Admiral Parmis was a candidate for a position in the Imperial Navy High Command. A well-sought position."


    Ariana went silent for a while. "But, still. I think he should at least protect them, even if he lost most of his squadron or his life."


    "You will understand his decision when you are in charge of soldiers." Lucas leaned back in the chair. "Ariana, if someone dares to mock you, just tell me. I''ll deal with it. No one is allowed to mock my people, understand?"


    Ariana was dumbfounded, "wha-- Even if it was the Emperor?"


    "Especially the Emperor. I will give him the hardest beating, courtesy of Lorien."


    "Eh?! The--"


    "I was just joking. Of course, I won''t mess with him. Still, if there are people who mock you. It''s an insult to me. To Lorien. Understand?"


    Ariana sighed. "Fine. I guess, I will join the Lorien Navy when I leave the Imperial Guard," Ariana joked.


    "I''ll give a recommendation then."


    "Then, I want a recommendation to be the Guard of Lilies."


    "Only if you be my guard and willing to serve me at night."


    "EH?" Ariana was shocked. "Y-you want me? Am I that good? As good as Her Highness?"


    "I-I was just joking, Ariana."


    "Ah."


    "And to answer your question. Yes, you are as good as her."


    Ariana blushed, "Is that another joke?" Ariana with an irritated tone.


    "I can''t lie when asked about a woman''s appearance."


    "In other words, you flirt with women behind Her Highness''s back?"


    "What? Ariana, what makes you say that?"


    "Hmmm, I wonder what will happen if this reaches Her Highness''s ears?"


    "Ariana, your joke is too much," Lucas looked nervous.


    "There is this bakery in Langdon Street that I like. And. I''m craving to eat the special mint cake."


    "Fine, we''ll go there."


    Ariana smiled broadly, "Thank you, Commodore."


    Ariana felt warm inside her chest, she never had a conversation like this. When she was at the Academy, everyone looked at her with disgust and disappointment. People would only talk to her if they have to or need anything from her. If only he wasn''t taken by another woman, she would kiss him right there, in front of the patrons of the restaurant.


    Soon, their meals came and they ate, and when they were about to finish a waiter came and gave Lucas an ice cream and a piece of paper. When he opened the paper there are words written on it,


    I am telling Sophie that you went out with a girl unless you pay for my meals. My table is number 16, thanks!


    -your lil sis


    Lucas'' eyes widened and he turned his gaze around the restaurant to look for the sender of the letter and finally, he saw a familiar figure he knew very well, Anita, his little sister. She was dining with her friends in the same restaurants he was at and when their eyes met, she smiled at him and waved. He decided to pay for her meals as well since he felt Princess Sophie was jealous of his new aide and didn¡¯t want to deal with her tantrum when Anita told her about this situation.

 Chapter 3 - Malfunction

    Lucas arrived at the Imperial Guard Port and while he was on the way to his ship, he met his friends and after a short greeting he continued his walk. When he arrived at his ship he was greeted by Lieutenant Ariana.


    ¡°Welcome, Commodore. The crews are reading for a briefing on the bridge,¡± greeted Lieutenant Ariana.


    ¡°Great, let¡¯s go then.¡± Lucas and Lieutenant Ariana walked to the bridge and there his crew was waiting for him. Other than Lucas and Lieutenant Ariana, there are 3 more crews on the ship. Lieutenant Sarah Roseman, Sub-Lieutenant Max Brawn and Sub-Lieutenant Bianca Lorien.


    Lieutenant Sarah Roseman was responsible for communication and commanding the vessel when Lucas was absent or he was not on the bridge; she was this vessel¡¯s second-in-command. She had bright red hair just touching her shoulder. She had a bold personality and was always attentive to the vessel¡¯s crews.


    Sub-Lieutenant Max Brawn was an engineer for the ships and a weapon operator. He was a nerd, his thirst for knowledge and peculiar personality sometimes weirded out Lucas. He was knowledgeable of all matters of technical know-how and Lucas always relied on him if he needed an opinion on a technical subject.


    Sub-Lieutenant Bianca Lorien was a navigator for the ship and the doctor for the vessel. Sub-Lieutenant Bianca Lorien was Lucas''s cousin; it was coincidental that she was assigned to his squadron. Her white-coloured hair, a trait of Lorien, reached just below her shoulder. She was an excellent doctor, and her knowledge of health and medicine is incredible. She was once a subject of jealousy by Princess Sophie because of Bianca¡¯s closeness to Lucas.


    The Imperial Recon Guard¡¯s recon ship is usually manned with a small number of crew, at minimum 4 people are enough to man the ship and all the crews are expected to carry multiple tasks and cover others¡¯ posts if needed. The ship was also equipped with an AI that could operate independently without someone commanding or on the ship. However for the AI to be able to do that, authorization was needed or if certain conditions were met to activate the protocol.


    ¡°Good day, everyone!¡± greeted Lucas to his crew. He sat on the captain¡¯s seat on the bridge. ¡°I assume all of you have read the mission details, so I will just recap it. We are tasked with investigating the pirate base and after we discover their location we will call back up to subjugate the pirate.¡±


    ¡°Who are we going to call for backup?¡± asked Lieutenant Sarah


    ¡°I prefer we call the local force, however, if they can¡¯t do it, we will call back up from the Navy''s HQ,¡± answered Lucas.


    "Okay, sir!"


    "More questions? None? Alright, prepare for takeoff everyone," ordered Lucas to his crew.


    All the crews went into their positions and Lieutenant Sarah notified the ground crew for the all-clear. She then contacted Control for clearance.


    "Control, this is Falcon 1, we are requesting takeoff."


    "Falcon 1, Control, you are clear for takeoff," said the controller


    "Clear for takeoff, Falcon 1."


    The ship immediately took off and flew into space. After they arrived in Earth orbit, Sub-lieutenant Bianca plotted their course.


    "Lu- Commodore, I have plotted our course," said Sub-Lieutenant Bianca


    "Thank you, Bianca. Prepare for hyperdrive." The ship''s hyperdrive was turned on and soon after that, they were in travelling hyperspace.


    Everything was normal for them with the usual routine they had done as always. However, when they arrived at the outer layer of the Empire and when they were about to engage their hyperdrive, something happened. The system controlling the hyperdrive malfunctioned and resulted in an uncontrolled hyperdrive. Soon, every screen module malfunctioned. They did everything to fix the problem, however, one by one they fell unconscious. leaving the ship on hyperdrive unsupervised.


    "Lucas, wake up!" Lucas heard a familiar voice shouting at him. "Lucas!"


    After a few more shouts from the voice, Lucas was able to regain consciousness and open his eyes, It was blurry, but he could make out the outline of someone he knew, "Lucy?"


    "No, It''s me, Bianca!" Bianca helped Lucas sit up,


    "Aghh! What happened?" Lucas asked Bianca as he felt pain in his head.


    "I don''t know, we are still figuring it out, here take this, it should lessen the pain," Bianca gave Lucas a drink and he drank it.


    "Is everyone okay?"


    "Yes."


    "Lyra, what did you discover?¡± asked Sarah to the ship''s AI.


    ¡°First, we are on uncharted territory and we are well outside the Galactic Empire Zone of Coverage,¡± explained Lyra. The Empire¡¯s Zone of Coverage was the name of an area in which the Empire could actively monitor and communicate with a ship, if a ship went outside the zone it wouldn¡¯t be able to communicate with the Empire''s traffic controller. For a military ship, that would mean they won¡¯t be able to contact their Headquarters directly. To be able to contact the Headquarters again, they had to move inside the Zone of Coverage or they had to relay their message through a ship within their communication range and that ship had to be inside the Zone of Coverage.


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    ¡°No way, even the planets at our maximum sensor range are uncharted,¡± said Sub-Lieutenant Bianca.


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, even with the ship¡¯s advanced sensor the systems around us are not charted within Empire¡¯s database. Next is our most critical problem, the ship¡¯s engine is dying. The long duration and excessive use of the maximum speed of the hyperdrive made the engine core in a critical state and low on power, we won¡¯t be able to do hyperdrive again,¡± explained Lyra.


    ¡°What?! We can¡¯t leave this system then!¡± said Sub-Lieutenant Max. He was in disbelief.


    ¡°Yes, even if we try to fix it, there is only a slim chance we made it to the next system. With current conditions, the engine core will be able to power this ship for 65 years and after that, the backup generator will be able to maintain the ship for another 15 years.¡±


    ¡°Damn it! Why the fuck does this happen, Lyra do you know what happened?¡± asked Lieutenant Sarah with anger.


    ¡°From my diagnosis, someone put a virus inside the ship¡¯s mainframe to cause the malfunction and turned off the failsafe as well as me. I also detected contaminated air inside the ship when I was able to regain control of the ship and cleaned the air as soon as possible. The cause of the contaminated air came from the engine room, I''ve blocked off the ventilation system from and to the engine room.¡±


    ¡°Who did that?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°My analysis pointed out to a person who did maintenance on the ship back when we were on Earth. I concluded that the person was the one who did it since it matched the time when the virus was injected into the ship. I¡¯ll show you the video.¡± said Lyra. Then Lyra showed a video of a group of people doing maintenance on the engine room, then the video zoomed in to the person who was connecting a device to a wall-mounted computer located in the engine room. He did something in front of the computer and disconnected the device then immediately left the ship.


    ¡°Huh, why did they do that?¡± said Ariana, nervously.


    ¡°My bet is an attempt of assassination. Their target probably is me,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Bastard, whoever is that, I¡¯ll kill that person,¡± said Lieutenant Sarah.


    ¡°Well, you need to be at the Empire for that to happen.¡±


    ¡°Commodore, what¨C ¡±


    ¡°Luxas, I detected a planet with life forms on it!¡± shouted Sub-Lieutenant Bianca interrupting the conversation.


    ¡°What?¡± Lucas was taken by surprise by Bianca''s shout.


    ¡°Look.¡± Bianca showed the planet to the rest of the crew. ¡°There are a lot of heat waves, some massive, some small. But, this area here could not be scanned by our scanner, I don¡¯t know why.¡±


    ¡°Good job, Bianca!¡± praised Lucas. He unconsciously patted her head. Bianca was surprised and she blushed.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing much,¡± said Sub-Lieutenant Bianca. She looked embarrassed and excited at the same time.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go near that planet and send our reconnaissance drone. Lyra brings us closer to the planet¡± ordered Lucas.


    ¡°Yes, Commodore,¡± answered Lyra. She took control of the aircraft and flew it to the orbit of the planet. The recon ships had 10 reconnaissance drones available to use, and Lucas ordered 6 drones to be used to scan the planet.


    To their surprise, they found a civilization on the planet with the dominant race being a humanoid.


    "What the fu..." said Sub-Lieutenant Max with surprise.


    "They looked like a human. No, they are human," said Sub-Lieutenant Bianca in awe.


    They looked at the people of the planet.


    They did indeed look like a human, Lucas thought, but how did they arrive here to an uncharted territory?


    "Lyra, are you sure they are human?" asked Lucas.


    "From the features of the body, I am sure they are human. For deeper analysis, I recommend DNA testing," answered Lyra.


    ¡°Are you asking us to abduct them?¡± said Lieutenant Ariana.


    ¡°No, the best course of action is to approach them to gather the sample. But, abducting them is within the acceptable method,¡± answered Lyra.


    ¡°So, this planet is habitable for us. I am worried about the native fauna though,¡± said Sarah worriedly. The faunas of this native according to their observation are mostly hostile and ferocious.


    ¡°I believe we have enough firepower to defend against them and we are all well trained, nothing to worry about,¡± said Sub-Lieutenant Max.


    ¡°I agree with Sub-Lieutenant Max. My analysis projected we can defend against most of the native fauna. However there is one more problem, it seems the creatures of the planet can use some sort of peculiar technique to defend themselves,¡± explained Lyra. She then showed a video of a group of people fighting against a huge wolf, the wolf was ferocious.


    Some of the people used a sword to fight against the monster, some used a bow and arrow. However, there was only one person who fought without anything, he was seen moving his mouth and his hand pointed to the wolf then a fireball came out of nowhere. Everyone was surprised when they saw it, it looked like magic, something that came out of a work of fiction. Lyra recommended they study the phenomenon further.


    ¡°Alright, we should land on the planet and explore it. We will make contact with the local civilization and then we will see what we can do further,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Yes, sir!¡± said everyone.


    ¡°Get into your station. Search for a suitable landing site and then we will land there, make sure the places are well hidden, I don¡¯t mind if it is located in the middle of nowhere because I don¡¯t want to scare the locals,¡± ordered Lucas. Everyone immediately went into their station and with Lyra¡¯s help, Bianca was able to find a suitable landing spot.


    ¡°Lucas, I found a spot,¡± said Sub-Lieutenant Bianca. She showed him the spot.


    ¡°That is a great place, we will land there. Prepare to descend into the planet, and activate stealth mode.¡± The ship then started to descend from orbit to the planet.

 Chapter 4 - Encounter with a Creature

    The ship safely landed in a clearing inside a thick forest. The forest was quiet and it was serene then the sensor picked up an object approaching them from in front of them. Everyone was on their guard, Even though they were in stealth mode when they approached the planet and landed, anything could happened. Soon, they saw the object that was approaching them, it was a huge winged creature, and its size is comparable to the ship they are in. Everyone was shocked by the appearance of the creature.


    ¡°Prepare for combat, manned your station!¡± said Lucas. Immediately everyone snapped out of their fear.


    ¡°All weapons are online. The missile launcher is blocked by the ground. Top 120mm mounts are available. Waiting for command,¡± reported Max. On top of the ships were two dual-mounted 120mm cannons, capable of a high rate of fire. Stored within the ship''s hull and when activated the mounts would come out and can be rotated 360 degrees. There was also a 120mm dual-mounted cannon below the ship, but it could not be used because the ground was blocking it.


    ¡°Stealth deactivated. The shield is at full capacity!¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Track the winged creature in front of us.¡±


    ¡°Tracking the target,¡± said Lyra, assisting the crews.


    ¡°Target is within range of 120mm guns. All guns ready to fire.¡±


    ¡°Fire!¡± said Lucas.


    A hail of artillery came out from the mounted guns. Before the creature could do anything, the shells tore its body aparat and it was decimated. The creature fell to the ground and the firing ceased.


    ¡°We dodged that one, Lyra sent out 2 drones to watch our surroundings. Ariana, let''s go out and check on the carcass,¡± ordered Lucas. Everyone felt relieved when they saw the creature fall in an instant. Lucas and Ariana prepared to go out. They each brought their service rifle and pistol, they still wore their service uniform. Lyra told them that the air outside was breathable for them.


    The door opened and a breath of fresh air rushed into their face. They walked outside the ship, and Sarah stood at the door.


    ¡°Be careful out there!¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we will just take a stroll,¡± said Lucas back to her. She waved at them and watched them disappear into the forest.


    The forest was thick, Lucas brought a knife to cut the shrubbery and stems to open up a path. After a while, they arrived at the remains of the winged creatures.


    ¡°Umm, Falcon 1 this is Lucas,¡± said Lucas through his earpiece.


    ¡°Go ahead.¡± it was Bianca who was on the radio,


    ¡°We have arrived at the location. The remains as you can imagine are butchered by the shells. Do you want us to take samples?¡±


    ¡°Yes, please. It would be nice if we can add it to our database.¡±


    ¡°Copy¡±


    Lucas and Ariana started gathering the carcass for a sample. While they were gathering, a growl was heard from one of the trees. Ariana heard it and she immediately turned her attention to the growl. Anticipating the worst, she readied her gun and aimed it in the direction of the growling.


    ¡°What happened Ariana?¡± asked Lucas


    ¡°I heard a growl from that direction,¡± answered Ariana. Lucas immediately readied his gun and aimed it in the same direction as Ariana. Suddenly, something jumped out from the bush and they opened fire. It was a wolf and the wolf died immediately after being shot and slumped in front of Ariana.


    However, more wolves came from their hiding. Lucas and Ariana backed off from the slowly advancing wolves. All of them move slowly.


    ¡°Falcon 1, send help now, we are under attack,¡± said Lucas to his earpiece.


    ¡°Copy,¡± replied Bianca. Soon after that, some wolves jumped into them, and Lucas and Ariana opened fire. Some of the wolves died quickly, however, some were able to reach Lucas and forced him to take out his knife and fight with it. His right arm was bitten by a wolf while defending himself before he killed the wolf. He saw 2 wolves charging towards him but were shot immediately by Ariana and when he was about to pick up his rifle. A voice of multiple bullets hitting something was heard and the wolves were dropping like flies. He looked up at the sky and saw a recon drone mounted with 20mm Gatling guns.


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    ¡°Thank you,¡± said Lucas to his earpiece.


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome, now come back here quickly, I will take a look at your wound,¡± said Bianca. She saw his wound through the recon drone.


    ¡°It is only a small wound, Bianca. It will probably heal by itself,¡± replied Lucas.


    ¡°Aghh, you are stubborn as always. Ariana, you told him that his wound needs to be treated,¡± said Bianca in frustration.


    ¡°Commodore, we should go back to treat your wound. We had enough samples to be brought back,¡± said Ariana in support of Bianca.


    ¡°Haahh, alright.¡±


    They returned to the ship after gathering samples from the wolves. When they arrived on board the vessel, Bianca started to treat his wounds. It was only a small wound and the nanomachines inside Lucas had already begun to heal his wound. Every member of the Imperial Guard was injected with nanomachines that can aid in speeding up the healing of their wounds and even, in some cases, grow back their limbs. However, the healing process consumed the nanomachines and they needed to be injected by nanomachines when they are low on nanomachines to refill it.


    ¡°You should be careful, we had a limited supply of nanomachines,¡± said Bianca. She was bandaging the wounds on his arm. ¡°If Princess Sophie saw you like this, I can¡¯t imagine what kind of fuss she would make.¡±


    ¡°Well, We should limit our consumption of nanomachines and only use them for fatal wounds. Are you still mad at Sophie?¡±


    ¡°Haahhhh, she is one of a kind really. How come she mistook me as your girlfriend when we had the same hair colours which is a trait of our family? Does she think we are that kind of family?¡±


    ¡°Hahaha, she always jumps to conclusions too quickly,¡± said Lucas. He was reminded of her flustered face. ¡°I wonder if we will be able to go back.¡±


    ¡°We should try our best to survive here and keep sending out distress signals. If we are lucky the Empire¡¯s search party might pick it up. I will manage the nanomachines and will do as you said¡± said Bianca. She finished bandaging his arm.


    Lucas patted her head and Bianca was surprised and she blushed. ¡°Thank you, Bianca,¡± said Lucas with a smile.


    ¡°Can you not do that?¡± said Bianca shyly. Since they were children, they always played together. Even Though they were born in the same year, Bianca always saw Lucas as his older brother and Lucas saw her as her little sister. He always patted Bianca¡¯s head, especially when she did something great or when he thanked her.


    ¡°Did my baby girl grow up?¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a baby,¡± retorted Bianca. She punched him in frustration.


    ¡°Oh Ariana, do you need something?¡± said Lucas after he noticed Ariana peeking through the door. Surprised, Bianca stepped back and regained her composure then she started to put back the medical equipment. Lucas followed Ariana to the hallway and she was left alone.


    ¡°Hahh, what did he do to her? It seemed she had set her eyes on him for some reason,¡± said Bianca after he left the room.


    10 days had passed and the crews of Falcon 1 were able to secure the area around the ship. They were outside enjoying the fresh air and the scenery.


    ¡°Should we go and find a civilization?¡± asked Max.


    ¡°We are in the middle of the forest, how are we going to get to the nearest town?¡± said Sarah


    ¡°Walking, duh,¡± said Max nonchalantly.


    ¡°The drone was able to discover a town south of her. Should we go there?¡± explained Ariana.


    ¡°If we wanted to know more about the civilization on this planet, I think we should go there,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°Honestly, if we are going to be stuck in here for a long time. I think it would be best to mingle with civilization,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Hurrah to civilization!¡± said Max.


    ¡°What do you think, Commodore?¡± asked Ariana to Lucas.


    Lucas went silent for a moment. ¡°Yes, I think we should learn more about this planet. Let¡¯s make preparations to go there by walking.¡±


    ¡°What walking? Are you for real?¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Yes, what do you think we should do? If we go there with the ship, God knows what will happen. We will have the drones escort us.¡± explained Lucas.


    ¡°What about the ship?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°Well, we can put them in the orbit of the planet,¡± answered Max.


    ¡°Alright, let us prepare for our departure then,¡± said Lucas. He stood up and when he and the other just walked inside the ship. Lyra spoke to them.


    ¡°Commodore, if I am allowed to offer my opinion?¡± asked Lyra, broadcasting her voice to everyone.


    ¡°What is it, Lyra?¡±


    ¡°I wished to accompany you on your journey. On this ship, there is an android body that I can use.¡±


    ¡°A body?.¡±


    ¡°Yes, the body is stored inside the medical room. Please go there if you agree to allow me to upload my consciousness to that body.¡±


    ¡°What would happen to the ship?¡± asked Lucas, concerned about the ship.


    ¡°As long as the ship¡¯s core and mainframe are still intact, I still have a connection to the ship and am able to control it,¡± explained Lyra.


    ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s fine. Lyra, I ordered you to use the body.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Commodore.¡±


    Everyone immediately went into the medical room and when they opened the door, they saw a figure.

 Chapter 5 - The Android

    A graceful figure stood in front of them, it had long wavy white-coloured hair and blue eyes. The figure was of a human female and she was naked. Suddenly, Ariana closed the door to the medical room.


    ¡°Commodore and Max, please go ahead and pack your thing first,¡± said Ariana


    ¡°Eh?! Why? I want to meet my newest crew,¡± asked Lucas


    ¡°Lyra is not ready, so please go ahead first.¡±


    ¡°Not ready? She is outside of the body¡¯s storage chamber.¡±


    ¡°She is naked, therefore she is not ready!¡± said Ariana, frustrated.


    ¡°She is right, we will dress her up first. We, girls, will take care of it,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Ohhh, right she is naked. Alright then, let¡¯s go, Max,¡± said Lucas.


    Then, when He and Max were about to leave, the door opened. ¡°Greeting, Commodore.¡± Everyone looked at the person coming out of the medical room. She wore the Imperial Guard¡¯s service uniform. The uniform was adorned with the patch of Recon Division and the rank insignia of Lieutenant.


    ¡°Ah, hello Lyra, you have changed into your uniform,¡± said Lucas. Ariana and the others were shocked.


    ¡°Yes, Commodore. In the medical room, there is storage for my uniforms.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s convenient.¡±


    ¡°I apologise for not telling you before. It seems it has caused an unnecessary commotion,¡± said Lyra apologetically.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, Lyra. I guess I was worried for nothing,¡± said Ariana.


    Lyra then walked past them in the direction of the common room. ¡°Please follow me, I will tell you about this body¡¯s ability.¡± Then, Everyone followed her to the common room.


    When they were in the common room. Bianca offered to make them drink and Ariana offered to help her make coffee and tea. Lucas, Max and Sarah sat on the sofas and Lyra stood near them.


    ¡°You may have wondered why I have white-coloured hair,¡± said Lyra. The Lorien family strictly prohibited the production of androids with white-coloured hair, only a few approved androids were allowed to have white-coloured hair and all of them worked for the Lorien family in the Lorien Navy. For an android who was meant to work with the Imperial Guard to have white-coloured hair was something unheard of.


    ¡°Right, the trait of Lorien. I don¡¯t know why an android of the Imperial Guard would be allowed to have white hair,¡± said Lucas, curious.


    ¡°The truth is this body was meant to serve you. The Emperor and the Duke agreed on the creation of this body for the sole purpose of serving you while you are in the Imperial Guard. If you were to move to another ship or facility, this body will be moved with you.¡±


    ¡°I see, so the body was purposely built to help me. That would explain it then.¡±


    Ariana and Bianca started to serve everyone drinks and then sat with them. ¡°Thank you for understanding, Commodore. Next, I will tell you the ability of this body. First, I would like to start with my eyes. It has the capability to use night vision and thermal vision with a maximum range of 5 km. I can also see an object as far as 15 km away clearly when there is no obstruction. I can use my eyes to track an object and use it together with this ship¡¯s weaponry, in other words, we can send a missile from orbit down to a target on this planet using my eyes¡¯ tracking function. I can also use my eyes as a display projector.¡±


    Suddenly, from her eyes a display came out just a few centimetres away from her face, then it moved to the table. It showed the ability of her eyes.


    ¡°I see. It is just like our Personal Communication Device,¡± said Max. Personal Communication Device is a personal computer that the crews had, it was used to communicate and many other things, such as looking at maps and making a note. The device can be activated by looking at the forearm and touching the wrist, a display will come out on the forearm near the wrist. The display could only be seen by the person himself.


    ¡°Correct, but also incorrect. This display from my eyes is more like an extension of my PCD and I can place the display wherever I want as long as it is not too far. I can also show you cameras located on the ship which your PCD cannot do,¡± The display changed to the multiple cameras around the ships. ¡°on the subject of PCD, you can use your PCD to see through my eyes. Please look at your PCD and approve the installation of new modules.¡± Everyone looked at their PCD and they could see from their PCD Lyra¡¯s Point-of-view from her eyes.


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    ¡°Wow this is amazing!¡± said Max, astonished.


    ¡°My eyes are also equipped with spatial detection ability. I can map a building precisely with it by just standing outside or an area 2 km away from me and within my eyes¡¯ point-of-view. The data gathered from it can be stored and shared with you. I also can use that ability together with the thermal vision and night vision in real-time to give you precise location and movement of objects and subjects, and I can share the real-time data with your PCD.¡±


    ¡°Does that mean you can only detect something within 2 km?¡± asked Bianca


    ¡°My ¡°radar¡± detection ability and spatial detection ability are two different things. My radar is not my eyes¡¯ ability, therefore it is not limited to my point-of-view. It can detect something as far as 5 km away in a radius. The difference is my radar only gives a rough picture of an object, not precise like my spatial detection, and in a closed and walled area, my radar efficiency will become worse and even unusable,¡± explained Lyra.


    ¡°I understand,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°My ears have enhanced hearing ability, I am able to hear someone whispering from afar or speaking behind a wall. My shooting skill and my melee combat skill are excellent, and my hand¨Cto¨Chand combat is unmatched. So you don¡¯t have to worry about me, I am able to protect myself. I am also equipped with enhanced nanomachines meaning if I get wounded, it will repair my body faster than the regular nanomachines. That is if I was able to get wounded, my skin and muscles are different from those of a human, my body can¡¯t be pierced by rifle bullets and swords would have a hard time to even piercing me, especially my muscles. You would need multiple rounds of 120mm shells to even destroy me. And as long as this body core and processor are still functioning, you can¡¯t stop me.¡±


    ¡°What?! You are practically indestructible then. The Imperial Research Institute just made crazy shit,¡± said Max, frustrated and amazed.


    ¡°Yes, this body was a prototype designed and made by Lead Researcher Orion Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Ah, my father,¡± said Bianca, surprised. She looked dejected.


    ¡°This body''s purpose was to serve Lord Lucas Lorien. Therefore, I will follow all the orders from you, My Lord. You may use me whatever you wish for, including night service,¡± said Lyra nonchalantly. Everyone was shocked when they heard that.


    Ariana looked flustered. ¡°Yo-you should not do that, Lyra. Wh-what do you mean by night service?¡± said Ariana, stuttering.


    ¡°It is as you imagined, Lieutenant. After all, out of everyone that is able to service him, I¡¯m the most experienced,¡± said Lyra with a smug face. All the girls were shocked by her remarks.


    ¡°Ho-how dare you!¡± said Sarah, flustered.


    ¡°And I don¡¯t have a reproductive system, therefore there won¡¯t be any worry of me getting pregnant,¡± said Lyra.


    ¡°What!? Yo-you damn robot!¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°But, don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t hog him every night so all of you will get a turn to service him.¡± She looked at Ariana then smirked. ¡°especially you, Lieutenant Ar¨C¡±


    ¡°Stoooooppp!¡± shouted Ariana. She stood up and her face flustered. She looked at Lucas and Max. They were holding back their laughter. ¡°Lucas, say something!¡±


    ¡°Pffttt, sorry, that was funny. It was funny when she teased you all,¡± said Lucas


    ¡°Ahahahaha, that was a good one!¡± said Max while holding his stomach.


    ¡°Night service? She was just joking, all androids were programmed to never agree to sexual intercourse or even offer to do it,¡± explained Lucas.


    ¡°I do. I was programmed to do it only with you,¡± said Lyra in a serious voice.


    ¡°Only with me?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡±


    ¡°Said who?¡±


    ¡°Lead Researcher Orien Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure you are experienced?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I was fed with information on the subject.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm, still not buying it.¡±


    ¡°Then, we can do it right now. I will let you judge it.¡± Lyra answered all of his questions in a quick and serious manner.


    Lucas went silent after she said that, and then he stood up. ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go to my room,¡± said Lucas seriously.


    Ariana rushed into Lucas and hugged one of his arms, her face was red, then she looked up at him. ¡°Wh-what d-did you say? Yo-you should not do that, especially with an android,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Ariana, I am doing it in the name of science,¡± said Lucas with a straight serious face.


    ¡°You caaaan¡¯t!¡± said Ariana. She pinched his stomach.


    ¡°Agghhh!¡± shouted Lucas in pain.


    ¡°Ariana, stop it!¡± said Bianca. She looked at Ariana with a deathly glare. ¡°He was just messing with you.¡±


    ¡°Eh?!¡± she stopped pinching him and looked at him. She saw him trying to hold his laugh.


    ¡°Ahaha, sorry Ariana, I was teasing you. You just like her when teased,¡± said Lucas. He petted her head. Ariana felt something sharp on her chest once again and at the same time, she felt fluttering on her chest. She then went back to her sofa and sat and looked down at the floor, her face red from a mix of emotions. Lucas sat on his sofa.


    ¡°Haah, my father did make a peculiar thing, huh,¡± said Bianca, frustrated.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I would need your night service, Lyra. Just keep it to yourself, for now,¡± said Lucas after he composed himself.


    ¡°Understood, My Lord. It is a shame that you don¡¯t need my service, sh¨C¡± said Lyra, cutting herself mid-sentence.


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    ¡°Nothing. That would be all for my introduction. I, Lieutenant Lyra, will be in your care!¡± said Lyra. She ended her introduction with a salute to them.

 Chapter 6 - Journey Through the Forest

    The day was sunny and the wind gently grazed the leaves on the trees. The crew of Falcon 1 was ready to begin their journey into the city, they decided to walk to the city instead of taking their ship with them. Each of them brought their service rifle and pistol as well as a few magazines. They wore their service uniform and packed their dress uniform and another service uniform in their bag, they left most of their clothing on the ship, and Bianca brought a medic bag with her. They brought a minimum number of supplies to ensure they can move quickly through the forest. They found out the monsters in the forest are edible and they can gather herbs and others from the forest.


    ¡°So, the journey will take 4 days. Are you all prepared?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am.¡±


    ¡°Yep.¡±


    ¡°Great. So what will be our formation, Lucas?¡± asked Bianca to Lucas.


    ¡°It is going to be a line formation. Lyra will be at the front and act as a scout and Sarah will be with her, Bianca and I will be in the middle, then Max and Ariana will bring the rear,¡± explained Lucas


    ¡°Yes, Sir!¡±


    ¡°I want the rear to watch our surroundings when we are in a fight. Exercise triggers discipline, make sure you don''t shoot at the same target and stop shooting when they are dead. If possible we should not start the confrontation and we will sneak to get past the monsters. So Lyra, please lead us through a safe path and we will have drone support, keeping watch and giving us support fire if needed. That¡¯s all.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Sir¡±


    The crews walked carefully through the forest; they encountered a few monsters along their way thanks to Lyra¡¯s detection ability. On the third day, they took a rest for the evening. Lyra and Bianca were gathering firewood while Sarah and Max skinned the monsters they hunted before. Lucas and Ariana sat down keeping watch of the camp. Not long after, Lyra and Bianca came back cheerfully.


    ¡°We found a pond!¡± shouted Bianca.


    ¡°Really?¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Yep! Should we take a bath there? It is clean.¡± Bianca looked at Lucas with a glare ¡°Girls only! You boys will get your turn later.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, do as you please. Make sure you secure the area.¡±


    ¡°Okaayy! We will go after our dinner then.¡± Bianca placed down the firewood and Sarah began to prepare to cook.


    The reflection of this planet''s moon made the pond look bright and beautiful. It was not a large pond and it was not deep. The wind slowly moved in the air and the night felt calm, different from what they had been through these past few days. The girls submerged themselves in the water, Bianca looked nervous when she saw the other girls naked, she felt she was lacking something from other girls. She was frustrated by his father for giving Lyra¡¯s body a decent size.


    ¡°This feels nice,¡± said Ariana, her face was full of pleasure. Bianca looked at her and she could not believe how beautiful Arian was, she blushed.


    ¡°Umm, Lieutenant Ariana¡­¡± Bianca fell silent and Ariana turned her attention to Bianca. ¡°yo-you looked beautiful¡­.¡±


    ¡°Eh?! Thank you, Bianca. Next time just call me by name,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°But, you are Lucas¡¯s aide and have a higher rank than me.¡±


    ¡°You called him by his name though.¡±


    ¡°Well, he is my brother, kinda... But, if you insist.¡± Bianca agreed with a smile.


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    Suddenly, from behind Bianca, something came lunging at her and hugging her. ¡°Kyaah!¡± shouted Bianca.


    ¡°You are so cute Bianca,¡± said Sarah excitedly.


    ¡°Sarah, move away!¡± Bianca struggled to get out of her hug


    ¡°Nooo way~ It is rare to see you naked like this!¡±


    ¡°Pervert!¡± she was finally able to get out of her hug, albeit it was Sarah who decided to let her go. ¡°So this is your true face huh, a pervert!¡± said Sarah while she backed away from her.


    ¡°Ehhh, I¡¯m not like that!¡± rebuked Sarah


    ¡°Pfftt!¡± Sarah and Bianca turned their heads to the sound of the laugh, it was Ariana. She was laughing at their antics.


    ¡°So, our princess is able to laugh in front of us," said Sarah.


    "huh?!" Ariana looked puzzled.


    ¡°When you joined us, you looked like the type that closed themselves off from others. So, it is hard for us to approach you. You rarely look happy or even laugh,¡± explained Sarah


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s correct. You always focused on your duty as Lucas¡¯s aide. But, since we left Earth after our mission to escort the Princess, you have changed a little. You have become more open, I heard from Lucas he talked to you when we were on Earth,¡± said Bianca. Then she glared at Ariana. ¡±and you have become clingy to Lucas. Too clingy!¡±


    ¡°Wh-what do you mean by that?? I-i am his aide, after all, s-so I have to be with him.¡± Ariana stumbling over her words, her face turned red.


    ¡°Hahh, you are really clueless, Ariana. As a woman, I can see the difference between work and romantic feelings,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°It is clear as day,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°I agree, Lieutenant Ariana could not hide her feelings well. From my observation on the ship, she always steals a glance at him and is always looking for a chance to talk with him and be with him longer. There was even a time where she was in front of at nig¨C ¡±


    ¡°Noooooo!!!¡± shouted Ariana, interrupting Lyra. Ariana flustered. ¡°Wh-why, How did you kn¨C ah, the cameras¡±


    ¡°Hahh, to think you would be that bold,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°I-I just sta-tanding guard, in case he needed me.¡± Ariana tried to convince them.


    ¡°Yeah, sure, Ariana.¡± None believed her excuses. Ariana drowned half her face to hide her embarrassment.


    ¡°I like this Ariana though,¡± said Sarah, ¡°she is much more approachable and easy to tease!¡±


    ¡°Stop teasing her, Sarah,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°ehehe, sorry, Ariana.¡± Sarah apologised. The girls kept bathing for a while and then came back to the camp.


    Morning came and this day they would be able to reach the city by the evening. When they were on their way, Lyra detected the movement of multiple subjects, 2 people in front of a group of 10 people.


    ¡°It looked like they were being chased and they were moving in our direction,¡± said Lyra.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s hide and see what is happening.¡±


    Two women were running away from a group of people chasing them, one wore the clothing of a knight with leather armour and the other wore maid clothing and she had a robe covering her body and head. They were running away from the people chasing them.


    ¡°My lady, watch out!¡± an arrow buzzed near the woman in maid clothing.


    ¡°Emma, just let me go back to the city.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t. I won¡¯t allow you to even be betrothed to that vile man, My Lady.¡±


    ¡°A lot of people died because of this! Father and Mother are still back in the mansion.¡±


    ¡°My Lady, you don¡¯t know how vile that man is! He had 3 wives and all of them died because of him! I understand your sentiment, but you''re still a child, My lady. I want you to be happy and experience love.¡±


    ¡°I am 14 years old! I¡¯m old enough!¡±


    ¡°Hah, My lady, yo¨C¡± Suddenly a thunderous sound came repeatedly. The women were frightened, they fell to the ground and lay down until the sound was gone. Then, they felt something coming closer to them, the knight reached for her sword then when the footsteps were close enough, the knight with a swift move, moved her body and raised her sword to the person that was coming. Her sword tip was just a few centimetres away from the man¡¯s neck. His face looked shocked and frightened, he held both of his hands up. She looked at him, he wore fine clothing only attainable and worn by the noble. He carried something on his chest, it was something strange for her, it was long and it had something in cylindrical shape on top of it and an extension under it.


    ¡°Put that sword down. Now!¡± a loud voice came from behind the man. It was a woman with white-coloured hair, she had a deadly glare. She wore the same kind of uniform and she also had a strange thing the man had and she was pointing that thing at her.

 Chapter 7 - Lady Mary Aruburn

    Lucas was surprised when the knight suddenly moved and pointed her sword at his neck, and instinctively he held his hands up and his rifle was hanging on his chest. The knight had a serious but tired face, he saw bruises on her face. He could see that she was wounded on her arm. She had neck-length, light blonde hair. When he was about to open his mouth to talk to her, he heard a loud voice coming from behind him. ¡°Put that sword down. Now!¡± It was Lyra. Lucas could have guessed that she had pointed her gun to the knight.


    ¡°You first!¡± said the knight with a stern voice. The situation was heightened and Lucas¡¯ head was on the line.


    ¡°Lyra put it down.¡±


    ¡°But, My Lor¨C.¡±


    ¡°Put it down. Now! And all of you as well put the gun down! It is an order.¡± Lucas could see his crews aimed their guns at the knight and after hearing the order they put their guns down. The knight was surprised that there were more of them in hiding and their obedience to the man she held her sword to.


    ¡°Emma, put your sword down.¡± the knight, Emma, was startled. She looked at the voice and it was the girl in maid clothing and she had gotten up from the ground. Emma sheathed her sword and immediately went to the girl.


    ¡°Are you alright, My Lady?¡±


    ¡°Yes. More importantly.¡± the girl looked at Lucas. The girl had chest-length wavy navy blue-coloured hair, she wore a light blue coloured bandana with a purple ribbon decoration. She looked at him to judge his standing and how she would greet him. He wore fine clothing and she heard the woman behind him call him ¡®My Lord¡¯. She also saw the others followed his command, which would mean he has a higher position than the others. She decided to greet him with a curtsy gracefully, befitted to greet nobles. ¡°Greetings, My Lord. My name is Mary Aruburn. I assume you and your companions were the ones that took the people chasing us. Then, I thank you for helping us.¡±


    ¡°Greetings, My Lady. My name is Lucas Lorien. It was a coincidence that they were running towards us. We were startled by them running with swords towards us, and it is our duty to protect others.¡± Lucas replied to her greeting with a bow. She then was sure that this man was a noble of a high ranking. But she had not heard about his family name before, Lorien. He must have been from another kingdom or from another continent. She wondered whether he was a Prince or a Duke or their heir.


    ¡°Oh, both of you were hurt. Let me take a look at it.¡± Bianca suddenly spoke and walked to them. Mary looked at her and was surprised that she had the same hair colour and a similar look as Lucas. She immediately greeted her with a curtsy, however, she fell down because her feet were tired from running for a long time. Emma catches her and prevented her from falling.


    ¡°My Lady, are you alright?¡± Emma looked worried.


    ¡°She was just exhausted from running. Sit down please, both of you. Lucas, gave her your water,¡± said Bianca. Lucas took out his water bottle and gave it to Mary. She received the bottle with a smile when she was about to drink from the bottle a sudden thought came to her, the bottle was him and he put his lips when drinking from the bottle and was going to put her lips on it, that mean it would be an indirect kiss, her first kiss. She blushed and kept looking at the bottle without drinking it.


    ¡°Bianca, she looked very red, it seemed she was exhausted. Lady Mary, please drink the water, you would feel better,¡± said Lucas. Mary slowly brought the bottle closer to her mount and finally drank from it. Bianca was focused on patching the wounded knight first. Meanwhile, Lucas ordered the rest of his crew to check the body of the dead pursuers.


    Not long after, they came back, Ariana''s face looked like she just saw a ghost, she was pale as snow. Suddenly, she threw up.


    ¡°Bianca, Ariana is throwing up,¡± said Lucas.


    Bianca turned to look at her. ¡°What?! Did you get food poisoning?¡±


    ¡°No, it was Tu¨C¡± she suddenly passed out. When she woke up she told Lucas that Lyra was eating a pursuer¡¯s flesh to confirm whether they were human or not. Her analysis proved them to be human just like the rest of them. Lucas wondered how humans could arrive here because there were no records of expeditions sent here and the space around was uncharted on the Empire¡¯s database and established a civilization that went far backwards. He also wondered how the people here could use the peculiar power they saw before, was it engineered or genetically or evolution or something else or were they in an alternate universe. A lot of questions went through his mind and suddenly he was woken up from his thoughts with a pinch on his cheek.


    ¡°Lucas, did you hear her?¡± said Bianca frustrated.


    ¡°Huh?¡± said Lucas puzzled.


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    ¡°Oh, my god,¡± Bianca pinched his cheek again.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, Lady Bianca. It seems His Grace was in deep thought and I should not dare to disturb him,¡± said Mary. Once again Lucas was surprised, he and the others had normal conversations with them without having their PDC to learn and translated the language first and Lyra did not mention anything about any language differences.


    ¡°I am sorry, what do you want to talk about,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Yes, again I want to thank you for helping us and treating our wound.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. It was nothing.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Mary went silent for a while, ¡°If I may be blunt, Lord Lucas.¡±


    ¡°Yes, go ahead.¡±


    ¡°I would like to enlist your help!¡± said Mary while bowing her head.


    ¡°Sure,¡± Lucas answered quickly. Mary was surprised when she heard him say that. She thought he would leave them alone after helping them and go on their own way. ¡°it looked like you had a problem that needed to be taken care of. I would like to hear that.¡± She saw him smirking.


    ¡°Ah, yes. First, I will introduce myself again, I am Mary Aruburn, I am the first child of Duke August Aruburn,¡± said Mary. Lucas was surprised to have found a high-ranking noble as soon as he went out to explore the world. It felt like getting a 0.00000001% SSR character in a game he once played.


    ¡°It is nice to meet you, Lady Mary. Once again, I am Lucas Lorien. I came from far away. Me and my friends crash landed here but our ships were broken and we could not find our way back home,¡± said Lucas. He hoped she would buy his lies, albeit there were some truths in it.


    ¡°I see, you must have come from across the sea. Many people said crossing the sea was a difficult thing to do. All of you are amazing!¡± said Mary. She bought the lie.


    ¡°Haha, we are not that amazing.¡±


    ¡°Then is this all of your friends?¡±


    ¡°Unfortunately, some died on their way here. This is what is left of my crews.¡± Lucas lied as naturally as he breathed.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry. But how did you get inside the forest? Did you land on the coast on the other side of this forest?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡±


    ¡°You guys indeed are amazing. To think you would traverse the forest with only a few of you and get out alive.¡± Lucas and the other were shocked when she said that. It looked like they were inside a dangerous forest.


    ¡°Lady Mary, I¡¯m sorry but we should not waste their time anymore,¡± said Emma.


    ¡°Ah, yes. Now I will explain the situation.¡± When Lucas heard that, his face turned serious and excited.


    ¡°Go ahead, My Lady,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Currently, the kingdom is in turmoil. The King was murdered and the Queen as well as the Crown Prince had gone missing. My father thought they went into hiding. The nobles are fighting against each other for control of the Throne. My father is a loyal follower of the crown and has been fighting against the other nobles for control. Unfortunately, most of the nobles were united against my father, and my father was betrayed by Marquess Tomon Loit in a battle a month ago, resulting in his defeat.¡±


    ¡°Does this noble coalition formed after the late king¡¯s death?¡±


    ¡°No, they existed before the war but they were not this big. After the late king¡¯s death, some neutral nobles joined them.¡±


    ¡°I see, so who are these guys that were pursuing you before?¡±


    ¡°They are the Marquess¡¯ men. The Marquess¡¯ threatened my father to give him, his daughter, and me, as his wife in return for the duchy and my family¡¯s safety. My father refused and the Marquess laid siege to the city. My father sneaked me outside in this outfit with Emma, my knight.¡±


    ¡°I see. So you want us to help you to defeat the siege, correct?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I will reward you with anything you want, E-even with my body¡­¡± said Mary, she blushed. Everyone was taken aback.


    ¡°My Lady, a woman should not give up their body easily, especially you, a child,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°But, It is the best I can give,¡± said Mary with a soft and quiet voice.


    ¡°Haaa, don¡¯t worry. We will take the rewards from your father. So you can keep yourself for your future husband when you are an adult, understood?¡± said Lucas as if he was lecturing a child.


    ¡°Yes,¡± said her with a low voice.


    ¡°Lyra and Sarah. You guys go ahead and scout the city and the enemy¡¯s siege.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Commodore.¡± ¡°Yes, My Lord¡± They immediately left each other. Lucas was surprised that Lyra kept calling him ¡®My Lord¡¯. An AI made for the use of the Imperial Navy usually would call a noble by their rank in the Navy if they serve in it. Usually, the ones who would call him that would be an AI made for the Lorien Navy and House of Lorien.


    ¡°Eh, shouldn''t we go as well?¡± asked Mary.


    ¡°No, the sun is still up and I plan to attack them at night. They will do scouting first to help us plan efficiently for the night attack,¡± said Lucas. He decided to call the star of this system, the Sun because he was too lazy to think of a name and it looked like the locals also called it the Sun. For Lucas, attacking at night would be the right decision, they have night vision and thermal vision built onto their guns to help them fight at night and the darkness will protect them from the enemy.


    ¡°Ahhh, I see.¡±


    ¡°Both of you can rest. We will be watching this place.¡±


    ¡°Okay!¡±

 Chapter 8 - Lifting The Siege

    The night came and darkness blanketed the planet. Lucas and everyone walked towards the city and met with Lyra and Sarah who had been scouting the area. They hid inside the forest, just before a cliff over the city and the grassland around it. The army or Marquis Loit camped around the city, they mostly camped on the north side of the city and a few camped around the city.


    ¡°Commodore, we estimated the enemy to number around 10.000, they consisted of armed soldiers in plate armour some were mounted soldiers, archers and armed peasants,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Interesting. So they used a levy system to field their forces.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, it seems they are lacking professional soldiers. If there were any, they numbered only a little compared to the lightly trained peasants.¡±


    An army of this kind relied on the mobility of the mounted knights and the leadership of the lord or commander who led them. The society had not considered the importance of a professional and permanent army, instead, they still used a levy system. The levy system was a method of conscription originating from the Roman periods, especially in times of war. The nobles would conscript their citizens, such as farmers, fishers and any capable body to fight for them and use them to boost their numbers in a war. The downside of this system was, the production of daily necessities such as wheat and farm products as well as many other things will be significantly reduced while they were at war.


    ¡°How about the commanders of the army?¡±


    ¡°I have identified their leaders,¡± said Lyra. She explained where their tents were and the estimation of their role in the army.


    This levy system also would not guarantee the professionalism of the army, since they enlisted commoners and their training was lacking and often rushed, and they must bring their own weapons and clothing, even though some were provided by the nobles they served. Therefore the army mainly relied on the leadership of the noble or commander leading them, if they were taken out there are huge chances that the army would fall into disarray and even be routed. Furthermore, they didn¡¯t have a clear chain of command or a protocol when their leaders were taken out, different to them, the Imperial Navy had clear protocol about that. If a captain of the ship was gone or taken out, the designated second-in-command or the next rank officer would take over the duty as the captain of the ship, and all the crews would follow their commands.


    ¡°What about the supply?¡±


    ¡°They stored their supplies just behind their main camps,¡± said Lyra. The supply storage was lightly guarded.


    In a war, the decisive factor to winning the war was not the strength of the army or the capabilities of their commanders, but it was the supply and logistics of the army. History has proven the importance of supply and logistics, multiple wars were won with a war of attrition. Napoleon''s advance to Russia was broken and his army was destroyed because of their lack of logistics and supplies for the winter and their reliance to gather their supplies along the way, which the Russians denied using scorched earth tactics. The advance of Germany''s army in World War 2 was also halted because of the lack of winter logistics and they eventually lost their front. There were many battles and wars that were lost and won because of supply.


    Lucas knew the enemy was besieging the city and therefore they would need a massive supply to feed their army for a long time. He thought he would use the supply for his own gain. He also knew the importance of leadership in the military and how it would affect the army if something were to happen to the leader.


    ¡°We will shoot at their commanders and create confusion on them. Are there any skilled magicians in the army?¡± asked Lucas. Lucas had asked Mary before about the power that they saw in a video, Mary explained that it was magic. Everyone could use magic in this world and the difference between them is the capacity and ability of the magic they can wield. A skilled magician would be able to destroy a group of people alone and therefore they must be taken out early.


    ¡°Yes, there are some.¡±


    ¡°Good, we will take them out too. We will shoot them from the top of the cliff and do it in mixed intervals to confuse them. Set your rifle to silenced and shoot only when you are sure you will hit them. Tonight is perfect for us, there are no winds and it is cloudy, it will mask our movement and position,¡± ordered Lucas to the crew. They left their bags behind to be guarded by Mary and Emma.


    They positioned themselves on a vantage point overlooking the whole camp and the city. They could hear faint voices coming from the camp. They lay down on the ground as low as they could and hid their positions with bushes and branches. Soon, the army below would experience hell itself.


    The camp was lively even though they were in a war. The soldiers knew they won the war already, the Loyalist¡¯s forces were split up and besieged in this city and the Royal capital and they just needed to wait until they surrendered their city. Rob sat around a fireplace with the friends he knew from the village.


    ¡°Oy, Rob. How does it go with Rin? Heard you will marry her,¡± asked his friend.


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    ¡°Yes, I promised to marry her after I came back from this,¡± answered Rob.


    ¡°Oh, well well well, looks like our little bird has come out of his cage.¡± his friend teased him.


    ¡°So, did Rin make that?¡± said the friend with a scar on his cheek. He was referring to the scarf around his shoulder.


    ¡°Yes. She said it was a good luck charm.¡±


    ¡°It does help us win the war.¡±


    ¡°You are a lucky one, Rob.¡± his friend hugged Rob with his hand around his shoulder.


    Suddenly, there was a commotion from the other side of the cap. From afar there were shouting and the sound of people running and panicking. From the tent near them, someone came out.


    ¡°My Lord,¡± said his friend.


    ¡°What is happening? What is the commotion all about? Are the defenders sallied out?¡± asked the man who just came out from the tent.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know. I will go and as¨C¡± before Rob could finish his words. Suddenly the man fell down, they checked on him and found out he was dead.


    ¡°Wh-what happened? Where the hell did the enemy come from?¡± his friend was scared.


    ¡°Hey, Our Lord has been killed, what should we do?¡±


    ¡°Shit.¡±


    ¡°Prepare to fight then,¡± Rob told his friends. They picked up their weapons and ran looking for the enemy. When they were running along, they saw chaos in the camp. He saw commanders and nobles who led the army murdered and the magicians who were with them were also being killed. The camp fell into confusion, disorder and panic blanketed the camp.


    ¡°It was the ghost! The ghost attacked us,¡± shrieked a soldier with a frightened face.


    ¡°This land is cursed, we are being cursed. Run from this place,¡± shouted another soldier while running.


    Rob and his friends were confused. They did not know what they should do.


    ¡°Hey, where are the enemies? What kind of magic is this?¡± said his friends, frightened.


    ¡°Look, the Marquis is still alive.¡± Rob pointed at one of the tents. From the tent came out a man, he was Marquis Loit, he looked surprised when he saw the army was in disarray. He saw one of his commanders dead near the tens and when tried to look for his other commander, he dropped to the ground.


    Rob and his friends were scared. Their army''s leader was killed right in front of their eyes.


    ¡°Let us run away from this place and go back to our village, they are only taking out the commanders of our army,¡± said Rob¡¯s friend. They decided to run and deserted the army to go back to their village.


    When they were running away, suddenly Rob¡¯s chest felt a pain on his chest and his breathing became slower. He could not run anymore and his vision grew darker, he knew the enemy must have gotten him. He thought they were only aiming at the commanders, then he dropped to the ground and at his last moment he looked at the sky above and wished he could see Rin and their children together and live their happy lives together. His vision finally went black and he passed away.


    The guards on top of the city wall were surprised by the commotion in the enemy¡¯s camp.


    ¡°Hey, call Captain Breznev here,¡± said one of the guards. The other guard then ran to get the Captain. Not long after, the Captain came and saw the chaos that was happening below.


    "What is this? What is happening?" said Captain Breznev with a confused face. He wondered if the Royal Capital sent reinforcements but he could not see fighting. Could it be the work of magicians? Breznev kept thinking and assessing the situation. He saw the majority of the army was still alive, but they had been routed. Chaos and disorder were seen in the army, and then some of the enemy¡¯s soldiers came closer to the walls.


    Captain Breznev ordered everyone to prepare for battle. However, the men who were running towards the wall had not brought any weapons on them. Confused, he decided to kill them, afraid of it being a trap. The archers kept shooting at the enemy as they kept coming towards the wall.


    ¡°They are crazy! What are they doing?¡± Captain Breznev could not grasp the situation.


    ¡°Should we keep firing at them, Captain?¡±


    ¡°Yes! Kill everyone who approached the wall.¡±


    That night the army of Marquis Loit was routed, for those who went into the wall of the city, hoping for safety, would not see the rise of the sun again.


    The sun was just about to rise from the east, the situation had calmed down, and the army of Marquis Loit had left the plain surrounding the city. Darkness still blanketed the sky, Captain Breznev stood on top of a wall near the gate.


    ¡°What madness happened there?¡± said a guard.


    ¡°Whatever it was, we should investigate it.¡± Captain Breznev sat down, his back on the wall. He wanted to take a rest for a while.


    Suddenly a shout was heard, ¡°A group is approaching,¡± shouted the guard on top of the gate. Captain Breznev jolted up and looked at the approaching group, he could not see them well because of the darkness. He could see that one of them wore a robe. Some archers were preparing to shoot at the group.


    Then, Captain Breznev could clearly see an outfit he always knew, the Aruburn¡¯s knight uniform, ¡°Hold your fire. They are friendly,¡± shouted Breznev. The archers put down their weapons. He wondered who it could be, all the knights were inside the city except for one, Emma.


    The group came closer to the gate and stopped, ¡°Open the gate, Lady Mary and her benefactors want to enter the city,¡± shouted the knight.


    ¡°Open the gate!¡± ordered Breznev and the gate was opened. He was in disbelief because he knew the voice, it was Emma. He immediately ran down to the gate and saw them. It was Lady Mary and Emma together with 6 unknown people with dirty fine clothing.

 Chapter 9 - The Duke

    Captain Breznev escorted the lady and her companions to the Duke''s mansion in the city. When they arrived at the mansion and entered the mansion, the Duchess, still in her nightgown covered with a shawl, came running toward Mary and hugged her. The Duchess looked like she had just woken up and immediately ran toward the front door as soon as she heard the news that her daughter had come back. She was in disbelief that she had come back and defeated the Marquis¡¯s army, and was relieved that she was safe and not hurt.


    They hugged each other lovingly. Lucas saw their reunion and reminded him of his mother, she was the one who loved him most and took care of him, and she was the one who was the one keeping him sane after the incident 2 years ago. For him, she was the strongest and most loving woman he knew.


    Then, came a man wearing a fine suit with a tired face, however, he still looked dignified and focused. He looked like he was in his 40s but his body was still strong and healthy. Lucas concluded that he was the Duke.


    ¡°Mary, what did you come back for?¡± asked the Duke with a concerned voice.


    ¡°Father, I am home! And I brought friends with me,¡± said Mary. She made a gesture with her pointing toward Lucas and his crew. The Duke moved his gaze to them and Lucas and the others bowed and curtsy to the Duke, the Duke answered their greeting, and he saw that they looked tired and their clothes dirty.


    ¡°I see, I thank you for helping my daughter and for defeating the Marquis¡¯ army. I would like to know how you do it, but all of you looked tired. It would be rude for me to not let you take a rest after doing such a feat. Butler, please lead them to their room,¡± said the Duke. Lucas thanks the Duke then the butler of the house led them to their own rooms. Lucas and the others finally were able to sleep with a soft bed under their body.


    Lucas woke up in the evening and he felt his fatigue was lifted. When he woke up, there was a glass of water on the table next to the bed. He drank from the glass and a maid came in, she asked whether he wanted to have a wash, he accepted the offer and the maid came back with towels and water for washing, the water was lukewarm.


    ¡°Is it warm enough for you, My Lord?¡± asked the maid.


    ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± Then someone knocked on the door, the maid opened the door and another maid came bringing a tray of snacks and water.


    ¡°My Lord, the Duke would like to have dinner with you, I will come back when it is time to escort you there. For now, I have prepared you a snack to eat and water to drink.¡±


    ¡°Okay, thank you.¡± Both maids then went outside the room and Lucas started to wash and prepare for dinner with the Duke.


    In the dining room, the Duke and his family were already seated and they were waiting for Lucas and the others to come.


    ¡°How are you feeling, Mary?¡± the Duke asked her daughter.


    ¡°I feel better than before.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you weren¡¯t hurt that bad. So they treated your bruises right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, father. It was Bianca if I remember the name correctly. She was the one with the white-coloured hair just like their leader.¡±


    ¡°Now that you mention that. Do you know who they are?¡±


    ¡°From what I know they most likely are nobles, with how they acted and their clothing.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right, their etiquette was perfect, the way they greeted you this morning was perfect. My maid told me they treated the maids with respect,¡± said the Duchess


    ¡°Do you know where they are from?¡±


    ¡°I don''t know exactly, father. But Lucas told me they came from far away and they could not get back home. He said his ship was destroyed and they ended up grounded near the shore of Wallowing Forest.¡±


    ¡°What did you say? They grounded on the Wallowing Forest¡¯s shore and went through the forest?¡± said the Duke, he was surprised.


    ¡°Yes, father. He said he lost all the crew that went with him and now there were only 6 of them.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s amazing, to go through the forest and then still survive. The Wallowing Forest only has a shore on the northern part of the forest and to traverse the whole forest then rout the whole army by themselves, I am curious what kind of country they are from.¡±


    ¡°I saw them use the long thing they carried around with. I think it shot out some sort of magic. The first time we met, we were saved by them and I heard a loud noise then all the pursuers were dead in an instant. When they were dealing with the Marques¡¯ army, I didn''t see or hear anything, we were told to guard their belongings. There was silence then I heard the shout and commotion from the Marques¡¯ camp. But, I did not hear anything loud like before, then after a while, they came back and told us to prepare to move. When we came out from hiding and looked at the camp from the cliff, there was chaos and destruction in the camp.¡±


    ¡°That is what Breznev told me about the situation last night. He saw everything, the chaos in the enemy''s camp and the retreat of the army. Ah, right. It seemed most of the people who died were nobles and commanders of the army, even the Marquess had been killed.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡± said the duchess, surprised.


    ¡°Father, are you kidding?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯m not. Breznev had checked and retrieved all the corpses on the camp and he saw the Marques¡¯ body there.¡±


    ¡°How did they die?¡±


    ¡°There was a hole on their body, either on their arms, chest or head, most were on the head.¡±


    ¡°A single hole?¡± The Duchess could not believe what she heard.


    ¡°Yes, a single hole. I don''t know what kind of magic they used, but they were able to penetrate even the most skilled magicians'' shields.¡±


    ¡°Looks like I met terrifying people. Even the Marques¡¯ most skilled magicians could not deal with them,¡± said Mary with a worried laugh.


    ¡°As long as they side with us, we will be fine. I will give them great rewards for helping us, and I will try to convince them to help us fight the nobles and search for the Crown Prince.¡±


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    ¡°I¡¯m sorry father, I could not help you at all. He told me he would ask for the rewards from you when I asked for their help. E-even when I offered myself to him, he refused. I-i mean how did he refuse a beauty like me?¡±


    The Duke and Duchess were surprised when she said that, and then they laughed.


    ¡°You really did say that?¡± asked the Duchess


    ¡°To think you would say that to him easily,¡± said the Duke.


    ¡°What is wrong with that? To have a beautiful bride is a blessing, right?¡± refuted Mary.


    ¡°Mary, you¡¯re still young and Lucas probably saw you only as a child. Don¡¯t you see the women who were with him? They are all beautiful, especially the ones with blonde hair. One of them is probably his lover or he already had someone back in his home.¡±


    ¡°Ahh, now that you said it. H-he does have a ring on his finger...¡± said Mary, shyly. She just recalled the ring Lucas wore when they met in the forest.


    ¡°Oh, so he has someone waiting for him. I guess he is someone who is committed and faithful.¡±


    ¡°Ugghhh.¡± Mary slumped on the chair.


    The butler then came in and told the Duke that Lucas and the others were in front of the door. The Duke told him to let them in. To his surprise, they wore clothing much more fine and luxurious than they had when they arrived at the mansion this morning. Especially, Lucas wore more distinct clothes than the others. The Duke was sure that Lucas must be part of his country¡¯s royalty and that the people around him were from high-ranking nobles.


    Lucas and the others wore their dress uniforms. The service uniform they wore before was a sight for the Duke and his family. Imperial Guard service uniform for commissioned officers consists of a scarlet-coloured long-sleeve single-breasted jacket full-button up to the neck with a standing collar, on the top left arm was an insignia of the Division of Imperial Guard¨CRecon, Palace Guard and Foot Guards¨Cthe officer belongs to and on the left chest of the jacket was an insignia of Imperial Guard, and the rank of the officer was shown with the insignia of the rank on the left and right side of the jacket¡¯s collar. Both male and female officers wore midnight blue trousers.


    The dress uniform was more sophisticated. The uniform consists of a white shirt and black tie, scarlet red double-breasted jacket and midnight blue trousers or skirts for female officers when they are not bearing any arms. Aiguillette was worn on the right shoulder and medal or medal ribbons on the left chest, sometimes the officers would carry arms, a sword or rifle when the occasion deem it. On the cuffs of the jacket were gold rings to signify the officer¡¯s rank. The rank insignia of the officers for the Imperial Navy was derived from the old world¡¯s Royal Navy of the United Kingdom.


    Lucas and the others wore their dress uniform with medal ribbons and not bearing any arms, and the girls wore skirts. All of them wore gold cord aiguillette except for Lucas and Bianca, they wore white cord aiguillette, the colour of Lorien. Apparently, when they were told they would be having dinner with the Duke, all of them had the same idea to wear the dress uniform. The dress uniform functioned as their uniform for ceremonials and formal occasions, such as dining with nobles.


    Lucas and the others bowed and curtsy to the Duke and the Duke let them sit down. The Duke looked at their clothing, he saw they had the same clothing with different decorations. He saw the white cord on Lucas and Bianca, and he wondered if it signified a certain rank or position in their country.


    ¡°Welcome everyone, thank you for coming to my invitation,¡± said the Duke


    ¡°There is no need to thank you, Your Grace. We stay in your house and if you were to ask us to come, we will come. We are the ones who should be thankful for letting us stay in your place,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°As the saviour of my daughter, this is the least I should do. Now, I will introduce you to my family. My name is August Aruburn, the Duke of Aruburn and I rule most of the northern part of the Romanovia Kingdom. Then, this is my wife, Saury, and then beside her is my daughter, Mary, and then my son, Jacob.¡± Duke August introduced his family to them.


    ¡°It is nice to meet all of you. My name is Lucas Lorien, I am the leader of the group, then this is Bianca Lorien, she is my cousin and the daughter of my uncle. Next to her is Ariana Parmis, she is my aide, then Max Brawn and Sarah Roseman and¡­¡± Lucas fell silent for a second to think. ¡°Tuli Lorien, another cousin of mine.¡±


    ¡°So you are the leader of the group, did you go alone with just one ship?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we were exploring the ocean, but something happened to our ship and it ended with landing on this place.¡±


    ¡°If I may ask, are all of you nobles?¡±


    ¡°No, not all of us, It is only me and Bianca who are nobles. And all of us are part of the military.¡±


    ¡°What? Are all of your clothing part of the military uniform?¡±


    ¡°Yes, this clothing we wore and the one before are our military uniforms. This one is used for only ceremonial and formal occasions. The one before is used for our daily duty.¡±


    The Duke was amazed by his explanation, for a country to provide such fine clothing for their military would mean the country had an advanced military and a lot of money. Not to mention, the weapons they used and their tactics were able to defeat a massive army. The food then came and they enjoyed the delicacies served to them. After eating the main course, the desserts were served.


    ¡°How was the food?¡± asked the Duke.


    ¡°It was great,¡± answered Bianca.


    ¡°I am glad you enjoyed the food, Lady Bianca. Now, about the rewards for saving the city and my daughters. Do you want something in particular?¡±


    ¡°How about you tell us what you want first, Duke?¡± said Lucas, with a smirk on his face.


    ¡°Ahh, so you knew.¡±


    ¡°Of course, if I were you, I would do the same. I would not let someone capable go away, and of course, I would reward them accordingly.¡±


    ¡°Indeed. Then let¡¯s not waste our time, I am planning to relieve the Royal Capital from the siege, I want you to support our army.¡±


    ¡°Of course, all of us are well-trained in matters of military strategies, tactics and combats.¡±


    ¡°Now, for the reward, what do you want?¡±


    ¡°Money,¡± said Lucas confidently. Bianca, who could not believe his shamelessness, stepped on his foot making him distracted and pause his speech, ¡°That is the first one.¡±


    ¡°I see, that is easy for me. What else?¡±


    ¡°Then, I would like you to provide us with clothing, as you know we only brought a few changes of clothing with us and it does not have to be fancy, regular clothing would be fine, and we also want weapons.¡±


    ¡°Understood, I will have the clothing prepared. At least I will procure one for tomorrow morning and the rest will come soon later. For the weapons, I will call a blacksmith to come here tomorrow. What else?¡±


    ¡°I want you to help us learn magic.¡±


    ¡°Huh? You guys do not know magic?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Then how did you defeat the army? Didn¡¯t you use magic? ¡±


    ¡°No, we used our weapons and it was not magic.¡±


    ¡°Then how did it work?¡±


    ¡°Ummm, well, in the term you would easily understand, our weapons are just like a bow and arrow. But, instead of shooting an arrow, it shoots a small metal. ¡±


    ¡°What a peculiar weapon. Alright, well, I think Mary is a good enough teacher for you.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡± Lucas was surprised. He saw Mary and she had a smug face.


    ¡°She is a genius magician,¡± said the Duke, proudly.


    ¡°I did not know that. To think she would be that amazing.¡±


    The Duke took a sip from his glass"Do you need anything else?"


    "No, thank you. That would be all from me."


    "Ah, Duke. Do you have books or a library?" asked Max.


    "I do have a small collection of books. If you are interested then you are free to read them. They are in my workroom, feel free to come," answered the Duke.


    "Thank you, Duke."


    "Then, you may go back to your room and continue your rest,¡± said the Duke. He left the dining room first.

 Chapter 10 - Biancas Theory

    Lucas entered his room and then he changed into his nightwear. He was thinking of what he would do next, especially after helping the Duke quell the rebellion. The kingdom would owe them so much and he could ask for anything he wanted, but with limited knowledge and technology of this world, he could not ask for something he needed. He did not know whether there were any materials to repair the ship on this planet, his ship was not fitted with a Resources Orbital Scanner and he had to use the drone to scan for resources. But, Lyra told him before that they had lost 3 drones, one was lost when it tried to enter the unknown area, an area where their ship¡¯s scanner could not scan, and the other was destroyed somewhere else. He ordered her to recall the drones back to the ship and only kept one drone near them.


    When they scanned this planet, there were 3 landmasses big enough that could be considered a continent. He was considering conquering the whole continent and eventually the planet with the kingdom as the stepping stone or focusing on repairing the ship. Then, he heard a knock on the door, he told them to get inside. It was Bianca in her nightwear and her dress uniform jacket covering it.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± asked Lucas


    ¡°Nothing, I just feel like coming here,¡± she said as she walked inside the room.


    ¡°Sure, suit yourself.¡±


    She sat on the bed, took off the jacket and put it on the bed. ¡°What is the plan?¡°


    ¡°We will help to quell the rebellion an¨C¡±


    ¡°I know about that, what is after that?¡± said Bianca. Lucas fell silent. ¡°Are you still thinking of going back home?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Lucas with a sad face.


    ¡°You know it is near impossible to do, right?¡±


    ¡°If there is a chance, we should try it.¡±


    ¡°Haah, don¡¯t you think we should be realistic here? We are stuck on this planet and we don¡¯t know if we can repair the ship or if the Empire will send a search party. We don¡¯t know how far we are from the Empire,¡± said Bianca, frustrated.


    ¡°Yeah, you are right.¡±


    Bianca was silent for a while. ¡°Is it because of her?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Lucas fell silent. Then, he lay down on his bed. ¡°Haah, I sound like a fool.¡±


    ¡°You are,¡± said Bianca. They looked at each other for a while then they smiled and laughed.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Right, we should focus on ourselves and our survival on this planet.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m glad you have come to your senses. Anyway, I want to talk about the humans here.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, what do you mean?¡± said Lucas, curious. He sat back on the bed


    ¡°You must have wondered who they are and how they came here.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Lyra said that their DNA is of humans. Could we be in an alternate universe?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. If we are in an alternate universe, then it will be impossible for us to return home or even there is no way to. Back to what I want to talk about, how much do you know about our family history?¡± asked Bianca, as she stood up.


    ¡°A lot, I was given the same lesson as my older brother.¡±


    ¡°Then do you know about the expedition carried by our family?¡±


    ¡°Yes, most of them were sponsored by the Imperial Family.¡±


    ¡°Correct and there are some that were not. However, there is one expedition that was not reported to the Imperial Family,¡± said Bianca, she explained while walking around the room.


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t recall that we have a record of that.¡±


    ¡°Ohh, you don¡¯t know? How come you do not know? Are you not supposed to have the highest level of clearance in Lorien''s database and network?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I have it. Wait, if it needs this high of clearance then how did you know it?¡±


    ¡°Well, I used Lucy¡¯s credentials. She logged in to the network and let me use it, for the record, I was not looking for something particular at that time.¡±


    Lucas looked at her suspiciously. ¡°Alright, then what did you find?¡±


    ¡°It was an expedition from thousands of years ago. The twin brother of Duke Lorien at that time was tasked to go on an expedition. He was given a recon ship, 3 colony ships and 2 destroyers.¡±


    ¡°That long? And he went with the colony ship without exploring first?¡± said Lucas. For an expedition, usually, the first phase would be to send a reconnaissance group to explore, and then the core group, consisting of a colony ship and space construction group, would be sent if suitable places were found.


    ¡°Yes, it was written on the record that there was a conflict between the twins. The twin was caught having a relationship with the Duke¡¯s fiance when the Duke found out that he broke up the betrothal and he ordered his twin and his former fiance to be exiled from the Duchy.¡±


    ¡°Right, I remember reading about that. But, he was exiled to another Duchy¡¯s territory.¡±


    ¡°That is what is on the record in the Imperial Archive. But, the truth is the Duke¡¯s advisor approached the Duke and told him to send his twin on an expedition instead of exiling him.¡±


    ¡°What was the reason for them to ask him that?¡±


    ¡°That time, the Lorien Duchy and Halan Duchy were fighting to gain influence on the Empire. They were afraid that the twin would join Halan and use his claim to gain control of Lorien.¡±


    ¡°I see, so they want to keep the twin on leash.¡±


    ¡°Correct, If he was able to make an achievement, the Duke would forgive him. Then when he was on an expedition something happened when he arrived on a system.¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. There was no record of what happened at that time, there was no communication from the group. A search party was sent but found nothing in that system, they also did not pick any sign of distress signal in the area. The researchers speculated that there was some kind of black hole or something.¡±


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    ¡°So an unexplainable phenomenon.¡±


    ¡°Yes, then my theory is that the expedition that went missing was the civilization on this planet.¡±


    ¡°Wait, so you think we went through the same phenomenon as them?¡±


    ¡°No, the system we were in and theirs were different and far away, and Lyra already told us that someone was messing around with our ship,¡± said Bianca with an annoyed voice.


    ¡°Oh right. But, do you have evidence that the expedition is this civilization?¡±


    ¡°Well, I don''t have any. I was just speculating because it was the only probable explanation.¡±


    ¡°Hmmmm, well, your theory is indeed the most logical and possible.¡±


    ¡°And the unknown area. What is that place? Our scanner could not scan the area and our drone was destroyed when it tried to enter it.¡±


    ¡°Correct, we should investigate that place as well.¡±


    A knock came on the door, Lucas and Bianca were startled when they heard it. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they forgot about their surroundings and time. Bianca then approached the door and opened it. ¡°Eh?!¡± A voice came from the one who knocked at the door.


    ¡°Ariana, what are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± Ariana was startled and flustered. ¡°w-what about you, Bianca?¡±


    Bianca smirked. ¡°Me? I was called by him to come to his room.¡±


    ¡°W-w-w-what do¨C¡±


    ¡°No, she was not. Let her come in, Bianca,¡± said Lucas.


    Bianca clicked her tongue. ¡°No fun, eh?¡± She let Ariana go inside.


    ¡°So, do you need something, Ariana?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°Ah, n-no. I was just checking up on you.¡±


    ¡°Ariana, if you want to meet a man at night and go inside his room, how about covering your nightgown with something? It looks like you are offering yourself to him for nightly service,¡± said Bianca. Ariana was flustered when she heard that.


    ¡°Then, what about you, Bianca? Di-didn¡¯t you do the same as me?¡± said Ariana


    ¡°No, look there.¡± Bianca pointed at her jacket on the bed. ¡°I came here with that and then I took it off inside, I¡¯m his sister, technically, so I don¡¯t think he would be interested in me and we used to sleep together since we were children.¡±


    ¡°That was when we were little. And Bianca is right Ariana, I thought you came here to seduce me,¡± said Lucas confidently.


    Ariana was surprised when he said that, she was fumbling with her words, ¡°Ehhh, I-it is n-nothing like th¨C¡±


    ¡°I was just joking,¡± said Lucas with a smile.


    ¡°Pffttt, you are really mean,¡± said Bianca, laughing.


    Ariana was annoyed after she heard that. She now saw that the whole Lorien family was a bunch of mischievous people who liked to mess with people for fun. ¡°It was not a fun joke.¡±


    Lucas looked at Ariana, and he felt an ominous aura emitting from her. ¡°Sorry, Ariana. Since you are here, we can continue the discussion,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Eh? You were discussing something.¡± Ariana was curious.


    Lucas explained what he and Bianca had discussed about the theory that the civilization of this planet originated from the Empire¡¯s Lorien Duchy.


    ¡°I see, it does make sense though.¡±


    ¡°But, we still have no evidence about it. So we are planning to explore the world and look for clues. More importantly, I am planning to uncover the unknown area and take over the world.¡±


    ¡°What? Do you mean to lead the world?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I was thinking of advancing this civilization in case the Roktarian came here first and invaded the planet.¡±


    ¡°I see, that would be the best for this planet,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°And if they are lucky. They will be able to contact the Empire and the Empire will be able to protect them.¡±


    ¡°That will take a long time, especially if the Empire is not actively expanding,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Correct, that means we must leave offspring to lead this world and leave our descendants with the task to continue our goal.¡±


    ¡°I-i see,¡± said Ariana, shyly.


    ¡°Are you planning to use this kingdom as the stepping stone?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°Yes, I was thinking of making the Crown Prince our puppet.¡±


    ¡°Will it be better to take the throne by yourself?¡±


    ¡°No, it would be hard to get legitimacy from his subject, Duke August was the definition of loyalty in this kingdom and I don''t want to cross the sword with him¡±


    ¡°Then, won¡¯t a marriage be better?¡± said Bianca.


    Lucas looked at Bianca. He was considering getting her to marry the Crown Prince and have her give birth to his children, cementing Lorien''s legacy in the kingdom, and this plan would be the best if he wanted to have Lorien on the throne. But, he had put that plan as one of his lowest priorities, ¡°I was considering that as well. But, I have decided to use him as a puppet.¡±


    ¡°Are you worried for me? I am fine if you were to use me as your political tool. We were trapped in here and I will do anything I can to help you. Remember, blood is thicker than water,¡± said Bianca with full confidence.


    ¡°I understand, I will reconsider my decision.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°It is getting late, I think all of you should go back to your room.¡±


    ¡°Ahhh, you are right,¡± said Bianca, surprised. She took her jacket and put it on, and then he went to the door and gestured for Ariana to follow.


    ¡°Then, Good night, Lucas,¡± said Ariana. She had gotten used to calling him Lucas.


    ¡°Wait,¡± said Lucas. He immediately took his jacket and put it around Ariana. ¡°You did not bring anything here, wear this.¡±


    ¡°Th-thank you,¡± said Ariana. She blushed when he put the jacket on, she could smell the smell on his coat. Bianca looked at those two and saw a vision of a lovey-dovey couple, she thought she must have been so exhausted to even imagine that.


    The night was calm and the moon shone brightly, Duke Aruburn walked to the city¡¯s gate, with 2 knights guarding him. When they arrived at the gate, Captain Breznev was waiting for them.


    ¡°Welcome, Duke.¡±


    ¡°Captain.¡± he nodded at Breznev. ¡°Shall we continue?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Captain Breznev joined the Duke in walking, they walked outside the city to look around the battlefield and the remains of the camps of the Marquess¡¯ army. It had been a full day since the army was attacked by Lucas and his crew, the cleanup of the body was almost finished and the Duke''s forces were looting the camp for anything useful and worthy. Since it was evening, there were only a few soldiers running about the camp cleaning and looting.


    The Duke and his men arrived near the place where the Marquess¡¯ army, he could see a mountain of supplies the Marquess had brought for his besieging army. Not far from that, he could see the place where the army had placed their horses and their wagons, all of them were still in good condition. It looked like they had left the place with haste.


    The Duke that morning ordered his men to give chase to the routing army, fearing they would regroup and attack the city once again. Today was a lucky day for him, his city was besieged for months and then a group of people lifted the siege, and now that group arrived in front of his door and offered him help. He still had many questions about their origin, they came from across the sea, where no one could cross. Their fine clothing, which they said was for the military, would cost thousands of gold alone, and the weapon they brought, it was not magic but it could defeat the whole army.


    The Duke could not imagine how powerful that country must be. Staying on their good side would be the best idea. He wanted to help them return to their home, but he thought he could not do it. The Duke considered marriage between his family and their family, but the leader already had someone who promised to. It would be easy to outbid the betrothal if the woman was from the lower house, but if the woman was the princess of the country or the daughter of influential nobles, it would be near impossible.


    The Duke did not know what they wanted to do in this kingdom, however, if he decided to overthrow the royalty, the Duke would protect the royalty. He hoped that the situation would not get to that point. The Duke at this time, did not know that he had become one of the first pieces of domino that would sweep this world.

 Chapter 11 - Magic?!

    Mary was sitting under a tree, she was waiting for Lucas and the others to come. She felt proud that soon she would have pupils and would teach them magic. With her was Emma, her personal knight, she had recovered from her injuries.


    ¡°Emma, do you think Lucas and the others met the dragon that is slumbering inside the Wallowing Forest?¡± asked Mary.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, My Lady. They have not told us about meeting a dragon. Probably not, since they would be dead if they do.¡±


    ¡°Well, they are strong and able to defeat an army by themselves. Defeating a dragon will not be a problem for them.¡±


    ¡°A dragon and an army are different, you know that an army sometimes can not defeat a dragon. And they only killed the army¡¯s commander, not the whole army. A dragon power is in a league of its own, maybe the Empire of the old would be the only one able to defeat them¡±


    ¡°The ancient Lilium Empire, isn¡¯t that just a myth?¡±


    ¡°No one knows, My Lady,¡± said Emma with a shrug.


    Not long after that, Lucas and the others came. They were eager to learn about the magic of this world. Mary then started the lecture, she explained the theory of magic. She had explained some to them before when they were in the forest, but she told them again. The magic could be used by everyone, the affinity and the capacity of the magic affect one¡¯s capability to use magic. There are four fundamental elements of magic, water, fire, wind and earth. One could combine the elements and create combination magic, for example using wind and fire, a magician could make a blaze tornado.


    ¡°However, combining magic takes a great skill and knowledge of the magic itself, and only skilled magicians are able to do that,¡± explained Mary.


    ¡°Then how do you measure the capacity and affinity of someone?¡± asked Max.


    ¡°To measure the capacity, you can use the measurement tool,¡± Mary touched an orb and suddenly it went bright. ¡±by channelling your mana into this tool, you can see how bright it is and the brightness is the measurement of the capacity of your mana.¡±


    ¡°Understood.¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s measure yours,¡± said Mary. She was excited to see how much their mana was.


    Each of them took turns to measure their mana, everyone had the same capacity. They had the same brightness, brighter than Mary¡¯s, she was astonished at how bright it was. Then, when Lyra tried to measure hers, the tool was broken because of how bright it was shining.


    ¡°Wh-what happened, how could it be broken?¡± said Mary. She was bewildered by the situation.


    ¡°Ah, I am sorry, I will pay for the replacement,¡± said Lyra.


    ¡°N-no, it was nothing. It is just that I have never seen or heard about measurement tools being broken. Not even by the best magician of this world,¡± said Mary.


    ¡°Oh ok.¡±


    ¡°Then, Mary, how did we know our affinity to certain elements?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°Well,¡± Mary put books in front of her. ¡°These are magic books of each element, this one is water, then fire, wind and fire. Everything inside will teach you the theory and how to chant the magic from the elements. By learning from these books, one can know their affinity, if they are able to understand it then they have an affinity with the elements. ¡±


    ¡°So, pretty much, if you learn about the elements you might get affinity for the elements?¡±


    ¡°Well, yes, Lady Bianca.¡±


    ¡°So, everyone can learn all the elements?¡±


    ¡°Well, of course, but those who have the high capacity are the most likely to learn all of it since they will be sponsored by nobles. However, some magicians preferred to learn just one element and mastered it.¡±


    ¡°I see, so gifted individuals are favoured and specialisation is important.¡±


    ¡°Then, let''s see if you can learn all the elements!¡± said Mary excitedly. She had high expectations from her pupils, her eyes were glowing from the excitement.


    Lucas and the others took the book and read it. However, they could not understand anything, the theory was very hard to understand and the instructions were impossible to follow. Even Lyra, who was arguably the smartest of them all, could not understand the book. Lucas looked at Mary and saw her excited face, he could not bear to tell her that he did not understand a single thing in the book.


    ¡°Umm, Mary, do you have any tips on how to use magic?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°Well, my teacher told me to think and feel the mana before I cast the spell.¡±


    ¡°Feel the mana, huh.¡± Lucas wondered how to do it. He closed his eyes and tried his best to feel the mana on his body and imagined shooting something out of his hand, he imagined shooting a gun with a water bullet.


    ¡°Kyaa!!¡± shrieked Mary. Her face was drenched with water.


    ¡°What happened to you?¡± said Lucas. He was shocked.


    ¡°I-if you want to try to shoot a water, aim it somewhere else,¡± said Mary, annoyed.


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± said Bianca. She was astonished.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It was your magic. You shoot water from your hand.¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    ¡°Stop eh e me. Explain!¡±


    ¡°O-okay, calm down. I just imagined shooting a gun with water.¡±


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    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, try it. If by imagining something we were able to use magic, then magic used one¡¯s imagination to manifest, probably.¡±


    Everyone tried to follow his instruction, and all of them were able to shoot water from their hand. When it came to Lyra, everyone asked her to hold back her power and she did hold back. They were afraid that she could summon an ocean-sized water ball. Everyone tried to experiment with their imagination, Max imagined shooting with a missile and he hit a flying bird, and his fire missile homed into the bird.


    ¡°Wow, this is amazing!¡±


    ¡°What a fucking crazy power!¡±


    They were excited by these newly acquired powers. Lucas still could not grasp the understanding of this magic, the fact that imagination could be manifested in the real world was something strange to him. Could the imagination be the core of the understanding of magic, he thought.


    Mary could not believe what she saw. Her pupils with just a simple explanation and a day of teaching were able to use the magic to this scale. She was proud of them, she thought of herself as the greatest teacher of magicians.


    ¡°To think you don¡¯t have to chant to release the spell. That was amazing, I¡¯m proud of you!¡±


    ¡°Eh? You have to chant?¡±


    ¡°Yes, look.¡± she hold her arm up and aimed it at a tree, with a finger pointing at the tree. ¡±waterball.¡± Water came from her finger and hit a tree.


    ¡°Ah, I did not know that. What does that mean then?¡±


    ¡°Well, it does not matter. It means all of you are exceptional!¡± Mary was excited. She then explained what she taught was just the basic principle of magic. Lucas worried about his teacher that did not pay much attention to something peculiar. She ended the lesson there and went to report the lesson to her father.


    A week later, Duke August went into the Knight¡¯s training field. Lucas had told him that he made a new weapon for the army to use, Max was ordered to create the schematic and oversee the creation of the prototype with the help of a blacksmith. When Duke August arrived at the field, Lucas and the others were there. The weapon Lucas told Max to make was a crossbow, a ranged weapon superior to a bow with better range and greater accuracy. Crossbows had better penetration on armour making them deadly even to a heavily armoured knight.


    ¡°Welcome, Duke.¡± greeted Lucas.


    ¡°So, is that thing, what you called a crossbow?¡± said Duke August. He gestured to the crossbow laid on a table.


    ¡°Yes, this is a crossbow. A better weapon for arche¨C no, for everyone.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm, this thing has a more complex build compared to the bow we used.¡±


    ¡°Of course, this mechanism here is used to draw the bolt then it will hold it in place when you aim,¡± Lucas showed how to draw the bolt on the crossbow. ¡°because the crossbow holds the bolt for you, you can focus on aiming at the target and you can aim as long as you can without worrying of getting tired of holding your arrow on the draw.¡±


    Lucas shot the crossbow to a target 200m away. It hit right on the bullseye, the Duke was amused by the result.


    ¡°Let me use it,¡± said the Duke. He grabbed the crossbow and drew the bolt then aimed and shot the crossbow. He felt no difficulty aiming the crossbow and it was easy when he drew the bolt. ¡°This is awesome. compared to the regular bow the crossbow definitely could be used even by an untrained archer.¡±


    ¡°Of course, even an untrained archer using this crossbow could shoot at the same range or even better than the trained archer with a bow.¡±


    Lucas had considered making a longbow, a bow used by the English in the mediaeval age and had a superior range to a regular bow at that time, however, he decided against it. Training archers to use a longbow would take a long time and it would need a lot of energy and stamina to draw and aim the longbow. Compared to longbows, crossbows were easier to use and could be used by everyone. The energy exerted when using the crossbow was only when you drew the bolt, and when aiming you did not need to hold the draw since the bolt was held in place by the crossbow.


    ¡°But, this one took a long time to reload.¡±


    ¡°Yes, even a trained archer would have a slower rate of fire when using the crossbow. But, the penetration, ease of use, accuracy and longer range will definitely offset the slower reload.¡±


    ¡°Alright, then what is this? You didn¡¯t tell me about this.¡± Duke August picked up a bow on a table. ¡°This looks like a regular bow with a peculiar shape.¡±


    ¡°That is a composite bow,¡± answered Lucas.


    The composite bow was a bow with recurve design and was shorter than the regular bow. The curved shape allowed the bow to have the same or even more energy when drawn compared to the regular bows. Allowing the bow to be used on horseback, and carried and used easily on rough terrain, such as dense forest.


    ¡°A composite bow? What is the difference to the regular bow?¡±


    ¡°As you can see, this bow has a recurve design and is shorter than the regular bow. Allowing the bow to be used on horseback.¡±


    ¡°Horseback archery? So you would use a horseman to shoot an arrow.¡±


    ¡°Yes, as you may have known. Speed in warfare is one of the keys to winning a war. If we were to train archers to ride horses or horsemen to use this bow, we will have a mobile firing squad that can be manoeuvred around the battlefield and able to run away from the pursuing enemy¡¯s cavalry.¡±


    ¡°That is true, we could easily take out the enemy hiding behind a spike with horseback archers.¡±


    Lucas would like to have a mobile squad that could traverse the battlefield and immediately support any flanks at a moment''s notice. A traditional cavalry squad would be enough, however, he wanted more options, one with a ranged weapon. He came up with the idea of horseback archery.


    Horseback archery was used since ancient times, notably the horse archers were used by the Mongols when conquering Eurasia. The horse archers could be used in many different ways, when retreating the horse archers would be able to shoot at the pursuing enemy and allow the army to escape while under cover of horse archers fire. The horse archers could be used as harassing forces when on the battlefield and when doing raids on enemy formations or camps.


    The main advantages of horse archers were their mobility and the range of their weapons, however, the enemy¡¯s archers with a crossbow would easily counter the horse archers. But, only Lucas knew about crossbows and the world did not know about horseback archery. It would give them a lot of advantages until the world learns about crossbows and horseback archery.


    ¡°Sarah will demonstrate the practice of horseback archery,¡± said Lucas. Sarah, who had mounted a horse, began to ride around the field with a composite bow and arrows. She rode the horse around the field and shot the target with arrows with great precision. The Duke and the knights who watched were awed, her horse riding and archery skill was amazing. They never saw archers riding a horse and shooting at targets while still in control of the horse.


    ¡°This one is much more difficult to do,¡± said Duke August.


    ¡°Of course, the skill needed to do horseback archery is tremendous. It would take a lot of time to train archers or horsemen to do it. But, the result will be worth it and we will have a deadly force that can move fast and shoot fast.¡± Lucas tried to convince him.


    Lucas had considered using magicians on horseback, but he decided against it. The magicians needed a lot of concentration to even use a spell and skilled magicians are not something he could put in a dangerous position and throw away. It would be easier to train soldiers to become horse archers than skilled magicians on horseback.


    ¡°Alright, I would order the production of crossbows and composite bows, and I will allow the creation of horse archers. I believe you will be the one to train them, right?¡±


    ¡°Sarah will be the one to handle the training of the horse archers, then for the production of the weapons, Max will be in charge of it. And the crossbows training will be led by Ariana.¡±


    ¡°Wonderful, I will do it immediately.¡±


    Duke August gave Sarah 50 knights to be trained as horse archers to test whether it would be worth it. Sarah told the Duke she would prefer soldiers who were proficient in horseback riding as it would be easier for her to train them.


    Duke August decided to replace their bow with composite bows and crossbows, making those two weapons the core of the ranged units. The Duke saw the crossbows¡¯ low rate of fire would burden the army, so he decided to make the trained archers use composite bows and the crossbows would be used as supplement weapons to be used by untrained commoners.

 Chapter 12 - The Festival

    The city¡¯s market was lively once again, back when the city was besieged, everyone was anxious and worried. Now, since the siege had been lifted, a cheerful and lively atmosphere was back in the city. That night, many vendors opened their stalls and the citizens were enjoying the atmosphere of the lively night. Couples could be seen enjoying the night on the market, children were laughing and running around, it felt like there was no war happening and they were at peace.


    ¡°The Duke sure knows how to keep the people''s spirit high,¡± said Lucas while walking around the market.


    ¡°It sure feels like we are at peace,¡± said Ariana, who was walking together with him.


    Before, Lucas was told by the Duke about a festival in the city¡¯s market. He said the festival was to celebrate the liberation of the city. When he heard that, Lucas knew that the Duke was a great leader in the time of war, it is important to keep the spirit high in times of war, to avoid low morale among the citizens.


    After the Duke told him about the festival, he was thinking of going there by himself. However, he met Ariana on the way out of the mansion and asked her to go with him to the festival, she was surprised when he asked her. She asked him if the others would come, and he said no and she blushed¨Cshe thought he was asking her to go on a date.


    She composed herself and threw that thought away and agreed to his offer. After all, she knew he was a man of loyalty, he would never have thought of cheating on his fiancee. And the reason for him asking her probably was because she happened to meet him on the way. She told him to wait for her by the gate while she took her robe from her room.


    Back in the market, both of them were walking among the crowds.


    ¡°Oh, look, a skewer stand. Ahhh, it smells good from here,¡± said Ariana. She looked at the stand, drooling.


    ¡°You want to buy it?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°Yes,¡± answered Ariana. When she reached for her pocket, she realised she had not brought her wallet or any money. ¡°Ahh, on second thought, I-i don¡¯t need it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I brought money with me.¡± he offered to buy her skewers and she agreed.


    They enjoyed the skewers together, it was delicious. They stumbled upon a bard who was singing a song and telling a story of old to the people who watched him play. He sang a piece of old, he brought a string instrument which he used to accompany his singing. His singing was beautiful, he melancholically sang a ballad and the story he told was,


    On the land far away, a twin lived together


    One struck by love and other was alone


    Love then struck the other, too


    Alas, love had broken them apart


    The other was sent away, never been seen again


    The other felt broken and guilty


    He wish upon a star for their reunion


    And wish for them together once again, like days of old


    Everyone was taken aback by the performance of the bard, they felt the feeling of the twin who have broken apart from each other because of love. Some people cried, including Ariana, the song was touching for her. However, Lucas was suspicious, the story told by the bard was like the story of the Lorien twins. He thought whether this was a coincidence or not, but before he could think further he saw Ariana walk forward toward the bard. Surprised, he followed her and then after he got to the front, he could grab her arm.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± asked Lucas


    ¡°Eh? I told you I will sing a song for you,¡± answered Ariana. She was surprised.


    ¡°Ah, sorry. I wasn¡¯t listening to you.¡±


    ¡°So, you want me to sing or not? It¡¯s payment for the skewers.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, sure,¡± Lucas said with a warm smile.


    She approached the bard and everyone cheered for her. She asked him to teach her how to play the instrument and after a few minutes of short teaching from him she was able to play the instrument. She then prepared herself to sing, she stood in front of the crowd, at the same place the bard stood when he sang before. Lucas looked at her, she was a beauty, the light from the surroundings radiates on her face, she uncovered her robe¡¯s hood and her golden hair shone beautifully under the light and the night¡¯s stars. He was captivated by her looks.


    She smiled at Lucas before she began singing. She sang an old folk song ¡®Scarborough Fair¡¯, the song told a story about an unrequited love of someone. She sang beautifully, her voice was angelic, and there was a hint of hope and sadness in her singing. Lucas kept looking at her while she was singing, he was not only captivated by her beauty but her singing enthralled him as well. He felt a fluttering feeling in his chest, the same feeling he had when he fell in love with Sophie a long time ago. He now understood he had a change of heart, his feelings towards one person had moved to another person.


    Lucas smiled at her and their eyes met, she was smiling. Suddenly, the person he saw singing turned into someone he knew, Sophie. He was aghast, he closed his eyes and when he opened it, the person singing was Ariana. Lucas just saw a vision of Sophie on her and he did not know what that meant. He wanted to forget about her and moved to another part of his life, but some part of him refused to let go of the past.


    She finished singing and the crowds cheered her loudly. Ariana was flustered when the other chanted to her.


    ¡°An angel has come.¡±


    ¡°The Goddess itself sang for us.¡±


    ¡°Goddess!¡±


    The crowd kept cheering her and the bard praised her performance. When she tried to walk back to Lucas, the crowd surged forward to talk to her. The bard tried his best to keep the crowd from her, but he was overwhelmed. She was swarmed by the crowd and suddenly a loud voice came from the crowd.


    ¡°Stop, get away from my girlfriend!¡± shouted Lucas while he manoeuvred through the crowd to get to her. He was able to grab her hand.


    ¡°What girlfriend? So, she was already taken,¡± said someone from the crowd.


    ¡°Yes, she is mine. Please don¡¯t overwhelm her,¡± Lucas said while hugging her around his arm, ¡°then, we will bid our farewell since she has sung a song for you, thank you for listening.¡±


    The crowd let them go, and Lucas led Ariana away from the crowd¨Cholding her hand. They could hear a click of tongue, disappointment and even praise for them being a lovely couple. Ariana followed Lucas obediently, once they were far enough from the crowd Lucas stopped.


    ¡°That was close, are you alright?¡± asked Lucas. He looked at Ariana who was staring down at the ground.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± answered Ariana mumbling.


    ¡°What?¡± Lucas could not hear what she said.


    ¡°Drinks...¡± said Ariana in a low voice.


    ¡°Drinks?¡±


    ¡°Yes..¡±


    ¡°Alright, sit over there and I will buy a drink,¡± said Lucas. He left her sitting on a bench.


    Ariana''s face was red, blushed, she was shocked by Lucas saying to the crowd that she was his girlfriend. She did not expect him to say those words to her, the song she sang was meant for her unrequited feelings towards him. She wondered if he caught on to those meanings and he acted that way to at least answer her feelings and comforted her. However, she knew he had Princess Sophie already and it would be hard to break the wall keeping her from him.


    ¡°Haaa, why did I fall in love with someone who already has a fiance,¡± said Ariana, mumbling.


    ¡°Here you go,¡± said Lucas. Ariana was startled. Lucas had come back from buying drinks, she hoped he did not hear what she said¨Che did not.


    She took a sip from the juice he bought for her. It was refreshing, she had calmed herself and was able to compose herself. She peeked a glance at Lucas. She wished she had met him earlier, before he was betrothed to Princess Sophie, at least she would have had a chance to be beside him. She looked up to the sky, it was clear and the stars blinking brightly, and wished this moment would last forever.


    ¡°The Academy teaches you to dance, right?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°Ah, yes. They taught us to waltz and some other dances.¡±


    ¡°Great!¡± Lucas stood up and offered his hand. ¡°would you like to have a dance, My Lady.¡±


    Ariana was confused, she heard music but she did not want to dance here with only the two of them, then she saw a crowd who were dancing not far from where they were sitting. ¡°S-sure, My Lord.¡± she took his hand.


    When they arrived at the dancing crowd, Ariana felt nervous.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, just dance whatever you like, if you want just follow my lead.¡±


    ¡°O-okay.¡± She grabbed his hands and they both started dancing.


    She was nervous at first, but as the time went by she loosened up and was able to dance freely and beautifully. She looked at him whenever she had the chance, she felt lucky to meet him. Even though this happiness would only last until they went back from the festival, she wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.


    Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    While she was dancing, she saw no ring worn on his finger. She wondered what it meant, did he forget to put it on, but he never took it off or forgot about it. She wanted to ask him but she never had the courage to do it. Suddenly, she tripped and was caught by Lucas.


    ¡°I guess you were too energetic there,¡± said Lucas with a smile.


    ¡°Ah, sorry.¡± Then a sound of rumbling came from Ariana¡¯s stomach. She was flustered.


    ¡°Right, we left before we had dinner. How about having dinner here?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°N-no need, we can go back and eat dinner there.¡±


    Lucas closed into her face and whispered in her ear, ¡°It''s my treat and payment for dancing with me¡­ also, I want to spend more time with you tonight.¡±


    Ariana blushed and she answered him with a low shy voice, ¡°O-ok.¡±


    They arrived at an inn and ordered food and drinks. They talked about a lot of things, mostly her life at the academy while waiting for the meals. They ate their meal together, however, Lucas did not know Ariana was a light drinker. She had drunk only 2 glasses of beer and she was already drunk.


    ¡°Hahh, I guess we should go back now," Lucas said with a worried face.


    ¡°Ehh~ but yous said you want to spend more time with me,¡± said Ariana with a drunken slurred voice.


    ¡°But, you''re already drunk.¡±


    ¡°I am not druuuunk. I can drink moreee.¡± She took a gulp from her glass.


    ¡°Alright, we will go outside and take a walk.¡± Lucas paid for their meals and held Ariana¡¯s hand to make sure she did not veer away from him.


    ¡°Ehehe, we lyook like a cople,¡± said Ariana giggling.


    They were walking in the direction of the Duke¡¯s mansion. ¡°Really?¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Ye-es~ holding hands and getting this close meant we. are. couple~¡± said Ariana. She was leaning on his body while walking.


    ¡°I see, I guess that does make us look like a couple.¡± Lucas was used to treating a drunk person, especially after he went out with his people in the Squadron, he had too, at least, guided one of them back to their place.


    "ehehe, you are syo nice Lucas. Why are you swo nice to me? youu gave me waem fwelling. I want you."


    "You want me? Why?"


    "Yesh, youu~ but you have someone else, ryiight. you are cheating on me." said Ariana with a depressed drunken voice.


    "Well¡­ I had one."


    "Yu had?"


    "Yes, she is now far away and I don''t know if we will be able to meet again." said Lucas with a longing face. "Ariana, will you help me?"


    "Help you?"


    "Yes, on forgetting her. Moving away from her."


    "um~ ookay. If I help you will you love me~?" said Ariana.


    "Sure, I will try it... Well, I do actually like you," said Lucas with a warm smile.


    "ehhh~ ehehe, silly Lucas. Of course you are, we are c. o. u. p. l. e. after all."


    "Right."


    Suddenly, Ariana put her hands around Lucas''s head and pulled his face lower, she tiptoed to make her face closer to him, and then kissed him on his mouth. "And this is what couple do~"


    Lucas was surprised by the kiss, he did not expect the drunken Ariana would be this aggressive. Immediately after the kiss from her, he put his arm around her body and on her head, and pulled her closer to kiss her again.


    The kiss lasted for a while. "Yes, cpuple do this," said Lucas. She saw her face after they kissed and thought she looked more cute and beautiful. He blamed this on the ecstasy of love and tried his best to hold back.


    The drunk Ariana fell silent for a while and then slumped on his chest. He held her and then found out that she had fallen asleep. He carried the sleeping Ariana back to the mansion¨Cthey were closed by the mansion''s gate.


    Lucas looked at Ariana''s sleeping face. She looked cute when sleeping, he wondered how no one approached her when she was at the academy.


    ¡°Was your grandfather''s reputation that horrible to the people of the Empire, that you were outcasted?¡± said Lucas speaking to the sleeping Ariana, ¡°I wondered what made you fall for me, well, if you ask me why I fell for you was not because we were trapped in here. Beside your beauty and cuteness, it was your reaction when teased, your sometimes clumsiness, your laugh, your spirit and your resolve to restore your family name. I wonder what our childr¨C haha, I should not think that far ahead.¡±


    Ariana slept the whole way to the mansion and when Lucas put her on the bed. He laod her in her bed in her room and went back to his own room. In the morning, Ariana woke up with a terribly hungover, she tried to remember what happened last night.


    ¡°You have woken up.¡± Ariana was startled by the voice, she looked at the person talking, it was Bianca.


    ¡°M-morning, Bianca,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Afternoon, Princess. Drink this, it will help with your hangover,¡± said Bianca. She gave her something to drink.


    ¡°Eh, afternoon?¡± said Ariana, puzzled. She drank the drink Bianca brought.


    ¡°Yes, Your Highness. The sun is up on top of our head.¡±


    ¡°Why are you talking like that?¡± said Ariana, annoyed.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been coming back here a few times and everytime I came here you were still asleep. Just now, I decided to wait for you to wake up. And that''s because of a certain Lord requested me to watch over and paid special attention to his woman.¡±


    ¡°W-what? H-his woman¡­¡± said Ariana. Her face turned red, flustered.


    ¡°Well, he did not say it like that. He told me to take care of you since you were dead drunk last night.¡±


    ¡°Ugh, stop teasing me, Bianca. Both of you are a teaser you know! Do Lorien teach their children to tease people,¡± said Ariana, frustrated and annoyed.


    ¡°Ahahaha, I guess. Well, it¡¯s fun teasing you.¡±


    ¡°It is not!.¡± Ariana fumed and pouted.


    ¡°So, what did you guys do last night?¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear it from him already?¡±


    ¡°He just told me that he went to the festival with you. So~ what happened? Who asked first?¡± said Bianca, curious and excited.


    ¡°He was the one who asked.¡±


    ¡°Oho~ I knew he was bold. ¡±


    ¡°B-but I don¡¯t think he meant it like that. You know¡­ like... a date,¡± said Ariana, with a sad voice.


    ¡°How do you know that?¡±


    ¡°Just a hunch.¡±


    ¡°Try to be positive for once, Ariana. So, what did you guys do?¡±


    ¡°Well, we walked, then ate. I sang a song then¡­¡± she fell silent.


    ¡°Then?¡±


    ¡°He said I am his girlfriend.¡± Ariana buried her face in the pillow.


    ¡°Hmm¡­ Let me guess, there are only 2 reasons he would say that, either he meant it as is or he is trying to get you out of trouble.¡±


    ¡°It must be the latter, I was swarmed by the crowd after I sang,¡± said Ariana, disappointed. She hugged the pillow.


    ¡°Oh, too bad. So what happened next?¡±


    ¡°He asked me to dance¨C¡± Suddenly Ariana remembered something important. ¡°Ah, when I danced, he did not wear his engagement ring.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Bianca put her hand on her chin as if she was thinking. ¡°Interesting, he never took off the ring since they were engaged. I guess someone has changed.¡±


    ¡°Changed?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you may¨C no, you will be able to make him yours.¡±


    ¡°Make him mine?¡±


    Bianca turned smug. ¡°Yes, and I will support you. So, next!?¡±


    Ariana looked at the ceiling, trying to recall the event last night. ¡°Well, after that we had a meal in an inn and¡­¡±


    ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°I-i don¡¯t remember. I drank beers and got drunk, aghh, the memory is hazy,¡± said Ariana. She tried to think again.


    ¡°Well, tha¨C¡±


    ¡°Ahhhhh!¡± Ariana suddenly slammed her head on the pillow she was hugging.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    Ariana''s face turned red again, redder than before. She looked at Bianca. ¡°I-i-i think w-we ki-kissed last night.¡±


    ¡°What, really?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and it was me who kissed him first.¡±


    ¡°Wow, you are bold,¡± said Bianca. She put her hand on her mouth.


    ¡°I am not! I was drunk, alright.¡± Ariana looked frustrated. ¡°Ahh, d-did he do anything to me last night?¡±


    Ariana checked her body. Bianca immediately said, ¡°No, he did not. I have checked your body, nothing out of the ordinary. ¡±


    ¡°What? Stop touching sleeping people!¡± Ariana did not feel any pain in her body at all, except for her headache because of the hangover.


    Bianca was irritated. ¡°I am a medic, it¡¯s my job to check on my patients.¡±


    ¡°So, he did not do anything to me...¡± Ariana looked depressed,


    ¡°Weirdo,¡± said Bianca looking at Ariana''s reaction. Bianca noticed a hairpin on the table next to the bed. ¡°Oh, did he give you that?¡±


    Bianca pointed at the hairpin and Ariana looked at it. ¡°What is that? A hairpin with a flower-shaped jewel on it¡­ a lily?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is a white lily,¡± said Bianca. The Lily flower is a symbol of Lorien and is well known through the Galactic Imperium.


    ¡°Well, isn¡¯t it yours?¡±


    ¡°It is not.¡±


    Ariana looked puzzled. ¡°Well, it could not be Lucas¡¯.¡±


    ¡°Correct, it wasn¡¯t his..." Bianca trailed off her speech.


    "Bianca?"


    "It once belonged to his twin sister, Lucy.¡±


    ¡°Twin sister?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Bianca. She had a sad expression.


    Ariana noticed the change in Bianca''s expression, she understood her expression. ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry¡­ Well, why is it here?¡±


    ¡°I guess he meant to give it to you.¡±


    ¡°Me, why?¡±


    ¡°No idea. But, that hairpin meant a lot to him, he always carried it with him.¡±


    Ariana picked up the hairpin. ¡°Do I remind him of her?¡±


    ¡°Sorry. Not a chance,¡± mocked Bianca.


    ¡°Ugh. You really are honest.¡±


    ¡°Just for you know, Princess Sophie was never given that. You are the only person I know to be given Lucy¡¯s memento by him.¡±


    ¡°Oh really¡±¨CAriana wore the hairpin on her hair¨C¡± then I shall cherish this gift.¡±


    Bianca saw Ariana looked cute with the hairpin on. It reminded her of Lucy. ¡°You look beautiful with that... but not as beautiful as her.¡±


    ¡°Ugh, don¡¯t compare me with a lady from Lorien, there is no way I can compare with her.¡±


    ¡°Pfftt, Well, you do look like a lady of Lorien with the hairpin on. Sometimes women who are married to Lorien will use jewellery or dress with Lilies flower decorations or motifs to show their allegiance to our house... and... men from House Lorien gifted their partner those kinds of jewellery to show their love.¡±


    Ariana looked shy. ¡°I-i see.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, Lucas is, well probably, serious about courting you. I can¡¯t wait to be your sister-in-law!¡±


    Ariana buried her face in the pillow. ¡°Ugh.¡±


    ¡°Well.¡± Bianca stood up and walked towards the door ¡±I will bring lunch to you shortly.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Since that day, Ariana avoided meeting Lucas because she was too embarrassed to face him. Lucas, on the other hand, was busy helping Duke August prepare the army.

 Chapter 13 - Arianas Responsibility

    Duke August was able to raise a 9.000 strong army within 2 months. He left a thousand soldiers back in the city to protect it. The army of the Aristocratic Faction was around 25.000 soldiers and they sent 10.000 soldiers to Aruburn after they heard the Marques Loit¡¯s defeat at the siege. It would take Duke August¡¯s army around 2 weeks to arrive in the capital, the road infrastructure was not the best, most of the road was just dirt roads.


    Duke August originally wanted to wait for the Aristocratic army and fight them when they besieged the city again. However, Lucas learned the capital had been under siege for 5 months and he insisted the Duke immediately sallied out and brought the fight to them. Lucas had found a favourable position to do a pitched battle with the Aristocratic army and he wanted to use it to their advantage. The Duke gave in to Lucas¡¯ idea.


    A few days later, they arrived at the location, they set up their camp near the area. Lucas knew that they had to be the ones to attack and it would be a foolish idea for the enemy army to attack them. However, he had a number disadvantage, 9.000 against 10.000 was not that big difference, but it was only less than half of the enemy''s actual army, he did not want to waste most of the army fighting the enemy''s detachment.


    His only choice was to disperse his army in uneven numbers and hope the enemy would disperse theirs in an even number.


    ¡°Will they fall for the deception?¡± said Lucas. He was concerned whether the nobles would bite the bait.


    ¡°They probably will, the noble will disperse their army in even numbers if they don¡¯t know the number of the enemy,¡± said Duke August.


    ¡°That¡¯s foolish.¡±


    The Duke nodded. ¡°Of course.¡±


    The meeting was held between the Duke and Lucas to discuss the plan of the battle.


    ¡°Alright, I will gamble on this chance,¡± said Lucas. If his gamble did not work, he would use the ship¡¯s drone support to defeat the enemy.


    However, he did not like the idea of using the ship to help them win a battle. He was afraid of the consequences if he had used the ship. He had a feeling there was a strange force, hidden and unknown to the people, that existed on this planet. He suspected the Unknown Area was the centre of the force and until he learnt of this hidden force or that area, he would try not to use the ship and brought attention to himself.


    The Duke was tapping on the table. ¡°Are you sure of this plan.?¡±


    ¡°Yes. If they spread their numbers evenly, we will have an advantage on one side and exploit the advantage to defeat them one by one.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, then we are depending on our smaller side to hold out until we are done with our side and then help them.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡±¨CLucas pointed at a location on the map¨C¡°and that is why I chose this place for our weaker detachment to defend.¡±


    The Duke looked at the place he pointed. It was a path, an opening, within the forest near the place where they camped. The path was large enough for a small army to traverse through, but if they had to fight in there they would not be able to deploy their army at once. The Duke understood what Lucas meant, it was a chokepoint, Aristocratic army of 5.000 would not be able to fight with all their forces at once against the Duke''s detachment of 2.000. Giving them an equal number of forces fighting against each other.


    ¡°I see, you planned to use the terrain to our advantage,¡± said the Duke.


    ¡°Yes, this place is not too far or too near for the enemy to forget about. They will have to worry about our flanking force if they decide to leave that place uncontested. And, when they arrive there with superior numbers, there is a great chance they will attack our position and try to flank our main army.¡±


    ¡°So you have a plan to deal with them?¡±


    ¡°Yes, at least until we can send reinforcement and flank the enemy with our main army.¡±


    ¡°Great. I trust your plan¡± Duke August smirked.


    Ariana walked through the camp, she was supervising the conditions of the crossbows and archers force she was given to command. She was responsible for the training of crossbows to the army and because of that, she was given command of a force of 1.000 soldiers, consisting of crossbowmen and archers¨Ca regiment. When she was given the task to train the crossbow force, she told Lucas about the tactic she would like to use. It was a tactic used by an old well-known mercenary group, the Genoese Crossbowmen.


    The Genoese Crossbowmen used a team of 3 people to operate together. One would be a shooter, one would hold a shield¨Cpavise¨Cand the other would reload the second crossbow, essentially doubling the rate of fire of the crossbowmen.


    Lucas approved the idea and she started training the crossbowmen with the tactic. She was satisfied with the result of the training and was sure the crossbow would play a key role in the battle.


    Ariana kept walking and observing the activity of her people. Then suddenly a voice was calling her. ¡°Captain Ariana!¡±


    ¡°Hello Sally,¡± said Ariana. It was Sally, one of the people she trained. Sally sat with others at a campfire.


    ¡°Captain, come, join us,¡± said Sally. Ariana decided to join them and took a rest from walking around the camp.


    ¡°Here, Captain, a soup,¡± said Olmund. He offered her a cup of soup.


    ¡°Thank you, Olmund.¡± Ariana took the soup and ate it.


    ¡°Have you heard of any plans?¡± asked Roni.


    Sally, Olmund and Roni were in a team together as crossbowmen. They have known each other since the training.


    Ariana stopped eating the soup. ¡°We will fight them here, I do have not any detailed plan yet.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡±


    ¡°Captain, do you know the knight named Robert?¡± asked Olmund.


    ¡°I don¡¯t, why?¡± asked Ariana.


    ¡°Well, you see¡±¨COlmund pointed his finger at Sally¨C¡± Sally fell in love with that guy.¡±


    ¡°Olmund!¡± said Sally. Her face was red.


    ¡°Ahh, I see. How do you meet?¡±


    ¡°Well, it was at the training field, I was taking care of the crossbows then he came to help.¡± Sally smiled ¡°Then he asked to go to the market, ehehe¡±


    ¡°What a lovely story.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t trust her Captain, she probably exaggerated the story,¡± said Olmund. Sally punched Olmund on the arm.


    ¡°Oh, and Roni also has someone, right Roni?¡±


    Roni looked at Sally. ¡°It is not your concern.¡±


    ¡°Ehh, it is. Come one, who was it?¡±


    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have one.¡±


    ¡°Liar, who made that tassel on your sword?¡± said Sally. She pointed at his sword.


    ¡°Oh, right,¡± said Olmund, ¡°Roni is not the kind of guy who would put a decoration on his sword.¡±


    Roni gave in to Olmund and Sally''s nagging. ¡°It was given by someone from my village, she was sent by mother to deliver a letter to me and she was the one who made the tassel.¡±


    ¡°I see, your lover then,¡± said Sally.


    ¡°Well, my mother wished for me to marry her in the letter.¡±


    ¡°What. Did you tell her?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and she was happy.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget to invite us!¡± said Olmund.


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Sally was jealous. ¡°Uggh, to think I would be beaten by Robert.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t follow up his move, what should he do then?¡± said Olmund. He mocked her.


    ¡°I was busy alright, the training and others.¡±


    Ariana listened to their conversation while eating the soup she was given. She chuckled at the silliness of her men, she felt grateful to have them in her army. She looked around her and thought about what would happen to these people, would they survive or not? She knew Lucas saw them as only pieces on the board, but she saw them as human beings, people who had family and friends.


    When she was at the Imperial Guard Academy, she was chosen to continue to the officer training. All of the officer cadets would join the Imperial Guard, however, enlisted cadets¨Cother rank cadets¨Cwould sometimes be assigned to the Imperial Navy after their graduation to directly support the war effort against the Roktarian.


    She was taught, as an officer, to disregard feelings and attachment to her subordinate and prioritise the plan given by her superior. Throwing her humanity to achieve a victory of a greater plan, she was disgusted by the doctrine and could not bring herself to do that. And now her resolve would be tested, would she follow Lucas¡¯s outrageous order¨Cif any¨Cto achieve victory, or would she disregard the order to save herself and her men?


    A revelation came to her. ¡°Could this be the reason why Grandpa abandoned his order?¡± she muttered with a soft voice. Ariana was shaken by this, she promised to become a person different from her grandfather, but now she had the same thinking and feeling as his.


    Ariana was in deep thought when suddenly she was woken up by their conversation. ¡°Did you see the tassel on Lord Lucas¡¯ sword?¡± said Sally. Ariana was startled.


    ¡°A tassel?¡± she asked her. She guessed the tassel might be from Bianca.


    ¡°Yes, a blue tassel,¡± said Sally, ¡°ah, could it be from the little lady?¡±


    Ariana was confused. "Yep, I can confirm the tassel was from the little lady. The maids were talking about it, " said Olmund.


    "Hey, you guys were talking about tassel this tassel that, what does it mean?" asked Ariana with an annoyed face.


    "Ahh, you don''t know about it, Captain?" said Sally, "It is a good luck charm given to a lover or someone a girl has an interest in when they go into war or adventure."


    "A lover? Lucas could not see her romantically!" said Ariana, irritated.


    Olmund was startled when he saw her annoyed and he said, "Well, probably the lady look at him that way."


    "Why are you so sure it was from her?" said Ariana, raising her voice, "you know, the tassel could be from Bianca!"


    "W-well Captain, it could but why would she give it to him when she is going with him?" said Sally.


    Ariana fumed and pouted. "Why would he do that!? He is busy right, if he is busy why would he have the time to meet with her?"


    "C-Captai¨C"


    "If he had the time to be with her, why would he not meet with me!? I''m not that busy, right? If he wants to meet me when I am busy I w¨C"


    "How about you go to him instead of waiting for him to come to you like a fool?" Someone cut her off.


    She was fuming and now she snapped because someone cut her off. She turned to the voice and said, "Who th¨C¡± She stopped after realising who it was. ¡°Eh, Bi-bianca?"


    Bianca was standing behind her. "Hello Ariana," she said with a smile.


    "Bianca, since when did you stand there?" asked Ariana. She was nervous and her face was red.


    "hmm~ long enough to tell you to meet him instead of waiting for him," answered Bianca.


    Ariana hid her face with her hand. "Y-you hear everything then."


    "Yes."


    "Ughh, please don''t tell him."


    "Hah, whatever you say. Anyway, I''m here to give you an order from Lucas," said Bianca. She pulled out a piece of paper with a drawing of a map and she


    "Why did he send you? Can''t he come here by himself?" said Ariana. She pouted.


    "He is busy"¨CBianca pointed toward the general direction of his tent¨C" and if you want to meet him, go, he would be grateful."


    Ariana turned her face away from Bianca and said, "Why should I? If he is serious with me, he should be the one to approach me.¡±


    ¡°I see. With your logic that would mean he is not serious with you,¡± said Bianca, mocking her.


    ¡°You are mean.¡± Ariana lightly punched Bianca. ¡°I can¡¯t bring myself to meet him.¡±


    ¡°Hah, since both of you went to the festival. You have not met him at all, how is your relationship with him supposed to advance?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m... embarrassed. Who knows what he will say to me? I-i mean, he likes to tease me. ¡±


    Bianca gave up convincing her and decided to explain the order. ¡°Anyway, this is your order, you are to lead your ranged regiment and a melee regiment to this place.¡± Bianca pointed at the map.


    ¡°Hmm, why?¡±


    ¡°You are tasked to defend this place, at all costs.¡± Bianca moved away from the map. ¡°Lucas wanted to split their army and this place is ideal for it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, why would he want to split the army?¡± asked Sally.


    ¡°To gain an advantage.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Let me ask you a question, what would you do if an enemy split their army and threatened your army with a flanking manoeuvre?¡±


    Sally answered, ¡°I would split mine to ensure they did not flank my army.¡±


    ¡°Exactly, Lucas assumed the enemy would split theirs evenly.¡±


    ¡°So, he wants to split the enemy and defeat them one by one,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ariana looked at the map and thought of the position of the area she should defend. ¡°This place is a chokepoint, I understand what he wanted from me.¡±


    ¡°Amazing, as expected of the future Lady of Lorien!¡± cheered Bianca.


    Ariana flustered. ¡°Stop teasing me!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave it to you then.¡± Bianca stood up and walked away, but before she took a couple of steps, she turned away. ¡°Oh, and I heard a certain lady of Aruburn is fancying Lucas. It appears the candidate for Lady of Lorien is growing.¡±


    Ariana looked agitated after she said that. ¡°Just leave. I will call you if I have questions, ok?¡± said Ariana with a deadly glare.


    ¡°Okay, oh and take off your camp by tomorrow morning and set up camp near that place by tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Ariana. Bianca left the place and shortly after Ariana, fuming, left Sally and the other and she went back into her tent.


    That night, she could not sleep well, her mind was filled with worry about Mary Aruburn''s interest in Lucas. Mary was a noble of the kingdom, it would be sensible for Lucas to take her as his partner when she comes of age. She might not be as knowledgeable as her, however, knowledge could be taught. If she did not take the initiative, then he could be taken away from her.


    She looked at the hairpin Lucas gave her. She had always worn the hairpin ever since it was given to her. The beautiful lily-shaped jewel decorated the hairpin. The Lily flower symbolises love, fertility, purity and rebirth. The House of Lorien had stood as long as the Imperial Family¨CHouse of Zormenia¨C and the history of both houses was long and unbreakable. Lily was the favourite flower of the first Duchess of Lorien, a princess of the Galactic Imperium. In her honour, the first Duke made lily the symbol of the House of Lorien and he vowed to her, that as long as the blood of Lorien flows within the Galactic Imperium, Lorien shall defend Zormenia until their last blood.


    The Galactic Imperium overcame many trials since its founding and each time they were in trouble, the House of Lorien always answered the call from Zormenia. After the destruction from a civil war, Lorien would help rebuild the Empire and they were the ones to explore most of the great unknown of space, giving birth to a new era and generation. The history book pictured the loyalty of Lorien as the eternal love of the first Duke to his wife, the princess of the Galactic Imperium, and if Lorien decided to rebel against the Imperial Family, it would mean the destruction of the Empire.


    Ariana always thought the loyalty of Lorien to the Imperial Family was twisted, she heard Lorien would sacrifice themselves if asked by the Imperial Family. It was a rumour she heard and had doubted the rumour. She also heard Lorien was blessed with fertility, often someone from Lorien would have twins¨Cthis was true.


    Before she fell asleep, Ariana steeled herself to be much more aggressive towards Lucas and make her feelings for him known clearly to him. She would prove to him that she befitted the title Lady of Lorien.

 Chapter 14 - The Same

    By evening, Ariana and her detachment of 2 regiments¨C1.000 each¨Chad arrived at the location near the forest opening. She told them to set up camp and she went to check the opening. It was a narrow strip of open land between a low hilly area and it was surrounded by dense trees. It was large enough for an army to pass through, but they had to march in a narrow formation.


    This was an advantage for her if she had to defend the place from the enemy as they had to engage only a few of them at once in the narrow strip. She was thinking of making preparations for defences, but she wanted to make sure the enemy was on the other side and took the bait. She sent a scout ahead to look for a sign of the enemy, Bianca had told her the enemy would arrive by tomorrow.


    However, she started to prepare the order of battle. She used the densely wooded hill to her advantage. On each side, she placed 3 companies¨C100 each¨C of ranged units with a company of melee units, then on the narrow passage she placed the rest of her army there.


    In addition to her infantry regiments, she was given a company of cavalry and a handful of magicians to support her. She had planned a tactic to be used when the enemy decided to charge them. By tomorrow night, the scout reported the enemy had arrived, he estimated the enemy to be around 4.000 strong, consisting of 1.500 cavalry and the rest was a mix of archers and melee soldiers.


    Ariana reported the situation to Bianca through a call and she also confirmed an army had arrived on the main battlefield, 6.000 strong. Bianca told Ariana to hold her position and defend the passage, at all costs. Ariana acknowledged the order and began preparation for the defence.


    She told her men to build ditches, as well as to plough the land and watered them to make the terrain muddy. The ditches were built on each side of the passage and filled with water and in front of the battle line were wooden stakes to deter enemy charge. The place where she deployed her archers on the hill was dense enough to not allow the enemy cavalry to charge them.


    She had them work overnight and by morning they all did all of it. A skirmish happened between the cavalry and the enemy most likely probing their defences. However, Ariana did not commit her whole cavalry unit as they were only a few.


    A few days had passed and there was no sign of the enemy advancing, Bianca also told her there was no movement on the main battlefield. On the fourth day, at night, Ariana decided to poke at the enemy and provoked the enemy to attack them. She and a few of her men went to raid the enemy camp by shooting them with arrows and fled the scene when they were about to give chase.


    They did it for 4 days with a mix of interval and time, confusing the enemy and making them more on guard at night. On the fifth day, the enemy finally marched forward to fight Ariana and her regiments. At the same time, the enemy¡¯s main army also marched forward and fought Lucas and Duke August¡¯s army.


    Ariana saw the enemy had massive cavalry spearheading their formation. They stopped and from their formation came archers running forwards.


    Ariana put one of her hands up. ¡°Archers, forward!¡±


    The archers on the main line moved forwards, just far enough for the archers to run back under the protection of wooden stakes if the enemy decided to charge. She placed only crossbowmen on the main line, the enemy archers would have a better fire rate but the crossbowmen would be able to shoot first before the enemy was able to get in range.


    She ordered the archers on the flanks to stay hidden and hold fire. The skirmish between the ranged units began. The crossbowmen were able to shoot 2 shots consecutively before they had to reload and were able to shoot 6 times before the enemy archers were able to shoot back. When the enemy archers began their shot, they had lost a third of their numbers. However, the rate of fire of the archers made the crossbowmen have a hard time. The pavise¨Ca large shield¨Cwas able to fend off most of the arrows and protect the crossbowmen from taking heavy casualties.


    At the same time, magicians from both sides were exchanging spells. The enemy magicians were able to break through some magic barriers and put a dent in Ariana¡¯s formation. After a while, the enemy called back their archers and moved forward with their cavalry and melee units.


    ¡°Archers, fallback! Prepare to target their horses!¡± ordered Ariana. On this narrow path, the enemy was bunched up and could not utilise their full force. The muddy terrain would make the enemy¡¯s horses and heavy armoured infantry had a hard time traversing, and they would be the perfect target for the archers and crossbowmen on the flank.


    The enemy¡¯s cavalry slowly moved forward together with the infantry, the muddy terrain made the infantry slip and slowed their movement walking forward. When the cavalry was in the range of crossbowmen, Ariana ordered them to shoot. The dense formation made it easy to shoot them and taking a shot at their horses made their horses go into a panic, dropping their rider and running towards their infantry formation; creating chaos among the enemy''s rank.


    The commander of their cavalry ordered a charge. Ariana, on top of her horse, took a composite bow and aimed the arrow toward their commander. The commander of their cavalry was way outside the range of the composite bow, but Ariana had learnt that strengthening the arrow with magic, it would help the arrow to fly faster and farther, even to the point of changing its trajectory¨Cit would take higher concentration to fully control it.


    She took the shot and the arrow flew right into his head. The commander fell down from his horse and the whole cavalry was in shock, however, it did not break their charge. They kept charging forward under heavy fire of arrows and bolts. Some riders who fell were trampled by the others and those who were lucky ran back toward the infantry formation.


    The constant fire from the archers and crossbowmen made the charging speed of the enemy¡¯s cavalry dwindle and when they had arrived near the wooden stakes, their charge had lost its effectiveness. Some of the horses ended up hitting the stakes and the raider fell down their horse and were immediately stabbed by the infantry, and those who managed to get past the stakes were stuck in a fight with the infantry and had a hard time retreating.


    The advancing enemy¡¯s infantry columns were still far away from the fight and were slowly advancing forward through the muddy terrain. The constant barrage of bolts and arrows made the advance of the infantry no better than the cavalry. Some commanders of the infantry were either killed by Ariana or by arrows from archers.


    Some enemy infantry groups were sent to deal with the archers up on the hills on the flank, but they were met with heavy resistance from the infantry protecting the archers. For the enemy¡¯s infantry, their advance was hell, muddy terrain and constant barrage of arrows had dwindled their numbers and injured many. With them bunching up together, because of the narrow passage, it was easy for the archers to just shoot in the general direction of the enemy¡¯s formation and their arrows easily hit the enemy soldiers.


    However, the enemy still had much manpower left when they engaged the main line, albeit only some could fight effectively with the main line, while the rest were waiting behind and getting harassed by the archers. Ariana had joined the fighting on the frontline, the enemy was exhausted from advancing through the muddy train.


    Ariana fought with several enemies, her skill from the academy training was shown in the fight. She strike precisely and swiftly on to the enemy and parried the attack coming her way, and she used magic to help her fight. The battle went on for hours, she was fighting for hours and was exhausted. She did not know what happened during the battle of the main army. She hoped they won it.


    Ariana looked around and she saw her army was slowly dwindling and exhausted. The ranged companies from both flanks had joined the melee fight¨Cthey had run out of ammunition. Both sides had committed all of their forces to this pitched battle.


    Bianca had promised her to send reinforcement when the main army had won the battle. But, she did not think they would hold until the reinforcements arrived. She was spacing out on the battle, thinking whether she should retreat back and abandon the position. A sword was about to hit her and it was too late for her to block the sword when she saw it. But, Sally who was near her for a while was able to block the sword and Olmund finished the soldier with a stab in the chest.


    ¡°Captain, don¡¯t space out!¡± said Sally.


    Ariana thought she would die from that. ¡°T-thank you.¡±


    Ariana could not believe she had spaced out in the fight. The Academy taught its students to always focus on a fight and if they were spacing out for even a second, that would mean they were dead. She continued fighting against the enemy together with the trio.


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    Roni was fighting against an enemy when suddenly someone stabbed his leg. He fell down to his knee and was able to block a sword coming his way. However, another soldier swung his sword at him and luckily Ariana was able to parry him and killed the other.


    ¡°Aghh!¡± shrieked Olmund. He was stabbed in his stomach. He was able to fend off the attacker by stabbing him in the neck.


    Olmund fell to the ground, writhing in pain. Ariana was about to run into him when an enemy soldier sunk his sword into his chest, killing him. Ariana was furious when she saw that, she ran into the man and stabbed him. However, she had left the wounded Roni behind and when she looked back at him, he had lost his head


    Despair fell into Ariana, she had lost 2 of her friends in an instant. She had grown attached to them and had known them well. Back when she was training them, the trio would invite her on their outing to an inn and around the city, she knew them well. Olmund was a guy who had always flirted with a girl and Roni recently promised her childhood friend to marry her after the war.


    She was distraught, she was fighting with anger and regret. She did not know what was happening to her. Her mind was a mess and when she looked at Sally, she did not want to feel a loss anymore. She remembered the order she was given, to hold the place at all costs, and wait for reinforcement to come. But, where is the reinforcement she was promised? Was it only a reassurance for me to keep holding this place? Was it a false hope and Lucas was only using these people as bait? Her thought was doubting Lucas¡¯ plan and order.


    She looked around and saw her army thinning out. She had a hunch that the enemy she was facing was the better part of the enemy¡¯s whole army, and her hunch was correct. Despite the relentless barrage, and rough terrain they traversed and exhausted, the enemy was still eager to fight. She saw Sally was overwhelmed and she immediately helped her.


    ¡°Sally! Get up!¡± said Ariana. She was worried.


    ¡°Captain, thank you.¡± She stood up after she had fallen off.


    Ariana''s mind was overwhelmed with the loss of her friends and fear of losing Sally. ¡°W-we should retreat!¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Sally blocked an attack from an enemy. ¡°Captain, are you sure? We were ordered to hold this flank, right?¡±


    ¡°But, we are losing.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, the reinforcement will come soon.¡±


    ¡°They won¡¯t!¡± shrieked Ariana. She looked like a madman.


    Sally was surprised by Ariana shouting at her. ¡°What? Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°Does it matter? If we stay here you might die as well! Robert and Olmund have died!¡± Ariana''s anger had exploded,


    ¡°I-i know that Captain. It¡¯s a battle, so death is not something we should be worried about,¡± said Sally. She was hurt by the death of her friends.


    ¡°Sally, I don¡¯t want to lose you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Captain for your worry. But, it is our duty to follow the command from the Commander to ensure victory.¡±


    ¡°Sally...¡± Ariana had a worried look on her face.


    Ariana did not know why Sally said that, she was just a piece on board for Lucas. She had a dream she wanted to catch but why would she be willing to throw her life away in this battle? Ariana could not take it any longer, the thought of losing Sally was worse than any punishment she would receive for deserting.


    ¡°Retreat! Fall back!¡± said Ariana. She looked and shouted at a soldier to sound the retreat signal.


    Sally was surprised by her decision. ¡°Captain, no! We should hold on!¡±


    ¡°No! I am the commander of this army and I have ordered retreat, go and run from here!¡±


    Her army began to retreat after the signal was given. Ariana knew the consequences of her insubordination, she knew Lucas would be furious at her decision. But, she was hoping on a single strand of hope he would forgive her, just because he had a romantic feeling towards her.


    Not long after the retreat signal was given, a crashing sound was heard from behind the enemy line.


    ¡°The reinforcement has arrived!¡± shouted a soldier.


    Ariana looked at the back of the enemy line and she saw cavalry donning the uniform of Duchy of Arubun. It was the reinforcement she had promised. A group of cavalry was led by Lucas to circle around the enemy and attacked the enemy from behind. The attack took the enemy by surprise and they immediately waver, some ran toward the forest to flee from the cavalry and those who stayed were slain.


    Ariana was relieved that the reinforcement came. She was grateful because she was able to keep Sally alive. Sally stood beside her and looked at the routed enemy. Ariana hugged her tightly and tears ran down her cheeks. Their bodies were full of dirt, blood, sweat and mud.


    Back on the main camp after the battle¨Cher detachments returned to the main army¨CAriana collected the belongings of Olmund and Roni.


    ¡°I will give those back to their family,¡± said Sally.


    ¡°Thank you, Sally.¡± Ariana cried and she picked up the tassel from Robert¡¯s childhood friend. ¡°This charm didn¡¯t work for him, right?¡± she chuckled


    ¡°It did not.¡± It was 2 days after the battle when they buried the dead from the battle. Tomorrow the army would continue to advance to the Capital.


    That evening, the sky was clear and Ariana could see the stars clearly.


    ¡°Thank you for worrying about me, Captain,¡± said Sally. Sally and Ariana were sitting on the field just outside their camp.


    Ariana smiled at her. ¡°It was nothing, the three of you have been my best friends since I arrived here.¡±


    ¡°Cap-tain.¡± Sally broke into tears and hugged her. Sally could not hold her sadness about losing her friends anymore.


    ¡°I am sorry that I could not protect the others. I was careless.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine, Captain. Death is inevitable, it will come to us sooner or later.¡±


    Sally was right, death will come to them when it is time. Ariana wondered what it would be like if the two were alive and were there.


    ¡°Captain, what was your life like before coming here? I have never heard a lot of your story.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what I should tell you anymore, I told you I attended a military academy in my country and graduated as an officer.¡±


    ¡°Of course, I know all of that.¡± Sally took a peek at Ariana. ¡°I want to know more about your personal life, like about your family.¡±


    Ariana went silent for a while. ¡°My family?¡±


    ¡°Yes, or is it not okay?¡± concerned Sally.


    ¡°No, it is fine¡±¨CAriana looked up to the sky¨C¡± My family is known as traitors in my country.¡±


    ¡°Traitors?¡±


    Ariana looked at Sally, unsure if she wanted to tell her or not. ¡°It was because of my grandfather¡­ He abandoned his order and resulted in the death of many civilian lives.¡± Ariana looked at the field in front of her. ¡°The people were made because he did that. They cursed him for not sacrificing his life.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s like¡­ what you did back then.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I made a pledge to restore my family name, but I just did the same as my grandfather did.¡±


    Sally held Ariana¡¯s hand. Ariana turned to look at her. ¡°Will it be alright? You did it because of me right? Why?¡±


    ¡°Because I grew attached to you, as a friend.¡± Ariana rested her head on Sally¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Back in my country, no one would approach me and I was alone, even when I was at the academy.¡±


    ¡°Why? You were shunned?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Lucas was the first one to understand me and my trouble. He is so kind. I wanted to see him, but I wonder if he knew what I did, what will he say...¡±


    Sally caressed Ariana¡¯s hair. ¡°I see. Do you like him?¡±


    ¡°We-well, I do. Actually, I think we are not just friends anymore.¡±


    ¡°Really? I¡¯ll be rooting for you Captain.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. You know, you can just call me Ariana, since we are friends.¡±


    ¡°Sure, Ariana.¡±


    This new world for Ariana was much kinder compared to the Galactic Imperium. She was able to make a friend and was happier. There was no prejudice towards her and she was not shunned by many. Ariana was tired of being discriminated against just because she was from a traitor family.


    Bianca was looking for Ariana and she found her outside the camp, sitting with Sally. ¡°Lieutenant Ariana.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡± said Ariana.


    Bianca''s expression was of displeasure and disappointment. ¡°Lucas called for you. Follow me.¡±


    ¡°Does he need something?¡± asked Ariana. Her eyes looked cheerful, she finally got to meet him.


    ¡°Take your happy face off,¡± said Bianca, curtly.


    Ariana understood what she meant. ¡°I-i understand.¡± Ariana turned disheartened.


    ¡°L-lady Bianca, if i¨C¡±


    ¡°Soldier, I¡®m not talking to you,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°Leave her alone.¡± Ariana defender Sally.


    ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go.¡± Bianca escorted Ariana to Lucas¡¯ tent. Ariana knew if Lucas heard she disobeyed his order and abandoned it, he would be mad. Ariana never would have thought her meeting with him after the festival would be him calling her for her insubordination. Bianca did not speak to her on the way, she was disappointed at Ariana. They arrived in front of his tent; Ariana steeled herself for whatever she would receive as punishment.

 Chapter 15 - Their Conflict

    Bianca and Ariana entered the tent. Lucas was inside, sitting on the bed. He looked at Bianca and Ariana who went inside the tent. He was cleaning his sword. On the hilt of the sword was a blue tassel attached to it.


    ¡°Lucas, I have brought Ariana,¡± said Bianca.


    Lucas placed the sword down, leaning against the bed. ¡°Thank you, you may leave.¡± Bianca then left Ariana and Lucas alone in the tent.


    Ariana stood to attention. She knew she had done something wrong and was ready to be scolded by Lucas.


    ¡°It looks good on you, the hairpin,¡± said Lucas. Ariana always wore the hairpin he gave her.


    Ariana blushed. ¡°T-thank you¡­ for the gift.¡±


    ¡°Sure... You must know why I called you here.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ have a guess, yes,¡± Ariana spoke in a soft voice.


    Lucas'' expression turned sour. ¡°I expected more from the top-of-the-class officer graduates of Imperial Guard Academy. Didn¡¯t they teach you how to properly follow orders?¡±


    ¡°Yes, they did.¡±


    ¡°Then, do you have excuses for what you did?¡±


    Ariana went silent for a while before answering. ¡°I¡­ felt like we were losing.¡±


    ¡°Did you have a plan for abandoning the area?¡±


    ¡°I did not.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re lying to me.¡± Lucas stepped closer to Ariana, he looked her in her eyes. ¡°I heard you made friends. Two of them died in that battle.¡±


    ¡°My friends are not your concern,¡± said Ariana, sternly.


    ¡°Of course, I don¡¯t care who your friends are. But, I can¡¯t just let it go when they were the ones who made you take the decision to retreat.¡±


    Ariana was surprised; how did he know that? ¡°You¡¯re wron¨C¡±


    ¡°Stop lying, Lieutenant! There was no other reason to retreat from that place.¡±


    Ariana raised her voice in anger. ¡°Yes! That was the reason. Do you know how it felt when you saw your friends die right in front of you¡±¨CTears started to come out from her eyes¨C¡± and you could not do anything? I just watched their bodies turn lifeless and there was nothing I could do.¡±


    Lucas'' expression was nonchalant. Ariana cried in front of him and he did not even care. ¡°If you ask me whether I have experienced it. Then, yes, I have.¡±


    ¡°T-then you understand the feeling of losing them.¡±


    ¡°So what? They have died and there is nothing we can do.¡±


    ¡°What? why¨C You¡¯re a horrible person, how could you be so heartless? Did you even cry when your twin sister die?!¡± said Ariana with an angry tone.


    Lucas was triggered by her statement. Lucy¨Chis twin sister¨Cdied 3 years ago. Her death haunted Lucas since then, it was a memory he wished he could forget. He grabbed Ariana by her collar. ¡±What do you know about her?! What right do you have to comment on my feelings about her death?! Do you even remember her?!¡± Lucas laughed. ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t remember her or even know her. After all, we made all of you forget about her.¡±


    Ariana was surprised by his reaction. She did not know his late twin sister was this important to him. Even more, she did not know he had a twin¨Cshe only knew after Bianca told her. It was strange that a daughter from the Duchy of Lorien would not be known to her, especially when she was from the main family. Who is she and how did she die, thought Ariana.


    ¡°I-im sorry.¡± Ariana apologised, she felt guilty for bringing up his late twin sister. Lucas let go of her clutch and moved a few steps away from her.


    "I don''t want to talk about her right now. You must have known her when Bianca told you about the owner of the hairpin I gave you¡­ Because there is no way you have a memory of her," said Lucas.


    "Yes, she told me." Ariana wanted to know more about Lucy, but she knew it would make him more angry.


    "Heh, of course." Lucas looked at the hairpin on Ariana''s hair with a longing expression. "Let''s go back to the topic. What you did was wrong."


    "I understand."


    "Your insubordination could make the whole plan fail and result in the death of thousands of people. Yeah, just like your grandfather."


    Ariana looked at him and sternly said, "I''m not like him! I''m different."


    "You are! You acted with your feelings and failed to execute the order properly."


    Ariana felt hurt. Lucas saw the soldiers only as pieces that could be thrown and replaced. "Why? Didn¡¯t you feel worried when you sent me there?"


    "What?"


    "Don''t you love me?! Don''t you hesitate to send the person you love to a place where she could die?" Ariana finally said it. She wanted to confirm his feelings for her. She hoped he said ''Yes, I hesitated. Yes, I wish I had not sent you there.''


    "What if I do? I calculated all my decisions precisely and predicted outcomes that might have resulted from them. I have never considered my feelings when making decisions, it is a liability. Weakness."


    "So you don''t even care if I died there?"


    "If you were to die, then it was an unfortunate event."


    Ariana could not believe what she heard. He spoke as if he did not care about her. "What if it was Princess Sophie?"


    "The same."


    "Yo-you really doesn''t care about your love, don''t you?"


    "Love, huh¡­ It''s easy to replace," said Lucas.


    Ariana slapped him in the face. She could not believe words like that came out of his mouth. She knew him as a man who was devoted and doted on his partner. She thought he was a man who was perfect.


    "Replace?! Do you think it is that easy to forget someone you love and move on to love others?"


    Lucas did not answer her question, he stood silent in front of her. Ariana''s eyes were swollen from crying, her cheeks were rivers of tears. "No answer huh? Where is Lucas who was loving and kind? What would Princess Sophie say when she learned the Lucas she knew was no longer here?"


    "She won''t say anything. After all, there was a little hope of us going back."


    "You have changed"


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    "What do you know of me? I have never changed, this is what I always like. I am a noble, a Lorien, love is something I should not have. My life is dedicated to furthering our house''s goal. Yes, my betrothal with Sophie was political, it was meant to strengthen our position. It was a coincidence that I fell in love with her."


    Ariana then understood him. His family taught him to serve them, to be their piece. She wondered why he did not break away from their teaching in this new world, there was no need for him to follow his family¡¯s order. "I see, you are a horrible and twisted person from the beginning. I don''t care anymore. Tell me my punishment," said Ariana. She was disappointed in him.


    ¡°Fine, you are to be relieved from your position as a commander of the regiment and return to your duty as my aide. I hope you learn from your mistakes. If you don¡¯t have anything else to say, you may leave.¡±


    ¡°Understood.¡± She immediately left the tent and ran back into her tent. In her tent, she tried to hold back her crying. But, she could not do it, she cried in silence at her bed until she fell asleep.


    The next day, the army continued to march towards the Capital. Along the way, Duke August convinced nobles who were still neutral to join him and reinforcements from those who were late were coming; he also gave a second chance to the captured soldiers to fight for him and in exchange for their freedom. The army now had 13.000 soldiers¨Cmore than the Aristocratic Faction. Duke August was sure the routed enemy would not return to the siege and instead, they would return to their own places.


    Lucas rode on top of a horse, he led the vanguard¨Cthe Duke led the main army. The road infrastructure between Aruburn and the Capital was not the best. Lucas learned from the Duke that the maintenance of the road was left in the hands of the noble who owned the territory. The late King did not care about regulating the public infrastructure and left the nobles to take care of it by themselves. Lucas saw the King as a fool, a good road infrastructure would be very advantageous in case they were in a war. An army from the Capital could easily travel with ease with a good road to the border.


    The road in the Duke Augustus¡¯s territory was well-maintained, the Duke understood the importance of road networks. During his rule, he built infrastructure connecting villages to Aruburn city and set up patrols on those roads to protect travellers. He was a great leader for his territory, understanding the needs of his citizens and he was loved by the people.


    However, the roads that connected villages and cities were made of dirt; There was no gravel road or paved road. Lucas planned to regulate and build the road infrastructure after he was able to take control of the kingdom¡¯s politics. The late King was weak, in terms of political power, and he gave so much power to the nobles, essentially making the kingdom hugely decentralised. Lucas felt both disappointed and grateful because by looking at the father, the Crown Prince would be easy to control.


    A scout rode back from his scouting.


    ¡°Lord Lucas, I have found a place where we can camp for the night. It is not far from here,¡± reported the scout.


    ¡°Good, we will camp there. Ariana, relay the words.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡± Since that night, Ariana started to call him by his noble title.


    The army then went to the field and camp for the night. They would arrive at the Capital in less than a week. Ariana attended to Lucas, since she was relieved from her commanding position she was no longer able to talk to Sally. While she was at his tent, Bianca came to meet Lucas.


    ¡°Ah, he isn¡¯t here?¡±


    ¡°No, he was called by the Duke.¡±


    Bianca stepped inside the tent. ¡°I see.¡±


    ¡°Do you need something, My Lady?¡± asked Ariana.


    ¡°I just want to meet him, that¡¯s all.¡±


    ¡°I will serve you a drink while you wait.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Ariana served tea to Bianca. Bianca drank the tea, she sat for several minutes without talking.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go with him?¡± asked Bianca.


    Ariana politely answered, ¡°He asked me to stay here.¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡± Bianca took a sip. ¡°How is your relationship with him?¡±


    Ariana did not answer her question. She stood in silence. ¡°I see, whatever happened that night must have left a bad taste,¡± said Bianca. ¡°But, I see that it didn¡¯t completely break you. After all, you still wear that hairpin.¡±


    Ariana still wore the hairpin Lucas gave her, every day. She did not return the hairpin nor throw it away. She was heartbroken, but as she said before to him love could not be replaced easily. She still had lingering feelings for him.


    ¡°Whatever happened that night, I hope you understand why he said all of that. He was a noble raised to be the leader of the Duchy of Lorien, he was the second-in-line to inherit the seat, therefore he was given the same education as his older brother. He was always taught to think for the prosperity of the House and throw his feelings away before making a decision¡­ I know it is cruel to him, but that way of thinking had made the Loriens last for generations.¡±


    Ariana listened to Bianca closely. ¡°It is cruel. The history of the founding of Lorien was full of love, but the descendants were different¡­¡±


    ¡°Heh, that is the life of nobles. Once we were born, our path was set to support our house. You know when we were in Lorien, I was told that a man in his 40s had asked for my hand, and Lucas''s father, Duke Lorien, and my father agreed to the proposal.¡±


    Ariana was surprised. ¡°What? He was that old?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and I would be his second wife after his first wife died a few weeks before the proposal.¡±


    ¡°Did Lucas know?¡±


    ¡°He did not. His father told me to keep my mouth shut, until now I haven¡¯t told him.¡± Bianca took the cup and looked at her reflection in the water. ¡°I was surprised as well, that was the first time I heard about the man. They agreed without asking me, when I was told of the decision, I¡­ was angry, I wish I was born as a normal person, not as a noble. I wanted to experience love and not be bound by my duty to my family.¡±


    ¡°Bianca¡­¡± Ariana could see tears in Bianca''s eyes.


    ¡°At that time, I had given up. My life, my feelings and everything, I tried to steel myself to accept the truth and the future laid down by my family. But, until today I am still afraid. The thought of marrying a man twice your age and being his third wife with a child as old as me¡­¡± Bianca put the cup back on the table. ¡°I wish¡­ I was as strong as Lucy.¡±


    ¡°Lucas'' twin sister?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she was a strong woman even when she was still a child. She and Lucas were the stars and moon of Loriens. Lucas and Lucy complemented each other, they were smart, cunning and¡­ funny. House of Birmingham once asked for Lucy¡¯s hand when she was 15, obviously, her father agreed. However, she challenged them and if she won then the betrothal would be broken off.¡±


    ¡°Did she win?¡±


    Bianca smiled, proud of something. ¡°Of course. She was a determined woman and would do anything to get what she wanted. She was the one who made a new tactic to fight against Roktarian and she proved the tactic by commanding a fleet herself.¡±


    ¡°That new tactic that was used by Loriens Navy? I heard it was made by the Duke itself.¡±


    Bianca realised something; she had spoken too much. ¡°Ah, of course. It doesn¡¯t matter, because no one remembered her.¡±


    ¡°Bianca, I¡¯m curious about her. I have never heard of her before.¡±


    ¡°Of course you are. No one except us, Loriens, remembered her.¡±


    ¡°But, it is weird, how come a person as noble as her wasn¡¯t known throughout the Empire? There was no mention of her name on the books and documents.¡±


    ¡°What did Lucas tell you about her?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, except for his feelings on her death.¡±


    ¡°Then, I can¡¯t tell you anything.¡±


    ¡°I-i understand.¡± Ariana looked disappointed. It seemed her life was a secret closely guarded by Loriens.


    ¡°Lucy¡¯s death changed Lucas forever. It is as if he lost his other half. I tried my best to be like her to cheer him up, but me and her are different... Princess Sophie was the one who was able to heal him, albeit not completely.¡±


    Bianca stood up and walked towards Ariana. ¡°Ariana,¡±¨CBianca hugged Ariana¨C¡± I¡¯m sorry. I was mad that night after I learnt what you did. But, I understood your feeling, because I too saw Lucas almost get killed in the battle.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°It was lucky that I was able to protect him before he was stabbed. His left arm was cut, didn¡¯t you notice it?¡±


    ¡°No, I-i did not.¡±


    ¡°Hah, he is good at hiding it. It must have healed by now.¡± Bianca caressed Ariana''s hair and touched the hairpin. ¡°This hairpin brought a lot of memories. I will tell you more about Lucy when you have become Lady of Lorien.¡±


    ¡°I-i don''t know what I should do. I lashed out at him that night.¡± Ariana then told Bianca about what happened that night. Bianca was saddened when she heard what Lucas said. She knew he must have said something horrible to Ariana, but not that horrible.


    ¡°I will help you. After we capture the Capital, I will talk to him and tell him to apologise to you,¡± assured Bianca.


    ¡°Is it fine though? I have forgiven him already.¡±


    ¡°It is. It¡¯s his fault for saying that to you.... I will make sure your feelings reach him if you still have them.¡±


    Ariana smiled. ¡°I still have hope for him.¡±


    ¡°Great. Then, I will leave now.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to wait for him?¡±


    ¡°No, I was meaning to talk to you anyway. See you, Ariana.¡±


    ¡°See you, Bianca.¡±


    When Lucas came back from his meeting with the Duke, Ariana told him about Bianca wanting to meet him. She also asked about the wound he had on his arm. Lucas showed the wound on his arm, however, the wound had completely healed.

 Chapter 16 - Disease

    The Duke¡¯s army arrived on the field near the capital. They were ready to engage the enemy forces. For a few days before they arrived, countless raids had been executed on the enemy camp and gatherer force. After the battle of Yurigad, Lucas ordered Sarah to take a detachment of cavalry forces to raid the besieging army. She did an amazing job of raiding them because, after 2 months of siege, the Aristocratic army had spent all of their supply and turned to gather to feed their troops.


    However, the gatherer force had been under constant raids by Sarah¡¯s detachment. Every time a gatherer unit was sent out, they would be attacked and destroyed. The Aristocratic army tried to solve this problem, they sent out a bigger force when they gathered. It worked, since Sarah did not want to pick a fight and lost many of her forces. She turned to attack the camp and their supply storage at night, and in turn, the Aristocratic army had to put more guards at night.


    To make matters worse, Sarah''s attack was irregular. She would one day attack at once in different places; the other day she would attack at different times throughout the night. She used deception too, she would fake an attack on one side then wait for reinforcement to get there and then attack the weakened side; sometimes she would fake an attack to keep the enemy on guard for the whole night. The aristocratic army ended up fighting both day and night. On the day, they would try to advance to the city¡¯s wall and gather for food, and on the night, they would fend off a raid from Sarah.


    Lucas wanted to tire them before the main fight. A tired army would be easier to defeat than a well-rested one. He saw the defence works of the enemy¡¯s camp had been destroyed or broken, the raid made a huge toll on their defences. He immediately ordered the army to go forward and charged at the enemy. The tired enemy immediately assembled and took formation to fight Lucas and his army.


    Lucas positioned his army in the Oblique Order¨Cthe same tactic he used in the Battle of Yurigad. Oblique Order was a military tactic whereby an army focused the majority of its forces in one single flank to achieve victory by defeating one enemy flank. If they were able to achieve victory on that flank, then they could defeat the enemy in detail.


    The tactic usually would be used by an army with equal or weaker strength than the enemy. He did use this tactic for the Battle of Yurigad to achieve local superiority in numbers. Oblique Order required discipline by the soldiers to be executed well.


    Lucas stayed behind to command his army since Bianca prohibited him from joining the fight¨Cshe was mad when he got hurt at the battle of Yurigad. His army easily overpowered the exhausted enemy army.


    ¡°Sarah did their job well, huh,¡± said Lucas. He looked at the battlefield.


    Bianca, who rode beside him, said, ¡°Yeah, she really knows how to put pressure on the enemy.¡±


    ¡°I hope all the nobles are killed in this battle.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t want to clean up this mess.¡±


    Ariana rode behind them, watching the battlefield. She saw the destruction and carnage on the battlefield and hoped Sally was safe there.


    ¡°Soon we will meet a royalty from this kingdom,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°If they are still alive¡­ and if we can find them.¡± Lucas emphasised the word ¡®find¡¯.


    ¡°Right, if we find them.¡± Bianca sighed.


    ¡°Honestly, it would be better if they died or gone forever. We can leverage the nobles to support us and have this kingdom for ourselves.¡±


    "Ruthless as always."


    Lucas chuckled. "I will be a benevolent ruler, perhaps."


    "I''m having a hard time believing that. I''m sure your first order will be stained with blood. Just like you were always taught."


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious, as a ruler you have to be feared not hated. Eliminate all the possibilities of threat to your rule at once. If you are cruel at the beginning of your rule then you give your people protection and prosperity, they will forget about your cruelty and they will fear you and not hate you.¡±


    Niccolo Machiavelli was a diplomat and philosopher from the Florence Republic in the Renaissance Age. He was known for his work Il Principe¨CThe Prince. Even until the Space Age his work was still used and referred to by many. He wrote The Prince as a guide for new royals or princes¨Cleaders. In The Prince, Machiavelli justified the immoral means taken by princes to reach their goals¨Cglory and survival.


    One of his ideas was the use of cruelty as a means to reign the populaces and his army; A prince should be feared to keep his subjects obedient, however, he shall not be hated. For hate would bring destruction upon him. To avoid hatred, a prince should leave his subjects'' property alone and not interfere with their daily lives, especially the common folks.


    If a prince wanted to take over a power and secured it with wicked deeds, he shall do it at once. His subjects would slowly forget the cruel deeds and the prince could better align themselves with his subjects. If a prince failed to do so, and hesitated on their ruthlessness, he would rule with fear of disloyalty from his subjects.


    Lucas, if he ascended to the throne, planned to eliminate those who would be a threat to his rule. Then, he would execute his plan to build this country into a prosperous country, feared by many. With those, his rule would be secure, people would fear him and respect him, and his family name would be cemented on the country¡¯s foundation.


    ¡°I would like to not conquer this world by means of military power. We should make them submit to us with our other powers,¡± said Bianca.


    Lucas nodded.¡°I have the same opinion as you. We should learn more about the politics of the nations on this planet to see what we can do.¡±


    The battle was a complete victory for Duke August, his army was able to completely rout the besieging army. The defender of the Capital opened the gate to let Duke August and his army enter the Capital¨CRomanovia.


    The Capital, Romanovia, was named after the family name of the royal family, Romanova. The city was bigger than Aruburn and it had better defensive walls and weaponry. The city was protected by a magical barrier that can deflect any magical attack aimed at the city. The main street was large and the building on the main street looked nice and tall. There was a huge castle used as the residence of the royal family and the centre of the kingdom¡¯s politics, located deep inside the city on the south-western corner protected with a second wall; on top of the cliff overlooking the plain on the west and forest to the south of the city.


    The citizens of the city cheered the Duke and his army when they entered the city and marched through the street. Petals of flowers were thrown to the army, songs of praise were sung and cries of happiness and relief were heard. The city was under siege for 6 months and the supplies on the city were dwindling. There was a disease in the city.


    Duke August and Lucas arrived at the castle, they were greeted by Marquess Kimi Petrova, commander of the city defence when it was besieged. He told them that the Queen have been found.


    ¡°Sadly, she didn¡¯t know the whereabouts of the Crown Prince,¡± said Marquess Petrova.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine, at least we found her alive.¡±


    ¡°About that... She is bedridden.¡±


    ¡°What? Bring us to her!¡±


    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    The Marquess led them to her chamber, on the bed was a woman, lying down with a weakened expression, her eyes sunken and the skin on her hand wrinkled. In the room with her was a doctor and maids, one maid, in particular, piqued Lucas. She was kneeling beside the bed and held the Queen''s hand, crying. They looked like they were talking before Lucas and the other came in. The maid had beautiful straight black hair, like a night sky. Her purple eyes radiated a mysterious aura. Lucas did not know what drew him to her, he felt she was too beautiful and well-maintained for a maid. However, he remembered Sophie¡¯s personal attendant was a noble. He guessed she must have been the Queen¡¯s attendant from a noble family.


    ¡°What are the symptoms?¡± asked Bianca.


    The doctor answered, ¡°She had diarrhoea and vomiting. Her breathing was deep and hard. I believe it is food poisoning.¡±


    Bianca walked forward to the bed to get a closer look at the Queen¡¯s condition.


    ¡°Hey, what ar¨C¡±


    ¡°Let her Kimi. She is the best doctor I know,¡± said Duke August.


    ¡°What?¡±


    Bianca touched the Queen''s arm and checked her pulse. There was no fever and her breathing was hard. ¡°Max, get me my med bag,¡± said Bianca. Max left the room to get her bag.


    ¡°Uuumm, excuse me, what are you going to do to her?¡± the black hair maid asked Bianca.


    ¡°Hm? Healing her of course.¡±


    ¡°Can you do that?¡±


    ¡°Of course, I can!¡±


    The maid leapt forward and clasped Bianca¡¯s hand. ¡°Please, help her.¡± Her eyes glistened with tears.


    Bianca smiled. ¡°Ah, I need all of you who are not attending to her to leave the room. I don¡¯t want the disease to spread.¡± Everyone except the doctor and the maids left the room.


    Bianca asked about the colour of the diarrhoea. The doctor said it was white and smelled fishy. She concluded the Queen and the people of the city must have contracted Cholera. Cholera was an infectious disease spread through means of oral transmission or through water. The siege had made sanitation inside the city worse, some water sources in the city had been infected with the bacteria Vibrio Cholerae.


    Cholera was an easy disease to treat, as long as the source of the infection was eradicated. The most basic treatment was to give the patient Oral Rehydration Therapy regularly until they healed to give them much-needed fluids that were lost when vomiting or having diarrhoea to prevent dehydration. The therapy was to drink water mixed with sugar and salt.


    Max came back with the medical bag. She rummaged around the bag and took out an IV bag. The Queen had entered the stage of severe dehydration and her fingers already turned to blueish colour. The administration of IV bags was needed to quickly administer fluids to treat the severe dehydration. The doctor asked about the IV bag and she explained it to him.


    After telling the doctor about the ORT and how to administer them, she ordered the maids to change their clothes and bedding and washed them with hot water to sterilise them. Bianca also ordered them to change the Queen''s clothes regularly and when she had diarrhoea to prevent the spread of infection.


    Bianca went outside the room and told the Duke and the Marquess on how to deal with the disease. She told them about Oral Rehydration Therapy to treat the infected. She also asked them to track and locate the source of the contaminated water inside the city and around the city, luckily Lyra¨Cwho had been on a mission for months and now was back with them¨Chad the capability to detect bacteria in the water.


    She wanted them to close the place where the contaminated water was and reported it to her. She also told them about sanitization when dealing with the infected and how to treat materials that went in contact with the faecal matters of the infected.


    The Duke and the Marquess immediately went to work on fighting the disease. The majority of the Duke''s army was told to stay outside the city and not go inside until the disease had been solved. Contaminated water sources were immediately closed off by the soldiers and Oral Rehydration Therapy was immediately spread and administered to the infected.


    Bianca discovered she could boil the contaminated water sources to sterilise it using magic and eradicated the bacteria in the water. Within a month, the disease was gone and Bianca recommended the Duke to pay more attention to the sewage and water contamination.


    After the disease, Bianca fell ill due to exhaustion. She had overworked herself for a month and her body could not take it any longer. Lucas visited Bianca''s room to check on her condition, her face was red and she had a high fever.


    Lucas looked at Bianca, she looked lifeless. ¡°Are you dead?¡±


    Bianca raised her middle finger to Lucas. ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°Too bad, still alive.¡± Lucas petted Bianca''s head. ¡°You are a hero, Bianca.¡±


    ¡°Hmm.¡± She groaned in pain.


    ¡°You shouldn¡¯t exert yourself too much. If Lucy was still here she would be mad, you know, seeing you like this.¡±


    ¡°Lucy huh, I miss her.¡±


    ¡°So do I.¡± Lucas sat on the bed.


    ¡°She¡­ was strong, confident¡­ she is perfect to be beside you¡­unlike me.¡±


    ¡°Are you comparing yourself to her?¡±


    ¡°Uhm¡±


    Bianca, Lucas and Lucy were born in the same year. Since childhood they were always together, people sometimes would call them triplet of Lorien. Despite being together and growing up together, Bianca always felt she was different from them¨Cinferior to them. She was jealous of Lucy, she saw her as a person who was motivated, strong and loved by Lucas. She wanted him to look at her and be proud of her. After Lucy¡¯s death, Bianca was distressed, she always looked up to Lucy and she was her inspiration to grow and improve herself.


    She promised herself to be Lucy¡¯s replacement for Lucas. However, she felt she was lacking to be like her and she always bit off more than she could chew. Lucas knew about this, he had told her to be herself. As stubborn as she was, she kept doing it. Her effort was fruitful, she became an officer of the Imperial Guard and had vast knowledge of medicines. She was proud of herself and was able to look Lucas in the eyes. However, her dreams and efforts were thrown into the bin when Duke Lorien told her about the arranged marriage. She then understood she could not break free of her duty as a tool of her family. She did not have the courage to challenge the Duke¡¯s decision¨Cunlike Lucy.


    However, she did not know Lucas had heard about the news and had talked to his father about the matter. He threatened his father to turn down the offer, the Duke conceded and he was in the process of handling the matter after they left for Earth. Lucas almost did the same thing when he heard about Lucy¡¯s arranged marriage, however before he could do anything Lucy had acted on her own to convince their father.


    ¡°I have told you before, you don¡¯t have to be like her. Just be yourself, as you always have been.¡±


    ¡°No¡­ I want you to¡­ depend on me,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°I have always been dependent on you, even before her death. Bianca, you¡¯re not just a cousin to me, I think of you as a sister, just like her. Nothing more, nothing less.¡±


    ¡°Only¡­ sister huh. I guess¡­ that¡¯s good enough¡­¡±


    ¡°Go back to sleep now. You will get better after resting.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­¡±


    Lucas waited in her room until she fell asleep. It reminded him of when they were a child, back then Bianca was sick from the flu, and he and Lucy waited on her in her room. Joking, telling a story and many other things they could do to cheer her up. Lucy then caught the flu from Bianca, since she snuck up from her room then slept on Bianca¡¯s bed together with her when she was sick; Even though her maid told her not to do it. Obviously, Lucy got a scolding from her maid.


    When Lucas was about to get up and leave, a knock came from the door. He told the person to come in, it was the maid with the straight black hair. Her name was Anna and when Lucas asked her before whether she was the Queen¡¯s closest maid, she said yes. She brought flowers with her.


    ¡°Coming here to replace the flowers?¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡±


    Anna had been coming over every day since Bianca fell ill to change the flowers in Bianca''s room. Bianca told Lucas she never spoke much whenever she came to do it, albeit Bianca was awake only once when she visited.


    ¡°How is Her Majesty''s condition?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°She is getting better, she said she would like to meet with you.¡±


    Lucas wanted to meet the Queen to ask her about the whereabouts of the Crown Prince. However, she had a frail body and her recovery from Cholera took a long time; she struck the flu after recovering from Cholera. Bianca told Lucas not to meet her and ask her anything about the Crown Prince before she has completely recovered. Bianca was afraid the physiological burden of losing her only child would make her health worsen.


    But, Bianca was bedridden and ill and she had told him not to meet the Queen until she had given a clearance. As much as he wanted to ask the Queen and find the Crown Prince as quickly as possible, he knew Bianca would throw a fit if the Queen fell ill again.


    ¡°Thank you for the information. But, I¡¯ll meet her after Bianca has recovered.¡±


    ¡°Understood, I¡¯ll tell Her Majesty.¡±


    Anna was about to leave, when Lucas said, "Are you busy after this?"


    "No, I''m not. Do you need something?"


    "I''d like to talk with you, let''s walk outside."


    "Yes, My Lord."

 Chapter 17 - Anna, The Maid?

    Lucas walked through the hallway with Anna trailing just behind him. Anna, in Lucas¡¯s eyes, was a mysterious woman and someone who was hard to read. Lucas had keen eyes and intuition for reading people''s faces and minds, however for him Anna was like a blank canvas. Her expressionless face and perfect demeanour made her impenetrable, she was Lucas¡¯s worst enemy, if she was one. It was as if she was trained to hide her identity by living as someone else. But why would she do that? Is she a spy planted in the Kingdom? Lucas thought.


    However, Lucas doubted she was a spy, because why would a spy cry when the Kingdom¡¯s Queen was dying on her bed, even encouraging someone else to heal her? Unless she was an experienced spy with great acting and committed to her mission. He wanted to make sure she was not a spy, but expending resources other than looking for the Crown Prince was not in Lucas¡¯ best interest.


    Lucas''s observation found out Anna did not talk much, she would only answer when asked. Lucas was mesmerised by Anna, he wanted to know more about her, about what she felt and he wanted to break her expressionless face. Lucas loved challenges and when he faced one, he wanted to solve them; For him, Anna was a challenge.


    ¡°We haven¡¯t talked a lot, have we,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Why would we, My Lord?¡± Anna was right, there was no reason for Lucas and Anna to converse about anything. She was just a maid for the Queen.


    They arrived at the garden, it was a beautiful sight. A garden always reminded Lucas of Sophie because she loved flowers. She would always be excited when she saw a garden. The Duke, Lucas'' father, built a garden on Lorien just for her; until now Lucas did not know the reason why his father did that.


    There were many kinds of flowers there and all of them were well-maintained.


    "Does the Queen like flowers?"


    "Yes, she does."


    "Did the King build this for her?"


    "Kinda." She answered him with a brusque reply.


    Lucas saw Lilies'' flowers, he stopped to observe the flower. Lucas always thought Lily did not represent his House correctly, rather Magnolia flower would be the perfect symbol for Lorien. Magnolia was said to be the oldest flower on Earth and had stood the test of time and survived the whole changes of Earth. Just like the House of Lorien, which was created at the beginning of the Galactic Imperium and survived until today.


    ¡°That¡¯s lilies, it was known as the flower of the Lilium Empire.¡±


    ¡°Lilium Empire?¡±


    ¡°An ancient empire. They once ruled over the continent, but years ago they fell into ruin.¡±


    ¡°What happened to them?¡±


    ¡°No one knows. All the records of the Empire were gone after they fell.¡±


    ¡°Did this empire leave something¡­like ruins or weapons?¡±


    Anna fell silent for a while. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Hmm... so their known legacy was this flower.¡±


    Lucas thought that the Lilium Empire had the same flower as the Duchy of Lorien was just a coincidence. There was not enough evidence to connect the Lilium Empire to the missing expedition, except for its similarity of having Lilies as their symbol. Lucas plucked a lily and held it in his hand.


    ¡°Do you know what Lily flower means, Anna?¡±


    ¡°Purity.¡±


    ¡°Correct. The purity and innocence of this flower symbolise the love of my ancestor.¡±


    ¡°Your ancestor?¡±


    ¡°Yes. My house was created from the beginning of my country''s foundation and has faithfully served the nation until today. Lilies became the symbol of my house because the first Duke loved her wife so much0.¡±


    ¡°Are you related to the Lilium Empire?¡±


    ¡°No. As far as I know.¡± Lucas walked closer to Anna and placed the flower above her ear. ¡°But, behind the innocent face of my house, it hides the darkness and wickedness behind it. Who knows if they are related.¡±


    "Every family has its own secret, My Lord."


    "That''s true. In every person there is darkness dwelling inside, waiting for the time to reveal itself."


    Anna looked at Lucas intensely. "I will listen to your problem," said Anna.


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    Lucas was startled. "What?"


    "You looked hurt since we arrived in this garden."


    Lucas was surprised when she said all that. Anna was able to see through his emotion or perhaps his emotion was leaking out and she was able to see it. However, this was what Lucas needed, since he arrived here and was stuck on this planet he had kept up all of his worry and emotion to himself. He had to hide his fear and worry and show his confidence to everyone in his crew. Unbeknownst to him, Bianca knew he was hiding his fear and worry.


    Lucas sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll take on your offer.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡±


    ¡°Where should I begin¡­ I truly missed my home. Yes, there was once a time when I felt I wanted to leave that place. But¡­ that place has memories of her. Anna, do you have siblings?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°I see. I have¡­ had a twin sister, she was a part of me, literally. We were born together, grew up together, cried together, and laughed together. We shared everything in our lives and we supported each other. But, after that incident, everything changed. She wasn¡¯t what she was before, I know the incident left a deep scar on her psyche. I wish she would talk to me and tell me everything she had on her mind, so I could prevent her death.¡± Lucas touched the flower on Anna¡¯s head. ¡°Lilies were her favourite flower and every time I saw this flower, I saw her, laughing and having a good time. Back then, I tried to do everything I can to try talking to her, but as if she was a statue, she just stayed silent with an expressionless face and dead eyes.¡±


    Suddenly, Anna hugged Lucas. This surprised him, but he let her hug him. ¡°There, there¡­ Fairies bring the tears away,¡± said Anna.


    ¡°A-anna?¡± Lucas was dumbfounded.


    ¡°My mother always hugged me when I felt sad, and then I will feel better after that. So, I¡¯m hugging you to make you feel better.¡±


    Luca laughed at her reasoning, but she had a point, the hug made him feel better and warm inside. ¡°I see. Your mother is a good one.¡±


    ¡°She is a good mom. I love her more than anything.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like to meet her?¡±


    ¡°... You will meet her¡­ Probably¡±


    ¡°Okay, can I continue my story?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Lucas told her all the worries he had buried inside him. He felt relieved after telling Anna everything, she didn¡¯t speak much or respond to his story. But, Lucas knew Anna was listening to his story earnestly. Her small figure made her look younger than she was, but Anna was the same age as Sophie. Anna then excused herself after Lucas had told her everything.


    She went to the Queen¡¯s chamber to check on her condition.


    ¡°Greeting, Your Majesty,¡± said Anna.


    ¡°Hello, Anna. Where have you been?¡± said the Queen, Mira. She was sitting on her bed and two maids were waiting for her in the room.


    ¡°I had a chat with Lord Lucas.¡±


    ¡°Oh, wonderful.¡± the Queen turned her attention to the two maids. ¡°Both of you thank you for waiting for me, Anna is here so you may leave for now.¡±


    Both maids then left the room. ¡°Are you getting better, Your Majesty?¡± asked Anna.


    ¡°You can drop the act, Anastasia. No one is in this room.¡±


    ¡°Yes, mother.¡±


    ¡°Nice flowers,¡± said Queen Mira, chuckling.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°On your hair, over your left ear. There is a flower.¡±


    Anna reached out to her hair and picked the flower from her hair. ¡°Ah, he put this in there while we were in the garden.¡±


    ¡°It looks good on you. You should try wearing something other than your maid''s headdress.¡±


    ¡°There is no need, mother. Ah, Lord Lucas said he will meet you when Lady Bianca has recovered.¡±


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s fine. Hmm... Lady Bianca worked hard to eradicate the disease within the Capital, I wondered what I should give her as a reward?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think there is something we can give her that matches her achievement.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re correct. Their country looked much more advanced than ours. Still, if they are stuck in this place and could not get back I think we can grant them a noble title with a land to rule. I¡¯m sure with their knowledge it will bring us prosperity.¡±


    ¡°How did you know that they are stuck in here?¡±


    ¡°Duke Aruburn visited me when you were away. He told me about Lucas and his people.¡±


    The Queen told Anna¨CAnastasia¨Ceverything she knew about Lucas and his people that Duke Aruburn told her. Anna could not believe what she heard.


    ¡°They defeated a ten thousand-strong army? By themselves?¡± said Anna in disbelief.


    ¡°Yes, the Duke said they targeted the commanders and nobles of the army. Leaving the army leaderless.¡±


    Anna was amazed by that idea. ¡°Right, by removing their commanders, the army will be leaderless and chaos will ensue within the army since there is no clear line of command. Mother, if an army has a clear line of command and protocols to follow in case of the death of their superior, it would prevent the collapse of the army.¡±


    The Queen patted Anna¡¯s head. ¡°Yes, Anna. With your bright mind, you will be a great Queen for this kingdom.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to.be the Queen...¡±


    ¡°Anastasia, the people need you, you learned everything needed to become Queen of this kingdom. Don¡¯t waste it away.¡±


    ¡°I-i don¡¯t think I have the capabilities to lead them.¡± She was not confident of herself being a leader of the Kingdom.


    ¡°Anna. Look at me.¡± Anna turned his gaze to the Queen. ¡°You are different from your father. I know you hate your father, he wasn¡¯t the best person. I agree. He changed when he became a King, he who was a sweet and loving person became a coward and debaucherous. But, you, Anna, you¡¯re not him.¡±


    Anna turned his gaze away from the Queen. ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Duke Aruburn, Marques Petrova, nobles and the people of this kingdom are waiting for you. Even Lucas and all of his companions are looking for you. Princess Anastasia¡­¡± Anna did not respond to her mother''s plea, but the Queen knew, deep inside Anna cared about the people of the Kingdom.

 Chapter 18 - After Them

    The Wallowing Forest was known as a forest full of dangerous creatures and floras. The deeper someone goes into the forest, the more dangerous the creatures of the forest. Only fools would enter the forest willingly. A huge winged creature resided in the mountain inside the forest, the people feared the creature, they called the creature, Wallowing Dragon. The Wallowing Dragon once attacked Aruburn City and almost completely destroyed the city. Auburn City itself was built to protect the kingdom from the creatures that came out from the forest. Many generations of the Duke of Aruburn had their fair share of challenges when they ruled the Duchy to protect the kingdom from the creatures of the forest.


    However, the people of the kingdom did not know the fact that the Wallowing Dragon they feared so much had been killed by a group of people who accidentally stumbled upon it. The carcass of the Wallowing Dragon lay inside the forest, some parts of the body looked like it was eaten.


    A couple of figures looked at the carcass of the Dragon.


    ¡°This dragon was taken down immediately,¡± said one figure.


    ¡°Multiple wounds to the body, precise shot, and probably explosion,¡± said the other.


    They looked around the area around the carcass, they found wolf carcasses.


    ¡°Multiple wolves were killed as well¡­ Wait, it can¡¯t be, Clark!¡±


    ¡°What is it, Eric?¡±


    ¡°Look at this, a bullet casing.¡± Eric picked up a leftover cartridge. ¡°And there are more of them.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± Clark observed the cartridges. ¡°This is the standard ammo used by our service rifles.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t remember we ever sent someone to take care of this dragon. And I don¡¯t think this ammunition could take down this huge creature.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right. There are maybe more clues. Let¡¯s expand our search area.¡±


    Clark and Eric looked around the area until they found a clearing inside the forest. They saw a burned patch of grass, multiple of them. They also saw a campfire.


    Eric touched the campfire. ¡°It had not been used for a long time, but looking at the conditions of the campfire and the logs and stones used as, probably, chairs. This place was new.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, look at his burned patch. Do you think it looked too uniform and perfect to be a random burn?¡±


    ¡°No, this is probably what I think it is.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. But, how come we did not detect them?¡±


    ¡°Probably the Galactic Imperium technology had advanced enough to be able to evade our radar detection.¡±


    ¡°Hahhh, that¡¯s right. It had been centuries since our ancestors left the Empire.¡±


    ¡°Do you think they have expanded here?¡±


    Clark shrugged his shoulders. ¡°No idea. We should get back to Aruburn for now. If they landed here, they must have gone there. We should ask around.¡±


    ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go.¡±


    Eric and Clark arrived at Aruburn City a week later. When they arrived, the sun was coming down to the horizon. They immediately went into an inn and rented rooms. They decided to gather information by listening to the conversation of the patrons of the inn. A lot was talked about by people in the inn and one thing that caught their attention was a conversation about travellers from far away land. The conversation was between a man with the body of a fighter and his friend. Eric and Clark decided to gather more information from them.


    ¡°Hello there, may we join?¡± Eric said with a friendly tone.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you? Fuck off!¡± said the man.


    Clark pulled out a bag of shillings¨Cthis world''s money. ¡°Come on, let us treat you both.¡±


    Shilling was the name of the money used in this world, consisting of copper coin, silver coin and gold coin; A copper coin was worth 1 shilling, a silver coin was worth 10 shillings and a gold coin was worth 100 shillings.


    ¡°Well, I guess I can loosen my lips a bit for tonight.¡±


    The man was a knight of Aruburn, he was in a detachment left in the city to defend the city. He told the pair about the travellers of a distant land. They wore fine clothing, at first the knights thought they were all nobles, however, they were told only 3 of them were nobles and the rest were soldiers. The knight also told them, the travellers were all part of the military of their country and the fine clothing was their uniform.


    ¡°So, I want to know more about the nobles, what is their family name?¡± asked Eric.


    ¡°All of them are from the same family, umm¡­ It was Lorien, I believe.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re joking, right?¡± Eric was surprised.


    ¡°No, it was their name.¡±


    ¡°What do they look like?¡±


    ¡°Well, one similarity they have to each other is their white colour hair, probably a trait of their family.¡±


    Eric and Clark looked at each other, it seemed they had the same thought. ¡°I see, where are they now?¡± asked Clark.


    ¡°They joined the Duke¡¯s army going to the Capital.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the information.¡±


    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ¡°No problem.¡±


    Eric and Clark immediately went into the room they rented. They made sure they were alone and no one was eavesdropping on them.


    ¡°A Lorien? Eric, do you think he said the truth?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. But, by the way, he talked it seemed he told the truth.¡±


    ¡°But how? There are no descendants of Lorien outside Elsewen.¡±


    ¡°We should report this information back to Her Majesty.¡±


    ¡°Agree, we should leave immediately tomorrow morning. If we are lucky they are friendly and not part of the rebels.¡±


    By the morning, Eric and Clark departed from the city. However, unbeknownst to them, the knight who told them the story had told his commander about them. Suspicious, the commander ordered Eric and Clark to be followed, however, the people who were tasked to follow them lost both of them after they went outside the city. A messenger was sent to Duke Aruburn about this, the Duke was suspicious about the people who were asking about Lucas and his companions. The Duke, however, did not tell Lucas about this, he told his men to investigate Eric and Clark. The Duke speculated they would go after them to the Capital and had told his men to report to him if they saw a person with a matching description of Eric and Clark.


    Bianca had recovered from her illness, she was bedridden for 5 days. Bianca, Ariana and Lucas were in Bianca¡¯s room.


    Bianca asked, ¡°Where are Max and Sarah?¡±


    ¡°They are with the Duke August,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Hmm, busy as always.¡±


    ¡°They are dealing with the aftermath of the disease and reorganisation of the army of the kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Why wasn''t Ariana involved?¡±


    ¡°She was in charge of fixing the kingdom¡¯s administration, especially the financial sector. You know this world hasn¡¯t used modern bookkeeping methods.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a hard one, especially when the kingdom is in regency.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine with that, I was tasked to re-record the financial report into double-entry bookkeeping,¡± said Ariana. Bianca observed there was no improvement in the relationship between Lucas and Ariana, since their quarrel a month ago.


    Although it was Ariana¡¯s fault for disobeying Lucas¡¯s order and mentioning Lucy in front of Lucas, Bianca thought it was too much of a lash-out from Lucas to Ariana. Before, they had a great relationship and Lucas had begun to open his heart up to another woman. Now, all of that had crumbled to dust just because of a small altercation between a commander and his officer. Bianca thought


    ¡°We need to ensure the kingdom¡¯s finances are recorded properly. Also, we can weed out embezzlers this way,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right,¡± Bianca agreed to Lucas'' idea.


    Ariana¡¯s initial finding found that most of the administrators were embezzling from the kingdom¡¯s treasury. When this was brought to Duke August, he ordered Ariana to arrest everyone who was embezzling the money. However, since they did not have the Crown¡¯s authority, the effort proved to be difficult, since arresting nobles could ruin the Duke¡¯s name. Lucas told the Duke and Ariana to keep silent and keep investigating the embezzlement secretly until they could be arrested when the Crown Prince was anointed.


    ¡°Since we don¡¯t have the crown¡¯s authority, arresting nobles would be seen as treason to the Crown. Even the Duke couldn¡¯t do anything,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°Hah, I knew it. As long as there is no King, the nobles are cunt,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°The Crown Prince still not found?¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°Yeah, even the Queen did not know where he was.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s bad.¡±


    ¡°Talking about the Queen, we should meet her, she asked for us to come.¡±


    ¡°Really? All of us?¡±


    ¡°No, only you and me.¡±


    ¡°Huh, interesting. Anyway, I haven¡¯t seen Lyra for a long time, where is she?¡±


    ¡°She is on a mission, I¡¯ll tell you the details later,¡± said Lucas. Bianca could see Lucas was hiding something from everyone, but her. She guessed the information was for the House only.


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s arrange a meeting with Her Majesty.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°No you don¡¯t have to, we can just ask the maid here.¡± Bianca refused her offer.


    ¡°No need, I¡¯m Lucas¡¯ aide, so it falls under my job.¡±


    ¡°She is right, Bianca,¡± said Lucas. Bianca looked at him with a disapproving expression. ¡°Then, go ahead and ask Her Majesty.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡± Ariana left the room. Leaving both Lucas and Bianca alone in the room.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± said Bianca,


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Acting cold and nonchalant to her.¡±


    Lucas walked toward the window, he looked outside. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that?¡±


    ¡°I thought you loved her?¡±


    ¡°Love her?¡± Lucas turned his head to Bianca. ¡°I guess, I do love her.¡±


    ¡°The¨C¡±


    ¡°But, she said something she shouldn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Lucy, right?¡±


    Lucas nodded. ¡°It was you who told her right?¡±


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    Lucas clenched his fist. ¡°I still don¡¯t know what goes through my father''s mind. In order to save me, he removed people¡¯s memories of her. If I knew about that, I would prefer to be locked up and pay for my crime.¡±


    ¡°Lucas¡­¡± Bianca had stood alongside him, she held his hand.


    ¡°I knew all the people on that planet were innocent. Their blood is in my hands and I can¡¯t wash it off. That time, I wasn¡¯t in the right mind, I still remembered you begging me to stop.¡±


    ¡°But, you still did it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sorry. Because of my actions, only a few remembered Lucy.¡±


    Bianca flicked Lucas¡¯s forehead with her finger. ¡°Stupid.¡±


    ¡°Ouch, what was that for?¡±


    ¡°There you go again. Blaming yourself again! Listen here, what happened in the past is in the past. Yes, you did a horrible thing, those innocent people didn¡¯t deserve the same punishment as the noble who led the planet. Even Lucy would hate you for that.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right. Lucy would hate me.¡±


    ¡°Her death wasn¡¯t your fault either. When we were born as Loriens, death, assassination even kidnapping would always be at our door. Lucy, too, knew the consequences. It must have been hard for her¡­ her kidnapping.¡±


    ¡°She should have told us what her feelings were, instead of keeping silent.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s how she was. She tried to look strong, so as to not worry us. She is a foolish girl, being strong doesn¡¯t mean keeping her problems to herself. Anyway, It wasn¡¯t your fault that she died. Listen, your sin of killing those innocent people, I don¡¯t think you can wash it away. That¡¯s why, I think you can, at least, lessen your sin.¡±


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°Just like you have planned before. Unite this planet and bring this planet¡¯s civilization to survive until the Galactic Empire discovers this place. Even better, make this civilization into a space-faring civilization. We don¡¯t know if this civilization originated from the lost Lorien expeditions centuries ago, but if it is then we should be able to find ruins or relics from the expedition.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, honestly, I¡¯ve been thinking your theory is the most possible one. Nothing can explain this much similarity between our civilizations.¡±


    ¡°Correct. We need to learn more.¡±

 Chapter 19 - Prince(ss)

    The next day, Lucas and Bianca were called to meet Queen Mira. Queen Mira called them to one of the reception rooms inside the castle. In there, Queen Mira was accompanied by Anna. She let both of them sit down. Queen Mira looked much better than the last time Lucas visited her, her expression was much brighter and her eyes were full of life. Her body was much healthier and she looked much more beautiful than when she was ill. Her beauty captivated Lucas, even though she was in her 40s, she still looked great. Lucas was so absorbed gazing at Queen Mira, she could not help but notice his enthralled gaze.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lord Lucas, is there something in my face?¡± said Queen Mira with a smile.


    ¡°Ah.¡± Lucas was woken up by his gaze. ¡°I-i¡¯m sorry, if I may be frank, you look beautiful for your age.¡±


    ¡°You must jest, Lord Lucas. How could you say that to a woman with a child¡­ or perhaps you¡¯re into an older woman.¡±


    ¡°Who knows, perhaps I a¨C ouch!¡± Before Lucas could finish his sentence, Bianca pinched his arm.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. Lucas was just joking, he didn¡¯t mean any of it,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine with it. A light joke will make our day better,¡± said Queen Mira, chuckling.


    ¡°But, I¨C¡±


    ¡°Shut up, Lucas.¡± Bianca pinched his arm again. ¡°Your Majesty, may I check your condition?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Bianca immediately went ahead and checked Queen Mira¡¯s condition, she did a physical examination on her. Bianca told her and Anna about Queen Mira¡¯s diet to ensure her health. Meanwhile, Lucas just observed their conversation from where he was seated, he noticed something interesting. With Queen Mira in healthy condition, Lucas noticed a similarity between her face and Anna¡¯s face, especially their eyes; Both of them had the same eye colour. However, Lucas was told the Queen never had a daughter. Lucas thought if she was her daughter with another man, but the colour of Anna''s hair was black, the same as the late King¡¯s hair; If she was indeed the late King¡¯s daughter, why would they hide her?


    Bianca had finished checking Queen Mira¡¯s condition and she returned to sit next to Lucas.


    ¡°You¡¯re very talented, Lady Bianca.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, Your Majesty. My knowledge is nothing compared to the rest of the medical professionals in my country.¡±


    ¡°Your country is amazing, I wonder what your country looks like.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll be surprised by my country''s technology and knowledge. Sadly, we could not return to our country.¡±


    ¡°Right, I heard your ship was broken and you could not return back to your country.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s indeed correct, Your Majesty.¡±


    ¡°Then, I welcome all of you here. I heard you saved the daughter of Duke Aruburn and saved the city from the besieging rebel army. All of you have done a lot for my people.¡±


    ¡°It was nothing, Your Majesty. We were just doing our jobs helping people in need,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°That¡¯s not what you said to the Duke. I heard you asked him for rewards.¡±


    ¡°Correct, Your Majesty. We and Duke Aruburn made a deal, to help retake the Capital in exchange for rewards.¡±


    ¡°Then, I will arrange for rewards to be given to all of you. For everything you have done, the disease and the liberation of the city.¡±


    ¡°There is n¨C¡±


    ¡°No, I insist!¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty. We will remember your generosity.¡±


    Queen Mira smiled ¡°Of course, a job well done deserves a reward.¡±


    ¡°Now, Your Majesty, the real purpose of our visit is to ask you about the Crown Prince.¡±


    Queen Mira''s expression turned gloomy. ¡°Right, I¡¯ll help you with everything I can.¡±


    ¡°As of right now, the Duke is leading the search. We already have the characteristics of His Highness; Short black hair and purple eyes, and he is in his teens, around 18 years of age.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, I guess you must have known it from his tutors.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°I have told the Duke everything when he met me before. We were separated when we tried to escape the attack inside the castle. I was lucky to escape safely with the knights and later met with Marques Petrova¡¯s soldiers. I do¨C¡± Queen Mira started to break down. Tears came out of her eyes.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell us more, Your Majesty,¡± said Bianca.


    Queen Mira kept crying, Anna went to console her. Bianca spoke words of consolation to her. However, Her tears and the crying in Lucas'' eyes were crocodile tears. It looked like she was hiding something.


    ¡°Your Majesty, we need to know where the Crown Prince is!¡± shouted Lucas.


    ¡°Lucas, why are you shouting at her?¡± said Bianca, annoyed.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°Because she is lying.¡±


    ¡°What? Lucas, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡±


    ¡°Bianca, there is a woman out there with the late King¡¯s illegitimate son. They are pushing to claim the throne and you know what will happen when they win?¡±


    Bianca''s expression turned sour. ¡°Y-yes.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Her Majesty will probably be thrown out to the street where she once belonged!¡±


    ¡°Lucas, watch your mouth!¡±


    ¡°Lord Lucas, you can be held on the ground of L¨¨se-majest¨¦!¡± said Anna. Her expressionless face had turned into anger.


    ¡°Go ahead, if that¡¯s what it takes to find the Crown Prince and save this kingdom. And you, Your Majesty, I would very much like your cooperation if you don¡¯t want to return to the gutter, to the place you once belonged, a poor commoner, that¡¯s it if you are lucky and not murdered. Honestly, why did the late King have an affair with a princess from the neighbouring kingdom, was he unsatisfied with his wife or perhaps his wife didn¡¯t do her duty properly, giving him only a child.¡± snickered Lucas.


    Anna looked frustrated at Lucas¡¯ reply. She pulled out a dagger hidden under her skirt and pointed it at Lucas. ¡°That¡¯s it, you will pay with your life.¡±


    Bianca stood up protecting Lucas and wanted to de-escalate the situation. ¡°Anna put it down!¡±


    ¡°Your Majesty, where is the Crown Prince? Where are you hiding them?¡± shouted Lucas.


    Queen Mira was in shock. ¡°I¨Ci¡­¡± The shock made her unable to speak.


    ¡°I see that you understand the consequence if your son wasn¡¯t found.¡±


    Bianca looked directly at Lucas. In a calming voice, she said, "Lucas, please hold back, stop it."


    Queen Mira was shaking and trembling; She was under heavy stress. Lucas observed her, he sat on the couch waiting for her to speak. Anna was trying to calm the Queen, she had put down the knife and placed it on the table. Bianca was bewildered, she did not expect Lucas to be so harsh at Queen Mira.


    After a while, Anna turned and looked at Lucas right at his face. ¡°Do you want to know where the Crown Prince is?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course,¡± said Lucas nonchalantly.


    ¡°I will tell you. In here.¡±


    Lucas looked visibly confused. ¡°What? You mean in this castle¡­ well, the best place to hide is indeed in the plai¨C¡±


    ¡°In this room,¡± said Anna sternly.


    Lucas and Bianca turned their heads around to look at their surroundings. ¡°What do you mean? Are you joking, there is no¨C¡± Lucas stopped his speech, he understood what she meant.


    ¡°It is not a he, but a she. She stood before you.¡±


    Lucas had a hunch about her¨Cand it was correct. Her hair was the same colour as the King and her eyes were the same as the Queen''s. No one from the nobility, even Duke Aruburn and Marques Petrova, ever saw the Crown Prince. They did not know his look until they were told by Queen Mira a few weeks ago.


    ¡°S-so you¡¯re a Princess, Anna?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°My name is Anastasia Romanovia, the only child of King Peter and Queen Mira. The rightful heir to the throne of Romanovia.¡±


    ¡°Anna¡­¡± Queen Mira spoke softly.


    ¡°It''s fine, mother. I have resolved myself... I promise to you, I will lead this country with grace and wisdom, and bring this kingdom to its greatness.¡±


    Queen Mira smiled, she was proud of her. ¡°I know you will.¡± Queen Mira and Anastasia hugged each other, Queen Mira seemed to have recovered from her breakdown.


    ¡°I greet Her Highness Anastasia, the heir of Romanovia.¡± Lucas bowed to Anastasia.


    ¡°Your Highness Anastasia,¡± Bianca followed Lucas'' greeting.


    ¡°Lord Lucas, your insolence towards my mother, I will not overlook it. I shall give you punishment later,¡± said Anastasia.


    ¡°I understand. I apologise for all my insolence towards you and your mother.¡±


    ¡°Even with your apology. I won''t overlook this.¡±


    ¡°I understand. As I said before, I¡¯m willing to give my life to save this kingdom.¡±


    Anastasia scornfully said, ¡°You really are a smooth talker, aren''t you? I hate you!¡±


    Lucas did not answer further, he bowed to her in silence. ¡°I apologise for my cousin''s words and actions, he must have been out of his mind,¡± said Bianca.


    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, Lady Bianca. A man¡¯s fault is his own. Now, let¡¯s end our meeting here.¡±


    Lucas and Bianca left the room. Anastasia and Queen Mira were the only ones in the room. Anastasia cuddled with her mother as if she was a toddler looking for her mother¡¯s affection; Anastasia was lying down on the sofa with her head on Queen Mira¡¯s lap.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him, saying horrible things about you!¡± said Anastasia. She was still mad at Lucas¡¯ words to her mother.


    ¡°He knew I was lying and hiding something, I guess he was mad at me.¡± Queen Mira caressed Anastasia''s hair.


    ¡°Still, I will punish him!¡±


    ¡°Please, don¡¯t be harsh on him.¡±


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you mad, mother? Are you seduced by him?¡±


    Queen Mira blushed. ¡°What are you saying, Anna? I¡¯m twice his age and have a child, why do you think he would be interested in me?!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine if you have another husband, but make sure he is different from your father. I want you to be happy.¡±


    ¡°I had enough of love in my life. I was happy with him, even though he changed. I still love him. Why? Because he gave me something precious, you.¡±


    Anastasia smiled. ¡°Thank you, Mother. I promise I will make this country better and I will make the rest of your life happy and safe.¡±


    Queen Mira was glad her daughter had made a resolved to lead her kingdom. Just like the late King wished. ¡°Thank you for fulfilling his last wish.¡±


    After Lucas and Bianca left the room, Bianca immediately nagged Lucas about his attitude towards the Queen.


    ¡°What was that?¡± said Bianca furiously.


    ¡°I was trying to get the truth from her, well¡­ honestly I had a guess Anna is the daughter of the Queen, but not THE child.¡±


    ¡°Hah¡­ I thought you were trying to make her your puppet and not your enemy.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know she would be that furious. I mean, she was always the quiet and expressionless one.¡±


    ¡°A quiet person like her tends to keep her emotions to herself and when she is mad, she is mad.¡±


    ¡°It was my fault, I miscalculated their relationship. I will just follow whatever she gives as my punishment.¡±


    ¡°What if it is the death punishment?¡±


    ¡°Unlucky, I guess.¡±


    Bianca''s expression turned worried and concerned. ¡°You should leave this place¡­ No, we should leave together.¡±


    ¡°No, I will not flee from punishment. It is only an obstacle, as we were always taught, Loriens shall not flee in the face of dangerous challenge.¡±


    ¡°Hah... Then, what are we going to tell the others? Should we keep quiet about your stupidity?¡±


    ¡°I leave that to you,¡± Lucas said with a big smile.

 Chapter 20 - Long Live Our New Queen!

    Today was coronation day; a few days after Princess Anastasia revealed herself as the Crown Princess of the kingdom to Duke Aruburn, her coronation was held. Nobles were invited to attend her coronation and a festival was prepared to celebrate her ascension to the throne. When she revealed herself, Duke Aruburn and Marquis Petrova sighed a relief because a legitimate successor of the late king had been found and it would make taking care of the rebels and anyone who tried to claim the throne easier.


    Lucas was preparing himself in his room, he and the others wear their Imperial Guard''s dress uniform for the coronation. Lucas had finished dressing up when a knock on his door was heard and a familiar sound called him.


    He went to the door and opened it, he saw Bianca and the others outside his room. ¡°Are you done?¡± asked Bianca.


    ¡°Yes, I guess all of you too are done.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Captain obvious. Let¡¯s go.¡±


    They walked to the throne room where the coronation will be held. A lot of people were gathered in the room already, since the coronation was held just a few days after the revelation of Princess Anastasia, not a lot of nobles and families were in the Capital. Duke Aruburn told him there will be a banquet held tonight for the small gathering of nobles here and 6 months after the coronation another banquet for the coronation will be held with all the nobles and their families.


    People inside the room looked at Lucas and the others with curious looks. Clothing with fine fabrics, tidy sewing and great materials, caught their attention. Not only that, but the nobles also heard the clothing they wore was part of a military uniform. They had the same reaction as Duke Aruburn when he learned about it; fascination and awe.


    ¡°Lord Lucas and everyone, I finally found all of you.¡± Duke Aruburn greeted them.


    ¡°Hello, Duke,¡± Lucas answered and followed with the others.


    ¡°I still can¡¯t believe such fine clothing is given to the military.¡±


    ¡°Our country is different, Duke. Anyway, does the Duchess and Lady Mary not make it in time?¡±


    ¡°No, they don¡¯t. Ah, talking about Mary, did you receive her letter?¡±


    ¡°I did, your servant gave it to me. But, I apologise to you, Duke. I don¡¯t have the time to reply to her letter.¡±


    ¡°I understand. I told her in my letter about you being busy because of the disappearance of the Crown Prince, but she was so stubborn and persistent.¡±


    ¡°I get your feeling, Your Grace.¡±


    Duke Aruburn placed his hand on Lucas¡¯ shoulder. ¡°Anyway, replied to her when you are able, alright?¡±


    ¡°I will, Your Grace.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. Then, I will greet other nobles.¡±


    Duke Aruburn left them and went to greet other nobles he knew. Duke Aruburn was a respected noble among his peers.


    ¡°Hooo¡­ so you¡¯re having an affair with a Lady?¡± Bianca said with a snark.


    ¡°Affair? As if!¡± retorted Lucas.


    ¡°Then, what¡¯s the content of the letter?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ Do you remember the letter you wrote for a certain Captain in the Lorien Navy?¡± Lucas said with a smirk.


    Bianca blushed, she remembered something embarrassing. ¡°Wh-why do you still remember that?! It was years ago!¡±


    ¡°Ah you do remember, then it''s just like what you wrote.¡±


    ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t ask more.¡± Bianca sounded defeated.


    After a while, the ceremony began. The crowd was split in two with a path in the middle, from the door to the throne, the path was laid with red carpet. Royal Guards stood at attention, sword in hand, alongside the path on each side. Near the throne were clergymen; a bishop and priests. The Bishop would anoint the Princess and place the crown on her. This was the first time Lucas ever saw members of the church¨Creligion¨Cin this world. He meant to visit them in the cathedral built in the Royal Capital but had no time to do it.


    A shout and sound of the trumpet announced the arrival of Princess Anastasia to the room. She went inside the room and walked down the carpet to the throne. She wore a dress with a regal robe; a purple velvet robe decorated with crown embroideries with gold threads. Her hair was beautifully styled, there was no jewellery decorating her hair. She walked gracefully through the crowds, behind Anastasia was her ladies-in-waiting. Anastasia wore emotionless expressions like always.


    Everyone in the room bowed down to her as she walked past them. Lucas and the others bowed down to her as well. Anastasia sat down on the throne, she looked at everyone attending her coronation.


    The bishop walked in front of her and stood there, a priest had a bowl of oil in his hand accompanying the Bishop. ¡°By the grace of God, I bless you, Princess Anastasia, as the future Queen of Romanovia.¡± The Bishop anointed Anastasia with the oil.


    The bishop then walked to the back of the throne, another priest came forward bringing a crown. The bishop picked up the Crown and held it just on top of Anastasia¡¯s head. ¡°By the will of God, I, Bishop Cicero, named you, Princess Anastasia Romanovia, daughter of King Peter Romanovia and Queen Mira,¡±¨Cthe Bishop placed the crown on her head¨C¡°as the Queen of Romanovia.¡±


    Then a chorus sang a song glorifying her:


    Glory to the Queen


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    Our nobles and rightful Queen


    Our graceful Queen, chosen to reign


    We will honour your throne, your crown


    Long may your reign


    Glory to the Queen


    As the chorus sang, the bishop then moved back to the front and gave Anastasia a regal orb and regal sceptre. After she received the regalia, she stood up. Everyone was in awe looking at her graceful figure.


    After, the chorus finished singing. Anastasia spoke, ¡°I am, Anastasia Romanovia, your Queen, Queen of Romanovia. I shall bring prosperity to this kingdom and protect this kingdom from any threat that comes this way. I am the first Queen to lead this Kingdom, Fear not, because I shall rule with wisdom and righteousness. I will not only be your Queen, but I will be your servant, to protect and serve the kingdom. Nobles and people of the Kingdom, lend me your hands, your eyes, your ears, your feet to me. Let¡¯s bring our kingdom to the golden age.¡±


    The nobles answered her call with shouts and cries of loyalty and glory to Anastasia.


    ¡°Glory to the Queen!¡±


    ¡°Long live the Queen!¡±


    ¡°Our Noble Queen!¡±


    A little smile was seen on her emotionless face. She gave the regal sceptre and regal orb back to the priest. She raised her hand as if to tell the crowd to be silent. Soon after, the crowd went silent.


    ¡°My ascension to the throne was not without trouble. Traitors murdered the late Kings and tried to kill the Queen Mother and me, the heir. Fortunately, due to the loyalty of the nobles, namely Duke Aruburn and Marquis Petrova, me and Queen Mother Mira are safe. This insolence and traitorous behaviour and action done by the Aristocratic Faction shall be punished. My first decree as the Queen is to revoke all the traitorous nobles¡¯ possession and titles and to execute the nobles and everyone involved in the rebellion. The noble¡¯s family members who don''t involve themselves in the rebellion shall be spared from execution. However, they will be exiled from this kingdom and stripped of their nobility. Duke Aruburn, come forward.¡±


    Duke Aruburn came forward and bowed to her. ¡°What do you need from your humble servant, Your Majesty¡±


    ¡°Duke Aruburn, I command you to execute those orders. You have the crown¡¯s full authority to track and punish all the traitors.¡±


    ¡°I will not let you down, Your Majesty.¡±


    Anastasia looked at the crowd. ¡°In my rule, loyalty will be rewarded and traitors will be punished accordingly. Fret not, I won¡¯t be a tyrant like Kings before me. Serve the kingdom and its people, that¡¯s all I ask of all of you.¡±


    All the nobles bowed down, acknowledging her command.


    ¡°I have been made aware of a group of foreigners who were helping Duke Aruburn on his battle on liberating the Royal Capital and on eradicating the disease plaguing the Royal Capital, as well as, saving the Queen Mother from her death. Please come forward, I shall reward all of you for your contribution.¡±


    Lucas, Bianca, Ariana, Max and Sarah came forward, they bowed down to her before her.


    ¡°First of all, I thank all of you for your contribution and for saving my mother.¡±


    Anastasia paused to wait for an answer from them, Bianca waited for Lucas to answer on their behalf, but there was none. Bianca took a glance at Lucas that was standing next to her. Lucas gave a sign to her telling her to answer. Bianca was bewildered, why would she be the one who should answer? Usually, the highest-ranking person in the group of foreign dignitaries would answer the question and the others would answer when asked directly. Lucas, a Commodore and the second-in-line for Duchy of Lorien was the highest out of all of them. Bianca thought he probably told her to answer the question because of Lucas'' quarrel with Anastasia.


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing to mention, Your Majesty. It was only by coincidence that we were there and were able to help.¡±


    ¡°I heard your predicament and shared your sentiment; No way back home and stranded in a foreign place, all of you must have felt sorrow, longing for your home. As the Queen of Romanovia, I welcome all of you to my Kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty.¡±


    ¡°Now, I shall reward you for your deeds. Ariana Parmis, Max Brawn and Sarah Roseman, your contribution to the war against the rebels and disease eradication effort, I reward all of you with the title of Baron and Baroness. Alongside the title, I will give you monetary rewards as well.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty.¡± the three of them answer.


    ¡°Now, Lady Bianca Lorien, your contribution to both the war effort and disease eradication was great. You saved my mother from her illness, there is nothing I can give you more than you gave to me. But, your talent and knowledge would be a waste if left unused. What do you say about serving under me?¡±


    Bianca thought serving Anastasia would make reaching their goal easier. ¡°It would be my pleasure.¡±


    ¡°Then, Lady Bianca, I gave you the territory and title of Duchy of Novgorod. You shall be known as Duchess Bianca Lorien of Novgorod, your descendants shall inherit the land and the title, and rule with compassion and wisdom."


    Bianca was surprised with her decision, she thought Anastasia would give her a court position¨Clike a Royal Doctor or something. Bianca was hesitant to accept the reward, however, when she took a glance at Lucas, he gave her a sign to go ahead and accept it.


    ¡°I-i¡¯m most grateful for the rewards, Your Majesty. I promise to you, the House of Lorien will serve this kingdom faithfully as we have with our country.¡±


    Duchy of Novgorod, located in the east of the Romanovia Kingdom. It was the seat of the leader of the Aristocratic Faction, Duke Jean Novgorod. He was slain in the battle outside the Royal Capital, leaving his family alone in Petersburg, the capital of the Duchy of Novgorod. Petersburg was a coastal city, located in the east of the Duchy.


    With Anastasia¡¯s order to revoke the title of all the nobles who rebelled, someone had to fill the vacancy and Anastasia trusted Bianca to lead the Duchy of Novgorod. Some nobles in the room were whispering their disapproval because of it. They questioned why the Queen would give a Duchy to a foreigner.


    ¡°My decision is final and I won¡¯t take any complaints for it. Lady Bianca is more than capable to lead the Duchy, even this Kingdom.¡± As if she was able to hear the whispering, she spouted those words and in an instant, the whispers were gone.


    Anastasia looked at Lucas, disgust was seen on her face. ¡°Lord Lucas, I¡¯ve heard of your exploits and excellent leadership in the war. I commend your achievement. However, your disgusting behaviour and insolence toward my mother shall not go unpunished. I was thinking of executing you¡­ but, considering your achievement and your relation to Lady Bianca, I will lighten your punishment. Lucas Lorien, you are to be banished from the Royal Capital.¡±


    Bianca, in shock, said, ¡°Your Maj¨C¡±


    ¡°I understand, Your Majesty.¡± Lucas cut off Bianca. ¡°I apologise for what happened that day, but I understand your feeling. I will gladly accept your say and thank you for your compassion.¡±


    ¡°Go now. Guard, escort the man to leave the city, but before that, let him get his belongings first.¡± Anastasia ordered guards to escort him out. A couple of guards went ahead and walked toward Lucas to escort him.


    Ariana, Max and Sarah''s expression was in shock. Bianca and Lucas had not told them of what happened with Anastasia and Mira.


    ¡°W-what did you do?¡± asked Ariana.


    ¡°Bianca will explain it to you. Later guys.¡± Lucas walked past them and outside the room with the guards.


    Bianca''s face turned sour. ¡°Ugh..¡±


    Shortly after the coronation ended. Everyone went o the banquet hall and celebrate the Coronation. Lucas, on the other hand, was being escorted to the gates of the city.

 Chapter 21 - Brief Adventure

    Lucas went into a village near the Royal Capital shortly after he was banished from the Royal Capital. He rented a room in an inn, there were not a lot of people in the inn. Most of the diners at that night were local villagers and the rest were travellers. Lucas ordered a meal to eat and at the same time listened to the conversation in the room. The news about the coronation of the new Queen had spread to this village, many welcomed the new Queen. They hoped she was able to put down the rebellion and return the kingdom to a peaceful time.


    The conversation in the inn was about the daily lives of the people of the village and the conversation about the daily activities of travellers. Lucas sat alone at a table, observing the surroundings. He saw a group of villagers eating, a group of travellers chatting while eating their meals, and a group of men with rude manners. They talked loud and were rude to the server, they even disturbed the other patrons.


    One of the men suddenly grabbed a female server. ¡°Kyaa¡± shrieked the girl.


    ¡°Oho, that''s a nice sound. I bet you sound better in bed.¡± The man groped the girl¡¯s chest.


    ¡°Please, no.¡± The girl tried her best to free herself from his clutch.


    ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll pay you for your service.¡±


    A man came forward. ¡°Sir, please let go of my daughter.¡± It was the inn''s owner.


    ¡°Huh, who the fuck are you.¡±


    ¡°Let go of her, now!¡±


    The man let the girl and she immediately ran away from him. The man who was visibly angry walked closer to the inn owner. He immediately punched the inn owner right in the face. The owner fell down to the floor in an instant, the man then kicked him repeatedly. The owner¡¯s wife and daughter watched him get beaten up in horror.


    ¡°Pl-please let him go,¡± said the daughter with a pleading voice.


    The man did not heed her plea, he kept kicking him. The other patrons inside the inn were just looking at the helpless owner getting beat up. No one seemed to care to help him.


    ¡°Hahhhhh, pathetic,¡± said Lucas loudly.


    His shout stopped the man from kicking the owner, he turned to look at Lucas. ¡°Who the fuck are you?¡±


    Lucas was about to eat sliced meat. ¡°Ugh, now that I look at your face, my appetite has gone away. What an awful face,¡± mocked Lucas, smirking. He put the sliced meat down on the plate.


    ¡°Bastard!¡± The man ran toward Lucas, ready to punch him.


    ¡°If I were you, I wouldn''t do it,¡± warned Lucas.


    ¡°Die you bastard!¡± The man clenched fist flew into Lucas¡¯ face. However, it missed because Lucas, easily, dodged it.


    ¡°That¡¯s a close one.¡±


    In retaliation, Lucas punched him right in the gut. The man held his stomach in pain. His friend immediately went to help him fight Lucas¨Cthere were 4 of them. In the sight of the man¡¯s friends surging forward to him, Lucas regretted his decision. Not that he could not beat the group of thugs in here, rather it was a hassle for him. He was hoping for a quiet and calm night.


    Lucas immediately kicked the first person in the groin and punched his face; he fell down to the floor immediately. The second person tried to punch him, Lucas dodged the man''s punch, grabbed his arm and head then slammed his head at the table. The last two were taken down with ease as well. Lucas didn¡¯t break a sweat fighting them.


    He looked at the five of them, all of them were lying on the floor and writhing in pain. ¡°What a pain. All of you should have behaved properly.¡± he looked at his table and his meal was in a mess ¡°Ah, my food.¡±


    Lucas stepped on one of the man''s hands, and a cry of pain was heard from the man. Lucas said, ¡°Listen here chumps, I want all of you to leave this inn at once. My day is ruined because of all of you making a mess here. Get up and pay your bills before leaving.¡±


    All five of them stood up and walked to take their belongings; Some of them were still in pain. Lucas watched them carefully, one of the men left coins on the table to pay their bills. ¡°Wait, I want all of you to apologise to the owner and his family.¡±


    At first, they were hesitant but fear of getting their ass kicked again overcame them. One by one, they apologise to the owner. After they left the inn, a cheer erupted, the patrons were cheering Lucas¡¯ bravery in dealing with the rowdy people.


    ¡°Ah.¡± Lucas was speechless, he had forgotten they were people in there. He awkwardly smiled at the other people. Just smiled and waved, he remembered the words his uncle taught him.


    The inn owner was able to get up and he walked to Lucas. ¡°Thank you, sir. I don''t know what would happen if he kept kicking me.¡±


    ¡°Well, you better think before doing anything, that man and his friends looked like trouble since the first time I saw them come in here.¡±


    ¡°Ahaha, I too think that as well, but I can¡¯t just turn customers away. And, they were harassing my daughter, what kind of father would let his daughter in trouble.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right. I would do the same if I were you.¡±


    ¡°Do you have a daughter? You looked young.¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t have any, and yes, I am young. But, I do have a sister so I can understand your feelings. ¡±


    ¡°Ah, what a good brother. Your sister must be lucky.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but now she is far away.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a traveller?¡±


    ¡°I am.¡±


    ¡°Amazing, where are you going?¡±


    ¡°Anywhere the wind blows me to.¡±


    ¡°Ahaha, you must have a lot of stories to tell. I¡¯d like to hear it someday.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be glad.¡±


    ¡°Ah, right, pardon me, my name is Owen, owner of this inn.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Lucas.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Lucas. Ah, right, I will make you another meal.¡±


    ¡°No need, I¡¯m full already. Although, I would accept your strongest drink to be sent to my room.¡±


    ¡°Of course! I will send it to your room. Please, have a rest.¡±


    Lucas returned to his room. He was hoping for a quiet dinner, but it didn¡¯t happen; Some vagrants just had to make a mess in the inn. Before he left the Royal Capital for the village, he told one of the shadows about it and ordered him to tell Bianca about where he was going. When he was resting on the bed, a call came from his PCD. He checked his PCD to see who was calling him, it was Bianca.


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    ¡°Hello, Duchess?¡±


    ¡°Duchess? Stop calling me that.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? You¡¯re a Duchess now, it¡¯s only proper for me to call you that.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re my commander and the eldest of the House of Lorien, in this place.¡± countered Bianca.


    ¡°So? The fact is that you¡¯re a Duchess. Anyway, why are you calling me?¡±


    ¡°Abo¨C¡±


    ¡°Oh, someone is coming, later Bianca.¡± Lucas hung up the call. He heard someone knocking on the door. Lucas let the person come in. It was the owner¡¯s daughter.


    Lucas didn¡¯t know her name, she came inside with a bottle and a glass on a tray. ¡°This is your order, sir,¡± she said as she put the tray on the table in the room.


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    The girl shyly said, ¡°I-i want to thank you for what you did before.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I¡¯m used to dealing with those kinds of guys.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re strong and kind, sir.¡± The girl walked to the door and closed it. ¡°I wanted to show my thanks by serving you tonight,¡± the girl flirted at Lucas.


    Lucas kept a poker face, he observed the girl. She had a cute face and her shoulder-length short hair complemented her face. It had been a while since Lucas slept with a woman, the last time he did it was at Lorien with Sophie. The girl loosened up her clothes to entice Lucas and she had a flirty expression on her face.


    ¡°Hah¡­ Fine, It¡¯s been a while since I slept with a woman. Come here, bring the drink as well,¡± said Lucas, accepting the offer. The work he had done since he arrived on this planet occupied him to the point he was a little bit stressed out and exhausted. Having her tonight would help unwind his exhaustion.


    ¡°But, there is only one glass.¡±


    ¡°Your mouth will be fine,¡± flirted Lucas.


    That night, Lucas and the girl spent the night together. His stress and exhaustion were gone while he played with her. Lucas had never slept with any other woman except for Sophie¨Chis fiance. It was a new experience for Lucas to sleep with another woman and he enjoyed it so much.


    When he woke up, the girl was still asleep beside him. He carefully got up and put on clothes and went out of the room to eat breakfast. The dining room was quiet, there were only a few people eating breakfast there. Lucas sat at a table and the owner¡¯s wife came.


    ¡°Good morning, I hope my daughter didn¡¯t trouble you much,¡± said the wife. It seemed she knew what her daughter did.


    ¡°She was helpful. I was a bit stressed out and having her last night was great.¡±


    ¡°Ahaha, I see. It¡¯s great that you are having a fun night. Then the breakfast is beef stew and slices of bread, I¡¯ll bring it to you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Lucas ate breakfast. The stew tasted good and the bread wasn¡¯t stale, but it was hot and soft, fresh from the oven¨Cthe breakfast was great. After he ate breakfast, the owner¡¯s wife told him about a pack of wolves outside the village in the woods that had been terrorising the village. Lucas offered to take care of the wolves, and she agreed.


    In the woods, just outside the village. Lucas was looking for the wolves, he brought his own sword and a bow and arrows he lent from the inn. He observed the grounds, branches and trunks to look for clues. Wolves usually went in a pack, so going there alone was a foolish decision. Lucas at the time he was offering help didn¡¯t think it through.


    He thought he might be able to take several cuts and bites before he went down. He kept searching for clues about where the wolves were. Finally, he found a carcass of an animal, it was huge, bigger than a cow. He inspected the carcass and determined it was a fresh one, so fresh as if it just got killed recently.


    Suddenly, something jumped from behind bushes, and Lucas instinctively dodged it. It was a wolf, the wolf was growling at him. Shortly after, the growls grew louder and he saw multiple wolves surrounding him.


    ¡°Just my luck.¡±


    Lucas drew his sword to fight against the wolves. There were 10 wolves, and as good as he was in melee combat if he was outnumbered there was little chance he went out unscathed. There was a stand-off between him and the wolves, none of the wolves wanted to fight him first, as if they knew Lucas could easily kill them.


    An arrow struck one of the wolves, Lucas was confused and startled. Before he could look around to see who shot the arrow, the wolves surged forward to attack him. He defended like a lion, one by one he struck them with his sword. Lucas was an expert on swordsmanship, since he was a child he was taught to fight without his gun. The arrows kept coming as well, helping him take down the wolves. With a strike through the throat of the last wolf, the fight had ended. Sweat dripped through Lucas'' chin, he rubbed the sweat off his face and looked around.


    Lucas heard a rustle and footsteps coming behind him, he turned around and saw a man with a bow and arrows in hand.


    ¡°Hello there,¡± the man greeted Lucas.


    ¡°Hello. Thank you for the help.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. It was a coincidence that I was here.¡±


    The man told Lucas his name, Rodrigo. Rodrigo asked Lucas what he was doing here and Lucas answered he was helping the village near the woods. Rodrigo and Lucas chatted for a while, Rodrigo asked Lucas if he could take the wolves for himself, and Lucas let him take them.


    Lucas parted from Rodrigo after that, however, he felt something was not right. Since he entered the wood earlier, he felt the presence of something or someone. Could it be Rodrigo, but why? thought Lucas. Lucas did not think much of it and leisurely walked back to the inn.


    When he arrived at the inn he saw a man just outside the inn. He wore a cloak, but Lucas could deduce the man was a knight. He wondered if there was a noble inside the inn, but why would a noble be in this village? He entered the inn and saw a robed person, the person was facing away from the entrance of the inn, but Lucas could deduce that the person was a woman.


    The owner''s wife came to Lucas in a hurry and said, ¡°Lucas, that lady over there was looking for you.¡±


    ¡°Really? Thank you.¡± Lucas walked to the table where the robed person sat. As he walked closer he wondered who it could be¨CBianca, Ariana or Sarah. When he got closer, he saw a sliver of white hair on the person¡¯s hair.


    ¡°Duchess?¡± Lucas called the person. She turned her face to look at Lucas and it was indeed Bianca. She had an annoyed expression.


    ¡°Stop calling me that!¡±


    Lucas laughed. ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°What now? You are banished from the Royal Capital, how should we continue our mission to take over the world?¡±


    ¡°Umm¡­ like we have discussed before?¡±


    ¡°But, you were kicked from the Royal Capital!¡±


    ¡°But, you¡¯re not.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Bianca was dumbfounded.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if I can go to the Royal Capital or not. There are 6 of us and 4 are nobles of this kingdom, and you are the highest of all of us.¡±


    ¡°So, you want me to do the work?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Your Grace.¡±


    ¡°Hah¡­ Fine, but make sure you tell me if I did something wrong or lacking.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re more than capable Bianca.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, but I want you to go to Petersburg.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Bianca was annoyed once again. ¡°What do you mean why? What are you going to do while I¡¯m doing your work?¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­ having fun?¡±


    Bianca sighed. ¡°Listen, I want you to be my representative there, I want you to take care of the problem there. In other words, while I take care of this kingdom, I want you to support me through the Duchy.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve grown up, Bianca.¡± Lucas smiled proudly.


    ¡°I¡¯ve grown since years ago!¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll do it. I¡¯ve been meaning to do some experiments on a smaller scale as well, the duchy would be a great place. When should I leave?¡±


    ¡°In 3 days, you will leave there with Count Krazniv, the father of late Duke Novgorod¡¯s wife, as well as Duke Aruburn¡¯s army.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll prepare myself.¡±


    ¡°Meet them outside the Royal Capital in 3 days, okay.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Your Grace.¡±


    ¡°Stop that!¡±


    ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be taking Max with me, is that fine?¡±


    ¡°Why? What about Ariana?¡±


    ¡°As I said before, I wanted to do some experiment, that¡¯s why I need Max and you need Ariana more than me, she was in charge of the kingdom¡¯s administration reform, you know.¡±


    ¡°Alright, fine. I¡¯ll tell the others. Is the food here good?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s order something.¡±

 Chapter 22 - The Nobles Council

    Bianca sat in her office, she was given the position of the Queen¡¯s advisor. She just came back from seeing the departure of Lucas and his group to Petersburg. Bianca was told by Lucas of several reforms and things she had to do. Bianca looked through Lucas¡¯ proposal and arranged it according to the utmost importance.


    Some of the plans were executed already, the administrative reform and financial reform. When Anastasia ascended to the throne, the reforms were much easier to do. The nobles who were found to have embezzled the money were immediately arrested and their possession was taken by the kingdom.


    Ariana was in charge of those reforms and the hard part had passed that she was able to relax a bit. Bianca was lucky to go and took the lesson on leading the Duchy of Lorien back at home when she was little. At that time, her father didn¡¯t want her to take the lesson, but with Lucy begging him, he conceded and allowed Bianca to have lessons together with Lucas and Lucy.


    She looked back at Lucas¡¯ proposal to see what they should do next. She wanted to ensure the security of the citizens first, the war had taken a huge toll on the kingdom''s economy and one problem that arose from this was the lack of food production. Bianca went through the proposal and found it, Crop Rotation.


    Crop rotation was the practice of growing a series of different crops throughout the growing season in the same area of land. The purpose of this practice was to reduce the resilience of one set of nutrients on the land. Norfolk four-course system, known as Four-Field rotation, was a method of agriculture involving crop rotations. Pioneered by a Waasland farmer in the 16th century, this method of agriculture was revolutionary. In the 18th century, a British agriculturist, Charles Townshend, popularised this system. This system became a key development of the British Agricultural Revolution.


    The sequences of the four cycles included a fodder crop and grazing crop, allowing livestock to be bred all year round. The modern practice of crop rotation involves using chemical applications to supplement the soil by topdressing the soil using fertilisers and pesticides to control the pest. However, since the practice of aerial topdressing could not be done¨Cbecause there were no aircraft, Bianca opted for the traditional approach of the Norfolk four-course system, complemented with fertiliser made from animal and agricultural waste.


    At the meeting together with Anastasia, Bianca introduced the Norfolk Four-Course System to her.


    ¡°With this method, the farmers can keep growing crops for the whole growing season. Improving the production of foods and ensuring the security of the kingdom''s food supply.¡±


    ¡°This is a genius idea,¡± said Anastasia with excitement, ¡°I was right to have you as my advisor here.¡±


    ¡°Some of the credit belongs to Lucas. He was the one who outlined the idea in the proposal and I was expanding it.¡±


    ¡°Really? hahh... Was it wrong to kick him out?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Not really. Whether you kick him or not, his plan will still go on.¡±


    ¡°Hah¡­ I should revert my decision.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s your decision, Anna.¡±


    ¡°Well, what can you tell me about him?¡±


    ¡°Huh? him? well... He is an amazing person. Born as twins, together with his twin sister, he became well-known throughout the country. After the death of her twin sister, he became depressed and only recovered with the help of Princess Sophie, his fiance.¡±


    ¡°So, he was promised?¡±


    ¡°He is, but all of that is irrelevant now. We can¡¯t go back to our home.¡±


    Bianca felt a longing feeling in her heart. Anastasia assured her that she would make her feel at home here.


    ¡°Back to the topic, I think we should test this method first, before implementing this on a wider scale,¡± suggested Anastasia.


    ¡°I would like to disagree. We should implement this at once, we are going into a food crisis if we don''t do it now. Don¡¯t worry Anastasia, this method works perfectly in our country.¡±


    ¡°Alright if you say so, I¡¯ll implement it now.¡±


    A decree was soon released about farming regulations. The Kingdom sent out messengers and lecturers to villages around the kingdom to teach the farmers how to do Norfolk Four-Course System. Bianca oversees the implementation process, it could take a year to see whether the system works perfectly.


    A Noble council was held later, the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the matter of the kingdom''s infrastructure, namely the road infrastructure. This was another Lucas¡¯ idea, to build infrastructure like this, it would need the support of the nobles who owned the land. The regulation was needed to ensure the uniformity of the road and the responsibility of the maintenance of the road.


    Present in the council was Queen Anastasia Romanovia, Duchess Bianca Lorien, Duke August Aruburn, Duke Lambard Rheingold, Marquis Kimi Petrova and Marquis Roznav Angard. It was the meeting between the Queen of Romanovia with the 5 Great Houses of the kingdom.


    Duchess Bianca Lorien ruled over the Duchy of Novgorod; Duke August Aruburn ruled over the Duchy of Aruburn; Duke Lambard Rheingold ruled over the Duchy of Rhein; Marquis Kimi Petrova ruled over Margrave of Metrov; Marquis Roznav Angard ruled over Margrave of Uralia.


    ¡°Thank you for coming to this meeting. This is the first Council meeting I held after I ascended the throne,¡± Anastasia opened the meeting with a greeting.


    ¡°Congratulations on your coronation, Your Majesty. Rheingold shall serve the kingdom faithfully under your reign,¡± said Duke Rheingold.


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    ¡°Thank you, Duke Rheingold.¡±


    ¡°The House of Angard offers its loyalty to you, Your Majesty,¡± said Marquis Angard.


    ¡°Thank you, Marquis Angard. Now, Duchess Bianca here has a proposal for all of you, Duchess.¡± Anastasia gave the floor to Bianca.


    ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty. I have some proposals I¡¯d like to give to the council.¡±


    The first was about the construction of road infrastructure. Bianca had discussed it with Lucas over the call. Bianca proposed to build a paved road between the major cities and the Royal Capital, as well as to the border town. Specifically, the paved road of the Roman Empire¨CRoman roads.


    The ancient Roman civilization at that time had advanced technology and an understanding of road infrastructure. The Roman roads were built by the state to accommodate the movement of army, goods and people, the road was one of the key reasons why the Romans were able to conquer the Mediterranean Coast and Europe. Extensive networks of roads were built, resulting in the propensity of the Empire and even after years after the fall of the Empire and without maintenance, some roads were able to survive the test of time.


    The Romans built their roads with the shortest route possible between the cities, towns or villages. It was said they preferred to engineer a solution when there was an obstacle instead of circumventing the obstacle. The Romans proved a good infrastructure brought prosperity and safety to the Empire.


    Bianca explained to the council about the Roman road, or as she called it, Romanovia road. The path where the road would be built was excavated until it reached the bedrock or the firmest ground and then the road was built with a solid foundation of layered earth, rubble, gravel and stones. The surface of the road was built with a flat surface paved stone.


    ¡°... And that¡¯s the road I proposed to be built on the kingdom between the major cities.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry Duchess, but why do we have to do it now? The current roads are more than capable to accommodate the traffic of our populace,¡± said Marquis Petrova.


    ¡°I agree that the dirt roads we have right now are capable of accommodating our needs. But, with these roads, I can assure you it will be more beneficial to us. Our army can easily move and we will be able to send reinforcement to the borders quickly. Not only that, with the paved roads, people will not be having a hard time when they are travelling during the rainy season.¡±


    ¡°I understand it, Duchess. However, why do we have to pay for the road and pay maintenance money to the Kingdom? We can just do maintenance ourselves, for the roads in our territory.¡±


    The nobles nodded in agreement.


    ¡°These roads are important to the kingdom¡¯s lifeline. I believe it is the kingdom¡¯s responsibility to maintain the roads. We, nobles, should pay the kingdom for road maintenance, why? These roads will be beneficial to our territory as well, the economy of our territory will rise because of the ease of access to the Royal Capital and major cities.¡±


    Duke Rheingold raised his hand and Bianca nodded at him, acknowledging his request to speak. ¡°Are these roads only exclusive for the kingdom¡¯s use or can we build it ourselves?¡±


    ¡°If you wish to build it for your territory, you can. However, I have another alternative to the paved roads. Gravel roads, as the name implies, the surface was made of gravel instead of paved stone. It would be much easier, cheaper and efficient to build for smaller traffic between cities and villages.¡±


    ¡°I see, I would consider it. Thank you, Duchess.¡±


    ¡°Duchess, if I may ask,¡± said Duke Aruburn, ¡°With this scale of construction, how are you going to get labour forces from?¡±


    ¡°Obviously, we need stonemasons to work on the stones, but the majority of the work can be done with the help of the military. The digging, the construction and the transportation of material.¡±


    ¡°Are you saying to have the knights and soldiers working on these projects?¡±


    ¡°Yes, It is the duty of the military to serve the citizens. In my country, our military is active in helping the citizens directly, especially when there are disasters. The military would be sent to build and repair the infrastructure in the affected area. That is the role of the military, to protect and to serve.¡±


    ¡°I think it would be a great idea for the military to help with the construction. It would help their training and reduce the kingdom¡¯s spending on the labour force,¡± said Anastasia.


    ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡±


    Duke Aruburn nodded. ¡°I understand, I didn¡¯t think of that.¡±


    The road construction project was welcomed by the other nobles. All of them agreed to contribute to the project. It was an easy proposal for Bianca, the benefits to the nobles¡¯ territory outweigh the burden given to them. Anastasia looked at Bianca and gave her a slight smile from her emotionless face. Anastasia had been observing Bianca negotiating with the nobles. Anastasia was amazed at her skill and how she was able to convince and articulate her thoughts on them perfectly.


    Bianca¡¯s confidence and posture when dealing with the questions from the nobles amazed Anastasia. She thought as if Bianca was born to lead a country. Bianca''s skill in leadership was nurtured and taught by the House of Lorien¡¯s tutor and education system, the best in the Galactic Imperium.


    ¡°Your idea was amazing, Duchess,¡± praised Marquis Petrova.


    Bianca smiled. ¡°The credit isn¡¯t mine alone, my cousin, Lucas, contributed greatly to the proposal.¡±


    ¡°Ah, Lord Lucas, too bad he was banished from the Royal Capital.¡± Marquis Petrova peeked a glance at Anastasia to see her reaction. The marquis did not agree at Anastasia¡¯s decision to banish Lucas from the Royal Capital.


    Anastasia spoke, ¡°Talking about him, I have decided to withdraw my decree on the banishment of Lucas from the Royal Capital.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. It is a wise decision,¡± said Duke Aruburn. He and Marquis Petrova looked happy when they heard that.


    ¡°But, that doesn¡¯t mean he will be coming back here soon,¡± explained Bianca, ¡°I have sent Lucas to be my representative in Petersburg and take care of the matter there. Unless there is an emergency, he won¡¯t be coming here.¡±


    ¡°Of course, Duchess,¡± replied Duke Aruburn.


    ¡°Now, let¡¯s continue onto the next subject. I planned to reform the military of this kingdom.¡±


    ¡°And how are you going to do it, Your Majesty?¡± asked Marquis.


    With a straight, emotionless face and quick tone, Anastasia said, ¡°By reducing the nobles¡¯ power.¡±


    ¡°What!?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t be serious, Your Majesty!¡±


    The nobles, as expected, protested her decision to reduce the power of the nobles. The power of the nobles from her father''s reign was huge. The Noble¡¯s Council was made to give the nobles a say on the matter of the kingdom, essentially limiting the Monarch¡¯s power and becoming the place to take down each other. Anastasia wanted to revoke their voting power on the Noble¡¯s Council and wanted absolute rule over the Kingdom.


    Bianca knew about her plan and, at first, was sceptical about it. But, after Bianca discussed it with Lucas, he told her to support Anastasia. Lucas said with Anastasia having absolute power it would make all their plans easier to be done and implemented. There was truth in his word, Anastasia trusted Bianca more than anyone and pretty much had Anastasia under her control. But, as expected, all the great houses were in disagreement.

 Chapter 23 - The Nobles Council No More

    The tension in the room was high. The great houses¡¯ nobles were adamant to keep their voting power in the Noble¡¯s Council; meanwhile Anastasia wanted to weaken the nobles¡¯ power.


    Duke Rheingold said, ¡°Your Majesty, the reason this council was made was because of the atrocity done by some kings before your father. Are you plann¨C¡±


    ¡°And this very council was the one that killed my father and made the Royal Family weak!¡± shouted Anastasia.


    ¡°Your Majesty, please reconsider your decision,¡± Marquis Angard pleaded to Anastasia.


    ¡°Marquis, your seat once belonged to a noble who betrayed the Kingdom and manipulated my father. I don¡¯t want to be manipulated by anyone! This Noble¡¯s Council power is no more.¡±


    ¡°Your Majesty, how can you decide that by yourselves? You need our appor¨C¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need any approval from all of you, Duke Aruburn. In fact, I didn¡¯t have to hold this meeting and told all of you here. But, I was considerate to all of you¡­ I will execute those who are against me.¡± said Anastasia with a menacing voice. The nobles fell silent, they knew the fate of the rebels who were caught and then executed publicly.


    Bianca never knew Anastasia could be this menacing and harsh; Anastasia¡¯s usual self was far from Anastasia in this meeting. Bianca wondered what would be Lucas'' reaction when she saw Anastasia at this meeting.


    ¡°Ahem¡­ I want to make it clear to all of you here that Her Majesty doesn¡¯t mean to completely dissolve the Noble¡¯s Council, rather this council will be an advisory board to the Queen.¡±


    ¡°Huh, Duchess Bianca, how do you know about that?¡± asked Duke Aruburn.


    ¡°Her Majesty had discussed the matter with me before.¡±


    ¡°Then, are you in agreement with her?¡±


    ¡°Yes, in fact, back in my country, the power of the country lies solely on the Emperor with the council of nobles being the advisory for the Crown.¡±


    The Galactic Imperium was an absolute monarchy. The Emperor ruled over the Galactic Imperium together with the nobles, acting as advisors. Revolution for democracy in the Galactic Imperium sometimes happened, however, it was easily taken care of. The most democratic form of government in the Empire was in the Duchy of Lorien, a parliament was made to appease the masses, however, the Duke still held the highest authority in the Duchy.


    ¡°Are you saying the absolute power of the King is better?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Bianca said straightforwardly.


    Anastasia then spoke, ¡°There is nothing all of you can do anymore, as Duchess Bianca has said, I have reinstated the absolute power of the crown and weakened the power of the nobles. This council will stay as my advisory board, nothing more.¡±


    The nobles could not argue any further, they feared the consequences if they were opposed to Anastasia¡¯s idea.


    ¡°Now, what about the military reform?¡± asked Marquis Petrova.


    ¡°Right, I¡¯ll let Duchess Bianca explain to you.¡±


    Bianca explained to the Council about the military reform. The key points of her reform were the establishment of a standing army, centralisation of the army and organisation of the army leadership. The standing army is a permanent and professional army. Composed of full-time soldiers.


    The Kingdom of Romanovia did indeed have a standing professional army, albeit small¨CRoyal Knight. The kingdom¡¯s Royal Knight consisted of only 400 mounted knights and when war came the Kingdom would enlist the peasants and nobles¡¯ forces; This kind of recruitment of the army was archaic and was prone to defeat when the army leader was killed.


    Lucas wanted to make a multiple regiment-sized force spread out all over the Kingdom. He envisioned 10 infantry regiments¨C5 regiments bearing arms of the Royal Family and the rest bearing one of the Great Houses arms¨Cto be raised as a standing army. Each regiment would consist of 1.000 soldiers, divided into 2 battalions of 500 and divided again into 5 companies of 100. 2 mounted cavalry regiments, each consisting of 600 mounted soldiers, complemented the army of the Kingdom.


    Those 12 regiments would make the core of the Kingdom¡¯s army; with a total of 11.200 soldiers. The nobles were allowed to have their own forces but were limited to at most 500 soldiers. Which can be called to supplement the Kingdom¡¯s army in the war.


    Lucas had told Bianca about his future vision of the army and Bianca was doubtful whether they could achieve that level of technological advance as fast as Lucas¡¯ envisioned.


    In detail, the regiments of the Kingdom¡¯s army would be:


    1st Horse Regiment


    2nd Horse Regiment


    1st Royal Regiment


    2nd Royal Regiment


    3rd Royal Regiment


    4th Royal Regiment


    5th Royal Regiment


    Aruburn Regiment


    Novgorod Regiment


    Rheingold Regiment


    Petrova Regiment


    Angard Regiment


    Uralia Regiment


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    Bianca explained to the nobles that the regiments named after their territory would be stationed in their territory for security and protection of their territory. The Royal Regiments would be stationed near the borders with other countries and in the Royal Capital. Both Horse Regiments would be stationed in the Royal Capital as well.


    Bianca then explained further about the organisation of the army and the leadership. The regiment would be led by a Colonel; the battalion by a Major; and the company by a Captain. She also explained the hierarchy of the army to ensure the continuation of the unit in the event their leader is gone. For example, if the Colonel of the regiment was killed, then the Major of the 1st battalion of the regiment would take over the command of the regiment until a replacement was assigned or until he was assigned officially as the regiment commander and his replacement on the battalion was assigned.


    The idea presented by Bianca amazed the nobles, they thought this reform was revolutionary.


    ¡°Duchess, your idea was great, but why are we, nobles, allowed only to have 500 soldiers? What if something happened in our territory?¡±


    ¡°Then use the regiment stationed in your territory. As I have said before, the regiment will be stationed there to ensure the safety of the kingdom,¡± answered Bianca. What she said was true, but it wasn¡¯t the whole truth. The regiments stationed in the noble¡¯s territory would be a deterrent if the noble decided to rebel. When the kingdom knew about the noble¡¯s plot, the kingdom could easily send the regiment stationed in their territory to fight them, while the reinforcement was coming or forced the noble to give up the rebellion.


    It was truly a cunning idea from Lucas¨Cor rather a Lorien. Bianca easily caught the real reason why he wanted to put the regiment in the noble¡¯s territory but the nobles believed what Bianca said and did not think much of it


    The nobles did not argue much about the military reform, since they were afraid of the Queen''s wrath. All the nobles then said they understood the reform and would immediately reduce their army.


    However, Bianca told the nobles that they should reassign their soldiers to the Kingdom army. The nobles agreed to her idea. Bianca continued that if they were at war, the nobles may conscript the citizens to support the Kingdom''s army.


    "Are there any more questions?" asked Bianca.


    "No, Duchess."


    "I don''t have any."


    "No."


    "Alright, I''m done, Your Majesty." Bianca gave the floor to Anastasia.


    "Thank you, Bianca. Since I don''t need this Noble''s Council anymore. I may not convent the council when I make decisions. This meeting is adjourned, thank you for coming."


    Anastasia stood up and then all the nobles stood up as well, then she left the room followed by Bianca behind her. Both of them then went into Anastasia''s office.


    Anastasia sighed with a huge relief. Bianca could see her trembling and she turned sour. "Your Majesty, are you okay?" said Bianca, concerned.


    "Bi-biancaaa¡­ hug me." Anastasia looked at Bianca with a miserable face. Bianca then hugged Anastasia dearly.


    "There, there¡­ Are you okay, Your Majesty?"


    "Call me Anna!"


    "Anna, are you okay?"


    "No," said Anastasia, sternly.


    Bianca sighed. Anastasia was acting like a child. "Ok, tell me what happened?"


    "I was nervous at the meeting. I had a hard time keeping myself from breaking down¡­ and¡­ when they were angry when I told them I revoked their privilege. I was so scared."


    "You don''t look scared though."


    "I was hiding it!"


    "Well, you did a great job there."


    Anastasia pouted. "Bianca, you are used to dealing with nobles right? I mean, you easily explained to them and didn''t look scared."


    ¡°Well, kinda.¡±


    ¡°I knew it! I¡¯m glad I trusted you to speak back there!¡± Anastasia was relieved. Before the meeting, Bianca asked Anastasia to lay out the plan to the nobles with Bianca helping her by filling in the missing information she might have missed. However, Anastasia declined it because she was too nervous to speak in front of the nobles. The reason Bianca wanted Anastasia to speak was to let the highlight of the plan be credited to Anastasia, therefore making her image in the nobles¡¯ view better.


    If Anastasia was to tell them that Bianca was the one who came up with the idea, Bianca could easily deflect that and say she was partially involved and the person who came up with the concept was Anastasia. Bianca wanted Anastasia to have strong support behind her in case Lucas went too far with his plan and ended up throwing Anastasia off his board.


    The great house nobles needed confidence and assurance from Anastasia especially if their power were to be weakened and the crown¡¯s authority strengthened. Doubt and fear might come to them and overcome their loyalty to the crown and rebel to overthrow Anastasia. Bianca thought that there was still more time in the future to prove Anastasia¡¯s worthiness.


    ¡°Ah right, can you inform Lucas that I lift his banishment?¡± asked Anastasia.


    ¡°I will.¡±


    ¡°Actually¡­ I might send an apology lett¨C no, I will apologise directly if we were to meet.¡± pondered Anastasia.


    ¡°Both are fine, I don¡¯t think Lucas would mind either way.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll speak. Well, how long do you think he will stay in Petersburg?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know honestly. I asked him to take care of my domain. If you need him, I can send for him.¡±


    ¡°No need, I¡¯ll just wait.¡±


    Lucas rode a horse in the middle of the convoy and Max was riding next to him. Max wondered why Lucas needed him to go with him instead of Ariana, his aide. Max was not that great at paperwork, and he guessed Lucas needed someone with that kind of skill to manage the domain.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan?¡± asked Max.


    ¡°Guns.¡±


    ¡°What, guns?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we need something we can use to fight this magic.¡±


    Max fell into his thoughts. ¡°Hmm¡­ now that you say it, our rifle could easily penetrate the magic defence from the magicians.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t like this new power that I can¡¯t understand, but if there is something to fight it, we should use it.¡±


    ¡°I see, we need something that can shoot, at least, accurately. At the lowest probably a rifled musket.¡±


    ¡°How about a muzzleloading gun?¡±


    ¡°Uhmm¡­ I can think of a few models¡­ but¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes I know, we need a method to mass produce guns if we want to use it at large scale. Right, we need Steam and industrialization.¡±


    ¡°Yes, we need to create the steam engine and make a factory to mass produce the ammunition and guns. We also need to see if the resources are available.¡±


    ¡°About that, we have found materials to create gunpowder, I have sent Lyra to take care of it.¡±


    ¡°Oh great. What about coal?¡±


    ¡°Still searching, but we might find them soon.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ I recommend we use muskets first while we figure out how to industrialise this world. Granted it won¡¯t be as accurate as the rifles you have in vision, but It¡¯ll do what you want.¡±


    ¡°You are right, I am thinking too far ahead.¡± Lucas sighed.


    ¡°Hey, if you need to talk, just talk to me, we are in this together.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Max.¡±


    Max smiled. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll get to the drawing and I want you to take care of the recruitment for the workforce.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± Lucas nodded.


    Soon, Petersburg came into view, a beautiful coastal city on the eastern side of the kingdom.

 Chapter 24 - Lucass Last Gift for Sophie

    A month after HMGS¨CHis Majesty Guard Ship¨CFalcon 1 from the Imperial Recon Guard went missing. A hearing was held by the Imperial Council; The Emperor, Alexei Zormenia, attended the meeting. Military High Command of the Galactic Imperium and high-ranking nobles from the Galactic Imperium attended the meeting as well. Vice-Admiral Jormon Osber looked nervous, he had to present to the council his investigation of the accident.


    ¡°Your Majesty, everyone has arrived at this meeting. Shall we begin the hearing?¡± said Admiral John Windshire, Commander of the Imperial Navy¡¯s Military Police.


    ¡°Yes, let¡¯s begin this meeting. Vice-Amiral Osber, present your investigation,¡± ordered the Emperor.


    ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Jormon stood up and multiple floating displays appeared on the table in front of everyone.


    He looked nervous and tried his best to compose himself. ¡°Greeting everyone, as we have known, a ship from the 1st Imperial Recon Guard Squadron, HMGS Falcon 1, has gone missing for a month. The ship was on a mission to investigate a pirate base in Combi System, however, they never arrived at the system and went missing on their way there. A few days after their last communication, the Imperial Recon Guard¡¯s office launched an investigation and the results are as follows.¡±


    The screen changed into a picture of a map. ¡°As you can see in front of you, that is the last known location of the ship. The ship was last seen by our radar on the border of Zone of Coverage and the ship was in a jump at that moment.¡±


    ¡°Are you saying they deserted?¡± asked one of the nobles.


    ¡°No, My Lord. Commodore Lucas would not dare to betray the Empire.¡± retorted Osber.


    ¡°That is indeed correct. He is our Princess¡¯s fiance after all. However, Vice-Admiral, one of the crew is a Parmis. A descendant of a traitor,¡± said Duke Oskar Jimena.


    ¡°My Lord, I can assure you, she too, would not betray the Empire!¡± said Jormon raising his voice.


    ¡°Hah?! How can you prove that? Her grandfather once betrayed the Empire and now I am certainly sure that she did the same, and there are 2 Loriens inside that ship. Killing 2 descendants of a Hero would be an achievement for a traitor!¡± argued Duke Jimena.


    ¡°My Lord, I asked you! For the first and last time, not to slander my subordinate anymore!¡± shouted Jormon.


    ¡°What ar¨C¡±


    ¡°Silence! Stop acting like a child. This hearing is important. Continue your report, Osber. ¡± The Emperor stopped the argument between the two.


    "I apologise, Your Majesty. I will continue my report. I sent the rest of the 1st Imperial Recon Guard Squadron unit to search the area when HMGS Falcon 1 jumped and the last known location on the end of Zone of Coverage. Sadly, we have found nothing."


    "So you did not find anything? Not even a distress signal?" said Duke Lucio Lorien.


    "Yes, My Lord. Even with our advanced radar detection range, we could not find them."


    "Have you tried going outside the Zone of Coverage?"


    "We did, just a little. Still, we didn''t find anything."


    "Useless."


    "Duke Lorien, I understand your sentiment, but please refrain from insulting the commander for doing his best," said the Emperor.


    "Your Majesty, this matter involves 2 members of my House. I request you to let us join the investigation, and for the Imperial Navy and Imperial Guard to share all their findings and facts with us."


    Duke Lorien had asked the Emperor before for the House of Lorien to send their own investigation team. However, he declined the request with the excuse that the missing crew was part of the Imperial Guard.


    "Duke Lorien, as I have said before, this matter is being handled by the Imperial Guard," said the Emperor.


    "Their findings within a month didn''t tell us much."


    "Duke, I disagree. Their findings are useful. Now we know they went outside our Empire zone. The Imperial Guard will expand their search area there soon, am I correct, Osber?"


    "Yes, Your Majesty. We will send teams outside there," said Vice-Admiral Osber.


    "Still, Your Majesty. Please consider allowing us to join the investigation. You can''t keep us outside this matter when 2 Loriens are involved."


    "Fine, I''ll consider it. Vice-Admiral, continue your report."


    Osber glanced at Duke Lorien before he said, ¡°Our Empire strived for greatness and discoveries of new things, ideas and anything. The Imperial Guard has participated in many prototypes and field-testing of inventions from the Imperial Research Institute. However, we are also in partnership with Lorien Institute on implementing their newest invention.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? Imperial Guard testing Lorien¡¯s invention?¡± asked Duke Jimena.


    ¡°Yes, My Lord. This decision was made by the Emperor and agreed by Duke Lorien.¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, but the Imperial Navy never heard of this agreement or decision,¡± said Admiral Harry Kowalski, Chief of Staff of the Imperial Navy.


    ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t. There is no need for the Imperial Navy to know our affairs,¡± said Admiral Jacob Kowalski, Chief of Staff of the Imperial Guard.


    The Kowalski brothers occupied the two highest positions of the Galactic Imperium¡¯s military. However, their relations were not the best, since they were children they often fought each other. This caused the relationship between the Imperial Navy and Imperial Guard to become strained.


    ¡°Hahh, I¡¯ll explain,¡± said Duke Lorien. He was annoyed hearing the banter between the brothers. ¡°It is a new reactor, engine or power generator, whatever you call it, that can be used by a ship more efficiently. It was invented by Lorien Institute researchers and is in the phase of testing on the Lorien Navy as well. As a loyal subject of the Empire, I offered His Majesty the reactors to be tested on the Imperial Military. As far as I know, all ships from the Recon Squadron of Imperial Guards have been fitted with the reactors.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, My Lord. all squadrons of the Imperial Recon Guard already use the reactors,¡± said Vice-Admiral Osber.


    ¡°This is unacceptable, Your Majesty. We haven¡¯t heard of this news before. How could you agree to let Loriens test their invention on the Imperial Guard without consulting us?¡± said Duke Jimena.


    The nobles who attended voiced their agreement to Duke Jimena¡¯s complaint. If it was tested on the Imperial Navy, the nobles would not be so vocal about the decision. However, the Imperial Guard was given the privilege to test it, the nobles were afraid that an invention from someone other than from the Imperial Research Institute would bring harm to the Imperial Guard. Many inventions from the other noble houses usually were tested on the Imperial Navy and not Imperial Guard.


    ¡°I understand your concerns. But, I have full confidence in what the Loriens made, they have served the Empire forever and their loyalty is unquestionable. My decision to test their new invention was correct. Now, Vice-Admiral explains why this invention correlates with the case?¡± said the Emperor.


    ¡°The new reactor has better efficiency and better energy generation compared to the current reactor we used in the Imperial Military. We also found the new reactor will make the speed of the ship jump faster. By looking at the tracking of the HMGS Falcon 1, we concluded that the limiter for the jump speed was deactivated and they jumped at the maximum speed.¡±


    ¡°How can it be deactivated?¡± said one of the nobles.


    ¡°The ship limiter can be deactivated with the authorisation of the commander of the ship, in this case, would be Commodore Lucas Lorien.¡±


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    ¡°Are there any reasons to deactivate the limiter?¡±


    ¡°Usually the limiter will be deactivated when the ship is responding to an emergency or being scrambled, or when fleeing from a threat, in the case of civilian ships. The Imperial Military allowed the release of limiters for many reasons.¡±


    ¡°And do you know why he did it?¡±


    ¡°Usually we will receive a communication from the ship if they want to jump with unrestricted speed. However, the last communication from HMGS Falcon 1 was the usual report of their location and situation which we found to be normal.¡±


    ¡°So, he deserted then.¡±


    Vice-Admiral Osber held his anger. ¡°No, we didn''t find any reasons for him to desert. The failsafe we have on board the ship, the ship¡¯s AI, didn¡¯t send a report about the deactivation of the ship¡¯s limiter. We believe the AI malfunctioned and somehow resulted in the ship¡¯s out-of-control manoeuvre.¡±


    ¡°Malfunctioned? Is that what your narrative is?¡± said Duke Lorien with an irritated tone.


    Vice-Admiral Osber looked frightened, ¡°Y-yes, My Lord. It malfunctioned. We believe there was no other reason.¡±


    ¡°What about the dead mechanic?¡±


    ¡°I apologise, what do you mean by a dead mechanic?¡±


    ¡°I see, so that¡¯s how you want to play. Ladies and gentlemen, I¡¯m going to tell you a story. I¨C¡±


    The Emperor interjected Duke Lorien¡¯s speech. ¡°Duke Lorien, what are you on about?"


    "I''m going to tell the truth which the Vice-Admiral decided to hide."


    "I hope you don''t make baseless accusations. I have read his report and there is nothing hidden from this Council."


    Duke Lorien was aghast, he now understood the Emperor was the one who told Osber to omit some part of the report. With anger, he said, "I understand now." Duke Lorien stood up from his chair. "This hearing was fabricated, the truth is kept hidden. I see no reason to stay on this damned hearing." Duke Lorien left the room, swiftly.


    A commotion erupted in the room, nobles who were on Duke Lorien''s side were questioning Vice-Admiral Osber about what Duke Lorien just said. On the other hand, nobles who were not on Lorien''s side accused Duke Lorien was in emotional distress since he had lost his son and was not thinking clearly during the hearing.


    Soon after, those who were on Duke Lorien''s side left the room. Vice-Admiral Osber looked at the Emperor, Osber was ordered to omit some findings by him. He did not know the reason why the Emperor would want to hide it, Osber knew that Duke Lorien was able to discover the dead mechanic who was assigned to do maintenance on HMGS Falcon 1 when they docked on Earth. If the Emperor wanted to hide the findings from him then it failed before it began.


    The Emperor soon adjourned the meeting. He has failed to keep Duke Lorien in the dark about the possible plot of the assassination of his son. He however was able to keep others in the dark. After the meeting, Emperor Alexei called Duke Lorien to meet him, however, his aide told him that Duke Lucio Lorien would not meet him. Alexei knew Lucio was pissed by the fact he was hiding the truth from the public. The aide told him if he wanted to send a message, it would be best to send it through Lucio¡¯s wife, Duchess Noelle, who was visiting Princess Sophie in the Palace. He ordered him to send for the Duchess after she was done with Sophie.


    Duchess Noelle arrived in front of Princess Sophie¡¯s room, near the door was a maid. Duchess Noelle was an elegant and graceful lady, her etiquette was perfect and she was Sophie¡¯s tutor. Noelle was born as an orphan who later worked at an orphanage where she met with the current Duke of Lorien. It was a love story that the public knew very well, both of them became symbols of love in the Empire. Some even compare them with the story of the first Duke and Duchess of Lorien. The maid told the Duchess the Princess had not eaten her food today and she had only eaten a small amount since she found out about the disappearance of Lucas and his crew. Duchess Noelle knew how much Sophie loved her son, but she thought Sophie was a little childish.


    Duchess Noelle opened the door and entered the room. Inside the room was an untouched tray of food¨Clunch. On the bed was a girl, Sophie, laying down on her side and covered with a blanket. Duchess Noelle could hear a sobbing sound from the girl.


    ¡°Your Highness.¡± Noelle greeted her as she walked closer to the bed. There was no answer from Sophie, she kept sobbing.


    Noelle walked to the side of the bed where Sophie was facing. ¡°Sophie,¡± said Noelle softly. Sophie covered her face with the blanket when Noelle arrived in front of her. Noelle sat on the bed and caressed Sophie¡¯s hair. Her beautiful and groomed hair had turned into a mess, she had never left her room and barely talked to anyone, even to her mother, since Lucas was gone.


    ¡°Sophie, take better care of your hair. Your hair is crumpled, what if Lucas saw you like this,¡± said Noelle. Sophie''s sobbing became louder, her hand reaching to Noelle¡¯s hand. She held her hand.


    With a hoarse voice and crying Sophie said, ¡°H-he won¡¯t be c-coming ba-ck¡­¡±


    ¡°How are you so sure he won¡¯t be coming back? I believe he will come back.¡± Noelle tried to console Sophie.


    Sophie moved her blanket covering her face away from her face. Noelle could see Sophie¡¯s swollen eyes and reddened, tired face. Together with her crumpled hair, she looked like a different person than she usually was. The news of Lucas missing must have taken her by surprise, at first she denied Lucas was gone, but slowly her denial turned into grief and depression. Noelle was asked by the Empress to visit Sophie and tried to console her, as her tutor and mother of her fiance, the Empress believed Noelle could console Sophie.


    ¡°He is gone, Duchess! There is no way he will be back!¡± Sophie had completely given up on the idea of Lucas¡¯ returning. Noelle still held a sliver of hope of him returning and she was waiting on the hearing held by the Imperial Council. Her husband however already knew what the Imperial Guard discovered and found on their investigation before the hearing, however, he withheld the information to himself and did not tell Noelle anything.


    "You love Lucas, right? How come you gave up on him."


    "..."


    ¡°Come sit up, let¡¯s eat your lunch, okay,¡± said Noelle. Noelle got up and picked up the tray with the food. Meanwhile, Sophie sat up on her bed, with a depressed expression. Noelle brought back the tray and placed it on the bed. Sophie started to eat the food and Noelle combed and tidied Sophie¡¯s hair while she ate. Noelle sang a song to soothe Sophie¡¯s mind. After she finished eating, the maid cleaned up the tray from her room.


    Sophie was leaning on Noelle on the bed, Sophie told all of her feelings she felt after Lucas was gone. As Sophie''s tutor, Noelle was like a second mother to Sophie.


    ¡°Duchess, what would you do if the Duke was gone while you were pregnant?¡± Sophie asked Noelle.


    ¡°Hmm? Well, I¡¯ll try my best to take care of myself while waiting for him.¡±


    ¡°What if he never comes back?¡±


    ¡°Uhmm¡­ Well, I¡¯ll make sure to take care of the child. Because the child is the most precious thing he gave me and what was left of him.¡±


    "....Thank you, Duchess."


    Noelle wondered why she asked that. There was no way his son would impregnate her before their marriage because she had taught him well about sexual relationships.


    "Sophie, are you¡­" Noelle tried to ask her.


    "I-i''m pregnant, Duchess," said Sophie with a soft and shy voice.


    "What? Are you sure?" Noelle asked, puzzled.


    Sophie nodded, "The test is in that drawer." Sophie pointed at her nightstand.


    Noelle opened the drawer and hidden below the handkerchief was a pregnancy test, showing positive. Noelle was shocked.


    "Is it Lucas?" asked Noelle. Sophie nodded. "I-i''m sorry, I should have taught him better," Noelle apologetically said.


    "No, Duchess, you''re mistaken. It wasn''t his fault, it was me. I lied to him, I said it was my safe day, but it wasn''t."


    "Why?"


    "Be-because it was too long¡­ I mean we have been betrothed for a year but there was no talk of marriage. So I decided to use my pregnancy to force him to marry me. I''m a bad girl, Duchess."


    Noelle was speechless. "You are a horrible girl. As his mother, of course, I am mad,¡± said Noelle with an angry tone, ¡°in a relationship you should let your partner know, especially if it affects both of your lives. What if Lucas did not want this to happen?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ so-sorry, Duchess¡­¡± Sophie was frightened.


    ¡°There must be a reason why he didn¡¯t bring up the marriage for a year. Have you talked to him about that?¡±


    Sophie shook her head in silence. ¡°I-i¡¯m too shy to ask him.¡±


    Noelle chuckled at hearing that. ¡°If you are too shy to ask him directly, you could ask me.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Does His Majesty know?¡±


    ¡°No¡±¨CSophie shook her head¨C¡±father and mother don¡¯t know yet.¡±


    Noelle hugged Sophie tightly. ¡°You should tell them soon.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    Sophie¡¯s pregnancy might have brought a massive scandal to the Empire. Lucas and Sophie were betrothed, however, they had not married yet. As a noble¨Cespecially Imperial Family¨Cpregnancy outside marriage was taboo and nasty rumours could spread like wildfire. There could be a rumour of Sophie slept with another man and the child was his.


    Noelle planned to tell her husband about this and discussed what they should do with Sophie and her child. Whatever the decisions the Imperial Family would take, Noelle planned to do everything in her power to keep the child under her protection or at least under the protection of Loriens, if they decided to throw away the child. If Sophie was exiled because she wanted to keep the child, Noelle promised to take her to Lorien.


    Noelle went back to the Lorien Estate in the Capital after she ate dinner with Sophie. She told her she would discuss this with Lucio and then told her about the decision they made. Unfortunately for the Emperor, his aide was not able to meet with Noelle to ask her to meet with the Emperor.


    She was changing in her room when a knock on the door was heard. Her maid opened the door to talk to the person knocking, the maid did not allow whoever it was to come inside. That would mean it was not Lucio.


    After a while, the maid closed the door and returned to Noelle¡¯s side. ¡°My Lady, it was someone sent by the Duke. He wishes for you for the night.¡±


    ¡°I see, I will take a bath first, please prepare my clothes and tell him I will be coming.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lady.¡±

 Chapter 25 - They are Lorien!

    It had been a while since Lucio called for her for the night after she rejected his invitation a couple of weeks ago. Since Lucas¡¯ disappearances, Noelle had been rejecting Lucio''s invitation, but since she had something to talk with Lucio, she agreed to come. Noelle entered Lucio¡¯s room, she saw him reading a book on the bed.


    ¡°Welcome, Noelle,¡± said Lucio.


    ¡°Lucio.¡± Noelle walked closer to the bed.


    ¡°How is the Princess?¡± Lucio stood up from the bed.


    ¡°She is getting better, she was distraught by the news of Lucas''s disappearance and locked herself away in her room. She refused to eat anything, well I was able to feed some sense into her. I guess I''ll be visiting her frequently to make sure she is fine. You know, she didn¡¯t even look after herself, her hai¨C¡± Noelle''s speech was cut off by Lucio kissing her. Noelle was startled but soon she accepted the kiss and drowned herself in the pleasure.


    ¡°There you go again, blabbering about Sophie,¡± said Lucio.


    Noelle''s face was red, her face was full of pleasure. ¡°You asked her condition and she is just like my daughter, you know right.¡±


    Lucy''s death still haunted Noelle¡¯s memory and she became overprotective of her last daughter, Anita¨CAnita was the Lorien couple''s youngest child. She never forgave herself for letting Lucy suffer and ended up in her death. Now, her twin brother had gone as well and even probably died. Noelle was distraught by these events, when she learned about Lucy¡¯s death she became bedridden for a month, and on Lucas¡¯s disappearance, she was bedridden for almost a couple of weeks.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you decided to come after around a month of leaving me alone,¡± flirted Lucio.


    Noelle leaned her head on his shoulder. ¡°I just need some time to be alone.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine. I know it has been hard for you, even for me. I¡­¡± Lucio''s expression turned into sadness.


    ¡°Hey, It happened. We need to support each other to be strong.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I broke my promise.¡±


    Lucio was the second child of the previous Duke and when his older brother had children, it was decided that he would not have to succeed the Duchy. When he met Noelle, she told him she didn''t want to be involved with the politics and high society of the Empire. Lucio promised her that she did not need to do that. However, an accident¨Ca suspected assassination plot¨Chappened to his older brother''s family, resulting in their death. Lucio immediately was named as the successor of the Duchy, he insisted that his father let Oscar take the position. However, his father would not budge from his decision.


    When he told the news to Noelle, he expected she would be mad at him. However, Noelle, who was at that time pregnant with their first children, assured him that she would support and follow Lucio through everything. She accepted the decision of the Duke and then she became Duchess when Lucio succeeded his father. Noelle had regret of becoming a Duchess. She still thought if she did not become a Duchess and lived their life not as high ranking noble, Lucy might still be alive with a bright and joyful expression.


    "It''s not your fault, Lucio."


    "Still¨C"


    Noelle placed her finger to his mouth. "Sshhh, stop blaming yourself."


    Lucio kissed her again and then pushed her down into the bed. They kissed for a while and then when Lucio started to undress Noelle, she remembered Sophie''s pregnancy.


    "W-wait Lucio."


    Lucio''s expression was in heat. "Noelle, what is it? I can''t hold it any longer." Lucio began to kiss her again and tried to undress her.


    "Ahhh, N-no it''s important. Sophie is pregnant."


    Lucio stopped his advance and then sat up on top of her, staring down at her. "What did you say?"


    "Sophie is pregnant, she is with Lucas''s child. She hasn''t told His Majesty, yet. "


    Lucio''s eyes widened in surprise. He immediately sprung up from the bed and changed his clothes.


    "Wh-what are you doing?"


    "I¡¯m going to the Palace.¡±


    ¡°This late? Who are you going to meet?¡± Noelle sat up on the bed.


    ¡°The Emperor.¡±


    ¡°Won¡¯t he refuse to meet you? I mean he''s probably already asleep.¡±


    ¡°Then I will go to his room and wake him up.¡± Lucio walked to the bed and then kissed Noelle.


    Noelle tried to pull Lucio down to the bed, but he did not budge. ¡°Ahh, could you not do it tomorrow?¡±


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    ¡°No. You look tired, just go to sleep. You don¡¯t have to wait for me.¡± Lucas walked to the door and stopped. ¡°Thank you for telling the news.¡±


    Noelle was left alone in the room. She regretted telling him the news, she was angry and annoyed. Lucio called her for the night but then he left her alone.


    ¡°Hah¡±¨Cshe touched her lips¨C¡± we were almost at the good part. Aghh, why did I tell him just now? I can just tell him tomorrow morning and enjoy the night together. Stupid Noelle.¡± She punched the pillow on the bed in frustration. Noelle lay down on the bed and then fell asleep soon after that.


    Lucio waited for the Emperor, Alexei, in the reception room. A servant asked him to come back tomorrow however he insisted that the Emperor meet him or he would walk to his room and meet him there. The servant then came back to tell Lucio to wait for the Emperor. After a short while, Alexei arrived at the room, he looked sleepy.


    ¡°This afternoon I asked to meet you but you refused. Now, late in the evening, you barged into my door to meet me. You better have a good reason for it, Lucio,¡± said Alexei, he was slightly annoyed with Lucio.


    ¡°I do have a good reason to meet you this late.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Have you heard about your daughter''s condition?¡±


    ¡°Ah... well, she locked herself in her room since Lucas was missing.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she did not talk too much to the maids or even her mother.¡±


    ¡°Are you even her father?¡±


    ¡°Quit with your mockery. I heard Noelle visited her today, what did she tell you?¡±


    ¡°Sophie is pregnant.¡±


    Alexei''s expression turned serious. ¡°Stop joking, Lucio!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not joking. She told Noelle about it, she even said she hasn¡¯t told her parents about the pregnancy to Noelle.¡±


    Alexei was surprised, this was the first time she heard about her pregnancy. ¡°Is it Lucas¡¯?


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Alexei sighed in disbelief and relieved. Her daughter was pregnant before her marriage and her partner was gone. If the public knew about this, the image of the Imperial Family would have fallen. Not only the Imperial Family, but the Lorien''s reputation would take a hit as well. However, this was a great opportunity for Lucio, he was meaning to tie Loriens with the Imperial Family, but with the disappearance of Lucas, Lucio was sure the betrothal would be broken off and she would be married to another family. There was no way for Lucio to keep the betrothal and Sophie in his hand when Lucas was gone. Sophie''s pregnancy with Lucas¡¯s child however changed the course completely, with this he would be able to have strong ties with the Imperial Family.


    ¡°I have an idea to make sure the child is a legitimate child,¡± said Lucio.


    ¡°What is it? They haven¡¯t married yet.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but a marriage doesn''t have to be a grandeur event.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°We can easily forge a marriage certificate, that¡¯s obvious. Then using her visit to Lorien before Lucas¡¯s disappearance, we could just tell the public that they had married there. Let¡¯s just say they wanted a quiet wedding there.¡±


    ¡°But, I didn¡¯t go there.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, but the Empress did. We can just say you are busy dealing with the rebels'' affair, therefore you couldn¡¯t attend the wedding.¡±


    ¡°I see, that makes sense.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Alexei was taught to be careful around Loriens. Even though they were loyal subjects, they were not loyal dogs. They were like hungry vicious dogs, as long as you fed them and gave them whatever they wanted, they would follow you faithfully. However, once you forgot about them or made them mad, they would tear you apart. The Emperor of the Galactic Imperium had always been taught about the phrase ¡®Beware of the innocent Lily, behind its beautiful looks is a wicked and dark scent.¡¯


    Alexei always felt there was something missing from his memories. Whenever he met Lucas, he always saw a vision of a woman, with a joyful and gleeful expression, standing next to him, who just looked like him. He tried to remember who the girl was, but he could not recall anything. He knew Lucas did not have a twin and the girl in the vision was not of his younger sister, Anita.


    ¡°I will be taking Princess Sophie under my care,¡± said Lucio.


    Alexei fumed hearing that. ¡°What did you say!?¡±


    ¡°She carried a child of Lorien. It would be the correct thing for us to take care of her.¡±


    ¡°She is my daughter.¡±


    ¡°She WAS your daughter. Now, she is a wife of a Lorien. She has become Lady of Loriens and will be a mother to Loriens children.¡±


    ¡°How dare you!¡± Alexei was about to punch Lucio, but before he hit him.


    ¡°One year,¡± said Lucio, nonchalantly.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Until the child is one year old. I will let the Imperial Household take care of Sophie and her child. After that, they will be ours.¡±


    Alexei wanted to say no to his proposal. However, if he kept refusing Lucio and antagonising him, who knew what he would do? Messing with Loriens could spell destruction to his Empire.


    "Fine, one year and she is yours."


    "Thank you."


    Alexei felt her daughter was like a good that he just sold to Lucio. He wanted Sophie to cherish her life fully and live her life according to her wishes. When she asked to be paired with Lucas, Alexei immediately agreed to it and convinced Lucio. Alexei never knew that the situation would be like this; Sophie was pregnant with the child of his missing fiance and his family demanded her and the child to be taken by his family.


    "I''ll be going back then."


    "Alright."


    "Alexei, take better care of her, cherish her more, a daughter needs her father. You never knew when she would leave you. Don''t make the same mistake as me," said Lucio with a sad expression.


    "What? Did anything happen to Anita?"


    Lucio smiled at him. "Nothing, just words of advice."


    Lucio left the palace and went back to his estate. Alexei then went into Sophie''s room and when he arrived there, he saw her sleeping soundly. She looked better than the last time he visited him. Her hair was groomed and a relaxed expression could be seen on her face. It seemed Noelle''s visit had made her feel better.

 Chapter 26 - The Truth of the Android

    Orion Lorien was the only sibling of Lucio Lorien. Orion was different to his older brothers¨Che didn¡¯t like politics. He preferred to lock himself in his room and conduct experiments. Because of that their father had taken Orion out of the successor line to the Duchy, meaning Orion''s children would not have had claim to the Duchy. The decision was challenged by Orion¡¯s older brothers, however, their father was adamant and did not give in to their plea.


    Since then, Orion was the head of Lorien Institute, a research institution owned and funded by the House of Lorien. He led the institute and made some breakthrough innovations, one of them was the new ship reactor; which had been tested largely on the Lorien Navy and was ready to be introduced to the Imperial Military. However, an altercation between him and Lucio 2 years ago made him leave the Lorien Institute and join the Imperial Research Institute.


    Because of that, Orion left Lorien and stayed on Earth to work as the Lead Researcher of the Imperial Research Institute. Since he joined the Imperial Research Institute he rarely met with anyone from the Loriens, however, his daughter, Bianca, was still in close relation with Lucas, Lucio¡¯s son. Lucas even visited Orion estate¡¯s on Earth several times; Orion felt pity for Lucas because his beloved twin sister, Lucy, killed herself. The death of Lucy brought shock to the whole family, Lucy was known as a strong-willed woman and for her to kill herself, the kidnapping incident must have left her in deep pain.


    That day, Orion arrived at Lorien¡¯s mansion on the Capital Planet, Earth. A day before, he received a message from his brother to meet him in the mansion. This was the first request he received from Lucio since Orion left his home and joined the Imperial Research Institute, Orion also heard shocking news from the Imperial Family. Princess Sophie had married Lucas back in Lorien, it was said the marriage was a small and closed wedding, and only a few members of family and friends attended the meeting, however, the Emperor was not present because he was busy taking care of the rebels; That was the official publication from the Imperial Family. However, Orion knew that was not the truth, something must have happened that made the Imperial Family and House of Lorien come out with the announcement.


    When Bianca returned from her mission of escorting Princess Sophie from Lorien, she did not speak anything about a wedding between Lucas and Sophie to Orion. If there was indeed a wedding between them, Bianca would surely be excited to tell Orion. Orion was curious about what had happened in Lorien or rather what happened between Sophie and Lucas.


    Orion was greeted by a butler who then escorted him to Lucio¡¯s office. It had been years since he went inside this mansion, he reminisced the memory of him and his older brothers playing around the hallway. A painting hung on the wall made him stop his walk, he looked at the painting; It was a painting of 3 boys in noble clothing, Orion on the right, Lucio on the left and their eldest brother, Oscar. Oscar and his family were murdered by an unknown group, when the Loriens launched an investigation, they found out the members of the group were killed and the trail went cold.


    ¡°Do you miss the late Lord Oscar?¡± said the butler who waited for him.


    ¡°It has been years since he left us. I wonder¨C hah¡­ let¡¯s go to Lucio.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord¡±


    Orion continued to Lucio¡¯s office. He arrived at the office and saw Lucio working inside. The butler announced Orion''s arrival to Lucio and left the room.


    After the butler left, a silent stare between them ensued until Lucio smiled and laughed and then both of them laughed.


    ¡°It¡¯s been a while Orion,¡± said Lucio.


    ¡°Indeed brother, it¡¯s been years.¡±


    Lucio stood up and he walked toward the window and looked outside. ¡°How are you feeling?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Bianca was missing together with Lucas, how are you feeling? Are you fine?¡±


    ¡°I¡­ feel horrible, my first child went missing and the cause is still unknown. I know you did your best to look for them secretly alongside the Imperial Guard. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°She is a Lorien, of course, I¡¯ll do everything I can to help my niece.¡±


    ¡°You really loved your family.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    ¡°I heard you attended the hearing on the investigation by the Imperial Guard. How was it? What did you learn?¡±


    Lucio''s expression looked frustrated. ¡°Bunch of bullshits. The Emperor was hiding the truth from everyone.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°A mechanic, an Imperial Guard mechanic, was one of the culprits.¡±


    ¡°What? How come an Imperial Guard member could do that?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, whoever paid for him or used him has washed their hands completely. I can¡¯t track them back.¡±


    ¡°To think the Imperial Guard would be compromised, isn¡¯t this a matter of importance for the whole Empire?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but Alexei kept it a secret from the public, like a fool. Just wait until the whole Imperial Guard turns on him and then he will kneel in front of me asking for my protection.¡±


    ¡°Are you helping him?¡±


    ¡°In what? Why would I care for the Imperial Family? As long as the Empire is stable, I don¡¯t think I have the obligation to help them. As long as there is royal blood flowing in someone, we can easily replace them.¡± Lucio smirked. ¡°Especially right now, we have royal descendants under our House?¡±


    ¡°You mean Sophie? I have heard the news about the wedding, but is it true? Bianca didn¡¯t tell me anything when she came back from Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Of course it was fake. There was no wedding when they were in Lorien. I told Alexei to make it official. After all, having an illegitimate child would hurt Sophie¡¯s reputation.¡±


    ¡°She is pregnant?¡±


    ¡°Yes, with Lucas¡¯ child.¡±


    Orion was surprised. It was lucky for his brother that the fiance of his son is pregnant. ¡°Is it really his?¡± Orion doubted the claim.


    ¡°That¡¯s what she said. She told Noelle about her pregnancy first, for some reason. But, if it turned out the child wasn¡¯t Lucas¡¯. I will dispose of them for insulting our house.¡±


    ¡°Hah¡­ as ruthless as always.¡±


    ¡°... You¡¯re right, I have become ruthless.¡± Lucio''s expression turned gloomy.


    ¡°You still don¡¯t want to be like this right?¡±


    ¡°Yes. But, what can I do?¡±


    Following the death of his older brother, Lucio ascended as the heir of the Duchy of Lorien. He became a well-known Duke as soon as he inherited his father. His diplomatic skill had prevented conflict between nobles for years and the Lorien Institute under Orion¡¯s leadership had made technological breakthroughs. He was also credited for a new tactic in dealing against Roktarian¨Ca tactic envisioned by Lucy.


    However, as a leader of such a prominent title, threats and death were much more visible to him and his family. He chose to marry Noelle and not a noble lady from other houses because he did not want to participate in the politics of the Empire and would stay as commander of the Lorien Navy and have a quiet life together with the woman he loved. The death of his brother changed all of that.


    Every day, as time went by, he could feel Noelle distancing herself away from him. She might not look like it at the surface, but he knew that she felt betrayed by the promise he had made to her before their marriage. Lucio did everything he could to protect his family from threats, but he could do so much. Lucy''s kidnapping and suicide made Lucio change because he felt he failed to protect his daughter. He could not forgive himself for her death.


    ¡°Lucio, is it true that you put THAT android in Lucas¡¯s ship?¡±


    Lucio stood in silence and averted his eyes from Orion.


    ¡°Lucio, answer me!¡±


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    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Have you gone crazy?¡± Orion was in disbelief. The android Orion made was a taboo creation even by the standard of the Loriens. ¡°I¡¯ve told you to scrap the android and stop the project!¡±


    ¡°I¡­ can¡¯t¡­"


    ¡°There is a reason why our ancestors banned the use of it.¡±


    ¡°I still can¡¯t believe they outlawed the use of the technology. Giving a person another chance to live¡­ an eternal life¡­ Orion, this technology will make us human to become a God.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why they outlawed it! There is a limit on how much technology can be used. We have to use our moral or e¨C¡±


    Lucio raised his voice. ¡°Moral?! You¡­ talking about morals. What do you know about them? Stop being a hypocrite, Orion. Thousands of people have died in your hand for your experiment and you want to talk about morals to me? Do you know that you and I are the same? We are born from the same womb and carry the same name, Lorien. For centuries, our family has thrown morals out from their books.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re correct. I have no right to talk to you about morals. But, what would Noelle say when she knew that her dead daughter was resurrected with a different body? Do you think she would be closer to you or would she leave you for good?¡±


    ¡°What do you know about her?! She definitely will be grateful to have her daughter again!¡±


    ¡°A part of her daughter. Do you think Lucy''s memory inside a stranger''s body is Lucy in Noelle''s eyes? Even her memory was altered. How can you say that she is your daughter?!¡±


    One night, Lucy''s maid found her unconscious in her room. After she was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit the doctor said he could not save her, Lucio ordered the Lorien Institute to conduct a banned technology practice, Memory Transfer. He wanted to transfer Lucy''s memory from her dying body to the body of an android. The scientists of the Lorien Institute opposed the order, citing that the technology was banned and it was wrong, ethically and legally, to let a dead person live again.


    However, Lucio threatened to punish them if they did not do what he said. Coerced, the scientists began the process of Memory Transfer. They transfer her memory to a chip before she dies then place her body in the coffin to be buried after they have done the process of Memory Transfer.


    Orion was the one who led the project, he thought it was wrong to let Lucy have another chance of life after her horrible experiences leading to her death. But, Orion did what he was told by his brother. Soon, after months of a careful process of transfer and ensuring there was no malfunction and keeping the memory intact, the first activation was ready.


    An android body was lying in a bed, in the room with the body was Lucio and Orion. Orion prepared to activate the android and multiple scientists were on standby in another room.


    ¡°Do it,¡± ordered Lucio.


    Orion activated the Android. At first, the android slowly moved her finger and then calmly opened her eyes but then her expression turned into someone who was scared and in disbelief.


    ¡°W-what happened¡­ I-i was sur¡­.¡± The android got up from her lying position in an instant and she put both her hands on her face, covering her face, in stress and stuttering.


    ¡°Hey¡­ Lucy, honey, I am here, calm down,¡± said Lucio as he caressed her hair.


    ¡°Daddy¡­ What is this? Where are we?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re safe now.¡±


    ¡°Safe? Was that just a dream? I thought I killed myself.¡± She looked at her body and arms, ¡°Wait¡­ What is this? My body and arms are different. Dad, what happened to me!?¡± Lucy was distressed.


    ¡°You are alive again, Lucy. This time, I will protect you.¡±


    ¡°Alive¡­ again¡­ No! I don¡¯t want to!¡±


    Lucy went hysteric and cried, she asked his father to kill her again. However, Lucio ensured her not to worry. At first, he was gentle, but when she tried to jump from the bed, Lucio held her down on the bed. His action brought back memories of when she was kidnapped and violated by her kidnappers.


    ¡°No¡­ No! Daddy, please don¡¯t do that to me! Not you too! I¡­ can¡¯t take it anymore. Please¡­. please,¡± pleaded Lucy, tears streaming from her eyes.


    ¡°Lucy¡­¡± Lucio did not know how much suffering Lucy endured while she was kidnapped, but now he knows it. ¡°Turn her off, Orion.¡±


    Orion was watching the horror unfolding in front of him, he was taken aback at Lucy''s reaction. He did not expect her to be in such a traumatic state. He regretted agreeing to do and lead the project. Immediately after he was ordered, he turned off the android and the android slowly slumped back to the bed. He saw Lucio''s face, his expression was like someone hurt by something.


    ¡°Alter her memory.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Change the memory of her death. Make it that she died of an illness, peacefully. Erase the memory of kidnapping and her suicide.¡±


    Orion could not believe what he heard. ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°I said no! Didn¡¯t you see her reaction?¡±


    ¡°Yes! I saw it. That¡¯s why we need to alter her memory.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re crazy, Lucio. How can you do that to your own daughter?¡±


    ¡°She is my daughter and I can do whatever I want to her. It has nothing to do with you, no¨C¡±


    Orion punched his brother. ¡°You''ve gone mad. I¡¯m done doing this project. I¡¯m leaving.¡± Orion left the room in anger.


    Orion left the project, however, the project kept going. Orion watched from the sideline with disgust. Later, Lucy''s memory was altered to what Lucio ordered, and her second activation was much smoother. The altered memory Lucy had was she died from a disease and now was given a second chance to live in the body of an android. She accepted her new life, but she was told to keep it secret from everyone until the truth was revealed by Lucio. Lucy agreed to his father''s proposal, however, she wanted to be close with Lucas. She wanted to protect him, as she had always done before. Her father promised her that she would be able to be near him and defend him, soon. Orion, who could not keep up with the guilt, resigned from his position as Lorien Institute¡¯s head. Lucy¡¯s android body later was modified by the Lorien Institute, she was given advanced combat memory, and knowledge of almost everything humanity had learned and even her body was made to withstand artillery rounds.


    ¡°Lucio, let me ask you this, do you ever feel guilty doing that to her?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you regret it?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    Orion smiled. ¡°Good, it seems you still have some sanity inside you.¡±


    ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t want this. I don¡¯t want to be the Duke of Lorien. I wasn¡¯t even considering being this kind of person, a cruel, heartless, selfish person. I wondered what would have happened if I wasn¡¯t a Duke. Both Lucas and Lucy would be smiling together right now. Fate is cruel to me.¡±


    ¡°Lucio, fate doesn¡¯t dictate us. The stars incline us, they do not bind us. You have your free will, don¡¯t let fate determine your decision. I know you have always worked for the glory and prosperity of our house, but don''t forget that you have your own life.¡±


    ¡°For a scientist, you have a way for your words.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a Lorien, after all. Lucio, treasure your wife and children.¡±


    ¡°I will, Orion. Thank you¡­¡±


    The Capital Planet was the centre of politics and economy of the Galactic Imperium. Many well-known stores and restaurants were spread out throughout the planet. Swan¡¯s Song was a well-known restaurant because of its speciality, swan meats. Alexei Zormenia, in disguise, went inside the restaurant. He walked to the restaurant¡¯s host and said, ¡°I want a special table for my pork chop with lamb sauce.¡±


    ¡°Of course, Sir. Please, follow me.¡±


    The host led him to a room, away from the main area of the restaurant. Alexei entered the room and inside was Duke Oskar Jimena and Admiral Jacob Kowalksi. All of them wore a disguise¨Cmask and robe.


    ¡°Welcome, esteemed guest,¡± said Duke Jimena.


    ¡°Thank you, Jimena.¡±


    ¡°Please sit.¡±


    ¡°Your Majesty,¡± said Jacob, ¡°Is it true that Princess Sophie is pregnant with Lucas¡¯ child.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s true, I had the doctor check on her and she was a few weeks pregnant already. I guess they did it when she went to Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Hah, gotta give it to Lorien for this one,¡± snickered Duke Jimena.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t his fault.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Sophie told me she wanted to force Lucas to marry her by having herself pregnant, she lied to Lucas that she is on birth control.¡±


    ¡°Pfftt, our princess is a cunning one, just like his father.¡±


    ¡°Hah¡­ Honestly, I did not want her to be like me.¡±


    ¡°So, what do you think we should do? She will be having Lucas¡¯ child,¡± said Jacob.


    ¡°This situation is in our favour, Jacob,¡± said Duke Jimena, ¡°I have a hunch the marriage announcement between Lucas and Sophie was the idea of Duke Lorien. He thought he could use that to his advantage, but he forgot that his enemy can use that to their advantage as well.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, My Lord?¡±


    ¡°We can use Sophie¡¯s child to push a claim over Lorien. The nobles from Lorien will not be able to refuse their claim as the child is Lucas¡¯ legitimate child.¡±


    ¡°Right, why didn¡¯t I think about that, you¡¯re indeed smart Oskar. I was glad to trust you in this matter.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Your Majesty. I will make sure our plan is executed perfectly. Because of these new circumstances, we can just kill the Duke and their last two surviving children, so we can push the princess¡¯s child to Lorien''s seat.¡±


    ¡°Right, I agree with this plan,¡± said Jacob.


    ¡°Is it true that the Imperial Navy is under Duke Lorien¡¯s influence?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. I found out my brother was meeting with the Duke several times. We should tread carefully. I¡¯m afraid if we went into conflict with Duke Lorien, the Imperial Navy would point their guns at us.¡±


    ¡°To think I will be this powerless as an Emperor.¡±


    ¡°Your Majesty, you must be patient, soon your authority will be bigger. With the twins of Lorien gone and a daughter from the youngest brother of the Duke gone as well, our plan is going smoothly. I bet the Duke didn¡¯t expect the Imperial Guard and half the Empire to be in the plot against them.¡±


    ¡°Right, Duke Jimena and Admiral Jacob, I promised you a nice position if we succeed in this plan.¡±


    ¡°Of course, your Majesty.¡±


    Alexei raised up his glass. ¡°Here¡¯s to the downfall of Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Cheers!¡± Duke Jimena and Admiral Jacob raised their glass and toast.

 Chapter 27 - Baroness Ariana

    Baroness Ariana Parmis was a noble of the Romanovia Kingdom from a foreign country. Ariana would have never thought that in her lifetime she would be given a noble title. Ariana thought that the new world they were in was a blessing for her.


    ¡°Lady Ariana, we have arrived,¡± said Sally. She was waking up the sleeping Ariana.


    ¡°Huh¡­¡± Ariana was still sleepy, she had a hard time opening her eyes.


    After Ariana was given a noble title and mansion in the Royal Capital she needed people to help her manage her mansion and one of them was Sally. Sally became Ariana¡¯s personal maid. Sally carried daggers inside her skirt to be used when needed.


    Ariana was sent by Bianca to a village called Castusia, near the forest of Elsewen, according to the report from Ars Goetia the village produced a lot of agricultural products for the Kingdom and their farming method used the Four-Crop Rotation farming even before the agricultural reform introduced by Lucas and Bianca. Bianca was suspicious of this and sent Ariana to investigate the real reason and at the same time made contact with the habitants of Elsewen forest.


    Anastasia explained to Bianca about Elsewen forest and its inhabitants. Elsewen forest was populated by elves that secluded themselves inside the forest. They guarded the forest against outsiders; when someone went too deep, a group of rangers from the elves would warn them and ask them to turn around. If they refuse, they will be killed.


    The village near the forest, Castusia, was the only place the elves visited outside the forest and the village had a great relationship with them. The name Elsewen Forest was taken from the Kingdom of Elsewen, the nation of the elves. It was said that the elves'' kingdom and the village existed long before the foundation of the Kingdom of Romanovia.


    Ariana looked outside through the carriage¡¯s window, she saw large fields of crops growing fruitfully. It was a sight to behold because this was the first time Ariana saw huge crops growing fruitfully in this world; It seemed the information Bianca got was true.


    ¡°Wow, I have never seen this many crops,¡± said Sally.


    ¡°Yes, I didn¡¯t expect this many crops from this place.¡±


    ¡°Is this what will be the result of the new agricultural reform?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ariana was amazed by the Loriens; Lucas and Bianca''s plans had been set in motion as soon as they had their grasp firmly on the Kingdom¡¯s throne. They left no time spent idling away. Anastasia had been captivated by Bianca and Anastasia trusted her blindly. The Loriens could do everything they wanted for the Crown and this kingdom.


    With Bianca being a duchess of the Kingdom¡¯s territory, her bloodline would be strong and firmly planted in the kingdom¡¯s politics. If the Galactic Imperium had expanded far to this planet, Loriens bloodline would be able to return back to the Empire and reunite with the main house in the Empire, and the story and fate of HMGS Falcon 1 would be known to the Empire.


    Ariana daydreamed of her future in this world. She was dreaming of cradling a baby she had with Lucas. She sat in the garden with her baby in her hand, and she was watching her child and Bianca¡¯s children playing around in the garden, with Bianca sitting with her and watching her children play. They were having a tea time and let their children play together. What a bliss is the dream she had.


    ¡°Lady Ariana.¡±


    ¡°Huh.¡± Sally¡¯s voice woke her up from her daydreaming. ¡°What is it, Sally?¡±


    ¡°Were you daydreaming something? You smiled and giggled like a crazy person, just now.¡±


    Ariana blushed, she was embarrassed. ¡°Wh-what, did I do that?¡± Ariana touched her face.


    ¡°Yes, it was clear as day. So, what was it?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡± said Ariana, averting her gaze.


    ¡°Let me guess, Lord Lucas, right?¡±


    ¡°N¨Cno.¡±


    ¡°If you want to lie, make sure to not show it, My Lady. Your face is as red as it can be.¡±


    ¡°Ughh¡­ I mean, I was just dreaming, you know¡­ I don''t know if it will become a reality.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure it will, My Lady.¡±


    ¡°B-but, why didn''t he take me with him when he went to Petersburg? I-i mean, I¡¯m his aide back in our country, so isn¡¯t it normal for me to be with him all the time?¡±


    ¡°Probably he wants you to help Lady Bianca.¡±


    ¡°Aghh¡­ I haven¡¯t spoken much with him since he scolded me¡­ I-i want to make up with him,¡± said Ariana frustrated.


    ¡°Well, he was busy all the time, so¡­ you know, My Lady, you can just take him somewhere when he comes back.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s rude!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the only way though. You have to be a bit harsh. Well, how about asking Lady Bianca to help you?¡±


    Ariana pondered for a while. ¡°Right, she said she wanted to help me¡­ uhm¡­ I guess I will ask her to send me to Petersburg.¡±


    Shortly after, the carriage stopped and a guard that accompanied Ariana knocked on the door.


    ¡°My Lady, we have arrived.¡±


    Sally opened the door of the carriage first and went out, Ariana followed her shortly after. After she got out, she could see Castusia in her own eyes, the village was a rather quiet village in her eyes; Ariana expected the village to be much more crowded due to the massive production of agricultural products. Ariana walked through the village, she could see merchants traded with the villagers. Children running around and people doing their daily work, since they arrived around noon, not everyone was in the village. Some of them still worked in the fields.


    A couple of men approached Ariana, they had swords sheathed on their hips.


    ¡°Greetings, My Lady. Welcome to the village, what brought you here?¡± said one of the men, bowing at Ariana.


    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Baroness Ariana Parmis. I want to look around the village, and do you know if I can meet with the village head?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course, we can escort you there. I¡¯m Eric and this man here is my friend, Clark.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Eric and Clark escorted Ariana and her entourage to the home of the village head, when they arrived there, the village head was in front of his house.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°Chief, a noble wanted to meet you,¡± said Eric. The chief was tending plants he grew in front of his house, one of those plants was lilies.


    ¡°Ah..¡± The village head stood up and greeted Ariana. ¡°Welcome to this humble village, My Lady. Come in, let¡¯s talk inside.¡±


    The village head, Eric, Clark, Ariana and Sally went inside the house. The village head let Ariana sit down while he went inside together with Eric and Clark. Soon after they came back bringing refreshments.


    ¡°I apologise, My Lady. This isn¡¯t much compared to what you usually have, but please enjoy it.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Chief¡­?¡±


    ¡°My name is Roberto, My Lady.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Chief Roberto.¡±


    ¡°So, My Lady, what brought you here? Do you perhaps want to buy our products?¡±


    ¡°Right, I was sent here by the Duchess of Novgorod, she wanted to know about how you grow this many crops every year.¡±


    ¡°Of course, we are more than welcome to help the Duchess. But, My Lady, this knowledge has been passed down by our ancestors for generations, so¡­ sharing it with others is a little bit¡­¡±


    ¡°We will pay you, as much as you want.¡±


    ¡°It is not like that, My Lady. This knowledge is a secret that we kept¡­ for ourselves. As much as we wanted to help you and your liege, we can¡¯t share the knowledge. But, if the Duchess wants, we can sell our products for cheap as a token of our friendship,¡± said Roberto with a hesitant and apologetic voice.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡±


    ¡°Why do you keep the four-field rotation a secret?¡±


    ¡°Wh¨C how do¨C¡±


    ¡°Duchess of Novgorod isn¡¯t your typical ruler. She is smart and a genius, even though she is a woman, doesn¡¯t mean she isn''t capable.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ I-i didn¡¯t mean to insult the Duchess, however¨C yes, fine, we will share the process we do for growing our crops to you. But, since you know the name, does that mean you already know?.¡±


    ¡°Yes, the Duchess knows how to do it, she wanted to know how you do it compared to her.¡±


    ¡°I-i see. I will help the Duchess.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. Also, the Duchess wants to meet with the Elven Kingdom, can you help her?¡±


    ¡°My apologies, Baroness, but the elves never went outside their forest, how are we able to help you?¡±


    ¡°I hear they frequently make contact with this village, or are you trying to hide the fact that you are conspiring with them?¡±


    ¡°No-no, it¡¯s not like that. It¡¯s true the elves made contact with us, but we only do trade and nothing else, we wouldn¡¯t dare betray this kingdom, Baroness.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s great, your loyalty is well worth noting. So, can you help her?¡±


    ¡°I ap¨C¡±


    ¡°ahem¡­¡± Eric coughed and everyone''s attention turned to him. ¡°If I may ask Baroness.¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    ¡°I heard the new Queen was crowned recently.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s correct, the Kingdom of Romanovia is now under the rule of Queen Anastasia Romanovia.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Long Live Her Majesty. But, if I may, who is this Duchess you mentioned? Of course, it is the Duchess of Novgorod, but who is her name?¡±


    ¡°She is Bianca Lorien from the House of Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Wh¨C¡± Eric, Roberto and Clark could be seen visibly surprised.


    ¡°Is there something wrong?¡± asked Ariana with a confused look.


    ¡°Ah, apologise, Baroness, there is nothi¨C,¡± said Roberto, ¡°about the meeting with the Elven Kingdom, I guess we can help arrange it.¡±


    ¡°Great, that¡¯s amazing. That would be all for me. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Baroness, where will you be staying, at the inn?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t want to burden you by staying at your house.¡±


    ¡°How could I? I would be glad if you want to stay.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ve sent my men to book rooms in the inn.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll let the owner know about you staying there.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Ariana and Sally left Roberto¡¯s house and walked to the inn. Ariana felt something was odd, when she mentioned Bianca''s name their attitude changed. Their expression too was odd, why would they be surprised by her name? Do they know her or what? However, Ariana was able to get what she was sent here for.


    While she was walking, she felt as if someone was watching her. She decided to be more careful during her stay in this place. Before she went to the inn, she went to the outskirts of the village and looked at the Elsewen Forest.


    ¡°So, that¡¯s the rumoured forest,¡± said Sally.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a dense forest.¡±


    The Elsewen Forest was a huge and dense forest, it spanned from outside Castusia to the mountains on the other side. Ariana saw there was an opening between mountains and she believed the forest spanned on the other side of the mountains as well.


    ¡°My Lady, should we try to go inside the forest?¡±


    ¡°What? no.¡±


    ¡°Eh¡­ no fun!¡±


    ¡°Are you crazy, Sally, we might get shot by the elves!¡±


    ¡°Tch¡­ you¡¯re right. Honestly, I wanted to see whether elves were true or not.¡±


    ¡°Me too, Sally.¡±


    Bianca and Ariana were surprised when they learned about the existence of Elves. Because for them that would mean another intelligent civilization was found by the Galactic Imperium¨Cif the humans in this world indeed originated from the Duchy of Lorien¡¯s lost expedition. If Falcon 1¡¯s record were to be found, all of their names would be left in the mark of history of Galactic Imperium because they found a new intelligent civilization.


    The night fell on the Castusia, after dinner, Ariana went to her room, she refused to drink with Sally and the others since she didn¡¯t want to be wasted. Ariana changed her clothing to her night clothing and she sat down on the bed with her back leaning on the wall. She immediately called Bianca to report her findings in the village. However, Bianca was busy when she called her, so Bianca told her to report tomorrow.


    Alone in her room and could not sleep, Ariana had thought of calling Lucas, but why would she call him? She didn¡¯t have to report to him. However, she gathered up the courage and called him. After waiting, and waiting, and waiting, finally, the call was picked up by him.


    ¡°Hello, Ariana?¡± said Lucas on the other end of the call.


    ¡°Hewo.¡± Ariana tripped on her words because she was nervous.


    ¡°Hewo? Ah, are we doing some sort of impersonation?¡±


    ¡°No! I-i bit my tongue there... Sorry.¡±


    ¡°Haha, that¡¯s fine. So, what do you want to talk about?¡±


    ¡°...¡± Ariana didn¡¯t know what she wanted to say.


    ¡°Hello, Ariana?... Helloooo.... I heard you were sent by Bianca to a village¡­ um¡­ what was it, Casu¡­Caustia?¡±


    ¡°Castusia.¡±


    ¡°Right, that¡¯s it. So how was it?¡±


    Ariana told him about her meeting with Roberto, the village head. She told Lucas about the village keeping the knowledge secret to the world and about the Elven Kingdom. Lucas was surprised about that, and told Ariana he had never heard about the elves from anyone.


    ¡°Wait, did Bianca not tell you?¡± said Ariana.


    ¡°No, whenever she called me she didn¡¯t mention anything about elves. Wtf, Bianca!¡± Lucas could be heard annoyed.


    ¡°There must be a reason for that.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, keeping a secret from and working me to death in here. I wish I didn¡¯t agree to her offer at that time.¡±


    Ariana could smell the chance to go to Petersburg. ¡°W-well, i-if you want, I can go there and help.¡±


    ¡°No need, Bianca needs you there.¡±


    Ariana felt disappointed. ¡°Ah¡­ you know, I can help you. Is it...¡±


    ¡°There is no need, really. I¨C¡± Lucas thought there was a misunderstanding between her and him. So he wanted to made up with her. ¡°Ariana, I¡¯m sorry, for lashing out at you back then.¡±


    ¡°Huh¡­ No, that was my fault really.¡±


    ¡°No, that was my fault. I just wanted to reprimand you back then. I know you had a friend in the regiment you led, but my anger made me take that decision. To relieve you from your post.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing really, I, too, know my mistake. I didn¡¯t have any plans when I ordered them to retreat. So¡­ Commodore, I apologise for my disobedience and for being childish and mentioning your late sister.¡±


    ¡°Yes, my sister¡­ Ariana, you must have not known about her, but when we meet again, I will tell you, about the woman that spent her life together with me¡­ until death part us. The woman that used to wear the hair clip I gave you.¡±


    ¡°Yes¡­ I will patiently wait for us to meet again.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s gotten late, Ariana. I¡¯m tired because of the work I did today, so I''m going to end it here.¡±


    ¡°Ah yes, h-have a good night, Lucas.¡±


    ¡°You too, Ariana. Have a good night.¡±


    After Ariana ended her call with Lucas, she immediately fell down to the bed and hugged the pillow and buried her face on it. She was glad that Lucas was no longer mad to her and he wanted to open himself more to her. That night was the best night Ariana ever had until now, her reconciliation with Lucas was done and Ariana was sure a new page for their relationship would begin. She pledged to herself that she would not let this chance go away. After daydreaming of her future together with Lucas, she fell asleep.

 Chapter 28 - Lucas in Petersburg

    Lucas sat in the office working through multiple paperwork sent to him, it has been a couple of months since Anastasia''s coronation. He had been holed up in the room since morning, after breakfast. The Duchy¡¯s butler and aide, William, gave him a bunch of paperwork to be done for today. Lucas even forgot to eat lunch. After they arrived in Petersburg, the widow of Duke Novgorod peacefully handed over the Duchy to Bianca through Lucas. The knights left in Petersburg were all loyal to the former Duchess and when she handed over her authority to him, the knights, too, kneeled to their new ruler. Their leader, Asher Zermano, was made a commander of the new knight''s company.


    The late Duke of Novgorod had left Lucas with much more trouble than he could handle. Some nobles in the Duchy who were against Bianca¡¯s rule were immediately executed by Lucas and their families were exiled, their properties and wealth were then seized by the Duchy. Now, Bianca''s rule was accepted by the nobility in the Duchy.


    New decrees have been enacted by the Crown. The agricultural reform; The military reform; and the road construction project. Lucas told Bianca to enact the reforms and projects as fast as possible, but not this fast. Lucas was overwhelmed by the request from the Crown, especially the road construction project. To his surprise, the Novgorod''s coffers were more than he had thought would be.


    For some reason, the road construction project was different from what Lucas wrote. He wrote the nobles would pay 25% of the construction but in the decree sent to him, the nobles pay 50% of the construction. Looked like either Bianca or Anastasia was the one who made changes to the plan.


    As a coastal city, Lucas thought Novgorod would flourish from trade from other coastal cities from the same continent and other continents. However, there was no trade in the city. It was weird for a coastal city to not flourish as a trade centre. He wanted to investigate the reason why, but he had another matter to be done first.


    There was a group of bandits ravaging the villages around the territory of Novgorod. Lucas had sent the knights to investigate, but they were beaten by the bandits. Lucas planned to go with the knights after they had recovered. Asher reported to him that they underestimated the bandits and were beaten off when they tried to take them down. It appeared they had powerful individuals among them.


    When Lucas heard that, he immediately ordered the knights to investigate the bandits and their hideout. He expected to receive the reports first before confronting the bandits. When he was deep in thought, someone came into the room. It was Ella, Lucas¡¯s personal maid. She became his personal maid after the nightly adventure she had together with him when Lucas arrived at Petersburg. The head maid felt it was appropriate to assign her to that duty after she was given personal affection by Lucas.


    Ella had long wavy blonde hair and grey eyes, she always had a bright smile whenever she saw him. Ella brought refreshments and lunch for Lucas.


    ¡°My Lord, you¡¯ve locked yourself here for a long time, how about eating something? What happens if you die?¡± blabbered Ella.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to die if I skip lunch, Ella.¡±


    ¡°No, no. You must eat now!¡± nagged Ella.


    Lucas decided to do what Ella said. ¡°Fine, just prepare it on that table over there¡±


    ¡°Okay!¡±


    William came to meet him while he was eating and waited on by Ella inside the room.


    ¡°Oh, hello William!¡±


    ¡°My Lord,¡± greeted William, ¡°I was worried that you had forgotten your meal, but it seemed you hadn¡¯t¡±


    ¡°Well, whose fault is it that made me almost forget about it?¡±


    ¡°No idea. Anyway, I came to give you a report. The project of constructing the road went smoothly, until today¡­¡±


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°One of our convoys was raided by Night Howl.¡±


    ¡°The bandits? How?¡± The bandits were called Night Howl.


    ¡°They ambushed our men and immediately beat the guards.¡±


    ¡°No resistance?¡±


    ¡°They did their best protecting the convoy, but they were taken by surprise, so¡­¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ Alright, I¡¯ll think about how to take care of them.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord. Also, Baron Brawn wanted to meet you.¡±


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°At the training field, he said he wanted to introduce something to you.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be there after this.¡±


    After having lunch, Lucas went to the trending field. There he saw Max waiting for him with a familiar weapon to Lucas, a musket. It seemed Max had made a prototype for Lucas to check.


    ¡°Max, is that what I think it is?¡±


    ¡°It is. A musket.¡±


    Max gave the musket to Lucas. It was just like a musket from the 18th and 19th century. A long muzzleloading gun with a bayonet attachment in the mouth of the gun.


    ¡°Here, the gunpowder and the bullets. I was able to make smokeless gunpowder.¡±


    ¡°Neat. let¡¯s try it.¡±


    The gunpowder and the bullet were encased in a paper cartridge. Eliminating the need to measure how much gunpowder is needed to shoot the musket.


    Lucas loaded the musket and aimed at a target 100 metres away. A loud voice like thunder came as soon as Lucas pressed the trigger in the musket. Lucas looked at the target and it missed the target.


    ¡°As expected, it can¡¯t be as accurate as a rifle.¡±


    ¡°Well, the musket has a smoothbore barrel and a round ball bullet, of course, it wasn¡¯t accurate.¡±


    ¡°Right, we need at least a hundred people shooting at intervals to ensure this gun is useful on the battlefield. What about the cannons?¡±


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    ¡°It¡¯s in the making, I¡¯ll let you know when it¡¯s done.¡±


    ¡°Ok, the cannons will be the key to making our enemy run. They won¡¯t expect that.¡±


    ¡°Of course, should I make chemical ammunition?¡±


    ¡°What? No. I don¡¯t want to be harsh on these people. Anyway, I want you to prepare for tomorrow morning, we will hunt down the Night Howl.¡±


    ¡°Just the two of us?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯ll take some of the knights with us. Right, bring your rifle, in case we need it.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Morning came by and Max and several knights were present in the training fields. Max had worn his service uniform with his rifle and sword on his hips, the knights had their own uniform with some bringing swords and some with bows and arrows. Lucas arrived at the training fields after he got a report from William about the attack on the convoy of road construction..


    ¡°Are you really going with this many people?¡± nagged Ella.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, we have Max with us, so there won¡¯t be a problem.¡±


    ¡°Our knights were sent to take care of them and they were defeated completely. How am I not worried? What should I say to the Duchess when something happens to you?!¡±


    Lucas immediately grabbed her and kissed her forehead, Ella then blushed, she wasn¡¯t expecting this.


    Lucas said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve been to a worse place than this¡­ Stop worrying. You don¡¯t have to explain to Bianca, she will understand if I was injured¡­ How about this, when I came back¡­ We do it.¡±


    ¡°Do wh¨C ah¡­¡± Ella said shyly, ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll wait for you to come back. Make sure you come back¡­ Okay!¡±


    Lucas nodded with a soft smile.


    Lucas then approached the men waiting for him in the training fields. After a short speech, they went to hunt down the bandits ravaging the duchy. Ella looked at them with a worried look, she hoped they would come back safely.


    The group went to the scene of the ambush first, the scene was already partially cleaned by reinforcement that came to help the convoy. Lucas looked through the wreckage left from the attack. He deduced from the scene that the convoy was indeed taken completely by surprise and was struggling when they were attacked. Around the path where the convoy was attacked was a wooded area, perfect for an ambush. According to the report, the bandits had two powerful magicians in their ranks and from the wreckage of the attack, at least one of them participated in the attack yesterday.


    After a short break, Lucas ordered the men to continue to the bandits'' hideout. The group Lucas led consisted of 32 knights and Max. It was minuscule compared to the knight detachment sent a few days ago. However, Lucas and Max brought rifles with them and they proved effective against the magic defence. So, Lucas was sure they would be able to defeat the bandits, as long as their magicians were killed first.


    The groups arrived at the bandits¡¯ hideout around the evening. Lucas was surprised when he saw the hideout, the report said they hid in the cave. But, what he saw was a man-made structure styled as a cave, as if someone made the cave itself. He could faintly see writing on top of the cave¡¯s mouth. It had been broken by the vegetation growing around the mouth¡¯s cave, making the writing unreadable.


    The cave was big, it could fit at least 3 Main Battle Tanks side-by-side with a spare room to walk around it.


    ¡°Commodore, this isn''t a natural cave.¡±


    ¡°Right, this cave is man-made.¡±


    ¡°The entrance is big, it could fit multiple Main Battle Tanks side-by-side. So what should we do?¡±


    ¡°We went inside, the report said the bandits live inside the cave.¡± Lucas prepared his rifle.


    ¡°Are we going in first?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we have rifles. So it will be easier for us to just take them out silently¡­ at least until they realise when they are attacked.¡±


    ¡°Cool.¡±


    Lucas waited until nightfall before he began the attack. Lucas ordered the knights to follow him closely and waited for orders to charge. They carefully advanced to the mouth of the cave, at this point, Lucas realised how much easier it would be if he brought Lyra with him on this mission. Lucas ordered Max to take point and lead the charge inside.


    Max counted down from 3 before they went inside the cave. Both Max and Lucas had set their rifle to silence mode. They took down two bandits guarding the cave before they advanced deeper to the cave. The cave went downward the deeper they went and finally they arrived at the ¡®end¡¯ of the cave. They found a makeshift shack and living quarters made by the bandits.


    Lucas told everyone to prepare to attack the bandits. Max and Lucas observed the bandits who were still up and talking in the fire camp. Lucas tried to look around the place to look for the magicians. However, they were not outside the shack. They must have slept or stayed inside the shack.


    ¡°What¡¯s the plan?¡± asked Max.


    ¡°The magicians are inside the shack, I presume.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess so as well.¡±


    ¡°Then, let¡¯s wake them up. Start by taking down the bandits around the fire camp. On my count.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡±


    Lucas and Max decided on which person they should shoot. After they made that decision, Lucas gave the command to start shooting. One by one the bandits around the fire camp were shot. However, they were able to wake up the other bandits who were sleeping in the camp. At first, they were confused by who was killing them, then they immediately ran to Lucas and Max''s position. Seeing the charge, Lucas wanted to conserve the ammo of his rifle, so he ordered the knights to charge.


    A clash immediately happened between the knights and the bandits. Lucas waited behind for the magicians to show up when suddenly an ice spike flew in his direction. He immediately jumped to dodge the ice spike. He looked at the direction the ice spike came from and he saw a magician preparing to shoot again.


    In retaliation, Lucas shot the same ice spike at him, but it was deflected by his magic defence. Soon the other magician joined his comrade and fought Lucas. Max was helping the knights fight the bandits, so Lucas was alone against the 2 magicians. Both magicians shot multiple spells at him and most of the time he was able to deflect them or dodged but an ice spike was able to hit his leg.


    A surge of cold was felt when the ice spike stuck on his leg, it was as if his leg were thrown with freezing water. He held this sensation and fought back. In the end, Lucas was able to hit the magicians with flames of fireball right on their faces and burn them to death. After he had done dealing with the magicians. He helped the knight deal with the bandits and soon enough the bandits were completely defeated, none were left alive.


    Finally, he felt the pain in his leg, the ice spike was gone and it left a scar on his leg. Max came to him and helped him tend his wound.


    ¡°You should take a shot of nanomachines, the healing grows slower because the nanomachines are about to be depleted.¡±


    ¡°I know, but I don¡¯t think we need to use that often. We had a limited supply of those.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, I guess bandaging and natural healing is enough for you.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    After he was done tending his wound, Lucas looked around the bandits¡¯ camp. Lucas was interested in the ¡®end¡¯ of the cave because it was not a naturally made structure, rather it was a man-made structure, specifically, it was a gate. A huge gate where a couple of Main Battle Tanks could go inside together. He looked at the gate and he wondered what this structure is supposed to keep. The model of the gate was the same as what the Duchy of Lorien used for their armoury.


    ¡°Lucas!¡± Max shouted. Lucas immediately went to Max''s location and inside one of the shack rooms was a door, a metallic-looking door.


    ¡°What is this,¡± wondered Lucas.


    ¡°Looks like a door¡­ to somewhere?¡±


    ¡°That gate-looking thing and this door must have hidden something. Do you know how to open it?¡±


    ¡°This thing looked like a card reader device and some sort of eye, maybe a face recognition device?¡± Max pointed at a device near the door.


    ¡°Do you think the bandits were able to get inside?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think so, the door looked like it hadn''t been open for ages.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡± Lucas looked at the device closely, to the point his face was looking directly at the eye or face recognition device thingy.


    Suddenly, a voice was heard. ¡°Lorien dynasty members detected¡­ Looking through the database¡­ Data not found.¡±


    ¡°What the¡­¡± Lucas was shocked.


    ¡°Additional verification needed¡­. Ave rosa speciosa¡±


    Max looked at Lucas with confusion, the same expression Lucas had. Lucas wondered what this place was and why is it related to his House.


    ¡°Ave rosa speciosa,¡± repeated the voice.

 Chapter 29 - 111th Lilium Army Base

    ¡°Ave carens simili,¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°Oh, quam sancta, quam serena, quam benigna, quam amoena ¡± the voice continued.


    ¡°Oh, castitatis lilium, tuum precare filium.¡±


    ¡°Verification completed. Welcome members of the House of Lorien. This facility is under lockdown due to the protocol Withered Garden is in effect. Verification by a member of the House of Lorien is needed to lift the lockdown. Would you like to lift it, My Lord?¡±


    ¡°Yes, lift the lockdown.¡±


    ¡°Verification confirmed. Lifting the lockdown, protocol Withered Garden is no longer in effect.¡±


    The door in front of them opened. Lucas and Max went inside the facility. The facility had electricity running through it and powering the lights in the corridors they entered. Lucas and Max explored the facility, they discovered living quarters, a canteen, a bio-garden and even a common room. They finally arrived at the door to the Facility Commander office¡¯s room. The door was automatically opened when Lucas used his eyes to verify his identity¨CIt seemed the voice or AI automatically stored his data and made him able to access the whole facility.


    Lucas went inside the room and immediately went to check on the computer to see records about this facility. He found records written by the Facility Commander. There were multiple entries and Lucas opened the first one titled 111th Lilium Army Base;


    111th Lilium Army Base


    This base is to be used by the 111th Division of Lilium Empire, the division is responsible for the security and protection of the eastern side of the Sudeten Continent together with the 7th Division. The base must be hidden as the purpose of the division is to be used in the case of insurgency or rebellion on the planet by the citizens of the Lilium Empire. The base must have its own power generator and must be able to grow its own food. The base must be stocked with a year''s worth of supplies and must be able to survive and independently operate for 2 years in the case of a total communication blackout from the Imperial Family.


    This base is one of two possible evacuation places for the Imperial Family when a catastrophe, such as a rebellion or an alien attack, were to happen. The other place [REDACTED] is preferred to this base as the evacuation place, as they have better support and are more secluded than this facility. The 111th Lilium Army Base is designated as TOP SECRET by the Imperial Family and its existence shall not be known to most of the military.


    The 111th Division of the Lilium Empire is a special division. The division is a specialised combat tactic of infantry and armoured elements. The division reported directly to the Emperor of Lilium. The division consisted of 5.000 personnel


    The 111th Lilium Army Base is able to hold 6.000 personnel and 100 Main Battle Tanks. The base has multiple armouries of weapons of many kinds¨Cmostly service rifles.


    Lucas then opened another entry titled The Rebellion, it was a diary entry written by the Facility Commander or the 111th Division Commander;


    The Rebellion


    Today is the 5th of November 7790 of the earth year. A rebellion led by General Stirling Roberson happened. Most of the military of the Empire was on his side and now the Royal Family are trying their best to consolidate its forces. An order came from the Emperor to immediately mobilise and protect the Capital. I have ordered 4 regiments to reinforce the Capital, I and the last regiment are guarding this place. I hope the rebellion is quickly suppressed, I don''t know what is going on in Stirling¡¯s head, has he gone mad? Why did he rebel like a fucking child?


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    Another entry below it was titled Our Last Defence;


    Our Last Defence


    It has been a year since the start of the rebellion and the rebels have won. 3 months ago contact with the Imperial Family was cut off and I heard they were all killed by the rebels. Those bastards, how dare they kill the blood of Lorien. Who do they think they are? Killing the noble family like that. The rebels knew this location and they began attacking this place. I¡¯m going to enact the protocol Withered Garden and protect what¡¯s left inside this facility. I and all of my surviving men will fight to the last and protect this facility at all costs.


    After reading the entry, the mystery of the Lilium Empire and the origin of this civilization was solved. It was indeed the lost expedition from the Duchy of Lorien that established the civilization of this planet and looking at the date of the rebellion, it had been 2100 years since the rebellion of the Lilium Empire that threw this world into the mediaeval age era.


    Mixed feelings went into Lucas'' mind, he was relieved that he discovered the origin of the human civilization on this planet and at the same time felt sadness, because the Lorien dynasty was destroyed by the rebellion. This entry was the proof of their existence. But, Lucas wondered where the Capital was located. Do the rebels still exist or have they gone backward as well?


    Lucas suddenly got a call, it was from Max. Now that he finished reading, he just realised that Max had gone away.


    ¡°Yes, Max? What is it?¡±


    ¡°Come here, I¡¯ve found an armoury.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m going there.¡±


    Max activated his tracker so Lucas could go to his place. The entry of the base told him there were multiple armouries around the base, however, Lucas guessed the armoury would be emptied because the weapons were already used by the division when the rebellions happened. He was wrong.


    When he arrived at the armoury where Max called, Lucas was taken aback. It was a huge armoury, inside were service rifles, service uniforms and multiple weapons.


    ¡°We hit the motherload,¡± said Max with a grin.


    ¡°Yes, we are!¡±


    Lucas picked up one of the rifles and looked at it. It looked like an older model of rifle used by the Galactic Empire. In fact, the Galactic Empire now used rifles created by the Duchy of Lorien¡¯s Small Arms Factory. The ammunition used by these rifles is the same as Lucas¡¯ service rifle. He was sure this rifle was an older model of the current gun used by the military.


    He then looked at the uniform of the Lilium Empire left in the armoury, it had the same colour and motif as the uniform of the Duchy of Lorien. With white colour being the majority of uniform colour. A lily flower insignia was sewn on the uniform at the same place as the Duchy of Lorien¡¯s uniform.


    ¡°This is¡­ Lorien¡¯s stash? So it is true that this was the lost expedition of the Duchy of Lorien.¡±


    ¡°It is, yeah¡­¡±


    ¡°Amazing, I never knew they would be in the same place as we are.¡±


    ¡°We should use these weapons to our advantage.¡±


    ¡°Right, we can use this. I can make multiple things with the help of the reactors. Do you still need me to industrialise this world or..?¡±


    ¡°Yes, go ahead and industrialise this world, I¡¯m sure this base¡¯s database contains a lot of data useful to you.¡±


    ¡°Right, I¡¯ll tinker with the base¡¯s network and database to ensure we fully control it.¡±


    ¡°Good, I¡¯ll assign people here¡­ no, Max you stay here for a while and do whatever you want in here, I¡¯ll leave 20 people with you in here. Let me know if you need something else later.¡±


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    Lucas and Max then continued exploring the facility. They saw a knight running in their direction.


    ¡°My Lord,¡± shouted the knight.


    ¡°What is it?¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°You must see this!¡±


    The knight led them to an area with a huge room, it was like a hangar. There they saw something they least expected. Something they thought would not exist in this world.

 Chapter 30 - Terrasia

    The huge room contained rows of vehicles, not just your ordinary vehicle. The vehicle had tracks and a turret, it was a tank, in particular Main Battle Tank. The tank was an older model of the Main Battle Tank used by the Duchy of Lorien¡¯s military. Duchy Lorien¡¯s military used a different model of a tank than most of the Galactic Imperium military. The Galactic Imperium used Tauris Mk. X while the Loriens used Candidum Mk. 34.


    There were only around 25 tanks in the garage. All of them looked functional and could be used. However, checkup and maintenance were needed to ensure they were working fine. This mission to eradicate the bandits turned out to be a scavenger hunt where they found a motherload of equipment and weaponry at the end of their journey. Lucas sent a messenger back to Petersburg, he told the messenger that he would be staying at the facility for a while and ordered William to take care of everything while he was absent.


    Lucas wanted to keep this facility a secret. The less people knew about this place, the better. He would tell all of the members of his ship, William and Asher as well as the Novgorod¡¯s knights. While he stayed there, he looked around the facility and found another armoury.


    Looking at the rifles in the armoury, he planned to train all the knights of Novgorod on how to use the rifle. It would give them a massive advantage against the enemy. He also planned to train the knights on how to use the tanks. He returned to the Facility Commander¡¯s room and looked at the other entries in the computer.


    He found entries about the inventories of the supplies of the base, it was reported the base, before the rebellion, was restocked with a year''s worth of supplies of food and drinks. Regarding the military supplies, the base had around 7.000 rifles, 4.000 support weapons and 100 tanks, as well as the ammunition for those weapons and vehicles.


    ¡°This base is stacked. But¡­ I read before about the other hiding spot or evacuation place for the Imperial Family, but it was redacted. I wonder where it is?¡± Lucas said as he browsed the computer.


    Lucas wondered about the other place that was prepared for the Imperial Family evacuation in case of rebellion. Could there be a stash of supplies like this base as well? Lucas browsed the computer more and he found an entry titled, Terrasia.


    Terrasia, the New Earth.


    Since we arrived at this planet, our leader, Jorgum Lorien has led us to colonise this planet. This planet has 3 continents, Europa, Antreia and Mernia; those are the names we give to the continents. We first landed in the continent we called Antreia and from there we expanded to colonise the whole planet.


    If we ever reunited with the Galactic Imperium again, I¡¯m sure we will be written in history as the first humans to meet an intelligent alien civilization. That¡¯s right, we can proudly declare ourselves as the first humans to find and communicate with an alien civilization. They called themselves Elsewen. Not a lot was known about them as they won¡¯t divulge much of their history to us. The Elsewen is a humanoid species. They looked like humans, but they had different bodily features than humans. They are, in general, taller than humans, and their ears are long and pointy and they have great hearing and vision. Their hair colour was rather distinctive, when they were born their hair was red and as they grew it turned blonde. In their tradition. when their hair completely turns blonde, they are considered an adult. Both males and females of Elsewen grew their hair long and had a long life span.


    They populated the Europa continent. We were able to communicate with them thanks to the technology from Galactic Imperium that made it possible to translate their language into our own language. Jorgum Lorien made contact with the leader of the elves. Later, our Emperor, Jorgum Lorien, made a pact with Elsewen¡¯s leaders. The pact was that the Europa Continent would not be littered with our modern buildings and industry, in fact, Jorgum would ensure limited construction and infrastructure in the Europa Continent. That¡¯s why the Europa Continent was bare of buildings and infrastructure as the Emperor himself made it clear that he did not want to build and destroy nature on the continent.


    Osten and Westwald Continents were different. Both of those places became the places where we, humans, excavated the resources of the planet and built buildings and infrastructure to be used by our civilization. In the first hundred years, we grew and grew and were able to adapt to this planet. However, there was no sign of the Galactic Imperium, the Emperor felt that we were indeed stranded far away from the territory of the Galactic Imperium and decided to mothball the ships we used to travel to space. All of those ships were submerged and kept near the island where the Royal Capital was located.


    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    This entry gave Lucas a good overview of the planet and the lost Lorien expedition. Looking at the entry for Elsewen''s race, the elves that Ariana told him about were probably them.


    If this alien civilization survived, they might have records of the history of the Lilium Empire and more about their interaction with the human race. One thing Lucas hoped was they were not hostile towards the human race. Fortunately. looking at the elves who sometimes interacted with a village in the kingdom, meant that they bore no hostility to the human race.


    Lucas leaned back on the chair, he observed the room. The place was a little bit dusty, but most of it was clean. It was surprising because this facility had been left stranded for centuries. As he had been thinking since they found this facility, could it be possible to repair their spaceship to enable them to explore the systems around them?


    Lucas browsed through the computer again, he found entries of reports, logs and diaries from the Facility Commander who was also the Commander of the 111th Division. There was nothing interesting that caught Lucas¡¯s attention until he found a document containing the drawn map of the planet.


    Lucas felt as if he had struck a gold vine. The map from the old world would be helpful to locate the ruins or whatever was left of the Lilium Empire. There could be a stash of weapons like this one or anything that could be useful. Lucas wanted to find out what caused the rebellion to happen in the Lilium Empire. Yes, the commander of the 111th Division wrote in his entry that the military did the rebellion and essentially destroyed the Empire. But, one thing he did not understand was, what happened after that.


    What caused the collapse of the society and civilization of the Empire? Lucas thought as he looked at the drawn map on the computer. Lucas could not find any reason, way or possibility that the civilization of this planet, in an instant, went backwards to the mediaeval age. It could not be Memory Wipe since the technology was acquired by the Loriens centuries after the disappearance of the expedition.


    Then a thought dawned on him, Could it be that there were other devices like that? Memory Wipe was a device created by Roktarian Ascendency and for some reason, the device could completely or partially wipe people¡¯s memory. The House of Lorien was able to acquire the device, harness the capability of the device and use it to their advantage. The most recent use of the device was when they erased the memory of the whole population of the Galactic Empire about Lucy Lorien and her kidnapping accident as well as the incident following her death. Everyone, except the Loriens as well as a select few individuals who were loyal to the Loriens, had their memory wiped.


    Another cause for the backwardness of the civilization that he could think of was the near destruction of humanity on this planet. Lucas guessed the rebellion caused a massive war that almost brought humankind on this planet to complete destruction. For Lucas, this was the only logical explanation. If this was true, Lucas hoped there was still a record left by those who survived the war.


    Lucas wondered if the Royal Family of the Romanovia Kingdom had any records of the survivors of the war. But first, Lucas had to apologise and make up with Anastasia for his insolence towards her mother; even though she had forgiven her by revoking his banishment. The earliest Lucas planned to return to the Royal Capital would be at the coronation banquet in a few months.


    The map showed there were 3 military bases in the Europa Continent and one of those was within the Romanovia Kingdom, excluding the 111th Lilium Army Base. One of the bases was in the place Lucas least expected, it was right at the location of the Royal Capital of the Romanovia Kingdom.


    ¡°The capital is built on a ruined base? That''s interesting. But, there was no visible sight of the ruin of the base. Ah, the underground structure, they should be intact.¡±


    The base on the map was labelled ¡®7th Division Army Base¡¯. From the diary of the Commander of the 111th Division, the 7th Division took part in the rebellion and was the one who was able to capture and hold the Europa Continent by defeating the 2 divisions on the continent. Together with reinforcement from other divisions on the rebel side, the 7th Division attacked the 111th Division¡¯s base. The commander guessed that the rebels were able to discover the base when they captured the Capital and found the base¡¯s secret location.


    Moving north of the Europa Continent, Lucas was able to discover the area where he coined the Unknown Area on this planet. The area was an archipelago with one big island labelled, The Royal Capital.


    But, why was the place protected with an anti-detection defence system, Lucas thought, the technology from centuries ago would be easily countered by the current technology of the Galactic Empire equipped in my ship.

 Chapter 31 - The Service Rifle

    The current scanning and detection technology installed on the HMGS Falcon 1 was the result of centuries of research and experiments. Especially after the discovery of the Roktarian and the war against them, the detection technology of the Galactic Imperium had advanced to the point of them being able to penetrate the Roktarian¡¯s cloaking device. The ships of the Recon Squadron were fitted with those advanced technologies. It was a surprise to Lucas that something or someone was able to be hidden from his ship¡¯s detection.


    Whatever it was, it had the technology surpassing the Galactic Imperium. The Royal Capital of the Lilium Empire was located on one of the islands in the archipelago. The map also marked the location of the mothballed space-faring ships. It was located near the island where the Lilies Guard Base was located.


    Lucas knew whoever was in the Royal Capital of the Lilium Empire was alive. The reconnaissance drones destroyed on this planet must have been their doing, Lucas thought. Lucas wanted to make sure he and his people would be ready if the residence of the Royal Capital of the Lilium Empire sailed forth and confronted him. Lucas hated facing an unknown enemy, and if he ever confronted one, he would do his best to understand them first and then confront them on his own terms.


    Lucas was so deep in thought and reading the entries that he forgot the day had turned to night and the knights who went with him had fallen asleep. The room Facility Commander''s room had its own bedroom in the room next door, so when Lucas realised that most of his men had fallen asleep in their quarters, he immediately went to sleep.


    The next day, Lucas and the knights spent their time searching the remainder of the facility. After searching all the armouries inside the facility they found 1.000 rifles, 100 Anti-tank Rifles, 100 Handheld Anti-tank Missile Launchers, 150 Machine guns, 30 200mm Towed Howitzer, 1900 Lilium Empire¡¯s Uniforms and thousands of ammunition of many kinds. They also found 10 Infantry Fighting Vehicles and 15 Trucks, alongside 25 Main Battle Tanks in the garage.


    Upon closer look, the Main Battle Tank carried a 150mm gun in a turret, with a heavy machine gun as the secondary armament. The model of the Main Battle Tank was Candidum Mk. 11.


    ¡°So, we have a healthy amount of rounds for the tanks,¡± said Max while climbing down from the tank.


    ¡°Great, we can use the tanks effectively then. It''s just a matter of training these people to use the tanks.¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ I want Sarah to help me train these guys, can you assign her here?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, after she is done with the matter in the Royal Capital. I will send her here.¡±


    ¡°Neat, It¡¯ll get the job done easier.¡±


    Lucas observed the Infantry Fighting Vehicles that were parked at the same garage as the Main Battle Tanks.


    ¡°I looked through the records and this IFV model is called Ajax,¡± said Max as he flipped around the documents he carried.


    ¡°Ajax? The Lorien Duchy never had pieces of equipment named after Greek Gods. What are their specifications?"


    ¡°The IFV can carry 12 people excluding the driver and gunner of the vehicle. The gun is 30mm in a turret.¡±


    ¡°How fast can this thing go?¡±


    ¡°Depending on the condition, off-road it can go 70 km/h at maximum.¡±


    ¡°And the tanks?¡±


    ¡°60 km/h off-road.¡±


    Lucas looked at the Towed Howitzer stored in the garage. He observed the howitzer was of the light variant because the army of the Galactic Imperium usually would have 430mm howitzer deployed in the campaign to support the infantry.


    ¡°This is a light howitzer with a 200m gun,¡± said Max.


    ¡°Good enough for infantry support.¡±


    ¡°Yep, it can shoot up to 50 km.¡±


    "Not bad for an old technology," Lucas was impressed.


    When he was observing the howitzers, a knight came to them.


    ¡°My Lord, all of the men are ready at the shooting range.¡±


    ¡°Good, let¡¯s go there,¡± said Max.


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    Max had ordered the knights to assemble at the shooting range at noon. He planned to teach them to shoot the rifles and guns they found. When they arrived there, the knights were waiting.


    ¡°Alright, listen up! Today, you will be learning a new weapon.¡± Max picked up a rifle. ¡°This is the weapon you will be learning.¡±


    A knight raised their hand and asked, ¡°Is that the same thing you have been using?¡±


    ¡°Yes, pretty much. This is a rifle, a LR-57. It shoots bullets and kills people in an instant, and is able to penetrate a magician''s magic defence.¡±


    ¡°Wow¡­¡± The Knights were in awe of such a powerful weapon.


    ¡°I¡¯ll demonstrate to you how to do it¡­ First, outside combat, always put the safety on.¡± Max showed the location of the safety lock on the rifle. ¡°You can choose between two firing modes, one is automatic and the other is semi-automatic. Automatic means once you press the trigger, the gun will keep shooting until you release the trigger. Semi-automatic means, you press once and the gun shoots once. Look at me shooting it.¡±


    Max positioned himself to shoot the rifle.


    ¡°This is how you hold your gun when standing to shoot. The guns will recoil, so make sure to put a force to hold your gun in position. I¡¯ll do automatic first and semi-automatic,¡± continued Max.


    Max shot the gun at a target 100 metres away with automatic fire mode; he was able to hold the gun in position throughout the firing. ¡°Then, after you shoot and spend all the ammunition inside the magazine, this box here. You reload the gun, just like this.¡± Max took off the empty magazine on the rifle and replaced it with a loaded magazine. ¡°Then, you cock it to load the first bullet then you can shoot again.¡±


    Max aimed at the same target and shot the gun with semi-automatic fire mode. It was much easier to control the gun in semi-auto mode. The knights were amazed by the demonstration that Max gave.


    ¡°All of you have seen how to shoot a rifle. Now, I want each of you to learn by practising how to shoot with it. Each of you take a rifle, please.¡±


    All the knights picked up a rifle laid out in the shooting range and Max coached the knights on how to shoot the rifle. It was a sight to Lucas to see the knights learning to shoot the rifles. For him, it was like watching a baby taking his first step. The knights, all of them, were amazed, confused, afraid and curious about the new weapons they had never seen before.


    The LR-57 was an older model of the LR-90, the current rifle used by the Galactic Imperium military. The LR-57 had no built-in night vision and thermal vision, it was a little bit bigger compared to the LR-90.


    LR-90 was much more powerful compared to the LR-57 because the latter model was made to be used against the Roktarian.


    Since the attack from the Roktarian, the military research and production of the Galactic Imperium shifted to focus on fighting and defeating the Roktarian. The need for powerful weapons to fight the sturdy body of the Roktarian arose and the researcher from the Lorien Institute was able to modify the LR model to have more velocity and stronger ballistic. The first model of such kind, LR-79, got its first field test at the Battle of Dranterra. A group of specialised forces from the Duchy of Lorien was able to hold their own against the surging wave of Roktarian while they were protecting the evacuation zone of the planet. Even though, in the end, they all perished before they were able to be evacuated, the Galactic Imperium High Command took notice of the powerful rifle, and not long after, a decree was made to uniform the service rifles used by all the Empire¡¯s militaries.


    The Duchy of Lorien was awarded the right for production of the service rifles used by all the militaries, making them the sole provider of small arms for the Empire. The Duchy of Lorien would modify and improve the rifle they made, until the model LR-90 was created and became the model used widely for 70 years until now.


    In the beginning, many protested the Empire on giving the Right Production of the service rifle to the Duchy of Lorien as it could be used by them to monopolise and hold their rival hostage by refusing the direct sale to them. The Empire then made a law that the sale of the rifle could only be done either by direct sale from Lorien or through the Empire¡¯s own store, where the Empire set the price for Lorien to sell the rifle at a fixed price.


    For Lucas, the older model was more than enough to be used against anything on this planet. Compared to the world¡¯s military technology and magic, a power he still could not understand how it worked¨Cscientifically. The rifle was more than enough to kill anything that he came across.


    A platoon of riflemen could easily wipe out a regiment of knights, Lucas thought.


    ¡°Swords and magic clashing against the pinnacle of science, who would win?¡± said Lucas to Max as they observed the knights learning how to use the rifles.


    ¡°Science, of course. Honestly, I¡¯m still baffled by this magic power. There must be an explanation for this kind of power, I¡¯ve read every book about magic I could get a hand on. But, none of them explain much about the magic,¡± said Max.


    ¡°It must be something to do with this planet since the magic could not be used outside the planet¡¯s atmosphere.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I had Lyra tested it on the ship, on the planet¡¯s orbit, but she said the magic did not materialise.¡±


    ¡°Interesting.¡±


    When both of them were talking, Max noticed that someone tried to look at the rifle¡¯s barrel while the safety was off. He instantly shouted at them and scolded them for playing around. Lucas saw the men were getting an earful from Max because of that.


    The next morning, Lucas left the facility and went back to Petersburg alone. He decided to leave all the knights in the facility and have them trained under Max¡¯s guidance as well to manage the facility. Before he returned to Petersburg, he went to some villages to have a refreshing time. Since he had been under a lot of pressure and worked in Petersburg, this was his chance to take a little break before returning to his hard work day. After a week of refreshing, he rode back on his horse to Petersburg. The scenery was beautiful, the green grass and the forest were a sight to behold for Lucas.


    However, his peace and quiet time was suddenly interrupted when someone came running at him and said, ¡°Help! Please help!¡±


    Give me a break, Lucas thought.

 Chapter 32 - The Twins

    Lucas saw a woman running towards him, shouting, ¡°Please help!¡±


    Lucas stopped his horse and waited for the woman to come to him. The woman wore clothing that looked much more expensive than what a commoner would wear.


    A merchant¡¯s daughter or noble¡¯s daughter, Lucas thought.


    ¡°What is it?¡± asked Lucas to the distressed woman.


    ¡°My sister, she¡­ she was hurt. Please help her.¡±


    Lucas had suspicions about the woman, why would she run to a random person asking him to help her. He wondered if her accomplices, if any, were near.


    Lucas moved his hand to his sword, ready to pull it out, if someone jumped on him. He put his guard up and scanned his surroundings. The woman seemed to notice that Lucas was suspicious


    ¡°Please, sir. I-i¡¯m not with anyone, I do need your help,¡± said the woman, pleading with him.


    ¡°How can I trust you, a stranger I just met on this road?¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­ here.¡± The woman gave Lucas the ring she wore on her finger. ¡°This ring is made from a diamond, if you sell it you will get a lot of money. Take this as the payment. Do you trust me now?¡±


    A trade? Lucas thought. Lucas saw desperation in her eyes and decided to listen to what she needed from him.


    Lucas received the ring. ¡°Alright, what do you need?¡±


    ¡°Just, get my sister and me to the nearest town and doctor, please.¡±


    ¡°Is she sick?¡±


    ¡°She was hurt¡­ she was protecting me from attackers and she was hurt.¡±


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    ¡°She is near. It will be only a short walk from here!¡±


    ¡°Alright, lead the way,¡± said Lucas. He dismounted his horse and walked with her to the location where her sister was hurt. He took his horse¡¯s rein and brought the horse together with him.


    After a short walk, Lucas could see bodies on the ground. He counted there were 6 bodies. Each of them wore clothing of those of bandits or vagrants, they carried swords, daggers and bows and arrows. One body had a slit wound on the neck, two bodies had stab wounds on the chest, one had a blunt wound on his head and a stab wound on the chest and the last two had multiple wounds over their bodies. Whoever killed them was an expert in sword fighting.


    Lucas put up his guard by putting his hand on the hilt of his sword, ready to pull it out.


    ¡°Over there!¡± shouted the woman. She was pointing at a tree near them.


    Lucas could see a woman, sitting down with her back on the tree. Beside her was a sword, red with blood, presumably from the dead bodies near her.


    ¡°Sis, I brought someone to help us!¡± said the woman.


    With a soft voice, her sister said, ¡°Just leave me alone, Tasya. Go to a city and seek protection there.¡±


    No! I can¡¯t leave you here.¡± Tasya turned her head to Lucas. ¡°Sir, please help her. Let¡¯s bring her to the city¡­ doctor!¡±


    Lucas looked at Tasya¡¯s sister. She had wounds on her arms and legs, as well as a slit on her stomach. Her hand was holding her stomach, to reduce the amount of blood gushing out, and there were bandages from clothes around her arms and legs. Her face started to turn white, possibly because of the loss of blood she suffered.


    "Wait here, I¡¯ll take something from my bag,¡± said Lucas. He walked back to his horse and took out from his bag, saddled on his horse, a syringe. Inside the syringe were nanobots, a healing mechanism employed by the Galactic Imperium for its soldiers.


    The nanobot-filled syringe was given by Bianca to Lucas to be used for Lucas if he needed it for himself. Lucas felt the nanobots in his body had depleted enough to the point his wound was not healing faster and he could feel the pain for a longer time. The girl, Tasya, had paid him to help her sister and for him, who had been taught to always fulfil his end of the bargain, making sure the sister survived was his utmost priority.


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    It would take at least 2 days for them to arrive at Petersburg, even if he tried his best to bandage her wound, there is a little chance she would survive the journey. She lost too much blood and needed a rest for her to recover the lost blood. By injecting the nanobots inside her body, it would speed up the production of blood inside her body and at the same time patch her wound.


    Lucas was not professionally trained in herbs gathering as he had no interest in the subject, and the person Lucas knew about herbs and medicinal plants was not with him. He could call her, but he did not want to disturb her if she was busy. He wished he had listened closely to the teacher when he was at the Imperial Guard Academy when they taught medicinal plants class.


    Lucas came back to the pair of women near the tree, he crouched down and inspected the wounded woman closely. ¡°Let¡¯s go! We have horses with us, help me get her to her horse!¡± said Tasya.


    ¡°I will treat her first. Help me.¡± Lucas took off the bandage that had been applied before.


    Lucas, with the help of Tasya, took off her clothes, she now only had her undergarments. He then cleaned the wound with water he had. He pulled the syringe from the box and carefully injected the nanobots into her body. Lucas could see the pain on her face. After he had done injecting the nanobots, he bandaged all the wounds on her body; on the arms, the legs and the stomach. He then gave her water to drink and let her rest there for a while.


    ¡°We should stay here until tomorrow,¡± said Lucas to Tasya.


    ¡°But, shouldn¡¯t we get to the doctor as soon as possible?¡± said Tasya with a tired and worried look.


    ¡°We need her to take a rest. I have applied medicine on her and by tomorrow she should be able to at least ride the horse together with us.¡± Lucas knew that by tomorrow the wounds would be completely healed, but he did not tell her.


    ¡°You healed her?¡±


    ¡°Well, not completely, but she should be fine enough, tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Th-thank you,¡± said Tasya with tears flowing down her cheeks.


    ¡°Get her dressed, I¡¯m going to take care of the bodies.¡±


    Lucas walked away from the sisters to let Tasya dress her sister and let them have their own moment. Lucas then went into the bodies of what he presumed was the attacker of the sisters. Upon closer look, the weapons of the dead bodies looked much more refined than what bandits usually had. The swords were well taken care of, the arrows were well made and some of the bodies wore well-maintained armour. It was a different sight than what he found when he went to raid a bandit¡¯s hideout a week before.


    Lucas, using magic, dug a hole and buried the bodies in the hole, after he had done looting the bodies. He found a large sum of money carried by the bandits, which made him suspicious as to why the bandits had a large sum of money on them. Then his suspicions about the truth of the bandits were answered, he found a paper with words on it, a letter of some kind, which he believed was an order given by someone to this group of people.


    The letter was an order for this group to capture 2 women, Tasya Rurigard and Tanya Rurigard. The name Rurigard was not the name of a noble house in the Romanovia Kingdom. Could it be a House from a foreign country? Lucas thought.


    Lucas sighed. He was more confused after learning the truth about the 2 women from the letter. The letter proved that, for some reason, the 2 women were being chased by someone. It had no sender name written inside it, but there was an initial, which Lucas believed was the sender, the initial was J.R.


    ¡°J.R¡­ J-something Rurigard? A family member chased them, but why?¡± muttered Lucas.


    Lucas folded the letter and kept it on him. After he finished burying the bodies he returned back to the sisters. He saw them sleeping, peacefully. It seemed they were exhausted from being chased by the pursuers. The sun was almost setting down and Lucas was feeling a little hungry.


    He left both of them with his horse and belongings and went to hunt or gather something to eat. He did not need to walk far away to find his prey. A deer-looking creature was seen eating the grass, it had brown furs covering its body, and a horn on its head. It was a common creature found on this planet. It had a massive population in the wilderness and usually was hunted by the population as a food source. The meat of the creature had a delicious taste.


    Although it had a different anatomy to the deer on Earth, the population on this planet called the creature ¡®Deer¡¯. The creature was docile and would only attack someone if they were cornered; If they were attacked or under threat, they would run away instead of retaliating using its horn.


    Lucas saw the deer calmly grazing the grass, unaware of his presence. Lucas did not have a bow and arrows on him to hunt the deer. However, he had learnt to use magic to hunt. Lucas pointed at the deer with his finger and from the tip of his finger, an ice arrow materialised and then in an instant, the ice arrow struck the deer and the deer dropped dead. It was rather easy hunting with magic compared to using a bow and arrow for Lucas.


    Lucas went ahead and picked up the deer and brought it back to the camp¨Cwhere the women slept. He skinned the deer and cut the meat, and then he took firewood he had gathered to make a fire. He seasoned the meats with salt and pepper he brought from 111th Lilium Army Base and then he grilled the meat.


    As he waited for the meat to be cooked, he looked at the pair of women who were sleeping soundly for several hours. Tasya, the woman who asked to help him, had a similar facial features as her sister. Lucas thought, without a doubt, they are twins. Lucas unconsciously looked at them intensely¨Che was observing them.


    Both had long dark brown hair and delicate faces. Both of them were beautiful and Lucas could understand that many men would ask for their hand in marriage. Lucas had thought that the reason they left their home was because of an arranged marriage which the women¨Cor one of them¨Cdid not agree to.


    It reminded him of Lucy¡¯s arranged marriage and her opposition to the marriage. On that day, Lucas knew that Lucy was not a weak woman who needed his help to overcome any obstacles. He felt relieved that his twin sister was someone who could take care of herself.


    ¡°Is there something in our face?!¡± said a woman''s voice.


    Lucas was startled, he then realised that Tanya had opened her eyes and he could see an irritated look on her face.


    ¡°I apologise, I didn''t mean to look at you like that, I was just lost in thought.¡±

 Chapter 33 - Back to Petersburg

    ¡°Hah¡­ Fine, I know you¡¯re not that kind of man,¡± said Tanya with a sigh. ¡°Still, my sister here is a bit reckless.¡±


    ¡°I agree," Lucas said.


    ¡°After getting attacked by some people, she carelessly asked for help from a stranger.¡±


    Lucas understood Tanya¡¯s feelings.


    What if the person she asked for help had malicious intent, and instead of helping, they robbed them? Lucas thought.


    ¡°Yeah¡­ When she came running to me, she was panicking and desperate. At first, I thought it was some kind of play to lure me somewhere and then robbed me.¡±


    ¡°You are very cautious, huh?¡±


    ¡°Better safe than sorry.¡±


    ¡°Of course¡­ Thank you for saving me.¡± Tanya moved her hand, she opened and closed her palm, and looked at her bandaged arms. ¡°What did you do to me? I feel great already.¡±


    Lucas smiled. ¡°It¡¯s a special medicine and treatment from my country. You should be fine by tomorrow morning. Do you feel any pain?¡±


    ¡°No, I feel great.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s great! The medicine I gave you will heal your wound again when you get hurt¡­ for a few times.¡±


    ¡°Is it some sort of magic?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ Not really.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t pry any further. I owe you my life. I¡¯m Tanya and this girl here is my twin sister, Tasya.¡±


    ¡°I''m Lucas,¡± said Lucas, introducing himself and omitting his last name.


    ¡°Thank you, Lucas. If it weren¡¯t for your treatment I would be dead,¡± said Tanya, with a heartfelt expression.


    ¡°I was doing my job. Your sister paid me to get you to the city and get a treatment for you.¡±


    ¡°She paid you?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±¨CLucas reached his pocket and pulled out a ring¨C¡± she gave me this. Well, she said the ring is worth a lot.¡±


    A shocked expression could be seen on Tanya¡¯s face.


    ¡°Ahaha,¡± laughed Tanya, ¡°did she give you those?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Right¡­ It is worth a lot, the ring is full of history and was made with the finest jewel made by a well-known jeweller at that time.¡±


    Lucas was piqued by the statement, from just a glance, he knew the ring was expensive and of great quality. But, he did not know that there was a history to the ring.


    ¡°Is this ring¡­ a family heirloom?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°Well¡­ Not really¡­ It is something that Tasya hold dearly, and the fact that she was able to give that without a second thought¡­¡±¨CTanya caressed Tasya¡¯s head¨C¡°I don''t know¡­¡±


    Lucas was left speechless, the ring he was given as payment had a deep history for the sisters. Lucas, even though he was taught to be heartless as a leader, had a soft spot for his sisters, especially Lucy. He understood the feelings between the sisters in front of him, doing everything to save her sibling. A sibling''s life is worth more than billions of gold for Lucas.


    As he waited for the meat to be cooked, Tanya was caressing her sister¡¯s head, as if she was lullabying her. A sound was heard, and a growling sound came from the direction of the sister. Lucas looked at them and he saw Tanya''s face had turned red, and then a growling sound was heard again. She is hungry, Lucas thought.


    Lucas looked at the meats and they were already cooked. ¡°Here you go¡­¡± Lucas gave some of the meat skewers to Tanya.


    ¡°Th-thank you,¡± said Tanya as she was embarrassed by the sound of her stomach.


    Tasya ate the food well, and her face brightened up. Lucas put another meat on the fire to be cooked and ate the rest of the cooked meat. Soon after, Tasya woke up from her sleep.


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    ¡°Smells good¡­¡± Tasya said as she rubbed her eyes.


    ¡°Evening, princess~,¡± said Tanya.


    ¡°AH! Tanya, how is your wound!? Are you okay!? Do you feel hurt!?¡± Tasya said frantically, she looked and observed Tanya¡¯s bandaged limbs in a hurry.


    ¡°Calm down, Tasya!¡± Tanya held Tasya firmly with her hand. Dumbfounded, Tasya stopped and looked directly at Tanya. ¡°Look! I¡¯m fine and eating, right now,¡± continued Tanya.


    ¡°Right¡­ You¡¯re better now!¡± Tasya said.


    Tasya was about to hug Tanya but she stopped after realising that Tanya was still hurt and bandaged.


    ¡°I¡¯m better thanks to you.¡±


    ¡°Hmmm¡­ Me? Why?¡±


    ¡°The man you brought here has healed me.¡±


    ¡°Ah! Right, where is h¨C ah there you are. Thank you, for saving my sister,¡± said Tasya to Lucas.


    ¡°No problem, You paid me to help your sister, so I did what I could.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Tasya. This is Ta¨C¡±


    ¡°He already knows who I am,¡± said Tanya.


    ¡°Oh, right. Both of you must have had a conversation while I was asleep.¡±


    ¡°Yep.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Lucas,¡± said Lucas.


    ¡°Thank you again, Lucas. I don¡¯t know if the ring was enough to pay for your trouble¡­ If you need anything, just tell me, and I¡¯ll do my best to fulfil everything you ask.¡±


    ¡°It was enough, you don¡¯t have to worry.¡±


    ¡°Alright!¡±


    Lucas, Tasya and Tanya ate the meat Lucas cooked. It was just a simple dish, but it tasted good for the sisters. Tasya then pulled out a pouch and then Tasya did something that Lucas had never seen this world¡¯s people do. Tasya cast water magic to fill up her pouch and drank the water. Lucas already knew that the water cast from the magic power was drinkable, but he never saw anyone in this world use magic to cast drinkable water. Lucas had a theory that because of the power needed to cast a magic spell, a simple spell¨Cdrinkable water¨Cwould never be practised and the magic was mostly used for combats.


    Who taught her that? Lucas thought. The night kept getting darker as the hour went by. Tasya offered to be the lookout when Lucas and Tanya slept, but Lucas told her that she could take the first shift as the lookout and woke Lucas up when her shift ended. Tasya agreed to his proposal.


    Morning came and the three of them rode on top of their horses to the nearest city, Petersburg. Lucas escorted the sisters as per his agreement with Tasya. Their journey to the city was uneventful, the pursuers that went after the sisters were never seen again. For the journey to the city, Lucas had prepared himself for an ambush and attack from the people who went after the sisters. He was grateful that the pursuers decided to stop chasing them.


    Petersburg went into view, the city had flourished under the leadership of Lucas after the rebellion¨Cat least partially flourished. He had made significant changes to the city administration, security and economy. The smooth transition of the city and the Duchy contributed to the success of Lucas¡¯s reform; It was thanks to the previous Duchess who gave up the Duchy to him and Bianca without any confrontation.


    It had been a week since he left the 111th Lilium Army Base, and he forgot to tell anyone that he would be back for longer than it took to go from Petersburg to the Base. He hoped nothing happened when he was gone.


    ¡°Lucas, thank you for helping us and escorting us to the city. So, I guess this is where we will part," Tanya said.


    The three of them had arrived at the city gate.


    ¡°Yes, thank you for the company," Lucas said.


    "No, we should be the ones who are grateful. You saved my sister," Tasya said,


    "I''m only doing what I was paid for," Lucas smiled warmly.


    "Of course. I hope we meet again, my saviour." Tanya slightly bowed her head.


    Lucas parted away from Tasya and Tanya. He rode back to the Petersburg Palace, the residence of the ruling noble of Duchy of Novgorod in Petersburg. The Petersburg Palace had been Lucas¡¯s home when he stayed in Petersburg.


    As expected, Lucas got an earful from Ella for missing for a week. The Palace was in a panic when they received words that Lucas had left the base but had not arrived at the Palace.


    When Max was asked about what they should do, he just said, "Just wait, he''ll be back soon,"


    Max knew where he was; he could see Lucas''s location through his PCD. But, he did not tell them.


    It took Lucas a few days to calm down Ella''s anger toward him. She forced him to promise her not to do it again.


    Back in his office, Lucas was briefed by William about the task Lucas assigned him before he left.


    ¡°I¡¯ve found the person you are looking for, My Lord,¡± reported William. He stood in front of the table Lucas sat on.


    Lucas read the document William gave him about the person and the ship. It was indeed the ship he was looking for. ¡°Great. Where can I meet this person?¡±


    ¡°With due respect, My Lord.¡± William stopped momentarily, hesitant to speak. ¡°I don¡¯t think we should work this man?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± asked Lucas.


    ¡°This man is¡­ crazy.¡±


    ¡°Crazy?¡±


    ¡°He once went on a voyage with his fleet, but, when he came back here he lost everything.¡±


    ¡°Then, what happened to his ship?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°So¡­ this guy has no ship?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Is there no ship that has the same specification I¡¯ve mentioned?¡±


    ¡°No, My Lord. Most of the ships in this city are small ship which isn¡¯t capable of seafaring.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been hearing about this a lot. Why did the people here not go far away to the sea?


    ¡°That¡¯s because of sea monsters.¡±


    ¡°Sea monsters?¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord. Every time a ship went too far into the sea. A sea monster would attack the ship and destroy it. The person I''ve mentioned before was a rich merchant, he used his ships to trade with villages and towns near the coast. He desired to defeat the monsters and made a fleet of ships to defeat them. In the end, he lost it all.¡±

 Chapter 34 - The Merchants Story

    Sea monsters, Lucas thought.


    He was not surprised when he heard it. His first encounter on this planet was with a flying monster, a dragon. For him, the existence of sea monsters on this planet was not something strange.


    ¡°Sea monsters, huh? I¡¯d like to see it.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think you should risk yourself, My Lord.¡±


    ¡°Come one, William. Sea monsters are interesting.¡±


    ¡°Still¡­ I don¡¯t recommend you do it. Especially, without the Duchess¡¯s knowledge.¡±


    ¡°Honestly, I think she will allow it.¡±


    ¡°My Lord, I haven¡¯t met the Duchess yet. But, I have a feeling that by the fact you are her only relative here, Her Grace will not allow you to go to a certain death.¡±


    ¡°Come on, I only want to see it. What¡¯s the harm?¡±


    Lucas was persistent in checking the sea monsters in person. The drone he had sent to do reconnaissance on the water off the coast of Petersburg had detected a faint heat signature. Whatever the monster would be, Lucas had to defeat it if he wanted to make ocean voyages.


    ¡°Still, I don¡¯t recommend you to do it.¡±


    Lucas sighed. ¡°Fineee¡­. So, where can I meet this man?¡±


    ¡°He usually hangs out by the bar near the dock, you can meet him in the evening. If you want, I can send people to pick him up right now at his house.¡±


    ¡°No need, I can go there, later.¡±


    ¡°Please, make sure to tell me before you go there. I will prepare men to escort you.¡±


    ¡°Ugh¡­ I''ll talk with Asher, you don''t need to worry.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡±


    ¡°You may leave and send a message to Asher, I want to meet him, now.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord, I will relay your message.¡±


    William left the room and shortly after a knock came on the door.


    That was fast, Lucas thought.


    He let the person go in and it was Ella.


    ¡°Afternoon, Ella.¡±


    ¡°My Lord." Ella curtsy to him.


    She brought tea and refreshment for Lucas.


    ¡°Thank you. Put it on my table, please.¡±


    Ella placed down the tea and refreshment on the table.


    ¡°My Lord, did you, really... find a ruin of an ancient civilization?¡± Ella said with a curious face.


    ¡°We did. I left Max and the others there, to take care of the place.¡±


    ¡°What is it like?¡±


    ¡°Not much different, honestly. Some parts are older versions or just an old model.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± asked Ella, confused.


    Lucas just realised he accidentally spoke as if he was speaking to his crew member. ¡°Uh, I mean¡­ It looked strange, bizarre. Like¡­ I have ever seen before.¡±


    ¡°But, you said old?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a building from the ancient civilisation, right? So, old.¡±


    While they were still talking, a knock came on the door.


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    Lucas gestured to Ella to see who was coming. Ella walked toward the door and opened it, she let the person come in; it was Asher.


    Asher walked inside and saluted Lucas. "You called for me, My Lord?"


    "Yes." Lucas could notice sweat dripping down his face; he just come back from training. "I believe you have already known about the place we have found, correct?"


    Asher was hesitant to answer, he took a peek at Ella, who was standing near them. "Yes, I have."


    Lucas saw Asher''s gaze at her. "She knew about it. You don''t have to worry," Lucas assured him.


    "Yes, My Lord."


    "The Novgorod Knight currently has 130 people and before the rebellion, they had 700 people. Is that correct?"


    "That is correct. Those 130 were the ones left to defend the previous Duchess and her children."


    "Right, I wanted to expand the numbers to what we are allowed by the kingdom. Can you take care of the recruitment?"


    "Of course, Lord Lucas. I will send out the recruitment announcement as soon as possible."


    "Good. I also want you to pick someone after the recruitment to be the Duchess¡¯s guard. Currently, she has no one as her personal guard."


    "Certainly, I will have the candidate ready for you."


    "Also pick 50 people and send them to the ruin. I''m going to have them trained with the weapons we found."


    "Yes.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all. You may leave,¡± Lucas said, ¡°oh right before I forget, I¡¯ll be going out tonight. I''ll be looking for someone, have two people ready to go with me.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll arrange that,¡± Asher bowed down and left the room.


    Three hooded men walked along the street in the direction of the harbour. The street was less crowded at night compared to the day, but still, a lively atmosphere blanketed the street. The men stopped in front of an inn. Shallow Wind was written on the sign in front of the inn, they then entered the inn. The inn was not crowded, there were a handful of people who were eating and drinking inside. One of the men scanned the room as if he was looking for someone. His eyes then fixed on someone sitting in the corner, a man, around his 40s was sitting there, alone. There was a glass of beer in front of him, which accompanied him to spend the night.


    One of the men walked closer to him and sat down in front of him.


    A raspy voice greeted the hooded man. ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°You,¡± said the hooded man.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You''re a talented man, Captain.¡±


    Reznov chuckled hearing the hooded man¡¯s words. ¡°Captain? That''s a name I haven''t for a long time. We have a joker here.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡± The hooded man kept silent.


    ¡°Whatever. As long as I get paid, I will tell you my humble life story and whatever you want from me.¡±


    The hooded man reached into his cloak and took out a bag of money. ¡°This is the advance payment, once everything is settled, I will give you more.¡±


    Reznov was shocked. He was in disbelief that someone would want to hear his story. ¡°Hey, you¡¯re kidding right?¡±


    ¡°No. I am serious.¡±


    ¡°What do you gain from this? Are you going to travel the sea? Do you want to die at the hand of that despicable monster!?¡±


    ¡°I want information.¡±


    ¡°Information, huh?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I will tell you more about it later. Now, Mister Reznov, your story, please.¡±


    ¡°What do you want to hear first?¡±


    ¡°The sea monsters.¡±


    ¡°Right, those bastards. This will be a long story, so how about ordering some drinks, eh? You drink, right?¡±


    ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll pay,¡± said the hooded man. He called the waitress and ordered drinks for both of them.


    ¡°Great, thank you.¡±


    Reznov chugged the drink he had and then he started his story. ¡°The sea monster, I met it. You know the legend, right?¡±


    ¡°I do.¡± The hooded man nodded.


    ¡°It was a clear day and suddenly the sea was blanketed with fog. I ordered my fleet to be on alert... Then, one of my ships was blown apart. Lo, and behold, the culprit then showed themselves. Mister, have you ever seen a snake?¡±


    "Yes,"


    The waitress brought the drinks they ordered. Reznov drank the beer before continuing his story. ¡°It had a long body, like a snake, and it had three heads, each able to breathe ice. I could never forget the horror that came after that... We were trying to subjugate it, with arrows, magic and even swords. But, everything we threw at it was mere pebbles for that bastard. I saw all of its heads charging its attack. In a flash... my fleet is gone.¡±


    ¡°Interesting,¡± the hooded man blurted.


    Reznov was curious about the hooded man. He ordered the drink but he did not drink it. The hooded man¡¯s face was occasionally dimly lit by the light, giving Reznov a chance to see the man¡¯s face. Reznov could see the man¡¯s white hair hidden under the hood.


    ¡°That¡¯s all the story¡­ so, mysterious man, would you be so kind as to tell me who the hell are you?¡±


    The hooded man drank the beer in front of him before he took off his hood. His shiny white hair was dimly lit by the light in the inn. ¡°I¡¯m Lucas Lorien.¡±


    ¡°Well, Mister Lorien. I assume you wanted to go out there to the sea and probably fight this monster¡­ For whatever reason. But, you will only face death.¡±


    ¡°What if I have the power to kill it?¡± said Lucas with a serious face and voice.


    Reznov was flustered. He did not say anything after Lucas said those words and then, after a few minutes of silence, Reznov let out a big laugh.


    His laugh resonated throughout the room, everyone stopped to look at Reznov. ¡°You¡¯re a madman. I never knew I would met a crazier person than me!¡±


    Lucas stood up and put on his hood. ¡°If you¡¯re interested in building ships for me, come to the Petersburg Palace.¡±


    Lucas left the inn with the two other hooded men.


    Reznov was left alone at the table, flustered and curious of that man.

 Chapter 35 - Waiting for Answer

    Two weeks had passed since Lucas''s meeting with Reznov. He had not heard from him since then, report from the guard told Lucas that Reznov was doing his daily life as usual. Lucas thought of the possibility that Reznov was not interested in building ships for him. Lucas paced back and forth inside his workroom as he thought of the other plans for acquiring shipbuilders. He had assigned a lot of work to Max and Lucas did not want to burden him with building ships. Besides that, his other reason for not using Max was he wanted to acquire skilled individuals to serve him and work for him.


    William only gave Reznov¡¯s name for recommendation to Lucas. However, there are multiple names of individuals who had the knowledge of shipbuilding gathered by William, but none of them had as much knowledge as Reznov. Lucas had begun to consider approaching the second-best person.


    ¡°Aghh!¡± screamed Lucas, frustrated. A lot was on his mind. He did not want to send the drones to see the monsters, because he did not know whether the monsters would come out and he feared the drones would be destroyed. Lucas wanted to investigate the monsters who kept the residents of this continent away from the ocean voyage.


    Lucas was frustrated. He had limited resources and manpower at his disposal; he had only 5 crews. Overwork became a real threat to him and his crew. Back at the Galactic Empire, he commanded a squadron consisting of four recon ships and he could easily rotate those ships and the crew when he was given a long reconnaissance mission.


    "I have been cooped in my room for the past few days. I need to move my body to clear my body," Lucas said to himself.


    He decided to spar with the knights. He walked to the training ground and on the way there, he met Ella who was going in the opposite direction.


    Ella greeted him. ¡°My Lord, where are you going?¡±


    ¡°To the training ground. I need to clear my head.¡±


    ¡°I believe the training ground is occupied.¡±


    ¡°Occupied?¡±


    ¡°Yes, the knights are training their recruits. Have you not heard about it, yet?¡±


    Lucas remembered that Asher had told him about the training of the recruits a week ago. ¡°Right, I forgot about that. Well, I haven¡¯t seen the recruits, I guess I¡¯ll take a look.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll follow you, my Lord.¡±


    On their way to the training ground, Lucas and Ella saw a group of maids watching the recruit knights train. They giggled and laughed and were unaware of their surroundings, as Lucas and Ella walked toward them. The maids were immersed in watching the knight¡¯s recruits.


    ¡°Slacking off, huh?¡± said Ella in a loud voice.


    In an instant, the maids turned their faces toward the voice, Ella. ¡°Ah!¡± shrieked one of the maids. ¡°M-my Lord and Ella!¡±


    Their expression turned frightened as if they were caught doing a crime. Ella was furious. ¡°So this is where all of you guys gone, huh?¡±


    ¡°We are on a break, Ella!¡± said one of the maids, nervously.


    ¡°A break? I just came back from the laundry and they don¡¯t have enough hands there, not to mention the hallways on the second floor haven¡¯t been cleaned, yet!¡±


    ¡°Ella, just let them have fun,¡± Lucas said to Ella.


    ¡°No, my Lord. There is still work to be done and these girls are slacking off. No wonder we have been short-handed these past few days. Girls, we will talk later!¡± said Ella angrily.


    The maids looked at Lucas with an expression pleading with him to help them. ¡°Can you just, you know, let it go and tell them to get back to work?¡±


    ¡°NO! These girls served the Duchess of Novgorod, this kind of behaviour should not be tolerated.¡±¡ªElla turned to face Lucas¡ª¡°I hope you don¡¯t take pity on them, My Lord.¡±


    ¡°At least, let them off easy. They are your colleagues and this is the first time they have done this. Well, at least the first time they were caught.¡±


    ¡°Fine. All of you get back to work and I will keep this a secret from the head maid, but we will have to talk later!¡±


    One of the maids then said, "What about you, Ella? Aren''t you in a da¡ª"


    Before she could finish her speech, her friend put her hand on her mouth. Ella wondered what she was about to say.


    Stolen story; please report.


    "We''ll be going back to our duty!" Another maid said to Lucas and Ella.


    Ella sighed as the maids ran back to return to their duty.


    Lucas and Ella then arrived at the training ground. It was as Ella said, the recruits were training together with the knights. He watched the recruits having a mock fight between themselves. One mock fight took Lucas¡¯s interest, 2 women were fighting against 5 people. One of the women used a sword and the other used magic to fight and support the other, the reason why they took his interest was that Lucas knew them. It was the twins, Tasya and Tanya.


    Tasya and Tanya fought side by side against the 5 recruits. Tanya was fighting in the front against the opponents while Tasya supported her from just behind her with magic. One opponent swung her sword at Tanya, she swiftly parried the attack. Another opponent swung his swords at Tanya while she was occupied parrying the other. Tasya was quick to protect her twin, she blew him away.


    The fight continues for a while.


    ¡°So, who took your fancy, Lord Lucas?¡± said Asher as he walked toward Lucas.


    ¡°Those twins," Lucas said as he pointed his finger at the twins.


    ¡°Tasya and Tanya¡­ They are new to this city, found out about the recruitment and applied for it.¡±


    ¡°Your assessment, Captain?¡±


    ¡°They are amazing. The girl with the sword, Tanya, has great sword skill and stamina, and apparently, her injury heals fast, for some reason. The sister, Tasya, is a magic user, she can use a sword, but not as great as her sister.¡±


    ¡°Among their peers?¡±


    ¡°In the top 10,¡± said Asher, as the mock fight ended with the twin, coming out victoriously. It was a complete victory.


    ¡°Amazing. 2 against 5.¡±


    ¡°Those 5 are also top among their peers.¡±


    ¡°I see, the top 7 fighting each other¡­ Asher.¡±


    ¡°Yes, my Lord?¡±


    ¡°You and 9 knights against the twin,¡± Lucas said as he turned to face Asher.


    Asher was shocked. He chuckled. ¡°You must jest, my Lord. As amazing as they are, the twin wouldn¡¯t stand a chance against 10 of us.¡±


    ¡°What if you were wrong and I was right?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re confident in their ability?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Are you perhaps thinking of making them the Duchess¡¯s guards?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ perhaps.¡±


    ¡°My Lord, I already have the candidates for her guards, I''ll give it to you later.¡±


    ¡°Are you afraid, Captain?¡±


    ¡°Afraid?¡±


    ¡°That recruit will beat you in a fight,¡± Lucas smirked.


    ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous.¡±


    ¡°Then, go. The drinks tonight will be on me, for all the knights if you win.¡±


    Asher smiled. ¡°I guess we will be having a party tonight.¡± Asher immediately ran to gather the knights.


    Lucas saw Asher choose 9 other knights in the training ground and went to the twins. After a brief talk, the twins looked towards Lucas. They had surprised expressions when they saw Lucas there; Lucas then smiled politely at them.


    ¡°The Duchess¡¯s guards?¡± scoffed Ella, who was standing behind him.


    ¡°Huh?¡±


    ¡°Surely, those girls won¡¯t end up in your bed.¡±


    Lucas turned to face Ella with a bewildered face. ¡°I''m serious about having them guard my cousin.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± Ella said nonchalantly.


    ¡°Just for the record, you¡¯re the only woman who has spent the night with me, since I came here.¡±


    ¡°That''s what I''m having a hard time believing. Womanizers like you have only slept with me and haven''t slept with other maids or women in this household. What are you even doing?!¡±


    ¡°I-i''m not the kind of person to force myself on others! And slept with different wom¡ª"


    A memory of his past came to his mind.


    "Well... I did once have a period of sleeping with different women every week and day but that was a few years ago,¡° Lucas continued.


    ¡°¡­¡± Ella said nothing, she moved her gaze to the mock fight. She had a slight smirk on his face. Lucas was still flustered by Ella''s remarks. She was successful in teasing Lucas and his flustered face was a joy to her.


    The mock fight between the twins and the knights began. The knight surrounded the twins in a circle. This time, both sisters wielded a sword. The knights stepped forward simultaneously, they had divided themselves into two groups of five. Each group fought one of the sisters. Asher was in the group against Tanya.


    Some might say pitting the twin sisters against 10 knights is cruel, but for Lucas, it was an experiment to prove his hypothesis; whether the nanobots affected Tanya¡¯s ability. In the Empire, the soldiers were injected with nanobots to boost both healing and fighting ability. It was one of the methods used to fight the swarm of endless mindless killers¡ªthe Roktarians.


    As he watched the fight unfolding in front of him. Tanya fought better than the knights, although her fighting form was different from the knights. Lucas thought the difference in the fighting forms was due to the sisters'' country of origin. The fact that Tanya was able to match with the knights'' ability made Lucas suspicious of the people who were pursuing her. Whoever they were, they could not be hired bandits, if they were they must have been professional assassins with extensive resources and networks, or they were knights of the sisters'' family who came to take them back.


    On the other fight, Tasya was struggling. She was not proficient in swordsmanship, yet she was able to use her magic to help her make up the difference in skill between her and the knights. It was a sight to Lucas, using magic for sword fighting was unheard of in this world¡ªaccording to the people close to him.


    A magic user with great knowledge of magic applications foreign to this world knowledge, she was ahead of her time, Lucas thought.


    When Lucas saw what Tasya was capable of, Lucas was impressed. A huge grin was seen on Lucas''s face.


    Ella took a glance at Lucas and saw his huge grin and was frightened. She wondered what he had in mind to grin like that.


    The fight ended with the twin sisters came out victorious. An outcome Lucas had in mind. Lucas''s frustration was gone when he saw the sisters fight with the knights.


    Suddenly, William approached Lucas and said, ¡°The man you were waiting for is here.¡±


    Lucas nodded at William and left with him.

 Chapter 36 - Story of the Devil

    Lucas entered the parlour where the man had been waiting. The man was Reznov and he had a different appearance, his hair was groomed, his beard was cut and he wore proper clothes; clothes he wore as a merchant. Lucas sat in front of him.


    ¡°I never knew the man who wanted me was the Lord of this place,¡± Reznov started the conversation.


    ¡°I¡¯m not the Lord. I¡¯m only the caretaker while my cousin is in the Capital.¡±


    ¡°Right¡­ So I¡¯ve come here. I¡¯m willing to listen to the offer. However, I have a request.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m all ears.¡±


    ¡°I want you to take care of the family of my best friend who died on the voyage.¡±


    ¡°Considered it done. Anything else?¡±


    ¡°No, that¡¯s all. Thank you.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°I need to repay the favour I have with him.¡±


    A forlorn gaze was seen in his eyes.


    ¡°I understand." Lucas was handed out a bundle of papers by William. "Here is the schematic of the ships I want you to build."


    Reznov took a look at the schematics given by Lucas. The schematics were made by Max, with the help of Lyra¡ªthrough the communication device, before he left with Lucas to subjugate the bandit''s hideout. It was the schematics of sailships that once sailed Earth''s oceans back in the 18th Century.


    "These... who made these?" Reznov asked with glimmering eyes.


    "A friend of mine, Max Brawn."


    "My Lord, may I meet the genius who made this?"


    Lucas nodded. "I''ll tell him to meet with you when he returns to the city."


    "What are these windows on the ship? Why do you need this many windows?"


    The "windows" Reznov asked were gunports on the ships.


    "That windows will be used to allow the muzzles of the cannons to fire outside," Lucas explained.


    "Cannon?"


    "Yes, a technology from my country. The cannons can be used both on the land and at sea."


    Reznoc had curious eyes. "Interesting, I want to see these ''cannons'' you speak of."


    "You can ask more about it to Max."


    "I understand."


    "When do you think this project will finish?¡±


    ¡°A year or two, at most.¡±


    Lucas was pleased. It was within his planned time period.


    ¡°Very well." Lucas stood up. "Welcome to the Duchy, Captain.¡±


    Lucas reached out his hand and shook the old man¡¯s hand. William led Reznov to his accommodation. Lucas was left alone in the room, he had a second thought about the monster. He was no longer sure if the monster was a submarine.


    He no longer had hope of returning to the Galactic Empire. The lost expedition was never discovered by the Galactic Empire after hundreds of years. A lot of mysteries of this universe were unexplainable. The current scientific knowledge of the Galactic Empire could not replicate the phenomenon they experienced or even explain the reasoning behind the so-called magic on this planet.


    What mattered to him now was to ensure the survival of this planet. He would do what the previous Lorien leadership failed on this planet to create a stable hegemony on the planet. The armaments and pieces of equipment found in the 111th''s Base would not be enough to sustain an army for a long time, therefore the civilisation of this world had to be guided toward interstellar travel. He knew the limit of what he could do in his lifetime and his goal would take generations to complete.


    ¡°One step at a time,¡± muttered Lucas to the empty room.


    As the evening fell, Lucas took a walk around the city. He observed the city¡¯s streets were rather quiet. It was early evening and usually, at this time the street was much crowded with people going out for the night or heading home. He did not mind much of it; he just wanted to stroll to clear his mind.


    Lucas wore civilian clothing and carried a sword and a pistol on his hips, hidden under his cloak. There were no guards with him because he sneaked out of the palace; thanks to Ella¡¯s willingness to help him. As the caretaker of the Duchy and the family member of the Duchess of Novgorod, Asher took Lucas¡¯s protection seriously. Whenever Lucas left the palace, at least two guards must accompany him. Back in the Galactic Empire, Lucas was used to having an escort everywhere he went until he enrolled at the Academy and became an officer in the military.


    A few days ago, Lucas sent a message to Lyra to come to Petersburg and act as his bodyguard and helper. He preferred to have someone he knew from the Galactic Empire.


    As he walked around, he heard his name called, ¡°Lucas!¡±


    Lucas turned around and saw someone from Petersburg he met frequently whenever he went outside.


    ¡°Misha? Good day!¡±


    ¡°Lucas, what are you doing outside at this time?¡± Misha asked. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t be outside, come. Follow me!¡± Misha grabbed Lucas¡¯s hand.


    Lucas followed her willingly, ¡°Why?¡±


    Even though he willingly followed her, he had no idea why and where she would take him.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you when we are somewhere safe.¡±


    Lucas was bewildered.


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    Something doesn¡¯t feel quite right, Lucas thought.


    They arrived at Misha¡¯s house which was not far from where they met. ¡°Take a seat, I¡¯m going to place this down.¡±


    ¡°O-okay.¡±


    Lucas sat down at the table. Bewildered and dumbfounded. Not long after she came back to the room.


    ¡°So, are you going tell me why did you bring me here now?¡±


    ¡°Ah right. First, do you want to drink? Water?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sure! Now. Tell. Me.¡±


    Lucas''s patience began to run out.


    ¡°Right, right. Since you are from outside the kingdom. You must have not known about The Night Devil,¡± Misha explained as she poured water into the cups.


    ¡°The what? The Night Devil?¡± Lucas said with a hint of sarcasm.


    Misha brought the cups, put them on the table and then sat. ¡°Well, I heard the story from my father. I haven¡¯t been born yet when it happened. It was 22 years ago, a village in the Duchy was reported attacked by a horde of monsters and when the knight was dispatched to investigate they were attacked by the dead villagers when they arrived.¡±


    ¡°Attacked by the dead villagers? You mean...?¡±


    ¡°Yes. My father was one of the knights sent there. Luckily he survived the attack, only a few survived the attack.¡±


    The story piqued Lucas''s interest.


    Zombie story? Lucas thought.


    ¡°Were the undead ferocious?¡±


    ¡°Ferocious. Strong. Immortal.¡±


    ¡°Immortal?!¡±


    ¡°Well, kind of. The only way to kill them is to burn them. Father told me the best way to do it is by decapitating all of the limbs and severing their head from the body then burn them when they can no longer move around.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re joking?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not. My father told me.¡±


    Lucas was still in disbelief. However, since she was told by her father, who he presumed was a knight of the Duchy, he was inclined to want to believe.


    ¡°So what happens then?¡±


    ¡°Nothing. The investigation yielded nothing. But, 2 years later, they attacked this city. The area around the port was the first part to be affected. The city fell into chaos. The Duke and his army tried to quell the disaster. It turned out the main culprit was there as well, a devil. They call them.¡±


    ¡°A devil?¡±


    ¡°Yes. He wore black clothing that covered his body. His eyes glowed bright red. He can control and command the dead people to do his bidding, attacking the knights and everyone,¡± Misha told the story.


    Lucas was left speechless. Being able to control the dead was a bizarre idea to Lucas.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never heard the story before. So, what happened then? He must have lost, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, The Devil was defeated.¡±


    ¡°Then¡ª¡°


    Misha cut off Lucas, ¡°This is what the people were told.¡±


    There was a long silence. Lucas understood what she meant. The Devil was still alive, he thought.


    ¡°I see.¡±


    ¡°Before he disappeared, he said, ¡®On the same day, we will return and finish our master''s wish¡¯. The Dukes then announced the Devil was defeated, however, the Devil''s friend might come to avenge their comrades.¡±


    What a strange threat, thought Lucas.


    ¡°That¡¯s why he left a small detachment of knights back in the city,¡± Lucas said


    ¡°Correct. In case he returned.¡±


    Lucas sighed, ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure he won¡¯t return today. 19 years and nothing had happened.¡±


    ¡°For the people in this city, it¡¯s not. The horror of that day still lingers in people¡¯s minds,¡± Misha said with a terrified voice.


    ¡°Misha, you know all this from your father? Does he work in the palace?¡±


    ¡°Yes. He is with the Knights Order¡ª I mean, the Novgorod Guard. That¡¯s what they are called now. He is on duty right now, until dawn. He told me to stay in the house.¡±


    There was a worried look on Misha''s face.


    ¡°Then, why were you outside, alone?¡±


    ¡°Well, I forgot to get my work clothes from the tailor in the afternoon and tomorrow I will start working in the Palace, and I heard the head maid is strict. So, I had to pick it up today and not be late tomorrow!¡±


    Lucas nodded. ¡°Yeah, she is¡­.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, do you know her?¡± Misha asked.


    ¡°No, I just heard talk about her.¡±


    Misha was terrified, ¡°Wow, is she that terrifyingly popular, huh? Even outsiders like you know about her.¡±


    ¡°Well, she is not that terrifying¡­ anyway, you said you tailored your clothes? Is that normal? I mean, doesn¡¯t the Palace give you all-size clothing for the maids, and then you fix it by yourself?¡±


    ¡°No, the Novgorod Palace has a tailor to make their maid¡¯s clothing. When you are accepted to work at the Palace, you go to the tailor and get yourself fitted, and usually, the clothes will be done before you start working, and the Palace pays for it.¡±


    Lucas was impressed¡ªhe did not know before¡ªthat the household of Novgorod Palace went out of their way to get tailored clothes for their maids. He was not surprised, however, because he saw the Duchy still had a lot of money in reserve, even though the previous Duke had spent a lot to raise his army for the rebellion.


    No wonder the maids in here have better uniforms than the Royal Palace''s maids, Lucas thought.


    ¡°That¡¯s impressive!¡±


    ¡°I know, right? I want to work at the Palace, It was supposed to be last year, but my father won''t allow it, but somehow, when the new Duchess took over. My father allows it!¡± Misha excitedly told Lucas.


    ¡°Probably, your father doesn¡¯t like the late Duke.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, he was. I heard the current Duchess is from a foreign country and she helped to quell the rebellion and was given this territory.¡±


    ¡°Yeah...¡± Lucas smiled gently.


    ¡°And she is still at the Royal Capital.¡± Misha leaned closer to Lucas. ¡°And, her cousin is the one taking care of the Duchy. My friend who works at the Palace told me he was good-looking and kind. It will be nice to be able to see his heavenly face every day~¡± Misha said excitedly.


    Lucas was uncomfortable listening to the story and at the same time held a laugh because Misha did not know the person she was talking about was in front of her.


    After hearing the story about the Devil, Lucas wanted to ask Asher and William.


    ¡°Well, good luck. Misha, I¡¯ll get going now, Thank you for the drink,¡± Lucas said as he stood up.


    ¡°No!¡± Misha sternly said.


    Misha was worried about Lucas''s safety,


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, I have a sword,¡± Lucas assured Misha as he showed the sword on his hip.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know how dangerous those things are,¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡±


    ¡°No!¡±


    Misha was insistent on not letting Lucas leave.


    Lucas could see a hint of fear on Misha¡¯s face. ¡°Are you scared?¡± Lucas asked Misha.


    ¡°No,¡± Misha averted her gaze away.


    ¡°Yes, you do. That¡¯s why you dragged me here.¡±


    ¡°¡­¡±


    Misha did not speak.


    ¡°I understand, you¡¯re scared, but, sorry. I have to leave¡ª¡±


    Misha stood up and walked closer to Lucas, ¡°It¡¯s a bit cold, here.¡±


    ¡°Cold?¡±


    Lucas was dumbfounded. Sure the night was cold, but they were inside the house and it was warm inside.


    ¡°Yes,¡± Misha grabbed Lucas¡¯s shirt and she leaned into him, ¡°M-my father won¡¯t be home until dawn, I¡¯m alone until then...¡±


    ¡°Misha?¡± Lucas caressed her hair.


    Misha looked up straight into his eyes and said, ¡°So, won¡¯t you warm me up?¡±


    Misha closed her eyes and moved her head closer to Lucas¡¯s.


    Lucas froze up for a while, trying to understand what he just heard. He did not expect Misha, out of everyone, to be so bold. As much as he liked to spend the night with her, his curiosity and the urgency of the Devil were more important to him.


    Before he could say anything, an explosion was heard. The explosion shocked both of them.


    ¡°What is that? Explosion!¡± Misha said.


    ¡°Alright, I have to go now,¡± Lucas said as he tried to walk away.


    ¡°Wait, no!¡± Misha grabbed Lucas¡¯s hand.


    ¡°You¡¯ll be fine alone, lock the doors and windows, and stay inside.¡±¡ªLucas kissed Misha on the forehead¡ª ¡°Okay?¡±


    Misha was flustered by the kiss, She went blank for a second.


    ¡°Y-yesh,¡± Misha fumbled her words.


    Lucas left the house and ran to the billowing smoke on the south side of the city

 Chapter 37 - Return of the Devils

    The explosion startled everyone, including Tanya and Tasya who were near the location of the explosion. After hearing the explosion, A signal was sounded to converge the Guards to the city¡¯s southern side. The Novgorod Guards tasked the recruits to patrol the city, as part of the recruitment¡¯s test. Some of them knew the reason why they were given the task and those who did not just think of it as a routine patrol.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Tanya asked her group.


    They ran to the source of the explosion and saw a building was destroyed and near the building was a hooded figure, with its back facing them.


    ¡°It came back! We-we are doomed!¡± A man from her patrol group exclaimed in fear.


    He unsheathed his sword and the other followed him.


    Tasya was confused.


    Who is the person in from of me? she thought.


    Nevertheless, she put her guard up and prepared to attack the hooded figure with magic.


    ¡°Who is that?¡± Tanya asked the man.


    ¡°It¡¯s... the Devil!¡± The man answered with a frightened voice,


    ¡°The Devil?¡±


    ¡°20 years ago, he laid waste to the city.¡±


    ¡°So, he¡ª¡°


    Before Tasya was able to finish her speech. The hooded figure flew away to the dark sky. Then, another explosion happened not far from them.


    Some civilians began to run away from their houses, but their escape was blocked by a horde of Living Deads.


    A chaotic scene unfolded in front of their eyes. The Horde of Living Deads ran towards the civilians and bit them in the neck and body. The civilians who were caught tried to wrestle out of the Living Dead''s grip but it was for nothing.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t they people? Why are they attacking the civilians?¡± Tanya asked


    ¡°No, they¡¯ve become a monster, they are already dead, but the Devil resurrected and controlled them, we should stop them!¡± A man from her group answered.


    This is ridiculous, Tanya thought. She had never seen or heard of someone who was able to resurrect the dead.


    ¡°Damn it! Protect the civilians, attack the monsters!¡± Tanya ordered her group.


    Tanya¡¯s patrol group began attacking the monsters to protect the fleeing civilians.


    One slash, two slashes, a stab, another stab, Tanya battered the monsters with her sword, but the Living Deads were still able to walk with wounds all over their body.


    ¡°How the fuck did you kill these monsters?!¡± Tanya asked as she ferociously struck the monster.


    ¡°Burn them.¡±


    ¡°How do you suppose to burn them when they move around like this?¡± Tanya said as she dodged an attack from the monster,


    ¡°Cut their limbs to make them stop moving around!¡±


    ¡°Easier said than done, but alright!¡± Tanya began to strike the limbs of the monsters. It was hard, but Tanya¡¯s group were able to immobilise some of them.


    However, the monsters kept coming no matter how much they took down, and one by one her group fell to the monsters¡¯ ferocity. After what was like a long fight, there were only 2 people left in Tanya¡¯s group, Tanya, herself, and Tasya, her sister.


    ¡°Are you able to keep going?¡± Tanya asked her sister.


    ¡°Yes, I guess,¡± Tasya answered with heaving breathing, exhausted after using her magic power to her limit.


    ¡°If you can¡¯t we should look for another group and join them, all of our friends have all died.¡±


    ¡°Will they turn into them?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Tasya paused for a while, catching her breath. ¡°Let¡¯s leave and look for other groups,¡±


    They ran away from the monsters they were facing only to meet another group of monsters blocking them.


    ¡°Damn it! They are everywhere, grab your sword Tasya, we will charge past them!¡± Tanya said.


    Before they were able to charge the group of monsters, someone came out of nowhere, slashing most of the monsters in one clean strike, cutting off their head from their body. The bodies, separated from their heads, fell to the ground.


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    "They''re still alive! Don''t let your guard down!" Tasya shouted to the person.


    "Alive?" The person answered with a puzzled face.


    Contrary to what Tasya said, the bodies did not move at all. The heads were also motionless.


    "How?" Tanya was confused at the sight.


    "Hmm?" The person tilted her head.


    "I-I don''t know what you did, that was a good one. Let''s keep going!" Tanya said as another horde went their way.


    The person nodded and readied her sword for another battle.


    The three of them kept fighting the monsters and pushing forward to save any civilians they could find. Their fierce fighting did not go unnoticed by the Devils, they were watching them from afar.


    The hooded person easily cut through the monsters¡¯ limbs and necks, killing them. Meanwhile, Tanya and Tasya had to completely immobilize the monsters to prevent them from moving, and later the hodded person would strike its sword down the head of the monster to kill it.


    ¡°Hey, how could you easily kill them?¡± asked Tasya with heaving breathing.


    The mob of monsters around them have all been defeated, allowing them to take a short break from the battle.


    The hooded person was puzzled as well. ¡°Were they supposed to be hard to kill?¡±


    ¡°Yes! You have to burn their body to kill them!¡±


    ¡°Oh, less work for me then,¡± said the hooded person nonchalantly.


    Tasya sighed after she heard the answer, she did not pursue the question any further, at least for now.


    ¡°Then, we should get going, let¡¯s go,¡± said Tanya.


    ¡°Someone... A group is coming toward us,¡± said the hooded person.


    Tasya and Tanya steeled themselves and prepared for another confrontation. Shortly after, their enemies arrived. Tasya and Tanya froze in place, they couldn¡¯t believe what they saw. Five human-like figures were hovering in front of them.


    A strong wind blew the hood of the hooded person''s cloak, revealing her long light brown hair. She stared at the Devils floating in front of her, her hand grabbed the hilt of her sword. There was no fear in her eyes, but rather curiosity. She looked briefly towards the twins who were frozen in fear.


    They are no help, the woman thought.


    ¡°You, who are you?¡± one of the Devils spoke with its finger pointing at her.


    The woman scoffed. ¡°Why do you care?¡±


    ¡°Human, you are different from your kind, don¡¯t you? You were able to kill our creations with ease,¡± other Devils spoke with a monotone voice.


    ¡°Kill? Those people were already dead.¡±


    ¡°No, they¡¯re not. I prefer to say, a new life. A salvation for those who sinned.¡±


    Ah, are these guys religious nutjobs, the woman thought.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are or what¡¯s your purpose, but you¡¯ve attacked my family¡¯s place, and disturbed my brother¡¯s life. I kindly ask you to leave this place alone and I won¡¯t hurt you,¡± offered the woman to the Devils.


    ¡°You¡¯re no different than your kind. Arrogant and pompous, and yet in the face of death, you will gravel in our feet. Our Lord''s words will be the truth.¡±


    Shit, these guys are lost cause, the woman thought. She then had an idea to provoke them.


    ¡°In your dreams, asshole,¡± said the woman with her tongue out.


    Irritated by her taunt, one of the Devils charged towards her. Before he could land a strike on her, the woman jumped to dodge it. The twins snapped out of their fear and saw two of the Devils charging towards them. Immediately, they readied their swords and magic to face the Devils.


    Tanya and Tasya were flown away when they tried to block the Devil¡¯s attack.


    Tanya and Tasya, each were facing one Devil, while the other three Devils fought the woman. The Devils relentlessly fight the trio.


    Tasya launched her magic towards the Devil, however, the Devil easily dodged the magic. Tanya and the other Devil clashed swords. Tanya was exhausted from the fighting he had before against the monsters and was not able to match the Devil¡¯s ferocious pace.


    Tanya had to dodge the attack multiple times, but she knew there would be a limit on how much she could dodge the attack. She briefly looked at the woman who was fighting the three Devils alone, Tanya worried that she was already dead. To her surprise, the woman easily fought the three of them.


    Tanya wondered who she was and how could she fight three Devils with ease.


    ¡°Both of you, hold on for a few minutes,¡± shouted the woman.


    ¡°Do you have a plan?¡± Tanya asked her.


    ¡°Yes, just hold them for now.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± Tanya trusted the woman¡¯s plan.


    Whatever it was, Tanya was ready to follow the plan.


    Two minutes passed, four minutes and 10 minutes passed. The woman did not say anything anymore and still fighting the three Devils alone. Tanya and Tasya were both exhausted and near the point where they could no longer fight for another minute.


    ¡°Aghh!¡± Tasya shouted as the Devil slashed her arm.


    ¡°Tasya!¡± Tanya tried to run to her sister¡¯s side, however, the Devil blocked her path.


    As she prepared to charge past the Devil, a flash of lights and thunderous sounds came from the sky, and projectiles were hitting the Devil.


    Magic? So she was preparing her magic, Tanya thought. The Devil fighting Tanya tried to shield himself from the magic, but it was to no avail. Tanya looked up to the sky and saw multiple flashes of lights, which she assumed were the origin of the projectiles of the woman¡¯s magic.


    Overwhelmed by the magic, the Devils ran away. The woman swiftly charged towards one of them and stopped his retreat. In a single strike to the head, she was able to take him down. The other four Devils were able to get away.


    Astonished by the spectacle of the power of the woman they had just met, Tanya and Tasya were lost for words. They walked closer to the woman, standing near the dead Devil.


    ¡°Umm..¡± Tasya tried to say something, but she could not make a word.


    ¡°I¡¯m Lu¡ª Lyra,¡± the woman said as she crouched next to the body.


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m Tasya and this Is my sister, Tanya.¡±


    Lyra rummaged through the Devil¡¯s body, ¡°Both of you have great skills, how about working for me? But, looking at your uniform, you ladies are part of the Novgorod Guard, right?¡±


    ¡°Ah, well kinda. We are still in the recruitment test.¡±


    ¡°Recruitment test? Sending someone to their sure dead is a test? The people in charge must be crazy.¡±


    ¡°Well, it was supposed to be a night patrol routine.¡±


    ¡°I guess they didn¡¯t expect the attack. Well, what do we have here? A metal limb, huh,¡± Lyra said as she cut the clothes on the Devil¡¯s arm, revealing an arm made of metal.

 chapter 38 - The Devils True Face

    ¡°The Devil has a shiny arm?¡± Tanya said as she looked closer at the dead Devil¡¯s body.


    ¡°Is it made of steel?¡± Tasya wondered.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a steel. It¡¯s some kind of metal. I need to investigate further to know the correct kind,¡± Lyra said as she cut through the Devil¡¯s clothes.


    Lyra was able to scan the metal with her eyes and match it with all known metals, and the conclusion was the robot was made from a metal unknown to the Galactic Empire. She concluded the metal was native to this planet.


    ¡°His whole body is metal!?¡± Tasya was shocked. It was like the monsters from a tale of old.


    Tasya once heard the story of a creature made of metal that destroyed the old civilisation. She wondered if this thing was a remnant of that era and whether this thing came back to finish its job. Her face turned pale when she had that thought.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Lyra said with a curious face.


    Lyra examined the body of the Devil. It had a human-like body and resembled one of the early android models from the Galactic Empire. It had no silicone muscle or skin covering its metal skeletal body and head.


    ¡°Is this what the Devil looks like?¡± Tanya said.


    ¡°Looks like it,¡±


    ¡°So this is it¡­ This is the Devils.¡±


    ¡°It must be the remnant of the old civilisation,¡± Tanya said worriedly.


    ¡°Remnant of old civilisation?¡± Lyra asked.


    Tasya nodded, ¡°Our mother told us a story about the old civilisations, There was a war between humanity and creatures made of metal. The creatures claimed they were sent by God to destroy the world, and the humans fought a bloody war against them. In the end, humanity was able to defeat them.¡±


    ¡°Creatures made of metal?¡± Lyra said.


    Lyra was sure the creatures in that story must have been the robots in front of her.


    ¡°Yes. At first, I didn¡¯t believe it, but now¡­¡± Tasya said as she looked at the dead Devil.


    Lyra¡ªor rather Lucy whose memory resided inside the android¡ªdid believe what the twins said. She wondered what made these robots go berserk and almost annihilate the human civilisation on this planet.


    As Lyra pondered, she heard footsteps, ¡°Someone is coming.¡±


    Tasya and Tanya prepared themselves to fight another battle. However, Lyra stayed relaxed beside the Devil¡¯s body, she knew who was coming.


    ¡°Luca¡ªLord Lucas?!¡± said Tasya.


    Lucas came running with a group of soldiers behind him, ¡°What¡¯s happened here?¡± Lucas asked.


    ¡°As you can see, a dead Devil,¡± Lyra said as she pointed to the mechanical body near her.


    Lucas approached the body with a curious face and said, ¡°This is the Devil?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    Lucas had never thought the Devil was just a robot.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t this a¡ª¡°


    ¡°Yep, just as you would guessed.¡±


    ¡°And is this the creation¡ª¡°


    ¡°Yes... Probably,¡± Lyra answered Lucas¡¯s questions before he could finish it.


    Lucas sighed. It was no coincidence that he and Lyra crossed paths despite the chaos. Lucas saw Lyra¡¯s position on his PCD and went to her. He never thought that she would take care of the Devil.


    ¡°So the Devil is dead, huh?¡± Lucas was relieved.


    ¡°One of them, yes.¡±


    One of them? Lucas thought.


    ¡°What do you mean? Are there more?¡± Lucas was flustered.


    ¡°Yes, there are four more... Hopefully.¡±


    Four robots like this, who could have maintained these things? Lucas thought.


    ¡°Umm, excuse me, my Lord. But, shouldn¡¯t we take care of the Living Deads first?" Tanya broke Lucas¡¯s deep thought.


    ¡°You¡¯re correct. Tasya, take half the soldiers with you and bring this body to the castle then support the others in killing the Living Deads. Tanya, bring the rest of the soldiers and kill all the Living Deads and protect the civilians. Lyra will go with me.¡±


    ¡°You know Lyra?¡± Tanya asked.


    ¡°Yes, she is my companion from my home country.¡±


    ¡°I see. Then, we¡¯ll do your order, Lord Lucas! Soldiers with me!¡± Tanya said as she ordered the soldiers to follow her.


    ¡°I¡¯ll leave the body to you,¡± Lucas said to Tasya.


    ¡°Yes, My Lord,¡± Tasya bowed before Lucas left with Lyra.


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    It was not long after they parted that Lucas and Lyra met a horde of Living Deads. Swiftly they took them down. Both of them aimed the necks of their enemies or stabbed them in their hearts to kill them.


    ¡°Lyra,¡± Lucas said with heaving breathing, ¡°I envy your android body. You don¡¯t need rest do you?¡±


    ¡°Well, you can say it like that. But, my manual recommends to at least sleep for 2 hours every week. Shall we take a rest?¡± Lyra said as she sheathed her sword.


    ¡°Yes, give me a moment, to catch a breath.¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    ¡°You dyed your hair?¡± Lucas noticed Lyra''s hair colour had changed to brown.


    ¡°Not really, I can change the colour of my hair at will.¡±


    ¡°You have that kind of ability?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    In an instant, her hair changed colour from brown to white then to brown again.


    ¡°That''s cool.¡±


    ¡°Lucas, I was told that these monsters are hard to kill, but¡ª¡°


    ¡°Our swords can easily kill them.¡±


    ¡°Yes, a slash on the neck or stab at their chest, they dropped dead.¡±


    ¡°I tried it with the swords from one of the guards. When I cut their neck, their body and head were still alive. I suspect it has to do with the materials of the swords.¡±


    ¡°It could be a possibility.¡±


    ¡°Well, whatever it is. We can investigate further after we¡¯ve done with tonight. Let¡¯s continue to hunt those monsters.¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    Lucas and Lyra spent the whole night fighting against the remnant of the Living Deads. Lucas was worried that the Living Dead would infect other civilians, fortunately, people who were bitten or attacked by the Living Dead would just die or be injured.


    Lucas stood on top of the city¡¯s gate, looking at the carnage left by hordes of Living Deads and the Devils. The southern part of the city took the most damage and he concluded that this part of the city was the starting point of the attack. Lucas sighed, he thought he had everything under his control and the trust of his retinues in the Duchy.


    There was still an important question that remained inside Lucas¡¯s mind; How did these people get turned into mindless killing machines?


    ¡°Someone is coming,¡± Lyra warned Lucas.


    Lyra was standing next to Lucas.


    From his left, a familiar figure walked to him and then bowed. ¡°My Lord, we¡¯ve been looking for you,¡± said Asher.


    ¡°I was caught in the chaos,¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°I apologise.¡±


    ¡°Why? Because it happened or because none of you told me?¡± Lucas said with an irritated yet charming voice.


    A brief silence stop their conversation.


    ¡°I took full responsibility for that¡­ I told William to keep silent about the Devil and the Day of his revenge,¡± Asher said, looking down at his foot.


    ¡°Look up, Captain. And looked at the city,¡± Lucas ordered Asher.


    Asher followed his command he briefly looked at Lucas¡ªwho had his gaze on the city¡ªbefore looking at the city.


    Regret dawned on him.


    What if I told Lord Lucas about this beforehand? We might be able to avert the disaster, Asher thought.


    ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t think we could averted this disaster even if you had told me beforehand,¡± Lucas said, ¡°but, at least, some lives could be saved.¡±


    ¡°Well, whatever in the past is in the past, right?¡± Lyra said with a slightly cheerful tone.


    Lucas sighed. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡±


    ¡°Ummm¡­ certainly¡­¡± Asher said. He wondered who is the woman next to Lucas.


    Lyra took notice of Asher¡¯s puzzled face. ¡°My name is Lyra, I am Lucas¡¯s subordinate in the military. Nice to meet you, Captain!¡±


    ¡°Nice to meet you too, Lady Lyra. I¡¯m Asher Zermano, leader of the Novgorod Guard,¡± Asher greeted her.


    ¡°You can just call me Lyra, Captain. I¡¯m not a noble,¡± Lyra said with a smile. Asher was charmed by her, but he quickly composed himself.


    ¡°As you wish, Lyra.¡±


    ¡°She is the one who defeated the Devil,¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°What? Defeated the Devil?¡± Asher was visibly flustered.


    ¡°I only kill one of them, though,¡± Lyra said.


    ¡°One of them?!¡±


    Asher who only knew there was one Devil was petrified.


    Lyra saw Asher¡¯s expression and asked, ¡°There were five of them. You didn¡¯t know that?¡±


    ¡°Back then, there was only one¡­¡±


    ¡°One, three, five, even tens of them. It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± Lucas turned his body to face Asher. ¡°I¡¯ll... We''ll find a way to defeat them.¡±


    Asher felt a tremendous burden had just been lifted from his shoulder.


    ¡°Asher,¡± Lucas continued, ¡°if it were up to me, you would be stripped of your position and put in jail. However, you¡¯re my cousin¡¯s people, the Duchess. I will refrain from imposing my judgment without her approval.¡±


    ¡°I thank you for your forgiveness,¡± Asher said.


    Lucas reached out his hand and grabbed Asher¡¯s right shoulder.


    Lucas then put his mouth near Asher¡¯s ear and whispered, ¡°You¡¯re lucky the Duchess is merciful and I¡¯m in a good mood. Otherwise, I would stab you right here and throw your body down.¡±


    Asher saw a murderous gaze from Lyra when Lucas whispered those words. As if she knew Lucas¡¯s feelings.


    Right there, Asher knew he had crossed the line.


    ¡°¡­¡±


    Asher could not speak a word.


    Lucas then walked past him followed by Lyra. ¡°I¡¯m going back to the Palace, take care of the rest.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord,¡± Asher said.


    Asher could not make himself move, he was still in shock. The decision he had taken to keep Lucas unaware of the Devil had angered Lucas.


    Moreover, the fact there were five Devils and one of them was defeated by Lyra filled his mind. He thought¡ªagain¡ªhad he told Lucas, there could be less death and destruction.


    Asher gazed at the city, blood, death and destruction were what he could see in the southern part of the city.


    ¡°I should have not doubted him,¡± he muttered.


    He heard horses neigh from below. He looked down and saw Lucas and Lyra riding the horses back to the Palace.


    ¡°I swear. From this day, I will trust you with undying loyalty to you and your family, Lord Lucas.¡±


    Lyra rode her horse just behind Lucas as they passed through debris and dead bodies. She could see the back of the man she admired. It reminded her of their younger day.


    ¡°You¡¯ve changed, Lucas,¡± said Lyra.


    ¡°Changed?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Before, you would have forgiven his mistake.¡±


    There was a short silence. Lyra could see Lucas¡¯s gazing at the sky.


    ¡°I¡¯ve grown up.¡±


    She chuckled. The man she grew up together had changed.


    She felt a tingling feeling inside her. Is it pride, sadness or regret? she thought.


    ¡°Why?¡± Lucas asked.


    ¡°Sorry?¡±


    ¡°Why did you say that?¡±


    She wanted to speak the truth. She wanted to tell him that this body belonged to his beloved twin sister. but she could not bear to say it.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been together for years. Of course, I would notice a change.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­ I don''t think I''ve changed much since I commandeer the ship.¡±


    Lyra smiled silently. A tingling feeling swelled up again and tears came out from her eyes. She wiped it off immediately.


    She muttered to herself, ¡°Whether you¡¯ve changed or not. Whatever path you choose. Even if you were hated by the world... I will always follow you, brother.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re saying something?¡± Lucas asked her.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°I guess not.¡±


    All the way to the Palace, Lucas¡¯s back was what Lyra could only see. A back that carried a heavy burden and responsibility. A burden which Lyra¡ªLucy¡ªwanted to help him carry, not as commander and subordinate, but as brother and sister.

 Chapter 39 - Lucy and Lyra Investigation

    A woman with long light brown hair walked through the hallway, heading to the Palace¡¯s dungeon. After an eventful night, everyone in the Palace was still restless. However, this woman did not.


    She approached the dungeon entrance. The entrance was guarded by two people.


    ¡°Morning,¡± greeted the woman with a warm smile.


    ¡°Will you be going inside, ma¡¯am?¡± one of the guards asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Let us accompany you.¡±


    ¡°No need.¡±


    Both guards were visibly worried. They knew what was inside the dungeon.


    ¡°Are you sure, ma¡¯am?¡±


    ¡°Of course! That thing has died, it can¡¯t harm anyone anymore.¡± The woman assured the guards.


    ¡°Very well. If something happens, just shout, we¡¯ll run inside.¡±


    ¡°Thank you!¡±


    The woman then walked down the stairs leading to the dungeon below the Palace. When she arrived at the dungeon, she saw multiple jail cells. The jail cells were empty, except for one cell. Inside that cell, someone would mistake the thing lying in there as a scrap of metal trash. But, it was the body of the Devil¡ªor a robot in the understanding of the Galactic Empire.


    The woman rummaged through her pocket to find the key and opened the cell¡¯s door.


    She looked at the body with a curious gaze.


    ¡°Are you sure this thing has shut down or died?¡± The woman said to the empty room.


    {Yes, Lieutenant Lucy,} a voice spoke inside her, {when he got shot by the bullets, it must have struck its power core.}


    {¡­.}


    Lucy looked at the holes near the robot¡¯s power core.


    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right, Lyra,¡± Lucy said to the empty room again.


    {Lieutenant, please refrain from speaking when you are alone. Just {talk} inside your mind, like I taught you.}


    Lucy sighed, ¡°It¡¯s no fun.¡±


    {What if someone walked into the dungeon and heard you talking by yourself? If the crew heard about it, they would think you¡¯re crazy.}


    {Well, I¡¯m an android. I can just make an excuse,} Lucy said in her mind.


    {Sure, Lieutenant, sure.}


    Lucy chuckled. {So what should I do here? I can¡¯t do anything without any equipment.}


    {We can¡¯t extract any information from inside the robot¡¯s memory without the help of any equipment.}


    Lucy touched the robot¡¯s face, {Where is the memory chip located?}


    {Should be in his head.}


    {I guess we can just bash the head open.}


    {The head was made from titanium and there is a chance that the memory chip will get damaged if you do that.}


    Lucy grumbled. She had been crouched down near the body for a while.


    {So, we should take it back to the ship?}


    {Yes, possibly. Or we can bring this body to the secret base Commodore Lucas found.}


    Lucy stood up and stretched her arms. {Oh right, they did find a secret base. They must have tools to get this thing open.}


    Lucy leaned on the cell¡¯s wall, her gaze was focused on the robot¡¯s body.


    She was thinking about how to locate and infiltrate the robots¡¯ hideout.


    {Lyra, how come these robots were able to fly?} Lucy asked.


    {Magic?}


    Lucy sighed. {Don¡¯t joke}


    {I¡¯m sorry, Lieutenant¡­ Could you take a look at the robot¡¯s feet?}


    Lucy crouched down again and looked at the robot¡¯s feet. {Hmmm?}


    {Look at the sole.}


    {Lyra, I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m looking for¡­}


    {Don¡¯t worry. Look there. That¡¯s the reason why they could fly. Thrusters.¡±


    Lucy was flustered. {What? Thrusters?}


    On the robot¡¯s feet, there were small thrusters. The thrusters were small, but they had a powerful thrust to allow the robots to fly.


    {What the hell? This is cool,} Lucy said with excitement, {Can we add this to my body?}


    {I do not know about that, Lieutenant. The researchers who made you might know.}


    Lucy was disappointed. {Figures.}


    Since there was nothing she could do. Lucy walked out of the jail cell, She locked the jail¡¯s door and walked outside the dungeon.


    Lyra said to her, {Commodore Lucas is in the southern part of the city. We should report our findings}


    {Alright, Let¡¯s go to my brother!} Lucy said gleefully.


    The destruction caused by the Night Devils could be seen clearly on the day. Almost half of the city was affected by the Living Deads and Night Devils rampage. The southern part of the city was the most severe area since it was the suspected place where the outbreak began.


    Along her way to her brother¡¯s, Lucy¡ªinside the body of the android known by others as Lyra¡ªsaw the aftermath of the outbreak. Rubbles strewn the streets and damaged buildings decorated the southern part of the city that day.


    Civilians were seen clearing the rubble from in front of their houses. Soldiers were dispatched to help clear the rubble.


    However, as she went deeper into the southern part of the city, she saw only a few civilians taking care of their houses; or what was left of their houses.


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    Is this what¡¯s left, she thought.


    Lucas¡¯s suspicion about the southern part of the city as the starting point of the outbreak made more sense to her. If he were correct, then the population of the southern city would decrease dramatically¡ªWhich it did.


    However, she wondered how all of this happened and how the robots were able to revive and "control" the dead.


    She arrived at the place where Lucas had been since the morning. She saw a group of men surrounding him and were discussing something with him.


    Lucy got down from the horse and decided to wait until he had done discussing with them.


    A short while later, she saw him walking towards her. She bowed at him.


    ¡°So what did you find?¡± Lucas asked her straight to the business.


    ¡°From my preliminary investigation, the robots seemed to be of human¡¯s creation. I¡¯ve found out it had similarities with the early models of non-android robots the Galactic Imperium currently have. The robot itself has only skeletal metal structure resembling a human¡¯s body.¡±


    Lucas nodded. ¡°So it could not be an alien civilisation¡¯s creation then.¡±


    ¡°We could assume like that¡­ Unless the alien civilisation studied the human race and created the robots according to a human¡¯s structure,¡± Lucy said with a grin.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe that¡­ is what I would say before reading an entry on the secret base.¡±


    ¡°Oh, so you believe my theory?¡±


    ¡°Not completely, but there is a chance¡­ Does the robot have any memory chip?¡±


    Lucy fidgeted. ¡°About that¡­ we don¡¯t have equipment at hand to extract it.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± Lucas was surprised.


    He had thought the ship was equipped with the necessary equipment to repair an android like Lyra.


    ¡°I mean, we do have equipment on the ship,¡± Lucy said.


    Lucas sighed a relief. ¡°Oh, of course. But, you knew I don¡¯t want to have the ship frequently enter the planet¡¯s atmosphere¡­¡±


    Lucy nodded with a smile.


    Lucas went silent, deep in thought for a while, then said, ¡°Go to the secret base. That place probably has anything you need.¡±


    ¡°Understood.¡±


    ¡°Take a few men with you and report to Max when you are there.¡±


    Lucy was curious about how far Lucas¡¯s investigation toward the outbreak and the Night Devil¡¯s attack was. The discussion he had before looked serious.


    She was hesitant to take a few men with her to the secret base if those men were needed to take care of the Night Devils.


    ¡°Are you sure? Don¡¯t you need these men here?¡± Lucy asked.


    Lucas agreed with her, he needed all hands he could have to bring down the Devil which had been a threat to the city.


    ¡°Agreed, but it would be nice to have more men to be trained in there,¡± Lucas said.


    Currently, there were only 80 soldiers being trained in the secret base¡ª2 soldiers were sent back as messengers when they captured the base.


    Lucy understood Lucas¡¯s intention.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do as you say. Then how far is the investigation?¡± Lucy said.


    ¡°Well¡­ It was rather bizarre. Here is a riddle, how do you resurrect a dead person?¡±


    Lucy scoffed and said, ¡°Huh? Are you crazy...? Oh, are you thinking of magic?¡±


    ¡°That was my first naive conclusion. Magic.¡±


    Lucas let out a long sigh. He could not believe he just said that.


    Lucy looked at him with a face full of question and disbelief. She could not believe that Lucas would even consider magic as the reason.


    ¡°Have you lost your mind?¡± Lucy said nonchalantly.


    ¡°Perhaps,¡±


    Lucas had his arms crossed and Lucy noticed his right hand¡¯s index finger was tapping his left arm.


    Lucy knew Lucas¡¯s habit like the back of her hand; right now what he was doing meant he was deep in thought to think of the solution to a hard problem.


    As unbelievable as it was, the possibility of magic that could resurrect and control someone was not zero. After all, to the whole crew of HMGS Falcon 1 this newly discovered power was still a mystery and they were taught in the Academy to consider all possibilities.


    If they want to approach the outbreak through the lens of known knowledge, then they could look at the fungi ¡®Cordyceps¡¯; A well-known parasitoid fungi that could take over its host body and fully control it.


    An experiment done by the researchers of the Imperial Research Institute shows that ¡®Cordyceps¡¯ was able to take over the human body within 2 weeks after they were infected by the fungi. It required the infected human to bite on an uninfected or for the uninfected to be exposed to the spores excreted by the fungi long enough; the duration varied between 12 to 24 hours.


    ¡°If we are talking about the known knowledge. It couldn¡¯t be the Cordyceps,¡± said Lucas.


    Lucy perked her ears. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°First, the incubation period. The fungi need 2 weeks to completely take over the human body and a week for the symptoms to show, such as fever, difficulty breathing, restricted movement and visible change to the skin. But, none of them were present.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that? Have you asked the surviving residents of the southern part of the city?¡±


    Lucas pointed at a group of civilians not far from them. ¡°I ask those people, they lived in here and have friends who died due to the outbreak. They went out of the city a week ago and yet, they weren¡¯t infected. I asked them about the symptoms, but they had never experienced it.¡±


    ¡°Then, it must have been an unknown pathogen.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Because the Imperial Research Institute was able to weaponize Cordyceps and the symptoms don''t match up with the known data.¡±


    ¡°What? A biological weapon?¡±


    ¡°Yes. The Cordyceps have been approved as a biological weapon by the Imperial Navy. But, it has never been used, fortunately. Probably due to the hassle of cleaning up the post-infection period, the Imperial Navy High Command saw them as ineffective and useless and have never used them on the battlefield.¡±


    Lucy had an expression of someone who was surprised and disgusted.


    ¡°Wh-what? A biological weapon and the Empire approved the use of it?¡± Lucy said.


    Lucas was weirded out by her reaction. He had never encountered androids or AI who openly disproved any Empire¡¯s decision¡ªespecially AI used by the Imperial Guard.


    Her range of emotions was unheard too, it was as if the android had a soul. However, Lucas paid no heed, he had thought the advancement of AI was far ahead that the AI was able to voice its opinion¡ªhe barely followed any news regarding the advancement of AI.


    ¡°Umm¡­ Yes. Aren¡¯t you an AI, Lyra? You should have known better than me,¡± Lucas said.


    Lucy was startled, she forgot that Lucas knew her as Lyra¡ªthe ship¡¯s AI.


    {Lieutenant Lucy, please mind your manners. You didn¡¯t want him to know who you were, right?} Lyra told Lucy.


    {Sorry, I got carried away. I didn¡¯t know that the Empire would resort to legalise biological weapons.}


    {The biological weapons were legalised in response to the rebellion of the Terzein Brotherhood. When they were backed to the corner, they resorted to guerilla warfare. The war then shifted to their advantage and the Imperial forces suffered considerable casualties. The Imperial Council, wanting a quick resolution to the rebellion, opted to heed Admiral Russel¡¯s suggestion; that is the use of Bio-weapons. 6 months later, the rebellion was crushed without leaving anyone alive to capture.}


    {Lyra¡­}


    {Yes?}


    {Do I have to tell him all of that?}


    {It¡¯s up to you, Lieutenant. I was merely helping you to get out of your own predicament.}


    {Wow, thank you, Lyra,} Lucy said in a monotone voice.


    {Are you going to speak something, Lieutenant? Commodore Lucas is waiting for your answer,} Lyra mocked Lucy.


    Lucy was annoyed by Lyra. She could not hide her displeased in her face.


    Lucas took notice of her expression.


    ¡°Are you alright?¡± Lucas said.


    Lucy was startled. To Lucas, Lucy had been silent for a while before she showed her annoyed expression.


    ¡°Umm¡­¡± Lucy said.


    ¡°Are you tired? Overheating maybe?¡± Lucas said with concerned eyes.


    Lucy was dumbfounded. ¡°Overheating?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­¡± Lucas shrugged. ¡°It took you a long time to reply to me.¡±


    Ah, I messed up, Lucy thought.


    ¡°My deepest apology, Commodore. I was trying to scan my memory about the Bio-weapons,¡± Lucy said with a firm apologetic tone.


    ¡°Alright¡­ I guess when you are not connected with the Imperial Guard¡¯s mainframe you have a hard time remembering,¡± Lucas said.


    ¡°You¡¯re correct,¡± Lucy said.


    She was relieved that Lucas bought her lie.


    ¡°Then, go prepare for tomorrow. Make sure the robot is safely transported to the secret base. I¡¯m going to finish my investigation in here.¡±


    ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡±


    Lucas left Lucy to talk with the investigators who were investigating the outbreak. A feeling of sadness swelled up inside her.


    I have to be away from him again, Lucy thought.


    Lucy shook her head. ¡°No, you were given an important mission. As long as I can help him, I¡¯ll do everything, even if I need to go to the end of the universe!¡± Lucy muttered to herself.


    As she was about to leave the area, she noticed someone was watching Lucas from afar¡ªas if they were spying on him. She looked at the person, it was a woman, who was helping the effort to clean the rubble.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± Lucy said with an intense gaze towards her.


    The woman did not notice Lucy¡¯s gaze as Lucy left the area with a suspicion. Lucy looked up to the sky.


    Hmm¡­ It¡¯s better safe than sorry, she thought.