"Go back to Namesh and tell Jones Third that Runevale has claimed ownership of these lands. Let him decide what to do, and we'll respond in kind." Orin said to the middle aged soldier.
"We will do as told, sir." The middle aged soldier hurried away with the four soldiers matching his pace.
"Let's head back for today. Troublesome little sister." Orin said, offering Aeloria his hand.
"You mean... you'll be my older brother?" Aeloria asked with a hesitant voice.
"Hop on, let's ride back. You need to wash up, a young maiden shouldn't go around covered in blood." Orin dodged the question as he mounted his horse.
Aeloria hopped on behind him as they rode off.
...
Deep in the heart of the Kingdom of Namesh, two soldiers pulled open the massive oak gates leading to the throne room.
"Greetings to his Majesty, Jones Third." A soldier dropped to one knee with his right fist planted firmly to the ground.
"Why are you the one giving the report, where's Namil, your captain?" The middle aged man in grayish robes spoke, his brown eyes shifting slightly to the kneeling soldier.
"I'm afraid to say that the captain has fallen to the enemy's teeth." This statement drew murmurs from the authorities present.
"Namil was a very capable man, not to mention he possessed extraordinary fighting capabilities. Who do you think was able to bring down such a man?" One of the nobles standing to the king's left turned to his comrade and spoke.
"There aren't many kingdoms willing to get in our bad graces. So was it the doing of a thornsleeper?" His comrade replied with a thoughtful expression.
As they exchanged murmurs of who the culprit could be and what kingdom they belonged to, Jones was concerned about something else. About what the culprit was.
"What do you mean when you say the enemy's teeth. Are you referring to a wild beast? Explain in details." Jones spoke, silencing the nobles in the room. It was only then did they realise they had been asking the wrong questions.
"We received word from our scouts that about five hundred soldiers were approaching our borders. They would soon reach the neutral lands. The neutral lands was protected by both our kingdom and the kingdom of Runevale." The soldier began to explain. There was silence in the room as every ear listened.
"He speaks true. With two kingdoms guarding the neutral lands, we can't afford for any other kingdom to roam free near our borders. If that were to happen, Runevale might interpret it as we allying ourselves to another kingdom to claim ownership." A noble who stood to the right spoke.
"Captain Namil took two hundred soldiers to intercept the intruder, I included. When we reached our destination, only two people met us. The rest waited at the edge of the dried grass. It was only then that we noticed that the intruders belonged to the kingdom of Runevale."
"That can't be true, as a neighbouring kingdom, they should get our permission when entering our borders. Sure they did not want to sow any discord." One of the high ranking noble who stood to the left of Jones spoke in fear of what the encounter meant.
"Stand." The king said. The soldier stood attentively with hands at his sides.
"Thank you, your Majesty."
'It's true we would not hurt anyone from Runevale without a noble reason, given our relation. However, for only two to step up, they must be either high ranking nobles or soldiers.' Jones thought.
"Continue." With the king's permission, the soldier continued, standing at ease.
"The two who approached were Orin the Tyrant, and Aeloria the cannibal." Another ripple of whispers spread through the gathered nobles and Royals.
"None of those two names are human, as such, I doubt they came to have a decent conversation." One spat.
"Aeloria, I feel as though I've heard the name before." Another noble stroked his beard, trying to remeber.
"Of course you have. There's a rumor of a witch in Runevale who eats children." His comrade jogged his memories.
"That's right, how could I forget. If that's the case, then what happened to our soldiers? I heard only about a handful of them returned."
"They brought a message. Lady Nyxelene plans to claim ownership of the neutral lands." The room was quiet, not because of the absurdity of what Runevale wanted to do. But because of the name Nyxelene.
"Continue." Jones' voice echoed with confidence, reminding everyone that he was also as great a ruler as Nyxelene.
"Our two hundred soldiers, it wasn't the Tyrant or the soldiers waiting at the rear that wiped it out. It was the man-eating demon, Aeloria." The memories sent cold fear crawling into his veins. For a moment, he felt his knees buckle.
"Nomen," seeing the struggle on the soldier's face, Jones said to the man standing to his right.
"Yes, your Majesty." The reply came almost as soon as the king mentioned his name.
"See to it that our hard working soldier is compensated for his deeds." He then looked at the soldier and said, "dismissed."
With a bow, the soldier hurried out through the door the palace guards had opened.
"Nomen, what do you suggest should be our next course of action?" Nomen stepped forward, drawing the attention of every single eye in the room.
'That's the wisest mind in our kingdom. It is even rumored that his mind may yet surpass even Ramius of Runevale when it came to schemes.' A noble thought with mild admiration.
"The right procedure that should've been taken was for Runevale to send word to us and wait for our response. Since they came uninvited, killed our soldiers and planted their banner, it means they want to take the land by force."
He pause and glanced around before continuing.
"It may be true that the headcounts in Runevale had grown at a tremendous pace in the past few years. As such, it was only a matter of time before they demanded more lands. In this sense, I made a proposal to the king about a year ago that should it come to this, we should suggest to split the lands in three equal parts. Namesh will take one of the three parts and leave the remaining two for Runevale, in favor of their growing headcounts."
"He predicted this outcome? It's always baffling how sharp minds thinks." One noble said as he watched the calm expression on Nomen's face.
Nomen sighed and continued.
"Now I see I greatly misjudged the queen of Runevale. We may not be one of the three great kingdoms, however, it would be an insult to our entire kingdom if we take this situation lying down. Don't forget that we also have the advantage in military headcounts." He then turned to the king and spoke.
"Your Highness, I think it's about time Runevale stepped down as one of the three great kingdoms. Namesh will take her place." With this declaration, the nobles could not contain their shock. They whispered to each other about different outcomes this coming war could bring.
"It's clear war is what they want. Tell me Nomen, how confident are you that victory will be ours?" Jones asked.
"The outcome of war is never set in stone, no matter how strong the enemy may be. Victory will always belong to the side that makes fewer mistakes, and I intend to make none." Nomen spoke.
'He's not saying we'll be victorious, neither is he saying we'll lose. As such, no blame would fall on him if we lost, yet he'll be praised if we won. Quite clever indeed.'
"Very well, I give you permission to oversee this coming war."
As Namesh discussed their course of action, Ramius knelt in front of the most feared woman in both kingdoms.
"It's true that I had planned to claim ownership of the neutral lands. However, it was by your encouragement that I had to proceed earlier than planned. I do not wish for unnecessary commotion. Tell me Ramius, will I have to step in and erase Namesh like you made me do to the kingdom that once occupied Squora?" Nyxelene spoke with the same indifference.
"Your interference will be unnecessary this time, lady Nyxelene. I apologize once again for getting you involved the previous time. The kingdom of Squora used to be a great kingdom after all, so it couldn't be helped." Ramius said, his gaze fixed firmly to the ground.
Nyxelene stood from the throne, placing her leather bound book gently on the arm rest.
She took deliberate steps toward the kneeling man.
"Stand." She spoke and Ramius responded in kind.
"Thank you, lady Nyxelene." Ramius said with a dip of his head, his gaze still fixed to the ground.
"War brings suffering to the people no matter which side comes out victorious. Orin should've finished delivering the message and should be on his way by now. It's too late to take back our gauntlet. What if you lost, what would you offer the people." Nyxelene asked.
"Should I get you involved in the war, lady Nyxelene, I will cover all the expense spent on the war. I will also feed the people for three full years to help them recuperate. However, that will not happen. The moment Namesh chooses to go to war with us, they've already been defeated."