The Northern Kingdom functioned as a realm of enfeoffment.
The sovereign held the highest status, followed by the enfeoffed vassals. When the Northern Kingdom stood at the height of its power, the King naturally suppressed the local lords. Even if certain vassals harbored rebellious thoughts, they dared not reveal them openly.
However, the war the Empire waged against the North several months ago shattered this balance. The royal faction suffered a devastating blow, leaving them powerless to restrain the surrounding vassals.
This was precisely the scheme of the Imperial Minister, Honest. By weakening the power of the Northern King, the entire North would fall into chaos. When the time was right, the Empire could intervene and easily bring the entire region under its rule.
The Revolutionary Army saw through this as well. This was why they hoped to form an alliance with the Northern King to face the Imperial threat together before the Empire could meddle further.
Yet, this King seemed to lack sufficient wit.
At this critical juncture where the North had to make a choice, the King chose to do nothing. This inaction worsened the situation for the Northern Kingdom, pushing it to the brink of annihilation.
Consequently, when that flicker of firelight appeared in the palace, every Northerner realized this was destined to be a sleepless night. The Northern vassals, in particular, surmised the King's passing almost immediately and took swift action.
Unless one was a fool, it was obvious the North had fallen into an unprecedented crisis—which was also a massive opportunity. If they did not take this chance to expand their influence, they would become stepping stones for others!
In the eyes of every vassal, the primary threat to their expansion was the offspring left behind by the old King.
As a King, he naturally possessed numerous concubines and dozens of children. But among them, only one child was truly threatening and talented...
Numa Seika!
Though he was not yet old—not even an adult by Northern standards—the talent and ability he displayed in his youth successfully garnered the attention of all the nobility.
Of course, this attention was not out of goodwill. Rather, should anything happen to the old King, the vassals would use their maximum strength to make the royal line vanish!
If there remained a single spark of hope for the North's resurgence, the only one capable of faning it was Numa Seika.
Thus, realizing the old King might have met his end, every vassal dispatched a portion of their army toward Numa Seika's fief, intending to strangle this threat in its cradle.
As a Prince of the North, Numa Seika's fief possessed an army of over 100,000 men. However, in the eyes of those vassals, this 100,000-man army was clearly insufficient.
Which of them wasn't an old fox who had developed for decades? Their foundations were naturally incomparable to a newcomer who had just stepped onto the political stage. Even if he was a Prince, wouldn't he still have to serve as their stepping stone?
Thus, the vassal armies, arriving from different locations with the same objective, charged aggressively toward the Prince's territory...
A total of 60,000 troops!
Given the marching speed of their Danger Beasts, a single night was enough for them to arrive.
It wasn't that the vassals looked down on Numa Seika; those 60,000 troops were the elite of the elite. Many were even the personal guards of the vassals, possessing strength countless times greater than that of ordinary soldiers.
Much like a Teigu user in this world, one person could equal a thousand troops. Dealing with the Prince's 100,000 men was certainly feasible. Furthermore, after dealing with Prince Numa Seika, these 60,000 troops might immediately turn on each other.
After all, these vassals were ostensibly grasshoppers on the same string, but once the royal family was completely destroyed, could their relationship return to how it was?
Naturally impossible!
Strengthen oneself and compete for the world!
That was their true intention!
★ ★ ★
Late night.
The young Prince Numa Seika jolted awake from a dream and looked out the window in disbelief.
Even from within the castle of his fief, he could clearly see the armies carrying torches outside his borders.
'Are they really coming for me? I didn't expect it to be this fast...'
As the most capable child of the old King, Numa Seika thought every day of restoring the Han... ah, no.
Numa Seika thought every day of restoring the Seika royal family and retaking the reins of power in the North. However, the Empire needed only a single war to utterly crush the North's dreams.
'The timing is sudden, but those armies were clearly trained in advance! I must lead my troops into battle immediately!'
Although Numa Seika was still a minor, he frequently practiced his martial arts. His spear techniques were supernatural; as long as he didn't face top-tier experts or Teigu users, he could hold his own.
Some even referred to him as the Hero of the North, a testament to his excellence.
Time was of the essence. Numa Seika rushed to the armory at top speed and donned his armor, intending to face the coming battle.
During his run through the castle, countless screams echoed from outside the walls—many of them familiar voices.
This caused Numa Seika's expression to darken. He knew his subordinates were resisting stubbornly, but their tenacity could not stop the raiding enemy forces; they were merely buying useless time.
'If I join the battlefield, can I really turn the tide?'
Based solely on the sounds from outside, Numa Seika realized his army was collapsing like a falling mountain. They were simply no match for the enemy. If he rushed out now, wouldn't that be walking into a trap?
Even if he possessed impressive personal strength, how could he possibly deal with an army of tens of thousands?
'So the best choice right now is definitely to flee...'
'How can I flee?!'
The thought of escaping appeared for only an instant before Numa Seika rejected it. He refused to be a deserter, even if the end awaiting him was death.
A resolve not typically seen in a youth flashed in his eyes. Numa Seika lifted his long spear, prepared to leave the castle for a fight to the death.
Just then, an extremely unusual commotion caused the boy's body to freeze in place.
The screams outside the castle had suddenly become foreign—they were all voices he didn't recognize.
'Could it be that someone came to reinforce me at a time like this?'
'Truly loyal subjects!'
'If I survive this battle, I will surely grant great rewards!'
The next second, the castle doors were pushed open roughly. A girl wearing magnificent attire and a crown of blue flames appeared before Numa Seika at the head of an army, causing the boy to fall into a daze.
Looking at her, she didn't seem like she was here for a rescue mission.
The newcomer was none other than Cerydra, who had led her army on a forced march to the Prince's fief.
"Numa Seika? Excellent."
Looking at the boy standing with spear in hand, ready for battle, Cerydra lightly tapped her palm with her scepter, effortlessly deciding the fate of the person before her.
"From this day forward, you shall be my Liu Xie!"
Numa Seika: ???
Who is Liu Xie?
Is it me?
Footnote:
Liu Xie is the last emperor of the Han dynasty, famously known as a puppet ruler. Cerydra intends to use Numa Seika in a similar fashion.