The Northern Country was a kingdom under a feudal system.
The highest status belonged to the King, followed by the enfeoffed lords.
When the Northern Country was at its peak, the King could naturally suppress the lords everywhere. Even if some lords had rebellious intentions, it was impossible to show them openly.
But following the war between the Empire and the North a few months ago, this balance was completely shattered. The King's faction suffered a severe blow and was no longer able to suppress the surrounding lords.
This was exactly the scheme of the Imperial Minister Honest. As long as the Northern King's power was weakened, the entire North would naturally fall into chaos. Then, the Empire could step in and easily bring the entire North under its rule.
The resistance also saw through this, which was why they hoped to reach an alliance with the Northern King before the Empire intervened, to jointly face the threat from the Empire.
Only, this King didn't seem to be very bright?
At this critical juncture when the North had to make a choice, the King chose to do nothing. This behavior could be said to have made things even worse for the North, bringing it to the brink of collapse.
So when that wisp of fire appeared in the palace, all Northerners realized tonight would be a sleepless night. Especially the Northern lords, who guessed the King's passing almost immediately and quickly took action...
As long as one wasn't a fool, they could see that the North had fallen into an unprecedented crisis, which was also a huge opportunity. If they didn't take the chance to expand their own power, they would end up being a stepping stone for someone else's expansion!
And in the eyes of all the lords, the threat preventing their expansion was none other than the offspring left behind by the old King.
As a King, he naturally had many concubines and dozens of children, but among them, there was only one most threatening and talented child...
Numa Seika!
Although he wasn't very old and hadn't even reached adulthood by northern standards, the talent and ability he showed in his youth had successfully garnered the attention of all the nobles.
Of course, the attention here was not out of goodwill. Rather, once something happened to the old King, the lords would use their greatest strength to make the old King's lineage disappear entirely!
If there was a single spark of possibility for the North's future to be rekindled, the only person who could do it was Numa Seika.
So when the lords realized the old King might be in trouble, they all sent small armies to Numa Seika's fief, wanting to nip this threat in the bud.
As a Prince of the North, Numa Seika's fief had an army of over a hundred thousand men, but in the eyes of those lords, this army of a hundred thousand was clearly not enough.
Which of them wasn't an old fox who had been developing for decades? Their foundations were naturally not something a newcomer who had just stepped onto the political stage could compare to... Even if he was a Prince, wouldn't he still have to obediently be their stepping stone?
So, coming from different places but with the same goal, the lords' armies charged aggressively toward the Prince's territory...
There were as many as sixty thousand men!
And given the marching speed of those Danger Beasts, one night was enough for them to arrive!
It wasn't that the lords underestimated Numa Seika; after all, these sixty thousand troops were the elite of the elite, and many of them were even the lords' personal guards. Their strength was surely countless times greater than that of ordinary soldiers.
Just like the Teigu Users of this world, one person could be worth thousands of troops; dealing with the Prince's hundred thousand soldiers would certainly be enough. Furthermore, after resolving Prince Numa Seika, these sixty thousand troops might immediately start slaughtering each other...
After all, these lords were ostensibly on the same side, but after the royal family was completely destroyed, could their relationship return to how it was before?
Naturally, it was impossible!
Strengthen oneself and compete for the world!
That was their true intention!
—
Late at night.
The young Prince Numa Seika woke up with a start from his dream and looked out the window in disbelief.
Even though he was in the castle of his own fief, he could clearly see the armies carrying torches outside the territory.
"As expected, are they coming for me? I didn't expect it to be so fast..."
As the old King's most capable child, Numa Seika thought every day about restoring the Han Dynasty... ah, no.
Numa Seika thought every day about restoring their Seika royal family and retaking control of the North. However, the Empire had shattered the North's dream with just a single war.
"Although the timing is sudden, those armies were clearly prepared in advance! I must quickly lead my troops into battle!"
Even though Numa Seika was not yet an adult, he had practiced his martial arts extensively. His spear techniques were superb; as long as he didn't face those top-tier experts or Teigu Users, he could handle them.
There were even some who vaguely called him the "Little Spear King of the North," all of which spoke to Numa Seika's excellence.
Time was tight. Numa Seika went to the room where weapons and armor were stored as quickly as possible, put on his armor, and prepared to face the upcoming battle.
Because during the time he had just spent running through the castle, countless screams had already come from outside, and many of them were voices he recognized...
This made Numa Seika's expression grow worse, because he knew his subordinates were resisting tenaciously, but their tenacity had no way of stopping those raiding enemy troops; it was just buying some useless time.
"If I join the battlefield, can I really turn the tide?"
Just from the sounds coming from outside, Numa Seika realized his army was collapsing like a mountain and was no match for the opponent. If he rushed out at this time, wouldn't that be like walking into a trap?
Even if he personally possessed decent strength, how could he possibly deal with tens of thousands of soldiers?
"So the best choice right now is surely to escape..."
"How can I escape?!"
The thought of escaping appeared for only a moment before being directly rejected by Numa Seika. He was unwilling to be a deserter, even if the fate awaiting him was death.
A look of resolve that didn't seem to belong to a youth flashed in his eyes. Numa Seika picked up the long spear in his hand and prepared to leave the castle for a fight to the death.
Just then, an extremely unusual commotion caused the youth's advancing body to freeze in place.
Because the screams outside the castle suddenly became unfamiliar; they had all turned into voices he didn't recognize...
"Could it be that someone can come to support me at a time like this?"
"What a loyal subject!"
"If I survive after this battle, I will surely reward you greatly!"
In the next second, the lords of the castle were pushed aside roughly. A young girl dressed in magnificent attire, wearing a crown of blue flames, led her army and appeared before Numa Seika, instantly leaving the young man in a daze.
Looking at her appearance, she didn't seem to be here to save him, did she?
The newcomer was none other than Cerydra, who had led her army in a forced march to the prince's territory.
"Numa Seika? Excellent!"
Looking at the youth before her holding a spear and preparing for battle, Cerydra lightly tapped her palm with her scepter, effortlessly deciding the fate of the person in front of her.
"From this day forward, you shall be my Liu Xie!"
Numa Seika:???
Who is Liu Xie?
Me... Me?