It was an auspicious day for the great, and dominating Tornridge Empire. It was almost a festival, but not quite. For today, the Emperor was to make an appearance in regards to the war that was about to start, or perhaps to be precise, had begun already. Ropes with red cloths were linked from one rooftop to another. Soldiers in their full armor marched the streets and gathered at the Grand Plaza.

  They brought with them their large contraptions, catapults, and ballistas. The soldiers were separated from the elites to the lowest. The closest to the royal platform lined up the high ranking knights. As the largest nation on the continent, consisting of numerous states, which many were once their own kingdoms, they housed millions upon millions of people — and there was never a shortage of elites to be found.

  And thus, here alone, in this Grand Plaza, gathered a couple hundreds of elite knights emblazoned with the finest full plate armor. Armor that no piss poor peasants could ever afford in their lifetime. Each of them was equipped with the sharpest blades, made by the most skillful craftsmen in the whole of the Empire. And these were only the personnel currently in the capital city.

  Behind the knights were a hundred mages, trained with the most valuable and powerful magical spells available. With many having learned spells exclusive only for those favored by the nation. They were prodigies, geniuses from various parts of the Empire, who had pledged their utmost loyalty to the nation and to the Emperor.

  And at the rearmost of the assembly, ones with the most number, were the common soldiers. But, common as they may be, without impressive magical capabilities, or mostly none at all, they were trained to be deadly. The Empire would never allow weaklings to join in their goal of conquest and growth. No one could bring order and security without power.

  And surrounding these powerful warriors were the citizens, men, women, young children. They were all excited to see the Emperor, the great ruler of the Empire. All of them revered him. Despite the clear skies and the morning heat, they all lined up, waiting for the Emperor’s arrival and to hear his words.

  Additionally, they couldn’t help but admire the show of force displayed in front of them. The young boys looked on in adoration, wishing they could become like them one day. Become the soldiers of the Empire and fight for the Empire.

  Some time later, a convoy of extravagant and beautiful carriages rode down the clear paved road that was reserved for today. The people cheered as the convoy went past them, most of their eyes focused on the most beautiful carriage adorned with gold and silver, waving the nation’s flag. The convoy stopped behind the platform.

  The High Guard emerged from the carriages and lined up on the platform in a protective formation. They were then followed by the high-ranking officials of the castle, wearing their formal wear of red.

  The soldiers on the central ground drew their weapons, pointing it upwards and placed them close to their chest. And then, the cheers of the crowd grew louder as the Emperor himself emerged from his carriage and walked the platform. He was wearing a beautiful royal garb of red and gold. His hair comb beautifully, his royal sword hung on his left waist. He was the very image of a peak warrior, a muscular physique, tall and lean.

  He stopped at the podium and listened to the people’s cheers of adoration. He firmly placed his hands on the sides of the podium and the crowd immediately fell silent. The soldiers pointed their swords downward and the tips of the blades touched the floor. They all looked up at the Emperor with firm legs.

  “My faithful and loyal subjects, people of the Empire,” his deep, and powerful voice was heard by all and echoed throughout the air via a magic item that boosted his voice. “We are at a turning point, our actions today and henceforth shall decide our future.

  “This continent is rife with chaos, this world lacks order. Once, our esteemed empire was but a small, humble kingdom, surrounded by conquering titans. In conflict, in war, we were all victims. Many of our people perished in the flames of our own burning towns and cities.

  “Many conquerors, violent nations, desecrated our lands, staining our soil with countless amounts of blood. We were persecuted. We were victims of chaos. But through the power of the first emperor, and the blessings of our God, we persevered, destroyed our conquerors, and saved our people. Through his rule, we grew, and everything came to order and security.

  “But he has seen the chaos further off our own lands. Lands filled with savages and barbarians. If nothing is done, chaos will find its way back to us, and our safety will once again be threatened. And therefore he marched, and took villages, towns, cities, and even nations as our own. From there, the Tornridge Empire was born.” He closed his fist firmly.

  “And now, our nation stands as the bright beacon that shall bring absolute safety and absolute order to the continent. A nation to our far east was once a place full of murderers, thieves, abusers, corrupt officials, and territories constantly in conflict with one another. Their people were poor, nothing but scrap for clothes. A never ending chaos. But we came and changed this vile nation into a proper and respectable state.

  “We bring peace, security, and prosperity to all those under our flag! For many centuries, it has been so. And we have maintained order to half the continent, the testament to our power and our resolve for our noble cause. Even our mightiest enemies, one by one, fell under our might. But our work is far from over.”

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  All men and women listened intently, eyes filled with patriotism for their beloved nation.

  “The rest of the continent shall bow before us, and will be integrated into our great empire. We will not stop until everything in these lands has absolute peace and order. We will give everything for the good of all. Even my beloved sons, Alistor and Cilas, have sacrificed their lives for their nation and their people. They died in foreign lands. But their sacrifices shall not be in vain!

  “Our soldiers in the front lines are already fighting against the kingdom of Wisteria, the ones who slain my children. A kingdom of corruption, selfish dullards, thieves, and murderers. Once that kingdom is ours, no one will be able to stop us. Only through us will everyone, every nation, attain true peace and safety. And once the continent is under our rule, we shall have an absolute order for a thousand years, and thousands more! All hail the Empire!” He raised his fist.

  “ALL HAIL EMPIRE!”

  “HAIL!”

  “HAIL!”

  “ALL HAIL THE EMPIRE! HAIL THE EMPEROR!”

  “HAIL!”

  The crowd boomed, their voices, their shouts were relentless and deafening, that the very air shook in the intensity. The people’s fists rose high in the air, cheering their emperor, cheering their empire, cheering their noble cause. Even the children celebrated, for they too understood their purpose, the purpose of their nation.

  Every single one in this nation believed that there should be order in all. To avoid chaos. Nothing was more important than peace, after all. And they believed only their nation was the only thing that could bring it. They trust nothing else.

  One common soldier was clapping and cheering intensely, looking at the Emperor with utmost admiration. Then he noticed a small droplet fall on his hand. He looked up, but the sky was mostly clear, it was a sunny day. But there were more smaller droplets that fell from the sky.

  “Rain…?” he muttered. But this raindrop meant nothing, not like it was strange. Although it was a bit annoying that there seemed to be a mild rain shower at a time like this. Still, not like something like this could stop everything. And thus he, and everyone else, continued on with the revelry.

  ***

  At the region bordering the Tornridge Empire and the Wisteria Kingdom. One of Wisteria’s border fortresses was breached, unable to hold off the number of imperial knights and the sheer scale of their soldiers. Not to mention their contraptions of war that made the siege much easier. Ones that could crack walls and light up buildings within the walls aflame.

  The moment there was a breach, the imperial forces immediately swarmed the fortress. The Wisterian soldiers fought and defended with all their might, but in the end, they all failed and perished. Once the Wisterian forces had been wiped out, the advancing force settled for the night to rest. However, there was a second, smaller force waiting for their turn.

  The Empire had been planning this invasion for years, and prepared carefully. Their plan for now was to pierce through the defensive line of the border as fast as possible. Pierce through the defenses like a spear. This second battalion’s role was to scout what was ahead, and quite possibly destroy every outpost they could handle. This way, once their larger forces march through, they would face less resistance. This second unit was composed of elite knights, mages, and outstanding common soldiers. So they were men that could handle most challenges they might face.

  They had to carry out their plan as fast as possible. Wisteria was taken by surprise, and they must increase the amount of territory they have control over before Wisteria organizes their forces and sends a counterattack. With their vast number, the Empire was capable of such.

  The unit galloped through the fresh, bountiful lands of Wisteria. They encountered a small outpost, and after a short time of surveying the area, they proceeded to attack them.

  “Damn you imperial dogs!”

  “You dare invade us!”

  The Wisterian force spat in anger as they defended their base, and most of all, their homeland. However, they were not prepared to fight off such a powerful elite group. An imperial knight grinned and adeptly parried off the sword of a Wisterian soldier and then plunged his sword into the soldier’s chest.

  “Your land will be ours.”

  The soldier gritted his teeth, glaring at the knight. “Y-You will never…”

  The knight twisted his blade before pulling it out of the flesh. He scoffed. “I heard you also killed our two princes here, it’s good payback.”

  More and more brave Wisterian soldiers resisted, but in the end they all died, their bloody corpses scattered all over their own base. Some of them still had their eyes open, as if showing they still held a powerful resolve to fight off the invaders even at their dying moments.

  “This will be a good outpost for us to take,” said the imperial knight. “Best leave a dozen soldiers here to keep this place until the rest of our forces arrive.”

  And that they did.

  After appointing some men to maintain the outpost, the rest continued on. A few hours passed, and they arrived at a small village. Their arrival was loud and confrontational, prompting the villagers to come and check the commotion. The imperials quickly spread out all over the village to take control.

  “Listen, citizens of Wisteria! We are soldiers from the Tornridge Empire!”

  The villagers murmured in confusion and worry.

  “And we have come to take you over. Do not try to resist. Let us be peaceful.”

  But considering that they were essentially invading their lands, the men of the village flared in anger.

  “No way we can accept this! You shouldn’t be here! These are our lands—” the imperial knight swiftly struck the defenseless man. Slashing the civilian on the chest, causing a deep, fatal wound. And he dropped to the ground lifelessly, his blood seeping to the soil.

  “I told you not to resist,” the knight said with a tone of indifference.

  The villagers gasped, yelped, and cried in horror to see the man they knew, their neighbor, swiftly die. Ruthlessly murdered in front of them.

  “Papa!” a child rushed to the dead villager.

  Then a woman followed thereafter to check the body. “No…” Her hands trembled as tears started welling up in her eyes. Her husband was dead. “Why?! Why did you do this?!”

  “To set a fucking example. For all of you!” The knight pointed his blade at everyone around him. “Submit, or face our swords!”

  The villagers could only look and do nothing. How could they? There was just no way they could defeat these many skilled warriors. It was simply impossible for them. They would only put themselves, and especially their families, at risk. They had no choice but to submit.

  “Oh Lord and Lady, please help us.”

  One of the knights heard a villager pray. He snorted. “Your gods are not here.”

  Indeed, that was true, their gods were not here. No, their goddess was not here.

  “But don’t worry,” continued the knight. “Once we succeed, you will have a new and proper god!”

  Blasphemy. Indeed, an affront to their divine deity.