POV Lady T:
A vast camp was sprawled through a whole valley, hundreds of tents popping out of the ground like mushrooms. Collums of smoke were rising from campfires, and blue flags of the kingdom waved in the wind.
A young woman with long black hair and with few red strands slowly walked through a free space used as a road, leading through the centre of the camp towards the largest blue tent in its centre. The road was muddy, with heavy rain falling down, drumming on the tents.
Hundreds of eyes were constantly glued on her. They were all tired, belonging to the soldiers resting around the road. She felt hatred in them. Some of them were clenching their weapons, looking as if they wanted to stab her.
Only the imposingly tall figures of her guards stopped them, their heavy steps following closely behind her.
‘The kingdom’s last legion, the last soldiers that didn’t desert or turn to ransack their own country and at the same time are not under the command of suicidal fanatics.’
Even though she entered enemy territory, she walked with a straight back, her steps radiating with confidence as she knew that her master was watching.
Multiple men stood outside of the large tent, their eyes much calmer. They were all decked in shiny, heavily decorated lamellar armour with golden and silver engravings.𝒪𝔳xt.𝐜𝓞𝕞
Tanya’s eyes stopped on the old man in armour, a smile forming on her face, “Haha, Archduke, we meet again!”
She felt no hatred towards him, knowing that he saved her from the purge and quiet or public execution.
“You are here as a diplomat, but be careful, girl, do not cross boundaries.” One of the officers spoke.
He looked younger than the rest, but Tanya had no idea who he was, but she felt the anger in his gaze, making her sure that he was just a common soldier promoted for his leadership skills.
‘Maybe some personal grudge?’
They skipped the format greeting, and finally, they all entered the tent. Everyone immediately dropped their pretence and formalities, the old commanders no longer looking so determined. Instead, they looked old and tired of the war.
The tent was comfortable looking, with multiple chairs facing a single large table in its centre.
“Speak. What do you want?” A bulky man in his fifties with a bald head and monocle on his left eye looked straight at her, a strong aura radiating out of him, making the air heavier.
Tanya smiled and comfortably sprawled herself into a free chair, crossing her legs, “You know it, his Majesty won. There is nothing that you can do to stop him. Yet I will be honest with you, Marshall Vespasius. The kingdom is in chaos, and we lack the forces to stabilise it.”
Suddenly the air turned colder, and everyone in the tent looked straight towards its source.
“Tell me, what have you done to me, granddaughter?! Is she safe?” the old archduke snapped, his aura surpassing even that of the marshal. Frost spilled through the whole tent white carpet of ice spreading from under his feet.
“She is safe and will be safe. His Majesty saw potential in her and gave her an important job.” She moved, and a letter appeared in her hand, which she put on the table.
The temperature in the room immediately became warmer, the frost vanishing from the ground. The old man immediately moved and opened the letter, his eyes darting from one corner to another as he read.
Tanya looked towards the rest, saying, “The kingdom is dead, yet the new one lacks the manpower to replace the old one. Innocent citizens suffer, and everything is going down the drain. It is only a matter of time before greedy vultures appear, making it even worse.”
Tanya waved her hand again, and a long parchment materialised in it. She raised it higher, everyone immediately looking at its content.
“You are the last high-ranking officials that still didn’t desert or abandon their posts while being reasonable, so you deserve a chance. This is a one-time offer. You will all get pardoned, and if you prove your quality, you will gain a chance to rise again in the ranks. In exchange, you must use your power, connections, and resources to stabilise a portion of the kingdom.”
The silence fell upon the tent, all of the people warily glaring at the royal pardon in her hand.
Even Tanya herself was surprised by the generous offer, as she knew that originally her master wanted to purge everyone that stood against him and caused him trouble as a warning to his enemies. ‘He really must want to fix this mess.’
She saw it right before her eyes. Her master was growing not only in power but also as a leader. He was slowly but surely becoming a leader capable of bringing prosperity to his kingdom.
“So accept your duty and protect the citizens of your kingdom, or die and let the people you swore to protect suffer even more.”
The whole room remained quiet, with the marshal, the archduke, and the others just quietly staring at the parchment.
Tanya smiled at all of them, her eyes turning fierce, “Don’t waste it. This is your last chance.”
Suddenly, a terrifying pressure erupted high in the sky above them, descending on the camp like a tsunami.
The temperature in the tent quickly rose, with sweat pouring down everyone’s skin. They all trembled in their armours. Their skin was pale, and their eyes were wide in fear and shock.
Only Tanya remained standing straight, her eyes brightly shining, feeling the power of her master wash over her body, giving her strength and confidence, “Join and help your citizens or die here in vain, remaining loyal to the failed country.”
“I-I accept!”
“We will join the new king and save the kingdom!”
One by one, all of them fell on their knees, no one daring to look up, feeling like the thin cloth of the tent didn’t even exist.
Tanya wasn’t surprised knowing that the people before her were not suicidal or fanatical loyalists, ‘That is why I am even here.’
“Good choice. You will temporarily keep your ranks and titles until the situation stabilises. Then his Majesty will decide your fate, so work hard if you don’t want to end up at the bottom.”
Her gaze shortly hovered at the young officer, and she felt immense hatred and anger in his eyes even though he knelt like others, ‘This one will be problematic. Better to get rid of him before he stirs some trouble.’
POV Vesuvius:
The dragon nodded and flapped his wings, shooting up towards the sky, knowing everything was on the right track.
He originally wanted to take revenge and slay all of the remaining kingdom officials that dared to fight against him. He had a grudge against them and wanted to use them as exemplars to sow fear into the hearts of his future enemies.
‘But that was while I still had a large army and was underestimating how hard it is to control such a large territory and population. But now they are more valuable alive.’
Vesuvius wanted to rule a working kingdom and not ruin it, making him suppress his craving to purge them.
‘As long as they work hard, I can give them a chance. As for the fear, I will catch everyone that abandoned their post and have them all executed. I have plenty of useless people to execute.’
Vesuvius looked towards the horizon, his eyes looking at the massive city sprawling through the fields before him.
‘Now is the time to upgrade my minions. That will forever bind them to my cause.’
The dragon knew that the fastest way to quickly gain manpower to fully stabilise the kingdom was through the players, ‘They are the ready and cheap workforce. I just need to reward my existing ones richly, and new ones will rush into my service in droves.’
One hour later:
POV ???:
The colossal castle stood in the centre of the city on a high rock, overseeing large citadels and palaces of the nobility from the high cliff.
It’s four stories high walls were so smooth that they looked as if they were chiselled out of a single, massive piece of stone. Its towers and walls rose towards the sky, almost reaching the clouds.
The sun reflected in its shiny blue rooftops and massive windows at the central keep. Black flags with a red dragon on the towers waved in the wind.
More walls split the castle into multiple courtyards, some containing vast green flower gardens while others were paved in smooth polished stone. The whole complex was so large that it looked like a small town.
A serpentine paved road spiralled around the rock, leading towards a large citadel under the hill, its stone walls attached directly to the steep cliff.
The castle was submerged in darkness, with dark clouds and smoke spiralling and rotating above it, lightning occasionally striking its tall towers.
A large crowd in black stood in the central courtyard, surrounded by tall walls and buildings from all directions. The imposing structure threw its shadow over them, making them feel as if they had entered a house of a giant.
“We have really won…”
“What do you think the reward will be?” All the players couldn’t help but peer towards a pedestal at the end of the square, surrounded by the wyvern knights in long red cloaks.
A large chalice was placed in the middle of the pedestal with dozens of small, glittering metallic items around it.
Suddenly the dragon’s voice boomed out of nowhere, sending shockwaves through the crowd and making everyone quiet. “You have proven that you are loyal, my minions. You have fought hard in my name. You have fought even more than I requested. And I am fair towards those that serve me well. You will all be rewarded, gaining my blood and power.”