The Duke of the Golden Lion was one of the most powerful nobles of the Gutongsi Empire. Under his command lay more than ten duchies and several minor kingdoms. His influence stretched like a spider's web across the continent.
But how did he build such authority? His method was simple, though ruthless. Whenever a kingdom was on the brink of collapse, he sent his knights to "rescue" the dying monarch. Once the king accepted his protection, the Duke propped him up as a puppet and deployed knightly legions to carry out a so-called "restoration." In truth, it was nothing but replacing a sovereign's chains with golden shackles.
By using this strategy again and again, the Duke of the Golden Lion had gathered countless small nations into his pocket.
And now, if Gavin Ward—the rightful king of the Rose Kingdom—were to be whisked away to the Duke's court, he too would meet the same fate. Even if the Duke offered military aid and promised to help restore his kingdom, Gavin would never again rule as a free king. He would be nothing more than a puppet dancing on the Duke's strings.
But Gavin Ward was no man's puppet.
What's more, who could truly say whether the Duke of the Golden Lion himself was not secretly behind the Nord Kingdom's sudden assault on Rose?
---
"Your Majesty, you must think carefully," said Lusia, her lips curling into a sly smile. Her voice was polite, her words wrapped in formal honorifics, but the venom within them was unmistakable. "Without the Duke's protection, your life cannot be guaranteed. Do you truly believe the hundred knights around you are enough to shield you?"
It was a thinly veiled threat.
The Rose knights bristled immediately. Their faces turned red with fury as they glared at Lusia. They were common knights, it was true. Each one could fight a hundred ordinary soldiers, but Lusia was a Great Knight—a warrior whose skill and strength far surpassed theirs. If she wished, she could cut them down as easily as they could slaughter untrained peasants.
Even so, their loyalty was unshakable. If Gavin gave the order, they would charge at Lusia without hesitation, throwing away their lives to defend their king.
Lusia only smirked, her contempt cutting deeper than any sword. "A pack of useless trash," she spat.
But Gavin Ward did not flinch. He stood tall, his face calm, his lips curved into a thin, mocking smile.
His gaze locked on Lusia, and for the first time, she felt something she had not expected: fear. A chill crept down her spine. She fought to keep her composure, raising her chin defiantly, but deep in her heart, a seed of unease had taken root.
To her, Gavin had only two choices.
The first was to resist and be crushed by the Nord Kingdom. His throne would be lost, and he himself would likely meet his end at the guillotine.
The second was to surrender everything, follow her to the Duke of the Golden Lion, and accept life as a puppet king. Perhaps then, with the Duke's backing, his nation might be "restored" one day—but his freedom would be gone forever.
Slave or puppet. Death or humiliation. Pick one of two fates.
That was how Lusia saw the situation.
But what she could never have imagined was that Gavin had discovered a third option.
---
That morning, a voice had spoken in his mind, cold and mechanical, yet carrying the weight of destiny:
[Your Majesty, welcome to the Industrial Revolution System!]
[Bring the dawn of technology to this world without technology!]
[Would you like to use the three-day experience card of the U.S. Army Reinforced Company of World War II and the three-day experience card of the Artillery Support Team?]
This, Gavin realized, was his golden finger—the mysterious system that had chosen him.
Now, as Lusia sneered before him, he let none of his emotions show. He gazed at her coldly, expressionless, while his knights watched in tense silence.
"Sir Lusia," Gavin said suddenly, his voice sharp as steel. "Do you understand the crime of disturbing the army's morale before war?"
He rose to his full height. Clad in his gleaming armor, the tall and broad-shouldered king towered a full head above Lusia. He radiated a force that was more than physical strength. It was majesty—pure, overwhelming authority.
Though Lusia was a Great Knight and Gavin only an ordinary knight by skill, in that moment, his aura crushed hers utterly. His very presence pressed down on her like a mountain.
Her eyes wavered. She tried to glare back but found her courage faltering. She, the Great Knight who had faced generals and kings, could not hold his gaze.
---
"System," Gavin thought, his mind racing. "Use the experience card."
The response was instant.
[Three-day experience card of the U.S. Army Reinforced Company of World War II has been activated. They will arrive in a reasonable manner. Artillery Support Team is ready. Please mark a target on the map for bombardment.]
[Your Majesty, would you like to install the Butterfly Early Industrial Revolution gift package now? (Ten steam engines, one complete 98K rifle assembly line, one bullet assembly line.)]
"Not yet," Gavin murmured silently.
He needed only soldiers for now.
---
A sudden noise stirred along the city wall tower. Strange figures climbed up from the ladders, their boots pounding on stone. Their uniforms were unfamiliar—green khaki jackets, steel helmets, leather belts carrying strange pouches. And in their hands were not swords or spears, but long sticks of wood and iron.
These were no ordinary men. They were American soldiers summoned from another world.
Their movements were disciplined, their formation sharp. Rifles gleamed under the dim light of dawn. The Rose knights stepped back in confusion, staring wide-eyed at these newcomers.
It was a reinforced company—four hundred soldiers.
Each carried an M1 Garand semi-automatic rifle. Dozens hefted the M1918 automatic rifle. Ten set up the M1919 Browning machine guns on tripods, their barrels black and menacing. Three others carried the monstrous 12.7mm M2 heavy machine guns, whose effective range extended beyond 1,800 meters—deadly even to armored knights.
Alongside them came mortar teams with twelve M2 mortars, rocket squads with twenty bazookas slung over their shoulders. And still more power awaited: artillery support teams that could unleash the firepower of twenty 155mm M59 cannons, each shell capable of leveling a fortress.
The Rose knights trembled in awe.
The balance of power had shifted.
---
But Lusia only laughed. "This is your grand reliance? A rabble of peasants with fire sticks and strange helmets?" she scoffed. "No armor, no swords—just toys. Hundreds of militiamen with wooden sticks? It makes me laugh!"
Her voice rose, thick with arrogance. "When King Nord cuts off your head, I'll see if you still speak so boldly!"
Gavin met her mockery with icy calm. His eyes narrowed.
"Sir Lusia," he declared, his voice echoing over the battlements, "you have disturbed the morale of my army and insulted your king. Such crimes are unforgivable. But since you are not under my command, I will spare you the death penalty. Still, punishment you shall not escape. I will carry out military law here on behalf of the Duke of the Golden Lion himself!"
At once, the Rose knights surged, their hands gripping hilts, their eyes blazing. For the first time in weeks, pride burned bright in their chests.
This was their king. This was the man they would follow into fire and steel.
Lusia's face contorted with rage. "Who dares? I am a Great Knight of the Duke of the Golden Lion! You think your ragged band of worms can lay a hand on me?!"
Her aura flared, the oppressive power of a Great Knight crashing down on the battlements. Many of the Rose knights staggered under its weight. Alone, she could defeat a hundred of them.
But Gavin only raised his hand and gave a single command:
"Sniper."
From a shadowed corner of the wall, a soldier wrapped in a gray cloak shifted. The Springfield M1903 rifle in his hands gleamed as he peered through the scope. A tiny glint flashed in the lens.
Then—
Boom!
A single gunshot split the air.
The age of swords and knights was about to be rewritten.
---