It had been eight months since the Mana Calamity event in Fittoa.
The internal situation of Asura was undergoing a crisis unprecedented since the Laplace War over four hundred years ago. The loss of a powerful authority to govern a large region like Fittoa created a vacuum big enough for rogue forces to rise. Bandits, monster infestations, and even deserters from the Conflict Zone flooded in, creating a chaotic place.
The government in the Royal Capital Ars acted immediately. They established refugee camps across Fittoa and mobilized their knights to pacify the area. Although things didn't go smoothly, thanks to decisive actions, they quickly prevented the risk of turning this place into a 'second Conflict Zone'.
All credit perhaps belonged to the new Prime Minister who had taken office just over half a year ago, James Boreas Greyrat. The man with tea-colored hair had to resolve countless tasks day and night, from Fittoa's problems to court affairs; he could only sleep exactly four hours a day.
Because after the Mana Calamity event, a red dragon appeared right in the palace and critically injured the respected King of the kingdom. Although he was healed past the critical stage, the severe psychological trauma from the attack caused the old King to fall into infirm and constant illness. Since then, the right of regency, according to tradition, fell into the hands of the Prime Minister.
Normally, receiving such a grand role is an honor as well as a huge privilege for a noble. However, with James's position, who won the Prime Minister seat through the suspicion of the majority of nobles in the Royal Council, that honor became torture.
Every move of James was watched, scrutinized, and gossiped about. Malicious false rumors appeared everywhere. Someone even claimed the Boreas house staged this tragedy themselves to seize power. Because the timing of events was too coincidental, wasn't it? James took office, then the King was 'assassinated', and James became Regent; it was truly too convenient.
Sooner or later, in the Council Hall where James reigned in the name of the King, he will face opposition. And that seem to be today.
"I propose increasing the budget for the knight squads protecting the region adjacent to the Red Wyrm Mountain Range." James declared. The Prime Minister's voice was loud but not ear-piercing; it echoed throughout the Council Hall. "This will ensure that no deserters from the Conflict Zone or monsters from that mountain range continue to flood into the kingdom."
Immediately, from seats everywhere, politicians and nobles whispered. Those small voices gathered together, creating a chaotic atmosphere like a flea market.
It's always like this… James let out a long, tired sigh. Although the man was not yet forty, the troubles and sleepless nights had made his originally handsome face age. Crow's feet clearly appeared on his eyelids. Strands of gray hair had also appeared on his tea-colored hair. Perhaps sooner or later, James would look even older than his father.
While James was still distressed, a powerful voice rang out, overwhelming the rest.
"Order! Standing before you is the Regent, the representative of the King! For the gods and ancestors, show some respect!"
Immediately, the entire Council Hall fell dead silent. Some were even startled and fell off their chairs like a rabbit hearing thunder. Everyone turned to look at the position of the skinny man who had just spoken.
Although his figure looked scrawny, his hair was half-bald with only a small part remaining as silver-white strands of old age. However, no one dared to call him weak-looking.
The ash-gray eyes of that man radiated a terrifying aura that made anyone in the Hall shudder. It was as if they were facing a brown bear ravenously hungry after a long winter.
James knew this man, knew him well in fact. Since childhood, the Regent had been taken to the North by his father a few times. There he met that man.
That was Titus Euros Greyrat, dubbed the Sword of the North, who had protected Asura's northern border for the past four decades. During his time as the head of the Euros house, it seemed there were no major monster attacks from the frozen northern lands that could flood down. The reason he was called the "Sword" was that he didn't believe in defense; instead, his way of clearing monsters was to attack their nests, continuously organizing bloody expeditions. Maybe that's the result of being a Sword God Style swordsman, and even a Sword Saint at that.
The old general's sharp eyes swept around the room; everyone was silent. Like a pack of wild beasts in fear, waiting for the predator's next move.
However, among those showing fear, there were those who appeared indifferent. Like former Prime Minister Darius here. He still sat comfortably, chin resting on his hand and smirking with amusement.
James didn't know if his 'good ally' found any joy in this, but he knew he should perform his role correctly.
"Thank you, Lord Titus Euros Greyrat, for speaking up." James nodded slightly towards the old general and then continued with his declaration. "As stated, for the benefit of the Asura Kingdom, we will increase the budget for the knight squads to go to the east of the kingdom. Are there any objections?"
"Is it the benefit of the Kingdom or the Boreas house?" Lord Jon, a lord from the Wishiru region, immediately stood up to question. "In the past few months, we have poured too many resources into Fittoa. Is that the only place affected? Other territories are also disrupted by the refugees! What about them?"
"That's right!" Another person shouted. This time it was Lord Daniel from a small county in the Milbotts region. "First monster attacks, then refugees from Fittoa causing chaos. My territory has had almost all its bread eaten by them!"
"Correct! Fittoa has received a lot of support already! You are just being biased towards your own territory!" And yet another lord objected.
So, despite being silent for not even a few dozen seconds, they continued to be noisy. Countless baseless accusations that already made the Boreas son tired now appeared directly like this. Now without Titus, he began to be unable to stand the annoyance he was enduring.
"I think the members of the Council do not truly understand the urgency of the matter."
However, unlike Titus, James spoke very calmly. He deliberately spoke each word clearly, slowly. Other nobles in the Council Hall fell silent. They didn't shut up out of respect but to try to ensure everyone could hear every word the Prime Minister Regent would say. They were preparing to dissect every single word coming out of James's mouth, to turn it into a knife stabbing back at him.
James knew that, but he knew what he was doing. Because now was not the time to show weakness before this suspicion.
"Fittoa is the territory of our Boreas family, and unfortunately, it is the epicenter of the disaster. However, as everyone knows, Fittoa is one of the largest wheat baskets of the Asura Kingdom. Although the kingdom's reserves are still plentiful to maintain price stability, the delay in restoring the fields sooner or later will leave huge problems in the long run."
James paused a bit; his eyes swept a round of the Hall, quickly recognizing those who showed open opposition. However, he had no intention of attacking them; quite the opposite.
"Like Lord Daniel, I know your territory has been very generous in accepting refugees. That is a noble gesture that our Boreas house will be grateful for. However, if Fittoa loses the help it is getting, those hungry people will again continue to scatter; at that time, won't your territory have to continue accepting more mouths to feed?"
"Uh I-"
Daniel prepared to say something but James turned to Lord Jon, the first to speak earlier.
"And Lord Jon's territory too, I heard that refugee groups in the south of the Central Continent are preparing to enter Wishiru. What do you think will happen if they know Fittoa is no longer safe and has been abandoned? At that time, chaos will double, quadruple. Honest people becoming destitute will be even more dangerous than monsters."
James slammed his hand on the podium, the Prime Minister's voice suddenly becoming eloquent just like Sauros usually was.
"At that time, what will the citizens of Asura think when seeing those things? They will place the blame on you, their lords. To them, every problem they bear is caused by the person they swore allegiance to. Then worse, may Saint Milis forgive me for saying this, they will doubt the King, doubt the throne to which we swore allegiance. Is that what you want?"
The whole Hall was dead silent; immediately, the initial suspicious eyes showed surprise at this majesty. Anyone in Asura politics had heard of Lord Sauros's reputation, but they didn't expect James to also have the aura of that old lion.
"I agree that everyone has their own problems. However, let's look at the problem together clearly and more maturely." After a punch to the face of those who opposed him, James switched to a more gentle attitude. This was exactly why he had more political support than his father. "All for the King, for the Asura Kingdom!"
"For the King!" Someone stood up. That was a supporter of James.
And right after that, like a fire lit in a pile of dry straw.
"For the Asura Kingdom!"
The whole Hall chanted the slogan of the Royal Council. Because anyone who didn't chant when reminded would be no different from a traitor.
And that was how James made everyone accept his demands.
…
After the meeting, as for tradition, there always comes a banquet.
Even if James was tired enough to only think about going back to the mansion, burying his face in the furry ears of some beast tribe girl to fall asleep, he still had to attend this party. The person talking to him was Lord Jon, the one who just voiced opposition earlier.
One might find it strange to see a person who just publicly opposed James like Jon chatting in a corner like that. But things weren't that hard to understand; it was all a play staged by James himself.
Because if you have individual enemies, why not put your own person up as their representative? Then handle that leader yourself, right? That was exactly what James did.
Lord Jon was a noble of Wishiru region, quite far from Fittoa, but he was always a secret business partner of James. Besides, they had many other benefits to exchange, so silently pulling strings to help each other was understandable. Now whether Jon was known as the Prime Minister's man didn't matter anymore. Either way, the opposing faction had just been dealt a painful blow; it would take a few months or years for them to find any new reasoning to attack.
During that time, the Prime Minister's power would certainly be much stronger.
"I must admit, if I even a real opposing faction, I will switch to your side after that talk," Jon said, the southern man's slightly tanned face now a bit red from alcohol. "Although the reasoning was all over the place, it managed to silence the whole Council. You sure are great with words, my lord. Let's cheer for that."
"It is indeed lucky that I have Lord Jon as an ally, isn't it?" James also raised his glass and gave a slight smile.
Indeed, what James said earlier was full of holes, and he himself knew it. With what the opposition declared, they only wanted to stop increasing support for Fittoa. Yet what James presented was the prospect of the throne 'cutting' aid altogether.
A blatant switch of concepts. But thanks to his eloquence, everyone completely forgot about that problem.
Perhaps except for a few people. And those people were wise enough to know they should keep silent.
Specifically among them was Lord Titus, who was slowly walking towards where James stood. Jon immediately realized he should leave, bowed slightly to greet the 'Sword of the North', and left without lingering.
Titus, the famous general, also nodded in return to Jon and placed his empty wine glass on a servant's tray. His hawk eyes looked at the Prime Minister's badge on James's right chest for a moment and then spoke with a formal attitude.
"Greetings, Lord Prime Minister." Titus performed the noble greeting in a slower and more ostentatious way than usual. Somehow, James felt the sarcasm in that humble action.
The reason was understandable. Clearly, Titus didn't like James.
This was the first time Titus had come to Ars Capital in over thirty years, as an honorary member to discuss the kingdom's recent chaos. Yet what welcomed him was a divided Council, led by a brat who got the Prime Minister position just because some scheming bald guy rolled out the red carpet.
In short, it was shameless.
Besides, there was another reason, a reason named Gordon Boreas Greyrat, the third son of Lord Sauros.
Gordon was an extremely talented, smart, and quick-witted person. However, he was secretly pushed by his own brother James to the Euros family as their grandson-in-law. Usually, that wouldn't be a big deal, even beneficial when the Euros house suddenly got an outstanding figure.
However, to Titus, he must view a member of his family becoming a pawn for another's political plot as an insult.
But James knew what kind of person Titus was. He wasn't a lion like Sauros or a venomous snake like Darius; the head of the Euros house was a proud falcon. He only needed to be present, give his ice-cold look, and make extremely decisive actions.
So James didn't need to hesitate too much; he immediately returned the greeting to Titus even if he was being insulted. "Lord Titus. Please forgive me for not being able to welcome you before today's meeting."
"Please, no need, my lord. I came here on my own accord without prior notice; that is my fault." Titus waved his hand slowly. "It is a pity that I expected to meet your father here."
"If you want news, the last I knew, my father was in Shirone and returning to this Capital." James smiled slightly. "I hope you will still be here then to rejoice with us."
"Oh my. Perhaps by then, I will have been stabbed a few knives in the back by someone." Titus raised his eyebrows; the expression of the old man over seventy when joking still made others shudder slightly. "But anyway, it's better here than at 'home', isn't it? Sometimes I feel my children are just waiting for me to die as soon as possible. At least here people don't try to pretend they don't want to kill me."
"Perhaps in your time, things didn't seem very peaceful, did they?" James took a sip of red wine after finishing his joke. "However, now people no longer use knives to talk, but words and reason."
"Oh believe me, everyone has a knife; they are just sharpening it waiting for the time to use it."
"But it has been a long time since we had to use such ancient methods, hasn't it? I think it is time for everyone to put away evil schemes for a common purpose."
"Oh, if you were truly partly as good as your words, that would be great."
James immediately spread his hands. "You see, I am not carrying any knife."
"Clever. Indeed, Sauros has to learn from you how to talk."
"My honor."
So there was a compliment, from the Sword of the North himself. James never thought he would have such a huge honor.
"So tell me, Lord Prime Minister." Titus casually sat down on a chair; he took a grape and twirled it in his hand. "If someone uses daggers, do you intend to use your words to persuade them not to stab you to death?"
"I will persuade them not to hold the knife." James shrugged.
"Oh my. Please spare me." Titus rolled his eyes. "I don't have enough life left to play word games with you gentlemen."
"Then I beg your pardon." James bowed. "However, I think the scenario you propose is quite vague. And I don't know why we are talking about this issue very much?"
James immediately sought to steer the story away, or at least, to know what Titus was secretly implying. But with Titus, that didn't seem effective.
"The reason? Let's see… Consider it as you, a young and capable Prime Minister, opening the eyes of a dying old man like me? Is that acceptable?"
"If you put it that way, we can talk about hypotheticals." James nodded. "So can you give me a clearer scenario?"
"How about this?" Titus threw the grape into his mouth. "Suppose an ally of yours is pointing a knife at your back? What will you do? Draw your sword in a hurry or try to persuade that person?"
James raised his eyebrows slightly. It seemed the old general didn't beat around the bush but chose exactly the most difficult and strange question.
Because Titus was not James's ally; quite the opposite. Aside from the aforementioned reasons about what James did that made the Euros head sore, Titus was publicly supporting the Second Prince Halfaus for the position of Crown Prince for the Asura throne. The reason was not too hard to understand, as the Second Prince was Titus's maternal grandson. If he chose any other candidate, it would be a strange thing.
Meanwhile, like his father, James supported the First Prince Grabel, the King's eldest son. It could be said they were on opposing sides. But instead of choosing the word 'enemy', Titus chose 'ally' for the question. What for?
No way a veteran like Titus would really just 'ask for fun' as he claimed. There must be a reason James still couldn't think of.
"I think if that happens, then I could do nothing else but accept my fate." James shook his head. He decided to choose the safest answer, doing nothing. "If allies betray each other, then there is no chance to mend it. It is like an expensive porcelain vase; if broken, even if we put them back on, it is no longer intact."
"Wise, very wise." Titus rubbed his chin. "And so you think that person, if they have gone to that extent, will not be able to back down, right?"
"That's correct." James nodded slightly. "I hope this answer can resolve part of your knot."
Titus also nodded in response; he didn't shift to any emotion. "Oh, of course, Lord Prime Minister." The old general stood up, patting James lightly on the shoulder. "Hope that next time we meet, you will continue to enlighten me like this."
"Of course, Lord Titus."
So they greeted each other; the old general went back to the party. He was ready to smile and drink with others without looking back at the person standing in the corner of the party once more.
…
Two weeks after the party, Lord Sauros returned to the Royal Capital.
And just one day later, the King passed away.
The knives that had been sharpened were now ready to be used.