First prince Galius Shatter-Spear, first in line for the throne of Vermilion was taking a nice stroll along with the Royal Gardens. 6 feet tall, fit and handsome, the man was the talk of nobility, the rumor was it that many kingdoms and even the Imperium wanted him, sending daughters and sons to try pleasing his tastes; From elves to Magi-Folk and beyond.
As the young leader of the rising third faction of the Kingdom of Vermilion, he enjoyed both the capital and prestige very few in the court had, plus his mom loved him to a point very few would dare anger the man.
After all, when Queen Malphas gets angry, Cities are removed from the royal maps the week after it.
Galius smirked at it, so much power, influence, gold, even the Gods came for him, minor yes but still, having a divine or two in your cycle was nothing short of amazing.
Sitting at a bench near a pound, Galius took the time to soak in the sun, his Mana and Ki flowing like water, that was when a dark cloak blocked his sunlight, he grunted with displeasure, no servant was to walk in this part of the gardens. he was ready to kill the trespasser when he saw its face.
"High Priestess Marathazua, What do I owe you the pleasure today? does the church of Uumaries need more funds for the cathedral? or perhaps new lands? I've recently gotten hold of a small barony in the south"
The priestess spat on the ground. "Shut you trap Prince, you have fucked up and fucked up big, Uumaries is not pleased"
Galius stood upright "Impossible, all my dealings have been done using your magical artifacts, there's no way Friede or Velkarius found about them!" he looked around "If this is about the Arch-Duke's daughter, have no fear, no one will know what we did, we had a mind mage scrambler her after the deed" he smirked again, Marathazua frowned, face twisted in disgust "Uumaries forgive me for having to deal with scum like you, no it is not about the disgrace you committed with that poor woman, no this is about the north"
Galius had a puzzled look on his face, the north was under his thumb, he had finally reached an accord with the Wulfgrem, a few of Uumaries Artifacts and he had the support of one of the 5 families, which further enabled his faction to grow.
"The north is safe, My men are posted on the entrance of the Highway, they haven't reported nothing in the last 10 days, plus the Wulfgrem are under my payroll now, all they wanted were the-"
"The bloody artifacts! Velkarius knows! Friede will know any day now! there was a coup you disgrace of a man! the last Wulfgrem Heir has taken the throne!" Galius eyes bulged, he cursed out loud only for the Priestess to laugh bitterly at him "Uumaries herself will have to intervene, there's already talk of an Umbral Priest preaching the words of that crown fucker! Holy war you dunce, If you don't fix this shit we will have a Holy godsdamned war!"
"Mother wouldn't Allo-"
"The queen can't stop a holy war! there are many Gods angry at Uumaries and don't forget the marriage with Morgarius, that's on your head as well Princeling, you have to the end of the year to fix this shit, Uumaries will give you no support" the woman disappeared into the air, Galius wanted to scream but he didn't get to where he was by being hotheaded, he sent a pulse to his ring and made his way to his quarters.
It was time to invade the north.
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Two men were sitting around a table, they were talking amongst themselves when Galius entered the room.
"Gally! pray tell me why you called me in the middle of the day? I was enjoying myself with the Arch-mage Daughter's!" the green-haired man spoke in mock outrage, Galius smirked at him, sitting at the table, as the man sat down, the door busted open, a woman with red hair and fair skin sucking air "Galius! the north has fallen! there's been a coup!" she sat down.
one of the men, a tall muscular fellow with tanned skin and green eyes began pouring wine for the woman.
"Calm down Krista, have a sip" he passed the cup to the woman, who drank it all in a single gulp.
Galius spoke "I've been made aware by Uumaries high priestess my-"
"Your men have been turned into bloody Peacebringers!" Krista drank another cup "Thank you Elias" she pulled a small green marble from her clothes and sent some mana to it, an image showed up, slowly morphing into a video of the aforementioned Peacebringers dead near the entrance to the Magical Highway.
"...That wasn't mentioned by the priestess," Galius said in a clipped tone.
"That is not good news, we need the north to send gold and silver from the mines, the mines to the southeast have all dried up," said the green-haired man. Elias turned to him and said " Not to worry Turius, my friend.
I'm sure your new pet will be able to summon gold from the ether" he smirked "Now that everyone is here we can finally discuss your poor manners my friend, Galius shared the Arch-Duke's daughter, why haven't you?"
"She belongs to me you brute, I'm not letting any of you touch so much as her hair!" Turius was mad, red with anger. Galius cleared his throat, silence descending in the room.
"We will deal with Tury's ongoing selfishness later Elias, now Krista, when did you get this memory marble?" the woman was finishing her fifth cup of wine when she spoke.
"Just a few minutes ago, had to burn a soul for it but I doubt anyone caught the scent of it." those pillars were handy Galius thought, to be able to do necromancy as they wanted? what a boon.
A boon that was about to end he felt.
"Has the church of Uumaries abandoned us then?" Elias asked, his deep voice echoing in the vast room.
"Yes, it's up to us to clean this mess, I already talked with mother and father, I have the privilege to lead a punitive expedition against this Lucrezia" Galius spoke with confidence, Krista looked around the room, her hand trembling slightly.
"With all due respect Galius, but how will we march it there? even if we take the Highway it's still a 10 day march across deep snow and with Paladin support from Uumaries" she had summoned a map of the Duchy of Wulfgrem, the Highway that connected the whole country plain to see, a marvel of science and magic that thing. it would bend space to shorten trips, enabling trade in speeds no country bar the Imperium with hits many teleportation platforms could match.
"I can hire mercenaries via Xie, there's enough coin for a good 800 men," Turius said, drinking from his wine cup "And you whoresons will stop asking for the Arch-Mage's daughter!" Elias and Krista laughed at his outburst. they knew if Galius wanted, he would have the young woman Turius willing or not.
After what they had done to Viviene Autumnflower, not even the Arch-Mage would stop them, the Arch-Duke didn't it after all.
"Get the men then, see if you can hire companies with mages on them if only to clear the snow while we march, Elias I need you to reach for our allies, a few platoons of Knights should put the fear of the Goddess on this would be Duchess"
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"What about me?" Krista asked
"I want you to keep looking on how the girl managed to end our little scheme up there, see if you can contact the God of Mysteries, or some of the minor ones that deal with information." the woman nodded and spoke, "Oh its been a while ever since we been together boys, ever since the Arch-Duke tried sending those Knight Specters to fuck with you eh Elias?" she had a teasing smile on her face.
"Don't remind me, Krista those things give me the creeps, not like Old Jinn will ever pin the blame on us anyway. anything short of a chronomancer blessed the by the Goddess of time will undo the mental wipe I have placed on his little whore of a daughter"
Krista licked her lips and said "Let's not dwell on the past shall we gents? otherwise, I'll have to hit the brothel again and they are getting sick of me there already "Bring the businesses down too much" the owner said" she spat. only for the men to laugh, Elias slapping his knee as Krista cursed them out.
"House Sakkar, Uthe'Zie, and Farkas are ready to send their Knights and Captains for each platoon Galius," Elias said as they watched Krista went away, Turius was nursing another wine cup as he talked "The heirs of those houses are all friends with Lucrezia from what I know, if you can bring one of them with us we Might get the girl without bloodshed"
Elias shook his head as he spoke "Not an option, almost every noble heir is on a fancy island near the Shogunate, only Lucrezia there didn't go, which means we will have to do this the old fashioned way"
"Steel and blood" Galius looked to Elias, the man nodded and spoke once again
"Steel and blood"
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Galius was having a lovely dinner with his family, his youngest brother third prince Arthur had returned from the retreat the nobles had set up, Galius tried prying information from the young man but he was resolute in staying quiet.
The fact the boy wouldn't even look at him was suspicious but Galius didn't care to raise a fuss. His sister on the other hand was teasing him constantly.
"Ease up will ya Arch? tell your older sis here, who did you shag in those fancy beach houses eh? was it the Argonius's girl you were giving looks when they came over?"
"Settle down Felicia, let the boy eat in peace" spoke the King of Vermilion, Jason Dragonborn Shatter-Spear. The man was trying to cover for his daughter, he knew the earful she was going to listen if she kept teasing the favorite child of the Queen.
"Malphas dear, I'm sure Felicia is just teasing her brother," he said with a strained smile. The woman narrowed her eyes but said nothing.
Galius found the perfect opportunity to speak.
"Mother, Father. Can I have a word with you two?"
The Queen smiled "Speak son, what is it that you want?"
Galius bowed with his head "As I'm sure you two are aware, there's been a recent...situation in the north" the King cleared his throat. "Yes, we have received reports from the Arch-Mage's divination unit" to which Malphas spoke "You wanna lead the punitive force yourself I assume? It will take months to get the paperwork son, can you wait?" Malphas knew her oldest's patience wasn't the best, yet instead of complaining as he was known to do in these private situations, he smiled. "It will take time to buy the mercenaries and rally my Allies, yes and I doubt the Wulfgrem heir will even dare to oppose us" The queen nodded "We have dealt with coups before, and will again I'm sure the young woman won't deny the court when you arrive in their capital" Galius beamed a smile to his mom, he knew the woman wouldn't say no. Arthur might be her favorite, but he had that firstborn charm, as his father was found to say.
"Ugh, what happened to the no boring talk in the dinner table rule?" Felicia asked. To which her father answered "That's only for the lunch table dear, Mother's rule" he laughed as his daughter's face twisted in mock anger. Arthur hadn't spoken a word, finishing his meal and leaving fast, almost breaking into a jog.
"I don't understand that kid, It's like he's afraid of us, did I tease him too much?" Felicia asked only for Malphas to say "Your brother always was more attuned to the arcane daughter of mine, I doubt he was bothered by your jokes, now if you would excuse us, we have dealings with the Hivemind, its partition wants to enter the Grand Academy" the woman sighed as Jason placed his hand on her shoulder "C'mon let's deal with that menace from beyond the stars, I'm sure we won't hear no complaints from the noble faction" they laughed as they finished their plates and left the room. Felicia did the same, wishing her older brother a good night.
Galius was left alone as he finished his plate, He couldn't wait to reach the north, the Wulfgrem duke did promise his daughter's hand in marriage to him after he was done using the Arch-Duke's daughter after all.
A wolfish grin appeared on his face, he prayed to the being that gave him all this power, and he felt its power flow through his body and soul.
Heresy sure was the gift that keeps on giving Galius thought as he sent a message via his ring to his people.
"Start phase two"
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the conspirators were back to Galiu's room, two weeks had passed and the contract with the mercenary companies was already paid. It would take at the very least four months to mobilize them, as Galius had to oversee food and lodging for the army.
"A thousand men, with the support of our Knight Allies and a few freelancer war mages it should be more than enough to take over the Duchy" Elias spoke and everyone nodded "You didn't hire the mage merc companies?" Krista asked as she drank from a jug of moon wine, the woman looked like she came from a 10-day party bender, Galius would say he's impressed but she would get smug for days.
"Galius, a word if you may?" Turius said, everyone, turned to him and waited for him to continue.
"Says here Lucrezia will have her blessings as we finish prepping the army, it will take ages for those Knights to do their silly rituals and get ready. shouldn't we be worried? What if she gets a greater blessing from a big God?"
"Her 18th birthday is on the month of spears, right? according to the schedule here that's just shy of two months, I highly doubt the womanchild will get anything big enough to stop us. Last heir of the Wulfgrem or not." Krista said without missing a beat "Plus Turius will be bringing his new pet and her brother. The Arch-Mage's spawn should be powerful enough to fuck her over" the woman smirked as she finished the jug of wine before barfing, Elias threw a piece of bread at her, only for Krista to twist herself and eat the thing mid-air.
"Impressive, now Krista. What info do you have for us?" Galius tapped on the map.
"Right right, I managed to get very little, you know that big winter storm that comes every 5 years or so? somehow that shite came early and its magical nature is fucking with the divination magics, even from the Fallen Gods I know but here's what I got"
She passed a small parchment to Galius, the contents sealed with magic, he sent a pulse of his mana and the whole thing flared, an ethereal voice reading its content.
"Month of the Peregrine Day of Waiting, food riots have spread all over the capital of the duchy."
Silence for seconds then the paper spoke again
"Month of the Everlasting Trees, Day of Overcoming. The spawn of the Wulfgrem killed half her Knight men and her parents. Spirits of the land and the Dragoness Kallista have anointed her Duchess"
The paper burned away, becoming fine ash as everyone in the room kept silent.
"Elias, see if you can hire those mage mercs again," Galius said, a month?! Galius remembered the spoiled woman. There was no way in all hells she took control of everything in a single month, it was too fast for All-Father's sake!
The big man nodded "We strike at the month of conquest then, even if the mage mercs don't join, I'll tell our noble allies to lend us their captains as well. Should boost morale for their troops and mercs alike"
"Good, since we are doing this on the up and clear, I can't summon our Patron or his helpers, So the mercs will have to be shock troops as well. With cavalry support plus whatever mage you can hire the city won't withstand the siege"
"No support from the Royal Knights?" Krista asked.
"Mom can't lend them, and the Knight Commander doesn't trust me, he's squarely on the Arch-Duke's faction" Galius waved her off, the woman snorted "You lucky the Arch-Mage and his Wife are staying neutral Gally, otherwise we would have a civil war already" he laughed and the other two men smirked. Galius on the other hand didn't find that funny "As if the man could even muster enough man to stop me. It took those Granarius fools the rarest magical artifact there is in this whole world to stop mom, you think a few Greater Blessings the duke and his Knights have will be as powerful as a Tear of the All-Father?"
"Civil War that lasts 10 minutes wouldn't even be considered a proper battle" he spat on the ground and praised his patron once again. His mom truly was the perfect shield, there was nothing Galius couldn't do thanks to her.
Elias raised his hand "If the girl usurped power from her parents, can't you force Uumaries to deploy some of her Paladins and Priests? just to round the army out?" the other nodded in agreement. Galius himself thought it was a good idea, but he doubted the High Priestess would share anyone.
"Don't think so my old friend, that hag of a priestess was very clear when it came to our dealings. Still see if you can get some from minor Gods, All-Father knows they are eager to prove and preach heh" they all smirked at the joke as the servant knocked on the door with the good, Turius stashed the maps and they feasted the night away.
Galius caught himself staring at the northernmost window, this was his chance the man thought, if he could solidify his power with the northern lands his faction would be strong enough to crush their enemies. His dream of power beyond human imagination just a little bit closer. The man failed to notice a small dark raven flying away from the palace. its wails