The War of Sin. For decades, Vesterland had undergone horrific tragedy after horrific tragedy as numerous different armies tore through the once peaceful country. “Your damn food and supplies! Hand it all over!” the soldier barked at the farmers. Lowering their heads, they complied with the oppressors as they placed them on carts. The village would die by next winter.

The army marched on as the coalition of knights and soldiers battered through the beat dirt. It wasn’t the first army which had gone through this path, and perhaps it wouldn’t even be the last either. With plenty of blood to stain their weapons, they prepared themselves to spill some more. At the very least, that was the plan of King Dubois.

“Men! We shall class with the armies of the Wagner House by tomorrow!” he called to his soldiers. The armor of the knights jingled as they wore the heavy and powerful things like suits of holy value. They readied their swords and cannons for the battle to come. “If we wish to survive, we must have no mercy!” the king declared. “For every man we lose, we must ensure they lose tenfold!” To this, the soldiers cheered a simple reply: “Down with the Wagners!”

The next morning, King Wagner’s army arrived to the field. He had the veil of confidence as he assured his sons well. “You have served graciously as my generals and officers,” the king said to them. “There is no reason for us to lose this battle.” But underneath his visage was something terrible: fear. The House of Dubois outnumbered them three to one.

Suddenly, cannonfire began to rupture around the field. Mud and blood sprayed about as men began to scream in terror. “What the devil?” Grimwald exclaimed. “How could they already have the range for their weaponry?” Charles had a similar sense of confusion. “What kind of king begins to fire without a delegation?”

Friedrich, the youngest of the sons, also had an outcry. “There they are! The enemy—” Suddenly, his head burst as a cannon tore right through it. With his neck becoming only a bloody stump, the young man slumped off of his horse. “Friedrich!” Grimwald cried. Then he looked beyond. “No! The enemy! They’re beginning their charge!”

Lines upon lines of armored knights and men at arms were pouring towards the Wagner army. The soldiers tore through as a disgusting melee ensued. Swords stabbed into stomachs as maces smashed skulls. Knights were grabbed from their horses and swarmed by footmen as they were stabbed in every little opening of their armor. It was the chaos of war.

“W-we need our calvary! Our knights! Where are they?” The king demanded. “We thought they were with you!” Grimwald explained. Then, at that one moment, they realized something. “Wait, where in hell’s name is Nina?”

From within his camp, King Dubois laughed and supped on his wine as the messengers brought news of the battle. “We have killed one of his sons?” he chuckled. “That should teach the foolish king that he should’ve never engaged against me!” He continued to laugh as the thunderous cannons continued to fire outside his tent. “King Wagner is a fool. He always expects traditional and conventional combat. He even dismisses the power of gunpowder. Now, he must learn from his mistake.” He continued to laugh like a satiated pig as the warm tent flapped with the wind.

Suddenly, screams roared from outside as the cannon fire ceased. The sounds of horses neighing and stomping began apparent as the king lost his aura of confidence. “What is happening out there?” Wearing his armor, he grabbed his sword and stepped outside. His jaw dropped when his eyes came into contact with what he saw.

Fire. The entire camp was set alight as dozens of knights and calvary poured through. “No! Our battle loot! Our spoils! How can I keep financing this war if all of our treasure is burning?” Looking around, he found that all of the remainders of his men were being cut down. The cannoneers were either fleeing or being killed right where they stood. Watching his work fall into ruin, the king seethed with rage. “Is this how you wish to fight? Then I’ll give you a real fight!”

Knights attempted to charge the king only for the royal man to cut them down first. Knocking one of the knights from his horse, he finished the soldier by drilling his sword into his throat. “I’ll kill every last one of you!” the king bellowed. Then there was the sound of footsteps.

The king turned to find a large muscular soldier, one he had never seen. The soldier wore a set of heavy armor which was unique in design. In short, he looked like some kind of barbarian as the heavy armor also allowed incredible mobility and openness. Wielding a halberd, the warrior looked to be a true monster in the shape of a human. But this was no monster. This was just Xiaojun. “Your head would look better on a spike,” the warrior uttered to the king.

“How dare you!” The king raised his sword, but Xiaojun was faster. He lodged the end of his halberd right through the king’s armor. King Dubois spewed blood as his body grew incredibly weak. “How… did… you…” He was interrupted as the sound of hooves entered the area. Looking up, the king found a face with short blonde hair. “Nina… Wagner…?”

The girl got off of her horse and unsheathed her sword. “Of course. I doubt you were expecting genius to come from my brothers or my father.” The king closed his eyes in disgust. “Of all people to kill me, it has to be a woman. I shall die without honor.” Nina just giggled in response. “You say that like you had some in the first place.” With a quick swoop, the head was removed from the neck it was resting on.

Meanwhile, King Wagner was still panicking and stricken as he watched the battle continue. Dubois’s soldiers were still momentously pushing forward as the Wagner troops died by the number. “We are truly doomed… heaven has frowned upon us today…” Then, coming from the hill was a lone horseman: Nina Wagner.

“Soldiers of the House of Dubois! I present to you your king!” Holding it by his hair, she held the head of the dead king for everyone to see. “This is the face of one of the many men who jeopardize the lives of Vesterland in exchange for gold and power!” She threw the head to the ground. “As for the rest of these traitors, we shall begin uprooting them as well.” She unsheathed her sword and thrust it forward. “Soldiers! Charge!”

Descending down the hill like a storm was the army of calvary and knights, with Xiaojun leading them. They cried and yelled as the soldiers of Dubois turned in fear. Nina could only grin as she watched the battle win in her favor. “If only I had access to even more troops.”

The knights charged right into the hapless soldiers as men were flung into the air. The soldiers of Dubois fell and died like germs as they found themselves completely surrounded by enemies. Blood poured and sprayed about as the knights and soldiers crushed every last ounce of resistance.

When the fighting subsided and the field grew cold, the victory over the House of Dubois was more than evident. The blue of the Dubois coat of arms decorated the green field like a blanket of corpses. Nina was hailed as a hero as the knights cheered her courage and the soldiers thanked her. “You saved our lives!” they cried. “If you didn’t come in at that moment, we would’ve all died!”

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Even King Wagner gave his gratitude. “Nina, you have truly proven your worth. For the past set of years, you have won victory after victory against all of our enemies. For that, I thank you and continue to thank you.” Nina bowed her head as she knelt down. “Thank you father.”

There was only one man who didn’t behold such emotions. Setting her aside, Grimwald immediately reprimanded her. “You took my knights! The men who were entrusted to my command!” he growled. “Do you not realize the consequences of this? Friedrich died because of you!” He raised his hand to hit her.

Suddenly, his hand was grabbed and he was thrown to the ground. “What the hell?” Looking at the attacker, Grimwald found it was Xiaojun. “This is a private conversation! How dare you impose?” To this, the warrior had a simple reply. “I go where she goes. That is all.” Nina just laughed as she looked at the brother. “What would you have done with the calvary then?”

“I… would’ve… attacked and killed the enemy!” Nina just laughed some more. “Attack an enemy who was long expecting us? An enemy who was armed to the teeth with cannons? An enemy who greatly outnumbers us? Be thankful that we managed to survive this day. Many of the other factions of Vesterland will look at us with either jealousy or fear after this day. If you wish, you can prove yourself more formidable in a foreign battlefield.” She grabbed Xiaojun by the arm and exited the tent.

Grimwald was always like that: a jealous older brother who despised his sister’s ability to gain such notoriety and fame. Since Nina was accomplishing so much as just a skinny girl, part of Grimwald felt nothing short of humiliated. Fortunately, Nina didn’t have much thought or care about it. She had bigger things to worry about.

That night, the entire army was holding a feast as nearby women and villagers provided plenty of food and entertainment. “The King of Dubois has harassed and bullied us for years! Thank you for liberating us oh great King Wagner!” With the smell of alcohol and laughter reverberating around, everyone was celebrating and dancing.

Yet Xiaojun sat far from the party. Sitting on a tree stump and holding onto his weapon, he looked off into the night. His face and body had been covered in more and more stars ever since he had joined with Nina as her mercenary. He had gotten bigger and stronger, as his experience made him a one of a kind warrior. But even with this great amount of progress, he had one thought on his mind: the mysterious warrior he had seen years ago.

He could still see him vividly by closing his eyes. The scaled cataphract armor and the large guandao that the warrior wielded. The mask that covered his mouth, and the mighty words that exuded from his mind. “It takes a bad day to turn a king into a peasant, but it takes a good man to turn a peasant into a king.” Still, a part of him wanted to see the mighty warrior one day.

“Are you alright?” Holding two cups of ale, Nina sat herself next to Xiaojun. “Here. Have one.” She handed him a the drink, and they both took a sip. “A little sour for my taste,” she said with a smile, “but it still tastes good.” Together, they watched the moon rise high in the sky and the grass dance with every gust of the wind.

“This world is such an ugly yet beautiful place,” Nina said. “The same world that just killed my brother is the same world that can look like it came from a dream.” A tear fell from her eye. It was clear that her brother’s words made a clear dent into her heart. “Xiaojun, tell me it wasn’t my fault that Friedrich died. Please. Please tell me it wasn’t my fault.” She began to seriously weep, taking Xiaojun by surprise. In their years together, it was rare for her to show any emotion other than cool confidence.

“It wasn’t your fault.” Xiaojun gently held her head as she continued to cry. He didn’t know what else to say or do. In fact, the mere idea of love and care was still more than alien to him. There were only two people he’s trusted: the mysterious warrior and the girl right now crying in his lap. So he just said what he could. “It wasn’t your fault.”

The next day, Nina pretended as if nothing had ever happened. She was back to being the cool and confident leader she was famous for being. And so, she would win more and more victories with Xiaojun at her side. More and more houses and factions capitulated as the sly tactician deployed her unconventional tactics and even more unconventional warrior.

“Fire!” Firing cannons from the trees, her forces decimated complete lines of infantry with unexpected explosive shots that ravaged through the enemy army. With every battle, she grew more and more famous as every kingdom of Vesterland heard her name.

But she didn’t have the powers of a god. One by one, her brothers began to fall as calamity took them. Langlais, the second youngest brother, ended up dying of disease. When she about to recover from the cataclysm, Charles died from an ambush to the north. In the end, the only two siblings were her and her devious older brother. She had no more allies.

“Why? Why did this have to happen?” Sitting in her room, she continued to weep and cry as she buried her head into her hands. Battle after battle, she had contained her sorrow and stress. Battle after battle, she had contained the pains of combat. Battle after battle, she continued to win despite feeling that it was the world she was fighting against.

Then the door opened. Frantically wiping the tears away, Nina looked up to find it was just Xiaojun. Even though the world was against her, at least Xiaojun managed to stay by her side. She stood up and shut the door before embracing the loyal warrior. “I’m sorry Xiaojun,” she whimpered. “I’m so weak.”

Xiaojun held onto her, still not knowing how to react. “You aren’t weak,” he said. “You’re the only reason I can find a way to be strong. Do you remember when we met? You chose me out of all of those strong and mighty warriors. You are strong Nina. Please believe me when I say this.”

“Thank you for being by my side!” she cried. For a moment, the two held each other and cried as the horrors of the world were put aside for a moment. At least for this pocket in time, Nina could have a moment with the warrior who had always been by her side. “Nina,” he finally said. “I have something to tell you.”

Suddenly, the door barged as a soldier went inside. “Princess! We have an urgent issue! Please! Attend the castle walls immediately!” With that, the two parted from each other as Nina wiped her tears. “Understood!” she said, putting her tears away. The three of them ran to the fortifications as they looked beyond.

Hordes upon hordes of soldiers lined outside, setting up their siege camp. Nina looked in shock. “An army of this size should’ve been notified to me a long time ago!” Then she thought of something. She would’ve been notified unless someone either hid these notifications, or told the scouts not to report it. “My brother called these soldiers.”

Sitting on the other side of the walls was Grimwald. He grinned as the Jiaguonese soldiers prepared their siege camp. “General Tsao,” Grimwald said with a smile. “Thank you for understanding how my sister’s cursed hold on the Wagner House could lead to a threat against the Jiaguonese Empire.” The general laughed in response. “Of course! And is there plenty of loot inside to refinance the empire?” Grimwald nodded. “Plenty.”

Back in the walls, Nina was quick to begin her plan. “It is unlikely we survive. As a result, we must have defense in depth. Make every inch of their gain a catastrophe in destruction. Let me guess, is the escape route out of the castle sabotaged?”

“Yes m’lady,” the soldier replied. Nina nodded. “Of course. My brother wants me dead here. What a fool. If this army defeats us and takes the castle, they will have no choice but to turn to every other village and town in Vesterland. He’s brought a parasite and his small mind doesn’t even know it.”

She then turned to the armory where she presented her one ace in the hole. There, she presented a long metal stick groved with wood and mechanisms. “What is it?” Xiaojun asked. He watched as she rammed a lead ball into the barrel, lit a match, and aimed it at a helmet. With the pull of a trigger and a thunderous sound, the ball fired into the helmet, puncturing it.

“It is a musket,” she said. “For years, muskets have been on a slow but steady development. In case of something like this, I have a large stockpile of muskets I keep in emergency. I was hoping I could one day use it in the field, but now I know it shall die in this very castle.” She tossed it to a soldier as she gave Xiaojun her ultimatum. “I’ve always loved my brother. But since my brother has yet to reverberate my love, I must do my best to stop him before he turns this kingdom into ash.” With that, she went off to oversee the defenses.