Yue’s hands were shaking as the angry princesses cut off the connection to Jiaguo’s reflecting pool. It was just as well that they’d been communicating over such a long distance, as she doubted she’d have been able to contain herself. The princesses would have surely noticed her ulterior motives—probably had, though perhaps not the full extent of it.

Jia certainly did. She looked askance at Yue as she tried to calm her rattled nerves.

“What was that about?”

Yue took a breath to try to calm herself—it did nothing.

“Qin is at war with us. They all but said it explicitly, which means I expect that they will be marching on us soon.”

“No, I got that part. I mean, why were you so insistent about making them recognize us? Not that I don’t appreciate it, but you obviously had a very important reason for it.”

It was impossible to hide anything from Yoshika—not that Yue was trying to. She adjusted her hair, and brushed off some non-existent dust as she sighed.

“Let’s discuss that elsewhere.”

‘Elsewhere,’ it turned out, was within Yoshika’s soul realm. There was no safer place for Yue to discuss matters of the state, though it did mean that she had to suffer the affections of the strange fox spirit that now resided there.

It nuzzled up to her affectionately while Yue wondered at Yoshika’s new spirit form. It was the first time she’d seen it, and if someone told her that Yoshika was already a goddess, she’d believe it after a single glance at the imposing figure before her. There was a certain radiance about her, each mismatched piece of the odd chimera somehow perfectly fit when taken as a whole.

“So, Yue, what are you scheming now?”

“Tsk, the same thing I have been focused on since our first visit from Qin’s princesses. Kaede and Eunae have usurped power from their parents—it’s only fair that I should have a turn.”

Her bravado did little to cover up her nerves, and how strange it was that the part she was so nervous about had so little to do with the actual coup she was planning.

“Okay, but what does that have to do with the twins recognizing us as empress?”

“As empress? Nothing. That part was just to give Qin an actual enemy to wage war against. One cannot march against an enemy they don’t acknowledge.”

“That’s never stopped them before.”

Hmm, Yue could see where she was coming from, but even with Kaede and Eunae adding their perspectives, Yoshika didn’t understand the full magnitude of what they faced.

“Yoshika, Qin has never waged war before. What you know as imperial aggression has never been more than expeditions to claim the frontier—at least, on paper. It almost happened once—when Seong Heiran took what is now Kucheon City. But the emperor made no edict, and the other sects were more interested in taking advantage of the Silver Orchard’s failure than in correcting it.”

“So this is different, somehow?”

“If it truly is war, and I see no other explanation, then yes. The great sects will act in concert, under a designated war leader—presumably Sun Quan—and hold nothing back. We will either be conquered or destroyed unless we can stop the full concentrated might of the largest and oldest empire the world has ever known.”

“Tsk, no pressure or anything.”

Yue giggled.

“Did you think statecraft would be easy? Your brazenness has earned you many friends, but just as many enemies, if not more. Now we will face our final test—if Jiaguo cannot survive the concentrated efforts of its enemies, then it simply cannot survive. It’s only through our hard work and more than a little sheer luck that we’ve postponed this until we were ready for it.”

“Are we ready for it?”

“I suppose we’ll find out.”

The silence lingered between them for a moment. Not uncomfortable, just quiet, as each of them processed the trial that lay before them.

“You still haven’t actually answered me.”

Tsk, of course she’d catch that. Yue bit her thumbnail—why was this so difficult to talk about?

“I’m not sure it even matters anymore. Things were complicated enough before Qin officially declared war. Perhaps my father’s already been allowed to name a new heir.”

“Yue...”

She was stalling and Yoshika knew it. Yue sighed.

“Sorry. Getting the princesses to acknowledge your marriage opens up the potential to take advantage of an undefined precedent in the laws of succession. I won’t concern you with the details, but the gist of it is that if I marry a woman, the Awakening Dragon’s line of succession becomes extremely volatile.”

Yoshika frowned.

“Yue, I thought the entire point of gaining your freedom was to avoid a political marriage.”

“No, I just wanted the choice to be mine. It’s a last resort anyway—there’s no reason to think the unprecedented case would be ruled in our favor. My father only fears it because it deprives him of control. The point is probably moot anyway, now that my treason is no longer merely de facto.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“So what do we do now, then?”

“We prepare ourselves for a war unlike anything this world has ever known. Evacuation plans, defenses, mustering our forces...there’s much to do and little time.”

Yoshika looked back nervously at something only she could see. Her soul realm still held many secrets from back when it was still the Bloody Sovereign’s Tomb.

“How bad do you think it’s going to be?”

Yue pursed her lips. As much as she wanted to give Yoshika a taste of her own bottomless optimism, she had to be honest.

“Even with your many talents, all of our allies, and the entirety of Chou’s hidden treasury at your disposal...I believe that we are most likely going to lose. That’s not to say we shouldn’t fight, mind you—only that we must prepare for the worst.”

“I wasn’t going to accuse you of defeatism. I appreciate the honesty. What can we do?”

“We should start by assembling a war cabinet. I know that you prefer to keep Jiaguo’s council in the loop on things like this, but we have to make haste. This won’t be an extended campaign like the one in Yamato—one way or another, this war isn’t going to last long.”

----------------------------------------

Getting everybody in one place was exhausting, even for Yoshika. She’d gotten better at it over the years, but there was still a limit to how much power she could draw from the Sovereign’s Tear at once, and transporting people through her soul realm was nearly as difficult as sending them through Dae’s teleportation circle.

Jiaguo didn’t have enough space for what she needed, so she’d assembled her most trusted allies and advisors in the main hall of Goryeo’s royal palace.

Yoshika herself was present in Eunae’s body while her other aspects scrambled to make preparations throughout the empire.

Each of Jiaguo’s three independent states were represented as well. Shogun Ashikaga Sae of Yamato, Seong Minhee of Goryeo, and of course Yan Yue to represent Jiaguo City. Master Ienaga Yumi, her mentor, came out of retirement to act as Yoshika’s chief military advisor, while Lin Xiulan joined to lend her expertise on matters pertaining to Qin’s great sects and their war doctrines.

Finally, to consult on their expertise in magical and scientific matters, Hyeong Daesung, Hwang Sung, and none other than Do Hye himself.

The Snake received a chilly reception as Yoshika introduced him. He looked the same as ever—a wizened old man with a bald head, reptilian scales around his face and neck, and the least trustworthy smile in the entire world. He wore the ring containing the remnant of his soul where Misun had trapped him.

Seong Minhee scowled at the sight of him.

“What is he doing here? Isn’t this supposed to be a cabinet of people you can trust?”

“Hoho! This avatar Empress Yoshika has gifted me ensures that I’m the most trustworthy person in this entire room. I’m entirely at her mercy.”

Eunae sighed. Her mother really didn’t have a leg to stand on when it came to trustworthiness, but she didn’t want to start the meeting off with infighting.

“Do Hye’s avatar is only a partial reconstruction. He’s incapable of cultivating, and cannot survive independently. He also cannot lie to me, because I have unfettered access to the construct sustaining him—including his soul.”

The Snake chuckled.

“In other words, I’m a good little puppet. The Empress was kind enough to leave me with my own faculties, but I remain quite thoroughly shackled. A fine compromise!”

Not everyone agreed, if the suspicious glares he still received were any indication, but the truth was that Yoshika needed all the help she could get.

“Let’s not waste any more time. Mother, I requested you rather than Min because she is an expert on internal politics, and I am hoping that you have more experience with situations like this one. Please tell me honestly, do you?”

Minhee bowed.

“Your Majesty, I request that you not refer to me as ‘Mother.’ As you are the clan mother, I—along with the rest of my sisters—am your humble daughter.”

“I don’t care about that, and I never did. Just answer me.”

“Of course. Qin has rarely wasted their time on aggression against our shielded cities, but during Heiran’s infamous campaign, there was fighting throughout the nation. I’d be happy to contribute my experience.”

Ienaga Yumi, unfazed by the gathering, stepped up to the table. The group was gathered around a huge table, upon which an illusory map of the continent had been projected.

“Princess Minhee, according to our intelligence, Qin has ordered a mass withdrawal of troops from the Yamato border. As Yamato lacks the defensive capabilities of Jiaguo or Goryeo, it’s my belief that they intend to concentrate their power into an overwhelming assault.”

Shogun Ashikaga stood next to her, drawing her hand across Yamato’s northwestern border.

“It doesn’t make any sense to me. We may not be as strong on defense, but Yamato’s armies are more than capable of moving north to hit them from behind. They should want to hit us where we’re weakest.”

Yumi shook her head and highlighted the enormous mountain range in the middle of the continent.

“If all they wanted was to conquer territory, then yes. But look, if their goal is Jiaguo City, then they’d need to advance all the way south to go around the mountain, then come back up to strike at the heart of the empire.”

“Hrm, and then they’d be surrounded.”

“Exactly.”

Minhee furrowed her brows, examining the map.

“In that case, there’s only one place they could be targeting. They’d have to go straight through Geumji to attack Jiaguo directly, which would be suicide even for xiantian cultivators, but Goryeo’s defensive network has one critical weakness.”

She pointed to a place northeast of Jiaguo City, where Goryeo’s borders awkwardly stretched out as though the smaller nation had taken a bite out of the empire to the north—which was almost exactly what had happened.

Do Hye chuckled.

“Kucheon, eh? You know, I always wondered who put up that shield formation.”

Yoshika blinked at him.

“It wasn’t you?”

“Hah! Surprising though it may be, I’m not responsible for every arcane wonder in the world.”

“Heiran created it herself.”

Minhee’s words drew the room’s attention back to her as she continued.

“It’s not as strong as the originals, nor does it match Do Hye’s work, but it never needed to. Even though the city is easy to surround and has a weaker shield, Qin has never taken it. Indeed, they’ve never so much as tried.”

Lin Xiulan raised her eyebrows.

“Really? I would have expected Sun Quan to make it a personal vendetta.”

“You’d understand if you saw the city yourself.”

“Hm. Well regardless, I agree that it’s the most likely target. It would make a much better staging ground to attack Jiaguo, and taking back the only city they’ve ever lost as the first act of war sends a strong message.”

Yoshika nodded.

“Then we’ll prepare our first line of defense there.”

As the strategy meeting began in earnest, Eunae looked askance at her mother. She’d never been there herself, but Minhee’s anxiety had her curious—what exactly was Kucheon like?