"Alexandros, my dear boy, are you within?" A familiar head poked into the emperor's study, only to find it empty.
Regent Rodriguez ventured into the study and gazed around. With an exasperated tone, he muttered. "For Heaven's sake, that boy always seems to go missing whenever I want to find him."
He then shook his head with a sigh and turned around to leave the study. However, just as he was about to fully turn his gaze, he noticed a stack of scattered parchments placed on the table.
"What's this?" he asked, walking up towards the table. Grabbing the stack of papers in his hand, he began casually reading them. "A Strategy to Acquire a Port. 'Suppose you have a Port A, currently under occupation of Enemy 1, your means at hand are as follows;…'"
"Is this what the boy is learning from that teacher of his?" he commented in a warm tone. "To think that the carefree boy of yesteryear would suddenly grow up like this…"
Rodriguez shook his head and sighed. It was a shame what had happened to Alexandros. To go through so much at such a young age, Rodriguez felt immense pity for the boy.
As he continued to read through the sheets of paper, finding faults and identifying potholes within the strategy, the warm smile on Rodriguez's face slowly disappeared. Replacing it was a mask of solemnity and severity.
"This strategy," he grew ponderous, "does offer an ingenious solution to seize New Hope Port City."
To describe the geography of the South Aislan Continent was simple; broadly speaking, it was separated into two major areas with an area distribution of 40% and 60% respectively.
This 40% area, called the Hielands, consisted of a series of mountainous terrains and valleys and was situated to the north-west of the continent. The Hielands was an unexplored wilderness, filled with fearsome Wild Beasts and gruesome savages, called the 'Hielanders.' For millennia, the Hielands have always been a 'no-man-zone' for the civilized world. Even before the war, when the South Aislan Empire stood at the peak of its strength, the Hielands were a subject of fear and ostracization.
That said, when one refers to the 'South Aislan Continent,' and the lands occupied by the 'South Aislan Empire' prior to the war, one always referred to this remaining 60% of the continent's landmass which was called the 'Lowlands.'
The Lowlands, which consisted of the remainder of the continent, south of the Cloud's Break Mountain Ranges which separated the Hielands and the Lowlands, was where the war for unification between the seven factions currently raged on.
Unlike the wild and uncivilised north, the Lowlands, filled with barren plains, sprawling forests, resplendent lakes, and many other natural biomes, were home to the civilized people of the modern world. It was also the home base of the South Aislan Empire and its people. Or at least, was.
Now, the Lowlands were split between the seven factions. And to recount Silica's words, it was split as follows; to the north-east, with the Cloud's Break Mountain Ranges and the Primordial Sea at their back, was the Heavenly Spirit Empire's faction; to their left, sharing a border with them, with the other half of the Cloud's Break Mountain Ranges and the Azure Ocean to their west, was the Mu Household's faction.
Down south of the Heavenly Spirit Empire's faction and southeast to the Mu Household's faction, sharing a border with both these forces, was the Scarlet Demon Army's faction territory. Their territory possessed a long coastline, overlooking the Primordial Sea, and hence, occupied the most ports and major cities in the continent; a total of seventeen cities!
Moving further south, the southernmost areas of the South Aislan Continent were found. The southernmost lands of the continent were shaped like a dagger's tip; narrow and sharp, cutting into the ocean. These areas were occupied by the Duke of Auberville and his younger brother; the two of them having roughly split these lands into two halves.
Hugging the western coastline was the Hodgepodge Faction. This faction seemed content with having four ports and five cities under its control and did not overtly participate in the war. Port Éclair, the city in which Wuzhi first stepped onto this continent, was also along this coastline.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
This only left the central areas of the Lowlands; barren lands filled with nothing but droughts and wastelands with a few mountains and lush forests scattered here and there. It was these areas that were under the Terrorist Faction's, forces and remnants of the South Aislan Empire, control.
Caroxtel City, the capital city of the empire and the residence of the emperor was also somewhere within these lands. Geographically speaking, however, they were closer to the lands occupied by the younger brother of the Duke of Auberville.
[AN: Oof, that was a lot of exposition. I really wish that there was some way to share my poorly-made drawing, detailing the distribution of powers, with you readers. I hope that I have done a decent job of outlining the image.
For reference on the continent's shape, I loosely based it upon the South American Continent. So, if you're seeking some visual aid, open a map of this continent and start drawing lines based on my descriptions.
If you are in no way able to imagine this distribution, or you simply find this task to be bothersome, that is fine too. It will in no way affect the content and your enjoyment of the novel.]
Going back to the emperor's study.
New Hope Port City was situated within the lands of the younger brother of the Duke of Auberville. It was situated at a distance of 450 kilometres from the capital city, Caroxtel, and had served as the Imperial Harbour before the fracturing of the empire.
New Hope Port City was also significant for another reason, it was where the previous emperor of the South Aislan Empire was murdered four months ago! And the murderer, the chief architect of this traitorous plot, was none other than the younger brother of the Duke of Auberville, Ferdinand Sinna de Auberville!
'Acquiring the New Hope Port City will have two significant advantages; one, it will settle the minds and hearts of the empire's subjects, allowing us to reclaim a part of the empire's shattered honour; two, it will open a channel for trade and potentially act as a path of retreat.'
Rodriguez clenched his fits tightly feeling a suffocating pain within his heart. As much as his heart refused to believe in the empire's fall, his mind, his temple of logic, made him see the facts for what they were.
The South Aislan Empire stood at a precipice, and with each day that passed, it inched closer and closer to the edge of the cliff. Should they be unable to find a way out of this quandary, their fall from the peak would be eventual.
These many sheets of paper within his grasp showed an inkling of such a way. Rodriguez had to grasp it!
"My dear boy," the regent smiled, "you truly are this empire's gift. To have graced your uncle with such a gift, I will gladly accept your kindness!"
Carefully setting the papers on the table, Rodriguez turned around and walked out of the emperor's study. He then called for a guard to whom he ordered.
"Gather my minister and generals. Tell them that the Regent summons for a meeting!"
"It will be done, my lord!" The guard bowed and quickly went away to accomplish the task.
Rodriguez did not pause his footsteps and directly headed to the meeting room. There, he sat at the head of the table and began drafting plans for the siege of New Hope Port City based on the strategies outlined by Alexandros.
---
Meanwhile, within one of the many imperial gardens, the young emperor and Wuzhi were sharing a meal.
Alexandros resigned to stuffing himself with the delicacies laid in front of him while Wuzhi, having tasted the fruits of gods, calmly cut into the meals laid in front of him.
The culinary culture and recipes of the South Aislan Continent were vastly different to the dishes offered in the Mu Household. Each had its unique history, stories, and most importantly, tastes. Still, even if he were to objectively judge the taste of these two cuisines, Wuzhi had to admit that the food which he had tasted within the Mu Household was the greatest that he had yet tasted.
While the student and teacher entertained themselves with some petty conversation, they both noticed the sudden hubbub happening in the distant corridors and halls of the palace.
Feeling confused, Alexandros summoned a guard and asked, "Why are the ministers rushing in such a hurry? What is going on?"
"Reporting to Venerable Emperor, Lord Regent has summoned the various ministers and generals for a meeting."
"Oh," Alexandros nodded his head and did not ask further.
He did not think too much about it as such a scene had been common over the past month. While Alexandros was the emperor, it was still his paternal uncle who held most of the power within the imperial court.
This fact bothered the boy emperor just a little bit, but he forced himself to not feel this way. After all, he recognized that he had yet a lot left to learn and was still unfit to rule. His uncle, on the other hand, was a capable and just ruler.
Alexandros decided that he would allow his uncle to continue ruling in his steed until the day came when he felt fit enough to rule. Only then would the boy emperor reclaim his power and sit upon the highest seat of the continent!
Unbeknownst to him, such a day was not far off. For the figure sitting next to him had already begun laying his schemes.
"The fish has taken the bait," Wuzhi quietly muttered, an amused smile hanging on his lips. His argent eyes flashed with innumerable calculations as he began planning for the next step.