The audience was still chanting, when Alexia came onto the stage. Alexia was well known as the ‘Princess of Flames’ from her years on the battlefield but that name did no justice in describing how elegant she was. Her presence was charming, authoritative and commanding. If Charles could hold the attention of the crowd with his words, she could do it just by her presence.

‘A born leader both on and off a battlefield', Charles mused. Her only flaw, she was too forgiving and naive to politics, but Charles could help her there, while she helped him hide behind her name. It was a win-win situation for both.

With an emotionless expression the sixth princess swept her eyes over the shouting crowd. Her eyes met with Charle’s for a second and moved on, but that was all Charles needed. He frowned; something was wrong. Alexia suddenly raised her fist indicating the crowd to be silent.

“Brave soldiers of Dhamlan, follow me and I will lead you to glory.”, that was all she said, that was all that she needed.

Soon the hall was engulfed, with another wave of chanting, this one way more louder.

After a minute the princess raised her fist again, “Now it is time to name the lords. They will be the pillars of our territory. Their duties and responsibilities will be of utmost importance and they will answer directly to me.” Her eyes met with Charle's once again and moved on quickly. If earlier it was a suspicion, this was the confirmation that Charles needed. His frown deepened and his mind began to race, trying to think of all possibilities.

All the territories in Dhamlan followed a simplistic hierarchy. There were four main armies in any territory, The Dragon army. The Phoenix army, The Unicorn army and The Centaur army. The commanders of these armies would be named the Dragon Lord, the Unicorn lord and so on. They would also be given parts of the territory to rule. They were responsible for the protection and daily upkeep of these settlements.

Each army would consist of Brigades and the one commanding it would be given the title of Brigade Lord. The number of Brigades would increase as the army grew in size. The lord of the territory would name the Brigade Lords, but the army commanders were responsible for their hierarchy and internal command system.

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Apart from these titles, there were also the ‘Lord of Information’ the ‘Lord of Resources’, and the most coveted position in any territory ‘The Lord Commander in Chief’. The Lord Commander in Chief could order anyone and everyone in the four armies, including their commanders. They were the de facto leader of all the four armies and took orders only from the territory lord. The only people who weren't under their command were the Lord of Information and Lord of Resources, who answered directly to the territory lord.

“Axel Dormat,” Alexia called. A noble from the second row walked out and came on the stage. He knelt in front of Alexia.

“Axel Dormat, the second son of Dormat, I hereby declare you as a Brigade Lord. In my territory and my territory alone, you will command a Brigade and serve me, until I deem you unworthy or you die on the battlefield. Do you accept?”

“I do, your Highness.”

“Then rise, rise as Brigade Lord Axel Dormat.”

The newly assigned Brigade Lord rose, bowed and walked off the stage.

“Lucia Peagon....”

Charles was intensely staring at the princess, giving out positions in her future army. For others it would have been a casual look, but not for him; her eyes had unknowingly communicated volumes. Unfortunately, his ability had also kicked in, there was a growing itch at the back of his head, right where his soul sea was. It was warning him.

Only after the sixteenth Brigade Lord had been given his position, did Charles pull himself back to reality. Just as the itch started increasing, his frown eased; there was nothing he could do in this situation, he was a spectator here, better to take everything with a calm mind.

“Dailene Sorthan”

An awakener standing in the same line as Charles went onto the stage.

“Dailene Sorthan, the only daughter of Sorthan, I hereby declare you as Centaur Lord. In my territory and my territory only, you will command the Centaur Army and answer to me, until I deem you unworthy or you die on the battlefield. Do you accept?”

“I accept, my lady!”. The kneeling Sorthan said, a bit too excited.

“Then rise as Centaur Lord, Dailene Sorthan.”

‘Sorthan’, that was a powerful name in the Empire. It was a strong dukedom having about 10 mid-size Settlements in Dhamlan. But it wasn't so strong that it would warrant an army commander position. More importantly, according to what Charles had discussed with Alexia, Sorthan was to be made Brigade Lord. Something had happened, that had made Alexia change the positions. Charles stared at Alexia again, suddenly he remembered the look she had passed him earlier; her eyes…