CHAPTER 2203  PREEMPTIVE COMMENCEMENT

The President of Gorteau passed a declaration of war against the Kandrian Empire to Congress.

This event alone sent ripples across East Panama.

It was the beginning of a new era of war.

Unless, of course, Congress voted against his declaration, but that was deeply unlikely.

Those in the know knew that the Kandrian Empire could not be allowed to get away with monopolizing such kinds of treasures with no consequences from its peers.

Yet, while the Republic of Gorteau underwent procedures to formally declare war, the Sekigahara Confederate was different.

They didn't care for international courtesy.

"Why declare war when we can just wage war, am I right?" The Patriarch of the Oni Clan grinned wildly. "We don't warn someone ahead of time when we jump them. Why do we declare war ahead of time?"

Around a round table in a highly secure fortress, the fourteen leaders of the Sekigahara Confederate had gathered. They had called for an emergency meeting shortly after the Nindo Clan had informed them of the shocking discoveries about the Kandrian Empire. An Apprentice who had broken through to the Apprentice Realm merely three months ago had already broken through to the Squire Realm.

This was a level of genius that put to shame every other genius in history. It was on par with the genius of the Dawnbringer in the later stages of his career.

However, the most shocking part was the fact that she wasn't the only one. A number of Martial Apprentices broke through to the Squire Realm months after they discovered their Martial Path.

"This is not natural."

One time was a lucky genius, every nation had one of those.

Two times? Perhaps they were especially blessed.

Three times, five times, ten times?

That was not possible.

"Furthermore, according to our reports," the Nindo Patriarch continued, "none of these Squires exhibited any special traits when they were students. Yet suddenly, these entirely ordinary children start to have accelerated growth rates, unlike anything the world has ever seen before."

They understood what he was saying.

It wasn't that the Kandrian Empire found a way to manufacture talent, just a way to accelerate progress in some inscrutable manner.

"I strongly recommend we continue to work on intelligence gathering to—"

He stiffened as the air at the table grew heavier.

The remaining leaders glared at him with piercing eyes.

"Patriarch Kokure."

The Patriarch of the Nindo Clan glanced at the woman who addressed him.

Her hair was balled up in a bun. She donned a simple kimono devoid of any ostentatious embroidery.

Barring the crest of the Shinken Clan.

One of the three clans of the Sekigahara Confederate that had more than one Martial Sage.

"We've given you months to do your little intelligence gathering," she began with a soft voice. "Yet, you have failed to deliver, have you not?"

"I do not deny that, but—!"

He froze as a wave of bloodlust washed over him.

"Enough."

Her voice grew sharp.

"We've had enough."

"The Matriarch of the Shinken has a point," another man chimed in, taking a deep puff from a smoking pipe before exhaling with a relaxed expression. "If you had succeeded in gaining any information from the Kandrian Empire, we would have been more inclined to rely on you. However…"

He shifted his lazy yet sharp gaze to the Patriarch of the Nindo Clan. "From what I can tell, you were outplayed by the Emperor of Harmony in the intelligence war, were you not?"

The expression of the Nindo Patriarch grew grim.

Yet, he suppressed the urge to clap back, glancing at the man who admonished him.

The patriarch of the Kaze Clan, another of the three strongest clans of the Sekigahara Confederate.

"I find myself to be in firm agreement with my peers, Nindo Patriarch," another man began with a formal tone. "Time is up. Furthermore, I need to remind you that even if I think war is not optimal, the ultimate decision of war lies in the hands of Their Sagehoods. We only possess the highest authority when it comes to non-Martial affairs. We do not decide the place of the Sekigahara Confederate in the course of the history of war. They do. And…"

A smile appeared on his face. "…They already have."

The Nindo Patriarch's eyes widened. "Wait, you mean…"

The remaining leaders of the leader council of the Sekigahara Confederate smiled at him knowingly.

The Matriarch of the Shinken Clan smiled.

"The Martial Sages have already rallied a force comprising of themselves, Masters, and Seniors and have already begun moving towards the Kandrian Empire even as we speak." The sheer weight of her words struck him like a rock.

His eyes widened with shock. "War…" This is from .

"War has already begun." She softly giggled. "Have you grown so desperately preoccupied with directing all your intelligence and investigative power towards the Kandrian Empire that you have fallen behind when it comes to your own nation?"

He gritted his teeth before slumping with resignation.

"Fine…" He closed his eyes. "War it is."

The Martial Clans of the Sekigahara Confederate were rather bizarrely organized in the division of power between the Martial and non-Martial sectors. While the matriarchs and patriarchs reserved full power over the legislative, executive, and judicial power of the nation, it was the Martial Artists who reserved the sole right to wage war as and when they pleased with absolutely no oversight or checks from the non-Martial powers of the nation.

In other words, the Sekigahara Confederate was a nation where the military/Martial powers were entirely autonomous.

An arrangement that would normally be impossible was possible due to the warped martial culture of the Sekigahara Confederate. Martial Artists of the Sekigahara Confederate only cared about war.

Nothing else.

They didn't care about wealth, power, glory, or anything else that often served as Martial Drives for many. They only cared about fighting in war. Thus, this led to an arrangement where they happily gave up power and responsibility over other pesky political matters to educated humans in their clan while refusing to budge an inch on war.

The gravity of the current situation could not be understated.

"They were particularly excited this time, you see…" The Shinken Matriarch smiled. "I don't think the Kandrian Empire will appreciate the surprise they've prepared. Thus, I believe we should not formally declare war as a state."

She giggled softly.

"I wonder how the Kandrian Empire will react when they get ambushed by a significant portion of the Sekigahara Confederate."

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