Chapter 2 Prince of the Storm

THE MONTH OF NOEL DAY 30 YEAR 675 OF THE SECOND HOLY CALENDAR

The first division of the black Army under Valerius's command was entering a new headquarters, the Fortress of Francis. The Fortress had been constructed by the first king of black, Francis the Liberator to his people, but Francis the Terrible to his enemies. The Fortress was constructed to house no less than 30,000 soldiers. Built on top of a hill with a river to its east as a natural barrier and a marsh to its west, the Fortress was difficult to assail and challenging to besiege. It was also the perfect place to launch invasions of the Kingdom of Black’s Eastern neighbor, the Kingdom of Redtowers; however, in recent times, the Fortress had been used primarily for defensive and not offensive purposes. In addition, the Marsh had been partly drained to be used for farmland. That being said, it was still a formidable Fortress.

The clinking sound of metal and messengers frantically running around, Delivering orders to low-ranking officers, filled Valerius's field of view. The Fortress could easily house the first division, numbering 16,000 soldiers, and the Redtowers border regiment, numbering 7,000 total soldiers. However, they weren't permanently stationed at the Fortress and were generally considered irregular units. Upon passing through the gates, accompanied by his guards, he saw men hastily entering their barracks or warming themselves with the bonfires strategically placed around them. They just completed a four-day March through mountains and snow in the dead of winter.

This sight reminded Valerius of the raging torrent of dark emotions whirling through him for a month without an outlet. If it weren't for news of the birth of his Son, then he likely would have exploded by now.

But before he could even try to calm down, a man ran up to him. After giving him a salute, he asked, “Major General Valerius?”

He returned the salute. “What business do you have with me, major.” Trying to keep the slight annoyance out of his tone.

“Major General Paul requested a war council to be held with you and your officers at your earliest convenience. But he said if you were tired and wanted to rest, he could delay it until another time.” Valerius almost felt like giving out an annoyed grunt at that, although they held the same military rank. Paul was 30 years his senior and was something of a father figure to Valerius. Understanding Paul's personality, he knew that was a genuine offer, but it was a genuine offer he couldn't accept.

“Tell him I'll be there as soon as I assemble my high officers. Also, I need someone to show us the way.” Valerius waved to his adjutant, and he immediately understood. He rode off to get the other generals of the first division.

Once Valerius had dismounted and joined with his officers, they made their way to the central keep of Fort Frances. A keep within a keep was located on the north side of the Fortress at an even higher elevation than the rest of the fortifications. With the marsh and the river in the central keep, the Fortress was essentially unassailable, which was likely the goal in building the central keep where it was constructed. It was also where the officer stayed and where the War Room had been constructed.

Upon entering the War Room, Valerius was greeted by the sight of a familiar older man hastily standing up. Major General Paul Asicot, the 55-year-old man's hair had already turned utterly white like many people from the kingdom of black. He was clean-shaven, revealing his wrinkled and scarred face. He stood slightly over six feet tall and was still very muscular and lean. He had a very successful career as a general coming from a lesser-known Noble family. His current position was entirely due to his ability and not thanks to connections or family status, and he was the General of the Red Towers border regiment.

“Greetings, General Valerius.” The old man said warmly. Behind him was his staff officer of 30 years, Colonel Frederick Leavenworth, who remained as expressionless as always—in Stark contrast to Paul, who was currently smiling with his whole face at their reunion.

“It's nice to see you again, General Paul.” Valerius approached the older man for a handshake.

"Congratulations on your recent Victory and promotion, although I'm almost a year late." Paul laughed, rubbing his balding head.

Valerius's officers followed behind him, and after greeting each other, they sat down. If one asked someone who was the primary decision maker in the first division, only six names would pop up in their head. First was Major General Valerius Achtaurus Valentinian, a black General in the first division. The second would be his right-hand man and cousin, Brigadier General Charles Cornelia of the first brigade of the first division. Charles had accomplished much while fighting under Valerius, having descended from a prestigious military house. Connections to the Royal Family resulted in a longstanding relationship with Valerius, as the two were more like brothers than cousins. Having many accomplishments of his own, it was no wonder he'd reached such a height at the tender age of 26 and was generally considered a handsome man with red eyes and golden hair cut short in the general style of the kingdom.

The Third was Brigadier General Drake Arc. He was only considered pseudo-nobility, and as a result, he was disliked by many of the more traditional families in the capital, made worse by his confrontational personality. However, after losing a duel to Valerius, he agreed to work for him and was appointed command of the second Brigade of the first division. He was in his mid-thirties, with black hair and a scarred face.

The Fourth was Rycar Lee, the only one not appointed by Valerius to the Third Brigade of the first division. He was quickly the most enormous and intimidating of all those assembled here, even more than General Paul. With a bald, scarred head, Thick arm muscles, and a vast body, the average Soldier would turn and run away when they saw him. However, utterly contrary to his appearance, Rycar was a General who preferred to fight in the back. Rather than being known for his offensive, he was known for his defensive strategy and ability to smooth over conflicts within his own Brigade and the whole Army.

Fifth was Samuel Magyar, Brigadier General of the Calvary Regiment. He was also the oldest man in the room, even older than Paul. Despite his age, he was known for his ferocity and tendency to be on the front line. But he was also cunning, cautious, and flexible, which Valerius thought was needed in a good Cavalry captain. Valerius had relied heavily on him in the past. Due to his old age, his hair had gone entirely White, but he'd grown it out and even had a full facial beard.

Finally, the Sixth was the youngest man in the room. James Tallwood, only being a colonel, was the chief of staff of the first division. Since most of the people in the first division were only interested in fighting, he was relied upon for most of the day-to-day operations of the army. Something which resulted in him having severe eye bags and looking several years older than he was. These men made up the significant officers and advisors to Valerius. They were all men he could proudly call his comrades and people he relied upon heavily in his current position.

“Now that we are all assembled, how about we start the meeting?” said Frederick. Now, don't take this as ingratitude. But why exactly are you and the first division here? We received word from the capital, but they weren't clear as to why there was a sudden major shift in our military Arrangements.”

Good Old Frederick gets, ting right to the point; Valerius smiled. “I have my suspicions, but how about you tell me about your current position, and I'll tell you mine.”

Paul and Frederick glanced at each other before Paul started, “Actually, things here are a bit strange.” Paul stood up, pointing at a map hanging up on the wall. “Normally, Red Towers would be raiding our territory, specifically the fertile Fields built West of Fort Frances. As I'm sure most of you know, that is some of our most fertile territories, and one of our primary objectives here is to stop those Villages from being burnt down. However, as early as the fall of last year, Red Towers almost ceased its raiding entirely.” Paul stopped for a moment to let that sink in before continuing. “Previously this has happened before and is always a prelude to a larger invasion.”

“Then you should be grateful for the reinforcements, no,” Drake asked bluntly. Frederick directly glared at him while Paul coughed uncomfortably.

“As I'm sure you're aware, the king of Redtowers is currently married to the sister of Antlaturs King, and they are allies. Although, as far as we know, the two have never acted in unison, we cannot let down our guard from a potential joint invasion. Especially given the recent defeats that the golden stallion suffered.”

All eyes turned to Valerius, who nodded in agreement with that assumption: “The golden stallion is proud, but he isn't stupid enough to try a renewed invasion without utilizing all his options.”

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

Charles scratched his chin. “Then why hasn't he pursued this option before.”

Valerius knew Charles wasn't trying to contradict him but was genuinely curious. However, it was Paul who answered: “Redtowers and Antlatur have had past conflicts even after the king of Redtowers married the golden stallion sister. Redtowers continued raiding their territory. Either way, leaving our Southern defense vulnerable was not a smart decision. Which is why I would like clarification if you don't mind.”

Valerius smiled. “Clarification, General, not an explanation?” Paul folded his arms. “Clarification.”

After Sighing, Valerius started, “I'm sure you know the 3rd division has recently been formed. My brother, the first prince, has been put in charge of the division at the insistence of the council and with the opposition of most of the generals remaining in the capital, including the minister of military affairs. My transfer here coincided with the 3rd division taking over the Southern border defenses.”

Paul snorted. “A green General is leading a green division to fight our most formidable foe while the most formidable General and most experienced soldiers remain here. Is the council full of idiots?”

Valerius smiled bitterly at that. “Idiots, no, they're scared I might overtake my brother in popularity. They're scared that I might return to the capital, this time as Crown Prince. To that end, the situation is partially my fault, given the fact that I failed to die or humiliate myself as intended. As a result, they intend to prop up my brother as best they can. As for Antlatur, they likely believe that they're pushovers after losing in the last war to me.”

Paul Grimaced. “You seem rather blasé about it.” He said accusingly

Valerius dropped his fake smile and let his anger slip out. “When I first heard the news, I was tempted to march on the capital,” he said flatly. “If it weren't for my mother still sitting on the throne, I probably would have.” There was a moment of silence in the room as they all felt Valerius's anger.

“Well, then there's nothing we can do about it, so how about we move on to what we should do or, rather, what we can do,” Rycar commented, and Valerius calmed down.

“Yes, we should do that. After all, I lift my sword for the kingdom of black regardless of who sits on the throne.” Valerius truly felt relieved at that comment, as it meant that Paul would not sabotage his efforts or join his opposition. Although it's a bit sad that he wouldn't support Valerius, without his support for the opposition, it would be almost impossible for them to rally the actual military to his brother's cause.

Frederick coughed deliberately. “Now, why Don't we get down to business and come up with a countermeasure if Antlatur and Redtowers were actually to invade simultaneously.”

Valerius, who had already thought about this, answered immediately: “Even if it's an Incompetent Commander with inexperienced soldiers, the black Valley is a highly fortified and defensible region. All they'll need to do is hold out for reinforcements. With the first division stationed here, the second can immediately go to the aid of the Third without worrying about attacks from the rear. All the third will need to do is hold on until reinforcements arrive, which wouldn't be too hard because they have multiple highly defensible fortresses at their disposal.”

Paul granted before responding, “Have you forgotten my lessons already? The most important aspect of war is the human one. With inexperienced soldiers and commanders, there's no telling what will happen. They might just surrender, run away, or forget to stock the fortresses with food. Many things can happen with people who don't know the basics.”

“I agree with you, but there is not much we can do except defeat Redtowers quickly so that our forces can reinforce them as quickly as possible. To that end, I believe the best course of action we can take right now is preparing a plan and our forces to defeat Redtowers if and when they invade.” Valerius smiled confidently. “I know a few things about defeating enemy armies quickly and decisively. But General Paul and Colonel Frederick, the two of you, are far more experienced, particularly when fighting Red Towers, as I've never fought them before. How about you tell me about their troop strengths and weaknesses and the number of soldiers you expect they will bring to the battlefield.”

Paul smiled nostalgically before his face contorted into that of a demon's mask. “It seems the little princeling has gotten full of himself after just a few victories. Have you forgotten the fact that you just made a four-day-long march here? You're exhausted. Do you think you're in a fit state to strategize and plan?” Paul laughed a bit after saying that, and Valerius could only sit down sheepishly.

“Plans never survive contact with the Enemy, as the Demon King said,” Paul said while taking out a cigar. “There's no point in planning for an invasion we don't even know will happen. Besides, we can't control Redtowers, Antlatur, nor the first and second divisions.” After lighting his cigar, Paul took a satisfied puff and blew out the smoke.

Thanks to the isolation of the kingdom of blacks and the fact they couldn't grow tobacco locally, they had to smuggle it in. They were making it a premium product that cost much more than the average citizen could pay. Even a noble would have to think twice before casually smoking. That being said, plenty of people were still willing to pay the premium to get a hand on their smoke. Valerius felt angry when he remembered the time he broke into an Antlaturer Camp. When he arrived at the command center, he found many of their officers casually smoking premium cigars, and their ashtrays were full. Valerius, who likes to smoke quite a bit but could rarely get his hands on premium cigars in the first place, felt extremely angry. He had enjoyed their cigarettes for a while, but they'd still quickly run out.

Sighing, he reached for his pocket only to find it empty and remembered that he had smoked all the cigarettes on the journey here. But before he could even sigh, Charles was already offering him his pack of cigarettes, thankfully taking one from the box and ignoring Charles's eye roll. He stuck the cigarette in his mouth and brought the gold-plated lighter he stole from the Antlaturer camp. He opened it before running a small amount of magic through the specially designed channels for MagiMagicd, and a small flame spurted out of the end. LightMagiche took a satisfied puff-puff end of a cigarette before nodding to Charles, who also stuck one in his mouth and helped him light his cigarette.

“We've prepared rooms for all of you and meals, as well as for your soldiers, so you won't need to worry about that.” Paul said, “But before you go, there is one thing: a messenger arrived for you, General Valerius.”

“Why didn't you start with that?” Valerius asked with dissatisfaction if there was a messenger from the capital or really from anywhere. It should have taken priority. However, his dissatisfaction was blown away when Paul commented.

“It was about a personal matter. As a side note, congratulations on the birth of your son.”

“Where's the messenger now,” Valerius asked urgently

Paul smirked at him “It's not bad news I assure you. As for the messenger, I'll have Frederick bring you to him immediately.” Frederick impassively nodded behind Paul.

Valerius hastily stood and moved towards the door, only for Charles to stand up. “Charles, you don't need to follow me.”

“It's fine, after all; it's about my second cousin,” Charles said with a faint smile. There were no more words needed to be said, and the two men headed off to find the messenger.

Frederick led them directly to one of the rooms for officers within the keep before Valerius Could even ask why a messenger was being given such a nice room. Frederick opened the door and revealed a man sitting at a table, calmly drinking from a teacup. Valerius knew, just from the smell, that tea would never be kept in a black Fortress. For the same reason, cigarettes were so rare that they were not tea but probably hot water. But the man was familiar with blonde hair, red eyes, and a handsome smile.

Charles responded, “Jorah, what are you doing here.”

“Oh, Lord Brother, you're stiff as ever.” Jorah Cornelia said with a Casual smile and wave.

“Didn't I explicitly tell you not to come to the battlefield?” Charles asked while glaring at Jorah, who proceeded to shrug. “I'm not at the battlefield; besides, I'm just here to deliver a message to our cousin. Also, I'm still a knight even if I'm a young one.” Jorah dropped his friendly demeanor.

Charles said, exasperated, “And like I keep telling you, knights are made, not born.”

Jorah turned his attention away from his brother and focused on Valerius. “I don't know why you bothered to keep this stiff by your side, cousin. Does it not get tiring?”

Valerius Smiled. “Your brother has greatly assisted me, Jorah, and I wouldn't trade his loyalty or service for the world.”

Jorah seemed disappointed by that but still carried on glibly. “Well, I came here today as a messenger, as I told my Lord Brother earlier. I was sent by your hm.” Jorah uncharacteristically stopped and scratched his cheek. “I was sent here by Lady Luce.”

Valerius grimaced at the Young Knight stammering, but it made sense. “I doubt that woman even looked at our son.” Valerius clenched his fist so hard he almost drew blood and took the seat across from Jorah.

“So what did that woman, my wife, name our son? I wasn't informed by the last messenger.” In her home country, the United States Union, and in the Kingdom of Black, it was traditional for the woman to name the child, with the man having almost no say in the matter.

Jorah coughed. “She named him Dominic Theodore Valentinian Black.”

"As before, I still can't mock her name since it was a good name for a prince a little bit too religious, Theodore meaning a gift from God, but which God?" Valerius thought, "Hers or mine."

“Ah, lady Luce also told me to tell you that the child is strange.”

“Strange how,” Valerius asked almost without thinking.

“The child refused to drink breast milk and did not cry. The priests of Sia examined him; however, they said nothing was wrong with his Health. He just chose not to cry.”

“That is strange. Does some spirit possess him,” Charles interjected. Jorah shook his head.

“No, the priest also examined the child, who is not possessed.”

“Well, that's okay then, so long as he's healthy.” Valerius said without much concern, “But I wonder if my son will grow up to be a prude.” Valerius laughed, Jorah smiled, and Charles looked concerned.