Steel and Mana

"Son, this is the most dangerous thing you could have decided on."

"I know, Mom." I answered calmly, dressed in the thick, black winter attire of our army. I was sitting on a horse at the gate of Avalon with 50 soldiers, including two extras, Oleg on my right and Merlin, who was sitting behind me, ready to ride out. Looking at the walls, the rest of the soldiers were standing prepared, keeping their salutes staunchly, standing below the flags of my city.

"He is going to be alright." The one who said it was none other than Sasha, looking at me with a determined gaze, "He has to come back home to his child, no?"

"Exactly." I answered in a heartbeat, nodding at her with a small smile hanging on my lips.

Surprisingly, it was she who agreed with my idea first. I do know this is something that probably many of my ministers think is a dumb or unnecessary risk that I am taking on, but I don't care. Yuri is my wife, and I won't leave anyone behind who I love. It is not reason or cold calculations deciding what I will do, but what I feel I should do. Whatever I thought of her at first is no longer relevant, not after I took her as my wife. It is as simple as that...

"You know," I chuckled, looking at my men and the gathered crowd who were here to watch us leave, "I think I prefer it this way. Some kings lead from the back, and I'm not too fond of that. If I want to lead others, then in my books, I shall do it from the front! It is in the word's meaning... "MEN!" I shouted, looking over my shoulders, "Follow me!"

While riding out, it made me miss that my mom couldn't help but sigh, shake her head, and stare at Sasha.

"He is like his father. Stubborn like a mule, whenever he led the men out to face the beasts, he did it from the front... You will have many sleepless nights ahead of you, my dear."

"I can deal with that." Sasha added, holding Luna's hand, who looked more worried than her, watching us leave in silence. "Because I trust him."

"I will pray for his safety, Lady Sasha!" Mikan chimed in, holding her hands together, "I can feel that all of them will return, with Lady Yuri in tow!"

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"This is going to be the first time I go so far!" Merlin laughed, holding my waist as we rode along the cleared, stone highway leading southward. We passed multiple young soldiers whose winter training included keeping our roads clean of snow, and the moment we got close, they dropped everything, saluting us until we disappeared from their sight.

"I am surprised you are not afraid."

"Why would I be? This is exciting, and you are right; you will need a mage with you, and Lady Sasha is in no condition to follow you!"

"Keep up the positivity, Merlin, because this is going to be a long trip. We only stop to let the horses rest! Prepare your butt because this is going to be a long journey..."

"Sovereign... you are making dirty jokes again."

"Oh? Are you finally catching on? Did you ultimately grow up?"

"I grew enough!" He complained, pouting, "I do count as an adult; it is not my fault that my body decided to remain small! Hmph! And it doesn't matter because I can play the scared kid if something happens and make it easy to infiltrate places!"

"Geez, I sometimes wonder who you were in your previous life!" I answered with a laugh, making him fall into a bit of silence, answering with a shrug after a minute or so.

"Sometimes I do have weird dreams, Sovereign... they are hazy, and I am in a different place. I don't remember much of it, though, and it goes away after I wake up. I just remember the feeling that it... it's different.

Huh. Now that is a clue... Knowing that reincarnation is a thing, I was now sure that Merlin was similar to me. The only difference was that he didn't remember it as well as I did. Maybe the fact he had magical powers is why he could recall old memories in his dreams... how interesting...

"Um..." He nudged me, and I could feel how anxious he became.

"It's fine. I wouldn't worry about it, Merlin. Sometimes, I have dreams of a life I may have had once, but it is no longer important. This is our life now, so we must focus on the today!"

"Yes, Sovereign!"

"And when will you start calling me Leon?"

"It is the proper protocol, My Lord!" He protested at once. He did have a tunnel vision for it, as even in school, he has been teaching children the proper etiquette in interacting with me if they ever find themselves in my presence.

"Haah... sure. Have it your way!"

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There was relative silence and peace on the eastern front since the Ishillian forces were defeated in a surprise attack. The Winter Offensive was a shocking win for the Kingdom of Scorc and its backers, while their other three allies were pushing in on the southern borders, biting off another chunk from their hated foe, the Ishillia Empire.

The local defensive forces were caught completely off-guard, and after their leaders' death, they began retreating and regrouping, unsure of what to do. What they didn't know was that this move would result in even more officers losing their heads, thanks to the rage of their Empress for giving up a large chunk of her country.

"Finally... the birthplace of our ancestors has returned to our Kingdom!"

"We still need to hold onto it, King Yano."

"Why are you always this negative, General Daito?" The old king of the Scorcs asked, wearing a confident smile while standing on the balcony of the provincial palace overlooking the intact city of Roria.

"I am simply cautious. Even with peace between us and the Atuvians, eliminating another threat, holding these territories will be impossible if our plans fail."

"Don't worry. They have been a thorn in everyone's side for so long that the other powers won't stay out of it! When they smell the blood in the water, they will join... The Ishillians may think they are powerful, but they are not the only ones who have been biding their time and developing. With our new machines, we will be able to bring down their warships!"

This time, General Daito did not argue with his king. Although they penetrated far beyond their initial plans, reclaiming much of their previously stolen territories, the actual preparations were being made around the city and its 30-kilometer region. Their army of 70,000 soldiers was hard at work, building fortifications and trenches, using the local rivers, hills, and thick forests to create natural chocking points. No matter if the enemy tried to use the forests to hide their troops, they would have to emerge from it and cross the flatland before the city approached it if they were hoping to retake the region. The battle would eventually be fought there, and the Kingdom of Scorc was planning to hold it for years to come.

"It is time for them wretched Ishillians to learn the word 'defeat!' How's the installations of the weapon?"

"All is going as planned. For now, our deployed mages use the pre-made formations to attack the Justice whenever it shows up. It couldn't break its shield but forced it into retreating. All is within our initial calculations."

"Good. It took my grandfather to start us on this road, and I will see it through! His weapon, when ready, will bring down their famous ships, and we will use it to decimate their armies! This city will return to be the glorious capital that it once was!"

Listening to his speech, Daito couldn't help but smile. He felt pride in himself to be the general of this glorious time, standing next to his aging king, making sure his name would be remembered for generations to come. Their people still remembered which side they belonged to the moment the attack happened; dozens of revolts broke out at once, killing the local nobles and rulers and welcoming their armies with open arms and gates.

Outside of the city walls, more than a thousand tall poles were standing proud as every Ishillian was pulled into a stake or beheaded, put on display for everyone to see. There was no mercy shown, and they were massacred to the last one. Everyone was quickly dealt with if they didn't show enough support to show that they were still proud Scorc citizens.

"Even if the Ishillians raped our women, giving birth to half-breeds, our spirit is unbreakable, My King. Our blood is stronger than an Ishillian's, and they are standing with us. Our army has at least doubled their numbers with their support, and no matter what comes... We will hold the line!"

"Good. See? Being optimistic is not a sin, my proud General!"

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In the darkness of the night, soft, barely audible shuffles were being heard as multiple shadows moved through the city, stopping at one of the more spacious brick homes of a previous, wealthy Ishillian merchant. There was no knock; instead, a scratching noise traveled through the night, like how a cat would want to try and ask to be led in... and it worked.

When the door opened slightly, no light came from within, letting the shadows slip in, barely making any noise. The inside was ransacked, furniture broken and thrown to the side, while the walls and floors were black from the dried blood when the family living here were massacred. The hooded figures didn't stop, not until they descended into the cellar, where finally, the light of lanterns shone onto the two thin female silhouettes and the one bulky warrior coming with them.

"Good to meet you."

"The honor is mine!" Answered the soldier, going to one knee because the one who greeted him was Yuri, the wife of his Sovereign.

"What is your name?"

"Pion, my Lady!"

"Ah, so you are my penpal?" She chuckled as multiple of her female warriors appeared from the shadows, without a noise, relaxing their grip on their crossbows.

When the attack happened, Yuri acted instantly, without hesitation. They massacred multiple local nobles and presented their heads to the incoming forces, which made them quickly accepted into the fold and looked upon as local rebel leaders, earning the trust of the Scorc army. Especially when they asked them to round up Ishillian nobles, and they did so without batting an eye.

Thus, Yuri and her gang were able to blend in without issues, but, in turn, this made it hard to just leave. She didn't expect anything to happen and thought they would have to retreat to the Kingdom of Scorc, restart another bandit life, and return to their old habits. It was too good to be true, finding a place to live differently... Avalon seemed to be a mirage that finally disappeared.

This belief stopped growing within Yuri when, one day, they made contact with Pion. One of their trained pigeons landed amongst them from nowhere, holding onto a secret message, telling them that a group of scouts were hiding in the nearby forest. It took Yuri two weeks to finally arrange a night where one of them could be smuggled in while the rest remained in the forest, waiting for Leon to arrive.

"Is he really coming?" Yuri asked, wanting to hear it from Pion's mouth, watching his eyes for lies. When he answered, she subconsciously bit her lips, turning away, hiding the fact that tears appeared in hers. "Why is that stupid idiot coming by himself?" She whispered, yet she was visibly beaming with newfound energy and happiness.

"It needs time for the forces of the Sovereign to arrive, My Lady." Pion continued, too focused on his task to notice anything, "But he demanded details of the city, the guards, forces stationed here, traps, the layout of the sewers if there is any... um, he wants to know whatever we can learn, no matter how insignificant!"

"Hmph, of course, he does!" Yuri answered, chuckling and turning back around, "You are bulky enough..."

"Lady?" Pion asked, tilting his head, not understanding why that was brought up. Yes, he was... big, around 200 centimeters tall and muscular, but most of the soldiers were the same. It was part of their harsh training and because they were exclusively being fed monster meat since their training had begun.

"He was the only one making noise... with that bulky body of his." One of Yuri's soldiers added with a clear annoyance in her voice, making Pion blush.

"How are you with pain?" Yuri continued, now making Pion even more unsure of what was happening. "They are building some kind of magical weapon. I could recognize it at first glance, thanks to my hubby's experiments! We are part of the group that is tasked with guarding it and using slaves to assist in building it. We will drag you in and force you to work on it."

"Meaning, I could sabotage it."

"Smart." Yuri grinned, happy with how quickly Pion managed to catch on. "But it won't be easy!"

"I am ready to serve, My Lady!"

"Good... For now, don't do anything rash. We will simply memorize the runes, the circles, the whole thing, draw it up part by part, and send the info back to him when my hubby arrives! Let our Master decide how to fuck with them, ahahaha!"