The Emperor and the Knightess

In the northern region of the continent, there were four kingdoms; Acreia, Aehas, Kukda, and Bebero.

Acreia was the biggest but most of its lands were too cold to be inhabitable.

Aehas and Kukda had corrupt royal and noble families with dwindling wealth due to such a long-term war.

Bebero, feeling safe from the other northern kingdoms due to the Koemong River, had a weak military presence.

Within only two years, Lucius the First was able to unite all three northern kingdoms, which has never been done before.

But… The people began to call him the “Loser of the North.”

The story of his beauty and triumph was romantic enough for girls to gossip excitedly, but many didn’t believe it. They, as a matter of fact, badmouthed him and called him an evil man who broke the peace of this continent.

They called him a tyrant.

Until Lucius the First, there has been an unspoken rule that battles should take place only during the winters. He was the one who broke this tradition and now, everyone needed to live in fear all year round. People blamed him for it, calling him a barbarian from Acreia, which was known for being poor and lacking in culture due to its severely cold weather.

The kingdoms in the middle of the continent laughed at him. Their main source of income was farming, while in Acreia, most men were hunters. These kingdoms were well prepared for the upcoming war. Their military and economic statuses were stable. They did not fear Lucius the First.

But Lucius the First and his knights laughed at them as well. They were confident that this war was going to end in their favor.

Poliana clenched her fists in determination. Those who insulted her emperor needed to be punished.

Acreia united the entire northern region of the continent. The only thing left for them to conquer was its middle and southern areas. To unite the entire continent… That was the emperor’s dream.

The four main kingdoms in the mid-continent were Kopi, Mongsheim, Oz, and Bikpa. The rest of the smaller countries were mostly colonies that previously belonged to Kopi. In theory, the main four kingdoms were in good standing with each other but in truth, Bikpa was treated poorly by the others. Bikpa was located a little north of the Msmel Forest, which was in the middle of the continent.

Because no one dared to cross the Msmel Forest, Bikpa could have been a useful kingdom that connected the northern nations to the rest of the continent. However, because those kingdoms in the mid-continent thought little of the northerners, there were barely any communications or interactions between them.

Kopi, Mongsheim, and Oz did not think highly of Bikpa because it was much smaller. They even considered Bikpa to be more of a northern kingdom. So when Bikpa asked for military assistance from the other three kingdoms when Lucius the First attacked it, it was ignored. Bikpa had a relatively decent army, but compared to the “northerners,” they were no match against them. When it was about to be conquered by Lucius the First, Bikpa did the last thing they could do. They closed the castle gate and hid behind their walls.

Lucius the First expected this move, but how Bikpa carried it out was shameful.

“What cowards…”

As a ruler himself, Lucius the First felt embarrassed for the Bikpa’s king, Gali the Third. Gali the Third, along with the high-ranking nobles, abandoned their lands and people when they hid in the castle with their soldiers. During this process, they also made sure to take as much of the supplies as possible, leaving their own people starving to death and unable to protect themselves.

It was such a selfish cowardly move.

It became so bad that the mayor of one of the Bikpa cities came to Lucius the First with tears in his eyes, begging for help. Many of the lords, who were honorable, did not abandon their people. They were furious over how their own king treated his people, and in the end, these men surrendered to Acreian military. In fact, they wished to help Lucius the First in defeating Gali the Third.

“Please save us. Our children are starving to death. We need help.”

It was an odd situation where those being attacked were begging for food from their attacker. The people of Bikpa have heard of how Acreian soldiers did not plunder the conquered lands, unlike the other armies. They were desperate and hopeful at the same time as they visited the Acreian military base.

The Acreian knights, including Poliana, didn’t know what to do.

“How dare you… why are you coming to us?!”

“Please kind sirs! Let us have some food! We are dying, please!”

“Our children are starving to death. We can’t even hunt because we’re too weak because of starvation.”

“Dammit!”

Poliana watched the people beg for food, some even tried to steal some of their supplies. The people of Bikpa were so desperate that they were no longer afraid of them. Sir Baufallo was sympathetic, but the military supplies were for his own men. They did not have enough to share with others.

Sir Baufallo announced, “Do not give them anything! Not even a grain of rice!” He felt sorry for the people, but his job was to maintain the supplies for the Acreian soldiers. Following his order, the supply division soldiers guarded the goods like hawks.

Thankfully, Gali the Third didn’t get to empty the supplies of every city. Those cities that were missed by Gali the Third voluntarily surrendered to Lucius the First and shared their supplies with the rest. Bikpa’s king was destroying his own kingdom. If his people starved, they were not going to follow him, and without the people, there would be no government or a king.

Lucius the First was disgusted.

“This is so terrible.”

He thought that all he would have to worry about is winning this war, but now, he was also concerned about their wellbeing. He was a conscientious emperor and he was furious at Gali the Third.

“He is not fit to be a ruler!”

Only

Everyone agreed. Lucius the First gritted his teeth angrily. At first, he thought Bikpa was being bullied by nearby kingdoms for no good reason but now, he knew why. Gali the Third was an unsuitable and incompetent king and he deserved to be punished.

A king could be greedy and selfish but even then, he had the responsibility to make sure his people weren’t starving. To raid his own villages for food and weapons and hide in his castle… That was beyond acceptable.

The people of Bikpa were fed up with their own king. Many of the cities voluntarily sent their surrendering documents to Lucius the First. Without much of a fight, Acreia was able to gain many of their cities but even with these easy victories, Lucius the First was still very displeased.

Slowly but surely, the Acreian army got closer to the capital, Yapa. From afar, Lucius the First studied the Yapa castle and suddenly, he clapped in realization. He has been wondering how Gali the Third has been storing all the supplies he stole from his own people. Did they have a separate storage?

And finally, Lucius the First figured it out. He has been expecting a small castle since Bikpa was not a big kingdom, but Yapa castle was huge. The castle had a total of three layers of walls and was backed onto a rocky mountain. The walls were made of the rocks from this mountain and they were very high to the point that every one of them thought that they won’t be able to climb it with just a rope. The Acreian men were impressed with the magnificence of the place.

But the sad truth was how it was built. To create such a huge building, it must’ve cost an incredible amount of money, time, and energy. It had to be easily the biggest castle in the entire continent, and it was certainly bigger than anything Lucius the First had ever witnessed.

A very long time ago in history, Bikpa was a formidable kingdom. Oz and Mongsheim both used to belong to it, but as the corruption within the government and the royal family increased, various rebellions from different regions caused the kingdom to be divided.

The splendid Yapa castle was the only thing that remained of Bikpa’s glorious past.