King Alvis was watering the plants in the royal garden. This was one of his ways to retain his sanity amidst the incessant politics. One of his simple joys in life.
"Your Majesty," said the Grand Chamberlain. "All of the reinforcements have gathered."
"Finally." King Alvis placed the watering can on the table. "Gather the leaders of each army here. It is time for us to choose the commanders."
"Here, in the garden?" the Grand Chamberlain asked, to be sure.
King Alvis smiled. "I believe the royal garden is a lot more beautiful than the throne room. Don't you think so, Viscount Lakian?"
The Grand Chamberlain could only concede and nod his head. He looked around and saw the thousands of flowers. This place was large, so there should be enough space for the crowd.
"As you wish, Your Majesty." He bowed his head and left.
Left all alone, with only two of his personal guards nearby, King Alvis fell into deep thought. He had read all the documents regarding the nobles who answered the summons. Among all of them, five stood out the most. Surprisingly, three of them came from the House Boris.
Arzen, first son of Count Boris. He graduated at the military academy with top grades. During the exit exam of the military academy, he even managed to perfectly clear the hidden path and escape unscathed.
After graduation, he immediately assumed the position of commander of the Boris Army, successfully wiping out all of the bandits in their territory.
Mokuva, second son of Count Boris. The author of the book: Fifty-Seven Assault Tactics. The things written in that book were surprisingly effective in real battle—the Kingdom even incorporated it into their war strategies. Although Mokuva never joined the military due to his frail body, he was without doubt a genius who could see the battlefield as a whole.
Aris, third son of Count Boris. He was no genius in military tactics nor was he a graduate of the military academy. But he was a High Priest candidate. This meant that if King Alvis were to choose him as one of the three commanders, they would be able to enlist the help of the temple in this war. The temple always assumed neutrality, but if a High Priest candidate were to become a commander, it would become a different story.
Getting several priests capable of healing magic from the temple would no longer be a dream.
And the other two who did not belong to the House Boris:
Baron Zacharia. A former instructor of the Leonard Fighting School.
The school that teaches the martial arts of the savages. He lost an arm during the Bloody Thorn Plains Incident fifteen years ago and retired, but he was nonetheless a war veteran.
And lastly, Lark Marcus. The disowned son of Duke Drakus. The same noble who invented the method of destroying the Black Famine. The noble who defeated the Third Legion several months ago. The person who gave them the blueprint for the mana bombs.
"I should choose wisely," the King sighed. "The fate of this Kingdom rests in their hands."
Thankfully, the curse which ran down the blood of the royal family was not acting up this time. The King would be able to meet the leaders of the army without worrying about suddenly losing consciousness in the middle of his speech.
He remembered his meeting with the dwarves several days ago. The dwarves he met using the artifact promised to relay his message to the Dwarven Kingdom. That Kingdom had closed its borders to outsiders for more than a century now. The magic of the dragon guarding their borders made the barrier impregnable. Only members of the Dwarven race could enter, thus the King had no choice but to approach a member of their race to relay even a simple message.
The message was simple. The King promised to send all the finest wines stored in the cellar of the castle—wines more than one hundred years old—in exchange of weapons. He even promised to pay tens of thousands in gold coins if the Dwarven Kingdom could assist them in this war.
The Dwarven Kingdom was one of the richest countries in the land.
Hopefully, their meager offer would be enough to entice those drunkards.
Even outdated weaponries would be fine, since it had been proven that all of the dwarves' weapons were highly effective in war.
"Your Majesty," said one of the guards, his voice almost a whisper.
"They've arrived."
King Alvis bobbed his head. He must have been lost in thought for quite some time. Fortunately, he had come to a conclusion. All that was left was to meet them in person.
Viscount Lakian entered the royal garden, along with several dozen others. King Alvis recognized the majority of them. They were the nobles summoned by the crown.
"We all greet His Majesty!"
"We all greet His Majesty!"
Everyone clasped their hands and bowed their heads upon seeing the King.
"First of all, I must thank everyone for coming here." King Alvis gently smiled, forming numerous wrinkles on his face. "I'm sure everyone is aware of the precarious situation our Kingdom is in."
Most of the nobles held grim faces upon hearing this. They all knew that it would only be a matter of time before their territories were targeted by the Empire.
"This is not out yet in the public, but four days ago…" the smile slowly left the King's face, "the city of Yan fell into the Empire's hands."
The nobles were flustered upon hearing this. The City of Yan was near the capital.
Arzen momentarily looked at Lark. The City of Yan belonged to the House Marcus. It was one of the large cities governed by the Marcuses. But Lark was unaware of this as he continued to calmly listen to the King.
"I'm aware that all of you came from different factions, cities, territories. But I ask you to set aside those differences for now and work together to overcome this hurdle before us." The King looked everyone in the eye. "The first goal of this Coalition Army is this—free the City of Yan from the hands of the Empire."
It was a logical proposal, considering the fact that it was the nearest city currently occupied by the Empire.
"And to do that, we'll need commanders. Commanders capable of leading these soldiers."
The atmosphere began to heat up. Everyone had heard that three commanders were going to be picked today by His Majesty. Everyone hoped that they would be among the three.
The Coalition Army consisted of around forty thousand soldiers.
Even after dividing them into three armies, a commander would still have authority over a legion. To lead such a massive force was the opportunity of a lifetime.
"I will now announce the three commanders for this army."
Everyone held their breath. The tense atmosphere was a stark contrast to the beautiful scenery filled with thousands of flowers.
"First, Baron Zacharia."
Everyone's gaze landed on the middle-aged man with a missing arm. He was a famous figure in the Kingdom. A retired veteran who survived the Bloody Thorn Plains Incident fifteen years ago.
Although the nobles were disheartened that they were not immediately picked, they could understand the reason why Zacharia was chosen by the King. ?ot only was he strong, he also held decades' worth of wisdom born from numerous battlefields.
"Baron Zacharia, step forward!" said the Grand Chamberlain.
The Baron stepped forward and knelt before His Majesty.
"You shall be granted the authority over fourteen thousand soldiers," said the King. "You are hereby granted the title of Commander of the First Army!"
The King pinned a medal on Baron Zacharia's shoulder.
"I am greatly honored, Your Majesty."
The Baron moved to the side and stood next to the Grand Chamberlain.
"And the second commander for this army," said the King.
Time seemed to slow down as the King slowly opened his lips.
"Arzen Boris."
Arzen's eyes glimmered for a moment. A wide grin formed on his face.
"Arzen Boris, step forward!" said the Grand Chamberlain.
Arzen stepped forward and knelt down before the King.
"Arzen Boris, you are hereby granted authority over fourteen thousand soldiers," said the King. "You shall be the Commander of the Second Army!"
The King also pinned a medal on Arzen's shoulder.
"I will crush those imperial dogs for you, Your Majesty."
King Alvis nodded. "I expect a lot from the younger generation, from you, Arzen."
Arzen bowed his head. "I will not fail your expectations, My King."
Arzen moved to the side and stood next to the Baron. He momentarily locked eyes with Zacharia. He whispered, "Who do you think is the third?"
Zacharia gave a disinterested reply, "Who knows."
Arzen chuckled. The middle-aged man was a typical war veteran.
"And the last!" said the King.
By now, everyone was on the edge of their seats. Only one slot was remaining.
"Come forward," the King raised his voice, "Lark Marcus!"
A young man with silver hair stepped out of the crowd. He slowly walked toward the King, his gait filled with confidence. He knelt down before His Majesty.
"You are granted authority over seventeen thousand soldiers! You will be given the title: Commander of the Third Army!"
Lark felt the irony of this title. ?ot even a year had passed since he defeated the Third Legion. But now, he was granted the title of Commander of the Third Army. An army more than large enough to be called a legion.
But this was just perfect. ?ot only was he given one of the three slots, he was given authority to a larger army than the other commanders.
There was a lot he could do with seventeen thousand soldiers under his command.
"I humbly accept this task, Your Majesty."
He felt a piercing gaze from his right. ?pon looking, he saw Arzen staring at him. The man was smiling, but his eyes were glimmering with dangerous light. He was probably displeased that Lark was chosen instead of one of his brothers.
Lark moved to the side and stood next to the other two commanders.
Arzen said to him, "?ever expected this twist in the story. Congrats."
Lark did not reply to the sarcastic remark. He merely stood there, attentively listening to the King as he announced which armies will be incorporated into the First, Second, and Third Army.
Some of the nobles groaned when they heard that their soldiers would be under the Third Army, under the command of Lark. It was understandable, since Lark's previous shell had a notorious reputation. Even his previous feats of destroying the Black Famine and driving away the Third Legion did not easily erase that.
The King started discussing the plan of taking back the City of Yan.
Lark frowned. It should be possible to take back the city, but it would waste this army's potential. In the end, he decided to speak his mind.
He raised his hand. "Your Majesty, may I give a suggestion?"
The King paused. He looked at Lark for a moment. He remembered that the last time Lark spoke his mind, he gave them the blueprint for the mana bombs, even drafting the plan to attack the nearest city of the Empire.
Although it incited an all-out war with the Empire, no one could refute that it was nonetheless an ingenious plan.
Anticipation started to well up within him. The King said, "Go on.
What is it?"
Lark could feel numerous gazes on him but he did not care. He spoke what was on his mind. "I believe that retaking the City of Yan with all three armies combined is a mistake. Even if we take back the city, it would not benefit the Kingdom in the slightest."
"But young man," said the King. "The City of Yan is only several days away from the capital. If we do not recapture it right away, the capital is at risk of invasion from the Empire."
The other nobles nodded at the King's statement.
Lark raised three fingers. "Right now, three massive armies are here at the capital. I suggest that only the First Army march toward the City of Yan and retake it from the Empire's hands."
He glanced at Arzen, then at the King. "Meanwhile, the Second and Third Army will recapture Yorkshaire City."
It felt like a declaration of suicide. Although it had been captured by the Empire, Yorkshaire City was still known as an impregnable fortress.
And now that tens of thousands of soldiers from the Empire were guarding it, they would need way more soldiers to take back the city. Even the Silver War God and the Sword Saint had failed. But now, this newly elected commander was suggesting that they attack that fortress.
Arzen furrowed his brows. He was a commander too. He disliked the feeling that Lark was telling him which city he should attack.
"I refuse," said Arzen. "Attacking Yorkshaire, as we are now, is suicide. We should first regroup with the scattered Marcus Army and Yorkshaire Army, then from there, formulate a plan to take back the city."
Buzzes filled the royal garden. The nobles started discussing among themselves which decision was correct.
"Silence!" snarled the Grand Chamberlain. "You are before His Majesty!"
And silence befell everyone. But deep within their minds, they started calculating the pros and cons of these suggestions. Most of the nobles sided with Arzen, since the most logical thing to do was amass more soldiers before launching an attack to that fortress.
The King looked conflicted as he considered both sides. Eventually he sighed. "Lark Marcus, I'm afraid that if the Commander of the Second Army refuses to take part in your request, there's nothing more I can do."
Arzen grinned. He looked at Lark triumphantly.
"Your Majesty," said Lark, "recapturing the cities occupied by the Empire's soldiers will do nothing but chip away at our strength. As long as Yorkshaire remains within the Empire's grasp, imperial soldiers will just keep coming through that path. In the end, when our soldiers are exhausted from all the fighting, the Empire will launch an all-out offensive at the capital."
The soldiers of the Empire were several times that of the Kingdom.
As long as they occupied Yorkshaire, they could just send more soldiers to replace the fallen ones. This was probably the reason why the War God and the Sword Saint immediately rallied the defeated Marcus Army and Yorkshaire Army to reclaim the city. ?nfortunately, they lost in their attempt to retake the city.
The buzz filled the garden once again. The nobles began discussing the proposals of Lark and Arzen.
As the nobles were having heated arguments, Baron Zacharia— who'd remained silent until now—spoke.
"If the Second Army isn't willing to do it, my army will."
Lark was taken by surprise. He had not expected the war veteran to take his side.
"I believe that attacking Yorkshaire is the correct choice at this moment, Your Majesty," Baron Zacharia said humbly . "I do not want this war to be a repeat of the Bloody Thorn Plains Incident. Even if it means death, I will join the attack on Yorkshaire."