POV: Richard Kingdragon
My little sister is stronger than me.
Who would have thought?
I found myself surprised once again that day as I watched from the palace balcony while my sister fought a sparring match against a North Saint without seeming to be at a disadvantage.
Beatriz moved with two blades, one short and one longer, using quick steps, changes in rhythm, and piercing attacks.
Well, in my defense, I did not have that much time to dedicate myself to martial training. After all, I became King at ten years old, and not just any King, but the King of one of the largest kingdoms in the world: the Kingdragon Kingdom.
I truly could not have been less prepared for the position.
It seemed a little dramatic to complain about that now, since nine years had passed since then, but the fact remained the same.
The fight finally ended. Gideon defeated Beatriz, after all. He was older, more experienced, and understood the traps of the North God Style much better.
Even so, my sister did not seem satisfied with merely having resisted well. She accepted defeat with a serious expression, listened to something Gideon said, and then raised her blades again, urging him to fight again immediately.
I sighed lightly and stepped away from the balcony.
As I began walking through the palace corridors, I could not help remembering how I had reached this point. I learned to govern much earlier than I should have, but I had no choice.
The alternative would have been leaving the throne to my younger sister, who was even less prepared than I was. At that time, Beatriz was only five years old. Even today, at fourteen, she was not even an adult.
I heard that Princess Ariel had become Queen of Asura at a very young age, in her early twenties.
Well, it seems I won that contest by far.
Ahem, not that I did anything to win this position, of course.
I looked at my personal guard. The man truly looked like a mountain, tall, broad, and silent. I gestured for him to follow me and continued my path through the palace.
The way I became King was a complicated incident, in which almost my entire family was exterminated by the former Death God.
Either way, with the help of the Iron Legion and, above all, with our close alliance with the Kingdom of Gaia, I managed to overcome the social, economic, and military adversities that came along with the position.
There had been many instabilities.
Even so, my legitimacy as a genuine member of the royal family, the only legitimate heir to the throne, combined with the strength and influence of the Kingdom of Gaia, ensured that the throne remained in the hands of the Kingdragon royal family.
Obviously, I knew why they supported me.
I was young.
That made me easier to shape into a genuine ally, rather than an old opportunist full of bad habits.
But I did not care much about that. Unlike most nobles in this country, the powerful people of the Kingdom of Gaia did not specifically care about power or riches.
There were exceptions, of course, but their help felt more like friendly assimilation than conquest.
Even though we had become a kingdom subordinate to the Kingdom of Gaia, as the years passed and things changed, I saw countless good things come from that relationship, and very few bad ones.
In truth, part of the bad things came from the greedy nobles of my own country, who refused to submit to the new order because they wanted to keep criminal activities, private schemes, or personal gains away from the interference of the crown.
As the main supporter of the Kingdom of Gaia within Kingdragon, I needed to show a firm stance against that kind of attitude.
When I was younger, the Kingdom of Gaia even sent aristocrats and diplomats to teach me how a good ruler should govern.
Beyond politics itself, I learned essential values for a King: taking care of the people, making the country prosper, and seeing the bigger picture instead of pursuing only personal gains.
Honestly, I could not see a better way to govern. Acting that way made me a King loved by the people, and a King supported by his people would not fall easily.
The Iron Legion also helped me rebuild myself politically. They helped me train and recruit my own Order of Knights, as well as build political alliances with several nobles throughout the Kingdom.
Many merchants, warriors, and professionals from other countries came to me, seeing the emerging King as an opportunity for greatness.
Since I had been extremely lacking in manpower over the years, I welcomed many of them with open arms.
Two years ago, I officially founded the Order of the Silver Dragon Knights.
The foundation happened after I managed to recruit a powerful Sword King named Grant Lio, son of the renowned Sword Emperor Clint Lio.
Grant had been promoted in the Combat Temple not long before. While he was looking for a place where he could stand out outside the Kingdom of Gaia, I was looking for powerful and trustworthy subordinates.
We got along very quickly.
At present, Grant was the leader of the Order of the Silver Dragon Knights and was training the soldiers excellently.
After walking through the palace for some time, I finally reached my destination.
I entered a hall, and inside it there was a single man.
He wore black leather armor, apparently light and very different from the standard armor of the Iron Legion. One new detail drew attention: there was an eyepatch over his left eye. I recognized him immediately.
Kilian, the Gale Reaper.
He bowed slightly in respect.
As the years passed, that beastman had gradually abandoned the Kingdom's spotlight. To many, he seemed to have disappeared.
Some said he was now the leader of a secret assassination organization. Others said that, after marrying Beast Princess Pursena, he had relaxed in his training.
Either way, no one with good sense underestimated him because of that.
Kilian spoke first, holding a report I had left on the table.
"Was this your entire conversation with Hitogami? Is there any detail you would like to add?"
That was right.
With my growing influence, I had already been warned that something like this might happen. Hitogami appeared in my dreams, trying to turn me against the Kingdom of Gaia.
He seemed to be shooting in every direction. Although his approach was pleasant, I would never bite the hand that fed me. I tried to extract information while pretending to cooperate, and then recorded the entire conversation in a report.
"There is one thing, yes," I answered. "Although it is already in the report, I would like to highlight it."
During that conversation, I deduced a few ideas of my own about Hitogami's objectives. I knew Gaia would probably be prepared, but I thought it was important to share my point of view.
"Hitogami seems quite rushed. From the tone of the conversation, I am almost certain he will try something with the children of influential people during the Dawn Cup. Perhaps aiming to pit them against each other, especially the children of the World Powers."
Kilian paid attention while I spoke and read the report at the same time.
"You did well. Pay attention to signs from those close to you. This enemy is insidious, and although he is cornered, we must not underestimate him."
Kilian gave me several warnings. He had come mainly because of that, but he also took the opportunity to advise me on how to protect myself from that kind of interference.
After some time, he changed his tone to something lighter.
"I saw Princess Beatriz fighting. Does she intend to compete in the Dawn Cup?"
I smiled bitterly.
"Yes. She was recently recognized as a North Saint and is quite confident."
Kilian nodded.
"I heard that, after the incident with the Death God, she became quite attached to training. Reaching that level at fourteen is impressive. She is also a mage, correct?"
"Indeed. She is especially proficient in Wind and Water Magic, and can cast those two elements without incantations. Honestly, she owes those teachings to you, who taught her when she was still a child."
Kilian said nothing.
He was very serious overall, but I chose to believe he was happy with the compliment.
"It was nothing," he said after a brief pause. "The Princess is talented and kind."
Then he seemed to hesitate for a moment.
"I am not trying to force anything, but all the Beast God's sons are still single. There is no shortage of suitors, but I think you should keep an eye on it. Beatriz is a beautiful young woman, and although the Beast God's family does not care much about that, she has royal blood, besides being very talented. Who knows, she may grow fond of one of them. It could be a chance for the Kingdragon Kingdom to strengthen its ties with Gaia."
I was surprised by the suggestion.
Kilian continued before I could answer:
"As I said, it is only a friendly and personal suggestion. Do not take it as a political move. The Beast God does not like the idea of arranged marriages."
I reflected for a moment and fell silent.
The suggestion was not bad. On the contrary, it was so logical that perhaps I should have thought of it before.
Beatriz was talented, had royal blood, and was already approaching the age when marriage alliances would begin to be discussed by everyone around her, even if I disliked the idea.
At the same time, involving the Beast God's family required care. Rygar Adoldia was not the kind of person who would accept seeing his children used as political pieces.
"I understand," I finally answered.
Kilian nodded, said goodbye, and greeted me cordially.
Then, faster than I could follow, he disappeared, leaving only a faint breeze behind in the hall.
Right. First, I needed to know what Beatriz thought about this.
---
The news of the Dawn Cup reached almost the entire world.
Even some inhospitable villages learned about it through travelers and messengers connected to the Iron Legion headquarters.
The competition had not even begun yet, but it was already a topic in many places. Obviously, there were preliminary tests to verify whether the candidate was at least capable of competing.
Those tests could be carried out at several Iron Legion headquarters spread throughout the world, in the Kingdom of Asura, the Kingdragon Kingdom, the North, and even in more underdeveloped continents, such as the Demon Continent and Begaritt.
There were less than two months left until the contest.
The most influential families began sending their representatives to the Kingdom of Gaia. Young nobles, children of famous warriors, heirs of martial schools, prodigy mages, descendants of tribal chiefs, and talented children from distant regions began moving toward the same destination.
This would probably be the first international and interracial competition held in the last several thousand years. At least, there were no records of another competition on a similar scale.
The students of Star Rise Academy could register easily by consulting their teachers, without additional tests. This increased the Academy's popularity even further.
The young talents training in the Combat Temple were also more motivated than ever in their training.
Whoever obtained a good position would enter history as one of the first great names of the Dawn Cup.
And even those who did not win could gain worldwide renown just by reaching far enough. Many people came to appreciate, observe, and even recruit talented youths.
Nobles sought future knights. Merchants sought promising names to sponsor. Martial schools sought new disciples.
Each had their own objectives.
And, amid the euphoria and excitement permeating the Kingdom of Gaia, Aisha and Rygar quietly appeared in the same S-Rank Labyrinth in the Blue Dragon Mountain Range.
They had successfully returned from their research. Now, it would be time to execute that mad plan on a large scale, throughout the entire Human World.
For that, they would need the cooperation of many people.
But, for now, Rygar wanted only one thing.
To spend some time with his family after being away for more than a month.
The world was gradually moving toward yet another unprecedented change, toward a gallows.
And at the end of that rope, Hitogami was hanging dangerously.
----
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