Nightfall, A secluded manor on the northern border.
Vaross Kine sat at its head, Governor-designate of the Northen State, though his jaw was clenched so tight. The decree parchment lay open before him.
Governor. Not Duke. Not sovereign of his own lands.
Governor, answerable to a boy‑king and watched by that old viper Loki Falk.
"Unacceptable," he growled.
A figure moved from the shadows by the door, armored in black lacquer plates. An envoy from Omega Kingdom.
"You seem... displeased, Governor Kine."
Kine's fingers curled around the parchment. "They strip my title. Chain me to their leash. And that Falk whelp thinks he can watch me." His glare flickered to the envoy." I still command three legions along the border. That is not nothing."
"Is it?" the envoy asked simply, stepping closer.
Kine's eyes narrowed. "Omega Kingdom meddling in Bolt affairs? That would spark war."
A faint smile. "War is... profitable."
Another figure entered through a side door, his cousin, Mira Kine, who oversaw the northern supply lines. She placed a bundle of sealed letters on the table. "Messages from our loyalists in the Old Senate. They are furious. Some are ready to move against Yuri if we give them a reason."
Kine opened one letter, scanning quickly. His heart began to race, not with fear, but with exhilaration.
Half the northern garrisons still owed their fortunes to his house.
Several barons were openly furious at their demotion to mere administrators. And Omega...
Omega was offering weapons and gold, under the table.
The envoy's voice coiled through the chamber.
"Picture it... The North rises. The governors in the East and South hesitate. You hold the passes. We supply you with arms, with arcane munitions your Chief of Arms will never see coming. In weeks, you could cut the kingdom in half."
Kine's teeth bared in a grin that wasn't friendly.
"And what would Omega want in return?"
"A port," the envoy replied smoothly, "and a king on your throne willing to sign trade rights without... Senate interference."
Mira hissed softly, "The Falk boy is green. His new system isn't tested. Strike now, and the whole edifice could crumble."
Kine rose from his chair.
He thought of Yuri's calm voice in the hall. Of Loki Falk's cold stare.
For a moment, doubt stirred. Then he crushed it.
"They think they have leashed me," Kine muttered. "But I'll teach them the cost of chains."
He turned back to the envoy.
"Bring your offer to Omega's high table. Tell them the North is ready. Within a month, we'll have half the realm with us. The rest will follow when they see the blood."
The envoy's smile widened, shark‑like. "As you command... Governor."
A month later, chaos in the south.
The reports came in like falling knives.
Whole cities in the southern region burned overnight. The garrisons there, caught off‑guard, had surrendered or switched sides before sunrise.
And at the heart of it all was Kine.
No longer calling himself Governor. Now styling himself, High Steward.
Backed by a black‑armored army and weapons no one in Bolt had seen before.
By the time the smoke cleared, three provinces flew the banner of King's Medicine: a dark crown wrapped in coiling serpents.
The war room, deep in Bolt's Kingdom palace.
A circular table filled the chamber. Maps spread across its surface, pins marking the encroaching lines of enemy control.
Chief Commander Darius, a scarred veteran.
"He's got half the southern barons feeding him intel. Bastard was planning this while we signed the decree."
Hana, now Chief of Arms and Weaponry, slammed a rifle magazine onto the table. "Look at these." She tossed down bullet casings collected from a southern skirmish. "Not ours. Omega tech. They tear through our shields like paper."
Yuri exhaled slowly, knuckles whitening on the edge of the table. "The North under his control and the South… gone in a week. We underestimated him."
Loki Falk stood silent until now, watching them all. Then he spoke.
"Kine thinks he has the South. He does not understand what the East and West will do when united. We take this personally, and we lose. We take this strategically, and we win."
He turned to Cid. "What would you do, if you were king?"
The room went quiet. Cid's eyes flicked over the map, over supply lines and river crossings, over choke points leading into the reclaimed territories.
"Kine is fast, but speed means stretched lines. He'll hold the cities, but his supply convoys will be exposed. We cut those. We burn every route in and out of his new 'North and South'. Starve him."
"A siege from the inside out," Loki said.
Cid nodded. "Exactly. Then we hit him where he doesn't expect... his heart."
Yuri leaned forward. "At his heart?"
Cid's eyes narrowed, memory and instinct blending into something cold and sharp.
"He calls his rebellion King's Medicine. Fine. We poison the medicine. Find his war councils. His lieutenants. Take them out one by one until Kine is alone."
Hana smirked darkly. "I like the way you think."
Vara's dagger stopped spinning. "I can have my agents in the North and South within days. Feed them false intel. Break his trust."
Chief Commander Darius slammed a fist onto the table, rattling pins. "Then we prepare the army. When Kine bleeds, we'll be ready to strike."
Loki watched them all, then placed his palm flat on the map over the stolen provinces.
"This is the price of change," he murmured. "And we will pay it in blood... but it will be theirs, not ours."
Yuri straightened, fire in his eyes despite the weight on his shoulders. "Then it's decided. We take back the North and South. We crush King's Medicine."