The Oken Empire declared war on Peiren.

Crown Prince Archaik Oken led the vanguard. He proclaimed his justification for this war: “Peiren has unlawfully taken and leaked dragon blood, a treasure of the Oken Empire. This insult against the Empire cannot be overlooked.”

He claimed he would raise an army to demonstrate the Empire’s majesty and punish the insolent vassal state.

The Kingdom of Peiren was thrown into chaos. The Trow family, accused of leaking dragon blood, was particularly shaken.

“How dare the Crown Prince stab us in the back like this!” Count Trow wailed. Lord Trow rubbed his face in despair beside him. So it had come to this after all.

“Father, didn’t you realize the Crown Prince was planning to use and discard us? This is no time to be standing around.”

“What would you have us do?”

“What else? We need to flee!”

Count Trow and Lord Trow hastily escaped. Their retainers and spies who had no choice but to remain also scattered in all directions.

Ruyan Piert, acting on royal orders, personally led a unit of knights in pursuit. He urged his knights forward: “Capture them! They need not be taken alive! Special rewards await those who bring them in!”

Count Trow and Lord Trow fled persistently. True to their nature as men who had risen through schemes and fraud, they desperately headed east. Whether they reached the eastern mountains or the southeastern port, they intended to cross any border they could find.

However, the Piert ducal territory lay along the eastern border. Knights of the Piert family, already on high alert and preparing for war since Leah rejected the marriage proposal, guarded the eastern border.

This was a dead end for Count Trow and Lord Trow, who had fled toward the mountains. When they turned south, Ruyan’s pursuit team drove them further.

“Count Trow’s body has been discovered!”

The Count was found with a sword wound, his body gaunt and emaciated. It was an inglorious end for someone who had once dominated Peiren’s social circles.

Several days later, Lord Trow, who had been fleeing alone, was captured. He claimed he had abandoned the wounded Count and escaped alone. The knights, however, thought differently.

“It appears Lord Trow killed the Count during their escape.”

“Hmm.”

Ruyan nodded briefly at this unsurprising news. It was no secret that Count Trow had mistreated and ignored his eldest son.

“Take Count Trow’s body to the royal palace. The king will likely order it displayed as an example, but there might be separate instructions.”

“Yes, sir. What about Lord Trow?”

“Take him to the royal palace as well.”

A short stay in the underground prison followed by special execution would likely await him. Ruyan turned his horse around.

“Let’s head to the border.”

“Yes, Commander. But…”

“What is it?”

The knight hesitated before speaking.

“They announced a full-scale offensive, but there’s no sign of the Crown Prince or his army at the border…”

“…”

“Where could he be?”

***

Crown Prince Archaik was at the Imperial Palace.

He and his Snake Knights moved through the palace like a single entity, beheading members of the royal family. The Emperor, killed first, had been dead for quite some time.

The declaration of war against Peiren was merely a diversion. The Crown Prince, pretending to march toward Peiren, had turned around and returned to the palace. There, he wielded his sword of rebellion without hesitation.

“Archaik…!”

Second Imperial Princess Arzina, who had clung to him until the end, hissed his name through clenched teeth.

“I should have known you would do this… If only Father had made a wiser decision!”

“…”

“All for that cursed dragon! If I had contracted with a dragon too, I wouldn’t be suffering like this…!”

Archaik grabbed the blood-soaked Princess’s chin.

“You are greatly mistaken,” he said slowly.

“Even with a dragon contract, a human remains merely human.”

His black eyes transformed completely into golden ones—the pupils of a predator. The Princess gasped.

“You… you’re not Archaik!”

Long claws emerged from the Crown Prince’s hand. The hand that had been holding her chin swiftly pierced her throat.

“Dragon… you were a dragon…!”

With a final scream, the Princess’s body collapsed.

The Imperial Palace witnessed a bloody purge that eliminated the Emperor and all royal family members. Archaik Oken was the only royal left alive.

With all suitable successors gone, he was the only one who could ascend to the throne. However, Archaik could not receive the imperial crown. The High Priest had refused to approve his succession and committed s*icide.

“That old man, until the very end…”

The High Priest’s s*icide poured cold water on Archaik’s succession to the throne.

‘Crown Prince Archaik is a demon! He will lead the Empire and the world to destruction!’

Archaik had thought the High Priest was acting on behalf of the Second Princess, the Empress, and their noble supporters, but it seemed he was more sincere than expected.

“What did he say before he died?”

“According to another priest who was attending him, he said, ‘The gods only showed me the future but not how to prevent it, so I will do what I can from here,’ and then took his life.”

“…”

The advisor glanced nervously at Archaik.

“What will you do? It will take several months to appoint a new High Priest. Apparently, this is due to the purification rituals…”

Archaik fell into thought momentarily.

“Never mind. We’ll postpone the coronation.”

“Are you certain? You should proclaim yourself the Empire’s ruler as soon as possible.”

“That’s not what’s important.”

Even with just the title of Crown Prince, he had enough power to bring the Empire to ruin.

***

Silently, quietly.

The war had begun.

The Oken Empire moved through border villages near Peiren, poisoning wells. Countless residents collapsed without knowing why.

Those who occasionally survived were no longer their former selves. Following the absolute command echoing in their minds, they turned their backs on their hometowns, now transformed into graveyards. The Crown Prince’s army gradually grew with these newly recruited magic users.

“After making us wait so long, something seems to be starting now,” Rikeil remarked.

Prince Patrick, who had deployed with the knights, nodded with a grim expression.

“I’m worried because they don’t look like a conventional army. I’ve heard Crown Prince Archaik has a contract with a dragon…”

Leah and Helix stood nearby, tensely watching the border area.

Beyond where the mountains ended and plains stretched lay the lands of the Oken Empire. The mana energy gathering at that distant edge felt ominous.

“It seems Archaik has made his move,” Helix said.

The faces of those standing on the watchtower darkened. Prince Patrick asked in almost a whisper, “Can you tell us exactly what’s happening? We need to prepare.”

“An army of magic users is forming in the border region.”

The prince’s morale visibly plummeted. Leah quickly stepped forward.

“Your Highness, please don’t worry too much. We have mages too!”

The mages she had gathered were summoned. However, Leah’s eyes widened when she saw who led them.

“Phil?”

“Lady Leah!”

Phil, beginning to lose his childish appearance and showing signs of adolescence, ran toward her with a bright smile. She asked with a bewildered expression, “What are you doing here?”

“I’m the strongest among the mages!”

Phil, whom the slave trader and the bearded man had forced to drink the poison right before Leah’s eyes, had now become a proper mage and was delighted to be a fire mage like her.

She put her hand to her forehead.

‘Is this really okay?’

Of course, those who had developed magical abilities during the recent poisoning incident in the capital were still absolute beginners. The children who had been training at the magic school before would naturally be stronger.

‘But they’re still children! And this is war!’

The nobles in the army also stirred with discontent when they saw the mages who had answered Leah’s call.

“They’re all just children and women!”

Leah responded firmly, “Is it my fault that those cowardly Trows mainly poisoned women and children? That’s why our mages look like this.”

“But they need to be effective fighters!”

The nobles shouted in excitement.

“What help can women and children be in war? They’ll just faint at the sight of blood!”

“Perhaps you haven’t heard that I’m a fire mage with monster hunting experience?”

“That’s different! Monster hunting and war are not the same thing!”

A heated argument ensued. A former fish vendor turned mage overheard this and grumbled.

“The nobles are the ones who’ll faint at the sight of blood! We women are quite familiar with blood, seeing it once a month! Right?”

“That’s right!”

The older female mages heartily agreed.

Leah appreciated these women for taking the lead and keeping the other mages’ spirits up. However, she had to maintain certain boundaries.

“That’s so true. It’s a shame we can’t relay that message directly to the noble gentlemen.”

“Hahaha! Oh, Lady Leah. It’s just a figure of speech.”

“Still, involving children in war doesn’t seem right. Please keep them in the rear.”

“Of course. Children need to grow up healthy first.”

“That’s exactly what I mean. I’ve heard mages have long lifespans. If they develop trauma during this war, they might suffer for the next hundred years. What good would that do for our precious mages?”

The mages rallied around Leah. After all, it was Leah Piert, the first fire mage, who had saved them and opened the path of magic for them.

The nobles’ army, however, had different concerns.

“If only we had at least one reliable male mage…”

“Mind your words. Though she’s my sister, she’s a talented individual accomplished in both fire and wind magic.”

“Lord Piert, I understand your sister is an exceptional mage. But they have a dragon contractor and an army of magic users bearing down on us! Meanwhile, we have only one proper mage and this ragtag bunch!”

“Will they really be of any help? Perhaps we should consider sending a letter of surrender to the Empire…”