Far away from the Feudal Capital, General Rubion is riding with General of the Guard Kiber at his side, both frustrated by the terrible results of the battle in the Capital, as the coup forces' 10,000 soldiers have been reduced to just 1,500.
- Did you see that coming, Vagner Kiber? - The insurgent general asked, clearly frustrated.
- No, definitely not, those things can only be magic, but what would it be?
- I had to use everything I had at the moment, but that young kirbom's army ruined everything.
- At least the Hero of the Bow is on our side, with him this war will soon be over.
- I hope that's true, but now there's no point in mourning this defeat, because they've won this battle, but we still have a war to win.
So, what was left of the coup army set off towards the north of the fiefdom, having already passed through the town of Kirt, to the north of the zone of towns surrounding the Feudal Capital, before beginning the artillery attack.
At the end of the day, 100 soldiers accompanied by a few armored vehicles and artillery pieces begin the invasion of the town of Kirt, a small town a few kilometers north of the Feudal Capital Histolopolis, where the artillery attack has knocked down its walls.
- Let's go! - A sergeant shouts as the soldiers enter the city, first they pass through the rubble of the walls, which have completely covered some parts of the outbreaks, making it easier for the infantry to cross.
The people of the city became desperate and the shooting began. Some archers tried to resist from the top of the houses, firing their arrows, but it had little effect, because the allied forces were always accompanied by armored vehicles.
The warriors, on the other hand, were quickly massacred by the rifles of the Wiki Town soldiers.
After an hour of fighting in the city, some areas were devastated by the conflict, as some houses were shot at by the warriors who had taken refuge inside the houses.
At 10 p.m., the only radio communicator brought to the battle was broadcasting.
- The city is ours!
The news of the victory in Kirt reached Magnus via a messenger, who rushed to him, and inside the small palace where he had been staying, Magnus hurried to his office.
- Sir! - Shouts the messenger, tired and already getting sleepy.
- What is it now? - Magno asked, already drowsy after hours of dealing with various paperwork.
- My lord, the city of Kirt has been conquered.
- I'm glad they did it. - He was tired of sitting for hours reading endless reports and having to think about his future actions in the war.
But when he saw the messenger informing him of this good news from the front, he picked up a blank piece of paper and began to write. When he had finished, he put it in a makeshift envelope, folded from another piece of white paper.
- Take this letter to the logistics commander, they will receive an extra ration as a reward, and some reinforcements to secure their positions.
- Yes, sir.
With that, the messenger leaves, closing the door to his office, and going back to work and almost falling asleep, he thinks as he looks at the map of the fiefdom.
"Now the area around the capital can be made into a few lines of defense while I get a better look at my allies.
The next day, the weather turns cloudy, and the first reinforcements and supplies from Wiki begin to arrive, with the aim of recruiting locals from the capital region into the loyalist army.
On this day, Magno is once again wearing his formal military attire from Wiki City, and is in the meeting room talking to his generals, who are all sitting in their chairs.
- That's the idea, to spread recruitment propaganda leaflets throughout the areas under our domain to increase our contingent, any objections? - Magno asks.
Everyone is silent.
- Does anyone have any more ideas?
Then a general with a thin moustache comments.
- My lord, you might consider the idea of first talking to those who can help me in our cause, because we don't even know the intentions of your late brother's generals yet, my lord.
- I see, so what are you proposing, that we should first start talks with them?
And then a bespectacled general interrupts.
- Especially the leaders of the southwest, the resources of their lands would be extremely helpful to our cause of uniting the fiefdom once again.
- Um, their army is weak, we can conquer their lands quickly, but the only problem is that we'll run out of troops for our offensive if we send some of them there.
Suddenly another general comments.
- But sir, why not bring the magic division.
Everyone falls silent and directs their frightened gazes at this general.
- I see you haven't considered this possibility.
Magno isn't scared, he just looks serious.
- At first I didn't want to bring you here, because the aim was just to show strength and not to show all the cards on the table.
- But now, what do you think? The war is already happening.
Magno looks at the general seriously and thoughtfully and after a brief silence from the future new feudal lord, he says pragmatically.
- Right, I'll order the magical division to be sent to the lands of the south-western leaders while we begin our talks with the generals we know are not supporting the insurgent forces.
And continue.
- All in agreement?
All the generals agree with his plan, so, seeing that everything is settled with them, Magno gets up from his chair.
- Well then. - Suddenly Magno points to the general who had suggested using the Magic Division. - You will be in charge of the Magic Division on this mission, since you were one of those who formed this division, I think you understand them better than anyone else in the room.
The general smiles.
- Thank you my lord, I knew you would understand the need to use my men.
- But know that this is a real mission and not just the training you've had so far, use everything you can to subdue their forces, and anyone who commits crimes in enemy territory must be arrested immediately, understand? Because if I learn of any omission on your part, you'll soon be facing me again.
- Yes, sir. - The general replies confidently.
- Well then, everyone get to work.
So he leaves the meeting room and walks down the corridor to his room to get some rest.
"First I have to take care of my brother's funeral, then I'll see about the war."
Hours later, Magnus leaves the palace accompanied by his generals, but mainly with his sister, who is also dressed in formal clothes.
Her melancholy expression shows the mood of everyone there.
- Brother, please don't die too. - His sister pleads wistfully.
He looks at her and notices her clear sadness.
- Of course, I'll do what I can to make sure that doesn't happen.
The people began to crowd in front of the gate as the two went through it, and the soldiers from Wiki City had to intervene to make enough room for them to leave the palace without any trouble.
The palace gates open and the two pass through the path opened by the soldiers, Cobalsk, the other generals and Ricardo following right behind them, until they stop in front of a street.
It takes a while for the knights to arrive on horseback escorting a large carriage containing the coffin of Charles and his wife's body.
Richard, Cobalsk and the other generals get on their respective horses, while Magnus and Antonia get into the carriage to say their last words before the funeral.
At that moment, Charles' generals, who apparently didn't join the coup, arrive in the city with a small part of their armies, and are soon on their way to Charles' funeral.
Once inside the carriage, Magno takes from his pocket a letter written to him by Charles before he died and begins to read it, trying to contain his emotion.
- Dear Brother and Sister, if you're reading this letter in particular, it's because I've passed away, in case I've been too hard on you, I sincerely apologize, I'm still unhappy about the death of our parents, in case you're wondering, as I'm writing this, it's been two years since they died?
Gradually, Magno begins to fall into melancholy and his sobs of sadness, tears start to leave his face, but even so, he continues to read.
- I hope to see you grow up and become better people than me, I also hope that my departure doesn't shake you emotionally, I hope that my teachings stay in your minds and hearts, if I have a son, tell him that his father has always loved him, now, at this moment, I will probably be accompanied by his father and mother, maybe in the afterlife I'll meet my distant ancestors, maybe you'll be crying for me, so my last request is, that you go on with your lives, remember me, but don't mourn forever, life is too beautiful to spend suffering forever because of me, I'm counting on you for that, okay? For the last time? So long my brothers, I hope to see you in the afterlife.
When they finish reading the letter, the two of them are barely able to keep their composure, especially Antonia.
As for Magno, immersed in sadness and melancholy, he begins to remember the past with his brother, who is no longer there.
Of the joyful times when the three of them played together, of the times when he helped him with his studies, of the time when Charles allowed Magno to run a hitherto small rural town not far from the Feudal Capital, Wiki Town, of the times when he taught him how to handle a sword.
All this is now in the past, and what makes it even more melancholy is the fact that Magno wasn't there with Charles, in his last days and in his last words.
- If I had been there, I could have done something. - Magno says, already expressing his sadness as he hugs his coffin.
However, no one outside the carriage could see what was going on inside, with the curtain contributing to this.
Antonia gradually began to show signs of stopping her crying.
- Brother, what are you going to do about his murderer? - she asked, seeing his sad expression change to one of clear anger.
- His murderer will get what he deserves, deep down in my soul, he will suffer the weight of the justice that awaits him.
Arriving at the cemetery, raindrops begin to fall and in silence, the two get out of the carriage.
The knights of Wiki City carefully remove the coffin from the carriage, the people who were there applaud in silence as the knights pass in front of them carrying the coffin, which bears the flag of the Feud of the Seven Lakes, which is a flag with three stripes, yellow at the top, black in the middle and brown at the bottom, in the center of the flag bears the coat of arms of the feud.
The coat of arms consists of a triangular shield with a pointed top, in the center a sword wrapped in cloth, on the left a medieval-style dragon and on the right a medieval representation of the sea, all with rice branches around it.
The rain began to get heavier, just behind all the generals of Magno's army and those who had been read to by Charles who had been able to come.
- So the time has come. - Magno comments as he arrives at the place where his brother will be buried. The tombstone has the real shape of his brother and his birth and death dates engraved on the tombstone, which is next to that of their deceased parents.
"I never thought I'd be back here so soon."
Antonia hugs him as the coffin arrives, at which point the generals stop and salute.
The priest, who was already there waiting for the burial, begins the burial rituals, saying how God will bless his soul and that he will go to paradise. In addition, the priest says that he left with the glory and honors that a Kirbom deserves, the family blessed by God to lead the Fiefdom of the Seven Lakes.
However, nothing the priest said mattered to Magno, he just sat quietly listening to what the priest was saying, but all he could think about was how he was going to get revenge on the Hero of the Bow.
After the priest's speech was over, it was time to bury him, and with their hands full of earth, Magno and Antonia threw the earth from their hands into Charles' coffin, now in the grave.
Then Magno reflects as he watches the gravediggers fill the grave with earth.
"He fell fighting, what he taught me won't be lost, not by me, I... I just hope I can see you in the afterlife when I die."
When they finish burying the coffin, Magno stares for a while at his brother's tombstone with a thoughtful and sad expression, after which he addresses everyone around him, holding back his sadness.
- Dear citizens of the people of the Feud of the Seven Lakes, I thank everyone who is here, the pain I feel now is indescribable, especially when you know who did it, our late lord Charles Histol Kirbom, was murdered while protecting the Feudal Capital against the coup forces.
Everyone is silent, the generals from the other cities are surprised.
- And the assassin has a name, which is the Hero of the Bow, the Imperial hero who once swore before Emperor Kirsim that he would protect the Empire and its fiefdoms, but has recently shown himself to be a great danger, he has allied himself with the coup plotters and sought to assassinate Mr. Charles, and to the sorrow of us all, he succeeded, so I proclaim a request for help to the people of the Seven Lakes Fiefdom, to help me rebuild the fiefdom, facing a war against the traitors of the fiefdom, but united we will win, so I ask you, help me guide the legitimate government of the Seven Lakes Fiefdom to victory!
They remain silent.
- As his brother, I will have to take over the fiefdom, as the new Legitimate Lord of the Seven Lakes Fiefdom, so please help me bring an era to our fiefdom, because together no one will stop us!
Everyone was silent, and so the funeral ended and slowly everyone left, except for Magnus and Antonia, who, when they were finally alone, prayed for the soul of their dead brother.
And when they've finished praying, Antônia leaves a bouquet of flowers on the gravestone.
"His death will not be in vain."
It was already dawn, and Magno was in the meeting room once again discussing strategies for war with his generals, and with the generals who fought for the legality of the Kirbom family apparently, of which there are 7.
- Your brother had warned us of this possibility before he died. - Comments one of them, who is wearing full plate armor and has the fief's coat of arms engraved on his chest.
- I thank you for your support, but I'm going to propose something important.
- And what would that be, my lord? - asks the other.
Then Magno places a revolver-like weapon on the table.
- What is it? - asks another, curious about the object.
- This is military victory guaranteed, this is a weapon more lethal than crossbows, swords or axes, this object makes any armor you know useless.
Everyone looks at each other and then one of them asks.
- And how does it work?
- This thing, it's a small device that makes a small internal explosion to launch a piece of metal at high speed, and I assure you that no armor is capable of protecting you from these pieces of metal.
All 7 of Charles' legalistic generals doubt everything that Magnus has just said, the idea of a device capable of this seems impossible in their minds.
But then, seeing all this distrust expressed by them, Magnus proposed a test.
- Don't you believe it? Well then, Mr. General Mike, hand me the breastplate of your armor and we'll all go outside. -And as they leave the room after the armor part has been handed over, he looks at his generals. - And the rest of you, stay here and we'll be right back.
- Really, sir? - asks one of Charles' generals.
- Really, I believe that after this test, no one will have any doubts about the potential of this object.
Outside, Magno placed the general's breastplate on a wooden stump, but before pulling the trigger, he ordered everyone to move away from him, claiming to be safe.
He pulls the trigger, the shot goes off and a deafening noise echoes around the block, they see everything, the general's supposedly impenetrable armor didn't stand a chance, and soon a large hole appears.
- It can't be! - says one of them incredulously.
- My armor! - General Mike shouts in despair.
A confident smile appears on Magno's face as he looks back at where they are.
- Now they believe me?
One of the generals is even startled by the shot, but his fear turns into curiosity and enthusiasm.
- There are several versions of it, this one is a small version, there are much larger versions than this.
Back in the meeting room of the small palace, the palace stewards hand them a contract, but before they sign it, he himself comments on the terms.
- First term, everyone who signs will have to agree to the orders coming from the new feudal lord.
He continues as he watches the generals reading the contract.
- Secondly, the territories must be home only to the fief's armies and the armies of the cities must be incorporated into the feudal army.
The generals look at each other in confusion at what they have just heard.
- Thirdly, the Wiki city will have to supply the new armies under the command of the new feudal lord with military equipment and infrastructure.
He continues.
- Fourthly, Wiki City will have to renovate the infrastructure of the cities and territories under the rule of the new feudal lord, and among other terms, which I prefer you read before signing.
Then the seven generals read the terms proposed by Magnus, which, when finished, made no one show any discontent, and they signed with a certain enthusiasm and confidence.
- I hope you keep your end of the bargain, my lord. - commented one of the generals.
He in turn replies with a brief smile.
After the meeting, he went back to his room, his confidence that he had previously shown in front of his new allied generals now draining away like water from his hands.
"I don't know exactly where you are my brother, but I hope you'll give me the strength to carry on, I didn't expect to have to take over your position, I don't feel capable of managing the fief, but now I'll have to learn with a war going on."
He went to lie down on his bed, as it was already night and the only thing lighting the place was a small candle in a ceramic dish on top of a small, fancy wooden bookcase.
"I hope my sister gets over it soon, but how can I expect her to if even I don't see any prospect of overcoming this terrible feeling, it's hypocritical of me, but as the new ruler of the fief, I'll have to suppress these emotions, the calamity instigated by those insurgents makes it inconvenient to show it, even to my closest colleagues, well, may tomorrow be a good day."
In a corner near the border of the Seven Lakes Fiefdom with the Quar Fiefdom, Rubion finds himself inside a town hall in a domed city.
- This could be a good one, show me now. - He orders inside the meeting room.
His subordinates soon show him a large flag similar to Norway's, but in the colors of the fiefdom's flag and with a white star in the corner diagonally right upwards
- That'll be it, notify me and start producing that flag.
- Yes, sir!
- I want it in large quantities before our offering.
He then walks over to the window, glimpsing the moonlight almost covered by clouds.
"Soon the Feud of the Seven Lakes will have collapsed, that in the Capital was just a small unforeseen event, but the result will be the same, all we have to do is delegitimize that bastard's brother and everything will be resolved, for that Emperor Kirsim will have to be by my side and I have a plan for that."