Ancient Imperial Calendar Year 1831
After Brian's death, Njassar Rappa Ashterah took command of the army.
Rappa had become obsessed with avenging Brian, searching everywhere for Noyan's armies.
During this process, he conquered countless villages, fortresses, and cities, burning, looting, and slaughtering those who resisted.
Finally, he found his mortal enemy, Noyan Turvig, whom he had been seeking for months.
The Turvig army consisted of two and a half million soldiers, while the Ashterah armies numbered one and a half million.
Rappa had divided his army into three: the Golden Lion Legions, which he personally commanded, in the center.
On the right flank were heavy infantry and light cavalry,
While on the left flank were light infantry and heavy cavalry.
Noyan had arranged his army more simply.
The Turvig army was split in two: heavy units in the front, light units in the rear.
War horns sounded, and the two armies attacked.
"FOLLOW ME, GOLDEN LIONS! WE WILL TAKE NOYAN'S HEAD!"
With Rappa's battle cry, the Golden Lion Legion attacked, targeting the Turvig Supreme Commander Noyan directly.
"So, they're coming for me? Well then..."
Noyan did not take the young Supreme Commander, driven by vengeance, seriously, but he saw this situation as a tremendous opportunity to kill Rappa.
"CHILDREN OF THE STEPPE, FOLLOW ME!"
The Children of the Steppe, the Elite Cavalry Unit of the Turvig Dynasty, under the command of Supreme Commander Noyan Turvig, charged towards Rappa.
When the Children of the Steppe and the Golden Lions began fighting hand-to-hand under the leadership of their Supreme Commanders, blood flowed profusely.
They used every last drop of their strength to shatter each other's heavy armor.
Rappa and Noyan engaged directly in a duel; this time, both were at full power.
Noyan noticed Rappa's development and couldn't help but be impressed.
"You have grown very strong in the past months, Young Lord of Ashterah."
Ignoring the compliments from his mortal enemy, Rappa focused solely on his killing blows.
"Do you really want to kill me that much, Young Lord? Very well, then. LET US FIGHT UNTIL DEATH!"
Filled with fervor, Noyan began to fight seriously with all his might.
He is very strong. I might not win, but I must continue fighting. As long as I stand, my soldiers will never fall. Since we entered the 1800s, the Eastern People have been shaken by a series of defeats. The moral and material wounds opened by countless wars have devastated people from all walks of life and status. When this war ends and I become the new Dynasty Lord, all these sufferings will end. I will establish an order where everyone will live in happiness and peace, where their loved ones will not die. I must survive for this.
Rappa ignored the fatal wounds he received; he just swung his sword, cast spells, fought, fought, and fought some more. Finally, he managed to break Noyan's endurance.
My hands are trembling. My mana and Aura are about to run out. How did he become so strong? What great Potential does he possess to be as strong as me at such a young age? I cannot die. I must not die. I have a family waiting for me at home. My soldiers have families too. We must all win this war and return home. We have to live for our families waiting for us.
Rappa, Noyan, Turvig and Ashterah Soldiers—each of them had Mothers, Fathers, Siblings, Spouses, and Children waiting for them to come home. If they died here, the people waiting for them would feel nothing but pain for a lifetime. They all had one single, shared thought in their minds:
We must win. We must live. And we must return home.
They all fought with these thoughts until night fell, but one had to win while the other had to lose.
Noyan crashed onto his back. As he breathed his last, Rappa also collapsed to his knees, half-conscious.
A Golden Lion lifted Rappa, mounted his horse, and carried him away from the battlefield.
Another Golden Lion cut off Noyan's head, shaped his Golden Yellow Aura into a spear.
The Golden Lion impaled Noyan's severed head on the tip of the spear and raised it high.
"THE YOUNG LORD OF THE ASHTERAH DYNASTY, NJASSAR RAPPA ASHTERAH, HAS TAKEN THE HEAD OF THE TURVIG SUPREME COMMANDER, NOYAN TURVIG!"
When the Ashterah soldiers heard this victory cry, they were filled with energy. Each one simultaneously shouted a single person's name:
"LONG LIVE THE YOUNG LORD, NJASSAR RAPPA! LONG LIVE! LONG LIVE! LONG LIVE!"
The Turvig soldiers, on the other hand, had their morale crushed by the death of their Supreme Commander; they lost their fighting spirit and their belief in victory.
While the Ashterah soldiers fought more strongly, the Turvigs began to flee.
The Ashterah soldiers killed as many fleeing Turvig soldiers as they could, crowning their victory.
"Did we win?" murmured Rappa.
"We won, my Young Lord. We won thanks to you," said the Golden Lion.
A few days had passed since the battle. Rappa's wounds had healed, and he was making plans for the next stages of the war.
"In the battle, we killed one and a half million Turvig soldiers, but our losses were also very heavy. We lost half our army; only seven hundred fifty thousand of our soldiers remain."
"Even winning that fierce and disadvantaged battle was a miracle, my Young Lord."
Ashterah Commander Woohyung Ashterah.
"True, our losses are heavy, but our gains are greater. There is no longer any obstacle between us and the Turvig capital, Öttükent."
Ashterah Commander Sakamoto Longjian.
"No, there is still one obstacle ahead of us. That place is the city of Frankfurt."
The Ashterah commanders carefully examined the city's location.
"The city is built on a mountain; it's easy to defend, difficult to conquer. Moreover, they control all routes leading to Öttükent. It's impossible to bypass them," said Woohyung.
"So, what is our plan, Young Lord?"
Rappa pointed to the room adjacent to the tent.
"Our plan is right there."
A woman emerged from inside the room. A woman in her late twenties, her eyes burning with the fire of revenge, full of rage.
She slightly bent her knee and bowed her head, greeting the Ashterah Commanders.
"I greet the esteemed Ashterah Commanders. My name is Freya Frankfurt. I am the daughter of the ruler of this city, VIII Frank Frankfurt, Dynasty Lord of the Frankfurt Dynasty, the ruling family of this city."
The Ashterah commanders stood up in anger.
"YOU ARE DESCENDED FROM II FRANK, WHO KILLED THE LAST ANCIENT EMPEROR, VIII HARLOUMEN?!"
Rappa raised his hand.
"Everyone calm down. Recalling events from a thousand years ago is nothing but foolishness. Just as we can now fight shoulder to shoulder with the Kislavein Dynasty despite our Two Great Wars with them, why can't we fight alongside our enemy from a thousand years ago?"
Even Rappa's speech wasn't enough to completely calm the Ashterah commanders.
"But, Supreme Commander, if this situation reaches the ears of the Kislavein Dynasty Lord, what will we do?"
"Everyone knows how devoted he is to the Ancient Empire and Kislavein History. If he finds out we are cooperating with the daughter of his Dynasty's and History's greatest enemy and decides to slaughter us all, what will we do?"
Acknowledging his commanders' anxious state, Rappa made a new explanation.
"First, if we want to conquer or destroy this city, we can only do so with someone who knows every nook and cranny of it. Especially if that someone is from the city's ruling Dynasty, then we have an even greater advantage. Second, half of the fleeing Turvig soldiers are in this city. Freya told me there is a way to destroy this city with zero losses. Freya, would you explain?"
Freya stepped forward and began to explain her plan.
"First, I must ask you something: Have you ever heard of the black liquid?"
The Ashterah commanders, unable to understand this term, looked at each other. When no one knew, a commander asked Freya:
"What is this black liquid?"
Freya replied:
"I don't know exactly what it is either, but as a result of my research, I discovered it is a highly flammable and explosive liquid. And the entire city is built atop this liquid. If one of your soldiers, accepting death, enters the cave I will show and casts a powerful fire spell, you can destroy the entire city along with its inhabitants."
Rappa and all the other commanders liked the plan, but they couldn't understand one thing:
"Why are you helping us? In the end, your family and your people will be destroyed."
Freya replied with anger and grief:
"They are not my family, nor are they my people. Just because I am the child of a concubine, I have been treated like a bastard since childhood. Humiliation, beatings, harsh words, and harassment have followed me all my life."
Freya wiped away her tears, took a deep breath, and when she calmed down, continued speaking:
"Kill them all. Afterward, if you wish, kill me too."
Rappa placed his hand on Freya's shoulder and spoke in a reassuring voice:
"We won't kill you. I'm sure the Kislavein Dynasty Lord will repay you in kind for the help you've given us."
Rappa turned to his commanders.
"We will implement the plan immediately."
The commanders stood up.
"AS YOU COMMAND, YOUNG LORD!"
That night, the Ashterah soldier who entered the cave Freya had shown used all his mana to explode the cave.
The entire mountain and city were destroyed. One million people in the city, five hundred thousand Turvig soldiers, and the descendants of II Frank, who had killed the last Ancient Emperor and his family a thousand years ago—all died in these explosions.
Freya inhaled the smell of burnt flesh until she was satisfied.
"Revenge is a very beautiful feeling."
Rappa spoke with a mocking tone:
"Just now, one and a half million people died because of you. Are you aware of that?"
Freya, with a sadistic smile and voice:
"Yes, and it's a very beautiful feeling."
Rappa was slightly taken aback but didn't show it.
That night, Rappa learned the history of the Frankfurt Dynasty from Freya.
A thousand years ago, II Frank of Fresfurt was killed by Kislavein Dynasty Lord I Karlmen, years after he destroyed the Ancient Empire.
Karlmen conquered the Fresfurt lands, slaughtered the people, and plundered everything.
He hunted down everyone who carried II Frank's blood; he even slaughtered those from the same lineage.
The few survivors first fled to the Central Lands, but were hunted by the local population. From there, they fled to the Eastern Lands, but here too they became targets of the Ashbrum Dynasty.
The Ashbrum Dynasty wanted to destroy the enemies of their friends and relatives, the Kislavein Dynasty, and they hunted the Fresfurts. Upon this, the last surviving Fresfurt family member, Jahan Fresfurt, took refuge in the Northern Lands.
Here, he was greeted as a hero, because the Northern People hated VIII Harloumen to death and viewed the Fresfurt Dynasty, which destroyed him and his family, as heroes.
Jahan was appointed Lord of a city by the Ving Dynasty Lord.
Here, Jahan established a new dynasty bearing the name of his great-great-grandfather II Frank, to honor him.
The Frankfurt Dynasty.
Although this Dynasty was not Northern, it became one of the most beloved and powerful Dynasties in the North.
Every Dynasty Lord was ready to give even their lives for the North, especially fighting on the front lines in wars against the Kislavein Dynasty.
Now, this Dynasty had been destroyed by the Ashterah Dynasty with the help of one of its own members.